(Guitar Recorded Versions). This matching songbook to the first album of this double-album masterpiece. Includes 17 classic hits: Back in the U.S.S.R. * Blackbird * The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill * Dear Prudence * Happiness Is a Warm Gun * I'm So Tired * Martha My Dear * Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da * Rocky Raccoon * While My Guitar Gently Weeps * Why Don't We Do It in the Road * Wild Honey Pie * more.
Most books about the Beatles reveal the big picture first and ask questions afterward. This book reverses that approach. It takes a fresh and often funny look at the magnificent and sometimes idiotic career path of the Beatles through the prism of one vital album -- a record considered by many (including John Lennon) to be the one on which they reached their peak as songwriters. It focuses not just on the intimate recording details and creative process, but on the politics, music, and culture of the era, as well as the band's individual development amid increasing dissolution. In crisp and witty prose, the inside stories behind the making and release of the album are revealed: how the White Album got its look and name; why it included the most experimental track the Beatles ever recorded; how it inspired the bloody massacres of Charles Manson and his 'family'; why Ringo Starr walked out on the sessions and who replaced him; the actual identities of 'Dear Prudence', 'Sexy Sadie', 'Martha My Dear', 'Julia' and 'Bungalow Bill'; on which song Yoko sang lead; which song is about Eric Clapton's teeth;
The Beatles, the 1968 double LP more commonly known as the White Album, has always been viewed as an oddity in the group’s oeuvre. Many have found it to be inconsistent, sprawling, and self-indulgent. The Beatles through a Glass Onion is the first-ever scholarly volume to explore this seminal recording at length, bringing together contributions by some of the most eminent scholars of rock music writing today. It marks a reconsideration of this iconic but under-appreciated recording and reaffirms the White Album’s significance in the Beatles’ career and in rock history. This volume treats the White Album as a whole, with essays scrutinizing it from a wide range of perspectives. These essays place the album within the social and political context of a turbulent historical moment; locate it within the Beatles’ lives and careers, taking into consideration the complex personal forces at play during the recording sessions; investigate the musical as well as pharmaceutical influences on the record; reveal how it reflects new developments in the Beatles’ songwriting and arranging; revisit the question of its alleged disunity; and finally, track its legacy and the breadth of its influence on later rock, pop, and hip-hop artists. The Beatles through a Glass Onion features the scholarship of Adam Bradley, Vincent Benitez, Lori Burns, John Covach, Walter Everett, Michael Frontani, Steve Hamelman, Ian Inglis, John Kimsey, Mark Osteen, Russell Reising, Stephen Valdez, Anthony D. Villa, Kenneth Womack, and Alyssa Woods. John Covach’s Afterword summarizes the White Album’s lasting impact and value. The Beatles through a Glass Onion represents a landmark work of rock music scholarship. It will prove to be an essential and enduring contribution to the field.
From a writer and music industry insider who worked with The Beatles comes a comprehensive look at the band's only double album--and the world in which they recorded it. The Summer of Love--and many of the free, progressive ideas associated with it--was truly over by 1968, which saw disruption in the factories and revolution on the streets. This turmoil was reflected by The Beatles in the studio where, without the distraction of live performance, they adapted to life after Brian Epstein and with the addition of Yoko Ono. The result, officially called The Beatles but universally known as "The White Album," featured an eccentric, eclectic mixture of styles, techniques, and unconventional songs. This in-depth exploration of The Beatles' classic work has two parts: the A side is the definitive guide to the album, the recording, and the events surrounding it, along with interviews with the people involved. The B-side focuses on the world between 1967 and 1969, and how politics, technology, sports, and entertainment affected people's lives . . . and caused music to change its tune with the times.
(Guitar Chord Songbook). This great collection features all 194 songs written and sung by the Beatles, specially transcribed here for strumming guitarists, from the actual recordings, in the original keys. Each song includes chord symbols, guitar chord boxes and complete lyrics. Also features a helpful playing guide and a full discography. Songs include: Across the Universe * All My Loving * All You Need Is Love * Back in the U.S.S.R. * The Ballad of John and Yoko * Blackbird * Day Tripper * Dear Prudence * Drive My Car * Eight Days a Week * Eleanor Rigby * The Fool on the Hill * Good Day Sunshine * A Hard Day's Night * Help! * Helter Skelter * Hey Jude * I Saw Her Standing There * I Want to Hold Your Hand * In My Life * Lady Madonna * Let It Be * The Long and Winding Road * Michelle * Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) * Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da * Paperback Writer * Penny Lane * Revolution * Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band * She Loves You * and more!
A photographic look into the world of vinyl record collectors—including Questlove—in the most intimate of environments—their record rooms. Compelling photographic essays from photographer Eilon Paz are paired with in-depth and insightful interviews to illustrate what motivates these collectors to keep digging for more records. The reader gets an up close and personal look at a variety of well-known vinyl champions, including Gilles Peterson and King Britt, as well as a glimpse into the collections of known and unknown DJs, producers, record dealers, and everyday enthusiasts. Driven by his love for vinyl records, Paz takes us on a five-year journey unearthing the very soul of the vinyl community.
