Yeah I'm loving it, was destined to cuz I love the Beatles, but still. Could care less about the length, the longer the better IMO. Always understood Paul's a savant, but to see it play out up close is amazing.

November 29th.

Film by @dannysangra pic.twitter.com/3Ax5eCUi6V

— George Harrison (@GeorgeHarrison) November 29, 2021

gggmann said:

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Watched the first episode this morning. As a musician I found bits of it intriguing. I think casual viewers will find it boring unless they are hard-core Beatles fans.

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Not a musician and don't care for the Beatles.

Almost done with episode 1 and I love it. Took some time to get into it. I enjoy Paul, I think he is a genius. I like Ringo's mannerisms. I loathe John, seems like a tool. My honorable mention goes to Mal for the hammer strikes.

Very entertaining and enlightening into their characters

Yeah, I always thought John was the mature one. When did that happen?

Jack Ruby said:

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I'm 45 minutes into this thing and Yoko Ono is already a more hateable person than Joffrey was in GoT.

She hasn't said a word and I already want her to die.

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She ruined the Plastic Ono band!

I'm almost done w/ episode 2. I thought it got better after they moved into the studio.

Here's Rick Beato's take on it. I knew they recorded Abbey Road after Let it Be and released it before, but I didn't know it was so soon afterwards. I think they realized what a dumpster fire the Let it Be sessions turned out to be and decided to do a proper focused effort album.

Finished the first episode and the Harrison song used at the end was perfect. When Paul was talking about doing a surprise concert at the Parliament and being carried off by police, all I could think about was RATM's music video for Sleep Now in the Fire

Agreed. He may not be the best drummer, but he's the best drummer for the Beatles. Last thing they needed was another ego-driven genius in their band.

Also, I know everyone hates Yoko and her "art" is very annoying. But I will say, I'm two episodes in and don't find her as deplorable as I expected. She just hangs in the background and doesn't interfere too much. She's no more of a distraction than Linda McCartney or the random Hari Krishnas. She seems to keep Lennon happy and focused on making music, which is all you can ask of a rock groupie girlfriend.

It seems obvious from this doc that the Beatles broke up for their own creative reasons, and it wasn't caused by Yoko.

HerschelwoodHardhead said:

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Agreed. He may not be the best drummer, but he's the best drummer for the Beatles. Last thing they needed was another ego-driven genius in their band.

Also, I know everyone hates Yoko and her "art" is very annoying. But I will say, I'm two episodes in and don't find her as deplorable as I expected. She just hangs in the background and doesn't interfere too much. She's no more of a distraction than Linda McCartney or the random Hari Krishnas. She seems to keep Lennon happy and focused on making music, which is all you can ask of a rock groupie girlfriend.

It seems obvious from this doc that the Beatles broke up for their own creative reasons, and it wasn't caused by Yoko.

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It's a little early to say it wasn't Yoko.

Recall that this was not the last album they recorded. She might have been reigning it in herself with the cameras rolling.

They went into the studio just 3 weeks after the chaos of Let it Be recordings ended which was a frenetic month. And the Abbey Road sessions lasted 5 months.

Who knows what transpired in that time. Creative differences were definitely at their height as John rebelled against Pauls sappier songs and was rebuffed on having his songs as A sides of many singles. Paul got the nod and John resented him more and more and was already taking material to his plastic ono band on the side. He was highly disinterested in Beatles stuff feeling it had runs its course and having more interest in peace love and yoko.

While I agree it was mostly creative differences - I think the seeds of that were there from the Let it Be sessions and Yoko becomes more and more disruptive it is just that we do not have film of those sessions.

62strat said:

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Zombie Jon Snow said:

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rynning said:

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I know the "experts" say Ringo is overrated, but I'm just watching him being always engaged, intently listening, and getting it right every single time. Literally never misses a beat.

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yeah as a drummer i have always considered him just an average drummer really. Nothing he plays is that original but compliments the music well.

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Verse in come together having no high hat, no snare? That's original. Grohl says only Ringo could have the floor moving while only hitting 1 floor tom

Verse for in my life having only 1 high hat per bar? That's original. Stan Lynch says he created his groove for 'Breakdown' by copying Ringo on in my life, but put a swing on it.

The mambo/R&B in I Feel Fine.

Chorus of Something with just hats and toms.

Honestly this list can go on.. Ringo did a lot of original stuff. Was it complicated or difficult? No, he is far from the Carey's and Peart's of the world, but he did a lot of firsts and unique things. Which, may have not necessarily been hard since there wasn't much before him in 'rock', but still, he didn't just do a 4/4 and call it good, which he easily could have done throughout the beatles discography.

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Sorry more of a definition thing.

By original I meant in complexity or rhythms or even a certain style or sound really.

Original stuff like you mentioned sure - yes - unique would be more apt. Some of that was at the behest of Paul or John asking for unique sounds or accents. But he was more than capable of it and he accented their music perfectly really.

He was certainly more than a 4/4 backing band drummer and also always tight and spot on the beat. He had a great sense of rhythym despite not doing complex ones and was probably the perfect drummer for The Beatles as he added zero drama to the studio and they had more than enough of it.

He's not in my list of probably top 10-15 rock drummers but there is no shame in that - most are not. He's somewhere in the top 50 though.

As a musician that has written a lot of my own songs, the way the Beatles wrote their songs for the "Let it be" album seems so disorganized.

