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Was the Beatles final album their best? My argument for Abbey Road...


Fab4ever

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I'm much more a fan of Revolver and Rubber Soul. Abbey Road was always more than a bit of a disappointment to me, frankly. I like Magical Mystery Tour much better, even.

 

(Sgt. Peppers is sort of a sentimental fave -- it was my first Beatles record and marked my return to listening to youth oriented pop music [ie, rock] -- but in retrospect, it seems to me a better moment than it is a collection of good songs. In fact, I bought it on the strength of reviews that claimed it incorporated modern serious music compositional approaches and a distinctly postmodern approach... yeah, right, I brought it home and put it on and my 16 year old self thought, Huh? This sounds like good ol' rock 'n' roll to me, a raga here and a turgid orchestral bit there nothwitstanding. Still, I wanted to like it so much I found a way. But compared to their best work, there's not a lot of there there, seems to me. When I went back and picked up their earlier work at garage sales and swap meets, I really fell in love with their mid-60s work.)

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I go back and forth between Pepper, Revolver and Abbey Road as being their "best" work. IMO, the individual songs on Revolver are probably the strongest, although Abbey Road has some incredible songs and the "mini suite" on side two is one of my favorite pieces of music ever waxed.

 

I could agree with you and say AR is their "best work", and it may indeed be true... but I reserve the right to change my mind the next time I happen to be listening to Revolver... ;)

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At least no one's mentioned the White Album yet. I could feel the tension within the band leap out from the grooves, which made it an unpleasant listening experience for me.

 

For songs, Rubber Soul and Revolver. For production/engineering, Sgt. Pepper's.

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At least no one's mentioned the White Album yet. I could feel the tension within the band leap out from the grooves, which made it an unpleasant listening experience for me.

 

My feeling, too -- it sounds like an album by 4 guys, not by a band. (And it desperately needed to be edited down to a single disk, imo).

 

For songs, Rubber Soul and Revolver. For production/engineering, Sgt. Pepper's.

 

:thu:

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The bass line on Something, FWIW, is classic Macca. George may have felt it was too busy, but in the end he allowed McCartney to do as he wished with it - thankfully.

 

And I agree with the comments about the White Album. Some great music on there, but it just feels a bit disjointed. Still, what variety! No other group I know could have pulled off that many different styles in one career, let alone in one album.

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I rather like this write-up (below) of "Something" from NorwegianWood.org. The Beatles song had always struck me as an odd bit since I was one of the relative few who bought James Taylor's first album [on Apple, that was 1968; he crossed over with his second, Sweet Baby James, released in 1970, driven by "Fire and Rain"] that had "Something in the Way She Moves," the first part of which was then borrowed by Harrison for his own "Something." [Even before Taylor's Apple album, Tom Rush's cover of the Taylor song achieved some popularity.]

 

I thought it singlularly odd that a Beatle had to crib from a (then) nobody like Taylor (I remember at least one person at the time speculating that that was the only reason Apple picked up Taylor but that's BS... they clearly spent a lot of time and effort on the production of that record... either that or they had all them string players on salary and thought they ought to use them :D )...

Something


  • Recorded 25th February 1969 - Demo take 1

  • Recording 16th April 1969 - 13 takes (backing track only)

  • Re-made 2nd May 1969 - 36 takes (new 1-36)

  • Overdubs 5th May 1969 onto take 36

  • Overdubs 11th July 1969 onto take 36 creating take 37

  • Overdubs 16th July 1969 onto take 36 creating takes 38 & 39

  • Overdubs 15th August 1969 onto take 39

  • Final mix - take 39.

