#130 – Revolution 9 guest James Campion (author, TAKE A SAD SONG… The Emotional Currency of “Hey Jude”)

Hindsight being what it is, one can only imagine the reaction listeners had when they first reached the back half of side 4 of the White Album in November 68, and the sounds of “Revolution 9” came out of their stereos for the first time. While adjectives such as “bewilderment” or “confusion” probably are safe bets, The Beatles had been sowing seeds of avant-garde & outside influence in their music since they introduced the sitar on Norwegian Wood in 1965, moving to tape loops and backwards tracks and exploratory (if not self-indulgent) recording techniques on Revolver, Sgt. Pepper and Magical Mystery tour, and they’d been nothing if not progressive since day 1. All of them had experimented in making their own home-studio recordings of weirdness, and while they hadn’t completely committed to putting out something like this in a traditional commercial sense, once John had Yoko’s encouragement to stretch out to new artistic horizons, all bets were off. He was staying true to his art and following his muse, and Beatle fans were invited to come along for the ride. 

Our first taste of this is “Revolution 9,” an 8 minute plus journey through playful and terrifying soundscapes, spoken word, and tape loops, with roots from the original extended take of “Revolution 1.” The final product is a auditory journey through John’s idea of the sonics of actual revolution: chaos, explosions, backwards sounds, eerie melodies, screaming, stereo spectrum panning creating a dizzying effect. Over 40 loops pass through the tape heads at EMI’s Abbey Road studios, each faded in and out of the track in real time by John, with help from Yoko and George. It’s truly a one-of-a-kind performance, using the studio as an instrument, both musical and one of chaos. And while it may have caused many listeners to ask “why?,” if you look beyond the obvious, there’s more important questions to ask, and more joy to be discovered. Why would an artist who’s work I so admire put out something I don’t get? Why don’t I get it? What are my expectations, and are they fair to the artist? The more time you spend with a track like this, the more you can start to see those things and begin to appreciate the track. I, for one, appreciate that this is maybe the only song that you can never hear the same way twice. It’s like a choose-your-own-adventure book, but in a song. I also like that it’s essentially a non-visual soundtrack. You can listen to it and picture every element of it in your head, all are total mysteries until you imagine what’s passing through your eardrums. And to add to it all, they’ve dropped this slice of musique concrete on a pop album that ended up in like, 30 million homes. Arguably one of the boldest and bravest artistic moves ever. The Beatles could be absolutely fearless, and what sums that up more than this?

Coming back to chat with us this week is James Campion, author of the book Take A Sad Song: The Emotional Currency of Hey Jude. We had such a good time talking “Revolution 1,” we had to have him back for #9! We dive deep into topics like what constitutes art, being true to yourself, Stockhausen, and more. This is one of our favorite chats yet! Grab a copy of “Take A Sad Song” anywhere you get books, or order one through jamescampion.com and he’ll even sign it for you!

What do you think? Too high? Too low? Or just right? Let us know in the comments on Facebook, Instagram @rankingthebeatles, or Twitter @rankingbeatles! Be sure to visit rankingthebeatles.com! Wanna show your support? Buy Us A Coffee!

Reviews

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Judge Timbers

Ranking the songs of the Beatles? What could possibly go wrong? But somehow this podcast gets it just right thanks to the wit and charm of the co-hosts and their guests. The listener quickly discovers the rankings are used not to incite heated arguments but rather as a starting point to spark a positive deep dive into every Beatle song. Put simply, Ranking The Beatles is a welcome addition to the Beatle podcast universe.

spazaru

Required listening if you like The Beatles at all. Great guests every week and Jonathan and Julia are fun and genuinely funny (even the tired Mike Love jokes). I listen every Tuesday morning as soon as I wake up. One week around Christmas they took the week off so I just slept the whole week until there was a new episode. It was worth the wait.

finfan64

Nice to see a truly excellent new Beatles podcast. This one is hosted by a very appealing young couple, who along with their well selected guests, have a winning combination of professional musical knowledge and the enthusiasm of fans. It’s an interesting format that by definition promises to only get better as it goes along. If they can make the “Only a Northern Song” episode good then they’re unstoppable

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