Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite

"Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite" is the seventh track off The Beatles 1967 album "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and is one of the greatest showcases of their inventiveness and pursuit for new musical ideas. After being inspired by an antique circus poster, John Lennon created the song with a circus atmosphere/feel. After previous popular music of the 1960s, it was time for new sounds and methods. This resulted in a different treatment of music elements such as rhythm and new recording techniques, all of which are evidence of the inventiveness of "Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite".

Recording techniques featured new methods for "Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite" which helped create new musical ideas. After the initial recording, the tape was cut into pieces, thrown in the air and reassembled at random. This not only helped create an interesting structure but a circus atmosphere and a modern sound. (Julien, 2009, pg.9) New organ effects and sounds were also used in the accompaniment, evidence of the inventiveness within "Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite".

The rhythm is inventive in "Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite" when compared to a lot of popular music of the 1960s. Often the metre is set for the whole piece, although this is the case with "Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite", The Beatles are able to create a sense of metre change from 4/4 to 3/4 (example.1). This may also have been because of The Beatles Indian influence, which is evident in the change from the verse to the first bridge, through the use of triplets carried by the bass, accordion and organ. (Winter, 1992, pg.53) This also helps create the circus atmosphere and creates an element of surprise common to all circus acts.

"Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite" shows The Beatles inventiveness and pursuit of new musical ideas. This is evident in their Indian influences, new recording techniques and false sense of metre change. This all helped create a circus atmosphere/feel and is one of the greatest showcases of The Beatles Inventiveness.

Bibliography:

Julien, Olivier, 01/07/2009, Sgt. Pepper and The Beatles: It Was Forty Years Ago Today, Hampshire, Ashgate Publishing House

Winter, Robert, 11/01/1992, Music for our Time: Volume 1, USA, Wadsworth Publishing Company

Lewisohn, Mark, 1990, The Beatles Recording Sessions, New York, Harmony Books