Before I set a bad tone, I will ask you to listen to the simplistic magic from both.
There will NEVER, EVER be another song writing team like Lennon/McCartney. Listen to the solo stuff and you will understand. They both did fantastic solo work BUT it pales when you hear what was done as a team. Yes, Martin was a great person to do the mix but let's face it, garbage in is garbage out. He was only half of the equation. Sometimes, less is more.
The Beatles cannot be compared to what was on the radio back then. Radio was a HUGE part of life for everyone. You could buy a 45 r.p.m. but people almost never bought full albums. The Beatles sold all those singles. Remember that when I get to Elvis. The Beatles had the look, the sound and the hype. They were new and the music they made wasn't always a Pat Boone version of a Little Richard tune. It was fresh. It was/is cool.
Elvis? He simply drove the women nuts and the guys hated him for it. That created talk and people listened because of that talk. He didn't write most of his songs. May Axton wrote Heartbreak Hotel. Kentucky Rain was written by Eddie Rabbitt. It was simply that Elvis had a very unique sound for the time and to this day is not a cookie cutter voice. Elvis was considered a 'Fat HillBilly' by the Memphis community before he died. I wonder how many Hotels are reaping the rewards of the tourist business his legacy generated. Tom Parker found talent and presented it. It was a good voice and a fresh look. He was fresh. He was/is cool.
The U.S. was a VERY different place back then. There were some very harsh realities being dealt with at the time. It was tough to be white and harder still to be black. Elvis blended both. The Beatles were from another place so they were accepted. It was a fluke of timing perhaps but in the end those events helped shape what we listen to today.
What I am trying to say is: ' Listen. Closely. ' There is more there than what you hear on the surface.
Koo-Koo-Ca-Choo.
:D
