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"Helter-Skelter"?
: The Beatles, the British New Left, and the Question of Hegemony
Author(s): Oded Heilbronner
Source: Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, Vol. 13, No. 1/2 (Fall 2011), pp. 87-107
Published by: Penn State University Press
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"Helter-Skelter"?: The Beatles, the British New Left, and
the Question of Hegemony
Oded Heilbronner
Shenkar College of Design & Art
"WhenI wentout on tourwithWings[in 1972],we gotto some

universitysomewhere, NottinghamI think,and one student
said to me,
'God, you know,man, aroundthe time of Sgt. Pepper, we really
thought itwas goingto changetheworld.Whathappened?'lookingat
me as ifitwas . . . myfault."
- Paul McCartney (qtd.inHeylin253)
The controversy surrounding theBeatles' culturaland politicalorientation

and theirambivalent radicalismbeganas earlyas 1964.Thatsameyear,several
politicallyopposedopinionssurfaced:thecommunist historianEricHobsbawm
viewed themas "an agreeablebunch of kids, quite unsinister....with that
charming combination of flamboyance and a certainhip self-mickey taking"
(Gould 169). Moreover,the thenMarxiststudentand futurephilosopher and
culturalstudiesresearcher TerryEagletonclaimedthatthe Beatles actedas a
bridgebetweentheworking youthand themiddleclass students, thuscreating a
unitedfrontagainstthe disconnected adultworld.However,Eagletonwas a
single lonely voice, drowningin a sea of criticismregardingthe social
implications (unlikethemusicalones) of the"Beatlesculture."The actorand
singer Noel Coward,theeditoroftheleftist magazineTheNewStatesman , Paul
Johnson (who only a few years laterdefected
to theTories),the author Anthony
Burgessand a numberof membersof parliament abhorredthe Beatles and
fearedthe deterioration of Britishyouthin a cheap and popularconsuming
culturethatwouldsoonleadthemtoMarxism(Eagleton175).1
A decade later,theargument was reignited.The Beatleshad alreadysplit,
Lennonabandonedhis radicalactivitiesand devotedhis timeto bringing up his
family,whiletheBritishCommunist Partybegana seriesof debatesaboutthe
sixties'youthculture.Opinionsregarding theBeatles' politicalvalue werealso
splitwithintheCommunists. A numberof "comrades"respectedtheirradical
values between1963-64,whenthe Beatles expressedtheyouthand workers'
protestagainstthecapitalistsystem.Other"comrades"claimedthattheBeatles
"had made notone protest."Theywereaccused of "meditating amongsttheir
piles of money"and theirslogans"it's gettingbetter,it's getting betterall the
time"or"yousayyouwanta Revolution. . . youcan countme out"weresaid to
representa reactionary cultureratherthan a revolutionary one (Boyd 376;
Cornelius;Costin).David Flowerreflected thisdebatefromtheright-wing point
87
of view whenquotingthewordsof theconservative cabinetmemberWilliam
Deeds in 1963: "The Beatleswerean exampleof youthful freeenterprise that
shouldbe welcomedand nurtured by businessleaders"(170). The arguments
surrounding theBeatles,theiractivity andpositionin 1968providea goodbasis
forexaminingthe questionof the Beatles' revolutionary positionand their
commitment to ideas of social and culturalchange.In 1968 it seemedthat
Britain,like otherWesterncountries, was on the brinkof a profoundsocial
change(an illusionthat was laterto be dispelled),and the Beatleswerealso
goingthrough and
profound frequent changesin theirwayof life,personallives
andtheirmusicalandfinancial businesses.In 1968,theBeatlesattempted forthe
firsttimeto introduce intothefamily-centred-conservative "Beatlesculture"a
few avant-garde economicand artisticelements,and, forthe firsttime,the
band'sartistic as wellas itsconservative
limitations, positions,wereexposed.
Thisarticleexploresthreeaspectsof theBeatles' activity in thelate 1960s.
The firstis theBritishNew Left'spositionregarding theBeatlesas (in Marxist
terms)conservatives or reactionaries. The othertwo are two aspectsof the
band'sactivities intherevolutionary year1968:first, thefounding ofApple,and
second,theirworkon the multi-paradoxical album The Beatles ( The White
Album).Thesetwocases revealthedominant positionofthe"Beatlesculture"in
theWesternworldat thattimeand theways in whichtheband attempted to
preservetheirhegemonicstatusin Western culture.Giventhebackground ofthe
eventsof 1968 and Westernsociety'sexpectations of the Beatles thatthey
wouldproducea revolutionary statement (or disappointment thattheydidnot),I
believethatit wouldbe interesting to explorethepositionof theconservative-
popular"Beatlesculture"2 regarding thedeep changesthathad takenplace in
Westernyouthand bythismeansto revealthe"revolutionary" undercurrentsof
theband'sfans.
The New Leftin BritainandtheBeatlesintheLate 1960s
The song "Revolution":"Some 'Revolution,'this!No doubtthe

sortof Revolutiontherulingclass will welcomeat any time"(qtd.in
Walker2 17).
In myarticle"The Peculiarities
of theBeatles"(99-116), I claimedthatthe
Beatles,who werepartand parcelof Britishsociety,keptaway fromanything
thatmightsuggestviolentor radicalbehavior(see also MatthewSchneider, The
Long and Winding Road from Blake to theBeatles). Towards the end of the
1960s,withthechangesexperienced by Britishsociety,together withthe posi-
tionsexpressedby theBeatles' rivals,the RollingStones,who had becomea
temporary emblemof Britishyouth'sprotestculture,the Britishnewspapers
startedtopayclose attention
tosomeconservative elementsintheBeatles.
88
The Britishleftin the60s, unliketheLabourParty,was composedof many
organizations witheitherMarxist,Leninistor Maoistorientations. As a whole,
theBritishleftwas essentially ambivalent towardstheBeatles,as itpersistedin
itsold suspiciousapproachto popularyouthculture.On theone hand,theleftist
organizations, bothBritishand European,supported theworkingclasses' youth
cultureand recognizedit as an authentic expressionof theirdistresswitha po-
tentialforrevolution againsttherulingbourgeoisie,and an effective meansof
the
expressing young workers' in
protest the face of theirexploitation.Yet, on
the otherhand,thisculturewas also conceivedas a tool in the handsof the
bourgeoishegemony, used to promoteitsownagenda.As theEuropean,British
and Americanyouthculturesincreasingly becamecapitalistconsumers, a ten-
dencythatbeganas earlyas the1920sand 30s,theEuropeanleft(headedbythe
communist partiesin variouswesternEuropeancountries)voiced its disgust
withthe"youthculture'scapitalistic spirit."Accordingto theBritishand Euro-
pean left,theWesterncapitalistelites,fearfulof theirhegemonicposition,ef-
fectedan Americanization of youthby tempting it withconsumerproductsand
The left
technology. European initiallyperceivedAmericanRock N' Roll as a
potentialtoolof protest by whiteyouthsand oppressedAfrican-Americans, and
a connecting linkbetweentheworkingclass and the studentsin theirprotest
againstbourgeoissociety.However,as thisgenrepenetrated themainstream, the
leftbeganto criticizeRock musicand especiallythePop musicthatstemmed
fromit(Hobsbawm;Gundle;Eley353-57).
