“Turn off your mind and float downstream”. John Lennon sang that line on “Tomorrow Never Knows”, one of the most experimental and outré tracks built around one chord from the brilliant and sound-changing Beatles’ album “Revolver”.
Everything from the album cover design by close friend, bass guitarist and designer Klaus Voorman to the sudden shifting of gears and upping the levels of creativity in their songs- the compositions, the arrangements and the studio experimentations- were from somewhere else.
Some say that “Revolver” came about after Paul McCartney heard an advance copy of Beach Boy Brian Wilson’s magnificent “Pet Sounds” recording, and was so blown away with this new music that he needed the Beatles to outdo it.
Competition is good. Jealousy must be earned.
The point is that the Beatles, producer George Martin and engineer Geoff Emerick retired to Abbey Road Studios, deleted whatever they had been recording along with what was going through their minds before and pressed the Refresh button.
Where most of us find ourselves today is lost amongst the clutter of an information highway that’s put so much of everything that means nothing in front of us and where greed has seen so many wanting it all- for free.
It often brings to mind the greedy, gluttonous Augustus Gloop from Dusselhein.
One of five kids who’s won a golden ticket and invited to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, dear Augustus’s greed has him falling into the chocolate river, being sucked into a pipe before being spat out and thrown out of the chocolate factory by the Oompah Loompahs,
This might explain why there are so many Augustus Gloops in the world today, especially on Facebook, caught up in click bait and emojis of tears and love and finding online support systems in “likes” and pity and, perhaps, enjoying all this attention?
Nothing really wrong with any of this as we’re all different, and depending on where we’re at in our lives, need someone or something to lean on.
When, however, something as transparent and superficial like Facebook takes over one’s entire being along with the motivation to be creative and gets lost in clutter, it might explain why there’s so much of everything and nothing happening of substance happening in the world today.
It’s almost as if everything has stopped to become dumbed down and for the world to enter Stupidville.
As Dylan once sang, “He who isn’t busy doin’ is busy dyin’”, and one can’t help but wonder what exactly it is that we’re REALLY busy doing?
We’re sure as hell not thinking how this or that can be improved and be turned into our “Revolver”.
Many are seemingly happy to accept mediocrity whereas others are angry with everything and everyone because maybe they’re miserable with their own lives that no longer “belong” to them.
Who’s to blame for that?