Would You Consider The Very Early Years of the Beatles Their Punk Rock Years?

[Yavin4]

Their Teddy Boy years?



I'm not a music afficianado, but I think that their early concerts in Germany could be considered punk.

Now, I'm not saying that it was exactly the same style of punk like the Sex Pistols, and I may be dead wrong.

[taterguy]

1. The Beatles has musical talent, ergo, they weren't punk

[Maccagirl]

2. They had to play 8 hours a night to drunks and strippers

I would guess it was an anything goes atmosphere. I read where George Harrison thought it was their peak as far as live performances.

On edit: I love that picture. Astrid was a true artist with the camera.

[MilesColtrane]

3. Listen to Helter Skelter loud, through headphones.

Screaming and out of tune guitars...that's pretty proto-punk right there.

[Yavin4]

4. Think about going from "She Loves You, Ya, Ya, Ya" to "Helter Skelter".

That progression blows my fucking mind.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

9. The difference between The Beatles and pretty much the rest...

...is that they could do a song like "Helter Skelter" once, and then move on to new territory.

There is only ONE song in their ENTIRE CATALOG that sounds like "Helter Skelter," and that song is "Helter Skelter." No retreads, no double-dipping.

43 years later...FORTY THREE...that song STILL comes screaming out of the gate, and it's never been equaled.

There's never been another "I Am The Walrus."

There's never been another "And Your Bird Can Sing."

They hit that fucking opening chord on "A Hard Day's Night" and EVERY OTHER BAND IN THE WORLD wanted to do it too but realized they'd be doing the "Beatles Hard Day's Night" thing if they did, so they had to let it lay.

They just wrote their own rules as they went along. They had George Martin in their posse, so there was one "establishment" figure that acted as the glue that held all of the wild-ass threads together, but they just made new shit happen every time they stepped into a studio.

They also kicked Mick & Keef's arse throughout their career. I have to wonder if the Stones would have been motivated to make albums like "Sticky Fingers" and "Exile on Main Street" if there hadn't been the ongoing friendly games of one-upsmanship between the bands.

[hifiguy]

12. The only musician that could play the "top this" game with

the Beatles was Brian Wilson. McCartney has said as much.

[Dogtown]

5. Their early music

would be more honestly described as "Boy-Band".

"I Want to Hold Your Hand" is *not* punk.

Extremely talented, but punk would not have gotten air time in CA-1964 America.

[Yavin4]

7. By Early, I Am Referring to their Hambourg, Germany Years

Not their boy band years which followed.

[Dogtown]

8. I'll concede.

Only vaguely familiar with their work in Germany but seem to recall it was noted for being more strident and socially-motivated.

Thanks for the correction.

[Yavin4]

10. I'm Not Saying That They Were What We Now Consider Punk

Now, my limited definition of Punk was stripped down, loud, fast, garage band, go nuts kind of music, and in those Hambourg, Germany days, they were doing just that. They were playing 6-8 hours a night, five nights a week. They were playing to really rough house crowds. Hambourg was, at the time, the most sinful city in the world.

[Dogtown]

11. From my scant knowledge

and faulty middle-age recollections of those times I believe your assessment is spot-on.

My original comment was based on my recollection as a uninformed teen. I liked their American music but found it to be somewhat commercial compared to groups like The Animals.

Memory of later readings on their early work has surfaced and, though I'm not familiar with the sound, I can confirm your report.


Thanks for the trip down Angst Lane!



:hi:

[hifiguy]

6. They looked more like Rockers than Teds

in those days. The music was definitely not punk. They covered pop standards as well as American rock 'n' roll/rockabilly tunes back in the Hamburg days. You had to be pretty flexible about what you played when you were doing 6 to 8 hour sets five nights a week.