Beatles Quotes And Notes
Liverpool is famous for many reasons besides being the home to Everton Football Club and the birthplace of the Beatles. The residents are not only known for their toughness, but for their sense of humor as well. While the Beatles did manage to change rock and roll, and perhaps the history of music itself, it is sometimes forgotten that the four lads from Liverpool also possessed wicked senses of humor.
It was no secret that Paul McCartney could play almost any instrument he picked up, and play it with proficiency. During the early days of stardom, when Beatlemania was in its infancy, the four members of the band were bombarded with questions everywhere they appeared. One reporter once stuck a microphone in McCartney’s face and asked him if Ringo Starr was the best drummer in rock and roll. McCartney’s famous answer was that Ringo was not even the best drummer in the Beatles. This flippant reply manifested itself in an almost cruel way years later, when McCartney sneaked into the studio where the band had been recording The White Album and replaced Ringo’s drum tracks with his own.
The other members of the band were just as quick to pop off with a humorous quote. Many people believe the Beatles rehearsed some of these deadpan answers. However, people familiar with Liverpudlians will know that this sort of humor comes naturally to these people. For instance, a reporter asked George Harrison what the band does all day while cooped up in their hotel. George told him that they ice skate.
Superstars today often complain about how hard it is to be famous, and in particular, they complain about their lack of privacy. Perhaps John Lennon had one of the funnier, yet more poignant takes on the life of a celebrity when he was asked if he would like to be able to walk down a street without being recognized. His answer was that they used to do that all the time with no money in their pockets. Of course, it was this sense of humor that led to their biggest controversy and perhaps a dip in the popularity of the band. This came about when John was asked about that very popularity, and he retorted that the Beatles were now more popular than Jesus was. However, his humor did not fail him when he was asked about the subsequent protests, and a radio station in Detroit crusading to stamp out the Beatles. He replied that he was crusading to stamp out Detroit. While the music catalogs of the world are stuffed with Beatles music, it should be remembered that the lads were almost as prolific with their humorous quotes, as with their musical notes.