The Beatles Solo on Apple Records" is the companion piece to Bruce Spizers critically acclaimed "The Beatles on Apple Records." This book details the solo records released by John, Paul, George and Ringo on theirown Apple label in America, starting with the December, 1968, release of Georges "Wonderwall Music" album and ending with the December, 1975, release of Georges single "This Guitar (Cant Keep From Crying)." All solo projects are covered, including all of the albums and singles released by John & Yoko and Paul McCartney & Wings, as well as classic albums such as "Imagine," "Band On The Run," "All Things Must Pass" and "Ringo." The book provides comple te session and chart information and shows all picture sleeves, album covers and label variations, along with many of the promotional posters, displays and trade magazine ads. The bookis hard cover and printed on heavy weight glossy paper. It has over 900 images (all in full color or original black & white) spread throughout the the books 358 pages.
The Beatles' self-titled 1968 album was seen as something of a comedown after the exhilaration of its predecessor, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In addition, conventional wisdom holds that The Beatles, aka the 'White Album', marks the beginning of the end of the Lennon/McCartney partnership. This book, however, exists to argue that the 'White Album' is not only the finest achievement of the Fab Four but can also be considered one of the greatest LP recordings of all time. Track by track, the album (and its sleeve) is discussed and considered. The result is a portrait of The Beatles, reflecting its eclectic nature through a series of personal responses from a variety of contributors.
Through exclusive photos and personal stories, former US manager of Apple Records and Grammy Award winning producer Ken Mansfield offers a compelling memoir that delves into his life in the 1960s and '70s and his unique partnership with the Beatles and other musicians who orbited their world. As observer, friend, and colleague, Mansfield sat in their recording sessions, partied in their swimming pools, took their irate calls, and publicized their successes. Entertaining, historically accurate, and illuminating a side of the Fab Four known only to a few like Mansfield, The White Book shines fresh light on the true characters behind the cultural phenomena that revolutionized a generation. As the former Head of Apple Records International, Jack Oliver, has said of Ken, "He is one of the few insiders left that bore witness to the highs and lows of those insane days when we ruled the world." "Ken has a unique gift. He can take you in the room and have you sit with the folk he knows and make you one of the gang, part of the plan. and considering these folk include the Beatles, Dolly Parton, Waylon Jennings, the Beach Boys, Roy Orbison, David Cassidy and a whole host more that is some doing. I really enjoyed sitting in on his world and I respect the affection he has for our game, and what he brought to it, will get you." ANDREW LOOG OLDHAM Rolling Stones Manager and Producer "Ken Mansfield brings us a new and closely personal perspective not only on the Beatles, but on a whole cast of musical characters from Brian Wilson to Don Ho. An observant and perceptive man in the centre of the storm; a contradictory man, both ambitious and spiritual, but at the heart of the record industry during its most exciting years and enjoying every minute of it. I lived through those years with Ken and we became friends. It is a pleasure to experience so much of it all again through the accuracy of his story telling and the clarity of his memory." PETER ASHER Peter and Gordon/A&R Chief Apple Records/Producer-Manager (James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, Carole King et al) "Journalism is normally a very inexact science. Many of the countless books about the Beatles have been written by researchers-not by people who were actually there. Everyone has experienced reading a book or article where one's own inside knowledge about a particular person or event shows up inaccuracies on the part of the writer that totally distort the truth. This book is an exception-I know because I was there for some of it myself. Ken Mansfield and I unknowingly shared the experience of the famous Apple rooftop session where I was nervously adjusting mikes and cables for the sound recording of that unforgettable day. Ken was not only working for the Beatles through their heyday, he was also their trusted friend. There is no one better equipped to tell the Beatles' story-truthfully-and more importantly-factually, from the inside." ALAN PARSONS Engineer to the Beatles/Pink Floyd, Multi Platinum Producer, Alan Parsons Project "Unlike many people claiming a Beatles connection, Ken Mansfield doesn't have an agenda or try to elevate his role or importance. Ken comes across as a man who knows how lucky he was to be where he was and enjoys sharing his stories with us. Ken was there and that is why The White Book is informative, fresh and entertaining without being ego-driven." BRUCE SPIZER Author, Beatle Historian
No one expressed the heart and soul of the Sixties as powerfully as the Beatles did through the words, images, and rhythms of their music. In Magic Circles Devin McKinney uncovers the secret history of a generation and a pivotal moment in twentieth-century culture. He reveals how the Beatles enacted the dream life of their time and shows how they embodied a kaleidoscope of desire and anguish for all who listened--hippies or reactionaries, teenage fans or harried parents, Bob Dylan or Charles Manson. The reader who dares to re-enter the vortex that was the Sixties will appreciate, perhaps for the first time, much of what lay beneath the social trauma of the day. Delving into concerts and interviews, films and music, outtakes and bootlegs, Devin McKinney brings to bear the insights of history, aesthetics, sociology, psychology, and mythology to account for the depth and resonance of the Beatles' impact. His book is also a uniquely multifaceted appreciation of the group's artistic achievement, exploring their music as both timeless expression and visceral response to their historical moment. Starting in the cellars of Liverpool and Hamburg, and continuing through the triumph of Beatlemania, the groundbreaking studio albums, and the last brutal, sorrowful thrust of the White Album, Magic Circles captures both the dream and the reality of four extraordinary musicians and their substance as artists. At once an entrancing narrative and an analytical montage, the book follows the drama, comedy, mystery, irony, and curious off-ramps of investigation and inquiry that contributed to one of the most amazing odysseys in pop culture.
