Removing Subjective Tastes, the Beatles Were the Greatest Band/ Artist/ Musicians of All Time

First, when I stated modern history, what I meant was "for the time period during which we are familiar with. " Had I not done this, my opponent could technically claim that a bunch of cavemen existing before recorded history may have made great music with primitive instruments that would blow the Beatles out of the water, so it is therefore impossible to claim that the Beatles were definitely the greatest of all time. Second, when I spoke of removing subjectivity, I meant removing individual subjectivity. That is, the fact that musical tastes vary from person to person makes it difficult to claim one musical artist as the "greatest" as not everyone agrees on what "great music" is. When I speak of the ability of the Beatles to appeal to a wide segment of people, I am speaking in terms of collective subjectivity. Whereas individual subjectivity (i. e. asking your sister or next door neighbor what music they like) may be a poor measurement of musical greatness as it tends to be largely based on the quirks of one's personality, collective subjectivity is a valid measurement as it takes into account people of all personality types and musical tastes. With that in mind I would like to begin my argument. As I stated in the opening round my argument rests on three main contentions: 1. ) Accomplishments- Throughout recorded history, no single artist has dominated the charts as much as the Beatles. Their albums have spent a record total of 1,278 weeks on the charts, with a record fifteen of them reaching number one at one point or another. (Those fifteen have spent a total of 175 weeks as the top album, also a record. ) They've also spent forty five weeks on top of the albums and singles charts simultaneously, with their albums selling over 107 million copies in the United States alone, the most by any artist. When it comes to singles, the Beatles are equally dominant, owning a record twenty number one hits in the United States alone (twenty seven if you count the ones that were number one in the United Kingdom as well) and having occupied the entire top five on April 4, 1964- the only time this has ever happened. Clearly, no artist has ever been as accomplished as the Beatles. 2. ) Individuality- Even if you removed all of their accomplishments, the sound of the Beatles would still stand out as refreshing and unique for the time period. Greatness requires the ability to go where nobody else has gone before, and the Beatles did just that with albums such as "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and "The Beatles (White Album)", the former being one of the earliest concept albums to be produced and the latter being their first album to incorporate an eight track. In terms of singles, one needs only to look at their earlier recordings- "I Feel Fine" was the first song to incorporate feedback, and "Norwegian Wood" introduced the sitar to pop music, essentially opening the gate for "world music" to enter the American mainstream. In addition to improving the quality of their own music, innovations made by the Beatles also helped spawn a number of other musical acts- the mix of classical string instruments with modern rock instruments on "Strawberry Fields Forever" inspired Roy Wood to co-found the Electric Light Orchestra, while artificial double tracking (as used on both Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Revolver) was later employed by artists such as Pete Floyd, the Grateful Dead, and Jimmy Hendrix. Clearly, the innovations made by the Beatles have served to shape musical history. 3. ) Appeal- This one is somewhat of a continuation of my first argument, but it is different in the fact that it does not discuss how many people like the Beatles, but rather that many different types of people did. Throughout all musical genres, no single artist is more widely acknowledged and respected as the Beatles. This is in part due to their ability to adapt to almost any audience- the White Album itself features hints of country ("Rocky Raccoon" and "Don't Pass Me By"), pop ("Back in the USSR" and "Helter Skelter"), and even classical, with the piano being used extensively on tracks such as "Sexy Sadie" and "Piggies. " Even today, the Beatles still command a huge following despite breaking up over forty years ago- the 2007 film "Across the Universe," which featured music by the Beatles, was nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe, while "Love" by Cirque de Soleil has been a successful show at the Mirage in Las Vegas for over six years now. Clearly, the Beatles are able to appeal to audiences far and wide throughout the ages, further establishing their greatness.