Post 3 The Beatles & Revolver

The Beatles were an England based Rock group consisting of four young men: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. The Beatles were writing all of the teen love songs of the time. The vocals were characteristic of older teen boys, boyish, yet rugged. Their message with each song was simple and fresh, consisting of the ideals of the young hopeful generation rising into adulthood. This was much like the sound of the Beach Boys at that time. Both bands seeing each other as lighthearted competition pushed a little harder to do something new and great. The Beatles had been creating nearly two albums a year through Rubber Soul. George Martin (the Beatles producer) said of Rubber Soul, “For the first time we began to think of albums as art on their own, as their own entities.”*¹ Ray Newman, in his book called Abracadabra, writes, “Rubber Soul was written and recorded after Lennon and Harrison first encountered LSD, but there is no song on the album which tries to capture the experience in sound though it makes itself felt, tentatively, in some of the lyrics.”*²

The album Revolver was edgier, grittier, more driven, and a little more unique in its use of electric sound, however not in nature sounds (as the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson used). The influences of drug use altered both band’s perspectives, to create songs using methods of warping sounds for a psychedelic feel. The Beatles used lots of studio techniques, like reversing audio segments, putting John’s vocals through a revolving speaker, delaying vocals doubled, and compressing the drums for a tighter sound. They also utilized unusual key changes and tempo changes. The Beatles also read a lot about psychological concepts, which changed their lyrical writing style. Another factor that made the album so different was that each song was very different, dabbling in genre barriers, happy, mournful, lyrical twists, and nonsense. This occurred while still containing cohesion and a theme the album as a whole.

As one interested in the aspects of sonic differences and similarities, I am realizing that I can have a unique sound that is all my own and likeable by the general populous. I have been inspired to do outlandish things, yet simple things. I would like to use little riffs for everything on some songs and long melodic phrases for others. I have lyrical ideas that come to mind from the Beatles breaking the rules. I also have new ideas for recording techniques and effect tricks. Finally, there is an awareness of the marketability to get to where my works will be understood enough for me to see a real difference in the world.