A Day in the Life: The Music and Artistry of the Beatles - Mark Hertsgaard
The story of the Beatles is fascinating. But the Beatles would not be so interesting if not for their music. Long after the Beatles' story fades, the Beatles' music will carry on. Ultimately, their music matters most - and that is the point of this book. It is an extended analysis of the composition of the Beatles' songs. Hertsgaard listened to 400 hours of archived Abbey Road tapes in order to analyze and evaluate the Beatles' creative process. The Beatles' music excelled because of the dynamic tension between the two lead composers - John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Hertsgaard writes of the "affectionate competitiveness that pervaded their entire relationship: "From their earliest days together, John and Paul were rivals as well as friends, competitors as well as partners, critics as well as soulmates. 'Imagine two people pulling on a rope, smiling at each other and pulling all the time with all their might'" (111). This affectionate competitiveness arose from their commitment to one another. According to Ringo, "When the Beatles did clash, it was with the familiarity and bluntness of brothers whose unshakable underlying bond let them voice complaints freely, secure in the knowledge that they would remain brothers no matter what" (142). The individual Beatles were not necessarily the most talented musicians - but collectively they were brilliant. George Martin said, "It is absolutely true that the sum of the four of them was much, much greater than the sum of the individual parts" (135). "The Beatles were living proof that it is not necessarily the greatest musicians who make the greatest music" (145). Though the Beatles eventually crashed, the chemistry that sparked such intense creativity is a model for community life in the church. We are more than the sum of our parts - and we are better together than we are apart. Our commitment to one another should sustain us during difficult times.