The Beatles: "Let It Be" at 50, its words are relevant today

[MoodyBlues]

This is a video of the Beatles rehearsing their masterpiece, Let It Be.

It may be 50 years since its release, but with everything going on in the world right now, I find its words absolutely as relevant, and comforting, as they were 50 years ago.

If you weren't around back then...I'm sorry! You have no idea what you missed out on!

 

[Dannydet]

So true!

 

[ocnbrze]

my dad introduced me to the Beatles by forcing me to listen to Breakfast with the Beatles every Sunday on LA's radio station KLOS. we would listen to it while we did our chores around the house or washing our cars. they were my first rock band that i really liked. while my friends were listening to Prince or the Police, i was rockin to my favorite Beatles song "While my guitar gently weeps". i still catch the show every once in awhile. it has to be one of the longest running shows here in LA.

 

[mikedt]

I Dig a Pigmy, by Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf Aids .

 

[MoodyBlues]

You're right, @ocnbrze, Breakfast with the Beatles has been on for decades. I'm not surprised! There's a reason the Beatles are the greatest band of all time, so it's no wonder that people still want to listen to them. I know I do!

 

[Steven58]

50? Holy Cow.

 

[MoodyBlues]

50? Holy Cow.

Indeed! And I remember its release like it was yesterday.

My cousin and I talked about it over the weekend. We were die-hard Beatles fans and always listened to their albums when we were together. We pondered how on earth that could've been 50 years ago, yet we both remember it so clearly. And, oh yeah, we're old!

 

[dontpanicbobby]

When I'm 64 my will gently leap.

 

[MoodyBlues]

When I'm 64 my will gently leap.

Um...okay...

 

[ocnbrze]

Um...okay...

its a play on "while my guitar gently weeps" LOL

When I'm 64 my will gently leap.

i hope you live way past 64 my friend and i hope you fly and not just leap.

 

[ocnbrze]

what album did "Let it Be" come out on?

 

[MoodyBlues]

its a play on "while my guitar gently weeps" LOL

Oh, I knew that...I just didn't get what he meant!

what album did "Let it Be" come out on?

Is this a trick question?

 

[ocnbrze]

Is this a trick question?

no i'm too lazy to look it up. i do not think i have ever owned a beatles album. been mainly relying to get my Beatle's fix on either pandora or spotify and "Breakfast with the Beatles".

 

[MoodyBlues]

Oh, okay--I seriously thought you were kidding.

Here you go:

 

[ocnbrze]

oh LOL self titled.....That is what I get for being lazy

 

[MoodyBlues]

Well, you really had me going!

 

[ocnbrze]

actually i think i bought the White album on cd in my early teens, wish i new where that went. i used to also tape the "Breakfast with the Beatles" show and would re-listen to those many times growing up.

 

[olbriar]

Though I had most of the Beatles' albums I bought new copies of all of their work in the mid seventies. Though none are first release they are still sealed in their original packaging. My original LPs are like everyone else that had them... they were played to near death. Growing up with the Beatles was a great time.

 

[mikedt]

what album did "Let it Be" come out on?

I first had it on "67-70", which is sometimes called "The Blue Album". And there is also "62-66", sometimes called "The Red Album". I bought both of them with my saved up pocket money in 1975.

 

[MoodyBlues]

I first had it on "67-70", which is sometimes called "The Blue Album". And there is also "62-66", sometimes called "The Red Album". I bought both of them with my saved up pocket money in 1975.

Some of their albums were named differently and/or not available depending on country. I personally have never heard of either color album you mentioned!

 

[MoodyBlues]

Growing up with the Beatles was a great time.

You're not kidding! I consider us very blessed to have been around for Beatlemania. There really hasn't been anything like it since and, as I've said before, I don't think there will be again.

The Beatles didn't just make a musical statement. They made a cultural statement, actually influencing the way people dressed, wore their hair, felt about war and politics, and so much more.

Regarding LPs: over the last few years I've let my daughter and son-in-law, who live in another state--and have and use a turntable--raid my album collection. With one caveat: the Beatles [and, yes, that includes individuals] are OFF-LIMITS. As in don't even think about asking.

