I remember when I first started getting into The Beatles. It was during the summer of '94 and I was playing a lot of Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball for the Super Nintendo. That game was awesome although misleading because Ken Griffey Baseball did not have the rights to MLB so Griffey was the only real ballplayer. 'Till this day it also remains the only baseball video game that I played the entire 162 game season. That's right every single game, and I won it all too baby! I'd like to say that I played as the Yankees but I know 1994 Kevin just wanted to play as Ken Griffey Jr. and hit as many home runs as possible. It's all about being honest folks.
Like I said I had been playing this game a lot and I remember this one day where my parents were invited over to a friends house for a bbq which meant that my sister and I had to tag along. I know I was disappointed because there were games to be played but I went along any way, well it's not like I had much of a choice back then. If you're folks were going to a bbq where there happened to be other kids then you were going on some kind of forced awkward play date while they sipped beers and rum. At this time period of my life I already had a couple of groups that I listened to and was starting to establish my taste of music outside of my parents. Lets be honest growing up the music you're parents listen to encompasses your musical world. It's not until you get older that you realise that there are other musicians besides Neil Diamond and Fleetwood Mac. I was looking around at these peoples CDs and noticed they owned a great number of Beatles records. The one that stuck out the most to me was Sgt. Peppers. I knew of The Beatles but I didn't really know The Beatles. Eight Days A Week and Twist and Shout were pretty much my Beatles knowledge up until this point. So I did what any self-imposing twelve year old would do in this situation... I interrupted my parents conversation and asked the owners of the house if they could please play the album. What can I say? I wanted to hear it.
Well who is going to tell a twelve year old no? Sure enough they put on the record and what started was an explanation of what The Beatles were/are. I remember the big discussion was about Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds, for some reason it was the song I was connecting with the most. It was just so bright and shiny I couldn't help but be drawn in. As I've gotten older Sgt. Pepper holds a special place in my heart as it's the birth album of my love affair with The Beatles. It's not my favorite Beatles album but it is amazing, and A Day In the Life is one of the ten greatest songs I've ever heard...ever. I think it would have to make my songs I can't live without list (for a pretty awesome cover of A Day In the Life please click here and be wowed by Uncle Neil http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hbet0Ck-zfE ).
Like I said this moment is what started the love affair. What sealed the deal for me was a trip up to Buffalo to see my Uncle Pete when I was a, I want to say, Sophomore in high school. We used take the ten hour car ride up there every year for Thanksgiving and on Black Friday we'd go and brave the mall. This radio station in Buffalo was playing The Beatles A-Z so I made sure that it was the soundtrack of our day. While at the mall we spilt up and I found myself in the The Wall (do you remember that place? It was a great music shop where you could buy a CD and they'd put a blue sticker on it and if you're CD got scratched or ruined all you would have to do is bring it in with the blue sticker and they'd give you another one. You can't do things like that anymore) and bought two CDs. First being the Magical Mystery Tour and the second being John Lennon Live At Madison Square Garden (this trip was also the point in my life where I really discovered John Lennon and my life has never been the same). As soon as I listened to Magical Mystery Tour with my head phones on upstairs in the room I was sleeping in, I knew. Shortly after this if was Beatles related I was picking it up. Books, poster, t-shirts, buttons, figures you name it I had it. The Beatles quickly became the soundtrack to my years in high school.
So at 7:42 this morning, when I hit shuffle, I was very happy to hear John Lennon's voice come through my speakers. Although I will admit I was slightly disappointed that it was earlier Ed Sullivan Beatles and not later playing with drugs Beatles. I wanted my first Beatles post to be something off Abbey Road or Magical Mystery Tour. Something that just speaks volumes. Here's the thing about the Ed Sullivan era Beatles, picture it like this if you please. This music is aimed at the heart of girls, there's no question about that. So lets look at this through a girls perspective. You're on a date, a first date, with this handsome young lad and you're having milkshakes and making conversation. In this conversation you learn that he does volunteer work down at the local Y and he love animals. So much in fact that he's thinking about adopting as many as he can to start an animal shelter possibly in your name. Your heart just melts. How dreamy! This is the ideal man, a stand up guy who just knows how to treat a lady. This is the Ed Sullivan era Beatles. Eight Days A Week, I Want to Hold Your Hand, and Ticket to Ride are all aimed to win the hearts of countless young ladies.
Now the playing with drugs/understanding that they're badass musicians Beatles are a bit different. These are the guys who may or not be holding a switchblade in their pocket, their hair is slicked back and there's a pack of smokes rolled up their arm sleeve. They spit and cuss and drink out of brown bags and ride motorcycles. When they look at you your heart starts to flutter out of fear and attraction. These guys have an edge. But here's the thing you know they're the same guys as the sweet talking animal lover, and this persona doesn't scare you. In fact it's because they were the volunteering/animal loving guys first that you're able to open your heart to them. One can't exist without the other. Some how they are two sides of the same coin. Does this make any sense?
Listening to It Won't Be Long made me want to listen to the rest of the album (naturally) and I had forgotten how many great covers are on this CD (I mean ipod, what are CDs?). Please Mister Postman, Money, and You Really Got A Hold On Me (all three sung by John Lennon by the way) are all on this album. How do they compare to the originals you might ask? Who cares! It's the eff'in Beatles singing these songs. John Lennon's voice is singing the lyrics to You Really Got A Hold On Me (by the way this song is super sexy, and for a good version check out She & Him's here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTAjLwWNITg ). With the Beatles is nice John Lennon show case. Paul does his thing but this album is very John oriented, I tend to prefer these albums.
If I hook up my Super Nintendo would anyone be interested in playing Ken Griffey Baseball and listening to Sgt. Peppers? What more could one want out of life?
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