February 27, 2012

#03-015: The Fab Four

individual black-and-white photos of four young men with mop-like hair, being clockwise from top left John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison
Clockwise from top left: John, Paul, Ringo, and George
(Wikipedia)

Note: In 1964, America was struck by BEATLEMANIA! In that year, the Lads from Liverpool landed on our shores. Read about them and their impact on music history.

Get Ready: Look at the picture of the Beatles above. Do you find their hairstyles shocking? Why or why not?

Akemi sees Becky in the Common Room of their dorm.

Akemi: Hi, Becky. Can I ask you a question?

Becky: Sure!

Akemi: The other day, Professor Wayne mentioned the "Fab Four" in music class. Who are they?

Becky: Well, they're also known as the "lads from Liverpool."

Akemi: Yeah?

Becky: You know, "John, Paul, George, and Ringo"?

Akemi: Not ringing any bells.

Becky: <singing> "She loves you! Yeah, yeah, yeah!" or, uh, "I wanna hold your haaand!"

Akemi: Why?

Becky: Why what?

Akemi: Why do you want to... Oh, wait... I'm starting to get it. A band... it's on the tip of my tongue... some kind of bug...

Becky: That's right, it's The Beatles!

Akemi: Oh, yeah! But it's spelled funny, right?

Becky: Yes, it's spelled with an "a," so it has "beat," like "rhythm," in it.

Akemi: So, what's the big deal? I mean, why would a professor of music mention just a rock band in class?

Becky: JUST a rock band? Oh, they were much more than that!

Akemi: How?

Becky: They were groundbreaking. Most musicologists agree that pop music can be divided into before and after the "British Invasion," not just in the U.S., but globally.

Akemi: So what did they do?

Becky: Let's see <counting on her fingers>: they were excellent musicians; their "mop-top" haircuts set the stage for the long-haired sixties; they started many trends in the music industry; and the environment they created, with screaming fans and police lines, came to be called "Beatlemania."

Akemi: Didn't Elvis do some of the same things?

Becky: Absolutely, and the Beatles acknowledged their debt to him. But they took it further.

Akemi: Hmmm. I guess I should do my homework in the "School of Rock."

Becky: Definitely. Meanwhile <singing>, "All you need is love..."

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Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles

Practice: Match the term to its definition below:

  1. the "British Invasion"
  2. groundbreaking
  3. it's on the tip of my tongue
  4. Liverpool
  5. the long-haired sixties
  6. "mop-top" haircuts
  7. musicologists
  8. ring a bell
  9. the "School of Rock"
  10. what's the big deal?

  1. scholars who study music
  2. a city in England
  3. a time in the 1960s when pop performers from England, starting with the Beatles, dominated the American music market
  4. the time of hippies and other "counter-culture" types
  5. a style of longish hair made popular by the Beatles
  6. innovative; creating new ways of doing things
  7. I can almost remember it, but can't quite say it.
  8. the name of a movie, and a general term for the study of rock-and-roll music and history
  9. What's so important?
  10. remind someone of something

Answers are in the first comment below.

Submitted to the Shenzhen Daily for February 27, 2012

This lesson received 290 visits on my old site between February, 2012, and July, 2021.

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1 comment:

  1. Professor Jim BucketJuly 25, 2021 at 6:32 PM

    Answers to the Practice: 1. c; 2. f; 3. g; 4. b; 5. d; 6. e; 7. a; 8. j; 9. h; 10. i

    ReplyDelete

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