Old-school news, just in time
by Kevin Burton I asked a co-worker, a big Beatles fan who has played guitar since high school, for his opinion on The Big Question: Who was the most essential Beatle? I suppose I was spoiling for a McCartney/Lennon fight. That discussion goes to Paul McCartney and John Lennon and stops there, right? …
Continue reading “The Case For George Harrison, Best Beatle”
by Kevin Burton Today, some updates, passing asides and leftovers from previous posts. When I cook these up together, I call them quibbles and bits. Come and get it!: From my two posts about favorite duets: I can not overstate how much I love much of the work of Paul McCartney. …
Continue reading “Quibbles And Bits: Chiefs An Evil Empire?”
by Kevin Burton My favorite Bruce Springsteen song was born of irritation and is marinated in frustration. I seem to have slipped into it comfortably, as one might slip into a t-shirt and jeans. Here is how the song came to be, according to SongFacts: “Springsteen wrote it after his manager, …
Continue reading “Looking For A Spark In A Springsteen Song”
by Kevin Burton I have never seen a picture of Buddy Holly without his thick glasses, but I never have pondered whether he was legally blind until now. He probably was not, by the way, though he had poor vision. More about that in a bit. This comes up today on the …
by Kevin Burton The idea of a birthday party – you know, with the cake and the funny hats – has always seemed lame to me. Today I’m changing my tune. There is one such party I would put together and attend if I could. Wait till you hear the musicians who share …
Continue reading “Here’s One Rockin’ And Rollin’ Birthday Party”
by Kevin Burton The English singer known professionally as Mike McGear has a birthday today. He turns 79. Among the greetings and well wishes, he may get a birthday call, or maybe a musical card that plays the Beatles song “Birthday,” from his brother – Paul McCartney. Peter Michael McCartney created the …
by Kevin Burton Toward the end of his life my father said it was strange getting old because many of his friends and relatives had died and he was left behind. I understand where he was coming from. But I extend that to teachers and public figures. Even though I don’t interact …
I’ve written a lot about the Beatles and Beatlemania, but there is another side to the craziness of rock and roll. Yesterday was the 43rd anniversary of the tragedy at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati when eleven people were killed in a stampede to get into a concert by The Who. There was no …
Continue reading “Disaster At Who Concert Still Haunts Band”
by Kevin Burton The song that launched the British Invasion was released on this date 59 years ago. “I Want To Hold Your Hand” holds up to this day, but to get the full impact of it you’d have to hear it with ears attuned to the sounds of 1963. God bless …
Continue reading “Electrified Hand Holding: British Invasion”
by Kevin Burton On Thanksgiving night 1974, two of England’s best musical exports, John Lennon and Elton John appeared together in concert. The appearance was Lennon paying off a bet of sorts. His song “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night,” had just reached the top of the US Hot 100, something Lennon was …
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