Favorite Beatle/Beatles Album

[SHOELUVRSIS]

This is a thread to broaden my horizons with the Beatles, hope you'll join in.
I want to know your favorite Beatles album/favorite beatle and why.
do not forget why!
top 3 at the very most!

I say Abbey Road is my fave simply because when i heard
I want you (shes so heavy) i was blown away by the song's extremely way before its time quality.
mind you i was born years AFTER its release.


thanks ahead of time,
oh and my fave was always Paul but as of late its been John all the way,
damn he was hot back back in the day!

lots of older people i know tell me there faves due to memories it brings and whatnot - although im glad to be younger, i'm sorry i missed the Beatles invasion!

[love2sing]

I was about 6 years old when I remember seeing them The Ed Sullivan show. John Lennon was always my favorite. At the time it was because all my little 6 year old girlfriends liked Paul. I felt I had to be different! John is still my favorite and Randy Jackson's "Lullaby" is one of my favorite songs. It's a beautiful tribute to John Lennon.
As for favorite album, there are too many to choose from. I don't think there is a Beatles song that I don't like. The Beatles are among a rare few who have had a phenomenal impact on music history.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

I was about 6 years old when I remember seeing them The Ed Sullivan show. John Lennon was always my favorite. At the time it was because all my little 6 year old girlfriends liked Paul. I felt I had to be different! John is still my favorite and Randy Jackson's "Lullaby" is one of my favorite songs. It's a beautiful tribute to John Lennon.
As for favorite album, there are too many to choose from. I don't think there is a Beatles song that I don't like. The Beatles are among a rare few who have had a phenomenal impact on music history.

wow! you saw them on EdSullivan!
thats real good stuff!
i know they have got some really different stuff - all better than the next
for different reasons.
i've got a friend who thinks abbey road is lacking in that it was so far from
their original stuff.
this guy is a big fan and basically locked himself in his bedroom and didnt come out for like 5 days after Lennon was shot - how horrible, he
often says Lennon was my Kurt, and wont talk about Lennons murder.

[macca]

When the Sullivan showed aired it was 8 days before my 5th birthday. Strange, this is one thing of my youth I REALLY remember. The buzz all around about this *event*. They had to do something right --- 73 million people tuned in!

Throughout the Beatles career, they were innovators and trailblazers. Styles, instruments, techniques. Me picking a favorite Beatles album is indeed hard, I like them all. BUT.....I'd have to narrow it down to Revolver and Abbey Road. By Revolver, I'm referring to the foreign pressings, not the US version(that one was cut down to make more product....all albums before Pepper were). Sgt. Pepper might have been a great concept album, but the buzz on Revolver was incredible. Abbey Road --- their final album as a group was them working as a unit with minimal studio tricks. Also, the first album to use a MOOG synthesizer. No backwards tapes, sound effects, just The Beatles doing what they did best...play rock and roll. I know....Let It Be came out after Abbey Road, but it was finished way before Abbey Road started and stayed on the shelf for 18 months.

My favorite Beatle......just look at my nickname on this board. However, the older I get, I appreciate John that much more. His wit, cynical turn on things, he is truly missed. When he got shot, it shocked me. I went to work the following day in a daze and totally numb. He was a spokesman for our generation and his(and the band's) influence cannot be measured.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

the influence cannot be measured is true,
but john didnt feel that way at all,
from what ive read (and you cant believe everything you read),
john didnt consider the beatles so "wonderous", as many do,he sites Elvis
and others, before the Beatles.
if you have never read "all we are saying"
(the final interview with john and yoko before his death)
you will like him even more!
and i personally was shocked and astounded by
how he downplayed the beatles influence on rock n'roll
one of the best reads ever!

thanks for your input!

[shoeluvr]

sorry to say, I never liked the beatles until I was an adult. Our parents played "the oldies" and I never even heard a lot of their stuff until I met Greg. Now I love them, (and I'm paying A LOT) for Paul McCartney (ssshhhh, its a suprise) tickets because Greg is the biggest fan I know, (besides Macca!) Thats actually how we met Macca, he was wearing a Beatles Tee and Greg noticed him. And them, we were visiting Strawberry field sand Yoko walked right past us, snd smiled to my kids. It was very cool!!! and Greg says my parents should be brought up on child neglect charges for not exposing us to the Beatles as kids.

[macca]

Its amazing they came out of the 1960's alive. NO privacy whatsoever, working like dogs on the road. Some life: Get on a plane, have a press conference(in most stops), go to hotel. Go to venue, do show, go back to hotel. Wake up....REPEAT. In a typical month, they *might* have a day off. No, they weren't monks, BUT.......with all that travel, they didn't enjoy it at all. Toss in the fact they didn't have the sound systems of today(PA system, monitors on stage to hear themselves, is it a wonder why they just got fed up with touring?

