PAUL MCCARTNEY: A remarkable evening

When I heard that Paul McCartney was coming back to Australia AND visiting my home-town of Newcastle I was equal parts excited, and equal parts unsure.

I had seen him twice before. Way back in 1993, which was a great concert but the second time in 2017 was phenomenal.

He was now 6 years older, was it worth going again, when last time was perfection and the best concert I had ever attended?

I had to think fast, and of course, my lovely Andrew had never seen McCartney and he is as big a Beatles fan as me, so the answer was yes. But Newcastle was not going to happen logistically. My sisters also wanted to go and so within a week we had seats for the four of us at the Sydney concert. 

It wasn't long before the day was upon us, my sister Karen drove us there and Andrew met us prior. We had a good trip down, excited and happy.  And after an early dinner we made our way to the entrance of the Sydney Cricket Ground, where we would enter through to get to the new stadium next door as we were seated on the ground. There was a bit of a wait and some superb people watching and we finally made our way inside. We had very good seats close to the stage, towards the back of that section. It had been sprinkling, but there was a lovely lady in attendance with a towel who had been looking after her/our section beautifully. 

We took our seats and a wave of emotion came over me. To be here again, for the single most important person (in my opinion) musically in the entire world and such a favourite was all too much, also to share it with my sisters and my love was an added bonus. We were all excited.

We were worried about the weather, rain on and off all day and dark clouds looming. We were lucky, one downpour about 30 minutes before he came on, enough for us to need to put on our rain ponchos, and a few moments of light drizzle through the concert. It was also a full moon, so lovely to be able to look up into the night sky and see the heavens above. It added to the atmosphere of the evening.



A great film of McCartney and Beatles stills and moving images back to music played prior, including the 'new' Beatles song, Now and Then. Anticipation was high, smiles were wide.

And then he arrived on stage to much fanfare, and got straight into Can't Buy Me Love. He sounded amazing and I knew it was going to be a great night. The crowd went wild, everyone was on their feet. We couldn't really see the stage which had me a little bummed, but as the night went on, and people settled, we could, and it was great with excellent views.

The vibe was intense and glorious and everything. We sang to every song. Singing and dancing with my sisters (as we did as kids) and my love, who usually doesn't dance, was such joy, I have no real words to describe it. This kind of joy needs to be bottled. 

He played 39 songs over 3 hours straight - see setlist below - and sounded amazing! His voice has changed over the years, but still holds up great for his age, which is 81 by the way! 

81!!!!!!

He talked and joked with the crowd and the band, and it just seemed impossible that this man, this hero, the originator of music as we know it, was there, almost in reach. I thought I would be emotional throughout, and I was, but not many tears, which is quite unlike me. I was so very in the moment and so very much enjoying myself, crying just didn't happen...until much later. The next day and those after just thinking about the evening brought me to my knees, and I am writing this with wet eyes. 

I am utterly aware of the privilege of seeing what is easily the greatest concert of my life.

His band, who he has been playing with for decades, were brilliant as always. Great riffs, harmonies and they look liked they were loving every minute of it. Imagine being in Paul McCartney's band...

My highlights were as follows:

Go to Get you into my life - I love this song, and love the brass section. This concert he had a brass section, so a lot of brassy songs were included and this was no exception. They were actually placed up the top of the stadium amongst the punters. Imagine being near to that. The song sounded sharp and great!

Let Me Roll it - one of my favourite Wings songs. It went off, so did I. Such a  great song with that fabulous guitar riff, oh my!

Ditto for Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five - bloody love that song, so underrated, real gem!

Maybe I'm Amazed - one of his finest love songs, sounded beautiful.

Blackbird - just about one of the simplest yet best songs ever written. Absolutely stunning performance. Had me in raptures.

She Came in through the Bathroom Window - always fun, an unexpected song to hear, but that's the point of a big concert!

Something - a stunning tribute to George Harrison, starting with just him on a Uke, one given to him by Georgie. The band slowly comes in and the song builds and lifts. A highly emotional moment, showcasing his and George's genius and beauty.

Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da - had EVERYONE on their feet, dancing and laughing. I love this song so very much, it always brings me joy and you could feel the joy in everyone during this one. Utter brilliance.

