It was 45 years ago today...

[vienna]

"It was 45 years ago today... The Beatles' Sgt Pepper inches toward the half centry mark":

http://blogs.westword.com/backbeat/2...nniversary.php

This really makes me feel old. I remember you couldn't walk down the steet with out hearing one or another of the songs from this album blaring out of some house or business. An interesting fact about this album is that no single was ever released of any of the songs on Sgt. Pepper. The Beatles were apparently unintersted in a singles release because they wanted the album to be taken as a whole work of art and not a collection of songs...

When Haydn first heard Beethoven's 3rd (Eroica) symphony, he is qouted as saying, "From today, everything has changed". For the world of rock and popular music, this was their Eroica..

[Sailor Steve]

'Penny Lane' and 'Strawberry Fields Forever' were recorded at the same time and originally were meant to be part of the album. They were released as a single a few months before the album came out, for that very reason.

So it can be argued that there was a single release from Sgt. Pepper's.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

'Penny Lane' and 'Strawberry Fields Forever' were recorded at the same time and originally were meant to be part of the album. They were released as a single a few months before the album came out, for that very reason.

So it can be argued that there was a single release from Sgt. Pepper's.

Precisely

[vienna]

'Penny Lane' and 'Strawberry Fields Forever' were recorded at the same time and originally were meant to be part of the album. They were released as a single a few months before the album came out, for that very reason.

So it can be argued that there was a single release from Sgt. Pepper's.

There is a local radio show, "Breakfast with the Beatles", that has been running for several years and has had many guests, including members of the Beatles, and persons involved with the recording of Beatles and solo projects and their business enterpises. I recall a guest, IIRC, George Martin, who said the two songs were not really being considered for inclusion on the final album but were released as singles becuase the record companies (Parlophone in England, Capitol in the US) were clamoring for a single release since the Beatles were taking so long recording the album (remember, most recording acts at the time released two or more albums a year, not like today where an album can take years to be completed). So, Lennon and McCartney turned over the songs for singles just to keep the labels at bay so they could record in peace...

BTW, if your interested about the radio show, here is a link:

http://www.breakfastwiththebeatles.com

The show is broadcast over the NET and, I believe, they have pod casts...

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[u crank]

I have heard both stories and there is probably truth in both. For sure the record company would want a single and the group was big enough to call their own shots. The fact is, put those two songs anywhere on that album and they fit right in. I've done it many times.

Yea it makes you feel old. When I'm 64......

[vienna]

...the group was big enough to call their own shots.

You would think so, but the Sgt. Pepper album was the last straw for the Beatles who then took it upon themselves to launch Apple Records becuase of all the hassles they had making Sgt. Pepper. There was argument and interference from the labels over content, the album cover, and musical direction. The Beatles won the battle over not releasing any of the album cuts as singles, but they were stymied at almost all the other points. Remember, back then a record label almost "owned" their artists. If the Beatles weren't the money-making machine they were at the time, the album may never have seen the light of day in the form it was released. In the US, previous Beatles albums were routinely edited and songs were cut by Capitol Record without regard to the wishes of the Beatles. One good thing did come out of the labels' interference: the story goes the Beatless (particularly John) wanted to release the album in a rather non-traditional packaging of just a brown paper sleeve; they lost the battle, so the Beatles went the other way and made a very elaborate cover. The inclusion of the lyrics being printed on the back of the cover did not go well with the labels (who had an interest in the sale of sheet music and "lyric" magazines like "Song Hits"), but to the rest of us, this was a graet treat...

"When I'm 64"...? Just a coulpe of more years for me...

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[u crank]

You are of course right vienna, on all points. What I should have said is that they 'thought' they were big enough. And so began the battle between the music corporations and musicians. I think it still goes on in some ways but The Beatles broke a lot of ground. I'm not sure it was all good as some artists took it to far, but the real winners were the record buying public. After Sgt. Pepper the pop and rock music scene was never the same as it literally exploded with new ideas. The Beatles deserve a lot of credit for this.

Originally Posted by vienna

"When I'm 64"...? Just a couple of more years for me... ...

Yea, me too. Still got most of my hair though but it's a different colour.

[vienna]

Yea, me too. Still got most of my hair though but it's a different colour.

Know the feeling...

Still got most of my hair too, but the hairline in front is about 1/2 inch farther back than it was before. As for hair color, mine has grown in as somewhat streaky silver/gray/white; I'm kind of hoping it all goes one color sometime soon...

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