And We Are All Together / The Beatles Thread

[E.H. Ruddock]

Kind of surreal watching this. I've never seen so much non concert footage of them before so it kind of feels like I'm watching a biopic or something. When they'd show a pic Linda took, I'm like "oh look it's really them", forgetting I've been watching them all along.

Also, Maureen Starkey was hot

[doug rr]

we finally started this today...amazing stuff..only half way thru first episode though

[spike]

Kind of surreal watching this. I've never seen so much non concert footage of them before so it kind of feels like I'm watching a biopic or something. When they'd show a pic Linda took, I'm like "oh look it's really them", forgetting I've been watching them all along.

Also, Maureen Starkey was hot

Calm down, George.

[EJ]

And when it's on the album in place of something that I adore like Don't Let Me Down, I get a little cranky.

that's a top 5 Beatles song for me

[oasisfan35]

And when it's on the album in place of something that I adore like Don't Let Me Down, I get a little cranky.

that's a top 5 Beatles song for me

Two Beatles tracks that I never tire of and always appreciated hearing at any time are Don't Let Me Down and In My Life.

[Strat]

Geezes. Watching McCartney just start making up "Get Back" on the spot like that. I got a little misty. This doc is mind blowing.

George showing up with songs he wrote the night before because why not.

[Kevin Davis]

I think it's the melody, first and foremost. It just plods and plods, and makes me feel more sleepy with each passing bar.

For me, it feels like a song they've done before, only better. Yesterday did what it's trying to do, and much better. Let It Be is a song that feels like a similar song -- and works much better. There's nothing gripping about the lyrics. I'm also not a big Wings fan (in general) and the song sounds like a Wings song to me. Whatever is happening in it is the side of McCartney that I don't respond to well, or that I don't tend to relate to. I don't know.

for me it sounds like every bad ballad from that era through the mid 1970's. deon warwick could be the original artist for all i know.

Three interesting, somewhat disparate takes -- all of which I sort of understand, though none register for me personally.

Joey, what about "The Long and Winding Road" makes you feel like it's retreading ground already covered by "Yesterday?"

[McParadigm]

Maybe in that they are both songs about something you care about and can’t stop from ending? Although Yesterday is clearly about (or at least influenced by) the break up he was going through at the time, while Long and Winding Road was a part of his grieving process for the band and the future he imagined it could have had.

As far as the musical contexts of the song (who it “sounds like” or reminds you of), when Paul was riding LaWR he thought he might give it to Ray Charles (who did record it).

[Jorge]

The beard look for Paul is my favorite

It downplays the chipmunk cheeks

[Chris_H_2]

i just watched an interview of peter jackson by stephen colbert from a couple of weeks ago where jackson was relaying how he told paul (before the release of the documentary) of the footage of george telling john how george had so many songs in the can, but that he was typically only allotted two songs an album and how frustrated he was. george tells john he's thinking of just releasing a solo album, to which john replies how he thinks it's a great idea, and how all the band members could do that and still continue on as the beatles. paul told jackson that he had no idea this conversation took place, and had no idea that john and george were ok with that idea. paul said that had he known, his view of john's ambitions beyond the beatles would have been different, and he would have approached a future that accommodated the band members' individual ambitions with more of an open mind.

[Anders]

That’s very interesting. Thank you.

[oasisfan35]

i just watched an interview of peter jackson by stephen colbert from a couple of weeks ago where jackson was relaying how he told paul (before the release of the documentary) of the footage of george telling john how george had so many songs in the can, but that he was typically only allotted two songs an album and how frustrated he was. george tells john he's thinking of just releasing a solo album, to which john replies how he thinks it's a great idea, and how all the band members could do that and still continue on as the beatles. paul told jackson that he had no idea this conversation took place, and had no idea that john and george were ok with that idea. paul said that had he known, his view of john's ambitions beyond the beatles would have been different, and he would have approached a future that accommodated the band members' individual ambitions with more of an open mind.

Of course he says that... now.

[epilogue]

Joey, what about "The Long and Winding Road" makes you feel like it's retreading ground already covered by "Yesterday?"

I'm not a musician, so I can't really speak to the structure of the song or anything like that. They maybe nothing alike in that regard. Lyrically, they seem to tread similar ground.

Both simple, stripped down lost-love songs with essentially one featured instrument and McCartney's voice. Yesterday has a much stronger melody, I think. And there feels like a sincerity to Yesterday, whereas L&WR almost feels like McCartney trying to recapture or reproduce Yesterday. There's something forced to it, for me. I can just hear him thinking, "this is my next Yesterday!"

Music for me (all art, really) tends to be emotion based, at least, at the start of the journey. Then the other stuff comes. With L&WR, the emotional connection has never been there so the rest never came.

I hope any of that makes sense.

[spike]

i just watched an interview of peter jackson by stephen colbert from a couple of weeks ago where jackson was relaying how he told paul (before the release of the documentary) of the footage of george telling john how george had so many songs in the can, but that he was typically only allotted two songs an album and how frustrated he was. george tells john he's thinking of just releasing a solo album, to which john replies how he thinks it's a great idea, and how all the band members could do that and still continue on as the beatles. paul told jackson that he had no idea this conversation took place, and had no idea that john and george were ok with that idea. paul said that had he known, his view of john's ambitions beyond the beatles would have been different, and he would have approached a future that accommodated the band members' individual ambitions with more of an open mind.

Of course he says that... now.

If that’s genuine from PM, that’s a damn shame.

[wease]

Geezes. Watching McCartney just start making up "Get Back" on the spot like that. I got a little misty. This doc is mind blowing.

That’s my favorite part of the whole thing. Seeing how easy it was for them. Just incredible to observe.

[spike]

Geezes. Watching McCartney just start making up "Get Back" on the spot like that. I got a little misty. This doc is mind blowing.

That’s my favorite part of the whole thing. Seeing how easy it was for them. Just incredible to observe.

easy once focused, hard to get focused.

[E.H. Ruddock]

I would definitely love it if they had this kind of footage for earlier sessions. In this session it seems like George is the only one willing to challenge Paul. John just sits there next to Yoko. I can't imagine John being like that through the whole career of the band, though.

[ghost]

Finished part 1 last night but I'm gonna have to go back and rewatch it. I found it sort of headache inducing at first with all of the chatter in similar sounding voices, mouths not matching what was being said, and krishnas loitering around, so I started watching it in the background.

My dad was a massive Beatles fan. We weren't really allowed to watch TV or listen to the devil's music growing up, but we listened to the blue and red greatest hits sets on roads trips, and I remember the Anthology being a huge deal in our house. Abbey Road and Let It Be were his two favorite albums. This doc would have absolutely blown his mind.

[doug rr]

I would definitely love it if they had this kind of footage for earlier sessions. In this session it seems like George is the only one willing to challenge Paul. John just sits there next to Yoko. I can't imagine John being like that through the whole career of the band, though.

imagine

[E.H. Ruddock]

Finished part 1 last night but I'm gonna have to go back and rewatch it. I found it sort of headache inducing at first with all of the chatter in similar sounding voices, mouths not matching what was being said, and krishnas loitering around, so I started watching it in the background.

My dad was a massive Beatles fan. We weren't really allowed to watch TV or listen to the devil's music growing up, but we listened to the blue and red greatest hits sets on roads trips, and I remember the Anthology being a huge deal in our house. Abbey Road and Let It Be were his two favorite albums. This doc would have absolutely blown his mind.

You had Yoko glued to John's side, and the Krishna there for 5 minutes is what bothered you?