John had always said "I won't be singing She Loves You" when I'm 30". How right he was. The simple fact is....THEY GREW UP. They wanted a life for themselves. Be thankful they were together(collectively JPGR) for 8 years, some bands don't make it out of the gate.

My only wonder is this: How would John be today had he lived? As *unpolitically correct* as he was, what would happen? I would have loved to found out. Having a conversation would have been VERY interesting.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

wouldnt it though?
i remember him saying 'everyones loafing around, enjoying their youth,
while we worked 24/7, i missed my youth"
very sad, all the money in the world is not worth something like that.....
surprised he/they stayed at it, since they did it, couldnt have been that bad,
or maybe it was just the time??

[malja316]

I like the Beatles, but you all are bigger fans of them than I am...BUt if I had to pick one record as my fave, its gonna be Sgt Pepper...I could only imagine at the time this record came out how blown away everyone was...

[mark]

My vote goes for White Album first and then Abbey Road.
Paul was alwaysb the favorite beatle of mine. Partially because I liked alot of his solo stuff more then the other members solo stuff.
Though George Harrison's Dark Horse was also an awesome album.

[mark]

The Asian Long horned Beetle that devours trees in the tri-state area. These beetles always have a woody!

[SHOELUVRSIS]

The Asian Long horned Beetle that devours trees in the tri-state area. These beetles always have a woody!

eewwww!

[chinarain62]

My fave Beatle has always been Ringo and I have no idea why! Maybe it was a subliminal message that some day I would marry a drummer!

[macca]

Listen to "Early 1970" and you'll get your answer Gina! :D

[rushtrader]

My favorites and their reasons tend to change with time, but I can tell you what they are now:

(1) Abbey Road. The Beatles had just come through a miserable set of session for ther Get Back project (later Let It Be) in which nothing was going well and their inter-personal relationships were at an all-time low. They came back into the studio in 1970 and put together this amazing album of material that really has no low point at all.

(2) The White Album. For the longest time this was my least favorite album. Then a few years ago I got to meet and become friends with 2 people who changed my outlook on this period in The Beatles life at this tiem and made me understand the music and where it was coming from. One was a gentleman by the name of Paul Saltzman who ended up on the Ashram in India with them. Paul took an amazing set of pictures ( http://www.thebeatlesinrishikesh.com/thebook/thebook.html ) and the long talks and explanations he has given about his time there and the pictures are outstanding.

The second person is Donovan Leitch. I always vaguely knew of a 60s singer by the name of Donovan. Then suddenly I found my self in a position to get to kow him and chat with him. It was he who taught Paul and John the finger picking that was to play so prominent a part in the songs of that era and his influence on them that helped them with many of those songs.

Add to that the fact that this album has more George Harrison material on it than any other Beatles release and you have a great compilation

(3) Rubber Soul / Revolver. These need to be treated as a double album. There is really no way to distinguish between the musical influences in the two and they seem to flow from one to the other with ease. The Beatles were at their peak of creativity in 1966. You can hear then mature from the the simple love balads of the early sixties into amazing composers with a subtlety and dynamic that few have ever reached.

So there you go. Hope you enjoy them! Five minutes for rebuttal...

[chinarain62]

Listen to "Early 1970" and you'll get your answer Gina! :D


Hmmmmmm!!! I will have to do that!

I was 2 when the Beatles were on Ed Sullivan, so I acutally missed out, but I did grow up watching the show and I loved it.

My mom had kept a journal about how I used to dance to Beatles music when I was a toddler, so it proves to me that I was destined to be the rock -n- roll diva that I am!!! And, I appreciate the journal she kept on my early years so much more now that she has passed away.

[macca]

Great write RT, but I have to disagree with the White Album, but only in the fact I don't honestly classify this as a group effort. By the time they came back from retreat, the wounds were really starting to open, and each Beatle brought in their own "session people" to cut their track(s).

Meeting Donovan and Paul Saltzman....that is what I miss about going to the 'Fests.

BTW....did you watch the "John Lennon Jukebox" on PBS?

[The Doork]

I don't know if you, SLS, have any Beatles in your collection yet, but I'd say start out with Revolver.

Revolver is the true bridge that joins both sides of their career. While not as trippy as Sgt. Pepper's..., Revolver is when they began to experiment with the horn sections, strings, and using the studio itself to reshape their sound ("Tomorrow Never Knows, "Eleanor Rigby", "Yellow Submarine"). But it also does not completely abondon The Beatles' poppy, uptempo side, either ("Got To Get You Into My Life", "I Want To Tell You") and isn't too heavily weighty with over-production.

