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Term Essay: The Beatles

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Recommended: The beatles influence on the development of rock

Olu Ajayi
Justin Lorentzen
COMM 384
28 April 2022

Term Essay: The Beatles John Lennon. Paul McCartney. George Harrison. Ringo Starr. Four names that require little introduction. The Beatles are, without a doubt, the most iconic and influential musical group of all time. Despite being active for less than a decade their cultural impact cannot be overstated and they have no point of comparison. All British musicians that succeeded them, from Elton John to PinkPanthress owe them a great deal for the rise of British popular music. David Bowie is quoted as saying “[t]hey gave the British the illusion that they meant something again” (Wardle). This is largely due to the fact that Beatlemania propelled British popular music onto a global stage, …show more content…

Part of what had made The Beatles so popular is that their music was constantly ahead of the curve. LSD amplified their seeming cultural prescience as “they [were able to] pick up on certain special ideas before most of their immediate competitors, when these ideas were still at an elite stage of development” (MacDonald). Each of the band members described psychedelics expanding their mind and reinvigorating their creativity with Lennon proclaiming “I was suddenly struck by great visions when I first took acid. But you’ve got to be looking for it before you can possibly find it. Perhaps I was looking without realizing it. Perhaps I would have found it anyway. It would have just taken longer” (Taysom). Lennon’s framing of LSD as a life-enriching experience was exemplified in their music. The Beatles began experimenting not only with their lyrics, but also with their production, using tape loops, backwards recording, and electronic effects. Their ability to predict coming trends and their openness to change brought on by hallucinogens influenced their musical contemporaries, paving the way for progressive rock and other more experimental genres. LSD aided The Beatles in establishing themselves as musical pioneers: when they did something new, others …show more content…

In a now infamous interview, Paul McCartney, ironically the last member of the band to try the drug, admitted to dropping acid. The British media crucified him for it and the group’s previously clean cut image was tarnished. This shift in their cultural perception is likely a part of the reason they’ve been able to stand the test of time as a group. Controversy is a necessary component of celebrity life and it adds to the mystique of the band. Being associated with the free-love hippie culture of the 60s gave the band a youthful edge that has aged quite

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