Ok, so I’ve been putting off P for a bit. My original plan was to discuss all four Beatles individually, and I am doing that with John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. It is simple really, there is just too damn much information on Paul McCartney, especially when a fan, like myself, wants to also discuss his band Wings and his solo work. I’m hoping to do a separate series on Paul himself, probably in three parts, Paul/Paul is Dead/Paul is Live, as I also plan to do with the subject of his first wife, Linda, whom I admire as a photographer (her pics of Janis Joplin alone are amazing). I’m just not sure when I will do it. So, back to the original line-up as I forgot to include Paul under P in the first place! I give you “Penny Lane.”
Penny Lane refers to an area of Liverpool, hometown to all of the Beatles, in which several bus lines converged to go to the city center. John Lennon and Paul McCartney used to meet there before heading into the city. Most of the places/things described in the song existed during the time period in which the Beatles grew up. See the Wiki for more detailed information. When first released in February 1967 as a single along with “Strawberry Fields Forever,” it was one of the first Beatles’ singles in the UK to include a photo sleeve. The Beatles created promotional videos for both “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Those “promotional videos” are considered the ancestors of today’s modern music videos. See for yourself!
Ringo Starr - and Paul McCartney introducing The Beatles: Rock Band video game at the 2009 E3 Convention as part of Microsoft's press conference on June 1, 2009. Français : Ringo Starr - et Paul McCartney présentant le jeu vidéo The Beatles: Rock Band au salon E3, lors de la conférence de presse de Microsoft le 1 er juin 2009. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
J is for John Lennon, of course. Without John Lennon, the Beatles would’ve never existed. He helped found the precursor to the Beatles, the Quarrymen in 1957. By 1960, the Quarrymen had evolved into the Beatles, with members Paul McCartney, bass guitar, and George Harrison, guitar, in place. By 1964, they were well on their way to pop infamy.
John Winston Lennon, reluctant MBE, was born in Liverpool on 9 October 1940. He died 8 December 1980 in New York, NY, shot by Mark David Chapmen. He married twice, first to Cynthia Powell from 1962 – 1968, and then to Yoko Ono from 1969 – 1980. He had two sons, Julian, with first wife Cynthia, and Sean, with his second wife Yoko. Today is impossible not to wonder what he would’ve created in the years 1980–today if he’d survived, especially when considering the album Double Fantasy, released just weeks before his death, and the massive output of Sir Paul McCartney as a solo artist 1981-today. Double Fantasy signaled the end of a five year hiatus from the music industry.
Within the Beatles, John served as the leader of the band, as well as one of the partners of the infamous Lennon/McCartney songwriting team. Their output as songwriters makes up most of the Beatles back catalog. It is widely credited as one of the most successful songwriting partnerships in all of popular music. For a time after the breakup, particularly in the early to mid-1970s, John and Paul would publicly snipe at each other through song lyrics.
It began with the second solo album released by Paul McCartney after the breakup of the Beatles in 1970, 1971’s Ram. On the album the songs “Too Many People” and “Dear Boy” seem to be digs at John and Yoko. John responded with two scathing songs on his album Imagine: “How Do You Sleep?” and “Crippled Inside.” Fortunately John and Paul made amends by the end of the 1970s. John’s relationships with other former band mates Ringo Starr and George Harrison faired a little better, but those relationships also struggled for a time in the midst of the fallout of the breakup of the Beatles.
I could go on about John Lennon, but so much of his life has entered the realm of legend and even myth. It suffices to say that he was one of the great musical talents of the 20th century. Not only is he largely responsible for the most successful pop band on the planet, ever, he also helped to write almost all of those songs. It will be a very long time before the world sees another phenomenon like the Beatles or the Lennon/McCartney songwriting team, or for that matter, John Lennon.
Can’t Buy Me Lovemay not be my favorite Beatles song, but it is an important one. The entire soundtrack – and movie – A Hard Day’s Night is classic. The video below is just a fun, tiny taste of an entire movie of great music, fun antics, and classic comedy.
I’ll buy you a diamond ring my friend If it makes you feel all right I’ll get you anything my friend If it makes you feel all right ‘Cause I don’t care too much for money For money can’t buy me love
I’ll give you all I’ve got to give If you say you love me too I may not have a lot to give But what I’ve got I’ll give to you I don’t care too much for money For money can’t buy me love
Can’t buy me love Everybody tells me so Can’t buy me love No no no, no
Say you don’t need no diamond rings And I’ll be satisfied Tell me that you want the kind of things That money just can’t buy I don’t care too much for money Money can’t buy me love
Can’t buy me love Everybody tells me so Can’t buy me love No no no, no
Say you don’t need no diamond rings And I’ll be satisfied Tell me that you want the kind of things That money just can’t buy I don’t care too much for money Money can’t buy me love
Can’t Buy Me Love is also a classic 1980s teen movie, using the original Lennon/McCartney song. I have to admit, as a very young child, I was a fan. Check out 80s tech in the trailer below.
I know a little late with this post, but I wanted to make sure I got it right. First, let me explain a little something about The Beatles. It may be tempting for Gen X and Yers to disregard The Beatles as just another important ‘60s pop band, although an influential one. Wrong. There is so much more to The Beatles than meets the eye. It is so easy for those of us born long after the band dissolved to take their heavy influence on pop culture for granted. We shouldn’t. We largely grew up in a pop culture shaped by The Beatles and everything around them. They were among the first pop bands to write their own songs. They also pioneered the concept album. If you aren’t extremely familiar with the album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, do yourself a favor and become familiar with it. It is the original concept album. And now for Beatleology…
There are a few definitions of Beatleology, check out the Urban Dictionary definition if you want to have some fun, but for the purposes of this post, we will consider it to be the study of anything and everything related to The Beatles. There are thousands of books, websites, etc. dedicated to The Beatles as a band and as solo artists. There are biographies, authorized and unauthorized, anthologies, books of photography, children’s books, and so much more. It is impossible to keep tabs on all of the new information, much less read/listen to all of the new books, interviews, etc. produced each and every year.
After a while it gets to be a bit of a game. Actually, if you really wanted to get into it, you could easily play a version of The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon with anything relating to The Beatles, including music, movies, books, etc. So, as a tribute to The Beatles’ massive influence on all aspects of pop culture on both sides of the Atlantic, I’ll leave you with a few items to explore.
– Through their Apple Records venture, The Beatles helped launch the careers of James Taylor and Badfinger. A few Badfinger songs sound as though they belong on a Beatles album! See for yourself.
– While The Beatles themselves did not play at Woodstock, Joe Cocker did play With A Little Help From My Friends at the festival. He used the lyrics of Lennon/McCartney, but completely reinterpreted the music, making it completely his own. It later became the theme song to popular 1980s sitcom The Wonder Years. They used different parts of the Joe Cocker version of the song for the various opening credits to the series – with very different effects.
– Paul McCartney supposedly saw Jimi Hendrix play in a London club a few days after the release of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Jimi Hendrix had already learned several of the songs on the album.
– The creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groeing, is a huge Beatles fan. Paul McCartney guest starred on the animated series more than once. During his first appearance on the show, along with his late wife Linda McCartney, Lisa becomes a vegetarian. As part of the stipulation for the McCartneys appearing on the show, Lisa is to remain a vegetarian for the rest of the series. There are hundreds of references to the Beatles in The Simpsons. My personal favorite is the huge Beatles collection of Homer’s frenemy – Ned Flanders!
– Both George Harrison and Eric Clapton, friends, ended up marrying Patti Boyd. Both Something and Layla were written for her.
– Saturday Night Live producer Loren Michaels once jokingly offered Paul McCartney and John Lennon $1,000 each to reunite on the show. They happened to be watching and seriously considered doing it as a stunt.
– The American band Cheap Trick was heavily influenced by the Beatles, and even did their own remake of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in 2009. Cheap Trick influenced a generations of 90s alternative bands, many of which I grew up with, including The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, Gin Blossoms, Foo Fighters, among many others.
– While Yoko Ono popularly gets all of the credit for breaking up the band, a combination of things actually broke up The Beatles, including Paul McCartney’s desire to release a solo album and disagreement over financial management of the band.
– The Beatles briefly considered reuniting shortly before John Lennon’s untimely death in December 1980.
I could go on indefinitely, but I won’t. There is always something new to learn when it comes to The Beatles and pop culture. The Beatles and macca-central.com offer tons of great information to get started. While macca-central.com concentrates on Paul McCartney, there is tons of Beatles related information there as well.
For extra credit, watch the video below. In this incredibly so-cheesy-its-good video from 1980, Paul McCartney parodies several people, including former band mates, musical influences, and even himself. Name them! By the way, the video only includes Paul, his wife Linda, and a Wings band mate or two. The band name on the drum set is pretty priceless too. I wonder how he convinced Linda to do this video! Very funny. No cheating. There are discussions of this very topic in the comments section of YouTube.
Anyone who is anyone is gearing up for the April 2012 A to Z Blogging Challenge. Originally I hadn’t planned a theme. I’m not normally a theme person per se. However, the more I learned about the challenge, and those participating, the more I realized that I did indeed need a theme. So here it goes. After originally considering a tropical theme, I realized it was way too broad. I try to write what I know, so I decided on The Beatles A to Z, including solo works. Love them or hate them, there is a ton of fun material. Here is the tentative list. I’m even going to try to tie it all together à la a concept album, an idea pioneered by the Beatles. Enjoy!
Photograph of The Beatles as they arrive in New York City in 1964 Français : Photographie de The Beatles, lors de leur arrivée à New York City en 1964 Italiano: Fotografia dei Beatles al loro arrivo a New York City nel 1964 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Oh, and by the way, do check out Nickers And Ink, an online friend who will also be participating this year!
Fresh Air’sTerry Gross latest interview with Sir Paul McCartney aired on NPR yesterday. I normally catch at least the end of the show on my way home from work. Well yesterday, and today, I happened to be home. Fortunately you can listen to the entire interview by following the link above. If you are interested in Paul McCartney’s music at all, with or without the Beatles, you will want to check it out. Those who have followed Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde for any length of time know just how much I love the music of the Beatles and Paul McCartney. I doubt he’ll ever get out of the music business.
Bob, I thank you for taking the time for this interview today. I greatly appreciate it. I’m going to start off by giving people a little background. You and I go way back. I honestly do not remember a time when I did not know you. For the record, as a teenager, Bob worked for Russell Canoe Livery during the summer. While I spent my childhood summers swimming in the Rifle River near the Russell Canoe Livery dock, Bob spent his time hauling canoes. Due to a bit of nostalgia on my part, and mutual Facebook friends, Bob and I reconnected via Facebook. It’s been a fun trip down memory lane. The canoe livery was a huge part of my childhood.
While I knew Bob worked as a local musician, I really didn’t know any of the particulars until we became Facebook friends. The more I learned about his career, as a musician and otherwise, the more I wanted to know. He appears to be one busy man!
Thank you, for taking the time to put this together. I definitely go back, and like you say, can’t remember a time when I didn’t come around at least once in a while to say “Hi” to everyone and make sure you and your family were all doing well. It was always a good feeling, that’s for sure, to see you guys.
Bob, I want to start at the beginning. When and how did your passion for music and radio begin? When did you first begin performing?
Honestly, for as long as I can remember, I’ve enjoyed music and been fascinated by radio as a medium. I can remember my brother and I lip syncing and playing air guitar as little kids. I did the high school band thing and played drums, tuba, trumpet, baritone and bass guitar, probably due to an A.D.D. thing, but it was a solid footing for learning the basic workings of music. From that, I played with a couple of garage bands in high school and had fun doing it. We played some small shows, so I guess that when I really began performing in front of people. I also started working with some friends developing basic DJ skills and knowledge. However, I didn’t realize at the time that I was missing some key components of a musical education which led to a period of 15 years of really doing nothing with music or in radio as I made my way through corporate America. It wasn’t until after I became disenchanted with a career outside of music that I realized how much I actually missed the world of music.
