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John has this unparalleled ability to match everything that he does (singing, playing, harmonizing) into every song that he wrote. Then he adds his soul and emotions to it, and what you get is a masterpiece.
Yep, that is why we can't here any really better cover version of their songs than original one, bcz This four was incredible top level musicians. They did very complicated things in easy way.
DmitriiTurchenkov - SO true! AND - it's their voices that also make their songs SO outstanding! Whenever I hear a Beatles cover (including my own) I am always disappointed that It's NOT the actual Beatles singing.
It's Beethoven level -- I don't think any of them could read music at the time -- and they make it look easy! That's what's so infuriating. Same with Hendrix. He doesn't even LOOK at his guitar neck! Infuriating to make it look so easy.
A few seconds after all my loving has started, Lennon leans over to George and says something that makes George smile! Incredible he Can do that while playing this! And he dare do it on live TV in the USA!
The tricky thing about the intro to "She's a Woman" is that you don't know it's the upbeat when it starts; your mind thinks it's the down beat, and when the band comes in and it's the upbeat, it's jerks you around. Love it.
There are so many musicians and bands that can reproduce Beatles music, but the thing is they wrote it, and they were in their teens and twenties. Composition is the real genius. Then add the words, singing, harmonies, and all the orchestration Wow.
dannydoc1969 - Absolutely! And whenever you hear another band try to compose something similar (in any of the genres the Bealtes covered) it comes off as corny and contrived. They were genius composers. AND their voices were/are infectious!!
Mike it's the Jonny Cash thing Lennon was in the moment top notch when he was upfront , both incredible performance and singing I feel it's fun to cover any way . Excellent teacher. I do parody bits please produce me Mister Martin to your trade. Lol I joy iont something natural. I gonna we watch a lesson this guy is motivation. Gives with love "Vegas"in on with the shoe.
Started with John inspiration then back to Chuck back to John took it all with extra punch and sensitivity of sounds. . Thanks Michael. Great work as well.
Always gotta keep in mind that John was doing this stuff in the 60's! Sure he emulated a lot of music (by others) but Lennon's interpretations were GENIUS!
Rolling Stone magazine is utterly disingenuous. Lennon was an adherent of Carl Perkins as was Harrison. Lennon was workingman muscular rhythm player because that's what hillbilly, rockabilly, Jump, Jive, R&B and in Britain the Skiffle were. And he rocked it. The two Beatles who were the real rockers were Lennon and Starr hands down. I will say this is the best analysis of Lennon's playing all throughout his life. I miss this kind of hard nosed rhythm playing.
As an original fan, those triplets on "All My Loving" have amazed me since I first heard the song. When I first had the chance to watch the "Let It Be" movie in 1970, it was a revelation to see John playing the lead on "Get Back" In those days, uness we saw it with our own eyes, there was no way to know the inside musical stuff as so little was written about it at the time.
"The genius of Mike Pachelli " You really capture the essence or spirit of John`s rhythm playing . That raw and sometimes raunchy style (but with perfection) Thanks for all your great teaching videos ! They help immensely .
As one who played ( or more appropriately played with) acoustic guitar for ~ 40 years; and a Beatles “freak” for longer, I think your explanations of John’s techniques is enlightening. Youre phrase “...open your ears” to Lennon’s playing has greatly increased my critical listening and appreciation of his genius. Thank you. BillC
I saw John play rhythm guitar over 50 years ago and I remember being overawed by the movements of his left hand and fingers. It transfixed me even more than his great voice. I have never really mastered the guitar so I'm no expert. But having watched so many Beatles concerts on the web over the years, and similarly so many other bands, he remains (in my humble opinion) the greatest rhythm guitar player I have ever experienced.
Very true... it's neat to listen to the remastered version of that song in headphones, where you can hear both George's 12-string Rickenbacker and John's part clearly
I agree with your comments regarding the Beatles and as a guitarist of way over 50 years, I believe all the Beatles were really underrated as far as musicians.
I totally agree. One of John' lyrics that always blows my mind is in Strawberry Fields. He changes his mind - mid lyric. "Always, no sometimes, think it's me..." THAT is brilliant!!
