Stepping Away From What’s Familiar

I woke up the other morning thinking about The Beatles, specifically the dramatic changes their work went through over the course of their career. From what I know of them, they began doing covers of other people’s material – mostly early American rock ‘n’ roll from artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Buddy Holly, and Elvis Presley. Learning the songs of their heroes allowed them to use that material as starting points for their own songs. The early Beatles songs were — at least to me — straight ahead rock ‘n’ roll that became the blueprint for the pop songs of the day. They were simple but catchy, and they were packaged in a way that nobody had ever seen or heard before. As they became better and better musicians, they branched out into more complex arrangements — their songs became more “experimental“ for lack of a better word. Somewhere around Revolver, things started to get really interesting.

I’m loving the Martin Scorsese Masterclass. I don’t know how long it will last but Masterclass is running a buy one get one special at the moment. So, you can get an all access pass for yourself and one for a friend or family member. I don’t have any sort of affiliation with Masterclass, I just have really been enjoying some of the classes they have available.

Also, a listener sent me a video by a photographer named Jamie Windsor who raises some interesting points around the ethics of street photography. The hinge pin of his argument against street photography centers around whether or not you can accurately represent a culture that you are not a part of. It’s an interesting question and honestly something I need a bit more time with. It may even be worth reaching out to Jamie for a conversation.

And lastly, if you like astronauts and pop culture, you’re going to love the work of painter Scott Listfield. Not only does he have terrific technique, there’s a great sense of both irony and humor to his work.

Music in this episode: The Wrong Way (Jahzzar) / CC BY-SA 4.0