freedom or anarchy? genius unchained

There is a definite feeling of anarchy felt throughout the White Album. I think this why it is the most unique of the Beatles albums.

But what I really thinks it comes down to is a sense of freedom the Beatles must have felt for the first time in 1968.

In 1963 when the Beatles recorded their first album they were merely trying to get their foot in the door. They would make great progress within the next few years but one gets the sense that they were still restricted by what the studio expected of them, which mainly was a 14 track album approximately every 6 months.

Everything changes in 1968. Brian Epstein is gone. Touring had become a distant memory and apparently they were going to take as much time as they liked to record their new album. No time constraints here and apparently no rule book either. School is out for summer and apparently the boys will just do whatever they damn please. In this case, the boys happen to be genius's.

In my opinion what makes the White Album so special is that it is unfettered by convention or logic, which is just the way art should be. It is created to please no one other then the creator's themselves. The fact that such a sprawling and choatic work of art also contains songs such as Blackbird and I Will which are some of the most PERFECT music ever written just make the whole spectacle all the more awe-inspiring.

In 1968 the Beatles discovered not only their freedom as a group but also as individuals. This resulted in them creating their finest music ever and in a larger sense an everlasting gift to humanity.

I think the consensus is that by the time of the White Album they were just four solo artists in the same band. There were some great group performances on the album, such as "Happiness is a Warm Gun", "Sexy Sadie" and "Back in the USSR" (without Ringo). But the main problem for many critics of the album is that the gap between creative freedom and self-indulgence is a very narrow one and in music, as in other art forms, the gap can be non-existent.

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

The gap between creative freedom and self-indulgence is a very narrow one and in music, as in other art forms, the gap can be non-existent.

Great quote, man :thumbsup2:

Well I dunno........ I quite frankly don't like alot of the stuff on it.... like "Wild Honey Pie" for instance.... what is the point of that?? However there are some songs that I really do enjoy on it........I think it would have been better if they had cut some of the stuff thats on it out....but hey thats just me.....