Thanks, Doc! My favorite Beatle is the one who did the most work, who never phoned it in, who always made everybody else’s songs better; the one with the best ear. Not the coolest, and not always the one whose songs I like the best. But the one who pushed them all to work more and make more and better music than they would have if he hadn’t pushed them so much.
The invocation of Trump in the 80s takes me back. Spy Magazine! "The short fingered vulgarian". I never IMAGINED the guy would be President. Never a blip on even my extended-range radar. I suppose I'm not alone in that. I just read a book called "Gods of New York" about the period on Manhattan 1986-1989. I think about that era as our 1950s. No cell phones, only primitive computers, and NO INTERNET.
Acc to Graydon Carter, as of a few years ago, Trump was still sending him photos demonstrating that his fingers aren’t as short as that quote suggested. Spy really got under his skin.
I would not literally describe myself as a Ringo guy, but I also would not object to someone else calling me that. I am a great admirer of his playing, and I find that when people tell me they don’t think much of him, I assume their ear can not hear the kind of sophisticated sense of time Ringo has. His ability to play behind the beat was and is highly unusual in rock, a genre where pushing the music rather than laying back is the norm. Charlie Watts was another master of this kind of playing, and in the case of the Stones, I consider him their MVP.
Also— my intention was to avoid saying anything specific about this, and i changed what I’d written in that spot right before posting, as the original wasn’t innocuous enough. But I’m lousy at ducking direct questions.
That's extremely fair -- Ringo is almost certainly the least of the Beatles, but it's hard to imagine someone who wouldn't be relative to J/P/G. (And tbh, a lot of candidates for GOAT drummer would be comically out of place in their lineup.) The Brian Scalabrine of pop music!!
I admit that I've never really appreciated him, in part because it's relatively rare that I go out of my way to listen to Sgt Pepper et al (vs. remembering the songs when someone mentions the title), and my memory is not in especially high fidelity. But I'd like to think I have a good ear for rhythm...
That is a wise and gracious reply. In fact I do not agree that Ringo is the least of the Beatles, but with your puzzle brain, I imagine that would make it easy for you to guess what I really do think, so let’s pretend I’m didn’t say that out loud.
Although Ringo’s inventive work on the song Rain isn’t exactly demonstrating what I prize most highly in his playing, it’s a good one to check out to hear him getting more attention than usual. As much as I love listening to his playing, I’ve come to believe that his ability to knit their unprecedented variety of songs together without most listeners noticing him is what really made him indispensable. Also, I just remembered— he got a fancy new drum kit for the Abbey Road album, and even though it’s not one of my favorite Beatle albums, the sonic quality of it plus ringo’s new kit makes that record a feast for the ears, especially the drum sounds. Come Together has some primo Ringo, but he shines all over that album, with its many different grooves.
i'm convinced that "War Hat" is a song.
More funny and wise material, Karl, and a bright way to start a miserable Tuesday. But who is your favourite Beatle?
Thanks, Doc! My favorite Beatle is the one who did the most work, who never phoned it in, who always made everybody else’s songs better; the one with the best ear. Not the coolest, and not always the one whose songs I like the best. But the one who pushed them all to work more and make more and better music than they would have if he hadn’t pushed them so much.
The invocation of Trump in the 80s takes me back. Spy Magazine! "The short fingered vulgarian". I never IMAGINED the guy would be President. Never a blip on even my extended-range radar. I suppose I'm not alone in that. I just read a book called "Gods of New York" about the period on Manhattan 1986-1989. I think about that era as our 1950s. No cell phones, only primitive computers, and NO INTERNET.
Acc to Graydon Carter, as of a few years ago, Trump was still sending him photos demonstrating that his fingers aren’t as short as that quote suggested. Spy really got under his skin.
So, I take it you're a Ringo guy?
I would not literally describe myself as a Ringo guy, but I also would not object to someone else calling me that. I am a great admirer of his playing, and I find that when people tell me they don’t think much of him, I assume their ear can not hear the kind of sophisticated sense of time Ringo has. His ability to play behind the beat was and is highly unusual in rock, a genre where pushing the music rather than laying back is the norm. Charlie Watts was another master of this kind of playing, and in the case of the Stones, I consider him their MVP.
Also— my intention was to avoid saying anything specific about this, and i changed what I’d written in that spot right before posting, as the original wasn’t innocuous enough. But I’m lousy at ducking direct questions.
That's extremely fair -- Ringo is almost certainly the least of the Beatles, but it's hard to imagine someone who wouldn't be relative to J/P/G. (And tbh, a lot of candidates for GOAT drummer would be comically out of place in their lineup.) The Brian Scalabrine of pop music!!
I admit that I've never really appreciated him, in part because it's relatively rare that I go out of my way to listen to Sgt Pepper et al (vs. remembering the songs when someone mentions the title), and my memory is not in especially high fidelity. But I'd like to think I have a good ear for rhythm...
That is a wise and gracious reply. In fact I do not agree that Ringo is the least of the Beatles, but with your puzzle brain, I imagine that would make it easy for you to guess what I really do think, so let’s pretend I’m didn’t say that out loud.
Although Ringo’s inventive work on the song Rain isn’t exactly demonstrating what I prize most highly in his playing, it’s a good one to check out to hear him getting more attention than usual. As much as I love listening to his playing, I’ve come to believe that his ability to knit their unprecedented variety of songs together without most listeners noticing him is what really made him indispensable. Also, I just remembered— he got a fancy new drum kit for the Abbey Road album, and even though it’s not one of my favorite Beatle albums, the sonic quality of it plus ringo’s new kit makes that record a feast for the ears, especially the drum sounds. Come Together has some primo Ringo, but he shines all over that album, with its many different grooves.