Latest and Greatest

[#1]

Ten years ago if you had asked me if I liked The Beatles my answer would have been an emphatic “no.”  Nearly everyone around me – my family included – seemed to rave about how they were the best thing to happen since sliced bread.  Not only did it get old fast, but I grew tired of being told why I “had to” like certain songs and albums.  In fact, I often found myself not liking certain artists because someone else I knew liked them…and because they somehow felt the need lecture me on why I should too.

The usual arguments presented to me often included “so-and-so is one of the greatest [insert instrument here] players ever” and “they inspired [insert another band name here],” but I could not have cared less.  There’s always someone out there that’s “better” than “the best” and just because one musical group influenced another that doesn’t necessarily mean that they sound anything alike.  It wasn’t until I actually made the conscious decision to ignore such “recommendations” though that my musical tastes were allowed to broaden beyond the saccharin 80’s pop that I seemed to listen to exclusively during the first couple years of high school.

So, what do I listen for?  Three things: complex harmonies, dissonance, and groups that understand that music isn’t just blaring vocals or heavy instrumentals.  Although not all the groups I listen to are capable of all three, these factors mean that there will always be a place on my iPod for Ozzy Osbourne, Parliament and Wilson Philips.

As far as The Beatles are concerned, I hadn’t really considered giving them a second chance until I first heard “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” on the radio.  It’s not a very complex song, but it does have a hint of the dissonance I typically look for.  After all, it’s not very often that you hear a sitar and acoustic guitar playing the same melody.  Eventually I decided to invest the $15 and purchase Rubber Soul.

Now, I realize that Rubber Soul was the start of the group’s transformation from a Merseybeat sound to one that’s more pop/rock, but it still served as a springboard for me into their back catalogue.  While I tended to avoid the songs that always received radio airtime, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that perhaps there was something to my family and friends’ ramblings – many of the Beatles’ songs are kind of catchy and have singable multi-part harmonies.

I may not be die-hard Beatles’ fan (quite yet), but I can still safely say that I’m looking forward to the release of their remastered albums on 09/09/2009.  Perhaps now I’ll finally be able to find a copy of Revolver that doesn’t have the annoying “left ear instrumentals, right ear vocals” mono recording effect that always seems to be present in most versions of “Eleanor Rigby.”