@@MPfrance Yeah, that's a really interesting lyric in a groundbreaking song. John had the kind of artistic mind to be able to recognize these sorts of "happy accidents" when writing a song - and leave them in there! Whereas less artistic writers are more inclined to rewrite a line like that in order to make it "smoother" (and thus remove some of the soul from the song). When Pete Townshend first heard Strawberry Fields he thought it was completely bizarre and it confused the hell out of him. This kind of makes sense to me, since the Who's music has more of a "standard" rock and roll feel to it when compared to some other bands. When Brian Wilson first heard SFF, on the other hand, his initial reaction was that made him want to quit writing music because what he had been trying to do for years had now already been done! He said something to the effect that, "What's the point of me trying to find this new music, when John has already found it!" LOL. Now those are two priceless reactions to a song from some very big names in the music world!
Thanks for those great reactions to SFF...especially about Brian Wilson. No disrespect to the other Beatles, but John, much like Brian, is a true artist, especially when it came to their outside-the-box, cutting edge, compositional genius! Pete's yet another monster musician!
The incredible thing about the All My Loving chord progression is that it was so seamless. No pauses or gaps on the chord changes. It was his natural sense of feel and rhythm which produced this, along with his rather different method of chord fingering and voicings.
The people dismissing them as overrated ALWAYS forget that The Beatles did Rubber Soul to Magical Mystery Tour in the mid 60s(!!!), the stuff on those 4 albums were years ahead of their time and were only repeated years later.
ABSOLUTELY - ABSOLUTELY - ABSOLUTELY David!! The lads did ALL that amazing music in the freakin' SIXTIES!!! There was nothing anywhere close to them/that. AND they covered songs BETTER than the originals. THAT alone should put them forever in the history books as GREAT/GENIUSES!!!!
Yes it’s kind of “cool” to regard them as overrated these days. Mainly I believe because of Paul’s “kid” songs. But they were creative geniuses in those years, especially John. My wife says in the debate over The Stones or Beatles that the Beatles were original and the stones weren’t as the deciding factor. Hard to argue against that.
Lennon is also the best rock voice ever. No one later from progressive rock, glam rock, punk, hard rock, metal, grunge, inide rock etc didn't have that energy. It's not about screaming, shouting and high tones in singing.. J.L. had best attitude in his voice ever. We are all forgeting that many great and famous guitar players was great singers..thats very important for their careers.
I highly agree here. The only singer I can think of that comes close to John Lennon’s attitude with his voice in my opinion would be Kurt Cobain. Other than that, nobody tops John
John Lennon is the greatest songwriter of all time and was a great vocalist and musician....but best voice ? That would have to be the King of rock and roll, Elvis Presley, who could sing ANY genre of music magnificently. The only artist inducted into 4 music halls of fame: Country, Gospel, Rock and Roll and Rockabilly. "No Elvis=NO rock and roll!" - John Lennon
@@ITILII I love Elvis especially 59 and before but John had a distinctive voice that is so hard to describe , it’s like he walked the line perfectly between testosterone and estrogen , a perfect example is all I’ve got to do off of with the Beatles , as a fully straight man it is one of the most beautiful vocal recordings I’ve ever heard
@@ITILII Yep!! Just SO bad that the US GOVT, thru 'The Army' slowed him down with*Discipline* ...Right Bang on Elvis peak, as a true R n R singer!! The 'Army' Disciplined Elvis to "Never shake yo hips, Boy, yer Makin' OUR Daughters do IT too, and YOU know *what all o that ole 'hip shakin' Really Boils Down To, Boy?* Yeah, well ya Know by NOW. So bad, that 'Elvis' entire career was Then easily 'toned down' into shlock movies with MOR music, Elvis Presley Forced to sing Schlock, M.O.R. musac by *The entire 'Industry'* Post 'Army' Elvis was Fully Controlled, subdued in style, by Management, Record Co.'s & maybe Himself, too? He Could have been So much more, but Us Gov't saw that *Easy way out* of this heah 'White BOY' turning Ma Daughters onto *Race MUSIC*. GOP in power then, They always GET their Man, Get Their Way! Don't matter Who 'won the fen election', GOP rules.
Mike, thanks so much for these videos. Always been a Beatles fan and it's great to see all the parts broken down. All four were far better musicians then people realize!
