Great read!
In this most excellent work, ( "Abbey Road to Zapple Records, A Beatles Encyclopedia") Judson Knight uses the "encyclopedia" format to take the reader on a guided passage through a virtual labyrinth of information, ... a ship navigated expertly across a small ocean of one brief, but incredibly productive segment of pop music history. Simply put, these are fascinating stories about the greatest rock band that ever lived, told by someone who knows how to write, and in a way that mere information blossoms into entertainment of the highest caliber.
In "Abbey Road...", Judson Knight profiles the background of each member of the group, their families, their amazing albums, films and songs that changed the world; and in doing so, he helps to explain what happened and why. Knight analyzes many of the Beatles' lyrics, answering questions that have persisted in the backs of our minds for decades (and perhaps ones you didn't even know you had), most importantly, "What made these guys and their creations so phenomenal?" Judson Knight does a superb job answering that question and hundreds of others in a way that reads like so many allegorical vignettes..... vignettes sometimes mired in the irony that occasionally there are questions which really have no answers.
There have been lots of books written about The Beatles. If you only read one, this should be the one.
GREAT investment for Beatles fans
My Beatles CDs sound ten times better thanks to this book. In addition to the songwriting, one of the things I love most about the Beatles is how lushly produced their music is. Thanks to this book, I can quickly look up any song title and get "the stories behind the songs".Basically, this is a well-researched, well-written guide laid out in an incredibly useful format. A must.
Entertaining but not always accurate.
This book is definitely entertaining, I found out some new things about my favorite group. I noticed though, that there are many mistakes in information. Some of them were small, like mistakes in picture captions. Others stuck out like a sore thumb and would surely be noticed by a true Beatles fan. This is a good book for someone that is looking to learn about the Beatles, but it may not be the best choice for someone that already knows a great deal.
Abbey Road to Zapple Records
This was a great book! All of my Beatles questions were answered. I would definently reccomend this book for any Beatles fan.
Abbey Road to Zapple Records - a review
With Abbey Road to Zapple Records, Judson Knight presents an encyclopedia of detailed information about the fab four's music. It is an collection of musical moments, in the true tradition of aphoristic thought, about a piece of the mosaic of the Beatles professional career. The rationale for this book by Judson Knight is one formulated by John Cage for any exegesis of music. It is, that ?a composer knows his work as a woodsman knows his path he has traced and retraced, while the listener is confronted by the same work as one is in the woods by a plant he has never seen before". Abbey Road to Zapple Records is the woodsmen's novices guide to the genesis if the Beatles' music. In enjoying, listening and studying the Beatles' work, this book is, what the Gilbert is for reading the Ulysses. Anyone who sincerely considers The Beatles` will have to take Knights' book at hand.