 

[mikedt]

Some of their albums were named differently and/or not available depending on country. I personally have never heard of either color album you mentioned!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967–1970

I and many others I know did call it "The Blue Album", basically to differentiate it from the other Beatles compilation that had a red cover, officially called "1962-1966"

But I believe "The White Album", that wasn't its official name, it was just called "The Beatles", and that's all it's got on a plain white cover.

 

[ocnbrze]

There really hasn't been anything like it since and, as I've said before, I don't think there will be again.

what about justin bieber? you mean you are not a Belieber?????

The Beatles didn't just make a musical statement. They made a cultural statement, actually influencing the way people dressed, wore their hair, felt about war and politics, and so much more.

i was thinking about this when i heard an old 80's song (ok not as old as the Beatles, but old to me). it was a song by Mojo Nixen called "Elvis is Everywhere". and i can only think of two musical phenomenons that has developed cult status and that is Elvis and the Beatles. i can't think of any one person or group that has had on the world wide culture of music. these musical icons have reached cult status still to this day. i have a friend who is a huge Elvis fan and has kind of a shrine dedicated to Elvis with a lot of Elvis memorabilia.

in case you have not heard or seen Mojo NIxon's "Elvis is Everwhere" here you go:

 

[MoodyBlues]

what about justin bieber? you mean you are not a Belieber?????

Ack!! My eyes! Someone help me!

Or, to put it in other words: NO.

I know what you mean about Elvis, but his influence was not cultural like the Beatles. Sure, he profoundly affected the young people of his time, but not their clothes, their hairstyles, their politics, their experimentation with new [to them] things, like meditation, psychedelic drugs, vegetarianism, etc. No one went out and got fat on fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches, topped off with a myriad of prescription pills, in a white rhinestone jumpsuit like Elvis, you know?

But everything the Beatles said, sang, and did influenced an entire generation. And continues to influence people today. Sir Paul McCartney has been an outspoken animal rights activist--and people of all ages listen to his reasons and then go vegan/vegetarian, too.

Musically, Elvis didn't have the breadth and scope of influence the Beatles did. Elvis was pretty much Elvis. The Beatles, on the other hand, continually explored and expanded what could be done. Take a later album, like Sgt Pepper, and compare it to one of their first--they're light-years apart! The drug influence alone caused a profound shift in their songs.

Ask someone what Elvis thought of the Vietnam War and you'd probably get a blank stare. But everyone on earth knew where the Beatles stood.

I'm not denying that Elvis was a phenomenon; he most definitely was. [I used to wish I had been born sooner, so I could've experienced the 'Elvis the Pelvis' days firsthand. Damn, was he sexy! Watch Jailhouse Rock to see what I mean. ] I'm just saying that his effect on culture doesn't come close to that of the Beatles.

By the way, I think I saw Elvis the other day... You do know his death was a hoax, right?

 

[mikedt]

Ack!! My eyes! Someone help me!

Or, to put it in other words: NO.

I know what you mean about Elvis, but his influence was not cultural like the Beatles. Sure, he profoundly affected the young people of his time, but not their clothes, their hairstyles, their politics, their experimentation with new [to them] things, like meditation, psychedelic drugs, vegetarianism, etc. No one went out and got fat on fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches, topped off with a myriad of prescription pills, in a white rhinestone jumpsuit like Elvis, you know?

But everything the Beatles said, sang, and did influenced an entire generation. And continues to influence people today. Sir Paul McCartney has been an outspoken animal rights activist--and people of all ages listen to his reasons and then go vegan/vegetarian, too.

Musically, Elvis didn't have the breadth and scope of influence the Beatles did. Elvis was pretty much Elvis. The Beatles, on the other hand, continually explored and expanded what could be done. Take a later album, like Sgt Pepper, and compare it to one of their first--they're light-years apart! The drug influence alone caused a profound shift in their songs.

Ask someone what Elvis thought of the Vietnam War and you'd probably get a blank stare. But everyone on earth knew where the Beatles stood.

I can think of a country where hardly anyone knew where the Beatles stood. Although Elvis Presley was never a thing in the PRC either, unlike say Michael Jackson. What does surprise is that the Carpenters are very well known here.

When I was in Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia, there was people there who knew much more about the Monkees than the Beatles. Mainly because the Monkees was a subject in the school People's Education Press(PEP) textbooks.