If only the Beatles had been more like Stockhausen and Cage… *sigh…

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution_9

Of all the Beatles tracks to present here, I choose Revolution 9 for its atypical experimentation and irony. This stand-out track seems pretty risky for the safe, streamlined, pop formula of the Beatles, but really, it’s only an imitation of what so many actual risk-takers of the avantgarde and musique concrète genre had already done. The Beatles only wished they were so original.

And so now, like many borderline music snobs, my love / hate relationship with the Beatles is out in the open.
I love to hate them, and I hate to love them… but I do.

I’m just getting the Vintage Vinyl Revival Ebay Store back up and running, and who else to put up on the chopping, er… auction block first? [Scroll down for a list of Beatles albums I have available.] It works out because I’m not incredibly attached to Beatles music, and many a person out there with cash in his pockets is. But it’s also that very notion (Beatles albums bring big bucks) that makes me cringe when I hear people talk about the Beatles. Forgive my hypocritical nature just for a moment, and allow me to elaborate. Not every Beatles record is worth its weight in gold, in fact a great majority of them are hardly worth the wax they’re recorded on.

What’d you say about the Beatles?

Working with and around the music scene, dealing in records, I so often hear the Beatles come up as soon as someone finds out I’m the vinyl guy. “Records? As in albums? Oh yeah, I’ve got a bunch of old Beatles albums.” And invariably, “What do those go for nowadays?” And if they’ve caught word that an uber-mint mono copy of an original pressing goes for hundreds if not thousands of dollars, it’s off to Ebay with their crappy box of reissues to flood the market with more played-out paraphernalia and hoping to strike it rich. Even if you have an authentic original or rare pressing, condition is a huge factor too, so don’t even get me started.
See: Grading Records Objectively, an Ebay Guide / Rant by the Vintage Vinyl Revival.

So what do Beatles records actually go for? Well, that utterly depends, and is also what makes them a little bit more interesting to me as a collector; not that their overplayed mainstream pop nostalgia wasn’t good enough. The Beatles produced so many God-forsaken albums, with so many different versions released at different times on different labels with so many minute details and stories floating around them, that only infinitesimally subtle nuances can keep them apart, and that’s without adding the trouble of the counterfeited copies. It’s not uncommon for literally one little detail to mean the difference between an album that is potentially worth thousands of dollars, and one that belongs in the 50¢ bin.

For example, which album would you prefer?

If you chose the one where George has a shadow, congratulations! You just won $10,000.
If you chose the one without the shadow, I’m sorry, I don’t want your worthless counterfeit.
The shadow is actually only the first line of defense, as this happens to be the most counterfeited album in the universe. Entire guides have been written just to try to sort out the complexities of this one album.
See: Introducing the Beatles, a Comprehensive Discography & Price Guide for VJLP-1062.

All of these little details really make collecting the Beatles a lot of fun and/or a complete headache, depending on your point of view. This site shows some more examples of how complex studying the Beatles’ discography can be: http://www.peterice.com/Beatlesdna.htm

As far as the music goes, the Beatles were masters of mainstream. They certainly had a formula down anyway, as their success goes to show. Millions of people can’t be wrong, right? Well… Now hold on a minute, I’m not looking to pick a fight with the entire Beatle Nation. I really do enjoy a lot of their tunes. I’ve actually been listening to them a lot recently, and with genuine pleasure — that is until weeks later a particularly catchy tune is still spinning around in my head like a broken record, and I’m lying there in agony, “Baby you can drive my car, yes I’m gonna be a star… Damn you Paul! beep beep m’ beep beep yeah!” …That’s the power of pop for you.

But seriously, I’d give them praise for being geniuses, but nowhere do I see them having really pushed the envelope, aside from sheer number of sales and success in creating a rabid fan bass. Catchy comfortable tunes are a key for success, and countless artists since the Beatles have followed in their footsteps with their eye on the prize. On the other hand, risk-takers and avantgarde artists are inherently doomed for the most part. But it is among these unknowns that true genius and authenticity can be found. And this is the real pisser about the Beatles to me. THERE IS SO MUCH MORE GREAT MUSIC OUT THERE GOING UNNOTICED!! With how much notoriety they’ve received, you’d think that no other band was alive and recording during the sixties and seventies – oh wait, except for all those other chart-busters I don’t have to mention. You can surely name a few. But honestly folks, think of all the wonderful music that continues to go unnoticed. I’m not blaming the Beatles for this, rather I target the unoriginality of the consumer.