  • Digitally remixed in 2000 for "1"

"Something", according to most sources, came about as a tribute to Harrison's then wife, Pattie Boyd. Harrison lifted the first line of his song from James Taylor's "Something in the Way She Moves" (made popular by Tom Rush's 1968 recording) and used it to write a working lyric ("Something in the way she moves / Attracts me like a pomegranate", in the vein of "Scrambled Eggs," the original lyrics to "Yesterday"). Later in 1969, Harrison offered his story of how he composed it, but oddly didn't make any reference to the numerous anecdotes about "Something":


I wrote the song "Something" for the album before this one, but I never finished it off until just recently. I usually get the first few lines of words and music together, both at once... and then finish the rest of the melody. Then I have to write the words. It's like another song I wrote when we were in India. I wrote the whole first verse and just said everything I wanted to say, and so now I need to write a couple more verses. I find that much more difficult. But John gave me a handy tip. He said, 'Once you start to write a song, try to finish it straight away while you're still in the same mood.' Sometimes you go back to it and you're in a whole different state of mind. So now, I do try to finish them straight away.


It later transpired that Harrison didn't actually have Boyd in mind. In his words:
"Everybody presumed I wrote ['Something'] about Patti, but actually when I wrote it I was thinking of Ray Charles."


The original version, at eight minutes, was even longer than "Hey Jude," featuring Lennon on the piano at the end, with a counter-melody in the middle. These were cut out, the piano part going to a Lennon song, "Remember," and the counter-melody finally appearing on The Beatles Anthology 3.

"Something" was nearly polished by the release of the Beatles' self-titled The Beatles album, as it had been recorded, but eventually dropped for the album's release. Harrison explained it in 1980:


"Something" was written on the piano while we were making the White Album. I had a break while Paul was doing some overdubbing so I went into an empty studio and began to write. That's really all there is to it, except the middle took some time to sort out. It didn't go on the White Album because we'd already finished all the tracks.


The song was later tried as part of the "Get Back" project which eventually became Let It Be, but again failed to make the final cut. Eventually Harrison succeeded in forcing the song's way into a final release, officially recording it for Abbey Road on his 26th birthday. Harrison played lead guitar, accompanied by McCartney on bass and Ringo Starr on drums. Billy Preston, one of the few non-Beatles to have performed with them on a final release, joined them on the organ. George Martin subsequently edited in a string arrangement to the original recording. Harrison later complained about McCartney's 'fussy' bass playing on the track, saying he'd "rather have Willie Weeks playing bass for me than Paul McCartney".


The song runs at a speed of about sixty-six beats per minute and is in common time throughout. The melody begins in the key of C Major. It continues in this key throughout the intro and the first two verses, until the bridge, which is in the key of A Major. After the bridge, the melody returns to C Major for the guitar solo, the third verse, and the outro.


JOHN 1969: "I think that's about the best track on the album, actually."


PAUL 1969: "I like George's song 'Something.' For me I think it's the best he's written."

http://www.norwegianwood.org/beatles/disko/uklp/abbey.htm

 

My favorite bit is bolded. ;)

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To me there aren't any best albums by them. There are songs on all of them that knock my socks off. If I start to dismiss "Sgt. Pepper" as cutesy, then I think of "Good Morning" or "Fixing A Hole" or "Getting Better" - to me great songs that are mostly ignored. Same with "Revolver" as to some great songs. And although not my favorite, "Abbey Road".

 

There's a really interesting rehearsal arrangement of "I Want You" on youtube with prominent guitar/piano riffing. I think I'd have liked it better than the final released version.

 

For me it was the creative arrangements that made the songs such stanouts. I even think "The White Album" would have been a great one as only a single album.

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Magical Mystery Tour encompasses The Beatles for me. However, McCarthys silly songs kill every album from being truly great.


Nonsense like When I`m 64, Your Mother Should Know... utter waste.

 

 

Ernest, do you do that on purpose? His name is McCartney, Paul McCartney. I've seen you mis-spell it before.

 

Of course, For No One, Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday, Penny Lane, And I love Her and Birthday are complete and utter rubbish. Fool On The Hill is pathetic. Paperback Writer is a disgrace... and Blackbird? How dare he! Come to think of it, you're right. He buggered the whole thing up.

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My feeling, too -- it sounds like an album by 4 guys, not by a band. (And it desperately needed to be edited down to a single disk, imo).




:thu:

 

heck no!

