Cool bit of musical history! I'm trying to picture Paul McCartney penning a song at age 14 and what would have been going through his mind at that age. In 1966 I went to the Beatles concert in Cleveland. 🎵
He DID that, Amy? I never got "Anthology," so I was never aware of the song (or the Blackjacks). In concert, I'm guessing Paul explains the song's genesis? That's amazing. For years, I've been praising Paul (and Ringo, for that matter) for embracing his past, and with gusto!
So often, we've seen artists (read: "stahs") poo-poo their past, telling fans and press, "I'm not looking to the past; I'm looking forward and pushing this new record," etc ad infinitum!
But, Paul goes back to his Blackjacks song?!? Talk about generous, self-confident, and historically aware! The man!
My family has been a long time Beatles fan. In Kochi (Kerala, India), in the 80s, my father and uncle used to have their own bands. It was a huuuuge deal because Kochi is a small city. Beatles are their Gods. My mother used to accompany my Uncle for all their shows and she knew all the Beatles songs too. My baby sister knows all the songs too. I am the only one in the family who is more into Indian music and barely knows anything about western music. I like them, but never took the effort to actively listen to English songs. I think I might have a piece of information that they don't. Let me surprise them with my knowledge. This was a really interesting find, Paul!
This factoid from the beginnings of the Beatles has engendered a thought that might seem a tad sacriligious re the Beatles:
How did the genius that was the Beatles develop from beginnings that were plebian, plain, petty and provincial
Don't get me wrong. I fucking loved the Beatles.
However, quite honestly, they don't seem to have been a bunch of geniuses when they were in their mid teens
I knew guys who wrote songs when they were 14 and 15, and they were as junkly as Paul's stuff was when he was 14 and 15.
However something sparked the creativity of the Beatles.
Their songs kept getting better and better at a faster and faster pace
Consider "love me do" from 1962, It is sweet and balanced and symetrical, but it is, compared to what came later, terribly dull
When they came out with "Please, Please Me," we savor the savage, ravaging, romancing insistence of John Lennon, and things will never be the same.
When we hear the distinctive, seminal chord at the beginning of "A Hard Day's Night," we know that we have left behind the terrain of ordinary rock and roll and are ventuing into True Art
When we hear "Paperback Writer," at least ten thousand teenagers, overnight, wanted to be writers.
When we hear Lucy in the Skies with Diamonds we hear verbal consrtructions that make me think of Genesis and Eden's tree of "Knowledge of good and evil."
The Beatles were four ordinary guys who somewhere along the way became imbued with a spark from God.
Hi David. Where we start is not how we end up. These guys really put in the time. They practiced constantly and played just as much.
"The Beatles ended up traveling to Hamburg five times between 1960 and the end of 1962. On the first trip, they played 106 nights, five or more hours a night. On their second trip, they played 92 times. On their third trip, they played 48 times, for a total of 172 hours on stage."
Great find, Paul! So, apparently, one can search for anything on the page, and you chose The Beatles' "First Version"?👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏Thanks. Way cool. As the teddy bear once said, "I had no idea!"
Cool bit of musical history! I'm trying to picture Paul McCartney penning a song at age 14 and what would have been going through his mind at that age. In 1966 I went to the Beatles concert in Cleveland. 🎵
Yeah, it's pretty cool. I've seen a lot of concerts, but never the Beatles. That would have been a real bucket list item! 🎸
I was just a dorky kid myself at the time, so I don't know that I appreciated the whole experience. I do, however, remember screaming a lot!!
And to see Paul play ‘In Spite Of All The Danger’ live is a gorgeous, precious thing!
He DID that, Amy? I never got "Anthology," so I was never aware of the song (or the Blackjacks). In concert, I'm guessing Paul explains the song's genesis? That's amazing. For years, I've been praising Paul (and Ringo, for that matter) for embracing his past, and with gusto!
So often, we've seen artists (read: "stahs") poo-poo their past, telling fans and press, "I'm not looking to the past; I'm looking forward and pushing this new record," etc ad infinitum!
But, Paul goes back to his Blackjacks song?!? Talk about generous, self-confident, and historically aware! The man!
Thanks for commenting!
What a great archive. Thanks for sharing
👍
My family has been a long time Beatles fan. In Kochi (Kerala, India), in the 80s, my father and uncle used to have their own bands. It was a huuuuge deal because Kochi is a small city. Beatles are their Gods. My mother used to accompany my Uncle for all their shows and she knew all the Beatles songs too. My baby sister knows all the songs too. I am the only one in the family who is more into Indian music and barely knows anything about western music. I like them, but never took the effort to actively listen to English songs. I think I might have a piece of information that they don't. Let me surprise them with my knowledge. This was a really interesting find, Paul!
Thankyou so much!
This factoid from the beginnings of the Beatles has engendered a thought that might seem a tad sacriligious re the Beatles:
How did the genius that was the Beatles develop from beginnings that were plebian, plain, petty and provincial
Don't get me wrong. I fucking loved the Beatles.
However, quite honestly, they don't seem to have been a bunch of geniuses when they were in their mid teens
I knew guys who wrote songs when they were 14 and 15, and they were as junkly as Paul's stuff was when he was 14 and 15.
However something sparked the creativity of the Beatles.
Their songs kept getting better and better at a faster and faster pace
Consider "love me do" from 1962, It is sweet and balanced and symetrical, but it is, compared to what came later, terribly dull
When they came out with "Please, Please Me," we savor the savage, ravaging, romancing insistence of John Lennon, and things will never be the same.
When we hear the distinctive, seminal chord at the beginning of "A Hard Day's Night," we know that we have left behind the terrain of ordinary rock and roll and are ventuing into True Art
When we hear "Paperback Writer," at least ten thousand teenagers, overnight, wanted to be writers.
When we hear Lucy in the Skies with Diamonds we hear verbal consrtructions that make me think of Genesis and Eden's tree of "Knowledge of good and evil."
The Beatles were four ordinary guys who somewhere along the way became imbued with a spark from God.
Hi David. Where we start is not how we end up. These guys really put in the time. They practiced constantly and played just as much.
"The Beatles ended up traveling to Hamburg five times between 1960 and the end of 1962. On the first trip, they played 106 nights, five or more hours a night. On their second trip, they played 92 times. On their third trip, they played 48 times, for a total of 172 hours on stage."
Very cool, Paul!!
Great find, Paul! So, apparently, one can search for anything on the page, and you chose The Beatles' "First Version"?👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏Thanks. Way cool. As the teddy bear once said, "I had no idea!"
I'm glad I found something YOU haven't seen yet!
LOL!