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England, the 1960s, and the Triumph of The Beatles
How did four young men from a faded old seaport in Northern England lead such an epic musical and cultural revolution? Why could the story of the Beatles only have happened in such a charged decade? What remains to be said about this British band that hasn’t been said before?
Questions like these lie at the beating heart of these 12 lessons that offer a fresh look at how this celebrated band became one of the most compelling voices against the status quo. Taking you deeper than any simple music survey, Professor Shelden zeroes in on the cultural backstory of how the Beatles emerged as a worldwide phenomenon. Using the advantages of hindsight, recent scholarship, and interviews with key figures, he reconstructs an incredible period in sonic and social history for both dedicated Beatlemaniacs and new listeners alike.
Giving equal weight to the Beatles’ early years as they do to the apex of their career and eventual dissolution, these lectures invite you on a whirlwind adventure that reveals the evolution of a band like no other - from school kids to musicians to pop phenomenon to film stars to artists inevitably drawn in separate directions. They also offer eye-opening cultural insights into some of the band’s greatest hits, including “Yesterday”, “Back in the USSR”, and “Do You Want to Know a Secret?”
An eclectic blend of cultural history, biography, and music history, this series is your chance to discover how the Beatles became one of the most compelling voices against the status quo.
Questions like these lie at the beating heart of these 12 lessons that offer a fresh look at how this celebrated band became one of the most compelling voices against the status quo. Taking you deeper than any simple music survey, Professor Shelden zeroes in on the cultural backstory of how the Beatles emerged as a worldwide phenomenon. Using the advantages of hindsight, recent scholarship, and interviews with key figures, he reconstructs an incredible period in sonic and social history for both dedicated Beatlemaniacs and new listeners alike.
Giving equal weight to the Beatles’ early years as they do to the apex of their career and eventual dissolution, these lectures invite you on a whirlwind adventure that reveals the evolution of a band like no other - from school kids to musicians to pop phenomenon to film stars to artists inevitably drawn in separate directions. They also offer eye-opening cultural insights into some of the band’s greatest hits, including “Yesterday”, “Back in the USSR”, and “Do You Want to Know a Secret?”
An eclectic blend of cultural history, biography, and music history, this series is your chance to discover how the Beatles became one of the most compelling voices against the status quo.
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Published November 6, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 4, 2025
I loveeeeeee the Beatles and I will always love learning more about them. I think one of my favorite things is the comparison between Paul and John when it comes to their approach to songwriting. Paul being more in the real world and being able to connect with other people’s lives/stories (ex. Penny Lane) vs John being more introspective and focusing more on dreams and the mind, ideas not always grounded in the physical world but an emotional one (ex Strawberry Fields Forever). I just love learning and thinking about the way people see the world and how they choose to interpret it. Very cool.
April 25, 2023
I'm not a fan of really long biographies and this does a fine job of giving a lifespan of the band in a short book. There are good points I hadn't heard before. I liked the idea of how the U.S. was teed up a bit to embrace English contemporary culture. Also especially how the Cold War related to the Beatles in general. Putin respects them(barf). As always as the band breaks down, it gets so depressing and John Lennon's constant whining and griping gets stale the more you hear it especially from such a successful and loved person, he should've had no complaints about his life.
October 1, 2024
This is a series of lectures that analyze and review the rise of the Beatles as a band and as a phenomenon of the 1960’s. The lectures are perfectly organized and presented. It is a great education to even those who are already familiar with the topic.
January 25, 2021
Well paced, concise, insightful history with very interesting cultural contexts.
February 18, 2023
Incredible. An excellent history lesson on the worlds greatest band!
April 19, 2023
was a quick listen. easy one on 2x speed. bealtes bios always make me a little happier so it was a good change.
April 23, 2023
3 stars for content and an additional star for piquing interest in further reading!
For as much as I've listened to these lads over the years I know very little about them.
For as much as I've listened to these lads over the years I know very little about them.
April 24, 2023
A study of the Beatles in the context of England in the 1960s.
October 30, 2024
Fantastic history of the Beatles. Only thing that would have made it better was more music from the band, but we can blame copyright laws for that.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews