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SATB has touched on the Sgt. Pepper album in the past, but never like this. My guests, Pat Sansone (of Wilco and The Autumn Defense) and Luther Russell (Those Pretty Wrongs) are each accomplished singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalists/performers/producers/engineers AND hardcore Beatle geeks. This album became a touchstone for both of them during their formative years, and it is with decades of insight that we discussed the magic and mystique of the landmark release.
Luther has been working on the third album by Those Pretty Wrongs with Jody Stephens this year, while Pat has a book of his photography coming out soon: https://www.flickr.com/photos/michaelraso/galleries/72157624760590414/
Wilco has just began a string of live dates around the US but extending into Mexico, the UK and Spain next year.
See https://wilcoworld.net/ for details.
like stumbling into the perfect late night conversation… Beatles geeks unite!
WTF has happened to this podcast?
PEPPER remains one of the high points of music in the 20th century. In my opinion it is up there with the greatest symphonic works and song cycles of the classical composers. I do always wonder how would it be if STRAWBERRY FIELDS& PENNY LANE were on the album! It would be even more of a masterpiece.
Interesting hearing the discussion around the first line of “How do you sleep ?”
So Sgt. Pepper took you by surprise
I’ve always assumed John was referring to Paul coming up with the concept for the album (but English isn’t my first language)
Listening to you and your guests talk about the books I read and re-read during my early obsession with the Fabs was a blast. I still have my copies of Growing Up With The Beatles, A To Z, Illustrated Record (the version that includes Double Fantasy), The Beatles Apart and of course The Beatles Forever. Special thanks to Nick Schaffner for The British Invasion, which led me to my #1 working class hero, Ray Davies.
I loved this discussion… and all the editing you do is appreciated and shows. Thank you! And the songs you play to illustrate and highlight points are amazing.
Even though pound-for-pound Revolver might be the better album, Pepper has the big advantage of an incredible structure that adds power to all the parts: audience noise, tension, then an explosion of rock brilliance ending in a brilliant change-of-pace outro to Billy Shears — so much playfulness and fun here, the audience laughing… Listen after listen, I always smile at how mystery superstar Shears turns out to be Ringo…. and to bookend it all, the fantastic reprise, and a sober last word with probably their greatest song ever. Its just unbeatable.
P.S. Maybe not adding Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane to Pepper was the decent thing to do, fair play. To have included those works into Pepper would be like Mike Tyson putting metal in his gloves.
Pepper was the first Beatles album I bought when I was 12 on the same day I got Beatles 1. Pepper was so compelling to me ever since then because it’s like nothing else from the Beatles.
I always suspected that when John was asked about ”Cry Baby Cry” in the Playboy Interview he just didn’t remember which song it was. It is such a generic title that he may have just thought it was some early song he didn’t recall. If the interviewer had been more on the ball he probably could have supplied a few details that would have tweaked John’s memory and produced an answer that would have been more informative.
I’m a huge fan of It’s Only Love. It has an excellent melody over interesting chords and John’s vocal is charming. I even like the lyrics with their tight internal rhyming ala Dylan – though John is expressing vulnerability rather than Bob’s usual disdain.
Why did he hate it so much? John preferred to write personal songs rather than pop fluff but a song about a couple who “must fight every night” could have been inspired by his marriage with Cynthia. I think there’s another reason he hated it: Paul recorded Yesterday on the 14th of June in 1965 with overdubs on the 17th. It’s Only Love was recorded on the 15th. Maybe the song reminded him of a battle he’d lost in their ongoing competition. Personally, I like It’s Only Love more but that’s just me..
I liked that Autumn Defense song (Back Of My Mind) that ends the podcast a lot!
I remember watching American Bandstand when the videos came for “Strawberry Fields” and “Penny Lane”. And the American fans that Dick Clark interviews were going “whoa” and “they look old” and the “mustaches”. It blew their connective minds (and mine).
I am 65 and a Beatles fan from GB since 1967 . Loved listening to this. It’s nice to hear other generations from other continent’s picking over music that’s so personal to me.
Cheers
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