RIFFING
PAUL STANLEY
AND GENE SIMMONS
ON “IN MY LIFE” FROM
RUBBER SOUL BY
THE BEATLES
by John Stix
I
thought that Rubber Soul
was a turning point for The
Beatles. I remember picking
up the album and thinking oh,
they are acoustic. John had on
a suede, blue jean jacket and I
thought oh, they are becoming
Woodstock hip. The first time
I listened to the album I
remember thinking oh, these
are great songs. These can be
as sparse as they are. And the
writing is so brilliant that there
is more power because there is
less there. “Norwegian Wood,”
“In My Life” – if somebody
came in here now and sat with
a guitar and said, “listen to
what I just wrote,” you would
think the new Messiah had
come. It’s not about four guys
playing, or special effects, or
synthesizers, guitar wizardry,
two-handed technique, or any
of that nonsense. It’s about
a great song. Once again, it
shows that’s the bottom line.
The rest of it is nothing without
the great song. The great song
alone will stand by itself; but
the playing without a great
song is meaningless
12
DIGITAL EDITION
JUNE/JULY