No Reply

Yesterday Adam took me to see "Across the Universe." A kind of Beatles theme movie about young people during the 60s. You can see the trailer if you want. Anyway, the movie was OK, not THAT fantastic ... kind of tedious. But as we drove home, Adam asked me what was my favorite Beatles tune of all time. Not in terms of historical import (such as: "Yesterday" because it had been covered the most, or "Paperback Writer" because it inspired the Beach Boys to do "Good Vibrations" which led to Sgt. Pepper) ... Adam just wanted to know what MY favorite song was. I had no reply ... really, until I just blurted out, "I guess, uh ... 'No Reply'." Which, I do, I love that song. Based on the criterion that if you played it fifty times in a row, I'd still like to hear it, sing with it, and move to it.

It is a classic John song: "despairing at the world of lost love" ... which is another story. And there is this spot (at 1:28) where John and Paul's harmonies are so striking, not to mention the drum syncopation (at 2:02) which is one of Ringo's best. OK, so maybe that's my favorite Beatles tune .... but I also like "If I Fell" quite a lot. And there must be something said for "Across the Universe" itself. After all, that John song was the one which drew me in 1970 (at the age of 16) to buy my first Beatles album. I was doing the dishes one night and heard it on the radio (55 KRC) and thought to myself, "I have to go buy that album tomorrow." I did. Ironically, my first was the Beatles' last: "Let It Be."

Oh, and if you want to see what John thinks of Paul's "Let It Be," listen to him sing "Let it A, Let it B, let it C, let it D."
CLICK HERE to listen.

It's all too much.