Traditionally, theEnglishleftwas weakerthantheEuropeanone. Its criti-
cismoftheBritishyouthculturewas grounded bothin itsdislikeofthe"English
constitution"as a branchof thebourgeois-aristocratic hegemonicestablishment,
and in itstraditionalrivalrywiththeBritishLabourParty,whichneversupport-
ed EuropeanMarxismanditsrevolutionary ideas.
The "Britishdisease"- thelegal formsand habitsof mindwhichtogether
have reflected thenationaltradition of discretion - greatlycontrib-
and reserve
utedto themoderation and restraint
of theBritishleft(Colls; Nairn;Anderson).
Englandlackedtheproperenvironment andconditions to cultivatea revolution-
ary workingclass. Employer - workerrelationships were considerably better
thanthoseon thecontinent, andunlikein Italy,France,PortugalandtheGerman
WeimarRepublic,Britishcommunist groupsweremarginalanduninfluential in
thepoliticalculture.
The LabourPartywas theBritishversionof Europeansocialism.Itbelieved
in reforms ratherthanrapidchange,in moderation ratherthanin radicalism, in
theAtlanticTreatyand post-1945 NATO, and acceptedthebourgeoisand aris-
tocratichegemonyas it searchedforways to promoteprivatewelfare,social
justice,equalityandsocialreforms (McKibbin).
AmericanRockN' Roll,likeBritishPop,was perceivedbytheLabourPar-
tyas a legitimate expressionof theleisurecultureof working-class youths.The
89
communalatmosphere, thefeelingof collectivityand theelementsof "together-
ness"inthesemusicalgenresfitted intothecommunaland"collective"ideology
of Britishsocialism,factory workers,professional unionsand,of course,soccer
fans.The Rock and Pop themesneverthreatened theexistingorderand were
perceivedas a naturalcontinuation of theworking youths'traditional cultureof
leisure.In 1965,theBritishLabournewspaperTheGuardianurgedtheLondon
youthswho participated in thePop Festivalin Hyde Park,to "have fim,"and
theywillingly In
obliged. 1969,afterwatchinga TV showthatsummarized the
sixties,RichardCrossman,a memberof theLabourcabinet,wrotethat"in his
strangefashion,lookingthrough thosespectacles,withhis beardand his odd
Japanesewife,he [Lennon]was, I mustadmit,theonlypersonin all thesepro-
gramswitha gospel,a hopeanda belief'(159).
The sympathy thattheLabourPartyshowedtowardsyouthculturewas not
sharedbytheentireBritishleft.BritishMarxism, which,inthelate 1960shosted
many small,marginal and radicalprotestgroups such as the"Vietnam,Solidari-
the
ty Campaign," "Young Communist League" and the "SocialistWorkers'
League," resembled, to a greaterextent,the Europeanleftin thosedays,alt-
houghitslackofthelatter'sviolentrevolutionary traditionservedas itsAchilles
heel. These groupsbelievedin theeffectiveness of non-violent "directaction"
thatwouldcause a changein England'ssystemofgovernment.
The BritishMarxistmovement was moresuspicioustowardspopularcul-
turethanLabour.E.P. Thompson,RichardHogarth,RaymondWilliamsand
StuartHall (at thebeginning ofhiscareer),theforemost Marxistwriters in Eng-
land,lamentedthecheap Americancultureadoptedby youthsfromworking-
class familiesin Northern Englandas earlyas thefiftiesandthebeginning ofthe
sixties.BritishMarxismcriticizedtheBritishyouthfortheirpoliticalmodera-
tionand BritishRockforitsinability, from1966onwards,to communicate with
theworking youths(Watson49-53;Jacques).
The New Leftdiddetectthevoiceoftherebelliousworking-class culturein
theearlyBeatlessongs.The song"Can't Buy Me Love" withitssupposedanti-
capitalistmessage,impressed theBritishMarxists.TerryEagleton,whoin 1964
was stilla studentat Oxford,claimedthatthe Beatlesbroughttogether Eng-
land's youthacross class differences in oppositionto the adultworld.Com-
munistactivistssaw Beatlemaniaas an expression oftheprideoftheyouth,and
werepleasedthattheBeatles,whooriginated fromtheworking class,had"made
it." However,the Labourjournal The New Statesmanseverelycriticizedthe
bandand thecorrupt cultureit represented.The newspaper'seditor,Paul John-
son,who yearslaterdefectedto theconservatives, condemnedtheBeatlesand
theirsongsfortheirAmericanization andbad taste(Watson56; Costin;Johnson;
Fowler).
As thedecade approacheditsend and Pop culturebeganto leave its foot-
printsthroughout Westernculture,theBeatleswerecrownedas theleadersof
90
the generation.The Beatles' conservative and peacefulcultureconstituted a
challenge forthe new BritishLeft.How was one to view theproclaimed leaders
and prophetsof theyouthin thecenterof thesocial and culturaltensionin the
Westerncapitals,a tensionthatescalatedtowardstheend of thedecade? The
debate,whichwas launchedby theNew Leftand whichis outlinedhere,typi-
fiedtheirconceptualization of popularculturein general,and of theBeatlesin
particular.
A fewyearslater,at thebeginning of theseventies,theCommunist Party
conducteda debateconcerning theconditionof Britishyouthculture.3 The de-
batealso relatedto theBeatles' function as leadersof opinionin theyouthcul-
tureof thesixtiesand Lennon's radicalpositionat thebeginning of theseven-
ties. The communists claimedthatfrom1967 onwards,Britishyouthculture
becameheterogeneous, and thiswas due to threefactors:a deterioration in the
economicsituation oftheworkingclass whichcontributed to a rekindling ofthe
class conflict, a deterioration
in thebourgeoisstudentmovement thatalienated
theworkingclass who weretheirallies, and thefragmentation of the"under-
and
ground" Utopiansociety that reached the peak of its influence in 1967.Ac-
cordingto thesewriters, theBeatles,who led theyouthcultureuntilthisperiod,
began to lose theirleadershipamongworkingyouthin particular. Theirsong
"It's GettingBetterAll theTime"was certainly nota call to theworkingyouth
in theWesterncities,and itis hardlysurprising thattherulingclassesembraced
the song "Revolution,"representing a call to forsakethe path of revolu-
tion(Cornelius; Walker).JohnHoyland,a leftistradical,claimedin theMaoist
magazine Black DwarfthatLennonwas neverarrestedforsmokingmarijuana,
as they(therulingclasses) allegedlysaw himas one of themselves. Thus,he
wroteLennonthefollowing plea:
But afterall, theystillhateyou,even if you are a companydirector.
