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#1
10-03-2020, 06:57 PM
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Beatle book recommendations
I'd like to read something about how they co-wrote songs, arranged them, how they worked together as a band, and George Martin's influence on them. Thanks.
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When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down, “happy.” They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life. —John Lennon 
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#2
10-04-2020, 06:35 AM
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This is the book about the Beatles that I've enjoyed the most, and found most informative for my interests. Geoff Emerick was a recording engineer for many of the Beatles recording sessions, witness to the interactions of the band, song development, song arrangements, studio effects, etc. I found Mr Emerick's 'fly-on-the-wall' perspective very insightful.
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#3
10-04-2020, 06:41 AM
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#4
10-04-2020, 07:58 AM
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#5
10-04-2020, 08:59 AM
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Thanks for the recommendations Catdaddy, rokdog and offkey. I purchased the kindle version of "Here There and Everywhere." I might get the George Martin book after I finish this one.
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When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down, “happy.” They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life. —John Lennon
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#6
10-04-2020, 10:00 AM
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I've heard that there is controversy over the accuracy of parts of Geoff Emerick's book. I heard it elsewhere, but Emerick's Wikipedia entry mentions it:
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#7
10-04-2020, 01:23 PM
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I don't know if you will find a book that has all these criteria, but to read about George Martin's influence on them, I thought this book was quite insightful: https://www.amazon.com/Maximum-Beatl...s%2C201&sr=1-3
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#8
10-04-2020, 05:12 PM
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#9
10-07-2020, 04:04 PM
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"Beatles Gear" is great, all about their guitars and amps.
Jack
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#10
10-07-2020, 04:23 PM
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#11
10-08-2020, 01:42 PM
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Absolutely!!!
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Terrific book. Geoff has a wonderfully under-stated demeanor about his HUGE contributions to that era of the Beatles' recordings... lot of his background but interspersed with such great stories, recording innovations (that he pretty much just made up as he went!) and anecdotes that the read was really enjoyable... Even though we all know now how the band turned out... A very rare "non-fiction" tome that I did NOT want to have end!
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"Home is where I hang my hat, but home is so much more than that. Home is where the ones and the things I hold dear are near... And I always find my way back home." "Home" (working title) J.S, Sherman
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#13
10-08-2020, 01:55 PM
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Naw...
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I realized, going into it (especially reading some of Geoff's background history) that he LOVED music, but he was NOT a musician... so I did not expect that aspect of the book to bring more than he was capable of bringing... George WAS the young one, when they started out... and he was diffident about his own abilities, and terribly shy, as well. Ringo was always just sort of "Ringo"... a fantastic drummer that fit the band's sound perfectly. I never got any sort of idea that Ringo was a "tech guy"... he just played and found a way to make it work. Seems natural that anyone in that situation would likely gravitate to Paul; from the word "Go", Paul was the "cute one", the darling, the social butterfly... I was more amazed at what brilliant music and lyrics came out of him, once they really hit the ground running... John (both in this book and many other places) was sarcastic, irascible, outspoken, pointed wit and a general sense of not being willing to "put up with" most of what might have been expected from "Stars" in that period of "Rock/Pop" music. Although Johnny was ALWAYS my personal favorite, I don't know how much fun it would be, being in the immediate sphere of that creative, irrelevant fellow! Geoff certainly did not "puff up" George Martin's contributions anymore than has already been puffed... which I liked, frankly. I think George Martin's influence and contributions (while very immense) have been far over-blown through the years... 2 more cents...
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"Home is where I hang my hat, but home is so much more than that. Home is where the ones and the things I hold dear are near... And I always find my way back home." "Home" (working title) J.S, Sherman
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#14
10-08-2020, 05:01 PM
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Many a book is going to be from the standpoint of the person who wrote it. If you were there yourself, your memories would be colored by the person you were and why you where there, etc.
So to the extent that Emerick's book sees things more from Paul McCartney's standpoint, I thought it was a useful corrective or viewpoint. I say this as person who was more interested in Lennon and Harrison when the group was around, and for decades afterward. That John was the more striking personality and spokesman (not always in a "good" way) made his contributions more recognized by folks like me. And I liked George because he was the youngest, and the lead guitar player, and well I also like South Asian music. And then this century I started to play a little bass, and you know, that McCartney guy wasn't to shabby there. In point of fact, Paul's contributions to the Beatles overall sound were plausibly greater than Lennon's, particularly during their studio-recording focused years. I don't say that to slight Lennon, only to point out that highlighting what he did in the studio isn't some sidelight to the Beatles story.
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#15
10-10-2020, 06:04 AM
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To my knowledge, the following books examine the Beatles' in terms of music:
"The Songwriting Secrets of the Beatles", by Dominic Pedler. A discussion of music theory that incorporates examples from the Beatles music. I find it interesting and informative. There are typographical mistakes in a few of the music notation examples. It not published in the U.S., I purchased mine from Amazon.uk. "The Beatles as Musicians", two volumes, by Walter Everett A scholarly work that uses figured bass notation and voice leading diagrams. Musical notation is written relative to the notes on the piano, so the guitar notation is down an octave, and sometimes shown in the bass staff. You might want to borrow it from the library first, to decide if you want to purchase it. I couldn't make my way through it. On line, there is Alan Pollock's analysis of Beatles songs: http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/...notes_on.shtml I'm not familiar with it, to comment on it. Gary
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