http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.61025&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rssThe Beatles cast such a large shadow over their contemporaries -- even the most popular of them -- that sometimes it's difficult to distinguish what they actually contributed to the world of pop music and what they simply popularized. Something they definitely did do was open the floodgates for the British Invasion of the '60s, beginning, for all intents and purposes, with Ed Sullivan's portentous introduction in the beginning of 1964: "Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles." Popular music has never been the same; at least that's definite. They were also one of the first bands to take rock 'n' roll and merge it with other forms like popular standards, folk (with a little help from Bob Dylan), blues, etc. And although they are often derided for their weaknesses as a true-blue, hard-living, hard-rocking, parent-frightening, cooler-than-all band, one need only compare the versions of "I Wanna Be Your Man" as done by the Fab Four and by the Rolling Stones; their early days in Hamburg taught them well the rules of blistering rock 'n' roll. At least their retreat from the stage was matched by a wealth of awesome material -- everything from the "Penny Lane" / "Strawberry Fields Forever" single to what was to be the band's death knell, "The End" off of <I>Abbey Road</I>, was arguably the most advanced popular music of the time. They had the resources, the talent, the producer ("fifth Beatle" George Martin) and the desire to push the boundaries of their music. Even more amazing is that it has maintained such a grip on the public's ear and imagination. - Will LernerBritish Invasionen720Sat, 5 Dec 2009 17:45:09 -0800 http://static.realone.com/rotw/images/logo_rhapsody_113x22.gif http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.61025&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss The Beatles cast such a large shadow over their contemporaries -- even the most popular of them -- that sometimes it's difficult to distinguish what they actually contributed to the world of pop music and what they simply popularized. Something they definitely did do was open the floodgates for the British Invasion of the '60s, beginning, for all intents and purposes, with Ed Sullivan's portentous introduction in the beginning of 1964: "Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles." Popular music has never been the same; at least that's definite. They were also one of the first bands to take rock 'n' roll and merge it with other forms like popular standards, folk (with a little help from Bob Dylan), blues, etc. And although they are often derided for their weaknesses as a true-blue, hard-living, hard-rocking, parent-frightening, cooler-than-all band, one need only compare the versions of "I Wanna Be Your Man" as done by the Fab Four and by the Rolling Stones; their early days in Hamburg taught them well the rules of blistering rock 'n' roll. At least their retreat from the stage was matched by a wealth of awesome material -- everything from the "Penny Lane" / "Strawberry Fields Forever" single to what was to be the band's death knell, "The End" off of <I>Abbey Road</I>, was arguably the most advanced popular music of the time. They had the resources, the talent, the producer ("fifth Beatle" George Martin) and the desire to push the boundaries of their music. Even more amazing is that it has maintained such a grip on the public's ear and imagination. - Will Lerner http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204301&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss British Invasion Tue, 26 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700 The Beatles Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.29204301 alb.29204301 The Beatles art.61025 9.99 The Beatles Interviews 2 alb.29204301 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/1/2/7/3/1743721_170x170.jpg 2009-05-26 00:00:00.0 null true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204301&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204301&variant=data&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204274&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss British Invasion Tue, 26 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700 The Beatles Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.29204274 alb.29204274 The Beatles art.61025 9.99 The Beatles Interviews 1 'June 1984 Australia' alb.29204274 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/4/9/6/3/1743694_170x170.jpg 2009-05-26 00:00:00.0 null true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204274&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.29204274&variant=data&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.17738608&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss British Invasion Mon, 1 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0700 The Beatles Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.17738608 alb.17738608 The Beatles art.61025 9.99 East Coast Invasion - Audiobook alb.17738608 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/3/7/7/6/1166773_170x170.jpg 2007-10-01 00:00:00.0 2007-10-01 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.17738608&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.17738608&variant=data&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.5294493&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss British Invasion Tue, 13 Apr 2004 00:00:00 -0700 The Beatles Discography on Rhapsody Online alb.5294493 alb.5294493 The Beatles art.61025 9.99 Maximum Beatles alb.5294493 http://image.listen.com/img/170x170/7/2/6/9/1349627_170x170.jpg 2004-04-13 00:00:00.0 2002-09-24 00:00:00.0 true false main-release http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.5294493&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.5294493&variant=data&rws=%2Fthe-beatles%2Fdiscography.rss