Of course, it depends which era of the Beatles you prefer. Seems that you have the ones who love the mop top era, while others swear by the Sgt. Pepper and on albums. But Revolver is a perfect middle ground. That's where I started.

Just so you know, while Let It Be was their last release, Abbey Road was the Beatles' last album together. :confused: ? Let It Be was taped sometime in 1968 (I think), shelved, and later released in 1970. And Abbey Road was put out in 1969.

My favorite album? Probably the White Album. A friend and I just played it one evening while lazing about the house and were both floored on how great the Beatles were in their simplicity, melodies and structure. It was so other-worldly and made me feel like a pillar of shit because I knew that I could never come up with anything that simple and that timeless.

We were very high at the time, but that had nothing to do with it, I swear!

[SHOELUVRSIS]

My favorites and their reasons tend to change with time, but I can tell you what they are now:

(1) Abbey Road. The Beatles had just come through a miserable set of session for ther Get Back project (later Let It Be) in which nothing was going well and their inter-personal relationships were at an all-time low. They came back into the studio in 1970 and put together this amazing album of material that really has no low point at all.

(2) The White Album. For the longest time this was my least favorite album. Then a few years ago I got to meet and become friends with 2 people who changed my outlook on this period in The Beatles life at this tiem and made me understand the music and where it was coming from. One was a gentleman by the name of Paul Saltzman who ended up on the Ashram in India with them. Paul took an amazing set of pictures ( http://www.thebeatlesinrishikesh.com/thebook/thebook.html ) and the long talks and explanations he has given about his time there and the pictures are outstanding.

The second person is Donovan Leitch. I always vaguely knew of a 60s singer by the name of Donovan. Then suddenly I found my self in a position to get to kow him and chat with him. It was he who taught Paul and John the finger picking that was to play so prominent a part in the songs of that era and his influence on them that helped them with many of those songs.

Add to that the fact that this album has more George Harrison material on it than any other Beatles release and you have a great compilation

(3) Rubber Soul / Revolver. These need to be treated as a double album. There is really no way to distinguish between the musical influences in the two and they seem to flow from one to the other with ease. The Beatles were at their peak of creativity in 1966. You can hear then mature from the the simple love balads of the early sixties into amazing composers with a subtlety and dynamic that few have ever reached.

So there you go. Hope you enjoy them! Five minutes for rebuttal...


no rebuttal from me, i'm open and thankful for everyones opinions/thoughts!
lover of Abbey Road, i only own The White Album and Let It Be
in addition to that.
i do not care for either as much as i do Abbey Road. i have been hearing so
much about rubber soul and revovler that i will get my hands on both
and hope i wont be disappointed (a lot of people ive spoken to site the white album as thier fave and for whatever reason i dont share thier love for it)
cant wait to check out rubbersoul/revolver, wonderful music waits to be exposed!

[SHOELUVRSIS]

I don't know if you, SLS, have any Beatles in your collection yet, but I'd say start out with Revolver.

Revolver is the true bridge that joins both sides of their career. While not as trippy as Sgt. Pepper's..., Revolver is when they began to experiment with the horn sections, strings, and using the studio itself to reshape their sound ("Tomorrow Never Knows, "Eleanor Rigby", "Yellow Submarine"). But it also does not completely abondon The Beatles' poppy, uptempo side, either ("Got To Get You Into My Life", "I Want To Tell You") and isn't too heavily weighty with over-production.

Of course, it depends which era of the Beatles you prefer. Seems that you have the ones who love the mop top era, while others swear by the Sgt. Pepper and on albums. But Revolver is a perfect middle ground. That's where I started.


My favorite album? Probably the White Album. A friend and I just played it one evening while lazing about the house and were both floored on how great the Beatles were in their simplicity, melodies and structure. It was so other-worldly and made me feel like a pillar of shit because I knew that I could never come up with anything that simple and that timeless.

We were very high at the time, but that had nothing to do with it, I swear!


haha!
see my above post and i thank you for your thoughts and advice!
very cool! :cool:

[SHOELUVRSIS]

My mom had kept a journal about how I used to dance to Beatles music when I was a toddler, so it proves to me that I was destined to be the rock -n- roll diva that I am!!! And, I appreciate the journal she kept on my early years so much more now that she has passed away.

thats really a wonderful momento, and a great idea!
rock on diva!

[rushtrader]

no rebuttal from me, i'm open and thankful for everyones opinions/thoughts!
lover of Abbey Road, i only own The White Album and Let It Be
in addition to that.
i do not care for either as much as i do Abbey Road. i have been hearing so
much about rubber soul and revovler that i will get my hands on both
and hope i wont be disappointed (a lot of people ive spoken to site the white album as thier fave and for whatever reason i dont share thier love for it)
cant wait to check out rubbersoul/revolver, wonderful music waits to be exposed!

