By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
November 19, 1995
You’re a novice Beatles fan. You could pick John Lennon and Paul McCartney out of a lineup. But you don’t know which one sang “Strawberry Fields Forever” (John). And you don’t have a clue on where to begin to get a handle on the world’s most famous musical group. What to do? Plenty. ABC’s “The Beatles Anthology” can help get you up to speed on the Fab Four’s career and chronology. But there are plenty of other points of entry to Beatlemania:
Best reads:
Shout!: The Beatles in Their Generation by Philip Norman (Fireside; Simon and Schuster, $9.95). The best, most detailed and most serious biography of the the Beatles and their time. The standard since its 1981 publication.
Revolution in the Head: The Beatles’ Records and the Sixties by Ian MacDonald (Henry Holt, $14.95). A brilliant musicological study that painstakingly deconstructs every one of the Beatles’ songs, the book is is a must for both Beatles fans and general know-it-alls. Intellectual without being boorish, the 1994 book reveals trivia (e.g. McCartney wrote most of “Love Me Do” when he was 16) as well as musical gobbledegook (“(`I Feel Fine’) opens with a sustained low A on bass as a foundation for feedback from Lennon’s Rickenbacker.”
Best look:
The movie “Help!” is a hoot. “Magical Mystery Tour” is a bore. The cartoon “Yellow Submarine” can be charming, but the Beatles didn’t have much to do with it. And “Let It Be” is a grimly fascinating look at the group in decline. But to see the Beatles at their celluloid best, rent “A Hard Day’s Night.” The first Beatles movie is also the band’s best. Sly, witty and funny, director Richard Lester’s 1964 film perfectly captured the wacky essence behind the music and the mania surrounding the group. When the comedy was released in the summer of 1964, the film won rave reviews and the Beatles – particularly Ringo Starr – were viewed as big screen naturals.
The movie also is available on CD-ROM, which includes bunches of other goodies like the complete shooting script (including deleted scenes), all the songs, improvised dialogue, a critical essay on the Beatles music and a theatrical trailer.
Best listen:
Tough call.
There’s no way to pick the best Beatles album. And who’d want just one anyway? The Beatles were more than just one sound or one period. The smart money knows it can’t go wrong with “Help,” “Rubber Soul,” “Revolver,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “The Beatles” (a.k.a. “The White Album”) and “Abbey Road.”
Those interested in an overview should turn to the excellent compilations “The Beatles 1962-1966” and “The Beatles “1967-1970.
