# Does this song by 70's band America sound like the Beatles? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [June 11, 2021, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050 "2021-06-11T14:56:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2021, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/21 "2021-06-11T22:14:29Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > To me, the song sounds more like Bread, but I’m no expert on the Beatles’ chord progressions. The deployment of a dominant-7th chord at :32 in the OP’s song is indeed a Beatles-esque feature to have in a ballad. Other than that I don’t think there’s any particularly distinctive Beatles influence on the song. But it’s funny that you should mention Bread. “Baby I’m A Want You” always reminded me, not of the Beatles but specifically of George Harrison. The bridge and the simple but tasteful guitar solo most especially. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/22 "2021-06-11T22:39:02Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Back in the day (read: pre-disco), I would’ve sworn [this one by the BeeGees](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3YC5sc_V6I) (especially the opening two verses) was the Fab Four. I knew what song this was before clicking on it. Decades ago a friend insisted that this was the Beatles. I knew better. We bet $5. He never admitted he was wrong, and never paid up. I just re-connected with him on Facebook; should I demand my $5 with or without interest? mmm ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2021, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/23 "2021-06-11T23:16:25Z")
^ I’d settle for the _fin_ and inform (read: shame) him that when my kid sister was 6 years old, she bet me a quarter on a John Denver lyric that she was, of course, wrong about. I told her to keep her two bits but she insisted on making good and stuffed that coin in my hand. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2021, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/24 "2021-06-12T14:42:25Z")
> [@digs](#): > > “Baby I’m Amazed” It’s “_Maybe_ I’m Amazed.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/25 "2021-06-13T08:36:41Z")
It reminds me more of _Our House_ by CSNY. The piano technique is reminiscent of some Beatles songs and there were a couple of bits that reminded me of _Something_, overall I got a CSNY vibe though. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/26 "2021-06-13T09:11:47Z")
I was just going to say _Our House_. I’m a Beatles obsessive, and I’m also obsessed with America’s first album (which is titled _America_), upon which this song appears. I can see the brief resemblance with _Something_ but otherwise I’ve never thought this was like a Beatles song. Do have a listen to the rest of the album, it’s fantastic even in the original listing that lacks _A Horse With Name_. Years ago a friend turned me on to the stark weirdness of _Clarice_ and _Donkey Jaw_, I also love _Three Roses_. Would anyone agree that their guitar playing is better than that of Crosby Stills and Nash? ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/27 "2021-06-13T10:19:01Z")
The song from the OP does not remind me of Lennon/McCartney or Harrison. There’s no humor, no edge, the voice is sheep-like, the lyrics tend toward cliche. The verse has a good melody and okay lyrics, but the _I Need You_ chorus is annoyingly bland, lyrically and melodically. The Beatles almost never settled for blandly pretty. ---
**Author:** ![Keith1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@Keith1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith1)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/28 "2021-06-13T12:58:19Z")
The Knickerbockers sounded like The Beatles. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/BH9YRpz757Y/maxresdefault.jpg "Knickerbockers - Lies (Rare clip) [HD video][2].mp4") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH9YRpz757Y) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/29 "2021-06-13T13:03:22Z")
I don’t anything about chords and measures but the opening is clearly Beatles-like. That doesn’t mean that much, it’s a few notes. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/30 "2021-06-13T13:03:41Z")
> [@Keith1](#): > > The Knickerbockers sounded like The Beatles They sounded like they were trying to be carbon copies of the Beatles. BTW, why bring a musical instrument out on stage if you aren’t even going to _pretend_ to play it? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/31 "2021-06-13T14:16:18Z")
^ No mics, either, and I don’t think the guitarist is plugged in, to boot. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/32 "2021-06-13T15:48:23Z")
He kept hitting the side of that sax like it was a keyboard. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/33 "2021-06-13T16:27:23Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > The piano technique is reminiscent of some Beatles songs and there were a couple of bits that reminded me of _Something_ , overall I got a CSNY vibe though. Virtually word by word my impression. Caught the _Something_ parallel in the verse too. Though for the time period and genre, one would pretty much find it impossible to not find cross-influence with such pervasive forces as the Beatles/CSNY (as wholes or as individuals). Or for that matter to have yet someone else have influenced all three. Of course, as the Knickerbockers exemplify, there are always cts or producers who don’t just go for “influenced” but for “replicated”. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > BTW, why bring a musical instrument out on stage if you aren’t even going to _pretend_ to play it? Hey, if you don’t even have a mic, ya gotta give the guy something to do with his hands. Gotta give it to those 60s/early 70s TV shows that were so shameless about it being all lip synch. ---
**Author:** ![Keith1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@Keith1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith1)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/34 "2021-06-13T16:55:37Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > BTW, why bring a musical instrument out on stage if you aren’t even going to _pretend_ to play it? That’s the way it was in those days. All the popular shows like American Bandstand, Shindig etc were mimed. Most musicians didn’t like it (the good ones at least). Some would go out of their way to convey how fake it was. It’s just how it was. Either fake it or you don’t get on the show. And getting on the show meant loads of publicity . . . Recall too that many of the hits were actually recorded in the studio by pros (professional musicians), so it was probably to their benefit that they got to mime along to the recording. The kids ate it up, as they do these days to videos by popular celebrity performers & such. Not that much has changed in this regard. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/35 "2021-06-13T16:57:45Z")
> [@Keith1](#): > > That’s the way it was in those days. All the popular shows like American Bandstand, Shindig etc were mimed. I know that…but this dude wasn’t even miming it-He didn’t even lift up the sax and put it to his lips. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/36 "2021-06-13T17:03:14Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > He kept hitting the side of that sax like it was a keyboard. Oh, since there was no sax in the song, maybe it’s like a Keytar, only it’s a Keyophone… (a tenor keyophone, only two octaves, by the look of it). ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2021, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/37 "2021-06-14T01:12:02Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I know that…but this dude wasn’t even miming it-He didn’t even lift up the sax and put it to his lips. If we go by Wikipedia, it _was_ his instrument in the band. So we would have to believe that when actually doing a live show he’d anyway have it slung on him even during songs without a sax part, rather than put it on a stand. ---
**Author:** ![Keith1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@Keith1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith1)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2021, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/38 "2021-06-14T01:49:40Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > He didn’t even lift up the sax and put it to his lips. Oh. Hah,hah. I only watched about 5 seconds of it. I just knew of the song and Googled it. I’d presume he had nothing but disdain for having to BS his way through the song. Can’t say I blame him really 😉 Also; and maybe someone has mentioned this already but I can’t be bothered searching. When The Guess Who first came out with their original singer, Chad Allan I believe, there was some speculation that it could have been The Beatles. Not because of the sound so much as the mystery implied by the name (Guess Who). ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2021, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/39 "2021-06-14T04:27:50Z")
The Knickerbockers were chameleons. As far as I know “Lies” and “One Track Mind” are their only songs that sound remotely like a Beatles song. Their other stuff runs the gamut from sounding like the Four Seasons to the Righteous Brothers. Their cover of “All Day and all of the Night” is easily mistaken for the original Kinks version. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2021, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050/40 "2021-06-14T09:31:00Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > > [@Czarcasm](#): > > > > I know that…but this dude wasn’t even miming it-He didn’t even lift up the sax and put it to his lips. > > If we go by Wikipedia, it _was_ his instrument in the band. So we would have to believe that when actually doing a live show he’d anyway have it slung on him even during songs without a sax part, rather than put it on a stand. It could be he just doesn’t feel comfortable without the instrument. Something to “hide behind”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-song-by-70s-band-america-sound-like-the-beatles/944050.md?page=3)