Nearly 40 years after their break-up, one of the most celebrated bands of all time The Beatles have been making the headlines again. I read the news today? And you can't have missed the plethora of programming on the BBC(culminating in a series of fascinating programmes in Beatles week), the new images and footage that has emerged from the era along with the hundreds of column inches decdited to the fab four in the last month.
All of the Beatles albums have been re-mastered and released, in brand spanking new formats and with a production(that some argue consists of just, digitalising the sound and turning up Paul a bit) that shines up the George Martin mixes. The Beatles even feature on the new rockstar game, so that you can live out your fantasies, playing on a digital stage as John, Paul, George and Ringo....
To tie in with this exaustive Fab Four season, nostalgic music website www.thisdayinmusic.com have been running a poll, to find out which is the most popular Beatles album of all time. We caught up with the site's head honcho who told us about the response so far:
With all the current media coverage of the Beatles re-masters album, we thought it a good time to ask our users which Beatles album was their favourite.
The response has been fantastic.
So far over 5 days more than 4,000 people have voted.
We have a list of all 12 Beatles studio albums for users to vote for.
When you think The Beatles released 12 studio albums between 1963 and 1970, of which some are considered now to be classic albums.
We are encouraging you to vote and debate your selections for the Beatles' best long player. Will you choose one of their earlier efforts Please Please Me or with the Beatles, or maybe the era defining Sgt Peppers? The start of their psychedelic experimentalism on Rubber Soul? Or the masterpiece Revolver? Or their double album opus The White album? Their final statement Abbey Road?The choice is yours!
I was listening to Revolver in the car on the way back from work and saw this poll, strange...anyway, it is their defining statement; so many different factes and layers without becoming mawkish or cumbersome. And Tomorrow Never Knows is an amazing piece of sonic collage. Magpies they may have been, but they were certainly experimenting way before any of their peers and on a much larger scale. Perfect album.
That's how Let It Be was intended to sound though wasn't it?Before Spector was brought in and caked it in strings?
I've always been a big fan of the rawness, diversity and sprawling experimentalism of the white album. I think it covers all their bases and whilst some might argue it could lose a few tracks that's part of its charm. I'm also partial to Rubber Soul, Revolver and Abbey Road. Some of their early stuff was good too, especially the German live influenced stuff.
Definitely agree on Let It Be Naked being a much better version, White Album has its moments but I'm really into all the early albums. Live At The BBC is aces, and Norwegian Wood is my favourite song so almost voted for Rubber Soul just on that basis. Maaan, they were good
It's doesn't seem to be the fashionable choice it apparently once was, but I think Sgt. Pepper is the best. Revolver is obviously brilliant, but I think by Sgt Pepper they had an extra kind of dimension to their experimentalism which was lacking before. I think Abbey Road is the band's songwriting peak, but as an album it's sabotaged a bit I think by some silly efforts, mainly McCartney's songs (maxwells, etc. "more of Paul's granny music" - Lennon)
SO yeah... Sgt. P for me overall.
Street_Preaching_Manic wrote: I think Abbey Road is the band's songwriting peak, but as an album it's sabotaged a bit I think by some silly efforts, mainly McCartney's songs (maxwells, etc. "more of Paul's granny music" - Lennon)
though, it has to be said, McCartney's Her Majesty is a great end to Abbey Road. fabulous for 20 something seconds!
The whole latter half of Abbey Road, from Sun King/Mustard onwards was revolutionary. It's an idea that's lead to many a replication attempt, most of which have failed purely on the basis that they can't drop in She Came in Through The Bathroom Window halfway through!
I voted for Abbey Road too, possibly their best opening song. Revolver is their best album but I think if I had one to listen to over and over it would be Abbey Road.
Paul is basically responsible for the entire medley in it, I think, bar Polythene Pam.
Aye its a great meledy and super album. Although I think Let it be could have been so much better if their wasn't so much infighting/production squabbles at the time.... Also a word for the magical mystery tour just because alot of it is bizarre also the surrealist pop of I am the Warus deserves a heads up.... It's worth getting hold of some of their earlier rock n roll covers ect
A good debate is beatles songs, I'm fond of Norwegian Wood, Something, Elanor Rigby but there's hundreds of great ones!
has to be the white album for me, though revolver and abby road are stunning to, dont get the hype over sgt pepper though got one great song on it and nothing else, pet sounds is better even if it did drive brian wilson mad
Aye it's interesting that nobody has really mentioned Sgt Peppers until now.It is probably over played and over hyped in some ways but it is an important landmark in music along with pet sounds as the first concept albums and it did push their experimentalism a bit...
Sorry, Bill, but Sgt Pepper is not overhyped by any means. If anyone has the latest mono mix of it - compare it directly to Pet Sounds and Sgt Pepper will shit all over it. And if 'She's leaving home' doesn't choke you, you're heartless.
This stunning new note-for-note production brings one of rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest landmark albums back to life in truly breathtaking fashion.
Featuring some of the best musicians from the Fab Four’s own home town of Liverpool, and backed by a spellbinding new light show, original big screen animations and a host of fun surprises, this show is a must for Beatles Fans old and new. The performance of Sgt Pepper in its entirety will be followed by an hour of Beatles classics live.
£1 from every ticket sold will go directly to the Beatles Day Foundation*
Tuesday 23rd February 2010 Gateshead Sage
Wednesday 24th February 2010 Aberdeen Music Hall
Saturday 27th February 2010 Swansea Grand Theatre
Sunday 28th February 2010 Bristol Hippodrome
Monday 1st March 2010 London Cadogan Hall
Tuesday 2nd March 2010 Buxton Opera House
Thursday 4th March 2010 Leicester De Montfort Hall
Friday 5th March 2010 Sheffield City Halls
Saturday 6th March 2010 Portsmouth Guildhall
Sunday 7th March 2010 Cardiff St David's Hall
Tuesday 9th March 2010 Brighton Centre
Wednesday 10th March 2010 Cambridge Corn Exchange
Thursday 11th March 2010 Birmingham Symphony Hall
Friday 12th March 2010 Salford the Lowry
Tickets are on sale Friday 9th October 2009 and are priced £24.50 except Portsmouth & Buxton £24.50, £22.50 and London £29.50, £19.50
*The Beatles Day Foundation is a charitable trust that raises money for many worthy causes particularly those improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people
Ticketmaster 0870 534 4444, Ticketline 0870 444 5556, See Tickets 0871 220 0260 and Gigantic 0115 959 7908
