Sashka Wickramasinghe
Feature
Return
The The Beatles: Do they TheBeatles: Beatles:Do Dothey they have have shelf life? haveaaashelf shelflife? life? Sashka Wickramasinghe
Illustration by Katelin Jaegers
Taking on the challenge of deconstructing the Beatles’ iconic musical creations and trying to understand (if we ever can) why we still love them. The best way to get an honest opinion on something is to ask kids. I watched a YouTube video called ‘Kids React to the Beatles’, where, despite their evident pickiness, most participants agreed that the Beatles’ music is better than any of the stuff we hear today. The kids gave high compliments such as the Beatles being “irreplaceable” and having a “good imagination”. One believed they had a “connection” with ‘Hey Jude’. So, if children, unaware of the ground-breaking cultural shift caused by these scruffy-looking musicians over half a century ago, can still appreciate the Beatles, then who can’t? I have always liked the Beatles, but I had never given much thought as to why. From the catchy light-hearted tunes, to the intimate ballads, to the psychedelic masterpieces, I can only sit in awe at the mind-bending talent of the Fab Four. They took experimentation to an incomprehensible level, and many musical eras later we are still yet to see anyone successfully blow up conventions in the way they did. Songs containing powerful imagery like ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ allow us to envision kaleidoscopic colours in our heads, creating a multisensory experience. 14
