''The Black Album'' (stylised as ''The BLACK ALBUM'') is an unofficial

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

of solo material by members of the British rock group The Beatles. It was created by the American actor Ethan Hawke, and became widely known as a result of its inclusion in

Richard Linklater Richard Stuart Linklater (; born July 30, 1960) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is known for films that revolve mainly around suburban culture and the effects of the passage of time. His films include the comedies '' ...

's 2014 film '' Boyhood''. Hawke compiled the record to give to his daughter Maya on her 13th birthday in 2011, including personalised liner notes; it was then incorporated into ''Boyhood'' in scenes shot later that year, with Hawke's character giving it to his son as a birthday present. The compilation contains 51 tracks from Beatles members following the band's breakup in 1970. Critical reaction to ''The Black Album'' was generally positive: '' The Desert Sun'' described it as "a great listen", while '' USA Today'' called it "quite a compilation". In an analysis for the ''

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'', Jim Farber suggested that the record was "a metaphor for divorce".

Concept

A lifelong fan of the Beatles, Hawke compiled ''The Black Album'' for his daughter Maya following his divorce from her mother Uma Thurman, and presented it to her on her 13th birthday on 8 July 2011. The record consisted of 51 songs from the Beatles' members following their breakup in 1970. John Lennon had 19 songs on the compilation from his solo career and his collaborations with the Plastic Ono Band, Paul McCartney had 20 from his solo career and his collaborations with Wings and

Linda McCartney Linda Louise McCartney, Lady McCartney ( Eastman; September 24, 1941 – April 17, 1998) was an American photographer, musician, animal rights activist, vegetarian cookbook author and advocate, and entrepreneur. She was the keyboardist in th ...

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

had seven songs from his solo career, and

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

had four. Additionally, the song "

Real Love Real Love may refer to: Film and television * ''Real Love'' (film), a film by Claire Burger Music Albums * ''Real Love'' (Derek Johnson album) * ''Real Love'' (Dolly Parton album), or the title song (see below) * ''Real Love'' (Lisa Stansf ...

"—a Lennon demo reworked and overdubbed by McCartney, Harrison and Starr for the compilation '' Anthology 2''—was included on ''The Black Album''. Included with the three-disc collection was a set of liner notes in the form of a personalised letter from Hawke to his daughter, explaining his motivation for creating the album.

Usage in ''Boyhood''

Since 2002, Hawke had been starring in ''Boyhood'', an ongoing 12-year film project directed by the American director

. ''Boyhood'' chronicles the life of Mason Evans ( Ellar Coltrane) from the ages of six to 18, with scenes shot each year between 2002 and 2013. Hawke portrays Mason's father, Mason Evans Sr. While filming scenes in 2011 for Mason's 15th birthday, Linklater decided to incorporate ''The Black Album'' into the film, by having Mason Sr. gift the compilation to his son as a birthday present. In the film, Mason Sr. explains: "Whenever you listen to too much of the solo stuff it kind of becomes a drag, you know? But you put them next to each other, right, and they start to elevate each other. And then you can hear it: it's the Beatles." He describes the record as being the "perfect segue" of solo Beatles material. During promotion of the film, Linklater was asked at a Q&A in Chicago if the album actually existed. Linklater confirmed that it did, and explained that he and Hawke were looking for a way to distribute its full track listing to the public. Hawke eventually revealed the track listing and an adaptation of its liner notes on 21 July 2014 in an exclusive article for the website

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Reception

Critical reaction to Hawke's compilation was generally positive. In an analysis of ''The Black Album'', Jim Farber of the ''New York Daily News'' suggested that the record was "a metaphor for divorce", and noted that Hawke had selected tracks that were recorded as the Beatles' members were approaching maturity and writing songs about more mature subject matter. Trey Barrineau of ''USA Today'' said the album was "quite a compilation", while Peter Howell of the ''

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'' called it "unique". ''The Desert Sun'' described it as "a great listen" and were inspired to create their own shorter version of the album, which featured only 12 tracks consisting of solo material from 1970 to 1971.

Track listing

References

External links