the beatles as musicians

from a musicological point of view, who would you say were the Beatles
main influences and inspirations? and what kind of legacy have they
left on music of today if any. when writing a thesis on the beatles
would it be better to concentrate on the early days and who influenced
them or look at how they may have influenced other bands ?

Chris Jepson...

I think the topic of who influenced the Beatles is more interesting and
certainly more well-defined than the topic of who the Beatles
influenced. Asking what rock/pop artists were influenced by the Beatles
is a bit like asking what classical composers were influenced by
Beethoven... although not many composers may be writing overtly
Beethovenesque music anymore, his influence is rather universal in that
he expanded the palette of orchestral music immensely... the situation
is rather the same with pop music and the Beatles ... they were the
central figures in a revolution that completely changed the landscape of
pop music forever.

I think two major early influences on the Beatles' music were Buddy
Holly and the Everly Brothers. Other than that, look into the artists
whose songs they covered in the early days.

Chris Jepson

JohnB...

Initially their influences were the same rock'n'rollers as all the
other beat groups, i.e. Elvis, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee,
etc.. However, in order to stand out from the rest (who were all
repeating pretty much the same sort of set lists), they started
listening to b-sides, and then to almost anything they could. The
story goes that sailors coming into Liverpool would bring in the latest
rock'n'roll, R&B and soul records from America that weren't available
in the UK and John & Paul would seek these out, looking for the unheard
gems that would get them to the top of the pack. Their writing was
influenced by everything they heard and it was their insatiable
curiosity for new sounds and influences that kept them moving on.
Unlike some bands, they also didn't run scared from tricky chord
sequences and more complex patterns. So, everything from dance bands
and show tunes to folk and country would have put an ounce in the pot
from which they drew their inspiration.

As regards their influence on what followed, the fact that they looked
so far and wide set a difficult task for those following - who had to
try even harder to find new sounds. For variety, check out the White
Album. I mean, *really* check it out. From folksy finger-picking
(Mother Nature's Son, Julia) to heavy rock (Helter Skelter) to blues
(Yer Blues) to surf-rock (Back In The USSR) to spooky (Long Long Long)
to country-ish (Rocky Raccoon) - and more, and all of it mixed up with
other styles/influences. Some would argue that a number of musical
genres were kick-started by one track or other from the Beatles
catalogue. And as they were influenced, so they continued to absorb -
from Dylan to Stockhausen (maybe).

Ah, there's plenty to work on. I think maybe you could write two
theses, or maybe more. And you'll be hard pressed to find something
that's not been written already.