Theyhateyoubecauseyouactfunny andbecauseyou'reworking class
(in originat least)and you'reundisciplined and you weren'tin thear-
my. . . butlearnfromit,John.Look at thesocietywe're livingin,and
askyourself: why?Andthen - comeandjoin us. (358)
The New Leftsaw theRollingStones(who originated in themiddleclass)
as a trueexpression oftherevolutionary spiritoftheBritishyouthsin 1968.In a
seriesof articlespublishedin theNewLeftReviewin 1968,RichardMertonand
Alan Beckettclaimedthat"the Beatles have neverstrayedmuchbeyondthe
strictlimitsof romanticconvention:centralmomentsof theiroeuvre are
nostalgiaand whimsy,botheminently consecratedtraditions of middle-class
England" (30). Beckett,one of theBritishCommunist leaders, claimed that"the
dangerin worklikemuchof theBeatles' is thetendency towardsmaniacdenial
that there is anythingdifficultin relationships - anythingthat cannot be
achievedimmediately and magically.In theirtypically arrogant and narcissistic
91
themes,theStonesare providing criticismof thiskindof facileintimacy which
theBeatleshaveneverreallyadvanced"(26).
Tariq Ali, a seniormemberin the BritishRadical Marxistsat the time,
wroteyearslaterthatthereis no doubtthattheRollingStonesexpressedthe
revolutionary spiritof the timemore stronglythanthe Beatles (331). Ali's
friend,JohnHoyland,statedthathe could not understand why the Rolling
Stonesrealizedthattheeventsin theworld'scapitalsconstituted thegreatest
dramaof the secondhalfof the twentieth century, whereas the Beatles only
understood thelanguageofmoney(qtd.inAli 356).
The releaseof the song "Revolution"in the summerof 1968 sparkeda
generalargument betweentheBritishNew Leftand theBeatles.Radicalsin the
UnitedStatesclaimedthattheBeatleshad betrayedthecause, and nicknamed
the song "a lamentablepetty-bourgeois cry of fear"( DeGroot362). British
MarxistsaccusedtheBeatlesof sellingtheirsongsto capitalism,and claimed
thatthesong defendedtherulingclasses. The Black Dwarfmagazineclaimed
theBeatlesdemonstratively protected theircapitalistinvestmentsandhopedthat
they would end up like CliffRichards - forgotten by thepublic.4In a letterto
JohnHoylandpublishedin The Black Dwarf,Lennonrespondedto the Left's
accusationsthatthe Beatles didn'tbelieve in a revolution:"Tell me of one
successfulrevolution. . . You smashit- andI'll buildaroundit,"andhe wenton
to state"don'texpectme to be on thebarricadesunlessit's withflowers"(qtd.
inAli 360; Degroot362)
In 1968, the Beatles attempted, throughtheirsong "Revolution"among
otherthings,to represent themselvesas the guardiansof Britishorderand
restraint.
Theyfocusedtheirefforts on thecapitalistproduction companyApple,
theiralbumTheBeatles, andthedebatesurrounding thefantasy movieforadults
and children,The YellowSubmarine.Thatsame year,Lennon,McCartney and
Harrisonwere also busygrapplingwiththepersonalcrisesin theirlives that
wereplaguingthemvirtually simultaneously; theydid everything but takean
interestin thestreetriotstakingplace in theirvicinityand in otherEuropean
capitals.
The Frenchdirectorand Maoist supporter JeanLuc-Godardcame face to
face withthe Beatles' apathywhenhe triedto interest themin a movie he
wantedto producein Englandabout the county'sradicalleftorganizations.
Godardwantedto showtheBeatlesrecording theirnew albumin thefilm;the
Beatlesrefusedand Godardendedup workingwithThe RollingStones,who
includedtheirworkon thesong"Sympathy fortheDevil" in his movieOne on
One. Followingthis,the furiousGodard,along withthe EuropeanMarxists,
viewedtheBeatlesas a corrupt and greedybandand claimedthatLennonwas
apathetic.Lennonresponded bysayingthatGodardattackedtheBeatlesbecause
oftheirrefusalto participate in his filmand thathe [Lennon]was notinterested
inblowingup theestablishment (Demoraine;Martynova; Cott).
92
Duringthisperiod,Lennon'srelationship withYoko Ono was in its early
stages.Under her influence Lennon became a radicalpoliticalactivist,and in
1969 beganto getmoreand moreinvolvedin politicaleventsorganizedby the
Britishradicalleft.Lennonbefriended Tariq Ali and RobinBlackbourn, who
were part of the radical lefťs leadershipand began, at least in his public
expressions, to changehis mindabouthis past as a Beatle,theclass structure
and thepoliticalscene in England.AfterleavingEnglandand movingto New
York, he continuedhis associationwithradicalleftgroupslike "The Black
Panthers."However,his politicalactivitydid not last long.His break-upwith
Yoko Ono fora yearand a halfand theirdecisionto get back together, live
togetherand starta familykepthimawayfrompoliticalactivities untilhisdeath
in 1980. In his last interviewforPlayboymagazine,Lennon attempted to
disassociatehimselffromhis politicallyinvolveddays,and as a trueBriton,he
assertedthat"hishomeis hiscastle"andthat"I workedformoneyand I wanted
to be rich.So whatthehell- if that'sa paradox,thenI'm a socialist"(qtd. in
Golsonand Sheff94). EventhoughtheotherthreeBeatlesdidnotparticipate in
thisinterview, they would have probablyagreed with everyword he said.
I will concludethispartof theessaywitha fewunforgettable imagesfrom
the wild days at the end of 1968. In his movieBritishSounds, Godardstill
attempted to represent the Beatles as partof the student-subversive scene in
For in
England. example, thesong"Hello,Goodbye,"an innocent textlike"You
say high,I say low" turnsinto"You say Mao, I say Nixon."In anotherscene,
theFrenchanarchist attemptedto changethewordsoftheinnocent song"Honey
Pie" intoa subversive text.Without a doubt,theBeatles'dominant statusamong
theyouthcultureat thatperiodcontributed to the desireto dressthemup in
revolutionary garb,and theCharlesMansoncase exemplifies thishorrifically.
