Sunday 30 March 2014

Shout - the Beatles by Philip Norman

A strange book - packed with details and information but one is left feeling short changed.

Norman obviously has a bee in his bonnet about George Harrison, described pretty much as an average guitarist who ought to be grateful he played with Lennon and McCartney and constantly referred to as grumpy, etc. 

Rather weak on the music - The Revolver Album for example is covered in two pages,  it lacks a joy that the Beatles music brings.

Tiny things niggle - in the Film a Hard days Night, the The frequent reference to McCartney's grandfather (played by Wilfrid Brambell) as a "clean old man" sets up a contrast with the stock description of Brambell's character, Albert Steptoe in Steptoe and Son as a "dirty old man". But Norman misses this and attributes it to reference in Gilbert and Sullivan !

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