Guest Michael Rife
GuestForum Replies Created
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Hi Dale;
Welcome to the group!! I also found MLT while looking for Beatles YouTube songs. When I first saw that they had Beatles covers on YouTube I wasn’t expecting much. I had heard so many other covers before and had been to tribute band shows and only thought the others were just OK.
But, with MLT Beatles covers it was different. They don’t strictly stay with the “script”, which is OK because they inject some of their own musical sensibilities to the covers, and are at times innovative with the covers. So, I believe the first one I heard was If I Fell as well because I am looking to one day do my own cover of it. As far as this song is concerned it is a lot more complicated than it sounds……the harmonies of Paul and John are complicated and the chord structure on guitar is a little unexpected. Anyway……MLT had me at If I Fell especially when Lisa points the bow to the watcher.
You should also check out their original music. It has a sound of between 1965 and 1968 RnR but is modernized some. Some songs will cause goosebumps and chills. You can tell the lyrics and melodies are very “heartfelt” by the twins.
Also, MLT treats club members very well. They offer so much merch and gives us early viewing of things. I am accumulating so much merch that I now have an MLT wing in the walk-in closet. They stay in frequent contact with us and it really feels like they appreciate the fans. I am a member at other musician’s fan sites and there is really no comparison. MLT has each one of the sites beat. (Note: I call it MLT because I believe MLT would include the twins, Papa Rudi, and Michaela…….all four of them are as nice as they can be.)
So, I hope you enjoy it here as much as I do. I don’t write every day but I do check in about 2 or 3 times a week. I also check in when we get an Early Access notification just to see what is new. Mike.
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God Only Knows?????? Still can’t listen to it all the way through without getting choked up. It was the song played during the father-daughter dance at my oldest daughter’s wedding. She believed the words expressed what she thought. Sooooooo……..it may be some time before I can listen to it again. But, I really like the song and MLTs cover. Mike.
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Beatles are better.
1) A conservative estimate is that they have sold 1.6 billion singles and 177 million LPs in the US alone. It goes to 600 billion LPs worldwide. And that is after being in the public eye as a group for 6 years. By comparison the Stones have sold 240 million LPs.
2) Paul on bass. Listen to Paperback Writer, Rain and Something.
3) 21 number 1s in the US and 27 in US/UK combined. By comparison the Stones have had 8 number ones.
4) 25 Beatle albums have reached number 1 on Billboard which means more of their compilations/re-releases were number 1 than albums they actually released.
5) All of the primary Beatles LP releases charted in 1987. Still don’t know why unless it is because everyone bought the CDs.
6) The 3 Anthology LPs were in the top 5 in 1995/6.
7) The CD “1” was number one in sales in 2000 and in 2001. It was released in late 2000 and dominated sales for both years.
8) In 2016 two Beatles LPs were in the top 15 LPs for the year…….50 years later.
9) 2017 the number 1 LP in UK (#3 in US) was the re-release of Sgt. Peppers……50 years later.
10) 2018 the number 6 Billboard album was the White Album.
11) The most covered pop song ever is Yesterday. #2 is Something.
I’m a numbers guy have degrees in statistics and economics…..so to me numbers tell a story.
Mike
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I’m surprised that 8 Days A Week wasn’t mentioned. One of the first “fade-in” intros. As for favorite Beatles and MLT intros……too many to mention. I like the simplicity of Still A Friend of Mine intro. Mike.
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Another in the Seeker category is one by We Five called “You Were On My Mind”. It has some decent guitar pieces and harmonies all over the place. Both of these would be in the band’s “wheel house” (this is a baseball term meaning a pitch is right where the batter wants it to hit a home run. Mike.
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Hi Mona;
As one who has covered Suite: Judy Blue Eyes………it has that strange tuning that Stephen uses now and then……EEEEBE (from Bruce Palmer), it is 3 songs in one, and there is a little Spanish at the 3rd “movement”. Vocally it is very challenging…….probably more challenging vocally than it is on the instruments. But, if you two can do God Only Knows with its harmonies, then Suite: Judy Blue Eyes is doable. Mike.
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Well, you are doing so well with plan A…..there is likely no need for plan B. When I was younger there were so many things that interested me: music, sports, academics mainly….. at much too young an age I managed a business. Settled on academics because the music part dried up and became a periodic hobby and I was too short for sports. From there working in industry for 34 years and then part-time at night while in industry and in semi-retirement (Ha!) I taught at universities……but came back to music about 15 years ago…..but strictly a hobby that has been growing over the years.
Thank you for your answer. And, I wish much success for you and Mona.
Mike
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Hi Jung;
That’s the confusing thing for me………..I’m not really a Bowie fan. I recognize he did some great music in the 1970s and was sad when he passed away. But, not a big fan.
