I remember back when I was just out of high school I applied for a job at a record store. On the application was a question: What are ten bands/artists that you think deserve more recognition? I tried my best to fill the list with obscure, intelligent choices to show my prowess as a discerning audiophile, but I was laughed at when I went in for my interview because riding atop my A-list of brilliant underground jazz artists and indie-sceners was the Beatles. I remember the guy's face now- "you think the Beatles should be more popular?!" Um, yeah, why shouldn't they be? Looking back at the decades of legal disputes that have kept a new generation from exposure to the Beatles and their solo work, I still feel the same.
That's why I was happy to come upon an article in the Journal Star today reporting that iTunes, which has been slowly but surely warming itself up to the release of Beatle's material owned by the EMI label and Capitol records, has just made available 16 of John Lennon's post-Beatles solo albums. I for one am happy to see it- even though my Lennon/Beatles collection already overfloweth, to say the least- and think it's really about time. It's a shame that the work of one of the most influential and prolific artists of the last century, one of those few individuals who actually had a hand on the hammer that hewed out the genre that is now modern popular music and helped it to be regarded as a serious art form, has been plagued with such difficulty in the release of his music (with the Beatles and solo) through any legitimate, legal digital music provider. I guess there's also a certain amount of sentimentality too, thinking that John Lennon is not alive to negotiate his music's release on his own terms.
It should be said though, that despite the catchy title of this post, EMI has surely had a healthy hand in keeping the Fab 4 from the ears of a new generation who listen and live online, and so have the Beatles for that matter. It took decades for the royalty disputes between EMI and the remaining members of the band + Yoko (via Apple Corps) to be resolved (a $59 million resolution, from what I understand) and the feud between Apple Corps and Apple Inc. over trademark infringement has only recently come to an end. All friends now? Who knows, but all this law-suiting has kept many music lovers literally licking their lips for nearly two decades anticipating this turn.
I guess to many, of course, the real news was when Steve Jobs announced that iTunes would carry music by the Beatles earlier this year. I realize too that Yoko Ono already released a remastered collection of John Lennon's work to many online music stores like Napster and MSN Music, but that too was a long time coming. Anyway, iTunes is the largest online music store and they should be carrying the work of music giants like the Beatles and John Lennon. So, this is indeed news.
Oh yeah, and just for good measure, here's "Mind Games" from Lennon's "Walls and Bridges" album to help you celebrate!
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