Bob Marley Vs The Beatles

My case in support of The Beatles being a superior musical group and being more influential than Bob Marley will consist of three contentions. Contention I will focus on the Beatles profoundly innovative, experimental song writing and musical collaborations. Contention II will focus on the Beatles relative success compared to Bob Marley and Contention III will focus on the social and philosophical aspects explored within the Beatles songbook. As per my opponent's request I will use this round only for introductory arguments and not for rebuttals.Also, due to the fact that I wrote the separate contentions at different times, the sources are divided between which contention they refer to. Sources under Contention II for example relate to the numbering of sources within Contention II and only within Contention II.Contention I. Innovation and Influence.Before the Beatles jumped on to the music scene, rock music had never seen a group innovate so many genres or take musical experimentation so far. On the innovation of music recording alone, the Beatles are notable not only for recording the first song on record utilizing guitar feedback (on the song "I Feel Fine"[C1], the first music group to use artificial double tracking[C2], and one of the first uses of backward recording[C3]. These are all techniques which came to have incredible influences on bands to come.Contention II. Relative success comparison.It certainly cannot be denied that the Beatles as a group are one of the most successful groups in modern music history. Every album released after 1964 by the group (15 albums not counting the another 3 albums before that time) went at least platinum in the U.S. with their self titled album going 19X platinum![C1] Compare this to the certification status of Bob Marey. Only one album released by Bob Marley went platinum, only 2X to be exact[C2]. Only five albums released by the Beatles failed to go platinum, compared with all but one of Bob Marley's. Obviously based on record sales alone, we can see that the Beatles were much more successful not only in their popularization of their music but in their popularity around the world.Of course, record sales alone are not enough to determine success. Let's see how the Beatles stand up against the critics. Rolling Stone Magazine in 2003 compiled a list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All time, "based on the votes of 273 rock musicians, critics, and industry figures"[C3]. The results speak for themselves. The Beatles were the clear winners with 4 albums within just the top ten (with ten of their twelve studio albums making the list[C4]), among them "The White Album", Rubber Soul, Revolver, and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Nand[C5]. The Beatles also did very nicely on various lists of the greatest artists of all time (#1 on the list)[C6], (also #1)[C7], (also #1)[C8]. Among these lists, Bob Marley never got past #9. The Beatles dwarf outweigh Bob Marley in terms of sales as well as critical reception.On a side note, it says quite a bit about the level of respect the Beatles receive from other critically successful music artists. Besides outright praise and claims of influence, many successful musicians have cited the Beatles as early inspiration. Dave Grohl states, "I never had a teacher, I just had these Beatles records. Even in Nirvana The Beatles were such a huge influence. Kurt loved The Beatles because it was just so simple. Well, it seemed simple, they sound easy to play, but you know what? They're hard."[C9] Of course, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery as they say. Critically successful musicians who have covered Beatles songs range from Eric Claption, Black Sabbath, Aerosmith, Johnny Cash, Jeff Beck, The Beach Boys, Bono, Pat Bentar, Nirvana, and even Metallica[C10].Contention III. Social and philosophical lyrical focus.The last contention which I will bring in my introductory arguments will be an analysis of the deep lyrical aspects of the Beatles songs. It's one thing that the Beatles profoundly influenced the methods used today to record songs and albums, however this would all be for nothing if the actual lyrical structure of their songs didn't hold some weight. You will not be disappointed. Consider the Beatles song "Within You Without You". At first glance one could pass it off as simply a song influenced by the Beatles famous experimentation with LSD. However, one would do well to remember George Harrison's involvement with and popularization of Hinduism. Harrison uses these concepts to explain the true oneness of the universe and the illusion of space between us. Consider these lyrics:We were talkingAbout the space between us allAnd the people who hide themselvesBehind a wall of illusionNever glimpse the truthThen it's far too lateWhen they pass awayFar from being the drug induced ramblings of a new age hippie, Harrison is communicating one of the central truths of Hinduism and many Eastern religions[C1]. Countless other Beatles songs contain within their lyrics profound themes relating to life and the world around us. Eleanor Rigby related to depression and loneliness, Let it Be provides advise for the downtrodden in an era muddled with strife and war, etc. etc. etc. Not only did the Beatles create music so aesthetically pleasing so as to appeal to huge numbers of people, but they were simultaneously able to communicate deep personal ideas about philosophy and the human experience.===Sources===CI Sources[1] http://en.wikipedia.org...[2] http://www.wired.com...[3] http://en.wikipedia.org...(The_Beatles_song)#cite_note-FOOTNOTEThe_Beatles2000212-6CII Sources[1] http://www.riaa.org...[2] http://en.wikipedia.org...[3] http://en.wikipedia.org...[4] http://www.usatoday.com...[5] http://www.rollingstone.com...[6] http://www.rollingstone.com... (Rolling Stone)[7] http://stereogum.com... (VH1)[8] http://today.msnbc.msn.com... (TODAY)[9] http://www.live4ever.uk.com...[10] http://en.wikipedia.org...CIII Sources[1] http://hinduism.ygoy.com...