The White Album is certainly an acquired taste. The music is excellent, but in many cases quite minimalist. If you make your own copy and pull out revolution #9 and replace it with "Not Guilty", from George's later solo career but written during this time period, it flows even better.

Grab Rubber Soul and Revolver definitely. After that you might want to get Sgt. Pepper. If you think about the music of the time, even the Beatles music beforehand (She Loves You, A Hard Day's Night) you will see exactly what The Beatles did to popular music at the time and the new direction that they helped push it in.

You need to remember when listening to this music that nothing like it existed beforehand. You might listen to it now and hear other songs by other bands in your head, but you need to keep in mind that this was all groundbreaking stuff. Sitars had never been used before. Guitar distortion was unheard of.

There is a famous story of Jimi Hendrix being so blown away by Sgt. Pepper that he opened his concert with it the night it was released! So don't JUST listen to the music in the context of today's music, although it does hold up well. Listen to it remembering that nothing like it had ever been heard before and that it was put out by these 4 heartthrob guys who had been writing love ballads and acting in cheesy rock & roll movies (Hard Day's Night, Help!) beforehand.

RT

[macca]

A footnote to "Not Guilty" -- they did 100 takes of this and still shelved the song. Like RT said, George put it out on "George Harrison".

[SHOELUVRSIS]

[QUOTE=rushtrader]The White Album is certainly an acquired taste. The music is excellent, but in many cases quite minimalist. If you make your own copy and pull out revolution #9 and replace it with "Not Guilty", from George's later solo career but written during this time period, it flows even better.

Grab Rubber Soul and Revolver definitely. After that you might want to get Sgt. Pepper. If you think about the music of the time, even the Beatles music beforehand (She Loves You, A Hard Day's Night) you will see exactly what The Beatles did to popular music at the time and the new direction that they helped push it in.

You need to remember when listening to this music that nothing like it existed beforehand. You might listen to it now and hear other songs by other bands in your head, but you need to keep in mind that this was all groundbreaking stuff. Sitars had never been used before. Guitar distortion was unheard of.

So don't JUST listen to the music in the context of today's music, although it does hold up well. Listen to it remembering that nothing like it had ever been heard before and that it was put out by these 4 heartthrob guys who had been writing love ballads and acting in cheesy rock & roll movies (Hard Day's Night, Help!) beforehand.

thanx rt!
i will - when i listened to Abbey thats exactly what i did and i think thats why i was so impressed
after revolver andrubber soul i will get sgt peppers,
but what about "bus bus magic bus?" haha i know thats the who but beatles have a bus album magical mystery bus tour ? idunno :o
what do you think of that as lets say compared to sgt peppers?

[SHOELUVRSIS]

A footnote to "Not Guilty" -- they did 100 takes of this and still shelved the song. Like RT said, George put it out on "George Harrison".

thanx macca!
Paul was always my fave too, i think b/c he was always smiling
and happy! but like you i have leaned towards johhny boy as
i grow older.

[ZEBRAFREAK]

The First Time I Saw The Beatles Was In The Movie "a Hard Days Night"... Paul Was My Favorite At That Time.. I Must Have Been 3 Or 4... I Was Born In Feb '61 So Macca Could Figure It Out For Me... My Mom Took My Brother John And I... We Walked From Merrick To The Freeport Movie Theater... I've Wanted To Be A Rock Star Ever Since... My Parents Got Me The "hard Days Night" Album Shortly After... I Remember Seeing Them On The Ed Sullivan Show... My Parents Let Me Stay Up To Watch It... Again I Don't Remember Exactly How Old I Was... When "help" Came To The Movies We Went To See That Too... I Loved The Cool Story Behind It And How Funny It Was... Ringo Was My Favorite After That... My Parents Got Me Some Rings To Wear... That's My Early Recollection Of The Beatles!!! Now I Have No Favorite Beatle Or Album... They All Have Awesome Songs On Each... I Guess John Would Be My Favorite Beatle Today If It Wasn't For The Whole Yoko Thing... I Was Watching "rock And Roll Circus" The Other Day And The Way John Lets Yoko Get Up And Sing Kills Me... I Know He Was A Peaceful Man But There's A Time And Place For Everything Except When It Comes To Yoko's Singing!!!

