Beatlemania to hit the web?

The Beatles rehearsing at the Prince of Wales Theatre for their Royal Variety Performance, on November 4th 1963. Image credit to Ron Case

Sir Paul McCartney has told Billboard magazine that The Beatles’ back catalogue may soon be available online. Apple Corps, the company that owns the Beatles’ music, has been in a long dispute with Apple Inc. Apple Inc own iTunes, the music and film website. However, McCartney now thinks that some of The Beatles’ music will feature on this site, which is big news indeed.

Apple Corps began life in the 1960s, and is famous for jealously guarding The Beatles’ music and interests. Apple Inc is an American computer company, founded in the 1970s. They make the Apple Mac and iPod. Unfortunately Apple Corps has been suing Apple Inc since the 1970s, with a number of big cases and expensive settlements. Apple Corps resented Apple Inc using the same name as them, and tried to make sure the American company stayed out of the music business.

However, it now looks like things are changing. Steve Jobs, who runs Apple Inc, is a big Beatles fan and has said that he would love to do a deal with them. If a deal does happen, it would probably increase Apple's profits by a lot. The reason for this is that The Beatles are seen by a lot of people as the greatest rock and roll band of all time.

Why are they so great?

The Beatles more or less invented pop music. Before they arrived, there was rock and roll,rhythm and blues and soul. The Beatles managed to combine all three to make brilliant pop records everyone loved. The band has sold more records in America than anyone else. Rolling Stone magazine rated The Beatles as the best of all time.

The possibility of a deal with Apple and iTunes is exciting, because it means some of the best records ever made will be available online. Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The White Album, Abbey Road and Let It Be are all great albums, with The White Album seen by many as the best record ever made.

Phases

The Beatles formed in 1960 and split up in 1970. In that ten year period, they made very different types of music, from the high tempo Mersey Beat of the early 1960s to folk, psychedelic and all out rock and roll. The Beatles were themselves influenced by lots of different people, such as Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys and the sounds of black America.

Influence

Although the band split up in 1970, their influence is still incredibly strong. The best current example would be The Artic Monkeys, who remind many of the Beatles. While the sound The Beatles made is influential, so is their style and attitude. When the pop stars of today try to be funny and clever, they are hoping to be like John Lennon.

Everyone knows that bands like Oasis and Blur were influenced by the fab four’s music. However, even some of The Beatles'contemporaries wanted to sound like them. The Rolling Stones and Elvis Presley are both great examples of this. You Can’t Always Have What You Want, one of the Rolling Stones’ greatest records, is clearly influenced by their great rivals. Even Elvis, "The King of Rock and Roll," started to include Beatles’ tracks in his live shows.

The lack of Beatles content on the web today is a problem. New generations of pop fans are simply missing out on a great experience. Also, it is not possible to understand rock and roll today without knowing who The Beatles are and what their records sound like.

Critics

However, it should also be pointed out that The Beatles do have their critics. Some people find one or two of the albums all a bit too serious, while a couple of critics have recently said that Sgt Pepper’s is now very dated. It is probably true that The Rolling Stones were a bit more fun and The Who a lot more down to earth. Some rock and roll fans think The Beatles were a boy band who got lost in fame. The argument is that The Beatles simply copied the sounds coming out of America and got very lucky.

The Beatles were never perfect, but the world was probably a better place with John, Paul, George and Ringo in it. If a deal with Apple and iTunes does happen, the web will also be a better place, with some of the best records ever made only seconds away from the world.