Music Banter - View Single Post - Why I Don't Think Sgt. Pepper Is The Best Beatles Album

bob_32_116 · 04-04-2016, 11:06 AM

I disagree with the OP, but all opinions are allowed here.

I regard Revolver and Sgt Pepper as the group's two best collections of songs. Considering song quality, there is not much to separate them. Where I think Pepper has the edge is that it's much more of an album as a construct, rather than just a collection of songs. It's been said many times over the years that it was one of the first albums of this kind, if not THE first.

I think the existing track ordering on Revolver seems almost random and is rather poor. I have thought of several orderings that I think work better than the one supplied. On the other hand I would never listen to Sgt Pepper on "shuffle". As a program of music, to me it's just perfect.

Pepper has one song that I could live without: "Good Morning, Good Morning". "When I'm Sixty-Four" is a lightweight but that's OK, I like the way it breaks the rather sombre mood after the George Harrison song.

As for their other later period albums:

Rubber Soul: pretty much the pinnacle of their "normal" songwriting period, before they started to sound psychedelic/progressive, which began with Revolver. The style on rubber Soul is not that much different to the albums that preceded it, it's just that the songs are better.

"The White Album": has songs that I love and quite a few that I despise. I respect its experimental nature, but if i owned it I would probably have a regular play-list consisting of about half the songs.

Abbey Road: I'll never understand the acclaim this album receives. I don't like any of the first four songs; tracks 5 & 6 are OK, but just OK. Things get better on the second half - there are no real missteps here - but overall I find it a half-arsed album.

Let it Be: like Abbey Road, a terribly inconsistent album, but I think the high points on Let It Be are better than those on Abbey Road, and the low points not as low, so I rate it higher - not a popular opinion, I know.

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The Beatles existed as a band for a relatively short time compared with many other big rock acts, eg. the Who, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, the Kinks. You might say that, creatively, they burned themselves out rather than fading away. I personally felt that when their time was done they all knew it, and were ready to move on. Many other bands should learn from their example.

04-04-2016, 11:06 AM	#45 (permalink)
bob_32_116 Music Addict Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: 32S 116E Posts: 324	I disagree with the OP, but all opinions are allowed here. I regard Revolver and Sgt Pepper as the group's two best collections of songs. Considering song quality, there is not much to separate them. Where I think Pepper has the edge is that it's much more of an album as a construct, rather than just a collection of songs. It's been said many times over the years that it was one of the first albums of this kind, if not THE first. I think the existing track ordering on Revolver seems almost random and is rather poor. I have thought of several orderings that I think work better than the one supplied. On the other hand I would never listen to Sgt Pepper on "shuffle". As a program of music, to me it's just perfect. Pepper has one song that I could live without: "Good Morning, Good Morning". "When I'm Sixty-Four" is a lightweight but that's OK, I like the way it breaks the rather sombre mood after the George Harrison song. As for their other later period albums: Rubber Soul: pretty much the pinnacle of their "normal" songwriting period, before they started to sound psychedelic/progressive, which began with Revolver. The style on rubber Soul is not that much different to the albums that preceded it, it's just that the songs are better. "The White Album": has songs that I love and quite a few that I despise. I respect its experimental nature, but if i owned it I would probably have a regular play-list consisting of about half the songs. Abbey Road: I'll never understand the acclaim this album receives. I don't like any of the first four songs; tracks 5 & 6 are OK, but just OK. Things get better on the second half - there are no real missteps here - but overall I find it a half-arsed album. Let it Be: like Abbey Road, a terribly inconsistent album, but I think the high points on Let It Be are better than those on Abbey Road, and the low points not as low, so I rate it higher - not a popular opinion, I know. ------------------------------ The Beatles existed as a band for a relatively short time compared with many other big rock acts, eg. the Who, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, the Kinks. You might say that, creatively, they burned themselves out rather than fading away. I personally felt that when their time was done they all knew it, and were ready to move on. Many other bands should learn from their example. Last edited by bob_32_116; 04-05-2016 at 06:42 AM.