[update: Collin (my old DJ buddy) over at Ink Mathematics is a prime example of your more-original consumer digging up some great tunes of the sixties & seventies, and his most recent mix, although oddly enough starting out with the Beatles, goes way beyond the mainstream pop of that era. If you're just branching out from the powerful grasp of the Beatles, I suggest starting with some of Collin's recommendations for inspiration. I'll have more of my own recommendations up here before long.]

All that said… Hey! Want to buy some Beatles albums? Oh-so-poppy goodness!

The following list is what I currently have for sale. Please feel free to contact me for sales or more information.

I realize I’m shooting myself in the foot with this post. I’m anxious to be rebuked with responses. Despite my cynical tone in the preceding rant, I actually am pretty thrilled to have, and to be selling, these particular albums. For a Beatles enthusiast, these are some of the true gems. I’ll spare you the WOW!! ORIGINAL!!! RARE!! exclamations.

The Beatles (for the rabid fan):

YESTERDAY & TODAY aka the “BUTCHER COVER”
CAPITOL ST 2553
1966 L.A. STEREO ISSUE LP
PEELED, (THIRD STATE)
SOLD $480

—–

RUBBER SOUL
PARLOPHONE PCS 3075
1965 STEREO LP (Original UK issue)
VG+/VG+

SGT. PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND
PARLOPHONE PCS 7027
1967 STEREO LP (Original UK issue)
VG+/VG++

—–

MICHELLE, GIRL, DAY TRIPPER, WE CAN WORK IT OUT
CAPITOL EPEM-10074 MEXICO EP
ORIGINAL 1960’s MEXICO EXTENDED PLAY
STILL SEALED NM/NM

A HARD DAY’S NIGHT, TELL ME WHY, THINGS WE SAID TODAY, AND I LOVE HER
CAPITOL EPEM-10042 MEXICO EP
ORIGINAL 1966 MEXICO EXTENDED PLAY
VG+/VG+

HELP!, THE NIGHT BEFORE, YOU’RE GOING TO LOSE, THAT GIRL, ANOTHER GIRL
CAPITOL EPEM-10141 MEXICO EP
ORIGINAL 1966 MEXICO EXTENDED PLAY
VG+/VG+

HELP!, I NEED YOU, TICKET TO RIDE, THE NIGHT BEFORE
CAPITOL EPEM-10074 MEXICO EP
ORIGINAL 1967 MEXICO EXTENDED PLAY
VG+/VG+

PENNY LANE, STRAWBERRY FIELDS FOREVER, GOOD DAY SUNSHINE, I WANT TO TELL YOU
CAPITOL EPEM-10189 MEXICO EP
ORIGINAL 1967 MEXICO EXTENDED PLAY
VG+/VG+

—–

INTRODUCING THE BEATLES
Vee-Jay VJLP 1062
1964 MONO LP (Plain silver VJ on black label)
VG/VG

MEET THE BEATLES
CAPITOL T-2407
1964 MONO LP (Original, black colorband label)
high VG / VG

SECOND ALBUM
CAPITOL T 2080
1964 MONO LP (Original, black colorband label)
VG-/VG

BEATLES ‘65
CAPITOL T 2228
1964 MONO LP (Original, black colorband label)
VG-/VG

BEATLES VI
CAPITOL T 2358
1965 MONO LP (Original, black colorband label)
VG/VG+

REVOLVER
CAPITOL ST 2576
1965 STEREO LP (Original, black colorband label)
VG/VG+

THE BEATLES (S/T) aka THE WHITE ALBUM
APPLE SWBO-101 LP
numbered #0103131
VG/VG+

For the thrift consumer / not-so-rabid fan:

MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR
CAPITOL SMAL-2835 LP
VG-/VG+

ABBY ROAD
APPLE SO-383 LP
VG+/VG+

LET IT BE
APPLE AR 34001 LP (Red Apple Label)
VG/VG+

HEY JUDE aka THE BEATLES AGAIN
1970 APPLE SW-385 LP
VG/VG+