Verified Document

The Beatles Vs Beach Boys Essay

Beach Boys vs. The Beatles Synthesis

The first chapter of De Forest's work of non-fiction entitled Beach Boys vs. Beatlemania: Rediscovering Sixties Music, is ambitious in scope. Within this chapter the author attempts to reconstruct the context of the Beach Boys' career as it took place in a zeitgeist that spanned from the early 60s to the end of the 1980s (De Forest, 2007, p. 2). His main argument is that the Beach Boys created an indelible imprint on both popular music and on popular culture. He does not argue that they spawned rock and roll, but that they helped to reshape it into the format that a number of other bands in the 60's typified.

In chapter four, De Forest attempts to explicate the popularity of the Beatles. He does so from a binary perspective that both includes the band's popularity during the 1960's and the almost mythic status that they have enjoyed ever since their untimely breakup in 1970. In providing this explanation, the author makes it quite clear that their approbation is not as deserved as that which he believes the Beach Boys are worthy of having. Essentially, he attributes their success in the 1960's to savvy marketing and management, as well as their ability to mimic trends. Their legacy, meanwhile, was solidified by their early breakup which rendered them unassailable -- particularly for those still marketing their music.

The seventh chapter allows De Forest an opportunity to fully flesh out his primary theme for this work -- a comparison between the efforts of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, which primarily favors the latter. A good deal of this chapter details the reasons that the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds was an adequate response to the musical stylings and ubiquity of Rubber Sould, which was released by the The Beatles. Still, the author points out that for the immediate time afterwards, the Beatles were able to trump the Beach Boys with the relatively rapid release of Revolver, which certainly bested Rubber Soul in the process.

Chapter 8 functions very similarly to the preceding chapter. However, the two bodies of work that the author compares in this chapter are Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Smile,...

Due to the fact that Smile was not released during the 1960's, De Forest is able to romanticize and even mythologize the projected impact that it would have. However, he is also able to discuss the very real impact that the foregoing work from the Beatles produced. At the time it was released, this album perhaps did more to solidify the band's reputation -- while embracing the countercultural elements of rock and roll -- than any others at the time.
In the ninth chapter, the author makes a point of comparing the legacy of the Beach Boys to that of the Beatles. This comparison is critical to the overall theme of this book. Moreover, there are vital points of distinction in those legacies. Multiple members of the Beatles have died; their last recordings took place decades before some of those deaths. Because of the finality of their sundering (which was reinforced by the aforementioned fatalities), the legacy of the Beatles is well protected and based on their work when they were young men. The situation is contrasted with the legacy of the Beach Boys, who recorded for much longer.

Highlights

One of the most salient highlights of the first chapter is the impact that the Beach Boys had. Listeners who gravitated towards their music in the final decade of the last century and in the early ones of this century likely did not know that the feel good, pop-friendly music of this group was even categorized as rock and roll, let alone influential to all of the many rock groups that appeared after the Beach Boys. Furthermore, the fact that there were at least three brothers in this group is another little known fact among listeners who missed the group's heyday (De Forest, 2007, p. 2). This fact is important and helps to link this group to other popular family affairs, such as the Jackson 5.

The most notable facet of the fourth chapter is the value De Forest attributes to the fact that the Beatles were torn asunder while they were still in their prime. This idea is an important one which is readily echoed through art -- in other forms of music, poetry, and in the visual arts as well. The end of the…

Sources used in this document:
References

De Forest, G.A. (2007). Beach Boys vs. Beatlemania: Rediscovering Sixties Music. www.Booklocker.com Retrieved from http://www.readbag.com/assets-booklocker-pdfs-3210s
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

The Beatles And The Beach Boys
Words: 2497 Length: 9 Document Type: Essay

Essay Topic Examples 1. Harmonizing Across the Pond: The Symbiotic Relationship between The Beatles and The Beach Boys:      This essay would explore the mutual influence The Beatles and The Beach Boys had on each other's music. It would analyze how the competition and inspiration between the two bands led to some of the most innovative music of the 1960s, such as The Beatles� "Sgt. Pepper�s Lonely Hearts Club

Analyzing and Assessing the Beatles
Words: 2274 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Beatles Rubber Soul (1965) [UK version] Rubber Soul is a spatial and open production, bedecked but not overfilled with novel ideas and instruments. Its songs resemble little vignettes of Pop Art, with the lyrics matching the arrangements and the melodies' quality. Even the straightforward, amusing rocker, Drive My Car, has been performed with tight grooviness, virtually twinkling in self-amusement. Lennon gets better than ever before with this album, via innovative, thoughtful

Why The Beatles Were Loved
Words: 3863 Length: 13 Document Type: Research Paper

How the Beatles Made History Introduction Everyone knows their names, even if one never cared for their music: Ringo, John, Paul, and George. Just 15, 16 and 17 respectively, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and John Lennon came together in 1958—young but passionate musicians from Liverpool, England, who wanted to play jazz, blues and folk music on improvised instruments. By 1962, they had added Ringo Starr to the group. With Starr on drums,

British Invasion on the United States: 1964
Words: 1239 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

British Invasion on the United States: 1964 -- 1967 The arrival of the Beatles in New York City in 1964 for an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show marked the beginning of what has become commonly known as the "British Invasion." This period, lasting roughly from 1964 to 1967, was a time when British bands invaded and topped the charts of the American music industry influencing the culture and social

Coca Cola Australia Ads Soft
Words: 3324 Length: 10 Document Type: Thesis

(Conniptions886 2009). Again the ad stresses the outdoor beach culture among those who have the means and leisure to enjoy it. Coca Cola ads have not seemed to change that much over time. They have sacrificed expressing multiculturalism, without popular exception to build a following for their target market. One comparison ad done by Pepsi and much more reflective of diversity, and especially the diversity of the urban culture is

Surfing the Modern History and
Words: 1348 Length: 4 Document Type: Research Paper

The mounting preoccupation of America's youth with surfing would, for the new generations coming of age at this time, become less a counterculture and more mainstream as a recreational activity. As Eglington (2004) would remark, "the sport exploded in popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, when cheaper, more maneuverable, and lighter boards made of fiberglass and foam became available and the teenaged baby boomers headed to the beach in

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now