How did you land your first gig? Would you mind telling us a little about it?
Yeah, that’s kind of a funny little story that involves a little background info. Around 2000 – 2001, I saw a guy playing guitar and singing at a party and I thought to myself, “Gosh, he’s not very good. I could be that bad and have fun doing that.”, and I also saw a dude from Northern Michigan, Pete Kehoe, who was playing at Bay Harbor. Pete was, and still is, AWESOME. And, my goal changed…I told myself, I wanna do what that guy does. So, I got a hold of Pete and asked him what gear he had and I went out and bought as much of the same stuff as I could find. I then started practicing in the basement and, after I lost my job in 2003, my living room. Very popular with the wife! When we moved back to Michigan in 2004, I was continuing to practice and got a chance to play at a “Relay for Life” event in Tawas or Oscoda, I can’t remember. From there, I literally started playing at a restaurant/bar about a mile from my house for dinner, and things got better from there. Pretty soon, I was playing anywhere from 3 to 5 nights per week.
Speaking of your musical career, I noticed on your website that you state a second solo album is in the works. Is that still the case? What led to your first album?
Time is the biggest thief and he’s got a great disguise. I do have a second album in the works. It’s difficult to work on, due to the time I spend in the studio on everyone else’s PAYING work. It’s coming along, though…just at a slower pace than I’d ever like. I have 6 songs in preproduction stage. I’m mostly trying to figure out how produced I’d like it to sound, or how much instrumentation I’d like to put on the tracks. I want to do as much as I can on this by myself. I think my first album…I like that we say “album”, we’re old….was a necessity for my head, just to see if I could do it. I had some great help from fellow songwriters, musicians and an incredible producer in Allen Bondar, from Dharma Records in Grayling. He offered me the opportunity to work with him and I jumped at it.
Bob, you currently play with a reunited THE POOL BOYS. I was wondering if you could tell us a little history of the band, past and present.
Well, The Pool Boys are kind of one of those love-hate bands. I love what we do, but I hate what it does to me! We have WAY too much fun and it’s a lot of strain on my body and voice. Anyway, Sal Agnello, a talented musician from Tawas was playing with an outfit and had caught my acoustic act. Him and I sat down and started fiddling around with some acoustic stuff. He then suggested that we try some “sequenced” tracks, which are pre-produced tracks that lack vocals and, in our case, guitars. So, basically, we’re playing along with a computer directed keyboard producing all of the drums, horns, pianos, bass, etc., whatever we wanted. The practice has been around since the mid to late 80’s, but a lot of musicians kind of shy away from it. However, it’s really cool, because the songs you can play are only limited by your imagination and ability.
So, right out of the gate we got the house gig at the old Holiday Inn in East Tawas, and had that for a couple of years. Then, did the casino circuit for a bit and due to my throat problems and extra children, we had to take a hiatus for a bit… which was good, because Sal really perfected the sequencing of the tracks. Last year, we started talking about the market for sequencing and we picked up a drummer, which really adds to the sound, and viola….The Pool Boys are back running around, again. We’re focusing more on resorts, casinos, private parties and festivals, for purely selfish reasons!
As a musician, what are your favorite bands and artists? Which is your favorite genre?
Oh, man…mostly people I don’t play! Um, Led Zeppelin’s always been huge for me, the Doors, Pearl Jam, Bob Seger, almost anything from the 80’s, because it was when music was fun. But, from a creation stand point, I look to The Thorns or Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. The great harmonizers! As far as my favorite genre, folk based rock.
Copyright 2009-2012 Bob Hughes
Let’s switch gears for a second. I know that you also host a local radio morning show called “The Drive By” on Mix 92.1 | Caro, MI. What led to your radio/announcing career? I also read that you announce for the local minor league baseball team, The Great Lakes Loons. How did that come about? As both an avid fan of radio and baseball, I find it all fascinating.
