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16 reviews for:
Visualizing The Beatles: A Complete Graphic History of the World's Favorite Band
John Pring, Rob Thomas
4.04 AVERAGE
16 reviews for:
Visualizing The Beatles: A Complete Graphic History of the World's Favorite Band
John Pring, Rob Thomas
4.04 AVERAGE
I'm always on the lookout for books surrounding my favorite artists, and there are always plenty of Beatles books to discover and dive into. I enjoyed how vibrant this book was, the graphics were gorgeous and the artwork was beautiful. The book was designed nicely, and I loved the use of different visuals and formats to display all the information. I thought it was interesting how the book used timelines, charts, bar graphs, wheels, cloud maps, fun symbols, and satellite maps to provide fun information about the band and it's background, and I liked how the graphics of the Beatles subtly changed as the years went by. I thought this was a nice, fun, quick read that was a good waste of an hour, and it would entertain any Beatles fan.
Although I enjoyed it, it didn't really leave an impact on me. It was a fun read and nothing more. I have a habit of collecting books about my favorite subjects, in particular Queen, and my mom even asked me if I wanted this book for my collection, and I said no. There were two big things that didn't particularly enjoy about this book, with the first being the odd contrast between small text and blank space. You would have pages upon pages with practically nothing on it, but then on the next page it would be coated in tiny text, that honestly didn't provide that much information. It was rather jarring, and it would have been much stronger if there was a better balance between the graphics and the writing. On the other hand, I feel like only big Beatles fans would really get something out of the book. There are books that have the opposite issue, and don't provide much for die-hard fans, but I found myself struggling to get things out of certain sections. The book required background knowledge, and assumed that readers knew the general history of the band and the timeline that they faced. Although that alone wasn't too much to ask for (people who didn't know anything would not understand much of the book), the graphics about the specific albums would not mean much to you as a casual listener. Although I'm a Beatles fan, I still haven't gotten to the point where I know every single song, there's still a fair chunk of the discography that I have not become familiar with. It was just strange to see these lists, with the song lengths, keys, and writing credits, where the songs were complete gibberish to me. I just completely glossed over those parts, and I only found myself truly invested on the albums that I know through and through. To a fan who knows every single song, it is heaven, but to anyone else it's a bit confusing.
I do want to mention one other thing- the list of all the bands who had covered the Beatles. I will say, that was sort of misleading, seeing as all the artists listed had apparently "recorded" one or more "Beatles" songs, but in reality it turned into any artist who had covered any song written by any of the Beatles, even if said artist didn't actually record it. Of course me, being the Queenie I am, noticed Queen on the list and I know that Queen never covered any Beatles songs. They did perform Imagine a few times at concerts later in their touring career, but they never did any straight up Beatles songs, and they never recorded it. That section was just very misleading and the music snob in me saw these inconsistencies and felt irrationally annoyed. Obviously, it really isn't a big deal, but I still saw the mistake and felt inclined to mention it.
Despite the book's few flaws, I do think it's strengths outweighed it, and I do think it was a very beautiful and visually pleasing book. I think this would be an interesting read for a Beatles fan, even if it isn't the best Beatles book of all time, it still was nice and very well put together. It was clear that this was something that the authors were passionate about, and I thought they did a very good job showing that passion in the book. I liked how the book mentioned the different inspirations of the band, and showed how, despite some people thinking otherwise, the Beatles and its success should be credited to much more people than just George, Paul, Ringo, and John. Of course they made the music and did the performances, but so many people had a hand in making them who they were, and it's still fascinating to see the impact that they made even on the people of the day.
By the way, Paul is totally dead. Don't listen to that propaganda that tells you otherwise. He is dead.
Although I enjoyed it, it didn't really leave an impact on me. It was a fun read and nothing more. I have a habit of collecting books about my favorite subjects, in particular Queen, and my mom even asked me if I wanted this book for my collection, and I said no. There were two big things that didn't particularly enjoy about this book, with the first being the odd contrast between small text and blank space. You would have pages upon pages with practically nothing on it, but then on the next page it would be coated in tiny text, that honestly didn't provide that much information. It was rather jarring, and it would have been much stronger if there was a better balance between the graphics and the writing. On the other hand, I feel like only big Beatles fans would really get something out of the book. There are books that have the opposite issue, and don't provide much for die-hard fans, but I found myself struggling to get things out of certain sections. The book required background knowledge, and assumed that readers knew the general history of the band and the timeline that they faced. Although that alone wasn't too much to ask for (people who didn't know anything would not understand much of the book), the graphics about the specific albums would not mean much to you as a casual listener. Although I'm a Beatles fan, I still haven't gotten to the point where I know every single song, there's still a fair chunk of the discography that I have not become familiar with. It was just strange to see these lists, with the song lengths, keys, and writing credits, where the songs were complete gibberish to me. I just completely glossed over those parts, and I only found myself truly invested on the albums that I know through and through. To a fan who knows every single song, it is heaven, but to anyone else it's a bit confusing.
I do want to mention one other thing- the list of all the bands who had covered the Beatles. I will say, that was sort of misleading, seeing as all the artists listed had apparently "recorded" one or more "Beatles" songs, but in reality it turned into any artist who had covered any song written by any of the Beatles, even if said artist didn't actually record it. Of course me, being the Queenie I am, noticed Queen on the list and I know that Queen never covered any Beatles songs. They did perform Imagine a few times at concerts later in their touring career, but they never did any straight up Beatles songs, and they never recorded it. That section was just very misleading and the music snob in me saw these inconsistencies and felt irrationally annoyed. Obviously, it really isn't a big deal, but I still saw the mistake and felt inclined to mention it.
Despite the book's few flaws, I do think it's strengths outweighed it, and I do think it was a very beautiful and visually pleasing book. I think this would be an interesting read for a Beatles fan, even if it isn't the best Beatles book of all time, it still was nice and very well put together. It was clear that this was something that the authors were passionate about, and I thought they did a very good job showing that passion in the book. I liked how the book mentioned the different inspirations of the band, and showed how, despite some people thinking otherwise, the Beatles and its success should be credited to much more people than just George, Paul, Ringo, and John. Of course they made the music and did the performances, but so many people had a hand in making them who they were, and it's still fascinating to see the impact that they made even on the people of the day.
By the way, Paul is totally dead. Don't listen to that propaganda that tells you otherwise. He is dead.
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Para quem quer saber curiosidades sobre os Beatles de forma divertida, com infográficos que mostram desde a duração das músicas, quem as compôs, que instrumentos foram usados, as suas roupas e informações sobre o que acontecia no mundo na época do lançamento de cada disco, esse livro é perfeito.
Apenas a simplicidade das imagens (vetores), conta como um ponto negativo ao livro. Mesmo assim a leitura é fluída e bem divertida.
Mais uma boa homenagem aos Beatles.
Apenas a simplicidade das imagens (vetores), conta como um ponto negativo ao livro. Mesmo assim a leitura é fluída e bem divertida.
Mais uma boa homenagem aos Beatles.
if i was doing a project on the beatles, or had a hyper fixation on them i would’ve liked this. i wanted it to be more of a story about them and instead it was really just stats. informational though!
Didn’t really contain much I didn’t already know, but listed everything in a really interesting, compelling way. Will definitely flip through several more times.
informative
relaxing
fast-paced
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
I love the simple, but effective nature of this book! It gives a quick wrap of the Beatles history with beautiful photos.
To check out my reviews: https://dancinginth3dark.wordpress.com/2018/05/21/visualizing-the-beatles-a-complete-graphic-history-of-the-worlds-favorite-band/
I am in love with The Beatles. I remember the first song that I ever heard from this famous band was Twist and Shout and the rest is history. Actually I was late on the Beatles train because I remember during middle school when Across the Universe came out in theaters and all the theater geeks were rocking out to the songs and I was completely indifferent about going to see the film, listening more to the Beatles, and joining in on the fun. That is one thing about me, when everyone is going crazy about something whether it be a book, film, tv show, or music I naturally stay away from it like the plague. I think it is the mentality that if I join with the masses then it loses its special novelty.
A few years ago I finally had enough money to buy the entire Beatles catalogue on iTunes and my life has never been the same. Their music is timeless and even though we are living in the 21st century I can play any album of The Beatles and it would be 1000x better than the crap that is on the radio at the moment. The lyrics are astounding, the harmonies are unique, and deep down they changed the course of history with the definition of what it means to be an artist and a musician. It is no wonder that I admire them and they influence me with my creativity. Hence when I saw this book being displayed at my local library I immediately snatched it up.
If you are a Beatles fanatic then this book might not be for you because it provides a basic history of the Beatles discography, the formation of the group, and ultimately their break up. Every page you get colorful illustrations, maps, and timelines that show how the Beatles were influenced and how their music shaped the culture and how world events were influencing them. I am more interested about the group in the musical aspects so it was interesting to see maps and locations of where they lived, places they visited, and other sites that inspired classic songs like Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, Eleanor Rigby, and countless others.