However,as theyouthsin France,Germanyand theUnitedStatestookto the
streets,the Beatles, theirpresumed"leaders,"complied with the police's
demandsto stoptheirpublicconcertson theApplerecording company'srooftop
because they were disturbingthe traffic.One could indeed say, "some
revolution, this!"5
"Western
Communism"
"Oursloganat thetimewas 'businesswithpleasure'... bytheend

wejusthadpleasurewithpleasure"
- Paul McCartney (qtd.inGreen42)
The Applecompanyinitiative was a failedattempt

to createan avant-garde
ambiancewithintheBeatles' culturalframework. On theone hand,theBeatles
attempted to realizethe"Liverpudlian
working-class family"ideal as theheart
of the "Beatles culture"througha businessenterpriseof an artisticcharacter
93
whoseprofits wouldbe splitamonganyonewitha claimto artistic talent.But,
on theotherhand,as the"leadersofthegeneration" to
theyattempted reactpub-
liclyto theeventsof 1968withan avant-garde projectand thereby channeland
expressthepassionsand aspirations to freedom of theworld'syouth,wherever
theywere(As Lennonsaid "artistic freedom withina businessstructure" (qtd.in
Evans287). The combination ofthetwo,in thehandsofthenaïveand inexperi-
encedworking-class Liverpoolyouths, was catastrophicfortheband.
The originsof theAppleinitiative wentas farbackas BrianEpstein'speri-
od. In thesummer of 1967,LennonandMcCartney madeitclearto Epsteinthat
theywantedmorecontrolovertheiractivitieswhiletakingaway some of Ep-
stein'sowncontrol. Thiswas probably thebackground ofhisuntimely death.
Afterhis death,the band memberswere at a loss regarding the way in
whichtheyshouldconducttheirbusinessaffairs. At first,
theBeatlesdecidedto
adoptMcCartney'sidea ofmanaging themselves.The firstresultofthisdecision
was theTV movieMagical Mystery Tour.The movie,directedby McCartney,
failed,and theothermembersof thebandcouldhave learnedsomething about
McCartney's abilities
as a manager in fields
unconnected with composition and
performance fromthechaos thatcharacterized theproduction of themovie.In-
deed, Harrisonexpressedhis dissatisfaction, but was quickly silenced by
McCartney. Lennonwas caughtup in a deeppersonalcrisisanddid notexpress
an opinion.Thus,theband memberscontinuedto followMcCartneyand im-
mersedthemselves intheAppleventure.
It had a humblebeginning. Clive Epstein,Brian'sbrother, was appointed
temporary manager of the Beatles' business affairs.During the firstbusiness
meetingwiththefamily, theBeatlesdecidedto allocatea largesumofmoneyto
the launchingof a boutiquenamedApple thatwould target"beautifulpeople
withbeautiful clothes";McCartney was againthedrivingforcebehindthisven-
ture.The boutiqueservedas thefoundation oftheentireAppleventure in a two-
storeybuildingin BakerStreet.The Beatles' childhoodfriendsfromLiverpool
as well as numberof friendsfrom"Epstein'sgang"weregivenkeypositions.
UndertheBeatles' supervision, all thesepeoplebeganto managetheboutique,
themusicandmoviesdepartment, theelectronics department, theartdepartment
and the"Zapple label,"responsible forthedistributionof theBeatlesproducts.
The "Zapplelabel"was createdbyMcCartney toproducealbumsinwhichpoets
andwriters wouldreadtexts.ThisgavetheBeatles(andparticularly McCartney)
thecapacityto be personallyinvolvedin all theartistic, musicaland financial
aspectsof theirworkand to finallyexhibittheBeatles' avant-garde elements
publicly.Apple, then, turnedinto a vessel forany artisticand cultural idea that
surfacedin London.Ironically, in sixteenth-century Frenchtheword"beatles"
(beatilles)means"all kindsof ingredients thatmaybe fancied,puttogether into
a pie" (Palmer262).
94
The Apple venture,as McCartney'sbaby, followedhis inclinations and
tookpartin theprojectsof theLondonbohemianavant-garde. Lennon,untilhis
encounter withYoko, dislikedtheseprojectsand avoidedbohemians,or as he
calledthem,the"fucking intellectuals
anduniversity students." It seemsthatfor
thefirst,and probablylasttimein his life,McCartneyattempted to realizean
"alternative" dreamby himselfand withthe help of his friends(Brownand
Gaines300-05).McCartney tookthenameApplefromRené Magritte'sfamous
picture,of which he receiveda reproduction fromRobertFrazer.Frazerwas a
galleryowner and a friendfrom McCartney'sdaysas a marginalmemberof the
London avant-gardegroupin the sixties.Due to his musical conservatism,
McCartneywas unableto translate theavant-garde ideas surrounding himinto
avant-garde music,unlikeLennon,whohad Yoko to helphimat thetime.Thus,
McCartneysettledfortheavant-garde ventureas an exampleof "Westerncom-
munism," as he putit:"We feltsorryforall theplebswhodidn'thavethatluxu-
ryandwe wantedto bringthatto everyone" (qtd.in Green424).
On May 15th,on theirreturn fromtheirtourin India,Lennonand McCart-
neyspokein severalpressconferences and televisionshowsin New York,an-
nouncingtheofficiallaunchof thecorporation and outlining theprinciples and
the"philosophy" behindtheproject:light,fun,erratic, disorderly, a challengeto
themenin suits,Western communism (Green287-90).Thesedeclarations prob-
ablyoriginated fromtheirtimein IndiawiththeMaharishi.
The Apple corporation was basicallycapitalist,yetmanagerially hippie.It
seemsthatMcCartneywas enthralled by the hippie "communal" structurethat
was prevalent on theWestCoast of theUnitedStates,and whichhe saw in his
1967 springtourin America.The hippiecommunalalternative cultureon the
WestCoast had a Utopianbeliefthatprivatecapitalshouldbe disintegrated into
communalproperty. Lennonand McCartney'sideals were essentiallyavant-
gardesincetheyaspiredto createan alternative institution
to counterthelegiti-
mateartworld.Theirconceptualization was foundedon theEnglishideological
"counter-culture" thathad developedfromnumeroussources,includingtheart
schools.Thisideologytraditionally combineda neo-romantic utopiawitha radi-
cal perspective, wherebythemainconstituents of a good workof artwerethe
freedom and audacityof boththeartistand his work.Moneyand theaccumula-
tionofcapitalwereexcludedfromthecriteria oftheartworld.Variouselements
of the"Beatlesculture"suchas thefamilyatmosphere, thenaivety, thesenseof
the
community, working-class and that
generosity "togetherness" the Beatles
brought withthemfromNorthern England,werealso partof theirconcept.The-
se elements,undertheguidanceof the Epsteinian/naive approachto business,
provedtobe thesourceoftheBeatles'financialsuccess.