Going back to always being interested in radio and music, I worked as a mobile DJ from the time I was 14 until the time I was 23, which kept my interest and built some skills. Also, I got an opportunity to work in radio right out of high school, when I was way too young to handle it and realized there was NO money in it, and I was fine with that, back then. So, I went on my merry way. Fast forward to 2010, when my wife and I bought a house in the Caro area, I saw a radio station on the way home from the closing and stopped to see if they needed someone, well TA-DA, I had a job in radio. Some personnel changes were made to move me into a morning show co-hosting slot and that’s where I find myself today. With the Great Lakes Loons, I responded to an open tryout and got the job as their on-field host. I’m really pretty fortunate, I have very fun jobs and both Mix 92.1 and the Loons are great organizations with great people.
Ok. It is time to discuss the inevitable. There is a local well-known radio personality on WHNN-FM that happens to share your name. What confusion has that created over the years? I know you had fun with the situation when you were younger.
Really? No kidding? I hadn’t heard of this fellow….Yeah, Bob is a great guy and we have a lot of fun together, especially with the name thing. We only live like 7 miles apart, which again is interesting. It’s a two way street for the confusion, though. He gets questions about his name being on a marquee for a performance and I get people trying to tell me they’ve listening to me for years. I’m not sure if there is any other radio market in America that has this problem. I know when I first worked in radio in the area, the station had me use a different name. This time around, I was like, who cares.
And, yes, there were times in the past when Bob’s name was thrown around a bit liberally for shameless acts that shalln’t be mentioned! Good times.
In addition to performing on-air and off, you also own Bob Hughes Studios. How did you first become involved in voice-over work? What made you decide you to go into business for yourself on the production side of things? What projects do you have coming up?
Once again, back to my disenchantment with corporate life, I had an opportunity to get back into media productions in 2004. I started working with some outdoor television producers, including Mike Avery, which led to videography, video editing, commercial production and lending my voice to show intros and spots. So, I found myself buying a bunch of gear and figured I better make some money to support the purchases and Bob Hughes Studios was born. I work mostly online with a couple of ad houses and contract sites, and it keeps me pretty busy. One thing I have found is that with my name on the door, I definitely care more about what leaves the editing bay. I take great pride in having won industry awards for quality and creation, having my voice on 6 of 7 continents, as well as watching my business grow over the past 8 years.
Developing projects are kind of hard to nail down. Currently in the hopper are a couple of product videos for the web, a steady stream of eBooks and other voice over projects. I don’t like getting too far out in the calendar, though because it slows down turnaround time for customers and I like getting them their products as quickly as possible.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to pursue a creative career and go into business for his or her self?
Find your passion and do it early in life! Don’t be afraid to ask for help and take the chance while you have nothing to lose. Get the education for the creative career you are interested in and be aggressive in your pursuit!
The one regret I have is not pursuing music creation more aggressively when I was 20 or 21. I didn’t know I had a gift and I never took the time to really look into myself and find out what was in there. But, had I just listened to my heart and looked to others to help me find this out, who knows what could have happened, good or bad.
Thank you again for taking the time to answer my questions! It was fun catching up. I know you are a vet of Operation Desert Storm. I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for your service to our country.
Well, thank you for thanking me. I’m glad I was able to serve, because so many are not able. It’s always great chatting with you, that’s for sure. Thank you for considering me an interesting topic! I hope your readers find something interesting, as well!
Copyright 2009-2012 Bob Hughes
You can find more information on Bob Hughes and all his endeavors as the links below.
I’ve been working on this feature for Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde for a while now. Today I’m proud to announce a new series of interviews with local artists, musicians, writers, and entrepreneurs. As you may well know, Michigan, and mid-Michigan – otherwise known as the Great Lakes Bay region – especially, hasn’t fared well economically over the last decade or so. This is my small way of trying to showcase all the homegrown talent in the region. If you are interested in being featured, please contact me at lindsey.j.russell@gmail.com.
For the first installment I’m proud to feature an e-mail interview with local musician and radio personality Bob Hughes. Much more to come!
I know that I highlighted my JamsBio a few days ago, but I’ve added a lot of material since then. I plan on regularly updating it as there are thousands of songs that I could add. It is addicting!
Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde 