1967: The Beatles and "Magical Mystery Tour"

Where did the time go?    On this day in 1967,  The Beatles released their second LP of the year or "Magical Mystery Tour".     The other one was "Sgt Pepper's".

Side A were songs from the film.   Side B were the 1967 singles, including their new one "Hello Goodbye" already on its way to # 1 on Billboard USA.

The film was horrible, a boring movie about The Beatles going around in a bus.   It was nothing like "Help", "A hard day's night" or later "Yellow submarine".

The soundtrack was very good, specially the title song, "The fool on the hill" and "Your mother should know".    It's surprising that they weren't released as singles in the US.

Rolling Stone ranked this LP as #19 of movie soundtracks.   

So we remember The Beatles and this week in 1967.

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We remember James Brown (1933-2006)

James Brown died in 2006, or many years ago this week.   I remember seeing this:

"James Brown, the dynamic, pompadoured "Godfather of Soul," whose rasping vocals and revolutionary rhythms made him a founder of rap, funk and disco as well, died Monday, his agent said. He was 73."

In the late 1960s, I was a big fan of James Brown. His legacy is a string of hits and songs!   You can get his collection HERE.

Rest in peace, James Brown. You left us a lot of good music.

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Christmas 1967: The Magical Mystery Tour and The Beatles

It was not their best album but pretty good. 

Christmas 1967 and The Beatles released Magical Mystery Tour.   It was the soundtrack of a British TV movie but it flopped in the US.

Nevertheless, there were some pretty good songs, including the title song and The Fool on the hill.

The LP also included the 1967 singles, including my very favorite Hello Goodbye and its crazy B-side I am the walrus. (What was that song all about anyway).

By the way, isn't the Hello Goodbye video great? Did The Beatles invent MTV? I think so!

The other singles were Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields Forever. These two songs are about Liverpool, their hometown in Northern England. Penny Lane is a street in Liverpool. Strawberry Fields was a Salvation Army children's home. John and Paul spent much of their childhood around these two places.

Also included was All you need is love! The Beatles performed this song on the BBC and it was shown across the world by satellite. Last, but not least, Baby you're a rich man, another one of those songs that has been lost over the years.

Overall, a decent LP. It was not as revolutionary as Sgt. Pepper's. It was not as melodic as Revolver (For no one) or Rubber Soul (I'm looking through you). 

But it was OK.

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We remember Phil Spector (1939-2021)

Phil Spector was born in the Bronx, NY, on this day in 1939 and died in prison in January 2021.    A few years ago, he was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 19 years to life in prison for the 2003 fatal shooting of actress Lana Clarkson.

From "Be my baby" "You've lost that loving feeling" to the excessively produced Beatles "Let it Be" LP to a great "Christmas album", Spector was regarded as a master of production.

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President Truman (1972) and President Ford (2006)

We remember two amazing men who died on this day.   President Truman died in 1972 and President Ford in 2006.

VP Truman became president when President FDR died in 1945.  He was not well known and followed a political giant of the 20th century.   It was President Truman who made the decision to drop nuclear bombs in Nagasaki and Hiroshima.  He put in motion "The Truman Doctrine" that guided US foreign policy until the collapse of the USSR in 1991.   In other words, his presidency was one of the most consequential of the 20th century,

VP Ford became president when President Nixon resigned in 1974.  He served about 30 months but did much to restore confidence in the presidency after Watergate.  His pardon of Nixon was vindicated over time, a profile in courage!

They were both Midwestern men, of great integrity and character.

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December 1957: Pat Boone's "April Love" was # 1

In 1957, Elvis Presley and Pat Boone were the two most popular vocalists.   Elvis was the king of rock and Pat was the king of romantic tunes.    

On this day in 1957, it was Pat's turn to sit in the # 1 spot with "April Love".   He displaced Elvis' "Jailhouse Rock" from the top of the charts.

You can get it here!      It was based on a movie of the same name, although the song was more memorable than the film!

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