The Beatles London Walk-Blog 3

     Throughout our whole Beatles experience in the UK, I have found that a lot more things than I had expected both influenced the Beatles and were influenced by them as well. Not only have the Beatles influenced American and British culture, but also were affected by American and British cultures. Today our group was privileged enough to take a walking tour around London to see the main Beatles sites, and influences. Our first stop of our walking tour was Paul McCartney's office MPL.  This was an interesting place, because at first glance it looks like just a regular office building with the simple initials of MPL on the front of it, little did I know it was Paul McCartney's music publishing house. MPL was started by McCartney as a branch off of the Beatles Apple Corps. You can only imagine how many artists hit up that spot to try and get their music out there and listened to.

  One of the things I thought of while walking through the streets of London on this walking tour, was just how being in the London atmosphere would have impacted the Beatles. London was a very different place for the Beatles outside of Liverpool and gave them whole new areas to explore and play their music at. Being around the people, the different music clubs, and having that fresh area where people are not as close to you and know you as a neighbor would have been a good and fresh change. Having that escape from home would have definitely had a huge impact on the Beatles, they got a taste of a different life style, and the feeling of being away from home more and more. I can imagine for anyone that the feeling of independence would and will change you as a person and make you see things in a different way, just as The Beatles did.

   Another area that we walked up to was the famous building where the Beatles held their last concert together as a group. This building is better known as The Apple Corps studios. Just imagining the Beatles on top of the building, trying to hear the music and songs they sang was just surreal. Although this marked the beginning of the end of the Beatles, there are still many historic memories played into this building. Watching the videos of them playing on the rooftop, you begin to see people emerging onto other rooftops, in the streets, out of their windows, trying to listen and see the Beatles, little did they know that would be the last time ever. We were told that the Beatles had played songs a number of times over to get the perfect cut. They turned the rooftop both into a video setting, recording area, stage and a historic place. Although this is the place where the last concert was held, there were still many more Beatles songs, and inspirations to happen.  Can you imagine being in that area, or being one of the last people to see them on the rooftop? A memory I can only imagine would be irreplaceable.

  John Lennon is known for his music, being artsy, his humor, and his fads. There is one occasion in particular where all of these fall together, nothing other than the story behind Johns famous glasses. John had wanted to enter into an Ad Lib club, however this club did not allow him in for certain reasons, including not wearing a tie. So John and another comedy group decided to pull something else and basically make fun of this Ad Lib gentlemen club. He wore a top hat, black coat, and these perfectly round, wire glasses. He stood outside of this "club", looking like a gentleman. The funny thing about these glasses, is that they were actually very uncool at the time. Kids wearing glasses did not want that style and  would ask for another pair, here come the funny part. After seeing John wearing these glasses, all of a sudden they were popular and everyone wanted a pair. Hence, fad started and without John even trying.


    One of the things the Beatles accomplished more than anything was the fact that they could have worn a pine cone on their head and the next hour or so, millions of people would be doing the same thing. The Beatles did more than just inspire music in people they unknowingly dressed people. What they Beatles wore everyone wore, how the Beatles looked, everyone looked the same. Not a day went by that the Beatles didn't start some inch of a fad, for example Johns glasses, and that was on accident. One of the most influential places the Beatles overtook was Carnaby Street. This was one of the main places the Beatles would shop for new and interesting styles, but the minute people aka fans, found out who was shopping there, Carnaby Street instantly became over populated with people wanting the same clothes as the Beatles, even hoping to get a run in with them as well. Soon after, the Beatles had to find a new area to shop. Another interesting thing along Carnaby Street, is a Carnaby Street sign, very similar to that of the Sgt. Pepper album cover. Coincidence?





  The last and best place our group went to, was non other than Abbey Road. Not only is this one of my favorite albums, but it is my favorite album cover. The back story behind how this album cover, was showing signs of Paul McCartney's death, is so intriguing. Abbey Road is the last recorded album of the Beatles and includes some of the Beatles most popular songs. When we were hogging up the Abbey Road Street, it was easy to imagine how much easier it was for the Beatles to get their picture. We had to practically stop and hold up traffic just to walk across the street, in order to get the picture exactly right by crossing back over. Our guide was telling us how this is the most copied picture in the world, which I can easily understand, saying as I was one of the million to copy it. This album was supposed to be an album recorded the way the Beatles used to record songs, but it ended up being just a collection of singles and songs from the members themselves. Although this was the marking of the last piece of the Beatles, it turned out to be a very memorable and influential bit. The walls along side Abbey Road are covered with messages and signatures from fans all over the world. It is repainted over every so weeks and filled up just as fast. It is easily seen that the Beatles still remain a very big impact on the lives of many.