Still the song and video by MLT is among their best work…….and I might get into trouble for this…………..I like the song and video more than their Beatles’ covers. The confusing thing to me is that I am a Beatles fan but not a Bowie fan. I think they should definitely do more Bowie songs…….Changes comes to mind. Mike
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Hi Jacki;
I agree. I would like to see more discussions like this on the board. But, it might take controversial topics to get it going, e.g., blonde musicians are naturally better musicians than redhead musicians……something like that…..j/k.
Anyway I like the back and forth of spirited discussions with respect……seems we have lost that art these days. Mike
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Hi Howard;
I did not mean to imply that the Carpenters, Association, and John Denver are in the HOF. The three are not in and likely will never be in. Steppenwolf has been active since 1975 but they play at small venues any more. John Kay is about 75 now and the act is slowing down some. Mike.
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Yep……on the other hand again. I am not against the Rolling Stones. I actually have a few of their CDs. I believe their best period was the last years of Brian Jones through Mick Taylor period. Songs like She’s A Rainbow, Dandelion, Honky Tonk Woman, Ruby Tuesday, Wild Horses are among my favorites.
I don’t think groups like Paul Revere and the Raiders or the Monkees should be in HOF…..but with that said, I understand that the HOF selections are a little political too. I have heard that anyone who recorded on ATCO has an easier path to the HOF…..but again that is hearsay. I do question why some groups like Steppenwolf are not in the HOF….they wrote two classic rock songs and that is more than what some others have done who are in the HOF. Then there are groups that I put in the gray area like the Association and Carpenters…….soft pop and rock but there are some classics in their resume and they sold a bunch. John Denver also falls into that category as well.
Yeah, I guess I am in the camp of there are the Beatles and then there is everybody else. So, I am at the extreme for the Beatles. It could be that it is because I grew up with them. I was 10 going on 11 in Feb. 1964 and I was 16 going on 17 when they broke up.
Good talk. Mike.
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Hi Howard;
Yes, I am familiar with the lies, damned lies, and statistics saying. I have an MS in statistics and during my professional career heard it at least once a month over 30-some years.
But, I went to the stats because nearly every other way of determining “best band” is subjective (even Rolling Stones lists) and I treated the buying of LPs, etc. as votes for the particular band. I also kept the comparisons based on the same numerical idea so that if the measurement was off, then it would be off for both groups. In that case the magnitude of the difference would be a better measure. Also the fact that the Beatles are still charting 50 years after the fact is partly due to marketing (re-releases) but also that their music is seen as meaningful to younger generations.
On the other hand (I have a few degrees in economics, so I can get away with saying this)…..there was a cultural and sociological line of demarcation in the US (can’t speak for other countries). The demarcation was before and after Beatles. Guys grew out their hair after the Beatles, guys wanted to start forming bands because of all the screaming girls, etc. That could be said to be true for the other bands from England but we had the phrase “Beatlemania” and not “Stonesmania”. It was also believed that the Beatles paved the way for the other groups and individuals to “invade” (Stones, Kinks, Who, Dusty, Petula, Beau Brummels, and even Freddie and the Dreamers—–which proved that the US would have embraced nearly all things from England).
I believe one telling component is what the Rolling Stones believed about the competition between the two groups. Keith R. said in his autobio that the Beatles were seen as the “4-headed monster” which he clarified to mean that any of the 4 would have been successful as the “front man” for any group they led. He did not make that claim about any other group. Keith also conceded that the Beatles “broke down the door” for all the other groups from England.
Another thing I have noticed is that the Beatles were very innovative and “broke some musical rules” and still made the music appealing. I am currently learner the lead guitar part to Ticket To Ride and I am noticing that the lead part was not written by one person. The beginning part appears to have been written by John, the middle by George, and the riffs by Paul. And the parts do not make sense to me in terms of strict, classical musical theory…….but it still works. There are some chordal patterns in If I Fell and She Loves You that deviated from traditional RnR and music theory which others were not doing at the time, but it still worked and changed the way RnR was approached by successive groups. Then when you add in alternative instruments that George Martin introduced to the Beatles and the innovation continued: harps, French and English horns, string quartets, and on and on.
As far as filling stadiums…….I would point to the 100s of millions who watched the Beatles in the late 1960s via satellite. We could also travel down the road of comparative TV market share on Ed Sullivan with the various groups, but it is late at night here and……well sleep seems more inviting than a web search for TV ratings in the US.
So, I went with the numbers because things can be quantified that way, but I also believe these other items show the uniqueness of the Beatles. Mike.
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Yep, the 1.6 billion was so much that I carried it over to the LPs.
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MaxHouse;
Those are all very nice guitars!!!
Mike
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Nice guitar!!!! Show us more!! I like looking at other people’s collection. Mike.