From there the concert just kept lifting and lifting, it was completely extraordinary.

Band on the Run - perfection!

Get Back and Let it Be - wonderful

Live and Let die -  BOOM!!!! pyrotechnics and sound, ultimate brilliance.

Hey Jude - my all-time favourite Beatles song, McCartney song, song. Singing along with 1000s of people, my sisters, and my love. Tears indeed.

He disappeared for a few minutes and then back for the encore.

I've got a feeling - a great underrated gem, made popular by the Get Back doco, now with Lennon spliced in, so Paul is doing a duet with his friend, a real goosebumps moment!

Helter Skelter - it bloody rocked! A surprise and well loved song by all, we all went off!!!!!

The finale was the Abbey Road trilogy which I adore. Golden Slumbers, The End, Carry That Weight. Oh boy, so very good.

And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make. One of the best and most meaningful lines of lyrics ever written.

It was over, but we were happy and been given the best lifeline you could ever get. If everyone got to see a concert like this just once in their life, there would be no war, no sorrow. The joy should be bottled.

To be alive at this moment in time, to be able to see such a magnificent performance from someone I love so very deeply. It's something...

Setlist

1. Can't Buy Me Love

2. Junior's Farm

3. Letting Go

4. She's a Woman

5. Got To Get You Into My Life

6. Come On To me

7. Let Me Roll It

8. Getting Better

9. Let 'Em In

10. My Valentine

11. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five

12. Maybe I'm Amazed

13. I've Just Seen A Face

14. In Spite of All The Danger

15. Love Me Do

16. Dance Tonight

17. Blackbird

18. Here today

19. New

20. Lady Madonna

21. Fuh You

22. You Never Give Me Your Money

23. She Came In Through the Bathroom Window

24. Jet

25. Being For The Benefit of Mr Kite

26. Something

27. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

28. Band on The Run

29. Get Back

30. Let It Be   

31. Live and Let Die

32. Hey Jude

encore::::

33. I've Got A Feeling

34. Birthday

35. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise)          

36. Helter Skelter

37. Golden Slumbers

38. Carry That Weight

39. The End                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

                                                                                  

                                                                                                                                                                         

BEATNIX

In my early 20s I saw Beatnix a lot. I was getting back into The Beatles, and whilst not the fan I am today, I was loving them and how wonderful to see this great tribute band if I couldn't see the real thing.

I should also add my Dad was/is a huge Beatles fan. He would order their albums and singles from overseas and saw them in Sydney. We grew up with The Beatles, and listened to their music like other children would listen to nursery rhymes. So they were always there. In my teens, I loved their early music and Lennon was king, then I withdrew for a few years, a mix of over-exposure and my way of teenage rebellion, lol. But I came back, we always find our way back to greatness.

I used to be at The Palais Royale most weekends, my lovely friend Jen's boyfriend was the head barman there. He would drive us in early, start work, we would have dinner somewhere and come back to see whatever was on, and then wait for him to close and drive us home. It was a pretty great period in time. We had to pay for tickets to big events, and our drinks, but an OJ would get a nip of vodka in it or a vodka and OJ would get a second nip, lol!

Beatnix toured regularly at the time, so we saw them a lot. I loved them so.

I had not seen them in decades, occasionally they would pop up at Lizottes, and I thought I should go and see them, but was worried they would not be as good as I remembered them. When I found out Andrew, also a huge Beatles fan (how lucky am i!!??), had never seen them but had wanted to, I knew we had to go and see them. Within weeks of this conversation, they were advertised as coming soon. I got us tickets to a Sunday lunch.

Lizottes is always a quality night out, and I had never done lunch but it was just as good.

We had a good table and a good meal and out they came.

First half in those grey matching suits and mop top wigs. The first number was a little shakey, but once they found their groove everyone was smiling and singing along.

It was pure joy!

We had smiles from ear to ear.

They were tight. 2 older members have probably been in it from Day one, and the younger ones were doing fine under their watchful eye.

They played everything and anything from the red period.

After a short break they came back out, this time in full Sergeant Pepper's regalia. The blue set was infinitely better, but these are my preferred songs. They kept to the well known and safe songs from this era, which makes perfect sense.

I was just thrilled that they really were as good as I remembered them, and Andrew was super impressed too. We had a great time, and I totally recommend checking them out if you get the chance.

THE WHITE ALBUM CONCERT

As a Beatles fan I get a little particular about cover versions. A few years ago I went to the Opera House to see a bunch of musos play Abbey Road and Sgt Peppers. Against my better judgement, I absolutely loved it! You can read about it here.

The White Album tour came first, I think, and this is the third time it has been toured, so I had to go. And when it came to Newcastle, even better. No one was interested, and that doesn't stop me anymore, so I got a ticket for one.

The backing orchestra featured many musos from the other concert, including string and brass sections. The singers were Tim Rogers, Phil Jamieson, Chris Cheney and Josh Pyke. I was super impressed.

So The White Album...again, another set of music The Beatles never toured, again experimental, and also the album marking the beginning of the end. The White Album does divide, it is a mix of amazing and experimental and I love it to pieces. I rotate between The White Album and Abbey Road as my faves, but honestly I just love everything they did.

I should have not been concerned, Chris Cheney totally owned the opening track, Back in the USSR and the show just soared from there!

The show was seamless, with the material divided up mostly by style, Cheney taking most of the rock, Pyke, the ballads, and Tim and Phil the quirkier stuff. They sang solo, or as a group etc. It just worked so very well. The backing band were something else, remarkable stuff indeed.

I am not a huge fan of The Living End, but Cheney owned the rockier material on the album, including an amazing rendition of While My Guitar Gently Weeps. And then an absolute kick arse version of Helter Skelter as highlights.

Same goes for Grinspoon, not that much of a fan, but I do have a huge crush on Phil Jamieson. Phil got a lot of the quirkier songs and that totally suited his style. He hammed it up, dancing and being silly, often with Tim Rogers and he had me in the palm of his hand. I loved him doing Sexy Sadie.

Josh Pyke, who I quite like, landed the more gentle songs, his version of Julia was beautiful.

Tim Rogers, who I love so very much, was brilliant. He hammed it up, especially to Piggies and Happiness is a Warm Gun, adding in a reworked John Lennon cockney crack every now and then. "Rattle your light rail tickets" got a lot of laughs. And also did a superb version of Revolution 1.

They played every song exactly as it was meant to be played, with songs played in album order, down to every odd sound and whistle.

And the audience - and myself - loved every single minute of it.

The variety of musical style, the genius of their collective writing, the excitement of hearing the songs, evoked The Beatles for every second they were on stage.

My highlights were Ob La Di, Ob La Da, Blackbird, and Revolution 1.

After the final song, Good night, they left the stage but we all wanted more.

And the four came out with guitars and did a trio of lovely acoustic songs, Two of Us, Across the Universe, The Ballad of John and Yoko.

This was simply outstanding and quite frankly jaw dropping unexpectedness, you wanted them to jam all night. These were their versions of the songs, and respectful and brilliant.

The orchestra then rejoined them, and they did a stunning version of All Things Must Pass, followed by a rock the joint version of Revolution.

I could have watched these guys all night. It was a really big deal that this worked for me.

If the whole world could watch this just once, there would be world peace I am certain. I felt so good and refreshed and happy and wonderful at the end of this concert. Good music will always be good music if played as it is meant to and played well.

Bless John, Paul, George, and Ringo for creating musical history and perfection.

Bless Chris, Phil, Josh, and Tim for recreating it!

The Art of McCartney and why can't people who cover The Beatles do them justice!?!

The Art of McCartney by Various Artists 

I got this for Christmas and it's been sitting on my to listen to pile for ages. It is not great, but then I find covers of The Beatles, specifically McCartney songs never are. Sure there are some gems, but they are few and far between. 

Why do so many good musicians fall over with these classic songs? 

Some artists really ruin songs that would have sounded like a sure bet on paper, Billy Joel doing Maybe I'm Amazed, just awful and he gets a second go on Live and Let Die, which in my mind was already a bad choice, and then he whistled on it...whistled...on Live and Let die...really? Harry Connick Jnr singing My Love sounds like a match made in heaven, but it was beyond awful, he sounded off-key. It should have been a lifted, symphonic performance we all know Connick is more than capable of, but it was not.

Does The Beatles cannon scare people that much? Is it far more difficult musically than it sounds? Do people think they can muck around with perfection? The answer is probably times three! 

Those that respect the melody and sing it as intended, but how they sing, make it work the best. Two perfect examples of getting it right are The Cure doing Hello, Goodbye, they sing it exactly as it is meant to be sung, but they still sound like The Cure and it sounds great. Alice Cooper (surprisingly - or maybe not - a huge Beatles fan) does a great version of Eleanor Rigby, same thing, sounds as it is meant to but still sounds like Alice Cooper. 

There is a real clarity and crispness to a lot of McCartney's song, the guitar riff on Band on the Run for example, and in these covers the ones that mess up loose that clarity and turn it into murky, and somehow it doesn't work. It's fascinating and almost amusing to listen to...almost...cause technically it is sacrilege! When someone with a voice like Jamie Cullum makes a sweet tune like Every Night sounds dirgy and dark you know something is just wrong.

Def Leppard do well on Helen Wheels, Owl City lift Listen to What the Man Said beautifully, Perry Farrell kills on Got to Get You Into My Life, and The Airborne Toxic Event are great on No More Lonely Nights. The songs sound right, but not exact copies, and you can hear their own uniqueness over the musicality of McCartney. This is how they should be covered.

Then there were the versions that were almost carbon copies, but just don't cut it, because why bother? Corinne Bailey Rae does this with Bluebird, she should have brought an extra sweetness to it, but it never happened. It was technically perfect and she sounds good, but it was lackluster.

George Martin worked on a project with a range of songs being covered by unlikely people over a decade ago, and most of the songs covered sound good. But that is to be expected, if anyone knows how to arrange a Beatles song it is Martin. So why did this project, supposedly overseen by McCartney himself go wrong? Is he just too nice to say to people, you suck? Probably.

There had been some great covers of Beatles songs over the years, my favourites being Joe Cocker's With A Little Help From My Friends and U2's Helter Skelter. And a highly commended to Zoot's Eleanor Rigby. And I do love Roxy Music's Jealous Guy. There are probably a few more, but off the top of my head I cannot think.

What are your favourites? Or ones you cannot stand?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!

Before starting afresh in 2013 it's good to review the year that has now gone.

 

2012 was a really interesting year for me - so much brilliance and so much ordinary.

 

So in no particular order, but let's get the bad out the way first::

 

What pissed me off : My Body

Which failed me at the very worst time, the lead up to my holiday! Yep, the triple comedy that was a crook foot, followed by second degree burns, and then a knee injury. I'm done telling the story, if you don't know...well, you're probably very lucky! I shall now endeavour to resolve the flab that came with all the resting!

 

Honourable mentions go to Telstra ( need I say more!?! ); 50 Shades of everything ( misogynistic, poorly written, sad and obviously written by a virgin or someone who has only ever had bad sex!!! ); Newcastle Council ( you know, the ones who killed our beloved trees ); People who can't use social networking (mostly Facebook) properly ( get a dictionary for starters...I could go on...I won't... ) ; and Work ( well, I feel I have done some of my best work this year, yet things didn't quite go according to plan, but you can't keep a good Capricorn down for long!!! )

 

Live Performance of the Year: Tex Perkins singing at RocKwiz Live

Tex Perkins singing Iggy Pop's The Passenger...the coolest thing I have ever seen and sooo S/Texy...oh my!

 

Shout outs to Hall and Oates, Icehouse (finally!!), and the 80s show at Lizottes.

 

Book of the Year: Life by Keith Richards AND A Moveable Feast by Hemingway

I loved Life so much I haven't actually finished it, I like to savour the good ones, and reading A Moveable Feast in Paris no less AND bought at Shakespeare and Company shot it straight into my top 5 books of all time.

 

I mostly read travel guides on France and Italy, but the few books I did read were outstanding. Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood was stunning; The Hobbit was outstanding, and Jeff Apter's biog of Marc Hunter was an eye opener.

