― mark grout (mark grout), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:16 (twenty-two years ago)
Classic, beyond any shadow of doubt.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:17 (twenty-two years ago)
― Mark (MarkR), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:19 (twenty-two years ago)
― mark grout (mark grout), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:21 (twenty-two years ago)
??????????
― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:25 (twenty-two years ago)
― dleone (dleone), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)
DTI would be good if you wanted a nice meta-ruck.
― Tico Tico (Tico Tico), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)
Which it isn't, but it is fairly close (and out of the usual "canon", only "Pet Sounds" is better)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)
― man, Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:28 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:31 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:32 (twenty-two years ago)
― Jonathan Z., Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:33 (twenty-two years ago)
Once, it was automatic choice for best ever albumNow, it's not even best beatles album.
Purely down to being Ubiquitous.
― mark grout (mark grout), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:35 (twenty-two years ago)
― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:36 (twenty-two years ago)
― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:37 (twenty-two years ago)
That is clearly the reason why it is the best. After John met Yoko, Paul was the one and only musical genius in the band (although George got pretty close towards the end)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:39 (twenty-two years ago)
And what people want or expect from pop may have changed too - Dom suggests the continued rating of self-obsessed Lennon over playful McCartney, and I think he's got a point.
― Tico Tico (Tico Tico), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:39 (twenty-two years ago)
― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:43 (twenty-two years ago)
― Not that Chuck, Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:44 (twenty-two years ago)
Did I say "ILM"? I meant Rolling Stone. Carry on.
― Mark (MarkR), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:53 (twenty-two years ago)
― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:54 (twenty-two years ago)
― mark grout (mark grout), Thursday, 20 November 2003 15:56 (twenty-two years ago)
― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Thursday, 20 November 2003 16:39 (twenty-two years ago)
So we're left with half an album at best ... Day in The Life is clearly fantastic and I'll stick up for 'A Little Help..', 'Fixing a Hole' and 'Lovely Rita' but really it's thin thin thin.
Compared with Revolver, Rubber Soul, Abbey Road, Help!, White Album, even Let It Be, it's very poor.
― Dr. C (Dr. C), Thursday, 20 November 2003 16:58 (twenty-two years ago)
Strangely, these are all great.
― o. nate (onate), Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:00 (twenty-two years ago)
― peepee (peepee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:27 (twenty-two years ago)
― dlp9001, Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:54 (twenty-two years ago)
― stevem (blueski), Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:55 (twenty-two years ago)
― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:56 (twenty-two years ago)
― NA (Nick A.), Thursday, 20 November 2003 17:57 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 18:22 (twenty-two years ago)
― jack cole (jackcole), Thursday, 20 November 2003 18:49 (twenty-two years ago)
― Sarah Pedal (call mr. lee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 18:49 (twenty-two years ago)
― Sarah Pedal (call mr. lee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 18:51 (twenty-two years ago)
― Justyn Dillingham (Justyn Dillingham), Thursday, 20 November 2003 18:57 (twenty-two years ago)
― Sarah Pedal (call mr. lee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:02 (twenty-two years ago)
― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:09 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:15 (twenty-two years ago)
Of course it wasn't. I meant that R&B was the starting point for the Beatles and most of their contemporaries, and they couldn't even do that well.
― Sarah Pedal (call mr. lee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:20 (twenty-two years ago)
― Mark (MarkR), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:23 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:24 (twenty-two years ago)
― Sarah Pedal (call mr. lee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:26 (twenty-two years ago)
as far as the beatles goes in their infancy, they played crap R&B -- though to be honest I don't really like that term since what it really describes at that juncture is rock and roll played by African-Americans. the beatles didnt find their "thing" until they shifted towards Pop. sure the beatles recorded some good song. sure the beatles are Massively Influential -- but being Massively Influential isnt the same thing as being the Greatest Band Of All TIme. Quality and Influence are not always the same thing.
― jack cole (jackcole), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:28 (twenty-two years ago)
WHATTHEFUQUE???????!?!?!!???!?!?!?Lemme just say I absolutely 100% totally withoutadoubt disagree with Geir on this one! Absolutely.
