—————————————————— Why the Beatles Never Go Out of Style | Rocks Off | Houston | Houston Press | The Leading Independent News Source in Houston, Texas

Classic Rock Corner

Why the Beatles Never Go Out of Style

Imagine one of those tween magazine quizzes, one that is supposed to show what your favorite music says about you by asking you cute questions about your musical taste. Except in return, this one would provide you with some stone-cold harrowing insight into your soul as to specifically why you may prefer The Beatles A Hard Day's Night over Yellow Submarine.

While I cannot provide you that kind of insight, it is a fact that The Beatles evolved between each of their albums in a fashion that resulted in their branching out enough to reach a wide array of tastes and personalities, arguably more than any other pop group in history. This is what enabled them to capture the world's imagination, and probably why you're even reading this.

Today the Beatles are still one of the most revered bands of all time. Truth be told, I used to question this. Growing up, I wasn't exposed to much of them beyond the occasional "Hey Jude" coming on Sunny 99.1 after something like The Eagles' "Hotel California." Those two songs didn't differ much to me. I thought they were both boring and overplayed. Blasphemy ensued, etc.

Fast-forward to a few years later. I hit that breaking point, say, resembling that moment in the movie Almost Famous when 15-year-old William Miller played that record that changed his life. Though this time there wasn't just one particular song that I can say changed my life, but those teenage years were enough to awaken my blossoming interest in music and its surrounding culture.

During that time, I evidently rediscovered the Beatles. The music I heard this time, though, wasn't reminiscent of being stuck at the dentist's office waiting to get my roof expander poked at. Instead it was rather exciting, like I had discovered another artist, a new Beatles.

So it took a different persona of the group, in a sense, to grab my interest. I then dove into more of their music, which has led me to truly believe that the band's distinct versatility, alongside their musicianship, are the reasons why their popularity has stood the test of time.

For example, there is the Beatles of the late '60s until their breakup, the Beatles who are solidified as classic-rock staples with the albums Abbey Road and Let It Be. This music is most easy to digest even without taking their widespread admiration into consideration. For those happiest sticking with the classics, this is their Beatles.

KEEP THE HOUSTON PRESS FREE... Since we started the Houston Press, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Houston, and we'd like to keep it that way. With local media under siege, it's more important than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our "I Support" program, allowing us to keep offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food and culture with no paywalls.
Alexa Crenshaw