The "Beatles culture"and the Apple venturewere totallyin keeping,as
Harrisonclaimed,withthespiritof thetime:thephilosophy of theflowerchil-
dren,the"Summerof Love," and themysticalIndianphilosophy thatbeganto
95
spreadthroughout theWesternworld.Despitethefailureof "thedoubletour"
(themovieMagic Mystery Tourand thestaywiththeMaharishia fewweeks
afterthefilm'srelease),theBeatlesremained undertheinfluence of theexperi-
mentalmovie theyproduced,one thatrepresented a gay "camp" atmosphere
surrounding a surrealfamilytripin a psychedelicbus. Moreover,theBeatles'
timein India,whentheyspenteighthoursa daymeditating andconversing with
theMaharishiaboutlove,theabilityto give and releasefrommaterialposses-
sions,affectedtheirdecisionto createApple. Duringthisperiodthe Beatles
werebothmusicallyand financially successful;thus,theybelievedtheywould
possessthegoldentouchforever. However,BrianEpsteinwas no longerthereto
setboundariesand showthemtheirlimitations as businessmen and avant-garde
artists.
The AppleventureshowedtheBritishpeoplea hiddenside of theBeatles'
activities.Theywereno longerfamilyentertainment butbelongedto theculture
of freaksand lunatics,no longercooperatedwiththe "EnglishConstitution"
(Colls) butratherworkedagainstit,wereno longerfourworking-class youths
whoplayedtheclass gameaccordingto rulesdictatedto thembytheupperclas-
ses, butratherfourbourgeoistrying to be bohemianand breaktherulesof the
game.Lennon'srelationship withYoko Ono at thattimedid nothelptheband,
since theBritishmediajudged herby Western-colonial criteria.If theBeatles
thought thattheirfiddling with"westerncommunism" wouldhelpthem"score
points"withthevibrant and rebelliousBritishleft,theBeatles'politicalsilence,
as I said before,in theturbulent timesof 1968 angeredtheleftist organizations,
especially as the Beatles seemed to resembleany othercapitalistorganization
thatused social rhetoric to turna profit.6 The conservativeswereactuallythe
ones who showedpatienceand forbearance towardstheBeatles' economicand
avant-garde ambitions; perhapstheircenturies ofexperience taughtthemthatthe
Britishworkingclass,and especiallytheirown Liverpoolyouth,couldnotpose
a realthreattothecapitalist system. Theywereright, ofcourse.
Apple's very first
projects showed signs chaos,financialextravagance,
of
and lack of management. The movies,electronicand books departments were
floodedwithan endlessstreamofrecords, albums,books,playsandotheritems.
No one attempted to managethisflood.The Appleboutique,theproject'sflag-
ship,wentbankrupt afteronlya fewmonthsof activity, sincemostof theitems
werepricedbelow theiractualmarketvalue. Whenthemagnitude of theloss
was revealed,McCartney and Lennondecidedto giveawaytheremaining mer-
chandiseand close theboutique.In the summerof 1968,theentirecompany
beganto lose enormous amountsofmoney.Whilethemusicaldepartment raked
in ampleprofits, mainlydue to thetremendous successoftheBeatles'songsand
recordsthatyear(especiallythesong"Hey Jude"and the WhiteAlbum , which
soldmorethananyoftheband'spreviousrecords),theotherdepartments failed.
Ideas and projectswereconstantly abandonedat thewhimof one Beatlesmem-
96
beror another, who was noteveninterested in theproject.Moreover,and most
the of
importantly, hiring eccentric, bizarreand hippyindividualsinflated their
the
expenses.During project's first few months, band members were indifferent
to financialaffairs anddistributed signedchecksto anyonewhoasked.
The partydispersedtowardstheendof 1968.As theirgeneration celebrated
theend of theyearon thebarricadesin Paris,Berlin,Milan and in campuses
throughout theUnitedStates,theBeatlesexperienced theZeitgeistin a strange
way with a brutalvisitto the Apple officesof the American gang,theHell's
Angels.George Harrison had the innocent idea of presenting artperformance
an
withthelong-haired bikers,and invitedthemto theApple offices,shouldthey
be in England.The grouptooktheofferseriously, in a similarway to theEng-
land's freakswho exploitedMcCartney'snaïveinvitation to eat freelyfromthe
Appletree.Afterspendinga week in thecompany'soffices,thebikersunder-
stoodthattheycouldnot"takea biteoutof thebigApple"and started an angry
rampage. It was then thatthe Beatles understood that the dream was over
(DiLello 81-88;Doggert).
DerekTaylor,theBeatles' pressrepresentative, poeticallydescribedApple
as "ToytownandPaul was ErnestthePoliceman.We had to havea demonking,
who was [Allen]Klein"(qtd.inGreen425). At thebeginning of 1969,theBeat-
les stoppedmanaging Appleandwereseen less and less in thecompany'soffic-
es. The lawyersand businessmen, headedby the new executiveAllen Klein,
began to take over and firemost of the employees."Some avant-garde, this!"
TheBeatles(The White
Album)
Another clue fromtheBeatles... a new Beatlesalbum,and all of

a suddenthere'sall thisnewinformation to assimilate.. . . AnyBeatles
albumis an artifactin a waythatfewrecordscan everbe, andsincethe
Beatles are so mucha partof who you are, you have to examineit
closely.
In thesummerof 1968,Applebeganto collapse,Lennonannouncedthathe

was on thevergeof bankruptcy and thatthey"haveto go backto work,"so the
Beatles went back to work(Palmer262). In termsof the family-centered,
conservative "Beatlesculture,""goingback to work"meantabandoningavant-
gardeexperimental projectssuch as the Magic MysteryTour and the Apple
venture.For theBeatlehierarchy, "goingback to work"meantthatMcCartney
feltthattheyhad to startafreshin AbbeyRoad. However,I believethat"going
back to work"markeda returnto the original"Beatles culture"representing
theirpast in Liverpool,childhoodmemoriesand familytraditions. Yet, could
theysimply"go back to work"aftertheApple escapade whiletherebellious
Western Youthcultureawaiteda signfromtheirleaders?
