Hello!
Episode 14 of Series 3 of The Big Beatles Sort Out podcast is out now! Actually, it was out on Monday, but I’ve been too busy to get this post together! Hopefully I’m sure some or all of you are following us on one of the many great podcast platforms, but hey, you can never be too careful right?
Hello and a happy belated New Year!
As our regular listeners will know, we have been on a little break since Christmas, but are now back with the second half of series 3 – every Monday at 7am! So, please join us as we continue our voyage through the solo Beatle’s singles and B sides of the 70’s.
Hello!
CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE AGAIN! Ain’t been round since… last year. It’s Episode 12 of our Solo Beatles project & we’ve rounded up their seasonal tunes for this episode! Let us know your faves, please share/review and we’ll see you in 2023. Ho ho ho!
Hello!
This week’s special episode of the podcast features an interview with best selling author Cass Sunstein, who come over to Liverpool University to talk about the Beatles as one of the contributors to the journal of Beatles studies launched as part of the first Beatles Studies MA. We were honoured to be asked along to do a ‘desert island discs’ style interview with him to drill down into his top 5 Paul McCartney songs, so our intrepid reporter, Paul Abbott represented the podcast live in front of an audience at Liverpool University. Hope you enjoy this special, and we will be back next week with our Christmas episode! Thanks!
Enjoy!
Hello!
I’ve been terribly neglectful of letting people who follow me on here know that Series 3 of the Big Beatles podcast has begun in earnest, and as of publishing this article, we are 10 episodes in.
For series 3 we are looking at all the songs released as singles and B sides by the former Beatles in the decade following their breakup (with a few additions and exceptions). Once again, we are giving them the lyrics, music and production scoring treatment to find my favourites!
The big difference for both of us this series, is we are not as familiar with the material, so it is a voyage of musical discovery with some real highs and lows along the way!
Anyway, 10 episodes are available to listen to right now, with more on the way!
Enjoy!
Series 2 continues with the last of our Movie Specials – Let It Be. Was this the tale of impending doom and misery everyone remembers?
https://anchor.fm/garry-abbott/episodes/Episode-60-Movie-Special-5—Let-It-Be-e1h58nm
This is our last episode for a couple of weeks as we relax over Easter. Will be back oon with a few bonuses to round off series 2!
I also have a new single out – you can hear it here on Spotify or Apple!
Thanks as always.
Garry
Hello! I am pleased to announce the release of my latest song in my song-a-month-athon for 2022: ‘Lost In Each Other’!
You can also hear this on these popular streaming services:
I am very happy with this one. It again features my new Faith 12 string, along with my Takamine G Series 6 string, cajon, percussion, bass and vocals. I’m particularity happy with the phased backing vocal harmonies in the bridges.
These are perhaps some of the most interesting chord sequences I’ve found and worked up in a long time – they just seemed to suggest themselves as I was composing it, a natural progression but with lots of augmentations and suspensions.
Lyrically, it’s quite a straight forward love song, but why not, eh?
I hope you enjoy and take a listen. If you do, please share on your socials and in the real world. This song is one that I will hopefully soon be playing live again with a friend, so one day you may actually be able to watch me perform!
Thanks
Garry
Here is my February release for 2022 (a year in which I am attempting to release a song a month) – ‘Kings of Nothing’. Below the video is a bit more info about the song and links to other platforms:
‘Kings of Nothing’ was written in the winter of 2021 after I’d been listening to a news item about the state of Afghanistan following the withdrawal of troops and how no one wins and the ‘victors’, whoever they are, are left presiding over misery.
The music emerged from a riff played on my new ‘Faith’ 12 string, which seemed to elevate the fairly simple open string picking with moving bass note to a new level, and create resonance that flowed into the chorus changes and seemed to build up throughout. Because of this gradual crescendo through the verses and choruses, I have opted for an ‘electronic’ drum kit to cut through the mix, with the addition of live percussion to layer this up later in the song (Djembe).
This song is also the first to feature one of my favorite music toys, the Otamatone:
I’ve had this toy for years, but never found the right moment until now! You can hear it in the repeated chorus towards the end of the song, crying out over the madness!
This song also features the use of my new acoustic bass, doubled up from a direct input and microphone – allowing me to blend the deeper rounded tones of the DI, with the top end rhythmic fret and plec sounds.
I’m happy with how it turned out and looking forward to hopefully playing this live later this year in the new duet I am currently rehearsing with – the live version of this is sounding great!
Here are some more links to find this in the major places, but you can also find this on most platforms:
https://music.apple.com/gb/album/kings-of-nothing/1602014933?i=1602014934
My new song, Rusty Old World came out today. You can find the lyrics and all the major links for it below. I would love it if you would support my music by having a listen and liking, sharing, rating, reviewing – whatever you feel you can do.
This song was born out of something my 4 year old daughter said – she was playing some imaginary game in the back of the car and said something about ‘This Rusty Old World’, so, I had that.
The rest of the lyrics follow as a kind of a warning against a dystopian, synthetic future, where all our worst fears have come true, and the materials of the industrial and technological age are turning to dust.
This fairly epic theme lent itself to a suitably rousing musical style – so I went with a country, folk foreboding pathos, kind of thing – attempting in my own small way to conjure up that ‘Riders on the Storm’ kind of feeling. This gave me a good opportunity to use my new Faith 12 string, Stagg acoustic bass, and even bust out a bit of harmonica!
I hope you enjoy.
Rusty Old World
I don’t want to live in this rusty old world,
Where the wheels keep on turning and we are the oil,
No I don’t want to live in this rusty old world.
Sunlight can’t shine
Through oxidised skies
The Warmth can not reach,
Metal and minds.
Clouded by memories,
Of simpler times.
Falling to pieces,
Now dust in our eyes,
I don’t want to live in this dusty old world,
Where the earth’s good for nothing, it’s what we deserve
No I don’t want to live in this dusty old world.
Waters will rise,
Faster than our tempers.
The world will sink down
To no ones surprise
Will we be safe and dry?
Inside our computers?
Never again,
To open our eyes.
I don’t want to live in this silicon world
Where the people are plastic and so are our souls,
No I don’t want to live in this silicon world.
Can love survive,
Through six inches of steel?
Is there anything left
That we recognise?
Will the future provide?
What we all need to feel?
Not just numbers on screens.
That feeling inside.
I don’t want to live in this rusty old world,
Where the wheels keep on turning and we are the oil,
No I don’t want to live in this rusty old world.
No I don’t want to live in this dusty old world.
No I don’t want to live in this silicon world.
No I don’t want to live…
You Tube
Spotify Link:
Series 2 continues with ‘The Songs They Gave Away – Part 3’, where we take a look at the songs that never were for the Beatles, but ended up making waves (or not) in the hands of other acts.
Series 2, Episode 6, is here! Series 2 Episode 6
I also have a new single out – you can hear it here on Spotify!
Thanks as always.
Garry
Garry Abbott. Writer & Musician 