Don Eckles - You are most welcome and I agree! They were far better musicians then people realize! One give-away is how much better they did cover songs than the original. Take for example - "You Really Got A Hold On Me." It was NO easy task to blow Smokey Robinson's version away BUT THE BEATLES DID IT!!
the basic caratheristic of the Beatles was..that there was Not One leader! McCartney deserve the same level of the John's leadership!!! They were both and in different way the two genius!!!
Honey Fool It was Johns band ,he started it and he broke the band up ,even though Paul was the one to make the news public . Lennon lost interest later on and Paul took over the reigns as it were but make no mistake ,it was Lennon who gave the group the edge they had .
Gosh, I've been listening to Lennon's guitar work for over 40 years and hadn't heard what he was actually playing until seeing it demonstrated here. Great video, thanks! Lennon was a genius, life is real, so real!
Love your passion for John and the Beatles...I don't know anything about musical notes or guitar playing but I loved watching you explain with passion the craftsmanship of John
John was never the credit as a guitarist the he should have. You’re right Mike, he was truly a genius, He came up with so many innovations, I think it helped change the way a Rhythm Guitarist was looked at and listened too.
I came to this clip just as a friend and I were talking about Epiphone Casino guitars. I had one in the late 60s because The Beatles played them and I am regretful that I sold it, but I'm glad it is with someone my age who knows its heritage. Your lesson also made feel so grateful that I grew up learning how to play Beatles songs when they had just broken onto the scene. In those days there was no internet (of course) but also no tab or other resources for guitar, so you just had to sit down and play the vinyl over and over until you got the riff, chord changes and rhythm. That took time, but it developed your chops through constant repetition. It didn't do a lot for the record or the turntable though! Thank you Mike for reminding me of all this which happened for me over 50 years ago and probably made me a better guitar player than I would have been had I grown up as a teen today!
Love your enthusiasm - just a pity you can't interview John about his playing - I think you and John would have had a blast :-)Real cool video - thanks for sharing.
Great point about how relaxed and easy John looks when he's playing this. I've been playing for 40 years and I have to remind myself to breathe when I play this rhythm.
He was a genius in a band of geniuses. NEVER will there be anything like him, or them again. Well I learned never say never BUT won't be in my lifetime AND even if there ever is another, The Beatles will always be the first. Great job Mike for spotlighting the often overlooked "pieces of pure gold" that made John (and them) so great. It'd be great to do one of these on Macca's creative, melodic bass lines found throughout their catalog.
Total proper rhythm guitarist filled out every tune, Get Back a favourite of mine, under estimated guitarist sounds slmple, but hard to play. Rip John Lennon.
Thanks for the insight into Johns rhythm playing. I've been a fan stretching back to the early 60s and I never imagined how great he was until you showed us! cheers!
John Lennon has been gone for 40 years.. the same amount of time he was here..still so incredibly sad..but the amount of stuff he accomplished and experienced in that short time is even more unbelievable..despite having a few flaws(and who doesn’t?) he was an amazing guy!!!
I enjoy going back and researching who influenced the Beatles' licks/songs too. Chuck Berry a lot. "I Feel Fine" was definitely inspired by Bobby Parker's "Watch Your Step"
Of course. Nature of pop music. It is fun to me to see how licks, riffs, etc. progress and influence players. For example, Chuck Berry's Johnny B Good lick is from a Louis Jordan sax riff.
Nice to see some love shown to Epi, especially since that's what the man himself played, among others. I loved the rooftop concert in Let It Be, and that was Epi all the way for John!
Hi Brad - and I miss your sunshine!! Hey - I got a kickstarter going on for my new Cd - please take a look: www.kickstarter.com/projects/588731504/mike-pachelli-cd-impressions
I iknow this is an old video but this guy loves his guitar, loves John Lennon's guitar and expresses how I feel about both the instrument and the man. Great video.
Mike. Thanks so much for giving John credit. In my years of teaching guitar, students have the most problems with playing rhythm guitar. They spend all there time on meaningless lead stardom euphoria. I try to impress on them... "write a song with only lead". They sometimes get it. He is also an amazing piano player. I believe his personality came out in so many ways on record. John was and is a "F*#^&ing Genius". If I could give you constructive criticism, something to think about... Maybe slow down a bit for beginners. That said I must say you are a great teacher. Thank you very much!
