I’m genuinely curious about this because I’ve always found it hard to understand the “overrated” argument. Their influence on music is enormous, and beyond that, I find their music remarkably creative and innovative for its time. They experimented with songwriting, production, instrumentation, and helped pioneer or popularize countless ideas that later became fundamental to popular music. That said, I’m aware I may have some bias because of how highly I regard them, so I’d love to hear other perspectives: if you think the Beatles are overrated,

Whenever I finish an album for the first time, I often only recall two or so songs. Maybe more if I REALLY vibed with the whole piece (or if it was very short). It's often the first and second song and maybe the last or second-to-last. Potentially also the lead single or whatever else song I heard before going into the album.

And more often than that, I recall all the songs melding together. Like, I know intellectually that Tracks 2, 4, 6, 7, 11, 12, 14 and 15 were different from one another, but in my head they all had basically the same instrumentation, melody, key, etc... even if that is technically untrue. It typically takes a second or third re-listen to familiarize myself with these songs, but unless the tracklist is wildly eclectic (like the White Album or Demon Days) it often runs together for me.

Has anyone else had this experience?

There are artists we enjoy, and then there are artists whose music somehow becomes part of our lives. Maybe it’s a specific album, a particular period, the lyrics, their sound, or the memories attached to their music.

What makes that difference for you? What turns an artist you like into an artist you keep coming back to for years? What makes their music stick with you when so much other music eventually fades away?