Things Seen in Liverpool- Blog 2

     On Tuesday morning I woke up around 4 in the morning, why you may ask? Well because there was an estimated amount of 35 flies in our room, that number maybe exagerated a bit, but it's pretty close. I decided that there was no way I was going to be able to fall back asleep with all the flies buzzing around, so I got up to take a shower as quietly as I could without waking Anna or Cheshire up. Little did I know that somehow I had convinced them I was sleepwalking. That had made for an interesting morning. We all took off for Liverpool at 6:30, that way when we arrived in Liverpool we would have enough time to make it to the Beatles Museum, Magical Mystery Tour, and to The Cavern Club. We all headed out for our first stop of the day, the Beatles Museum tour. Entering in I had this idea that it would just be Beatles memorabilia, nick nacks, and random facts about the Beatles. When I entered in however, it ended up being something completely different. Inside the museum they gave you an audio tour as well, you would put your headset on, then punch in the number of whatever spot you were at. It basically gave you an inside, more indepth look at everything. The museum took you from the begining, to before they became the Beatles, during the Beatles and then to their solo careers. One of the most intersting pieces to the tour was that in each section you walked into, you walked into the environment as well, making you feel like you were getting a real Beatles experience. They had a mini Cavern club that you could walk around, you could sit in airplane seats, just like the ones the Beatles had, and then at the end, when you hit the solo careers sections, each band member had their own little environment. For Ringo, the seating in his area was made up of drum seats, it also showed how he had changed since the Beatles, in Paul's it was theater seats, showing that he still had remained a true performer. George's was a very gypsy feel with colorful pillows, it showed how he was very caring and helped out others, and Johns was very peaceful with white pillows, it showed how he had changed since the Beatles and with Yoko. The whole museum showed how the Beatles were influenced, and how they themselves influenced others. Such as the Skiffle bands, when rock and roll was not permited people would make up skiffle bands, the Beatles pushed the boundries and ended up becoming one of the first groups to show what rock and roll really was. What I took the most out of the tour was probably how the Beatles had changed through the years with their different band mates, music styles, even clothing styles.  I also got a better inside look into each one of the Beatles and got to know a little bit more about who they were as an individual.

     Our next stop on the agenda was The Magical Mystery Tour. Our first stop off of the bus was Penny Lane. Interestingly enough, I learned that not every place or thing talked about in the song Penny Lane was actually located on the actual street. Paul and George would take the bus to Penny Lane every week, which created the friendship between Paul and George. This is also a street close to where Lennon had lived. Penny Lane became a routine and apart of their lives, which gave them reason to write a song, inspired by one of the places that made an impact on them and which created a friendship. Another thing that really influenced the Beatles was when Paul was introduced to Lennon by his neighbor. If Paul had not had that connection, he may never have ended up with the Beatles.

     Next we stopped off at John, Georges, Paul, and Ringo's houses. We were not able to get out at all of these spots, but it did give us a good idea of where, how, and what it was like growing up in that type of environment. Each one of the houses had one thing in common, they were all very small, and tight living areas. It would be hard to think that these men who have made so much success in their life, could have ever lived in such small area. It makes you think and wonder how much space they actually had to practice. There is no doubt about it that any artist isn't affected by where and how they grew up just like any individual. Being raised in a different environment and losing his mother, Lennon was bound to be affected, you can tell in his music and writing that having a loss of both parents made him a little dark and twisted on the inside, this however ended up benefiting for amazing songs. To me it seems that the stage was the one place John could really escape from his darker side. When Pauls mother died also this made a connection between the two, having that loss that they both knew about and could conect with.  Next we made a stop off at the Strawberry Fields gate. This was beautiful, it was a little torn up, but it still looked amazing and got the point across as to how it was an inspiration to the Beatles music. This mainly was a inspiration for John and a place where he could escape from the world and from his childhood.

    

     I would have to say however, that my favorite part of the trip to Liverpool was the Cavern Club. I can understand why anyone would want to go there. It had this odd feeling when you first walk in, as if you dont belong there, you're an outsider and that this wasn't your place, but after a while the music and the environment begin to pull you in, make you feel as though your a regular. You can't help but to dance and sing along to the songs. After one group was done playing, you just couldn't resist the urge to want to stay and listen to more. It's hard to pin point down exactly what influenced the Beatles the most about this place, but I would have to guess that it was the environment and air the place gives off. In August of 1957, the Beatles made their first appearence as the Quarry Men. February of 1961 The Beatles appeared for the first time, with fresh new rock beats and a new drummer, Ringo. This I would imagine is where the Beatles really fell in love with performing on stage and in front of people. It had a welcoming feeling, and I'm sure that's what sparked higher ambition in the Beatles.

The British Musical Experience

While in London our group traveled to a place called the O2, it was this massive area in the shape of a bubble, its outside was nothing compared to its insides. Outside it looks very normal, yet huge, but when you step inside, the bubble (as we call it) continued to grow. There were so many different things inside, I just wanted to venture off and explore everything, but I wasn't there for that, I had come to experience the British Musical Experience. At the British Musical Experience, I found that you experience a lot more than just fun and games. I had the chance to experience both musical evolution from the 1940's to the 00's, and the chance to "evolve" my own musical abilities. I felt as though I was time traveling from era to era, witnessing the changes progressing through the years. The Beatles are our main focus for the class, but the amount and type of information given was so different and up close it was hard not to stray away.

