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Rumors of The Beatles Coming to iTunes Renewed Yet Again
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Really? You can't stand the raw energy of 'I Saw Her Standing There' or 'It Wont be Long', or 'She Loves You'? Granted, there's a lot of filler on the first 5 albums, but there are also some great songs.
I also dislike Sgt. Pepper's a lot - I can understand how it may have been considered 'influential' back then, as many of the recording techniques were a first, but in the end I find it overproduced and in places to be downright cruddy (Lovely Rita, anyone?). However, in saying that, it does have my favourite Beatles track - A Day In The Life. The rest of the album can get shoved away (except maybe Lucy In The Sky...depends on my mood)
I mostly agree. Sgt. Pepper has not stood up as well as 'Revolver', for instance. That said, there is some shocking musicality on SPLHCB. As you mentioned, 'A Day in the Life' is amongst the greatest Beatles songs. The bass playing, throughout the album, is still, in my opinion, unmatched in rock. However, the songwriting is not up to the same quality as 'Revolver' or even parts of 'Rubber Soul'
The While Album would be considered the greatest album of all time, if it had been cut down to the following:
1. Back in the USSR
2. Dear Prudence
3. While My Guitar Gently Weeps
4. Happiness is a Warm Gun
5. Blackbird
6. I Will
7. Julia
8. Birthday
9. Mother Nature's Son
10. Sexy Sadie
11. Helter Skelter
12. Long, Long, Long (a hugely underrated song)
13. Revolution 1
The rest is either pure filler (e.g Wild Honey Pie), crap (Revolution 9), or just throwaway songs (e.g. The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill).
100% agree. It's the best album, start to finish, they ever put out.
I agree, with the exception of Abbey Road; it, to me, is second only to 'Revolver' as a cohesive album, which is great start to finish (even Octopus' Garden).
Let's also not forget the greatest Beatles one-two punch, and the greatest pop single ever: Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane. The fact that those two songs were taken off of SPLHCB and released as a double A-side is astounding. They are, in my option, the absolute zenith of pop songwriting; nowhere to go but down from there (and some would argue that that is precisely where the Beatles went from there...)
It all makes perfect sense. It'd be a marquee Cocktail release (given lots of album extras are being made for the remasters), it's the same day as the CD release and Rock Band, it jives with it being a mainly musical event etc etc etc.
But I did hear from a very reliable source recently that EMI have been telling retailers very specifically that they should order high on the Beatles remasterings because they wouldn't be sold via iTunes. Not impossible that the EMI staff concerned were just wrong, but there will be a lot of upset retailers if he was...
Phazer
But I did hear from a very reliable source recently that EMI have been telling retailers very specifically that they should order high on the Beatles remasterings because they wouldn't be sold via iTunes. Not impossible that the EMI staff concerned were just wrong, but there will be a lot of upset retailers if he was...
Phazer
It could be that many people don't have the albums and are waiting for the music to come to iTunes.
I myself only have a few Beatles CDs and will be purchasing more if they ever come to iTunes.
In the "song" Revolution #9. There is someone who says "Number 9 Number 9 Number 9"
Number 9 was John Lennon's favorite Number. He also had a song called "#9 Dream. He was born on Oct 9th.
Another "So what?" here
The Beatles coming to iTunes ... Big whoop!
It's good in that that's been a thorn in the side of iTunes for a while, holding 69% of the online market and yet not being able to sell the most listened-to band of the late 20th century.
On the other hand, how would it affect me?
Personally, I've been a Beatles fan for quite a while. But, in the end: I have everything of theirs I want already. I had it on CD, and now it is in my iTunes library. I'm not going to buy it again (I might were they a going concern, to promote them making more music, but I doubt there will be a Beatles reunion tour coming up any time soon). What do I care if people can buy the singles by themselves?
I expect the deal, if it ever happens, to be heralded as the greatest event in the history of mankind. In the end, though, it's just another way to buy something we've already bought two, three, or more times, onto a medium we already have it on, from the estates of artists who are no longer productive (and who have earned an astonishing lot of money from their work already).
So what.
I hope that Jobs isn't bending over backwards for this particularly useless little feather in his cap.
The Beatles coming to iTunes ... Big whoop!