― peepee (peepee), Thursday, 20 November 2003 19:53 (twenty-two years ago)
― Francis Watlington (Francis Watlington), Thursday, 20 November 2003 21:20 (twenty-two years ago)
― M Matos (M Matos), Thursday, 20 November 2003 21:25 (twenty-two years ago)
- skip the first three, start at track 4- Getting Better -> Fixing A Hole -> She's Leaving Home -> Mr Kite (consider skipping during Mr Kite, but I usually decide to leave it just so I can hear the last 30 seconds)- skip the next two (I don't get why everyone is so crazy about Within You)- Lovely Rita -> Good Morning -> Sgt Pepper reprise (skipped about 50% of the time, depending on laziness) -> A Day In The Life -> Sgt Pepper inner groove (always wish I had the vinyl so I could let it play out longer)
The procedure for Revolver is pretty much "press play."
― billstevejim, Thursday, 20 November 2003 22:22 (twenty-two years ago)
No i'm NOT kidding.
The 2nd best is 'Beatles for Sale'.
― Pete S, Thursday, 20 November 2003 22:25 (twenty-two years ago)
― robin (robin), Thursday, 20 November 2003 22:30 (twenty-two years ago)
― man, Thursday, 20 November 2003 22:31 (twenty-two years ago)
These polls indirectly decide the Canon, don't they?
― Michael Dubsky, Friday, 21 November 2003 00:32 (twenty-two years ago)
― M Matos (M Matos), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:35 (twenty-two years ago)
It had a similar effect on me in high school. Not that it turned me into a music fan - I was already well on my way - but that it seemed somehow like a perfect album to me - more so than any other Beatles album that I had heard at that time. I think that there is something childlike about the album, in its whimsy and sense of wonder, that perhaps appeals especially to the young. As I think about it now, it seems that one thing that might have given it an edge over the other Beatles albums for me at that time is that it is almost entirely devoid of love songs (which were anathema to me at that point in my life - and which are pretty much ubiquitous in pop music both then and now). The only song on it that could be considered a love song, "Lovely Rita", is very tongue-in-cheek. This contributes to the playful, Lewis Carroll quality of the album.
― o. nate (onate), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:40 (twenty-two years ago)
― man, Friday, 21 November 2003 00:42 (twenty-two years ago)
On a longer term, I would say they are. Exactly the same way Mozart, Beethoven and Bach have made the canon because of their long term popularity.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:53 (twenty-two years ago)
― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:54 (twenty-two years ago)
"Lovely Rita" is great, though. Definitely my fave on there along with "Fixing A Hole" and "Getting Better".
― Broheems (diamond), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:57 (twenty-two years ago)
Rock 'n' roll used to be about STICKING IT TO THE "MAN"!!!!!
― Francis Watlington (Francis Watlington), Friday, 21 November 2003 00:58 (twenty-two years ago)
― man, Friday, 21 November 2003 00:59 (twenty-two years ago)
― Broheems (diamond), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:01 (twenty-two years ago)
Some popular albums may sell millions, and then they are forgotten. Those are not classics just because of popularity. Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Ace Of Base, Aqua and boy/girl bands belong to this category.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:02 (twenty-two years ago)
― Francis Watlington (Francis Watlington), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:03 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:03 (twenty-two years ago)
― Pete S, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:06 (twenty-two years ago)
― M Matos (M Matos), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:08 (twenty-two years ago)
I would still rank "With A Little Help From My Friends," "Getting Better" and "Good Morning, Good Morning" (which is dying for a Quasi cover version) among my favorite songs.
― mike a (mike a), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:09 (twenty-two years ago)
― Pete S, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:11 (twenty-two years ago)
― jack cole (jackcole), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:13 (twenty-two years ago)
― Michael Dubsky, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:13 (twenty-two years ago)
But how often are their million selling albums voted into those "best albums of all time" surveys?
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:15 (twenty-two years ago)
― jack cole (jackcole), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:18 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:19 (twenty-two years ago)
I don't consider that a love song. I'm speaking of romantic love here. There's nothing in "She's Leaving Home" which indicates to me that it's about romantic love.