I wanted to rate this 5 stars but there was some details that lacked in this book and I wish they added more. This book is by no means an encyclopedia of The Beatles and they do not pretend to act like it is. Like the early years of the Beatles most of their albums until the Rubber Soul era consists of some original songs and then cover songs. In this book they tell you how many covers vs originals in each album but they do not tell you exactly which songs are original and which are cover songs from other bands. I wish they could have used some symbols to illustrate this and it would have made it fascinating to see.
One huge thing that I absolutely loved was the songwriting credits for each album. It is known to most people that John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote most of the Beatles music with a few exceptions where they let George Harrison and Ringo Starr take a crack at songwriting. In each album, the authors of this book illustrates who truly wrote which songs and I think that is beautiful and mind blowing to discover. You finally get to see which of your favorite songs were written by which member and if they either wrote the entire song by themselves or had a helping hand. If you were ever curious as to the fashion of their outfits, the cover images of their albums then you should buy this book.
The illustrations are phenomenal and I think this is great book to give to kids or teenagers who are starting to get into the Beatles and discover that these four handsome men accomplished a lot in a matter of 8 years and changed pop culture forever. One thing that I am so happy about is that the authors acknowledge that the album Let It Be is not their last album. It is technically their last because it was released when they broke up but recording wise their album Abbey Road was the last album where they officially had their final recording sessions. I think that is crucial information because it changes the entire catalogue and ideology of their sound. I haven't marathon The Beatles catalogue in a few years now but after reading this book I definitely will again.
I am in love with The Beatles. I remember the first song that I ever heard from this famous band was Twist and Shout and the rest is history. Actually I was late on the Beatles train because I remember during middle school when Across the Universe came out in theaters and all the theater geeks were rocking out to the songs and I was completely indifferent about going to see the film, listening more to the Beatles, and joining in on the fun. That is one thing about me, when everyone is going crazy about something whether it be a book, film, tv show, or music I naturally stay away from it like the plague. I think it is the mentality that if I join with the masses then it loses its special novelty.
A few years ago I finally had enough money to buy the entire Beatles catalogue on iTunes and my life has never been the same. Their music is timeless and even though we are living in the 21st century I can play any album of The Beatles and it would be 1000x better than the crap that is on the radio at the moment. The lyrics are astounding, the harmonies are unique, and deep down they changed the course of history with the definition of what it means to be an artist and a musician. It is no wonder that I admire them and they influence me with my creativity. Hence when I saw this book being displayed at my local library I immediately snatched it up.
If you are a Beatles fanatic then this book might not be for you because it provides a basic history of the Beatles discography, the formation of the group, and ultimately their break up. Every page you get colorful illustrations, maps, and timelines that show how the Beatles were influenced and how their music shaped the culture and how world events were influencing them. I am more interested about the group in the musical aspects so it was interesting to see maps and locations of where they lived, places they visited, and other sites that inspired classic songs like Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, Eleanor Rigby, and countless others.
I wanted to rate this 5 stars but there was some details that lacked in this book and I wish they added more. This book is by no means an encyclopedia of The Beatles and they do not pretend to act like it is. Like the early years of the Beatles most of their albums until the Rubber Soul era consists of some original songs and then cover songs. In this book they tell you how many covers vs originals in each album but they do not tell you exactly which songs are original and which are cover songs from other bands. I wish they could have used some symbols to illustrate this and it would have made it fascinating to see.
One huge thing that I absolutely loved was the songwriting credits for each album. It is known to most people that John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote most of the Beatles music with a few exceptions where they let George Harrison and Ringo Starr take a crack at songwriting. In each album, the authors of this book illustrates who truly wrote which songs and I think that is beautiful and mind blowing to discover. You finally get to see which of your favorite songs were written by which member and if they either wrote the entire song by themselves or had a helping hand. If you were ever curious as to the fashion of their outfits, the cover images of their albums then you should buy this book.
The illustrations are phenomenal and I think this is great book to give to kids or teenagers who are starting to get into the Beatles and discover that these four handsome men accomplished a lot in a matter of 8 years and changed pop culture forever. One thing that I am so happy about is that the authors acknowledge that the album Let It Be is not their last album. It is technically their last because it was released when they broke up but recording wise their album Abbey Road was the last album where they officially had their final recording sessions. I think that is crucial information because it changes the entire catalogue and ideology of their sound. I haven't marathon The Beatles catalogue in a few years now but after reading this book I definitely will again.