The Beatles are arguably the most imitated cultural icon to ever have existed. From a creative and aesthetic point of view, they revolutionised music, fashion and pop culture in a way that we had never been seen before, and that we’ve seldom seen since.
Some legend has put together a definitive collection of every Sgt. Pepper parody and imitation ever released, from the likes of Pink Floyd, the Sex Pistols, the Wiggles and Sesame Street.
But on a more specific level, they (and their artistic endeavours) have literally been replicated more times and in more ways that any other cultural figure in history.
Their songs have been covered more than any other artist, with thousands of renditions of songs like Yesterday, Something and Eleanor Rigby being put to record.
The artwork for Sgt. Pepper too is another example of their enduring influence over the popular culture. Literally dozens of reimaginings of the cover exist.
You’ve probably seen the sleeve of Frank Zappa/The Mothers of Invention’s satirical concept album We’re Only in It for the Money, which Zappa said was a “direct negative” of the Sgt. Pepper album cover (“[Sgt. Pepper] had blue skies … we had a thunderstorm”).
This is the tip of the iceberg.
Discogs user tusovski has put together an epic compilation of Sgt. Pepper parodies and imitations, spanning from The Simpsons’ Yellow Album, to a Pink Floyd bootleg box set called Lonely Hearts In Pepperland.
Some are direct imitations, others are obscure parodies (like Macabre’s 1993 death metal album Sinister Slaughter, which replaced the likes of Mae West and Gandhi with various serial killers and mass murderers).
See a bunch below and head here to check out more.
[via Dangerous Minds]