It's good in that that's been a thorn in the side of iTunes for a while, holding 69% of the online market and yet not being able to sell the most listened-to band of the late 20th century.
On the other hand, how would it affect me?
Personally, I've been a Beatles fan for quite a while. But, in the end: I have everything of theirs I want already. I had it on CD, and now it is in my iTunes library. I'm not going to buy it again (I might were they a going concern, to promote them making more music, but I doubt there will be a Beatles reunion tour coming up any time soon). What do I care if people can buy the singles by themselves?
I expect the deal, if it ever happens, to be heralded as the greatest event in the history of mankind. In the end, though, it's just another way to buy something we've already bought two, three, or more times, onto a medium we already have it on, from the estates of artists who are no longer productive (and who have earned an astonishing lot of money from their work already).
So what.
I hope that Jobs isn't bending over backwards for this particularly useless little feather in his cap.
It's from a famous Beatles song called Revolution Number 9.Part of the lyrics go. "number 9..number 9..number 9.."
Here's what it sounds like :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvSg41FeWcY
That's. Just. It.
If people don't have the albums, why wait for iTunes to release them when Steve gives the ok? He already has their music, as evident, and what do you think he did, ripped his original vinyls?
The albums are so readily available at most places, that a few stops at a couple of electronics stores will land you with most, if not all of their CDs. At which point, you go home and rip them, and do whatever you like with the discs.
It's not like you can't find the stuff anywhere. There is NO NEED to wait for iTunes. Rip it. Like Steve Jobs and everyone else in the world has.
If you really like the music and want the best sound quuality (and full beautiful packaging) but the CDs or better yet the full box (stereo or Mono). It they hit iTunes, I hope it is delayed through the Holidays. Let these great CDs sell first (and they will) and then let those who want inferior downloads and/or individual tracks buy them starting in January.
The CD remasters and Rock Band roll out is going to be huge this Fall & Holiday season.
The CD remasters and Rock Band roll out is going to be huge this Fall & Holiday season.
The Beatles Catalog on iTunes is in the Beatles' best interest, not Apple's
The Beatles are only a few generations away from starting to become irrelevant. If they want to propagate their fan base to include current generations, they will need to do more than agree to a Rock Band version dedicated to their music.
It's in their best interests to make their music available for download since curious listeners will not fork out huge $$$ for their remastered collection. Like someone said earlier, interested buyers may only want to buy a few tracks and build from there.
The Beatles are only a few generations away from starting to become irrelevant. If they want to propagate their fan base to include current generations, they will need to do more than agree to a Rock Band version dedicated to their music.
It's in their best interests to make their music available for download since curious listeners will not fork out huge $$$ for their remastered collection. Like someone said earlier, interested buyers may only want to buy a few tracks and build from there.
Some Beatles fans already have all of the Beatles music they want, a point often mentioned here.
But the Beatles gain new followers all the time. I wonder how many of them have been holding off buying the CDs because of the persistent rumors of remastered digital versions "coming soon".
But the Beatles gain new followers all the time. I wonder how many of them have been holding off buying the CDs because of the persistent rumors of remastered digital versions "coming soon".
I couldn't care less. As others have said, if you really want the Beattles go and buy the CD's/Box Set and import it to your itunes/ipod. Hell, if you're a die-hard fan you already have the CD's anyway....And tt's probably going to be cheaper than it'll be on itunes anyway, and you have your own backup on CD
What about the non-die-hard fans. I like the beattles but I wouldn't buy a Beattles CD. If I have a song stuck in my head I would buy it. Some songs I really like others not so much.
But consumers are lazy
That's a big part of the iTunes' store's success, though: consumers are lazy and want the simplest shopping experience possible. In addition to being able to pick and choose, consumers don't have to go out to stores to find the songs they want.
That's. Just. It.
If people don't have the albums, why wait for iTunes to release them when Steve gives the ok? He already has their music, as evident, and what do you think he did, ripped his original vinyls?
The albums are so readily available at most places, that a few stops at a couple of electronics stores will land you with most, if not all of their CDs. At which point, you go home and rip them, and do whatever you like with the discs.
It's not like you can't find the stuff anywhere. There is NO NEED to wait for iTunes. Rip it. Like Steve Jobs and everyone else in the world has.