― o. nate (onate), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:24 (twenty-two years ago)
― scott seward, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:25 (twenty-two years ago)
Individual lists are definitely the most meaningful, as Jack mentioned.
― Michael Dubsky, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:27 (twenty-two years ago)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:29 (twenty-two years ago)
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:30 (twenty-two years ago)
― man, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:30 (twenty-two years ago)
The test of time! I wouldn't mind standing that.
― Eyeball Kicks (Eyeball Kicks), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:31 (twenty-two years ago)
― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:34 (twenty-two years ago)
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 21 November 2003 01:36 (twenty-two years ago)
― Pete S, Friday, 21 November 2003 01:44 (twenty-two years ago)
Beastie Boys use it on Paul's Boutique, somewhere in the "B-Boy Boullabaisse" section (they also layer guitars from Abbey Road over it--from the song "The End").
― s woods, Friday, 21 November 2003 02:32 (twenty-two years ago)
The songs I like:
"With a Little Help from My Friends""Getting Better""Fixing a Hole""Lovely Rita""Good Morning, Good Morning"
Almost "A Day in the Life," but it's too uneven for me.
Maybe I can say more about why I like these songs at some point.
― Rockist Scientist, Friday, 21 November 2003 04:50 (twenty-two years ago)
And their guitar sounds: to the music historians out there, isn't it true that there's a fair amount of novelty in some of the elecric guitar sounds here? I haven't listened to a fraction of the 60's rock that many of you have heard, but I do think the Beatles repeatedly came up with fresh sounds.
― Rockist Scientist, Friday, 21 November 2003 04:56 (twenty-two years ago)
But: "It's Getting Better" There it is, that chime-y sort of ding ding rhythm.
― Rockist Scientist, Friday, 21 November 2003 04:59 (twenty-two years ago)
― Keith Harris (kharris1128), Friday, 21 November 2003 21:35 (twenty-two years ago)
― Rockist Scientist, Friday, 21 November 2003 22:13 (twenty-two years ago)
Doesn't anyone remember Vidkun Quisling?
― Tim Smirn, Friday, 21 November 2003 23:58 (twenty-two years ago)
― D.I.Y. U.N.K.L.E. (dave225.3), Wednesday, 21 December 2005 00:34 (twenty years ago)
I'd describe it now as:
Come together, right now, over meme.
― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 21 December 2005 09:50 (twenty years ago)
Apparently, John Lennon's melodies are "underwritten," and Paul is just too damn happy.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/03/opinion/03mann.html
― Nathan, Sunday, 3 June 2007 03:49 (eighteen years ago)
the jauntiness I used to love as a girl feels as if it’s covering up a sadder subtext
Sounds like it's entirely Aimee Mann's problem. I listened to the record four times last night and it sounded jaunty as ever. i even wore my hat cocked at a jaunty angle as though I were preparing for a jaunt! I did!
Lennon's melodies were always a little underwritten compared to McCartney's. I don't think it's an artistic failing. I see it as restraint to balance out McCartney's exuberance.
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Sunday, 3 June 2007 04:22 (eighteen years ago)
a cultural touchstone idon't feel like revisiting very often, but it was a very filling meal once.
― Frogman Henry, Sunday, 3 June 2007 04:53 (eighteen years ago)
....which is pretty much what mann said.
― Frogman Henry, Sunday, 3 June 2007 05:04 (eighteen years ago)
Yeah, why didn't you listen to what the Mann said?
― dlp9001, Sunday, 3 June 2007 14:55 (eighteen years ago)
I still say this is their Balochistan trance music album.
― Rockist Scientist, Sunday, 3 June 2007 15:16 (eighteen years ago)
More than half of this album is Paul. I feel like this was his project for the most part, and everyone else just filled in the gaps.
― billstevejim, Sunday, 3 June 2007 15:17 (eighteen years ago)
My mistake.. Paul and George Martin's project.
― billstevejim, Sunday, 3 June 2007 15:18 (eighteen years ago)