A World Without The Beatles
Hmmm. What would it be like? Seriously, not whimsically. First, would any of The Beatles made it in music solo? My answer is no, at least not The Beatles did. The only two that may had made it were John and Paul. To know this answer, one has to look back to 1960-2 period. The demos they made for Decca Records as a band show they were not very impressive. As a band, they were nervous and sounded stiff. The leads on the guitar were the same and sounded like a tin can. The original songs were simply horrible. These were not Love Me Do, or PS I Love you. These were Hello Little Girl, Like Dreamers Do. In both cases, neither had a good hook, and as a song, both were as John and Paul would say later, "throwaways". John's Hello Little Girl was simply a stupid song all around. Paul's, Like Dreamers Do, was equally dumb as he tried to appeal to Decca with his version of Elvis Presley's voice. The other songs completed were covers of older 50's songs, equally all bad choices when trying to impress a record company.
Decca's one error was that the execs then said no to The Beatles because " rock bands were a thing of the past". How wrong they were about that, and right for rejecting them for the demos.
Had the Beatles just broken up then, they were at the end of trying to get a record deal, John most likely would've ended up a nobody bloke who might have ended up like his merchant sailor dad, whom he never knew. He might have ended up like his son, Julian. In bands, yet never making it as big as Elvis, which was his goal then. He might have ended up dead from drinking and drugs. Paul, most likely would have found some middle class job, got married and had kids while still playing music for them and relatives at events. He might had been more successful in music. He was always more grounded and stable. But, the kind of stardom he sought, being bigger than Elvis, would have escaped him also. George would have followed the same path as Paul, but he would have been even less successful, he hated school. And Ringo, well, he would just be a drummer in a band until who knows when. He was that for The Beatles' rival band, Rory and the Hurricanes.
Rock music itself would not had evolved as it did, as rapidly as it did. It would not be called "art" by some, because there would not be Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Paul's concept). There would not be backward tape loops provided the unique lead guitars on, Tomorrow Never Knows, that was John's idea, or using feedback from a guitar in a song as they did in 1965's, Paperback writer. There would not be long hair on men. That was the greatest gift to men besides their music and clothes. Hard to believe, but it is true. Men did not have long hair before 1964 in modern culture. There would not have been a British invasion by British rock bands in 1964-5, the influx of this greatly changed rock music forever not only in song structure, sound but in style and presentation. The Beatles opened that door. It was a door The Rolling Stones quickly used, as did The Kinks, Traffic, Spencer Davis, Dave Clark 5 and many others. MTV would never have had the formula for a rock video without The Beatles' " A Hard Days Night" movie in 1964. Without the Beatles, rock music would have been nothing special, just a re-hash of old ideas and without them, other rock stars like Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, would never have picked up a guitar or a kit. The world would be without their own music for The Beatles' greatest gift was inspiration to those who worshiped them as well as many others who had not even been born. There would not have been that, "Beatle sound" that permeates music in many ways today. The harmonies balanced in a rock song, the wit of the lyrics, the overall sound.
Thank god they kept trying after 1962!