[SHOELUVRSIS]

The First Time I Saw The Beatles Was In The Movie "a Hard Days Night"... Paul Was My Favorite At That Time.. I Must Have Been 3 Or 4... I Was Born In Feb '61 So Macca Could Figure It Out For Me... My Mom Took My Brother John And I... We Walked From Merrick To The Freeport Movie Theater... I've Wanted To Be A Rock Star Ever Since... My Parents Got Me The "hard Days Night" Album Shortly After... I Remember Seeing Them On The Ed Sullivan Show... My Parents Let Me Stay Up To Watch It... Again I Don't Remember Exactly How Old I Was... When "help" Came To The Movies We Went To See That Too... I Loved The Cool Story Behind It And How Funny It Was... Ringo Was My Favorite After That... My Parents Got Me Some Rings To Wear... That's My Early Recollection Of The Beatles!!! Now I Have No Favorite Beatle Or Album... They All Have Awesome Songs On Each... I Guess John Would Be My Favorite Beatle Today If It Wasn't For The Whole Yoko Thing... I Was Watching "rock And Roll Circus" The Other Day And The Way John Lets Yoko Get Up And Sing Kills Me... I Know He Was A Peaceful Man But There's A Time And Place For Everything Except When It Comes To Yoko's Singing!!!

horrible singer agreed - it pains me when she joins him,
than again i think john i think Beatles, but
most importantly, more than anything, he loved her, he loved her more
than anything! i could only wish Courtney was that for Kurt,
Yoko really made John happy and at that point in his life he needed that
more than anything!
I never liked her much, but after reading "all we are saying", i understand
the John/Yoko thing entirely (or at least as John portrayed it)
and if i ever met her before i read the book i'd say "why'd you go and break
up the Beatles?" but i was ignorant than and now i would just say
thank-you for being everything to John his last years here were wonderful
because he met/had you!
if you dont know - read the book - its great and answers a lot of
(to me ) unanswered questions.

[macca]

[QUOTE=rushtrader]
but what about "bus bus magic bus?" haha i know thats the who but beatles have a bus album magical mystery bus tour ? idunno :o
what do you think of that as lets say compared to sgt peppers?

The album you're referring to is Magical Mystery Tour, a soundtrack to the movie the Beatles put out on Boxing Day 1967 (day after Christmas in England). Actually, it wasn't really an album ----- released as an EP(extended player) in England containing: Magical Mystery Tour, The Fool On The Hill, Flying, Blue Jay Way, Your Mother Should Know and I Am The Walrus. Later, 5 tracks were added(Hello Goodbye, Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, Baby You're A Rich Man and All You Need Is Love) to create an album here in the USA.

MMT was a "continuation" of Sgt. Peppers in a sense ----- Psychedelia, Summer Of Love, and lots of special effects/tape loops. These two albums have a link however: Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane were the first two songs recorded before the Pepper sessions. The only reason(IMO) they didn't appear on Pepper was because the record label wanted a single, so it turned out to be a 'double sided single'.

After all these years, I'm still amazed at this body of work. Like others have said, you have to "transport" yourself to that time and remember they didn't have all the electronic goodies out there now. Sound effects....some were made with VERY simple things(blowing bubbles, hitting spoons on crystal glasses, etc.), backwards tapes, various forms of echo(some of the places microphones were placed would amaze you!).

[ZEBRAFREAK]

Hey Macca What Were The Dates For:
The Ed Sullivan Show
Hard Days Night- Movie
Help- The Movie

[love2sing]

Hey Macca What Were The Dates For:
The Ed Sullivan Show
Hard Days Night- Movie
Help- The Movie

Ed Sullivan's show on 7 February 1964 included The Fabs (who opened the evening), singing "All My Loving", "Till There was You", and "She Loves You".

Hard Days Night- movie
Release Date: July 6, 1964 UK; August 11, 1964 USA; December 1, 2000 Limited Re-release.

[macca]

Sullivan was February 9. The plane touched down on February 7. I saw HDN when they re-released it in theatres. BLOWN AWAY. Was hoping they'd do the same with HELP....oh well......

[love2sing]

Sullivan was February 9. The plane touched down on February 7. I saw HDN when they re-released it in theatres. BLOWN AWAY. Was hoping they'd do the same with HELP....oh well......
Just got that info from the internet. My brother would know all this info, he is a huge Beatles fan

[sarcastic1]

Is he still a big fan of "The Who" also ?

[love2sing]

Yes, and he just bought some Led Zep DVD set, not sure what it is, but I've been hearing it play non-stop.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

just got home a shortwhile ago with Rubber Soul -
totally diggin it!
got through the cd once - on my 2nd spin-
1st time through diggin
Norwegian Wood
The Word
Wait

its really cool to be able to have this great music - like a new band to me!
new great music!