They show up with half written lyrics and just a few bars of chords. One person starts playing their idea and then it turns into a sort of jam free for all until they find something that sticks. Then they end up getting side-tracked by playing other random songs they know mixed in while 1 or 2 of them continue with the one they are working on.

It ends up working in the end. They all seem to feed off each other during this process and the song ends up being more of a collaboration of the group.

When I compose a song, I write the chords for the Chorus first, Then the chords for the verse and then the chords for the break. I put it all together in a format they makes sense, Then I write the lyrics. Then I would present the entire song to the group and they would add their take on it. I can write the basics of a song in about 30 minutes.

Rush with Neal Peart would write a song by him doing the drum parts first. Everyone has their own style and methods.

But, what the hell do I know? I have never written a hit.

David Wallace said:

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As a musician that has written a lot of my own songs, the way the Beatles wrote their songs for the "Let it be" album seems so disorganized.

They show up with half written lyrics and just a few bars of chords. One person starts playing their idea and then it turns into a sort of jam free for all until they find something that sticks. Then they end up getting side-tracked by playing other random songs they know mixed in while 1 or 2 of them continue with the one they are working on.

It ends up working in the end. They all seem to feed off each other during this process and the song ends up being more of a collaboration of the group.

When I compose a song, I write the chords for the Chorus first, Then the chords for the verse and then the chords for the break. I put it all together in a format they makes sense, Then I write the lyrics. Then I would present the entire song to the group and they would add their take on it. I can write the basics of a song in about 30 minutes.

Rush with Neal Peart would write a song by him doing the drum parts first. Everyone has their own style and methods.

But, what the hell do I know? I have never written a hit.

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metallica is similar to Beatles. They have 'riff tapes' literally just hundreds of riffs that James or Kirk have written. Lars and James piece them together. To make a song structure.
James writes lyrics last, only after humming over riff tracks first to find Melodies.

Loved this. Just wish we could have had such an in depth look at their creative process on one of their better albums. Would have been incredible to be a fly on the wall during Revolver

I love everything about the film and the discussions about it this week and I can't stop thinking about it. One of the scenes sticking with me most is the montage with Two of Us in the background. In my current Beatles deep dive I came across this random TV movie Two of Us from 2000 starring Jared Harris!!! as John and Aidan Quinn as Paul about a fictional meeting between the 2 in 1976. Free on youtube.

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While I agree - based on what we've seen here regarding Paul - I think John was equally as much a genius. But what we see here is a John that has mostly tuned out and has a higher priority (Yoko) than then Beatles.

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I've read rumors that John had started using heroin during the filming of Get Back too.

Wow. That is awful.

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In fact the recorded conversation in the kitchen of the private meeting between Paul and John illuminates that Paul says it was John that was always the leader of the group before and now Paul is having to do it. And how they used to be together 24/7 more or less and so it was mostly the two of them (which did not require Paul to be so bossy to George and Ringo because they were working it out without those two present mostly). But Paul is resigned to the fact that this is how it is now because John has changed. And because they agreed to film this one and all be together during the creative process.

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I don't pretend to know anything about musicology or the Beatles other than being someone who likes most (definitely not all) of their music and grew up with it.

I think your point is well-taken. Of course, John also felt bossed around by Paul, for quite awhile, maybe even before Yoko. From what I have read, John didn't like the direction Paul's music took. I remember that Paul said John never complimented him on any of his songs except once, and I don't remember which one it was.

One thing to note about the film is that all four of them are very aware they are being recorded. In one scene in particular, John and Paul have an exaggerated conversation speaking upward into the microphone. Pretty funny.

So how candid is it really?

Another great moment for me is toward the end of Part 2 when they are discussing their time in India and Paul is saying that the four of them were not really themselves, they were acting like students at school. John makes a face as if he is adoring the guru and Paul has a genuine laugh at it. It's one of those times I think Paul would later describe as a point when John stepped out of the hard mask he always wore.

Interesting to see later material show up here in these sessions.

Maxwell's Silver Hammer
She Came in Through the Bedroom Window
Golden Slumbers
Carry That Weight
Mean Mr. Mustard
Polythene Pam
Her Majesty
Something
I Want You (She's So Heavy)

All later appeared on Abbey Road with studio versions recorded later in 1969 - but this was a majority of material for that album all created in a short month along with the Let it Be songs. Incredible.

3 George Harrison contributions - George refused to perform any of his material live so none of it made the rooftop concert but did show up elsewhere.

All Things Must Pass (they called it Sunrise here - confusing john for a minute) would later appear on Billy Preston's next album and then as the title track on George Harrison's solo album of 1970 and later on the Beatles Anthology 3 post breakup compilation.

I Me Mine was never recorded at the Apple studio sessions for Let it Be it was performed a few times at Twickenham (which is why it is in this documentary) most notably as John and Yoko danced a waltz and then forgotten. But when the Beatles realized it would be a feature of the Let it Be movie they decided they needed it for the accompanying album - so George, John and Ringo returned to the studio in early January 1970 to lay it down for the album. It is the last Beatles song recorded with multiple members of the group but without John who was on holiday in Denmark (and had secretly left the band in September anyway). Phil Spector later recorded the string parts that were overdubbed.

Old Brown Shoe - another Harrison composition that would be the B side to the Ballad of John and Yoko single in mid 1969.

I'm sure there are more those are the ones I noticed that were Beatles/Harrison songs and not covers.