 

Album of the Year: Tom Waits, Bad as me

I have no words to express how much I love Tom...and that's before he starts singing, sometimes I think I love the idea of him more than his music, but oh I love his music and this album was his best in years...and yes it came out late 2011, but it was what I played over and over at the beginning of 2012.

 

Runner up was Jack White's Blunderbass but I just got the new Dylan and after one listen this might go to no 2!

 

Other honourable mentions, Patti Smith's Banga, Wrecking Ball by Bruce Springsteen, both Martha and Rufus Wainwright, and I also listened to Adele a lot in the beginning of the year!

 

However the album most played would be 101 hits of the 70s - this was outstanding!!!

 

Also discovery of the year, BB Brunes - cool French Band and my Paris radio station that I can stream over the net.

 

TV show of the year : Mad Men...hands down!

Oh Don Draper, I finally discovered you and overdosed on S1-4 in one sitting, saw most of S5 on the plane.

 

Besides the brilliant attention to detail and the fabulous clothes that Joan wears, wonderfully layered characters, and well written storylines, I love the relationship between Don and Peggy - when she leaves in season 5 and he holds her hand just a little bit too long, my heart was breaking...

 

Other favs - and this was a great year for tele - are in no particular order, The Walking Dead (so much more than Zombies), Breaking Bad (it's as badass as you can get, but superb), Dexter (the first year I felt uncomfortable watching, because I suspect things will not end well for our anti-hero, now that's stunning storytelling), Parks and Recreation (Fabulous ensemble cast, but Nick Offerman's Ron Swanson and Rob Lowe's idiot must be two of the funniest characters on TV), Portlandia (dumpster diving, unicorns, Aimee Mann, Hippy Bookshops and Agent Copper as The Mayor...oh and that's before 'Put a bird on it'), Moone Boy (Fabulous soundtrack including Sultans of Ping theme song, great characters, digs at Bono and The Hoff, perfect lead and Chris O'Dowd), Hit and Miss (Chloe Sevigny as a transexual assassin who discovers she has a son...say no more), Sons of Anarchy (it's trashy, but hypnotic), Gossip girl (I have no shame in saying how much I love this show and Chuck Bass!), Once upon a time (clever, mystifying and Robert Carlyle steals and chews every scene as the creepy yet sexy Rumpelstiltskin), and Smash (Broadway, Marilyn, great cast including Debra Messing, Angelica Huston and the gorgeous Jack Davenport)...I was at home a lot saving for my trip!

 

Movie of the year: Hugo, closely followed by Moonrise Kingdom

I adore Scorsese and I adore silent film, how can this beautiful film not by my no 1? Moonrise Kingdom was another great film with another quirky ensemble by Wes Anderson. It was funny and cute (in a good way), but as always the attention to detail in set design and script are what makes Anderson one of the best.

 

Other films I loved were The Avengers (Joss, you did good!), The Hobbit (a little blown out in parts, but still close to perfection), The Sapphires (great Australian film with humour and music, yet an underlying strength with history and drama), Hysteria (sooo funny and clever), This must be the place (very odd, but nuanced performance by Sean Penn as an aging goth rocker tracking down the Nazi who ill-treated his father in WWII), Rum Diaries (very suave, Depp as I prefer him), Marley (the most balanced doco yet on Bob, great music of course), The Artist (Oscar winning film of the year and utterly charming) and Where do we go now (Nadine Labaki's follow up to Caramel, a dramedy set in Lebanon). Add in the Italian and Silent Film festivals and it was a good year at the cinemas.

 

Quote of the year: I'm Chuck Bass

As spoken by said character...a lot, but mostly as quoted by the writers of Gossip Girl when asked the best line they wrote...yep, "I'm Chuck Bass" well played GG writers, well played!!!

 

The above also wins vacuousness of the year, lol!!!

 

Other things that made me smile ear to ear and pretty much made my year

TWITTER - oh my, so much distraction, so much fabulousness, so many outstanding people

FRIENDS - this was definitely the year of the friend, all my wonderful 'old' friends, and all my new friends who I have met IRL thru twitter - lucky and blessed I am!!!