My favorite tracks are the ones that probably would have been "edited down" and then you'd have a commercial fluff piece.

 

As far as playing goes, Abbey Road is fine example of great rock and roll executed greatly.

lots of great drums (from Ringo's new kit with calf skin heads) and searing guitar throughout with some incredible bass lines as always.

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Ernest, do you do that on purpose? His name is McCartney, Paul McCartney. I've seen you mis-spell it before.


Of course, For No One, Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday, Penny Lane, And I love Her and Birthday are complete and utter rubbish. Fool On The Hill is pathetic. Paperback Writer is a disgrace... and Blackbird? How dare he! Come to think of it, you're right. He buggered the whole thing up.

 

 

No, I do not misspell his name on purpose. Sorry if it pissed you off. I seem to be good at that, especially when I share my opinion about The Beatles. I think we`ve had this conversation about them. There is simply a disconnect between generations. I think once baby boomers leave us, The Beatles will become just another band. I know blasphemy, but thats just my opinion. You don`t have to accept it.

 

btw- I was specific about which songs I considered utter waste. You threw some of Pauls masterpieces into the mix out of anger/frustration.

 

For the record, you said it, not me.

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Not sure about 'best', songwriting-wise. For pure songs, probably Rubber Soul, or Revolver. For the bigger picture, Sgt. Pepper's, or Magical Mystery Tour. But I think the very early stuff has the greatest impact on me.

 

Funny that Something was put off so long. I've heard it's the most performed of any.

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No, I do not misspell his name on purpose. Sorry if it pissed you off. I seem to be good at that, especially when I share my opinion about The Beatles.

 

 

Ernest, I have the good manners to make sure I spell your name correctly. I don't assume it's "Earnest" as some do. I think a guy who, along with 3 or 4 others changed the world as we once knew it, deserves a little respect in that department.

 

BTW, sweetheart, without the baby boomers as you so condescendingly refer to them, you wouldn't be here.

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There is simply a disconnect between generations. I think once baby boomers leave us, The Beatles will become just another band. I know blasphemy, but thats just my opinion. You don`t have to accept it.

 

 

I told this story in another long-ago thread, whereupon, Craig Anderton asked kids in airports or wherever, what they were listening to on their iPods.

Their answers usually included The Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, etc.

 

When I was teaching guitar and keys at my friend's music store, the last couple of years, it never failed that, from week to week, my students (who ranged in age from 12 to 18) would throw me for a loop and come in saying "please show me how to play this song...it's incredible!", and it would be something like "Paperback Writer", "Revolution", or some other classic rock relic.

 

For my students, when they learned these songs, they acted all giddy as if they had been given some invaluable secret code, or something.

I was more than happy to oblige them.

 

And as long as they treasure this music, it will again be passed on to the next generation.

I can easily see people, one hundred years from now, having these same discussions about the Beatles.

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I see / work with / talk to a variety of musicians (and their friends) and a lot of them are pretty young... and classic rock (Beatles / Stones / Zep / Doors et al) is nearly universally liked, if not loved, by the vast majority of them.

 

IOW, I do not have any doubts that the popularity of the Beatles will extend well past my lifetime.

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I lived through, and enjoyed, all phases of the Beatles creations; don't think I can pick an ultimate favorite album.

 

The early stuff had some of that C & W element that I dig in rock, with electric guitars playing over acoustics, for example.

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As beginner guitarists and mates, we would visit the beatles museum on saturdays, where they would play rare footage of the Beatles playing live in Japan,USA ! . We already had the official albums but it was the live stuff that I most enjoyed but I had none! . Then I got a copy of the Beatles Live at the Hollywood Bowl, poorly recorded compared to the studio recorded albums but it did make the hairs stand up on the back of the neck. The rawness, mistakes, everything thrown in to me was fantastic. Later I got to hear the Star club Hamburg recordings, again fascinating. Anyway I am rambling as usual, my favourite Album would have to be raw, so I would have to choose Let It Be simply for the rooftop performance,they were at their best when they split imo.

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