There's something to be said about having a hangout

For those of you who don't know my college habits that well, I pretty much live at the local coffee shop/bookstore. It has it's perks (hey-oh!); everyone knows me by name, they are extra friendly, i don't even have to tell them my order anymore (which is good, b/c I'm grumpy before I've had my coffee), occasionally i get to taste something for free, etc. But the best thing is all the crazy-friendly people i meet there. Which is where this story comes in...


So, I was sitting there, sketching out the web comic I'm thinking about starting, when these two guys walk up. They were probably in their mid-late 40's. One looked like a teacher. The other
looked like a mix between a lumberjack and a hippie.

The second one looks at me.

guy: You know about the Beatles?
me: huh?
guy: your shirt.
*i look down. I'm wearing a lime green Sgt. Pepper's shirt *
me: yeah.
guy: what'd you think of Across the Universe?

Now, since i had planned a whole series of posts on that subject (which i abandoned for media planning homework), I had my opinions all laid out. So we talked a bit about the movie, it's departure from classic movie-musical formats, it's portrayal of the time-period, the song covers, blah blah blah.

then...

guy: okay, last question. this is a two part-er. 1- If you could name one Beatles' album that everyone should listen to, what would it be? 2- same question, but you get to pick three songs.

Now, this is a good question. so here's my answer...

1) I'd pick Revolver for my album. I really kind of picked it as a reflex. But it really is an excellent choice in my opinion. First off, there's Yellow Submarine. This was the first Beatles' song i can remember hearing. It also represents their earlier stuff and their ability to keep things light. Then, Eleanor Rigby, Doctor Robert, and Taxman all show how they were icons who were aware. In a way that todays pop stars do not, many of their songs had social and political commentary. I also love Taxman because it's one of the few songs written by George (if i remember correctly). Good Day Sunshine, For No One, Got to Get You into my Life, and I Want to Tell You are seem to be their classic songs. They were real crowd pleasers, but somehow more than just pop songs. Then, of course, Love You To and Tomorrow Never Knows show them branching out from pop.

2)
a)And I Love Her- I feel like it's important to showcase one of their early, teeny-bopper songs. But I feel like everyone's heard the classics, you know, Help or Can't Buy Me Love. This song is good because it is so sweet that it effectively shows why the entire female population fell in love with them.
b)Get Back- This was mostly just because I love the songs where they are just talking and goofing around before or after they record (quick, where's this from- I've got blister's on me fingers!!!). It shows how they can tell great stories in four lines, though this particular story makes absolutely no sense. I'm actually just making this shit up, i just love this song.
c)Mother Nature's Son- This is one of their hippie songs, I think there should be one on the list.

I realize none of these songs would be on Rolling Stone/Spin/ whatever's top 20 Beatles songs list. But, that's why I think they are important. They aren't their best songs. They aren't the most well known. But what's the use of making everyone listen to the songs they already know about? Also, I'm not gonna regurgitate whatever music critics/ my father told me. These three songs are the ones that have stuck with me for whatever reason. They're the ones i like, not because someone told me to, but because i can feel it in my gut. So... yeah.

your thoughts? that's what the comments section is for. I heart comments!

Also,
I was super psyched that there's someone else out in the world that likes to make up random questions and quiz people they've just met. Yeah, i have an arsenal of those. They make the conversation more interesting than the typical "what's your major?" crap whilst simultaneously separating the cool people from the people who have nothing to say. I like people with opinions.

I'm freaking out man...

So, apparently god/zeus/ the great spaghetti monster doesn't want me to have fun on friday nights as evident in the weather, me driving to the wrong movie theater, and the numerous planning/scheduling conflicts I've experienced in the past couple of weeks. But I showed him. In the face of mounting hurdles on the road to fun, my friend and I decided to just pack it in and rent a movie. Our choice, you ask? Across the Universe. It was quite... trippy.

Now, I will make absolutely no attempt to review that movie. It was unlike any movie I've ever seen, I'm very conflicted about whether or not I actually like it, and I readily admit that I do not have the wealth of knowledge to dissect it in any way that is at all satisfactory. So instead, I'm offering up my opinion on the musical stylings of Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, and the various artists that made this movie what it was.

We'll start with Evan Rachel Wood. The first two songs she sung (Hold me tight and It won't be long) gave her room to belt and that was pretty impressive. However, I was slightly disappointed in her covers of "If I Fell" and "Blackbird". While it's clear the girl can hold a note, a feat that is impressive compared to the crap "artists" disney shells out, the songs dragged on like funeral marches. "If I fell" seemed even worse since it came after T.V. Carpio's cover of "I want to Hold Your Hand." Carpio instilled her own style into her song, revitalizing it a bit. "If I fell," however, just was completely uninspired.

The other lead character was Jim Sturgis' Character (Jude, of course). Now I have a weak spot in my heart for good looking brits, so I may be a tad biased. But I thought he was pretty good. I actually thought they had hired a singer to dub the songs until I looked it up on the internet. "All my lovin" was incredibly faithful to the original. My favorite songs were probably "Across the Universe" and "Revolution." The first song has a sweeping orchestra at times, and a chorus at others. The second is all Sturgis and angry guitars. It was refreshing to me that he could succeed at both the slow songs and the rock songs. He wasn't perfect, but he was at least not notably weak at any point.

Well, I've got a life to get on with... but next time, I'll probably write about the other two notable singers from the movie. Dana Fuchs played Sexy Sadie and Martin Luther played JoJo. Luther's songs were easily the best, but I'll save that for another time.