NEW HAIRDRESSER - finally!!!!

BEATLES BOXSET IN VINYL- Wow, just wow, so much perfection, I have no words

 

OH YEAH AND THEN THERE WAS MY EUROPEAN VACATION which contained so much awesomeness I need a whole other blog to write about it, hang on...I already have...check out my archives!!!!

 

And NO, I cannot pick ONE favourite place or thing....I loved it all!!!!!

 

And finally, I turned 42 in 2012, and as Hitchhikers fans know Douglas Adams ( or rather Deep Thought in the book ) wrote that 42 is the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything.

 

So, do I have the answers...ummm, not really!

 

However, I have more clarity and understanding of my own life than I ever had, quite possibly this will continue as I turn 43, 44 etc etc...or at least I hope so!

 

But maybe DA is right, this is the first time I felt like I get what I am about...and let's face it, only I can really get myself, so that has to be some kind of answer.

 

2012 may have presented me with some dead ends and annoyances, but it also presented me with some of the most marvelous moments I have ever experienced and this is what will lead me into 2013.

 

And it makes me want to experience even more, so rather than have New Year's Resolutions, which let's face it are usually screwed within a week of making them, I have a list of 42 things I want to do while I am 42 and I hope you will all join me for the ride that will be 2013...my best year ever??????

 

1. Finish sorting my holiday photos

2. Reorganize my study - this may take me all year

3. Have one night a week where I turn off all electronics and read

4. Walk more and explore my own surroundings...there is so much I haven't seen in Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and other areas nearby

5. Read more of my own books. I tend to purchase these, but they get pushed aside for books I bring home from work

6. More live music - the very poor list above is very abnormal for me. I'm open to pretty much anything, though snooty about venues!

7. Learn to cook 5 basic, healthy meals I can whip up easily

8. Don't let the things that usually bother me, irritate me too much

9. Go on a picnic, cannot remember the last one I had

10. Learn Yoga

11. Music: Join an appropriate choir or musical group and practice my instruments more often

12. Care less what people think of me...I got better at this in 2012, but still have a long way to go

13. Write more, post on my blog more regularly

14. Whip my little backyard back into shape

15. Spend more time outdoors and less time indoors

16. Go to Hunter Valley Gardens...never been...really!!!

17. Mini breaks to my favourite places - Melbourne (not been since 2011!!), The Blue Mountains, Mid North Coast, and try new ones

18. Pamper myself more including have regular soaks in the tub

19. Eat and drink out more

20. Get through my list of local restaurants and cafes

21. Go to more films at Film Society than 2012

22. Wash my car more often

23. Spend more time with my niece and nephew

24. Learn chess

25. Paint more

26. Go to the farmers markets regularly

27. Really listen to music...eg in the dark with a glass of something something...no distractions

28. Entertain more

29. Rearrange, redecorate and spruce up my place

30. Say no or at least I'll need to get back to you on that one to the people I always say yes to that usually let me down

31. Have fun and laugh more at work

32. Live up to my Librarian of Leisure handle

33. Go to lots of fun social events

34. Make sure those that mean the most to me know that they do

35. Go swimming

36. Take time to do nothing and daydream more often

37. Reinstate Sunday culture afternoons at galleries, museums, and secondhand bookstores

38. Finish knitting the scarf I started 3 winters ago

39. Go on more dates...might need help with this one...anyone, anybody!?!

40. Trust my instincts more

41. Have more fun

42. Surprise myself

 

So, thank you to everyone who joined me on my 2012 journey. Your friendship, company, love and support helped me through the bad times and made the good times even more enjoyable.

 

Here's to a wonderful 2013, may all your dreams and wishes come true and I hope you will join me in completing my 42 things :)

 

Below is a gorgeous quote I found and used last year from one of my favourite authors, Neil Gaiman...it's timeless...

 

 

WOMEN OF LETTERS: To my most treasured possession

To my most treasured possession,

You are the thing I would take with me if I could only take one thing.

You are the thing I love the most in the entire world.

I would rummage for you if - god forbid - I had to evacuate my home.