I found that the things that drew me in the most were the different musical instruments incorporated throughout the years. Having played flute and switching to a brass instrument I was able to connect on how it may have been difficult for the singers and song writers to have switched back and forth and incorporate these new instruments and styles. In the era From 1945 to 1962, you would find that more brass instruments were used, for example trumpets, saxophones and trombones. This era had a big jazzy feel and most of the music seemed to be very conservative, it was fun, upbeat, and fun to dance to, for example Chuck Berry. As mentioned Lonnie Donegan was one main attraction to the music scene. He is considered a main contributor to this era by performing in a skiffle band, which was a rock and roll inspired band that used cheap guitars and washboards. In and around this time rock and roll started to become more and more prone to attract the audience, so the jazzy bits were "jazzed" up a bit by a little more fast passed, guitar action, for example Elvis Presley. In 1962 to around 1966 the the typical music groups seemed to have been stripped back down to what would be considered a traditional band, a guitarist, drummer, bassist and singer. This was considered the time of "the British invasion" and where The Beatles really started to make their mark on history. In 1966-1970 I would personally consider a "hippie" type era, this is where you would start to see banjos, flutes, violins and occasionally a sitar. Around the time between 1970 and 1985 music started to become more populated by being electric guitar based. Music around this time became for focused on the fun and excitement of life. One of my favorite era of music began to appear around the time 1985 to 1993, this era tended to use music instruments of a more electric feel. It became very poppy, techno with fun dance beats and epic cheesy love songs. Approaching the end of the timeline in the British musical experience it was around the 90's to the 00's, here it seemed as though music had gained a little bit of everything through the years, electric sounds, original sounds, plain sounds, rock and roll sounds, jazzy sounds all incorporated into one major era. Brilliance I tell you, brilliance.

Guitars are probably one of the most common and famous instruments around, their sound along with the different things they can do are what make them so unique and compatible with voices, musical styles, and other instruments. This is one of the main instruments that The Beatles have started out on. Throughout the years, music may have changed its different instruments used, but the guitar was the one thing that stuck around. The guitar can even be shown as evolving itself. From being acoustic, to electric, and having different sounds evolve from it.

It's easy to tell that The Beatles impacted many groups and styles of music. In the way they dressed, wore their hair, sang their songs, wrote their songs, and even the way their personalities were. It's easy to say that many people are inspired by The Beatles, even if they weren't musical at all. I think it's just that they were not afraid to try something different, or imitate someone else, but by doing it in a different way. So I would say that the one thing I have gained from learning about the Beatles thus far, is just to challenge yourself, because you cannot go wrong from there.

You can fly (Peter Pan)

So yesterday was an adventure for sure. I had a goal to see the Peter Pan statue in Hyde Park, I convinced my friends that it was a good idea, only to realize that the hike to find Peter Pan was more like a journey, it felt like a ten mile walk. Turns out that Peter is more like a figurine, brilliant.

We also went to the Britsh musical Experience, there was an interactive studio area where you could play music, drums, guitars, piano, there was even a sweet sound board. I would have to say that my favorite part though was the recording studio, and the dance studio workout place. Me and Cheshire practically recorded an album, such a blast.

Earlier everyone had gone to Charles Darwins house, I'm not taking the class that's based around him, but I do think I gained just as much from it, it was so cool to think that he was actually once there doing... What he did.

So far everything has been such a blast,my roommates for Harlaxton are so goofy, and the campus is BEAUTIFUL, it's very Harry potter, mixed with the castle from Zelda with a little Beauty and the Beast mixed in.

Ttfn

London Calling

The plane ride: on the plane, we were all given pillows to sleep on. I lean my pillow against the window and daze off...next thing I know I have no pillow...I start looking around for it, on the floor,behind me, everywhere, no pillow. Until I look over, The women sitting next to me straight ninja jacked it from me while i was sleeping, the worst part was, that she wasn't even using it, just holding it, as if that wasn't bad enough, she was a booger eater.

All that aside, London has been amazing so far, the people in my classes are great and I've really made some good friends. The locals are very nice and I've even learned a few tricks. I've been told by some man that was a very beautiful lady, and that I was stylish and very cutting edge... Ok thank you random man with broken blue foot wrapped in a bag.

The environment is so wonderful and different here, I love it, and it's only day 1.

Ttfn- love from London.

She's Leaving Home

Hello fellow readers,

There is not much time left until I take off with my classmates for Europe. I have never been out of the States before, so I'm even more excited than I'd expected. Although, being excited, doesn't mean excited to pack. I wish there was some sort of devise where you could shrink everything, pack it, that way you don't have to pick and choose what you bring, it would all be there, waiting to regain its size. Oh, the things that are possible in BrainLand.
<For all my postings, I'm going to try and have each of them be the title of a song, luckily there is a Beatle's song that matches perfectly.>

I should probably start packing. TTFN