re comus- it's one thing to listen to music, another to appreciate it, I'm not a musician but it adds another level to try to listen as such.
they were the first band to innovate with the popular music medium, hell what would the sixties have been like without them? would people have still been listening to Elvis and doo wop? they proved that rock n' roll could encompass a limitless variety of harmonies and sounds, they were the first to use jazz chords in pop music (do we associate the term 'pop' with anything before the hysteria of Beatlemania?) and the changes in their compositions are, compared to rock up to that point, mental.
Sure their achievements have since been surpassed, and I'm not saying innovation is exclusive property of the Beatles (look at Frank Zappa or 'Pet Sounds') - but their indelible mark on pop/rock/whatever is undeniable. It had to start somewhere, and if they hadn't done it somebody else would, just probably not the Stones (jokes).
And their influence on experimentation in the studio and the development of multi-track recording, bringing sound collage to the masses is very well documented.
Like I said just read some books and listen to some records, I've debated this enough for a lifetime!
and forgive the grammar it's about 3 in the morning where i am and this is the most pointless thing i've ever done
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