Beatles vs. Stones by John McMillian

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Beatles vs. Stones by John McMillian


                The Beatles were considered to be the respectable, clean, lovable boys from the North of England. Their signature hair was mimicked by up and coming bands and their hometown of Liverpool started drawing countless talent scouts looking for the next big thing. But this image of the Beatles was one created over time, in an effort to get noticed and sign a record deal. The Beatles started off playing in a cavern to a crowd of loyal fans who liked their rough behavior. In Hamburg, Germany where they played for countless hours, they had already started to experiment with drugs and have a lot of sex with groupies in a rundown room. This was before they started wearing all black and had choreographed bows. Then there was Beatlemania. Then came the Rolling Stones, five young men from posh London with a completely different upbringing than that of the Beatles. In an effort to stand out, the Rolling Stones began to act out and became known as the anti-Beatles. Outspoken, sometimes rude, unkempt and lively the Stones would take the stage with their list of rhythm and blues songs to cover and command the stage. Both groups were extremely successful setting the stage for what the media would contend to be a great rivalry.
If you are a fan of the Beatles or the Rolling Stones then let me start off by saying that is probably a book you are going to enjoy or at the very least find fascinating. McMillian in this double biography takes an even approach to why these two groups were considered to be rivals over the span of their careers. He starts at the beginning explaining where both groups began and how they attained success and very early on he stresses that the Beatles and Stones respected each other and by many accounts were friends. The public however saw the stark contrast between the two groups and the fans, with the help of the media, created the rivalry. Most people felt a very strong connection to one group or the other and many couldn’t or wouldn’t support both. Parents and the older generation held disdain for the Stones, while many of those in the younger generation who loved the Stones found the Beatles to be conformist. The Beatles and the Rolling Stones would both attract a lot of media attention and were always aware of the ongoing debate and the question of who the people preferred.

Talk about getting an introduction into the history of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. This book was done in broad strokes. If you want a detailed history of either group then this isn’t the book for you. This book examines the two groups in comparison to one another. How did one group influence the other? How did they handle the underline pressure and competition? Why did one group break up while the other continued to play together for decades? Which group was better? All these questions are up for debate and examined. It’s all complicated because it’s all subjective. McMillian provided information in context and discussed the rivalry. This biography is extremely fascinating but at times it felt disjointed. I am attributing that all to McMillian’s writing style. Topics would be introduced and glazed over and reintroduced in a way that I found distracting. But this double biography was worth reading because the culture of the 1960’s and 1970’s was so fascinating and the two groups were the focus of that. I give this novel 3.5 out of 5 stars. 

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