Piano Blog by Skoove – Piano Practice Tips
One of the most iconic bands of all time, The Beatles’ 1970 album Let It Be is something of a landmark on the history of music in the last century. Now, a new 3 part documentary from Peter Jackson is set to debut at the end of November.
Over 55 hours of footage and 140 hours of audio were made available to Jackson for the project, which details the 21 days surrounding the rehearsal, recording, and production of the album and the accompanying rooftop concert at BBC.
Let’s dive into some Beatles hits with Skoove and learn some more history about the Fab Four!
Learn Beatles songs with Skoove!
With online piano lessons from Skoove, you can easily learn many of The Beatles biggest hits on the piano. With a fun and intuitive play-along system, Skoove will help get you in the groove with The Beatles faster than you can say “Yellow Submarine.”
A brief history
If you do not already know, The Beatles members were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. Lennon and McCartney were the primary songwriters of the band. Though Lennon and McCartney were both singers and multi-instrumentalists, Lennon mainly focussed on guitar and vocals and McCartney on bass and vocals.
Harrison performed guitar and vocals and also contributed some of their most memorable compositions including “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Here Come the Sun.” Starr was the drummer, and a solid and capable one at that. He contributed one of the most beloved tunes, “Octopus’s Garden” from the album Abbey Road.
The Beatles formed in Liverpool, England in 1960 as part of a burgeoning rock and roll scene there. After a couple years working the club circuit back and forth between Liverpool and Hamburg, Germany, The Beatles were picked up by manager Brian Epstein and shortly after received a recording contract from EMI’s Parlophone Records and began working with producer George Martin.
The collaborations with Martin would help to produce some of the most groundbreaking work in recording technology of the era. The Beatles cut 13 studio albums starting with 1963’s Please Please Me and ending with 1970’s Let It Be.
“Help”
“Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody” goes the intro to the classic Beatles tune “Help.” Originally released in 1965 as the single and title song for the album of the same name, the tune was primarily composed by Lennon with some assistance by McCartney.
The tune was recorded in April of 1965 in 12 takes using 4 track tape machines. Essentially, a 4 track tape machine is a tape recording device with 4 available tracks. The limited number of tracks means that the musicians need to plan strategically how they will record all of the instrumental and vocal parts.
Oftentimes, The Beatles would record groups of instruments at the same time. For example, the bass and drums and maybe a rhythm guitar would be recorded on 3 of the machines 4 tracks. Then a mix would be made of those tracks and bounced, or re-recorded, to the free 4th track or sometimes to a completely different 4 track machine. Then, the musicians would have another 3 tracks free to record more instruments.
This sort of layering, multitrack recording process was revolutionary for the time and helped to create some of the most creative recorded music of the last century. If you don’t have a piano at home, try practicing with a virtual piano instead!
“Hey Jude”
Chances are that at any point in the day in just about any country on Earth you can flip on the rock radio station and hear The Beatles tune “Hey Jude”. The composition is widely regarded as one of the best songs of all time. With Skoove, you can check out “Hey Jude” piano sheet music quickly and easily!
It originally debuted as a non-album single in August of 1968. It was released between recording sessions for the band’s White Album and went on to chart at number 1 for a then record-tying 9 weeks. The song is famous for its extended coda section that runs the track out to about 7 minutes in length – one of the longest songs ever to chart on Billboard’s Hot 100.
“Let It Be”
“Let It Be” was originally composed by Paul McCartney on piano and released as the single in 1970 for the album of the same name. Two versions were initially released: a single version that was produced by George Martin and the album version which was produced by the infamous Phil Spector.
“Let It Be” is a classic staple of beginning pop piano playing. With Skoove, you have access to great “Let It Be” piano sheet music so you can make sure you are learning the best version of the song.
“Yellow Submarine”
Originally composed as a children’s song by Lennon and McCartney, “Yellow Submarine” went on to be one of The Beatles biggest early hits. Appearing first on the 1966 album Revolver, the tune was Starr’s vocal spot on the album and the tune went to number one on the charts in many countries and was the highest selling British single of the year in 1966. Quite an accomplishment!
“Yellow Submarine” also went on to become a wonderfully goofy animated film that is well worth your time to watch if you have never seen it!
“Yesterday”
According to the performing rights organization BMI, The Beatles tune “Yesterday” was performed over 7 million times in the 20th century. Considering the fact that it was composed and released in 1965, this is quite an accomplishment, to say the least! Like “Let It Be”, “Yesterday” is another staple of beginning piano pop repertoire and a great song to learn with Skoove.
“Yesterday” was the first Beatles tune to essentially feature just a single Beatle. Paul wrote the music and lyrics and recorded the song solo on an acoustic guitar with string quartet accompaniment. Since the recording did not feature all the members of the band, the group was hesitant to release it as a single. Eventually however, the band released it and it went to number one on the pop charts.
When and why did The Beatles break up
The Beatles disbanded officially in 1970. The Beatles broke up essentially because the pressure of becoming the most famous band in the world caused too many problems. The members started to squabble about songwriting and eventually the problems became too much for any of them to deal with. So they disbanded.
Which Beatles are still alive?
Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are the only members of The Beatles that are still alive. Both are still musically active and have been touring and releasing music regularly for the last 50 years.
Sir Paul is very active himself in music and arts education. He is the co-founder of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA), where he has also served as an instructor. Skoove began cooperating with LIPA a few years ago and since then, LIPA students have used Skoove successfully as a learning method for piano!
When did The Beatles start?
The Beatles began around 1960. However, Lennon and McCartney began writing music together some years before then.
How long were The Beatles together?
The Beatles were together for about a decade in total.
When were The Beatles popular?
The Beatles were insanely popular in the 1960’s. The phenomenon of “Beatlemania” swept across Europe and the USA. Never-before-scene crowds would attend their concerts and they were the idols of a generation of youth.
The Beatles remain one of the most popular bands of all time.
Conclusion
The upcoming Beatles movie is a perfect time to dive into the music of the Fab Four. With Skoove, it is easier than ever to learn some of their most classic hits. And, with a free 7 day trial, you have nothing to lose! Whether you prefer the melancholy melody of “Yesterday” or the rocking coda of “Hey Jude”, there are tunes for every taste with Skoove. Check it out today and be sure to watch the new Beatles movie when it comes out!
Let’s dive into some Beatles hits with Skoove and learn some more history about the Fab Four!
Author of this blog post:
Eddie Bond is a multi-instrumentalist performer, composer, and music instructor currently based in Seattle, Washington USA. He has performed extensively in the US, Canada, Argentina, and China, released over 40 albums, and has over a decade experience working with music students of all ages and ability levels.
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