That's a big part of the iTunes' store's success, though: consumers are lazy and want the simplest shopping experience possible. In addition to being able to pick and choose, consumers don't have to go out to stores to find the songs they want.
According to Wikipedia, Michael Jackson and Sony own the publishing rights to most of the Beatles catalog (all but 4 of the Lennon-McCartney titles which are owned by EMI).
Apple publishing owns the Harrison-Starr titles.
Hence, I don't understand this MacRumors report.
A. There's no mention of Sony or Jackson's estate which owns the bulk of the music.
B. Who cares what EMI is planning on Sept. 9th, they only own rights to 4 songs.
It must be a dull news day if all MacRumors has got is this crap and a bunch of fake iTunes screen shots! The credibility of this site is really poor sometimes.
Apple publishing owns the Harrison-Starr titles.
Hence, I don't understand this MacRumors report.
A. There's no mention of Sony or Jackson's estate which owns the bulk of the music.
B. Who cares what EMI is planning on Sept. 9th, they only own rights to 4 songs.
It must be a dull news day if all MacRumors has got is this crap and a bunch of fake iTunes screen shots! The credibility of this site is really poor sometimes.
you can pre order all 15 discs plus a DVD and booklets with beautiful packaging in a box for $179. now. And on 9 9 0 9 load them into your computers.
I think there are massive expectations here, but that they will be disappointed.
Get past the "BEST SELLING BAND EVAR!!!" hype and think about the market here:
1. People who never bought The Beatles on CD who suddenly are interested in hearing it. I'm sorry, baby boomers: later generations are interested in that music, but not like you think they should be. If they haven't bought it on CD, it's not because they think that it needed to be remastered and then compressed to AAC.
2. People who absolutely need the remastered versions AND want them compressed after remastering. That is, take the fraction of the Beatles-loving public who orgasm over hearing the tickle in John's throat at 1:37 on I Wanna Hold Your Hand, then take the fraction of those folks who aren't knowledgeable enough to get the less-compressed CD copies where they might actually hear that tickle instead of a sound like a bat circling overhead in a windstorm. I think both fractions are fairly small; multiplied together you have insignificance.
3. People who just want to give Ringo and Paul more money and further increase the worth of George and John's estates (not to mention the estates of all the leaches who surrounded them in life). Again, I don't doubt that there are a few of these folks out there, hoping to goad Mr McCartney into finally producing his breakthrough post-Beatles life-changing album, but I don't think it's a significant portion of the music-loving populace. Moreover, I think there's a significant overlap likely between whatever of this group exists and the second group above.
4. Teenagers who don't buy anything on CD but who are interested in The Beatles. This might be a fairly significant chunk of sales, but significantly smaller than the latest White Stripes or Decemberists album sales.
In the end, I expect the Beatles Discography to land with a thud. It'll be great that it's here, but anyone expecting to make a mint off it is sorely deluding themselves.
The point here is that they've being digitally remastered, any existing beatles CDs in circulation before the box set comes out isn't!
What's the point in buying even 256K VBR versions of the entire remastered box set when you get a perfect digital copy with the boxset?
You can bet if you priced it up on a per track basis, you'd be getting reamed by the iTunes store anyway but if it came to buying the odd track, 59p or 79p per track isn't too bad till you buy an albums worth. Then you'd be better off buying the CD.
These "irrelevant" Beatles are now the #2 best selling artist of this decade (behind Emenem). I predict that after the remasters and upcoming downloads, they just might become #1. Pretty remarkable for an irrelevant bank that broke up almost 40 years ago.
Well...I have a friend who said they saw him at an event here in America recently. But I guess that could mean ANYTHING.
She's well acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand
Like a lizard on a window pane
The man in the crowd with the multicoloured mirrors
On his hobnail boots
Lying with his eyes while his hands are busy
Working overtime
A soap impression of his wife which he ate
And donated to the National Trust
now I want to "impulse buy" the white album.
Like a lizard on a window pane
The man in the crowd with the multicoloured mirrors
On his hobnail boots
Lying with his eyes while his hands are busy
Working overtime
A soap impression of his wife which he ate
And donated to the National Trust
now I want to "impulse buy" the white album.