In fact, I have you placed in a secret, but very special and easily accessible place in case I need to leave quickly.

I remember the day I was robbed, as I entered the room you live in and realised lots of my antique and irreplaceable jewellery were stolen and I began to sob...but then I thought of you and almost passed out, but you were still there...I would do anything to retrieve my gemstone from Africa and my grandmother's engagement ring and my graduation watch BUT if you had gone missing, I think I would have ended it all.

You are one of my reason's for living - well what you represent.

You represent music - music is not my first love, but that dearest to me. AND of music you represent the VERY best there is.

You represent experience - not my experience, but an experience that was passed on to me in the tradition of storytelling I love so much.

You represent pride - I am so proud to have you as my personal possession.

You represent history - cause it does not get much more historic - in a musical sense.

Finally, you represent love - you were given to me out of love and pride all those wonderful things.

You are in pristine condition because I look after you as my father did before me.

You are my father's ticket he kept when he saw The Beatles back on June 20th, 1964 - Sydney Stadium.

You are a small piece of cardboard, with black writing on a lovely reddy pink and rose pink background.

But the thought of you makes me feel so very special, so connected and so loved.

The Beatles

THE BEATLES

This post has loomed large and taken much time to think about let along begin to write. I mean, what do you say about the most important band in the world and my favourite band in the world. Everything has been written and I love them so much they could have a whole blog of their own - no doubt there are plenty already devoted to them. I would really like to write about them in detail - and I may well at some point - but for this, I will not bore you too much. I will simply list what I know to be true to me and how I feel about them, the things that have remained with me my entire life, the facts that never seem to change.

My dad loved The Beatles and it is his love of The Beatles and indeed music generally that has shaped my love of music - a fact I will be eternally grateful for. I grew up listening to The Beatles, they were and are more important to me than the usual songs you hear as a child - nursery rhymes, silly songs etc. I did go through a stage in my mid teens where I hated them, I think it was a rebellious thing and probably overkill - if Dad really likes something he goes a bit bananas (another trait I have inherited!). But by my late teens my fate was sealed, and they were it - pure and simple.

My favourite album (mostly) is Abbey Road - this does change from time to time, but it has come back to the No. 1 spot more times than the others - The White Album and Revolver, so it shall remain there at this point in time.

I prefer their later songs - more from The Blue Album period, but as you will see from what I have chosen there is much to love from the earlier period also.

My favourite song is Hey Jude - it has been for about ten years now and I seriously doubt that will ever change. I love the nakedness and sincerity of this, McCartney can go a little too sentimental at times, but he reigns this one in pretty well. When I am listening and more often than not singing this song I tend to chop off the end bits - I think they go on a little too much. In a group the na na na nana nana's are cool and fun, either way this is just a song I can (and do) listen to forever. Funnily enough, this is not on my best of best of best - it is just TOO good to include :)

My second favourite song - probably close to 5 years, and again I doubt this will change is Across the Universe - so sweet and spiritual, and perfectly encapsulating Lennon. I always feel calm and comforted listening to this, in fact most of their songs do that to me.

After those 2 all bets are off and songs come and go - I mean there are so many to choose from, which made this exercise so incredibly hard - more on that with the songs I ended up choosing.

My favourite Beatle is and always has been Paul McCartney - I think he is perfection and the closest to a musical genius I think anyone will find. I think he was edgier than Lennon - he just did not get shot... harsh but true. I did go through a Lennon stage in my teens, I think most fans do, but it was always Paul. I know he can be overly sentimental - and mostly it works. If you listen to some of his vocals and read about some of his experimentation you will understand where I am coming from. I like a lot of his work from Wings and his solo work and his new work with Firemen is fantastic. And, I knew that fucking Heather Mills was trouble from day 1 - I tell you - how dare she!!!!!

Having said that I have always said if I could go back in time only once I would go back to NYC and take the bullet - and I really mean that, well I would take it my leg or arm or belly - somewhere that would not kill me too, I mean that would be insane. There are 2 things that will really undo me in life. The first is the Holocaust and the second is Lennon's murder, so wrong and so unbelievably painful there are no words to describe it.

