tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post2007112711457023995..comments2023-07-05T06:08:47.551-04:00Comments on A Year in the Life: She Said She SaidMeganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17565760365090993595noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-79536289168189484822009-09-27T18:01:31.985-04:002009-09-27T18:01:31.985-04:00Everything you say is fair and true. I must have c...Everything you say is fair and true. I must have come off more anti-McDonald in the moment, again exercised about a specific criticism. And no, the She Said, She Said excerpt from my previous comment was a mockup for illustrative purposes, and not a transcription. Sorry if that wasn't clear; it was clear in my head!<br /><br />In the end, it's no doubt presumptuous of me to presume to troyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-57815002161859566452009-09-27T07:24:49.012-04:002009-09-27T07:24:49.012-04:00Troy, I'm glad we managed to conduct this deba...Troy, I'm glad we managed to conduct this debate without descending into vitriol or unpleasantness. You're right in thinking I've admired his book for a while, since 1994 in fact. I find myself going back and re-reading certain entries over and over again. His book is not just insightful and informative, but is so beautifully written that it stands as a valid cultural artefact in its John Carvillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-62383005073711155632009-09-25T13:34:06.888-04:002009-09-25T13:34:06.888-04:00John: Fair point. I called him a dink because he w...John: Fair point. I called him a dink because he was dissing Paul's scatting, which got me worked up. I'm easily aroused like that. On balance, as a writer (based solely on this book, the only one of his I've read), he is not a dink, so much as someone with whom, when I disagree with him, I disagree passionately.<br /><br />I brought up my background because I suspected you consider troyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-16405394567175803672009-09-25T12:20:11.894-04:002009-09-25T12:20:11.894-04:00Ian MacDonald's book is a a great (and occasio...Ian MacDonald's book is a a great (and occasionally pretentious) read. But it's a book, not a bible. We don't have to hang on his every word as if it's gospel. Plus, he didn't do all of this Beatles scholarship on his own. As he acknowledges, he relied heavily for the facts about Beatles sessions on Mark Lewisohn's work.<br /><br />That said, Revolution in the Head is a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-51695116108867233062009-09-25T10:55:44.555-04:002009-09-25T10:55:44.555-04:00Well, you called him a 'dink'. Not being a...Well, you called him a 'dink'. Not being an American, I have to guess, but I assume that 'dink' is an insult. I guess what we disagree on is that you feel MacDonald's opinion isn't any more valid than yours. I very much feel his opinions are a lot more valid than yours. Mainly because of the context, of course: his book is so good, when I come across opinions which I John Carvillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-91897423529691885622009-09-25T09:51:23.013-04:002009-09-25T09:51:23.013-04:00At the very least, my dismissal isn't offhand,...At the very least, my dismissal isn't offhand, it's visceral and earnest. I only want to say that I don't think my opinion is more valid than his. I also don't think his is more valid than mine. I appreciate the scholarship that clearly went into that book, and the information I gleaned from it. It's a very useful work. At the same time, he's not infallible; he made errorstroyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-62671885719595516012009-09-24T15:54:05.142-04:002009-09-24T15:54:05.142-04:00Troy
You sound like a reasonable and intelligent p...Troy<br />You sound like a reasonable and intelligent person, albeit one who holds one particular opinion with which I vehemently disagree. You cover quite a bit of ground in your post, and I reckon I owe it to us and any other unsuspecting readers of this blog, not to argue them in detail. If we could discuss it in person it would be easier; online it'll take forever. So lets skip the John Carvillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-90918756471648589042009-09-24T09:31:12.812-04:002009-09-24T09:31:12.812-04:00I didn't think anyone didn't like the scat...I didn't think anyone didn't like the scatting. I think it's essential to the song. I think it propels it from awesome to classic (or something). But it's not my only point of contention with him. It was hinted at above, but my biggest issue with McDonald is his dismissal of songs he doesn't like. I don't have a problem with him liking some songs and not liking others, buttroyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-7694164038454254122009-09-24T03:26:17.012-04:002009-09-24T03:26:17.012-04:00Well, troy, whether you like that scatting or not ...Well, troy, whether you like that scatting or not is a matter of taste. BUt don't dismiss MacDonald on the strength of one point of disagreement. HIs book is essential stuff.John Carvillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-74826530806514444562009-09-23T20:24:19.872-04:002009-09-23T20:24:19.872-04:00That WAS going to be all I added, until I read McD...That WAS going to be all I added, until I read McDonald today on Hey Jude, and Paul's 'ill-advised' scatting on the coda. Yeah. And the Beatles could have been a decent pop group, if they didn't overdo it on the harmonies so much. Thanks for playing.troyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-16488200373192645942009-09-23T09:48:11.450-04:002009-09-23T09:48:11.450-04:00Too many great points here to respond to. I only w...Too many great points here