Dean - I couldn't agree more! John was a "F*#^&ing Genius!" And yea - I feel for you on trying to teach the importance of rhythm guitar. I too stress rhythm playing when I teach. re: Your suggestion to "Maybe slow down a bit for beginners." I get SO many notes from folks saying I already go too slow! lol And as a teacher yourself - you know what I'm talking about. You just can't please everybody but I'm 'doin' the best that I can...'
I'm not a guitarist at all but I really enjoyed watching this video. It highlights one of the many reasons The Beatles were such an incredible musical force. Yes they wrote excellent songs and they sang them very well. But they also had a rhythm guitar player like John Lennon who could really drive a song along with his instinctive playing. The rhythm strokes on "All My Loving" and "She's a Woman" are excellent examples and I love how you illustrate why they are so effective. As Paul McCartney has said in several interviews, all four members of the band had a great way of contributing important aspects to songs written by the others.
So much music comes to our ears over the years that it takes a reminder to dig back to the foundation to see where it came from and who the innovators were. Thanks for that reminder. I have heard comments about how good some bands are " even better than the Beatles " is often the comment used. That proves two things. One, even in their comment they acknowledge the standard held by the Beatles and in large measure John Lennon, and secondly there is the need to prove you have improved over the foundation stones, which is revealing the fact that you have merely built upon what was already laid down for you. To build on what is already laid down is much easier than to be the initial innovator to lay down that foundation in the first place. Long live the music of the Beatles even if John Lennon was taken from us far too early. Thanks for the reminder of his genius.
Glad I found this Channel, and Excellent observations of John Lennon's style of Guitar Playing. Nice Job explaining these rhythm additions to the Beatles songs we often overlook but sounded perfectly blended into their music. I believe that is why the Beatles, with their creativity and skill made them so famous and one of my all time favorite bands still to this day. I only wish I could play more of their songs, most of them are Not Easy to master and need lots of practice to get sounding right. Great Job, will check out your other Videos! And Thumbs UP!
I see a lot of John’s rhythm style like you show when he’s “Rockin” in Leslie West’s, Billy Gobbons and Eddie Van Halen’s playing. Maybe I’m wrong but it seems I’m right the more I compare techniques and writing styles. Amazing video.
You are terrific Mike! This was so much fun to learn...leave it to the sensitive ear of another musician to pick up these special nuances. I LOVE Lennon and you just made that love expand even further. Thank you so much. Your passion rings authentic
THANKYOU Mike just learned this magnificent John Lennon rhythm guitar on All My Loving. Ill NEVER be as good as my Idol John Lennon and have tried learning that strumming pattern listening to the music and watching the Ed Sulllivan Show footage. Just came across your great video and ill be learning slowly to get this awesome John Lennon rhythm that is just breath taking and so GENIUS in a group of GENIUSES JOHN LENNON PAUL McCARTNEY GEORGE HARRISON & RINGO STARR!! THANKS mate for showing mere mortals like me how John did it and I shall try to do your tuition and our beloved John Lennon justice when I try to get this as close as I can to the GENIUS that IS JOHN ONO LENNON
The triplets on All My Loving are very easy to do on the RIC 325 (Miami) because it's small and plays like a banjo. A very unique playing instrument and one that John used alot for fast strumming. I use the 325 a lot for its light feel and easy of handling.
@@MPfrance You talk a lot about John's great gift for the rockin' riffs that drive so many of their songs. I wonder, did he also come up with the descending notes that permeate 'It Won't Be Long'?' Sounds like his style, no?
Jay Caruso - That's absolutely a John 'thing!' Matter of fact - at this very moment I'm working on a new series (the 1st I'm doing from my new studio in France) called "Uncommon Chords of the Beatles" and I go into great detail about the descending chords in "It Won't Be Long."
@@MPfrance Excellent! Tell you, I'm not really a rock guy; much more into jazz. Like to strum old standards on my uke. But I've always been drawn to The Beatles b/c I see the jazz elements in a lot of their work (and not just in Paul's music hall songs). It's subtle but there for those who can tune in. Keep up the great work, Mike! Love your whole approach .
Thank you! I'm nearly finished with my newest CD. It'll be called "Impressions." It's my interpretations of my favorite jazz guitarists. Gonna do a Kickstarter soon.
I think the beauty of the Beatles was that they just played what they felt and maybe it can be dissected as here to have you understand what was done. But I think it was purely organic.
