artifact selection

Alex Crawley           

LIT 3312

8/31/10

Artifact Selection Essay

            I have narrowed my choices for my artifact down to two interrelated subjects either The Beatles or more specifically Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.  The band revolutionized pop music and popular culture in general with the waves of ecstatic young girls and arenas filled with fans.  Sgt. Pepper’s was the band’s 8^th studio album and was released in June of 1967 after almost a year of recording and experimentation.  The album included samplings from numerous different styles and genres ranging from traditional jazz to Indian folk music.  The band members in the process of creating the album also created alter-egos for themselves who were intended to do the touring for them in a sense.  By the time the band released this album the Beatle-mania surrounding them had swelled to a tidal wave and more than anything the band wanted the music to speak for itself.  The cultural significance of The Beatles or more specifically Sgt. Pepper’s over forty years after the fact is apparent in the resurgence of the fan craze surrounding the band in recent years.  Whether it be the re-release of their catalog or Beatles Rock Band or the beautifully, psychedelic Julie Taymor musical Across the Universe it is possible to say that the band is as prominent now as it has ever been.  The Beatles changed so many aspects of not only popular culture but the nature of consumer culture and the way in which an artist can mediate their persona to the buying public.  Sgt. Pepper’s is significant in that regard because it can be considered one of if not the first concept album from start to finish with every aspect working in relation to create an encompassing feeling.  I would like to consider Sgt. Pepper’s cultural relevance not only at the time of its release but throughout the years and use it as a pop culture measuring stick.  Beginning with just the cover art the album smacks of detournement with its collage of numerous disparate characters from film, music and even psychiatry.