The Beatles were on top of the world. Their last two studio albums, both titled Ziggy Stardust, were massive successes, and the world tour that followed was immensely well received. But now, starting in 1974, the Beatles were at a crossroads. David Bowie was willing to retire the Ziggy Stardust character in favor of something new, and their glam rock inspired sound was starting to get tired and old to the Beatles, as was usual of them. A new opportunity would come when George Orwell's estate allowed the Beatles to do a film adaptation of Nineteen Eighty-Four, one of Bowie's favorite novels. Before filming started, the Beatles would take the opportunity to write new songs for the film and its inevitable soundtrack album. However, before filming could begin, legal issues made it impossible for the film to be created, and it was scrapped. It was a massive blow to the band, but they now had a large amount of songs that could be put towards an album with its own identity.
Over a longer period of time, the album became Future Legend - Music from the Curiosity Shoppe, a nickname coined by John Lennon for the studio the band recorded in, and it was released on May 24, 1974. Compared to their previous works, this album was quite experimental and varied in terms of genre, harkening back to the White Album sessions of 1968. Whether you wanted the hard rockers, the ballads or even a country tune, the Beatles had you covered. The album was received very well, with critics pointing out this variability as a plus, although it wasn't received as well as the Ziggy Stardust albums. Retroactively, it would also be praised for its astounding production job, being done entirely by the band themselves. It was a good time to be a Beatles fan, with so much material being released.
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