Imagine, the Beatles at live aid.

[blazer]

a couple of days ago a friend of mine and me got into a discussion about what would've happened if John Lennon had not been murdered and the Fab Four would've reunited to play on Live Aid 1985 in the same vein that Pink Floyd reunited on Live8 last year.

what songs do you think they would've played, which extra musicians would they have used and what kind of gear would they have played on?

Our suggestion on what songs they would've played were "All you need is love", "Let it be" and probably a rocker from their early days such as "I saw her standing there" or "she loves you".

as for extra musicians we both agreed that would've been likely that they had Billy Preston on keys And Klaus Voorman on bass when Paul would play Piano on "let it be" and a horn section and a string section.

As for gear we looked at what the Beatle members were using in the eighties.

John Probably would've used his Les Paul Junior with his Epiphone casino as a backup through fender amps as was his main set up in the seventies.

George probably would've used either his white strat or Red Les Paul also through Fender amps.

Paul would've played his Rickenbacker 4001 or his Yamaha Bass through either his Vox AC100 bass amp or his Mesa Boogie bass amps and cabs.

As for Ringo, he would've played a Ludwig drumkit.

So what do you guys suggest, what would you think the Fab Four would've done if they had played Live Aid?

[simer4001]

Why extra players? I thought they were pretty good by themselves.

[sloop_john_b]

But surely for a song like "All You Need is Love", other musicians are needed, unless they chose to go with a sparse live arrangement.

[linganstan]

what if they chose to do a few of each others tunes instead of beatle material...........all four could have contributed tunes...........or maybe they would have done a set of covers.....or perhaps some new material....??

[congerz83]

I love these "what if?" threads

[expomick]

What if Paul had been the one fatally shot? He wouldn't have written so many ****** songs since 1980, thus would his post-Beatles' image be less tarnished? Would John have tried to revise some of the Beatles' history on their self-produced mid-90's documentary? Who would Heather be fighting with now?

What if George stubbed his toe so badly that he couldn't play the Australian tour? Would Eric Clapton have sat in, along with Jimmy Nicol? Would Brian Epstein have had to have broken the news to George that he was out of the band?

What if Oprah got a drum-set for Christmas when she was eight? What if North Korea put itself up for sale on e-bay? What if the British actually put some real effort into the 1775 rebellion over in the Colonies? What if there weren't any hanging chads? What if cows could fly?

What if I stop now?

[shamustwin]

What if John had had the money to buy a strat like his hero Buddy Holly while in Hamburg?

[lawton]

Now you've done it -- THE NERVE!!! ...to suggest that the purchase of V81 was merely a matter of convenience because it was the best American made guitar in the shop!!!

<gasp>

[8mileshigher]

This is a great thread !! Mick has a great sense of humor. Regards Rich F.

[simer4001]

Mick, That is a good question. His solo output in the early 70's was pretty rough. Only now is "McCartney" considered a good album. But "McCartney, Ram, Wild Life and Red Rose Speedway" were nothing like anything he had done with the Beatles. "Band on the Run and Venus and Mars" were improvements, but after that by 1980 his solo stuff was below par again. My question is do people forget some of the **** Lennon put out in the 1970's? I think where his image stays intact is the anthem songs he wrote. Those songs are timeless.

[lawton]

Single pigeon, through the railings, did she throw you out...

[expomick]

Brian, good points. I confess that while I often "bash" Macca, he was my hero when I was 12. Thus, I have a fondness for Band On The Run, Venus and Mars, Wings At The Speed of Sound, Wings Over America and even Back To The Egg...never cared much for London Town.

Richard, you are a kind man. I am forwarding your comments to my lovely wife, who doesn't agree!

[expomick]

One other thing...Ram is actually my favourite McCartney album, Venus and Mars a close second. Don't know why really, just love the mood of Ram. Reminds me of autumn...probably when I first heard it.

[simer4001]

I think Ram has great melodies. I thought London Town had some great melodies too. "Don't Let it Bring You Down" is a fine song. I always felt that Tug of War was a more polished London Town. Perhaps he took it more seriously with George Martin producing the album.

[westtexasrickenbacker]

I heard Paulie's newest CD yesterday and it is.... not outstanding. I'm a huge fan and feel somewhat disloyal for writing that, but by his Beatle standards and the occasional #1 hit with Wings, (People forget that he tied Elton John for artist with the most #1 hits in the 70s), most of his post-80's stuff is not dynamic and the melodies are not catchy like they used to be. Even his instrumental work, particularly the creative bass parts, aren't what they once were.

I've read various biographies of both classical and pop composers and they all seem to have a "hot period" where their work was strongest and best. Conversely, most seemed to lose the fire and their later years stuff is not nearly so strong. It's even mediocre by their previous standards.

Going back to Paul, by 40, he had written so many classic melodies and monster songs that I wonder, perhaps a talented composer only has so many of those pearls in them and that's it.

I'll tell you though, since John was coming out of his 5 year funk, and if they somehow could have patched things up without killing each other, I wonder if a renewed partnership could have breathed new magic into their collective writing.