George Harrison - "Beware of Darkness"

I first became aware of this song thanks to Concert for George, the 2003 concert film in tribute to George Harrison. His old pal Eric Clapton did a lovely version of "Beware of Darkness," which was one of the movie's highlights. The original is integral to a film coming out this weekend. I may have swooned.

'One to One: John & Yoko' Review

In the early 1970s, John Lennon and Yoko Ono were living in New York City, their creativity, advocacy and marriage all in full bloom. Kevin Macdonald's documentary One to One: John & Yoko seeks to encapsulate this era, including the benefit concert they performed at Madison Square Garden in 1972. My review of the film is here.

Why Do We Care If Actors Look Like Their Real-Life Subjects?

Inspired by the rumored casting news about the Beatles biopics, I decided to write an essay about our obsession with whether or not an actor resembles the real person they're playing. My argument: It matters less than we realize.

I Finally Saw 'Let It Be'

I never thought the Beatles would allow the 1970 documentary Let It Be to see the light of day after its initial release. Well, it's now on Disney+. I wrote about the film here.

The Beatles - "Now and Then"

As long as I don't have to watch the video ever again, I'm completely fine with this song existing.

Happy New Year, everyone.

I Finally Watched the 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' Movie

As a girl, my wife watched Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and she's always had a certain fondness for it since. I have never seen it. I rectified that this week, in honor of the Beatles' new song. Is the movie a train wreck? Yes and no, but mostly I found it really interesting. I wrote about it for Cracked.

'Paint' Isn't About Bob Ross (and Other Movies Very Clearly Based on Real People)

Owen Wilson's new comedy made me think of other films in which we know who the main character is supposed to be, even though the movie itself lightly fictionalizes that person. I did an analysis of these roman a clefs here.

The Long, Strange Journey of "With a Little Help From My Friends"

There's a new version of The Wonder Years on ABC's fall schedule. This, of course, made me think of the Joe Cocker theme song from the original, which of course was a cover of a Beatles song. Truly, "With a Little Help From My Friends" has gone through a few permutations over the years. I wrote about them for MEL.

Who Is Arthur Janov? And What Does He Have to Do With 'Plastic Ono Band'?

For GQ, I wrote about a man who's always fascinated me. In the late 1960s, a psychologist named Arthur Janov came up with what he called primal therapy, which involved patients accessing painful childhood memories. Now commonly referred to as primal scream therapy, the treatment appealed to John Lennon, who used it as inspiration for his first solo album, Plastic Ono Band. Here's that story.

The Best Grammy Wins

Happy Grammy Sunday, everyone. People like to mock the Academy for their terrible choices, but for MEL, I decided to acknowledge the times the voters got it right. Check it out here.

My Salute to "Wonderful Christmastime"

The song's great, and its history is interesting. I get into both over at MEL.

Earth, Wind & Fire - "Got to Get You Into My Life"

"You didn't know Earth, Wind & Fire covered that Beatles song?" -- Susan

"No, how have I never heard this?" -- me

George Harrison - "That's What It Takes"

Cloud Nine was a huge album for George Harrison thanks to its hit cover of "Got My Mind Set on You." The single "When We Was Fab" earned him six MTV Video Music Award nominations back when that actually meant something. But my favorite has always been this deep album cut.

Some Thoughts on 'Yesterday'

What does Yesterday get right about imposter syndrome?

Remember the Sgt. Pepper's movie?

And how expensive is it to license Beatles songs for your film?

I answer those questions, and more, over at MEL.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: The Best Movies of 2019 (So Far)

We've reached the halfway point of 2019, so it's time to look back at the first six months of the year. Will and I each select our six favorite films -- there's only one overlap -- and then we debate the relative merits of Yesterday. Finally, we look back at That Thing You Do! A very fun episode: You can hear the whole thing down below.

'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': 'Yesterday,' Creepy Dolls and 'Ophelia'

Yesterday, I headed over to the beautiful new offices of KCRW to talk about this weekend's movies alongside Alicia Malone. We reviewed Annabelle Comes Home, Ophelia and Yesterday. When the offerings are this so-so, you end up getting a little goofy, which is definitely what happened. Hear the whole thing here.

The Wonders - "That Thing You Do!"

"I was definitely a Beatles freak as a kid, and for a long time I only listened to the Beatles, especially when I was very young. As I got older, my tastes expanded, but the Beatles were certainly the starting point in terms of my entry into pop music, as they were for many people. Whenever I’m given [a writing] assignment like this, the first thing I do is ask a lot of questions, just to make sure that I understand the assignment correctly. Sometimes you’re given really good information, and other times it’s really shoddy. In this case, the information was incredibly good and specific, and I think that really helped me out a lot. They said it should sound like an American band that was blown away by the Beatles right after they arrived and was trying to imitate them." -- Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger recalling, in 2016, how he wrote the Oscar-nominated theme song to Tom Hanks' That Thing You Do!

Rock Music's Age Gap

In the 1960s, young people had Jagger, the Beatles and Dylan: young guys like themselves. In the '90s, it was Nirvana and Pearl Jam. But these days? Rock's biggest acts aren't in their 20s; they're older dudes like the folks in Foo Fighters. That changes a listener's relationship to the music he grows up loving. I wrote about it for MEL.

Siouxsie and the Banshees - "Dear Prudence"

Tomorrow is my wonderful wife's birthday. So many songs make me think of her ... even in roundabout ways. For instance, whenever I play the Beatles' "Dear Prudence," she mentions that she grew up being more familiar with the Siouxsie and the Banshees version. So, this goes out to her.

Is 'Sgt. Pepper' the Greatest Album Ever Made?

For MEL, I spent a little time musing about Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. It's long been considered the greatest album ever. Rather than debating that point, I decided to focus on what exactly the "greatest album ever" would even mean. I was really pleased with how this came out. You can read it here.