97
In theyearwhenRockmusicand Rockartists expressedthemselves chiefly
throughsocial-political textsand statements, usingelectronicinstruments and
drugfeststo portray a naïveand delusionalimaginary world,theBeatlesalbum
raised some interesting questions:does Rock music necessarilyhave to be
electronic,sophisticated and progressive? Does it have to conveysocial and
politicalmessages?Furthermore, in thecontextof Apple's resounding failure,
thealbumraisedotherquestions:are progressand artistic-creative sensibilities
synonymous? Is Rockmusicconsidereda fineartonlywhenitquotesclassical
music or uses sophisticated instruments? (Belz 66).7 Naturally,the Beatles'
uniquestatusin themusicworldallowedthemto examinethesequestionsand
theirown musicalsourceswhileignoringtheirsurroundings withoutharming
theirhegemonicstatus.Indeed,TheBeatles is consideredto thisday to be the
band's mostfinancially successfulalbum,and in thefirstweekof itsreleaseit
sold almosttwo millioncopies in theUnitedStates,whichwas stillbleeding
fromthewidespread, violentpoliticaleventsthathappenedthere.
The albumexhibitsseveralcharacteristics whichI will laterdescribeat
greaterlength.First,in comparisonwiththeirpreviousalbums,thisalbumis
relativelyeasy to listento, and with the exceptionof the "Revolution9"
sequence,it is freeof anyrecording stuntsor psychedelictouches.The second
important characteristic is the album's irrelevanceto the eventsof 1968.
However,at secondglance,and as I will latershow,theBeatlesseem to have
createdthe mostrelevantalbumfor 1968. Finally,it is clear thatthe album
representsa summary of everything thathad been done in theRock and Pop
worldup to thatpoint.As Ian Macdonaldclaims,theBeatles albumclearly
revealstheBeatles'sourcesof influence to a greaterextentthananyotheralbum
theycreatedsince 1963.In additionto RockN' Roll,Blues and AmericanSoul
music,thealbumoverflows withreferences to Western Country music,classical
music,folksongs, ballads,Broadwaytunes,20s and 30s songs,children'ssongs
and Britishlullabies.Theirchildhoodmusicalinfluences (especiallyin Harrison
and McCartney'schildhoodhomes), and theirneed to play long hours in
Hamburg,createda wide fieldof musicalknowledge:hencethemanymusical
influencesto be found in theirrepertoire(48-49). Thus, whetherit be
psychedelic songs,1930sSwingsongs,Country andFolksongs,BluesandRock
N' Roll songs,balladsor lullabies,to thisday,no band has evermanagedto
shift,withso muchsuccessand authority, betweensucha widestylistic range,
whilesumming up so nicelyeverything thathad happenedin theBritishartand
Pop worldduringthe60s.
In 1968, an extremely creativeyear forthem,the Beatles reachedtheir
musicalzenith.Their stay togetherin India in the firstmonthsof the year
produceda long line of brilliantmusicalskits.Theirfailedexperiencewith
Applereleasedan avant-garde, wild,creativeimpulse,mainlyfoundin Lennon.
On theone hand,he started to graduallyreturn to thepastfamily-like simplicity
98
withmodestacousticsandbasicguitarrock(an attempt thatclimaxedinhis first
solo albumof 1970). But,on theotherhand,underYoko Ono's influence, he
movedtowardstheavant-garde withenigmaticand unpredictable writing.This
trajectorywas fullyexpressedin the experimental album Two Virgins , which
came out slightlybeforeThe Beatles, and featuredLennonand Yoko stark
nakedon thecover.Lennon's songsin the WhiteAlbumfeaturebothacoustic
guitars(whichwerethemostpopularinstrument duringhis timein India,and
posed a contrastto thetechnological gimmicks in the Beatles'previousalbums)
as wellas heavyrockguitarsongsandavant-garde experiments like"Revolution
9" (Everett211).
This was a veryproductive yearforHarrisonas well. This was theyear
whenhe came outas a composerand beganto emergeas a creatorin his own
rightwithinthe Band. In the album's repertoire, he brokeaway fromIndian
musicand createda fewstrongly satiricalsongs.Althoughhe only"obtained"
foursongs in the WhiteAlbum , themanysongs he wroteand were excluded
fromthe album became pivotalmilestonesin his solo, post-Beatlesalbums
(Everett163). McCartneywas the only one who remainedconservative and
musicallylazy and failedto integrate the changesin popularmusic intohis
songs(Everett198).
The Beatlesbeganto workon the WhiteAlbumin May,rightafterMartin
LutherKing'sand BobbyKennedy'smurders andthestudents' riotin Columbia
University. While they were working on the album, the Russians invaded
Prague, thestreetsof Paris were burning and unrest the
spreadthroughout cities
of Europeand Japan.The AbbeyRoad recording studioremainedimpenetrable
to thechaos surrounding it (unliketheTwickenham studio,wheretheRolling
Stones recordedthe song "Street-Fighting Man" and the album Beggars
Banquet).The music,theshoutsand theband's turbulent fightsweretheonly
soundsheardin thestudio.
The productwas an unprecedentedly diversealbumwithregardto songs,
writing, and
genre performance. For theBeatles,themusiccriticsandthecritics
of the "Beatles culture",this album createdthe impressionthat,with the
exceptionof a few songs,this was a diversecollectionof brilliant,totally
differentsongsperformed bybrilliantmusicianswho had beenplayingtogether
formanyyears,or in the wordsof RobertChristgau, writingaboutthe song
"Revolution": "Foreightminutesof an albumofficially titledTheBeatles, there
wereno Beatles"(Everett,165; Christgau 254: Whitley; Frontani155-57;Inglis)
An examinationof the album's generalstructure conveysa sense of
abundance,of a big entityembracingradicalcontradictions thatcomplement
each otherthrough an ironicperspective thatrunsthroughout thealbum.It is a
reflectionof 1968, of the Europeanbourgeoisculturethatis abundant,yet
containsmanycontradictions and anxieties(Wiener65). The Beatlesnotonly
parodyothermusicians(The Beach Boys,ChuckBerry,Ray Charles,Country
99
and Blues Sings) but also themselves,throughGeorge Martin'swork that
successfully combines"Lennon. . . wildandunpredictable [with]McCartney ..
safe and secure"( Whitley113; Everett198). Most of the songs' textscarry
multipleand complexmeanings.A few songs featurecombinations of words
andhalfsentenceswhichtakeon a newsensewhencombinedintowhole,single
sentences.This postmodern bricollagestructure allows different listenersto
interpret the songs in variousways (Whitley109; Inglis,Revolution122-23).
