I told you 'bout the fool on the hill
We had a fun time this afternoon showing our older daughter how to operate a turntable with vinyl records. We started with a side of Whitney Houston's debut album, which we had lying out since the day she died. "She was beautiful," said our child. Yes, she was. But she got into drugs and drank too much. "And she had a bad husband."
We moved on to Ella Fitzgerald with Nelson Riddle, because that's where the child's name comes from. Wonderful noise. Then came some music that her music teacher has been showing her. "Here Comes the Sun" from Abbey Road, and the first two sides of the Beatles' white album. "Wild Honey Pie" elicited a puzzled response. "What is that?" It's John Lennon being crazy; Paul may have been in on that one, too. They liked to do things to surprise people. Yoko's line in "Bungalow Bill" got the same reaction. That was John's wife. Yes, that's pretty much the way her voice sounded. A lot of Beatles fans didn't like her. The band started to drift apart after she showed up.
Playing that record for someone who hadn't heard most of it before, we drifted back to the first time we had heard it. Without a doubt, our young minds were blown. The Beatles always had "something new," but this was newer than new. One song after another, gems all. When we got to the end of Side 1, we all looked at each other and wondered what could possibly be coming next. There were three more sides to go!
Back in 2012, when "Julia" finished -- so lovely, so haunting -- our machine turned itself off, and there were errands to run. But the reverie persisted. The stories flowed. Eventually, the "Paul's dead" phase came up. We pointed out a number of the clues, although our turntable these days won't let us spin the records backward. Later on, at the grocery store, the two of us noticed that there was Paul, still alive, on the cover of the new Rolling Stone.
We hear Ringo's coming back to town. Maybe we should go.
| Posted at 7:08 PM | Permalink |
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Comments (17)
Don't ask me how, but the music always sounds a little better when we use the turntable.
Posted by Gibby | March 3, 2012 7:59 PM
One of my favorite Beatles references is a book called "Tell Me Why" by Tim Riley (1998).
About "Wild Honey Pie" it says:
A "throwaway" "send up of twenties sentimentalism [with] an endearing lovesick optimism".
Posted by reader | March 3, 2012 9:31 PM
Oops, 1988.
Posted by reader | March 3, 2012 9:33 PM
About "Wild Honey Pie" it says:
A "throwaway" "send up of twenties sentimentalism [with] an endearing lovesick optimism".
No, that's "Honey Pie," side 4. This is "*Wild* Honey Pie," a throwaway on side 1.
"Honey Pie" is actually a nice showtune, and a great reason why McCartney's entitled to his current American songbook album.
Posted by Jack Bog | March 3, 2012 10:33 PM
May your daughter realize how lucky she is while you're still alive to thank.
Posted by George Anonymuncule Seldes | March 3, 2012 11:16 PM
I'm the lucky one, by far.
Posted by Jack Bog | March 3, 2012 11:18 PM
You named your daughter Nelson? WTF?
Posted by realitybasedliberal | March 3, 2012 11:28 PM
No, silly -- Riddle.
Posted by Jack Bog | March 3, 2012 11:33 PM
LOL. Good one. :)
Posted by Ex-bartender | March 3, 2012 11:56 PM
Definitely go see Ringo & friends.
Posted by Mojo | March 4, 2012 12:02 AM
Quite right. Carry on.
Posted by reader | March 4, 2012 7:06 AM
During his performance at the Grammys our 11 year old daughter asked if Paul McCartney was a rock star back in the day. Time marches on.
Posted by Newleaf | March 4, 2012 8:07 AM
Did you see that movie (biopic) on young John Lennon, "Nowhere Boy"? Really, really good, with two superb female leads, and a very convincing young John actor. Your daughter might really appreciate it now, having heard White Album and Abbey Road (quite possibly the best single album ever made).
Posted by George Anonymuncule Seldes | March 4, 2012 9:12 AM
Once upon a time, in the mid-seventies my sister was in a shopping mall record store, browsing, when she heard a young pre-teen boy suddenly exclaim: "Look ma! Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings!" We wondered about that poor kid's upbringing, but were glad for him that he made that liberating discovery on his own. No doubt, some kind of magical mystery tour eventually ensued. "Here comes the sun king...."
Posted by Mojo | March 4, 2012 10:21 AM
Once upon a time, in the mid-seventies my sister was in a shopping mall record store, browsing, when she heard a young pre-teen boy suddenly exclaim: "Hey, Ma! Look! Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings!"
We wondered about that poor kid's upbringing, but were glad for him that he made that liberating discovery on his own. No doubt, some kind of magical mystery tour eventually ensued. "Here comes the sun king...."
Posted by Mojo | March 4, 2012 10:45 AM
Sorry for the double -- whacky world of public wifi.
While we're at it, please don't overlook or forget George Martin's masterful role as the true fifth Beatle and his marvelous contributions to the music we heard and still hear. Remastering has brought out many exquisite sounds and treatments that George created as the Beatles producer, btw.
Posted by Mojo | March 4, 2012 10:50 AM
One of the great things about vinyl is that you tend to listen to a WHOLE album. Digital music encourages listing to one song at a time and you really miss the gems hidden on side B as well as the totality of the artist put together as an "album". It's like reading a book vs. a chapter.
Posted by John | March 5, 2012 5:56 AM