I have not read Quincy's interview regarding his comments on The Beatles...but, I did happen to get wind of it through my news feed first thing when logging on this morning...from two buddies of mine. First off from Binky Philips , a NY music legend (who I believe is one of the few people I know who has been doing this music thing for even longer than me) and John Montagna , who i would have to say respects and admires Paul McCartney with the same intensity as I do Clapton...(I guess you could say, he's got McCartney down better than McCartney) :)
Anyway...different viewpoints and conclusions.
All well and good...
In a perfect world, that's healthy.
From my own personal experience, I have heard and read many criticisms on The Beatles. Ranging from people saying that they can't play to saying they just plain "suck", A young Pete Townshend even said, "without their vocals ...they're flippin' lousy."
People have also said they just don't get what all the fuss is about...and, that's fine because I feel the same way about some bands or genres of music. After all, it is all about personal taste and what resonates with you, isn't it?
There are also going to be different reasons for individuals being critical or negative about certain things.
During the early to mid 60's, a lot of the young male population hated those "mop tops" because they monopolized the attention and adoration of most of the young female population.
Motive: jealousy
Almost 20 years ago, I had the unique and educational opportunity to work in a situation a bit outside my comfort zone by subbing with a 50's Doo Wop group to replace their guitarist who had left. I ended up working with them for the next 3 years.
We played many "package" shows with scores of other Doo Wop groups like Cleveland Still & The Dubs, Pookie Hudson and The Spaniels, Larry Chance & The Earls, The Duprees, and bands like The Temptations, Johnny Maestro & the Brooklyn Bridge...(you get the picture) simple wedding outfits with lace
During the down-time on these very long shows, I had an opportunity to hang with a lot of these guys backstage and in dressing rooms and chat with them and listen to their stories.
Needless to say, a lot of these guys disliked The Beatles because they came over here and knocked a lot of these acts right off the charts.
Very understandable...
Personally, I grew up in a household that was immersed in opera and classical music. My parents couldn't understand how I could listen to all that "noise and screaming" and yet, later on, they came to "respect" The Beatles music.
I admit, I am a fan (or fanatic) and I believe they were the biggest thing to ever hit the planet and always will be.
Although I am also a big fan of Prog rock and jazz-rock fusion (which is more of a "muso" thing)...I also have a deep fondness for pop music ...there is something to be said about the brilliance that can be found in a simple pop song. Where as John Montagna tends to have a vast knowledge and love for jazz and appreciation and respect for the genius of someone like Quincy, I tend to delve out more and deviate from rock music to take my alternate tastes into the direction of opera and classical music.
This often makes me wonder what Wagner, Beethoven, Mozart and Bach would have to say about all this...
Music is an expression...
A voice of the people...
A sign of the times...
It's personal...it's global...it's universal.
Sound vibration is everywhere.
The Beatles 1 CD was released in 2000...
It was a compilation of their 27 number one hits in the UK and USA...
It came out 20 years after the band had broken up...
As of 2009, it's wordlwide sales had exceeded 31 million copies.
That, in itself, speaks volumes.
Those are the numbers...
Those are the facts...
The statistics...
What you think and what you feel is always up to you, personally.
As John Montagna says in his video, "Music, music, music...listen to it and enjoy it."
It's your freedom and your prerogative to listen to and like what you want.