The Beatles

Read The Beatles for Free Online Page B

Book: Read The Beatles for Free Online
Authors: Steve Turner
Submarine concerns a happy kingdom called Pepperland, which is taken over by the villainous Blue Meanies. The fab four ride to the rescue in a yellow submarine from Liverpool, eventually conquering the Meanies through the combined power of Love and Music.
    Magical Mystery Tour was an experimental 50-minute colour feature for television. It started off as Paul’s project but the whole group was heavily involved in all aspects of production. They financed, directed, cast and scripted the film, as well as appearing in it themselves.
    Along with the single ‘All You Need Is Love’/’Baby You’re A Rich Man’, the songs from this period are the most psychedelic of the Beatles’ career. Magical Mystery Tour was released in America as an album in November 1967 and in Britain as a double extended-play disc in December. The Yellow Submarine soundtrack, which included an orchestral side from George Martin, wasn’t released until January 1968, shortly after The Beatles.
    This eclectic bunch of songs would make a fitting farewell to 1967, the year of the Summer of Love, before the more sober reflections of1968. The new year marked a fresh period in the Beatles’ songwriting, when cleaning up, straightening out and getting back to basics became the order of the day.
    Magical Mystery Tour , which was first seen on British television on December 26, 1967, was a critical failure, which consequently received only limited exposure in America. The music was much more successful; the British double EP reached Number 2 in the singles charts and the American album went to Number 1.
    The Yellow Submarine film was released in July 1968 and was a commercial success in America, although it was never put on full release in Britain. The album, which featured other artists as well as the Beatles, reached the Number 3 spot in Britain and Number 2 in America.

    ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE
    Early in 1967, the Beatles were approached by the BBC to take part in what would be the first-ever, live global television link: a 125-minute programme broadcast to 26 countries with contributions from national broadcasting networks in Europe, Scandinavia, North America, Central America, North Africa, Japan and Australia.
    To mark the occasion, the Beatles were asked to write a simple song that would be understood by viewers of all nationalities. Writing began in late May, with Paul and John working on separate compositions, until John’s ‘All You Need Is Love’ emerged as the obvious choice. The song was not only musically and lyrically uncomplicated but also it perfectly captured the aspirations of international youth in the summer of 1967. This was the time when the war in Vietnam was at its most intense and the ‘love generation’ showed its opposition by staging a number of peaceful protests. “It was an inspired song and they really wanted to give the world amessage,” said Brian Epstein. “The nice thing about it is that it cannot be misinterpreted. It is a clear message saying that love is everything.”
    In calling for universal love, ‘All You Need Is Love’ extended the message that John had first tried to put across in ‘The Word’ in 1965. He was fascinated by the power of slogans to unite people and was determined to create something with the timelessness of ‘We Shall Overcome’ (a labour union song popularized in the Sixties by folk singer Pete Seeger). When asked in 1971 whether songs like ‘Give Peace A Chance’ and ‘Power To The People’ were propaganda songs, he answered, “Sure. So was ‘All You Need Is Love’.. I’m a revolutionary artist. My art is dedicated to change.”
    The viewers of Our World on June 25, 1967 saw a re-creation of a Beatles recording session: rhythm tracks had been laid down on June 14 and the live input was instantaneously added and mixed for transmission. A party atmosphere was created in Abbey

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