I always wanted to marry Julian Lennon - he just seems so sad, to have gone through what he has, I mean John was no saint, I think that is why Hey Jude resonates with me so much. Julian's story breaks my heart - the man deserves to be happy...

My favourite Beatles book is Geoff Emerick's Here, there and everywhere. He was one of their engineers, starting as an assistant in his mid teens. He transports you back to the studio and you feel you are there creating with them, magic - that is a writer and a gifted human being. He explains the processes behind the recording and a lot of the experimental ideas they used to create certain sounds, some of which he helped significantly with. He also helps you understand each Beatle and whilst it is obvious he is a McCartney fan, I feel the observations he makes generally are fair. If you only read one book about The Beatles, this is the one!

Finally, my most prized and treasured item is a ticket stub from when my dad saw The Beatles when they toured Australia. Saturday, June 20th to be exact at the Sydney Stadium, Section 7, Seat H25. It is a glorious musty pink and burgundy coloured ticket on the kind of cardboard that has kept it in pretty good condition all these years. Dad gave it to me many years ago, when he must have realised I shared his passion for this wonderful band. It is my favourite and most cherished 'thing', and I feel honoured and proud to have been given such a fabulous item from history. Yes, there was a lot of screaming, but it was great - I might try and get him to write a guest post one of these days!

So, as you can see I could write more, but on to the task at hand. Choosing the songs to include in this compilation - it took almost as long as it did for me to gather my thoughts above...a looooong time! A few years back I made a compilation of my favourite Beatles tracks at the time and these six tracks were included. I just went through the compilation and pulled out six tracks that covered what I love about their music, but found as I went to write why words have not come easily to me. It is hard to write about something so personal without sounding cliched or stupid. I hope I have not done that and I suspect if I were to choose six tracks today, some of those may not be included. I would really love to hear about everyone's favourite tracks, so don't be shy

TRACK SIXTEEN: She's a woman
I overdid the early stuff early on in my life so there are some tracks I prefer in moderation, it is the less known tracks I prefer these days. She's a woman is a perfect example - bright, quick, catchy, great back beat and good, quirky lyrics. The vocals are not perfect, but a little dirty and edgy, this is a preference.

TRACK SEVENTEEN: Slow Down
This is a great early Lennon vocal track, again coupled with She's a woman, this showcases early Beatles wonderfully. Raw, edgy, comical and ground breaking. Imagine (if you can) never hearing music of this type and hearing that scratchy arghhh halfway through the track - you wouldn't know what to think, I love this, makes you want to get up and dance!

TRACK EIGHTEEN: I should have known better
I seriously love this and I think it is my favourite early track. The harmonies are perfect, although they struggle a little with the top range, which I think adds to the originalness of the track. The tune is simple, the harmonica and guitar solo simple - yet simple as they are, make it unique. I totally love singing this song and love the sentiment behind it.

TRACK NINETEEN: Got to get you into my life
On the precipice of change, this is a truly imagined song. From the brassy beginning you know this is a going to be a great song, a great lyrical song with interesting rhythm. I love the syncopation and phrasing of "every single day of my life". They were not afraid to mix it up and begin to experiment at this stage. And the rawness of the chorus and the coda rock it out just a little.

TRACK TWENTY: Oh Darling
Speaking of rawness, this is one of the edgiest and rockiest songs if you just listen to McCartney's interpretation of it. Listen to his phrasing and vocal range, especially when he gets to "When you told me, you didn't need me anymore...", oh my god, you believe every, single word. It starts off raw with a little bit of sweet, but as the song moves through he gets rawer, and rawer and edgier and gutsier, to the point where you almost - but not quite - hear his vocal cords ripping...that my friends is a singer, and Ringo beats the shit out of those drums!!

TRACK TWENTY-ONE: Across the Universe
This is just a stunningly beautiful piece of love; perfect and pure John Lennon at his best. I do love Imagine, but give me Across the Universe any day. Humbly spiritual and sweet and innocent, the lyrics make me feel calm and content and eager to ensure I am true to myself and try not to let others change me for the worse! "inciting and inviting me...." glorious lyrics too...