"drive my car" is a great song but i have to laugh (even though ive heard it
tons of times before) when i hear the beep beep beep beep yea!
its sooooooo beatles, and i have to admit
i have been known to like cheesy "pop" songs so it appeals to me
even so - great song, cheese and all!

gotta go and turn this up!

[macca]

Now....if the "powers that be" would bring the music into the 21st Century ---- the CD's are awful sounding compared to other groups' catalogs.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

my thoughts exactly

[macca]

Really sad, you have to go thru underground channels to get better sounding stuff(and its damn good too!). Like someone once said....if not for the bootleggers, there wouldn't be an Anthology. Yes, finally they *officially put out some of the outtakes, etc. but they barely scratched the surface of what's been floating around since 1970.

[bigdaddysmak]

For me, Its always been "Let It Be", with Abbey Road a close second. (although the 1st one I bought was Sgt. Pepper). I have a copy of the Let It Be fim , and everytime I watch it I get amazed.......

[SHOELUVRSIS]

i really like hard days night, (flick)
so simple and endearing

[SHOELUVRSIS]

friends say sgt pepp, bus etc was
when the beatles started to "sellout" so to speak,
that they made music that was the trend instead of innovating and being original as they were before
any comments?

[macca]

Sellout? Not during their collective years as a group. They marched to their own beat and made their OWN rules. In point......they REFUSED to have Hey Jude edited for a single. Before that song came out, nothing ran over 3:00.

[rushtrader]

Great write RT, but I have to disagree with the White Album, but only in the fact I don't honestly classify this as a group effort. By the time they came back from retreat, the wounds were really starting to open, and each Beatle brought in their own "session people" to cut their track(s).

Meeting Donovan and Paul Saltzman....that is what I miss about going to the 'Fests.

BTW....did you watch the "John Lennon Jukebox" on PBS?

Sorry for the delayed response. You need to make it to fest!

I have the JL Jukebox show on DVD but still have not found the time to watch it. It is in a stack with about 100 other DVDs I still need to watch (along with the 10DVD Anthology Director's Cut)

RT

[rushtrader]

[QUOTE=SHOELUVRSIS]

The album you're referring to is Magical Mystery Tour, a soundtrack to the movie the Beatles put out on Boxing Day 1967 (day after Christmas in England). Actually, it wasn't really an album ----- released as an EP(extended player) in England containing: Magical Mystery Tour, The Fool On The Hill, Flying, Blue Jay Way, Your Mother Should Know and I Am The Walrus. Later, 5 tracks were added(Hello Goodbye, Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, Baby You're A Rich Man and All You Need Is Love) to create an album here in the USA.

MMT was a "continuation" of Sgt. Peppers in a sense ----- Psychedelia, Summer Of Love, and lots of special effects/tape loops. These two albums have a link however: Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane were the first two songs recorded before the Pepper sessions. The only reason(IMO) they didn't appear on Pepper was because the record label wanted a single, so it turned out to be a 'double sided single'.

After all these years, I'm still amazed at this body of work. Like others have said, you have to "transport" yourself to that time and remember they didn't have all the electronic goodies out there now. Sound effects....some were made with VERY simple things(blowing bubbles, hitting spoons on crystal glasses, etc.), backwards tapes, various forms of echo(some of the places microphones were placed would amaze you!).

As long as we are being technical here, MMT was a Double EP set. The movie MMT was the first thing the Beatles did on their own following the death of their manager, Brian Epstein. It was shot in color (colour?) but shown in black and white. The combination of not having much story line to begin with and not being shown in color lead to horrible reviews. There was real worry at the time that without Brian, The Beatles could not continue as they were. The whole 1968 period was a strange one for The Beatles.

To respond some other comments throughout the thread...
Yes, Th White Album was more 4 solo projects witht e other Beatles as studio musicians, but that is part of what makes it unique.

Let It Be was recorded in 1969, not 1968. It began in Twinkenham studios as rehersals for a TV show that they were going to do. The TV show idea was abandoned and the venue was moved after a few weeks. The whole set of sessions were documented with the idea of making a documentary called "Get Back" that was going to show a rock band at its peak moving back to its rock & roll roots. WHat we (as fans) ended up with is a stunning documentary of the end of a band. This was the true low point in The Beatles career. Paul and George were arguing. John wasn;t speaking to anyone - Yoko did that for him and pissed everyone else off. At one point George even walked out of the sessions, to which John suggested calling Eric Clapton in to substitute.

To their credit, The Beatles returned ot the studio in 1970 and recorded Abbey Road. This was released with the Get Back tapes still in limbo. A junior engineer by the name of Glyn Johns actually did 2 mixes of an attempted Get Back album. These are widely circulated in the bootleg circles. Finally the tapes were given to Phil Spector who used his "Wall Of Sound" technique and gave us the Let It Be album.

