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Post by RockoRoll on Feb 5, 2011 1:06:29 GMT -5
BACK TO THE EGG, Side 1
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Post by stavros on Feb 5, 2011 7:45:06 GMT -5
I think people's choices of POB v BTTE is maybe based on whether you consider music should be "art" or "entertainment". Whereas BTTE is great entertainment POB is certainly a lot heavier in it's content and a very personal record by John. It is to his credit that this is is still a great album and the sparse arrangements work well. If anything both albums show the differences between the two greatest songwriters of 20th century popular music. John liked to write about himself,his thoughts and his feelings. Paul on the other hand preferred to think of the audience, using a clever melody and hookline and rarely wrote about his inner feeling or thoughts.
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Post by theman on Feb 5, 2011 8:41:43 GMT -5
LOL, I am lapsing back into depression at the closeness of this vote! I mean POB is facing "The Egg." BTTE-1 voters: If you were approached by an 18 year old Beatles' newbie who had never heard of either POB or BTTE but wanted to know which album he should buy as he only had money for one but wanted the best of the two, would you really look the kid in eye and recommend BTTE? Really!? Yes. Because, let's face it, POB is a dark, bitter, self indulgent album that sounds nothing like what kids are interested in listening to today. Have you ever listened to stations like XM 20 on 20? Playing a track off of POB on that popular teen station would results in screams and hisses from the back of any parents car. Meanwhile, there would be a better chance that a young Beatle newbie might find a track or two on BTTE that would get them to shake their booty ;D. You know, if we are being really honest here, neither album would appeal to the majority of the teen masses in the world today .
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Post by theman on Feb 5, 2011 8:51:11 GMT -5
By the way, that is not to say that kids of today have NO interest in the Beatles. Of course, my two young teens like them. And not just the Beatles stuff. My daughter loves BOTR, Jet and others that she has heard me play over and over again. She and her friends have been seen in Beatles t-shirts. One of her friends had John's photo on her Facebook avatar. And a number of her friends went to a recent McCartney's concert with their parents!!! Even my son put up with me listenng to DF Stripped Down a number of times during a recent long car trip. Turns out, he really liked the album (his favorites are Starting Over and Kiss, Kiss Kiss ). All that being said, after spending over a hour listening to XM's BOTR radio on that same long car trip, they started screaming at me to put back on XM's 20 on 20 .
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Post by John S. Damm on Feb 5, 2011 9:52:37 GMT -5
Thanks Joseph, Joey, stavros and theman for the thoughtful responses to my despondent inquiry as I try to figure out JL/POB's narrow victories here when we have read our whole Beatle fan lives almost exclusively high praise for that album. I mean Carr & Tyler from NME are two very cynical, sarcastic, hard to please critics but they fall all over themselves for POB. In their second edition, I suspect they scramble Egg but to be fair I need to double-check. I know we don't blindly follow music critics but Carr & Tyler seem to be representative of every published review I have ever read for POB. I am right in line with Joseph's reply and I believe with my head and heart every word he writes above. I also like Joey's thought that maybe a newbie should start with something more primary. We don't throw our youngsters into calculus without putting them first through other facets of math. And stavros and theman hit upon music for pure pleasure and I agree that is important too and all of us might agree that JL/POB should not be played at a party! I ramble but you gentlemen have given me much food for thought on this.
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Post by winstonoboogie on Feb 5, 2011 14:04:54 GMT -5
LOL, I am lapsing back into depression at the closeness of this vote! I mean POB is facing "The Egg." BTTE-1 voters: If you were approached by an 18 year old Beatles' newbie who had never heard of either POB or BTTE but wanted to know which album he should buy as he only had money for one but wanted the best of the two, would you really look the kid in eye and recommend BTTE? Really!? Of course, if I could go off the board, I could come up with a lot better choices for a newbie than either of those two... JcS Such as....? (Food for a new thread, perhaps?) Please don't keep me waiting here, Joey! "Enquiring minds want to know!"
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Post by joeyself on Feb 6, 2011 15:44:01 GMT -5
WOB: I'd suggest a "best of" for any of the four. Ringo and George had nice retrospectives in the past few years, Lennon has had several (any of which are servicable) and McCartney has had a few; WINGSPAN might be TOO much for a novice to take in at once, but it would work as an ice breaker.
If I can't go for the compilations, then I'd go RINGO for Starr, IMAGINE for Lennon (although the more catholic MIND GAMES would be one I'd consider), probably CLOUD NINE for Harrison (since ATMP would cost double) and BAND ON THE RUN for McCartney. I don't think any of those discs would turn off an interested 18 year old that had an appreciation for classic rock.
JcS
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Post by winstonoboogie on Feb 6, 2011 20:38:20 GMT -5
WOB: I'd suggest a "best of" for any of the four. Ringo and George had nice retrospectives in the past few years, Lennon has had several (any of which are servicable) and McCartney has had a few; WINGSPAN might be TOO much for a novice to take in at once, but it would work as an ice breaker. If I can't go for the compilations, then I'd go RINGO for Starr, IMAGINE for Lennon (although the more catholic MIND GAMES would be one I'd consider), probably CLOUD NINE for Harrison (since ATMP would cost double) and BAND ON THE RUN for McCartney. I don't think any of those discs would turn off an interested 18 year old that had an appreciation for classic rock. JcS OK. Thanks!
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Post by anyoneanyhow on Feb 9, 2011 21:24:49 GMT -5
POB
Love BTTE, but no competition to one of the finest sides in rock and roll history.
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JCV
Very Clean
Posts: 545
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Post by JCV on Feb 15, 2011 13:12:42 GMT -5
PLASTIC ONO BAND, Side 1 JCV
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Post by joeyself on Feb 18, 2011 9:45:48 GMT -5
I took BTTE, of course. Theman said it well: "POB is a dark, bitter, self indulgent album." To that I'd add "whiny" and "wrongheaded." Given my thoughts on it, it's not going to be one I'd reach for to play for entertainment. It is a triumph of artistic statement--I think Lennon said exactly what he meant to say in the way he wanted it said--but if you don't like the statement or the presentation, what's left to love?
JcS
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Post by acebackwords on Feb 18, 2011 11:56:16 GMT -5
I took BTTE, of course. Theman said it well: "POB is a dark, bitter, self indulgent album." To that I'd add "whiny" and "wrongheaded." Given my thoughts on it, it's not going to be one I'd reach for to play for entertainment. It is a triumph of artistic statement--I think Lennon said exactly what he meant to say in the way he wanted it said--but if you don't like the statement or the presentation, what's left to love? JcS Whats left to love? Yoko and me. Thats reality. Great post, Joey. I think you neatly sum up the spectrum of opinions about POB.
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