to respond to. I only want to tell Frank that if he doesn't like this and Tomorrow Never Knows because of the drug aspect, that's reason enough to try drugs. Because he's missing out. Oh, and that he never needs to apologize for weighing in on the other side of a song we love, because we love the back-and-forth with him almost as much as we do the songs.troyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-15335357800816770972009-09-23T09:30:25.678-04:002009-09-23T09:30:25.678-04:00It's funny how two people can read the same bo...It's funny how two people can read the same book and reach different conclusions. I, too, love Ian MacDonald's book. But I've always thought that, while he gives Paul some long overdue credit, MacDonald has always seemed to me to be a John guy. He spends a lot more time on John's major songs than on Paul's. He makes some pretty cutting remarks about certain Paul songs. But Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-40132565707157044432009-09-23T09:07:22.595-04:002009-09-23T09:07:22.595-04:00John, I actually do really love Ian MacDonald'...John, I actually do really love Ian MacDonald's book, even though I frequently disagree with him. He's a great writer, and he makes me think about a lot, but he has a few biases that leave slimy trails behind them-- there's an anti-John bias that I suspect is really an anti-psychedelic drugs and anti-"rock" bias (as opposed to "rock and roll"). I know that Riley Meganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17565760365090993595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-89936531485040776342009-09-23T08:57:03.687-04:002009-09-23T08:57:03.687-04:00Paul Lewis here (fellow Coro Allegran of Megan'...Paul Lewis here (fellow Coro Allegran of Megan's). "She Said She Said" is one of my favorite tracks too. One thing I love about it is the constant alternation in timbre between stinging (lead guitar line) and soft (much of John's and group's vocalizing). They do that kind of thing on other tracks too, e.g. "I've Got a Feeling," where Paul's rough-guy voice Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-41689881252103337142009-09-23T08:15:25.558-04:002009-09-23T08:15:25.558-04:00I'm surprised to read people not liking She Sa...I'm surprised to read people not liking She Said, She SAid. I had taken it for granted that it was among everybody's favourite Revolver tracks.<br /><br />Also surprised to learn you frequently disagree with Ian MacDonald. I go back to his book again and again. I don't always agree with him, eg. he hates Across the Universe and Helter Skelter, but for my money 'Revolution in the John Carvillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-17482474613525981572009-09-23T06:51:21.420-04:002009-09-23T06:51:21.420-04:00It was interesting to read your post on this song ...It was interesting to read your post on this song because it's the only song on Revolver that I usually skip. To me it's always been the weakest song on Revolver.<br /><br />My theory is that John didn't let Paul participate on this song because it was about an acid trip the other 3 had taken, and Paul was the only one who had, thus far, still refused to indulge. Of course that's Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-16268336705801480512009-09-22T22:40:09.757-04:002009-09-22T22:40:09.757-04:00Oh, Frank, there are no contracts here. That's...Oh, Frank, there are no contracts here. That's maybe kind of a good point about how VERY '60s it feels. And the ones you name, except in my opinion maybe "I Want to Tell You" (with its mid-60s soaring vocal harmonies) feel a little more timeless, maybe. You're not wrong. And yet-- and yet--<br /><br />Well, you know, I love the whole Nuggets box set too. It might just be Meganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17565760365090993595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-56835870215275302812009-09-22T22:25:26.909-04:002009-09-22T22:25:26.909-04:00I was tempted to make no comment and leave this po...I was tempted to make no comment and leave this post as a love-fest by you two, but then something came over me and here i am writing. While i like this song "okay," I much prefer a half dozen others, like: Taxman; Rigby; Here, There, and Everywhere; Good Day Sunshine, I Want to Tell You; and Got to Get You into My Life. Gee, that's most of the rest of the album. <br /><br />ThereFrank Loosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12564007564601986631noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-76236908996807754022009-09-22T21:27:40.769-04:002009-09-22T21:27:40.769-04:00Eh, I frequently disagree with MacDonald. I don...Eh, I frequently disagree with MacDonald. I don't think he gave this one the love it deserved, nor "And Your Bird Can Sing" and "I'm Only Sleeping," though if memory serves he does get why "Tomorrow Never Knows" matters. The problem with MacDonald is he thinks that drugs kind of ruined the Beatles, and Revolver has been dipped in a great big acid bath. Also, Meganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17565760365090993595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7594252593945843033.post-46636695766442247222009-09-22T19:48:43.788-04:002009-09-22T19:48:43.788-04:00Some people think this is Ringo's best work, a...Some people think this is Ringo's best work, and I think they might be right. You make a couple of references to his part, and I think you're alluding to something I learned in the Ian McDonald book: Because Ringo left his set set up for a righty, but was a lefty, his fills often start on a tom, then go to the snare. There's a lot of that in this song, and it's very distinctive.<troyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01846187742319627525noreply@blogger.com