Playing with The White Album

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines ways the authors have taught the Beatles’ White Album in college classrooms. While it is possible to approach the work through the lens of satire and parody, another is to ask students to choose their favorite songs from the record to create a conventional single album, reducing its tracks from thirty to half that many. This exercise is fraught with difficulties but serves to reinforce several important lessons about artistic creation. By attempting to fill producer George Martin’s role, students learn how fearless the Beatles were and how the band’s original album--warts and all--is perhaps best left alone.