Thus,therebelliousblack or whiteAmericanstudentwouldfinda half-ironic
sympathy forhisfeelingsabouttheracerelations inhiscountry, thestudent riots
and his lack of faithin leadersand institutions("Glass Onion,""Piggies,""Yer
Blues," "Blackbird,""HeiterSkelter,""Revolution1," "Revolution9"), but
wouldalso understand thattheBeatlescouldnotafford to attacktheinstitutions
directly(Wiener 65). The conservative,reservedEnglish studentwould
understand thattheprominent rebelliousstreakwouldend in thewarmcomfort
of thefamily-centered "Beatlesculture"("MotherNatureSon," "Good Night,"
"MarthamyDear"). The diehardfansmightat first be outraged bytheconfusion
and lackof unity,butafterlistening to ita coupleof times,wouldacknowledge
thatalthoughthe spiritof Revolverand Sgt. Pepper is missing,the album
containsmanymomentsof mystery and elevation,especiallyin thesongsthat
have an innertensionbetweentheirparts("Dear Prudence,""Happinessis a
Warm Gun," "Blackbird,""Julia,""Cry Baby Cry"). Michael Brackewell
beautifully summarized thealbumwhenhe claimedthat"theWhiteAlbum,with
its debtsto Fluxusand Data as well as nostalgiafortea-roomdance music"
exudesa sense of harmony and comfort. Accordingto Brackewell,thealbum
had"a senseof Englishness whichhadone footin thefuture andtheotherin the
past: one halfof thebrainengagedwiththebanalityof dailylifein rainyold
England,the otherpioneeringwithinextremestatesof mindto bringback
reports fromtheedgeofconsciousness" (133).
The album's minimalist coveralso revealsits complexities and dualisms.
On theone hand,it reflects theBeatles' desireto go back to thesimplicity that
characterized the band's pre-psychedelic era, while on the otherhand,the
postersand thepicturefragments revealthecrisisand fragmentation between
theband members.In comparisonto Sgt. Pepper's cover,whichconveyeda
senseof unityand love,theoutercoverof TheBeatlesreveals,in thebest-case
scenario,unityand simplicity, and in theworst,thelackof anymessage;while
theinnercoverreflects thesenseof embarrassment and alienationbetweenthe
band'smembers, an anxiety-riddenatmosphere which showstheband'sinability
to cope withtheeventsof 1968.Withregardto theeventsof theperiodand the
youthculture'sexpectationof a certainmessage,the membersof the band
declaredthattheyhad nothing to offerexceptan ambiguousand ironicviewof
thesituation, whiletheemphasisshiftedtowardsvalues like love,peace and a
return to simplefamilylife.
100
Man," the extreme-left
In conclusion,the Parisian"Street-fighting Italian
activistand the Americanstudentwho eitheravoided or was willingto be
draftedfor the VietnamWar, and of course millionsof Beatles fans,all
understood thattheBeatlesof 1968 had twosalientmessages:on theone hand,
wholeness,simplicity,harmony,love and family,and on the otherhand
fragmentation, changeand complexity.
disintegration, Moreover,it is clearthat
the "Beatles culture"could not have existedwithoutthe "capitalistfolklore
world"(Yoko Ono, qtd. in Ali 379) and thatThe Beatlesoperatedwithinthe
hegemony,as David Flower
heart of the capitalist-aristocratic-bourgeois
remindsus by quotingconservative cabinetmemberWilliamDeeds's wordsof
1963: "theBeatleswerean exampleof youthful freeenterprise thatshouldbe
welcomedandnurtured bybusinessleaders"(170).
A few monthsaftertheyfinishedrecording, the Beatles came together
again and triedto producean album{Let It Be) in whichtheywouldreturn to
"the way thingswere" and completelyand zealouslyabandonany musical
manipulation, mixingor studiogimmicks. However,thesenseof fragmentation
thatwas so intensein TheBeatlesrecordings escalateduntiltheband literally
brokeup a yearlater.Indeed,as theBritishCommunist activistsclaimed,the
Beatles may not have been relevantforthe 1968 "Street-Fighting Man," and
theydidn'ttryto deconstruct the bourgeoissocial order,yet,as Ed Whitley
rightlyclaims: "The album deconstructsitself,pop music, the Beatles
themselves, and theirown musicalhistory.By notmeaninganything theWhite
Albumis thenable to do something: andwhatitdoes is to cleara space inwhich
thereaderis able to participatein a negotiateddiscourseabouttherole(s) of
popularmusicwithinWestern culture"(123).
HeiterSkelterwithintheAristocratic-Bourgeois
Hegemony
As I have statedbefore,formostof the time,the Beatles,as "popular

refrained
intellectuals," fromanypoliticalstatements or involvements,and even
whentheyattempted to adoptavant-garde positions,they failed.
In thistheydid
not differfromany otherBritishrock artistsof the late 1960s (or most
Americans:Dylan is a striking example),whose mainactivitiesweremaking
money,sex, drugs, hedonismand making emptyUtopian,anti-bourgeois
declarations.
This was extremely noticeablein theBeatles' musicamidstthechaos and
madnessof 1968. The song "Revolution"is a salientexampleof theBeatles'
unwillingnessto playtherolethatwas assignedto themby thefighters on the
barricadesor the Manson Gang, whose knivesmoved to the rhythm of The
Beatles {The WhiteAlburn)songs(Bromell124). The Apple venturerevealed
theirincompetence, as working-class artistsfromNorthern England,in creating
an artisticutopia. However,the tremendous success of The Beatles album
101
(which,as I have notedbefore,was theband's best-selling album)raisesthe
question:how can a musicalband that so objects to the spiritofthetimebecome
a best-seller?Does the Gramscianexplanationgivenat the beginningof the
articleprovidea satisfactory answer?Must rock music reflectthe Zeitgeist,
especiallyitspoliticalandideologicaldimensions?8
A comparison withCharlieChaplincan provideanotherexplanation. Like
his movieModernTimes , The Beatles also contains a number of observations
abouttheworldand theturbulent timein whichthealbumwas created.Like
Chaplin, the Beatles' songs also testify to theirinability to cope withtheworld
aroundthem.Theirmusicwas unableto conveya messagethatwouldappease
theradicalyouths.PerhapsChaplin'sbewilderment and helplessness in theface
of themachineand theassembly-lineresembledtheBeatles' bewilderment in
thefaceof thedemandsfromtheirfansto producea message,a "Word,"9and
like Chaplin,all theyhad to offertheirfanswas compassionand love. And
perhapsthe somewhatconservative, family-oriented messages of Chaplin's
filmsin the difficult twentiesand thirties and the messagesof The Sound of
Music, The YellowSubmarineand the 1968 The Beatles (The WhiteAlbum)