I should teach a class in this stuff :)

RT

[rushtrader]

Now....if the "powers that be" would bring the music into the 21st Century ---- the CD's are awful sounding compared to other groups' catalogs.

There was actually an announcement about 2 years ago that the entire catalog was going to be remastered in the same way the Yellow Submarine songs were, for SACD release. I think that the subsequest lackluster sales of SACD and DVD-A in general may have killed that project though.

RT

[GuitarPLYR]

There was actually an announcement about 2 years ago that the entire catalog was going to be remastered in the same way the Yellow Submarine songs were, for SACD release. I think that the subsequest lackluster sales of SACD and DVD-A in general may have killed that project though.

RT

That's a shame. The Beatles would have been incredible on SACD or DVD-A!!!

I freakin' LOVE the Beatles! My favorite stuff is their later stuff but I like it all. Mainly from Rubber Soul and on. Sheer brilliance! Every time I listen to the Beatles, it conjures up memories and feelings that I just can't get with any other band. They are truly one of a kind and I don't believe that they EVER sold out. They wrote the book on musical composition.

[macca]

[QUOTE=macca]

I should teach a class in this stuff :)

RT

We should all get together and get Lewisohn and Spizer and have a class.....Beatles 101.

[rushtrader]

I got to meet Lewisohn back in April. Leave him alone and let him work on his new project. It is going to take him 12 years and will be the definitive hstory of The Beatles in (i think) 3 volumes.

As for Bruce - piece of cake. I'm his A/V guy whenever he is in town. Come on up to Fest in Chicago in August. Guaranteed he'll be there. I wouldn't be surprised to see Lewisohn either.

RT

[macca]

Forgot about the book Mark was doing....scratch him. Bruce, he's a friend of mine. We bump into each other occassionly, either out and about or at Beatles functions. The last 'fest I attended(if I would have had the $$$$), he would have set me up with a "butcher"(and knowing Bruce, a damn good one too!).

[SHOELUVRSIS]

yea you def should start a class! :D

[SHOELUVRSIS]

got sgt peppers and magical mystery tour from a friend today -
really out there stuff!
some kinda scary music!
concentrating on magical now - as i expand my beatles knowledge
i realize how many bands built thier music on/around beatles work !
its amazing im just starting to grasp the full influence they have truly had
on musicians, it blows my mind !
although im happy for my youth, i hate the fact i wasnt around for theeeee
most amazing thing to EVER happen to music as i have known it in my
lifetime.

funny thing is, i never knew Day In The Life, except for
Randys cover of it and i might like Randys version better! :D

i still need to get Revolver, after i work through these two, i like
to take my time and enjoy each album for thier own, dont like to
mush them all together.

[macca]

The sad thing is that the "average" music buying fan didn't hear the REAL Beatles albums until they came out on CD in 1987. Before then, you had to scour the import bins to get German or British pressings of the albums ---- the REAL vision the band had, not the chopped up U.S. versions.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

thats what i mean about missing the whole thing! :(
but what are you gonna do?
the music is still phenomonal and that just proves,
no matter what version your hearing - its still good stuff
and it can withstand changes and still rock!

p.s. Paul needs to do something about this,
if its what the Beatles were really all about sending out.

[macca]

The only thing left to do is get the Mono versions of Pepper, Revolver and White Album out. The mixes are different(not just the stereo tapes collapsed down to Mono) and the Mono albums were the ones the Beatles really cared about anyway.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

i broke down today and got revolver with potter ,
but i refuse to open it just yet!

[macca]

Bust out the grass and "25"

[SHOELUVRSIS]

whats 25?
not diggin sgt peppers as much as magical,
getting ready for revolver.................................

[macca]

whats 25?



LSD 25(back then it was legal). Revolver should be a revelation to you. What you should do is play Help, Rubber Soul, Revolver, then Pepper to see how much they progressed musically(and how fast).

[SHOELUVRSIS]

LSD 25(back then it was legal). Revolver should be a revelation to you. What you should do is play Help, Rubber Soul, Revolver, then Pepper to see how much they progressed musically(and how fast).

macca i love that your my "beatles companion"
i have all the ones u mentioned except "help"
in time, but thanks so much for your advice - much appreciated! :D
oh yea and 25 was legal?
thats just terrific! wonder what it was like

[macca]

I wouldn't know about the effects of any halluogen or any kind of drug like that. BUT....I've heard stories about people who took a trip "never came back". Physically, they're here, but mentally.......its really scary. One of my favorite Beatles pictures is one of John relaxing on a futon/couch in his bungalow. Behind him on a shelf are two HUGE bottles of PURE LSD25. John probably could have bought a country with that stuff.