were exactlywhat the Westernyouthsecretlycraved.Both the failedand
successfulBeatles' enterprises and worksin 1968 were createdin a unique
period for the Westernworld, for Britainand for the Beatles; all three
experienced a senseof fragmentation and confusion.If we wishto understand
theBeatles'worksduringthisperiod,we haveto examineboththeculturaland
theintimate-personal contextin whichtheywerecreated,10andrecognizethatit
to catalogthemwithina narrowculturalframework
is difficult or to ascribeto
thema leadingroleincertaingroups.Manycriticshaveattempted to connectthe
Beatleswiththemanyheterogeneous subcultures and youthculturesthatwere
establishedin thesecondhalfof the60s. Othershave thought thatbecauseof
theirhegemonicmusicalworks,theBeatleswereleadinga culturalrevolution,
or, at least, leadingand navigatingthe "sixties' ship." As ArthurMarwick
arguedby quotingthestatements of a Frenchstudent leaderin 1968: "Theyare
thebest. . . theyhave takenup theirproperrole . . . and havebecomeperfect
hippies"(488). SingerDavid Crosbywas somewhatmoreobservantwhenhe
articulatedtheconnection betweenRockmusic,theBeatlesandpoliticalprotest
in 1968: "Somehow,Sgt.Pepperdid notstoptheVietnamWar.... I am doing
mylevelbestas a saboteurof values,as an agentof change,butwhenitcomes
downto bloodand gorein thestreets, I'm takingoffand goingfishing" (qtd.in
Doggett, Riot 84). However, in the case of the "Beatles culture," two
the
interpretations seem deceptive as well as inaccurate. First,and as I stated
above,theBeatles,as theBritishNew Lefthadalreadydiscoveredin 1968,were
partand parcelof theBritishestablishment. Even thoughtheydidn'tcreateit,
theBeatlesdid lead thepopularcultureof thesixties,yettheydid notlead the
radicalizaronthatemergedin it from1966. As Lennonclaimedin Playboy
102
magazine,on theeve ofhismurder:"I'm notsayingwe weren'tflagson thetop
of a ship; but the whole boat was moving.Maybe the Beatles were in the
crow's-nest, shouting,'Land ho,' or something likethatbutwe wereall in the
samedamnboat."11
Secondly,some researchers investigating the 1960s connectthe political
and social changesthattookplace in themid60s withthemusicaland cultural
changesthatseeminglytookplace in the Beatles' lives and worksfrom1966
onwards.Theybelievethatthischangeled to thecentralpositiontheBeatles
occupiedin theradical"sixties"culture.Thisis notthecase. The Beatlesdidnot
changeand TheBeatlesalbumis thedefinitive proof.The albumcontinuedto
followthe artisticand culturalguidelinesthatthe Beatleshad followedsince
1963.The guidelines'keyconstituents are carefulconservatism, anti-radicalism
and Northern-British working-class themes(especiallyfamilyvalues).Whatthe
Beatlesattempted to do, togetherwithmanyotherworking-class was to
artists,
redefine"high"and "low" culture,and thisincludeda desireto enterintothe
Britisharistocratic-bourgeois culturalhegemony.The Beatles, like the other
rock artists,never attemptedto underminethis hegemony.From the very
beginning, theBeatleswantedto receivethemembership cardthatwouldgrant
thementrance to theclub.Furthermore, andheretheBritishNew Leftwas right,
whenin 1965theyfinallyreceivedtheirmembership in theformofknighthood,
the Beatles did all in theirpower to preservetheirstatusand expand the
hegemonicboundariesso thatit wouldalso includeotherpopularartistswhose
maintargetwas to makemoney.
Takinga birds-eyeview and a perspective of severaldecades,we can see
thatthe Beatles and the Apple venturewere examplesof a typicalEnglish-
bourgeoisart-form, spiced withsome rebelliouselements.It was an artthat
desiredto expandintonewfieldsandabsorbnewinfluences, to stayfresh,yetat
thesame timeto maintainitsformer traditions;all thiswhilealwaysremaining
withintheconfinesof thearistocratic-bourgeois hegemonicsystem.Thissystem
temporarily weakened in the 1950s and the first
half of the60s. Simultaneously,
and witha littlehelp fromtheBeatles,class boundariesbeganto dissolveand
moreand moreyouthsweregivenopportunities thattheycould onlydreamof
before.Onlya bird's-eyeview thatincludestheculturaland social contextof
thesechangescan graspthestrength of TheBeatles album,its wholenessand
clarity,and thusrevealthe Beatles' power,fordecades,to move millionsof
people,bothyoungandold,ofvariousclassesand in different placesaroundthe
world.
Notes
'On conservative
reactions
to theBeatles,see Heilbronner,
EnglandDream-
ing, and Fowler168-71.
103
2Byconservative cultureI meandominant elementssuchas stability,tradi-
tion,familyvalues,religion, and longingforthepast.FortheBeatles'conserva-
tivism,see Fowler,andHeilbronner.
The debatebeganwithMartinJacques'sarticle"Trendsin theYouthCul-
ture"andendeda yearlateraftera heatedargument inwhichseriousaccusations
wereraisedagainstthe"different comradeswhoeithersupported or rejectedthe
British youthculture."
BlackDwarf,15 October1968.
5Ontheotherhand,I will add thatwe shouldn'tacceptat face value the
rather naiveexpectations oftheBeatles'criticsthattheyshouldbe "political"or
"revolutionary." There is good reasonto believethatartcan be valid without
being explicitlypolitical,and thatit in factcan be politicaleven whennot
didactically, so. Maybeone coulddefendtheBeatlesalongtheselines
explicitly
againstchargesthattheyweresomehownotpoliticalor rebelliousbecausethey
wantedto sell records,or became popular,or did not write"Street-Fighting
Man." In the"radical60s," however,somepeopledidjudge thebandby these
criteria.
JohnLennonevenstatedthat"if [Apple]getstakenoverbytheirworkers,
as faras I'm concerned, theycanhaveit"(qtd.inHoyland).
7No other60s culturalheroexpressedanypoliticalopinionsthatyear,in-
cludingBob Dylanin his albumJohnWesleyHardingthatcame outthatsame
year.The RollingStones'albumBeggarsBanquetthat,in a mannertypicalof
theStones,came out immediately aftertheBeatles, was a return
to theirBlues
rootsandthesoulmusicalstyleabandonedbythebandin 1965.
8Thisquestioncan also be asked about the filmand soundtrack of The
Sound of Music, since its financialsuccess standsin directoppositionto the
"sixties"spirit.
In 1965,Lennonmockedhis fansby singingto them"say thewordand
vou'll be free."
10InOctober,at theheightof TheBeatlesrecordings, Lennondivorcedhis
wifeCynthia, was arrested forpossessionof marijuana, and Yoko Ono miscar-
riedtheirbaby.
www.johnlennon.com/playboyinterviewwithjohnlennonandyokoono.htm.
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