Some of the effects....there were stories about John being heavily under the influence and one time they thought he "bought the farm". During a session, he dropped some acid and stepped out "for some air". In a panic, Paul raced up to the roof and found him up there.......

The before mentioned CD's:

Help - movie and album done on grass
Rubber Soul - more grass, heavily influenced by Dylan
Revolver - The moptops are GONE. Lots of experimentation with substance and sound. Lots rate it better than 'Pepper.
Pepper - No more touring, the studio is their playground. And to think it was done on a 4-Track!
MMT - Assembled as a soundtrack for the movie(now a cult classic). Holdin' on to "the summer of love", BUT....contained(IMO) the most mindblowing song John ever did --- Strawberry Fields Forever.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

i love it!
keep the info coming!
yea i've heard those crazy stories about trippin and never coming back-
myself, i've never imbibed - too scared and besides i dont think
the 80's lsd was really lsd ya know?
too much unknown with that crazy stuff - i stayed away.
scary story about John and the roof - love John,but thanks
to Paul! (my orig fave).
Strawberry Fields is a wonderful song, these guys were/are amazing,
if I ever have children - they will be raised on the Beatles (and Nirvana
of course! :eek: ) (Kurt was heavily influenced by the Beatles)

[GuitarPLYR]

yea i've heard those crazy stories about trippin and never coming back-



An excellent example of this would be Syd Barrett, he did one too many.

[macca]

I would have liked to have been the proverbial fly on the wall when Syd showed up at the sessions for Wish You Were Here. Gilmour and Waters said he was bald and dressed in a sheet. That's the LAST time they saw him.

[rushtrader]

AH... but remember that SFF was NOT on MMT. That was just a matter of US Marketting. Both SFF and Penny Lane were written and released before they started the MMT project.

Do you have the "It's Not Too Bad" bootleg?

RT

[macca]

OOPS....sorry to specify the US album containing SFF. Have to stop thinking in U.S. market opposed to the *Real* Beatles albums in the world market.

Yep, I have the bootleg "Its Not Too Bad" ---- the WHOLE CD of nothing but SFF tracks. That disc was a rebuttal to those trying to tell me how great the Anthology series was on CD. I remember somebody telling me "WOW! They have 10 minutes of SFF stuff". I came back with.....that just scratches the surface son. Have a disc with nothing but SFF!

[banterman]

The White Album, because it's a good way to cheat and have 2 albums worth of Beatles on my desert island instead of just 1. Also love the variety and the growth on that one, even if the Beatles weren't collaborating as much.

Also I've always had a soft place for Rubber Soul and Revolver. Let It Be is underrated.

[macca]

I'm just keeping fingers crossed Let It Be(the movie) FINALLY gets re-released in September. They've pushed this thing back so many times, I've lost track.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

The White Album, because it's a good way to cheat and have 2 albums worth of Beatles on my desert island instead of just 1. Also love the variety and the growth on that one, even if the Beatles weren't collaborating as much.

Also I've always had a soft place for Rubber Soul and Revolver. Let It Be is underrated.

i need to give the white album another try seeing as it
tends tp be a fave of many! thanks! :)

[GuitarPLYR]

The White Album is awesome! One of my favorites. There are so many different styles of music on it.

My favorite Beatle album is whichever one I happen to be listening to at the time.

[SHOELUVRSIS]

My favorite Beatle album is whichever one I happen to be listening to at the time.

thats very true!
although i currently only listen to my faves! :D
abbey-rubber soul-mystery

[rushtrader]

I'm just keeping fingers crossed Let It Be(the movie) FINALLY gets re-released in September. They've pushed this thing back so many times, I've lost track.

Don't hold your breath.

On a more serious note, I should be seeing one of Apple's lawyers next weekend. I'll ask him and let you know.

RT

[macca]

I'm hoping he'll give you some news that'll put a smile on my face. I'm just thinking though.....with BanglaDesh coming out...I smell a "well....we have to push XXXX back again because that will cause a conflict". If that is the case, *maybe* next year?!?

[shoeluvr]

An excellent example of this would be Syd Barrett, he did one too many.
yeah! his story was crazy, I saw it on behind the music, i think that song "wish you were here" was about him. I think he's still walking around aimless!

[shoeluvr]

The White Album, because it's a good way to cheat and have 2 albums worth of Beatles on my desert island instead of just 1. Also love the variety and the growth on that one, even if the Beatles weren't collaborating as much.

Also I've always had a soft place for Rubber Soul and Revolver. Let It Be is underrated.
banterman, was that you Greg and I were talking to outside "music of the night" last Friday night?