sort of thinking i should have had You've Got to Hide... on my list. even the video posted up thread is great.
― karma's ruthless invisible (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 16 July 2011 19:21 (twelve years ago) link
1/20 so far (Helter Skelter was my #20), I think most of mine will be higher in the list.
― little mushroom person (abanana), Saturday, 16 July 2011 19:25 (twelve years ago) link
Been listening to early Beatles all day today. Conclusion: it's alright, but a bit shit but kinda great in parts but mostly meh.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Saturday, 16 July 2011 23:27 (twelve years ago) link
i am one of probably many people who grew up listening almost exclusively to 1966-70 so the early stuff is really floating my boat
― Iago Galdston, Sunday, 17 July 2011 00:04 (twelve years ago) link
early beatles is my fav beatles
― absolutely better display name (crüt), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:13 (twelve years ago) link
Me too. Everything up to and including Revolver is solid gold. The rest, while often very very good, I find kind of dull in comparison.
― nate woolls, Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:16 (twelve years ago) link
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Saturday, July 16, 2011 7:27 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark
this post is almost as stupid and meaningless as the one where you said a Beatles song is like their equivalent of a Blue song
― dread the flopson (some dude), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:22 (twelve years ago) link
you're calling the later stuff dull?!
xpost
― karma's ruthless invisible (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:24 (twelve years ago) link
obv, i listen to/enjoy the older material less. i can understand preferring it - but i would not say the mid-late Beatles is dull up against the older.
― karma's ruthless invisible (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:25 (twelve years ago) link
I'm baffled by the love Magical Mystery Tour gets on ILM. Apart from I Am The Walrus, Penny Lane & Strawberry Fields, it's deathly dull and the worst stuff they did. Strangely though, those 3 songs are amongst the very best songs they ever recorded.
― nate woolls, Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:47 (twelve years ago) link
I can't believe I'm bringing this on myself, but I find the ILM love for "Flying" completely insane
― Iago Galdston, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:13 (twelve years ago) link
"Flying" is a classic interlude track.
― billstevejim, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:17 (twelve years ago) link
Yup, it's shit. I meant to point that out when we started the thread by dissing Your Mother Should Know.
― Ismael Klata, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:18 (twelve years ago) link
MMT & side 1 of Yellow Sub was my favorite era of Beatles last year..
― billstevejim, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:19 (twelve years ago) link
You sort of have to deal with Paul being a huge dork on a lot of his songs (lyrically especially) in their last few years, but the songwriting is still killer.
― billstevejim, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:39 (twelve years ago) link
Except for "Honey Pie".. fuck that shit.
― billstevejim, Sunday, 17 July 2011 19:40 (twelve years ago) link
Apart from I Am The Walrus, Penny Lane & Strawberry Fields, it's deathly dull and the worst stuff they did. Strangely though, those 3 songs are amongst the very best songs they ever recorded.
And the latter two were recorded at the very beginning of the Sgt. Pepper sessions, so.
― BIG HOOBA aka the stankdriver (Phil D.), Sunday, 17 July 2011 20:32 (twelve years ago) link
I prefer middle to early or late. I was sort of there for late, but just barely cognizant of who the Beatles were. I would love to have been there for early--I mean, I was, but only 3. It's all of a piece, though, and it all fits together.
― clemenza, Sunday, 17 July 2011 20:33 (twelve years ago) link
I find myself breaking down the music chronologically... For me this makes it easier to view the catalog as a whole. You mention "early" "middle" and "late" which is pretty much how I think of it also.. 3 distinct eras..
The first era is clearly "Beatlemania.." "Love Me Do" and everything up until the "Help!" soundtrack.. Simple enough.
"Yesterday" sort of signaled the end of the first era and foreshadowed Rubber Soul.. Their 3 most focused LP's followed, and the Magical Mystery Tour EP was probably the high-point in their studio experimentation, which they moved away from immediately afterwards.. (this would include side 1 of Yellow Submarine also)
Third era is the only one completely without Brian Epstein who it seems was holding them together more than they realized.. "Lady Madonna/The Inner Light" is definitely the start of this era.. White Album and Abbey Road are clearly 4 individuals and no longer a strictly group effort.. more guest appearances in this era than in the other 2 (clapton & billy preston)
― billstevejim, Sunday, 17 July 2011 20:56 (twelve years ago) link
i have two tracks from this album on my list and it's none of these three! i never really got the love for Strawberry Fields.
― karma's ruthless invisible (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 17 July 2011 21:31 (twelve years ago) link
I sort them out in my mind somewhat close to that, though not as distinctly:
Early -- everything before Beatles for Sale.
Transitional -- Beatles for Sale.
Middle -- from Help! through Revolver.
Transitional -- Sgt. Pepper/Magical Mystery Tour
Late -- White Album forward.
No real explanation--everyone will see that a little differently.
― clemenza, Sunday, 17 July 2011 21:36 (twelve years ago) link
Just read this on the Wikipedia page: "Although their output has come to include vault items and remixed mash-ups, the core Beatles discography recorded during the 1960s is 217 tracks and approximately ten hours of music."
Ten hours. Measure their impact on the world against the idea of ten hours.
― clemenza, Sunday, 17 July 2011 21:40 (twelve years ago) link
"I Me Mine" was recorded early in 1970, but yeah.
― Mark G, Sunday, 17 July 2011 22:14 (twelve years ago) link
It's only about ninety seconds though, a mere rounding error
― Ismael Klata, Sunday, 17 July 2011 22:17 (twelve years ago) link
Any road up, one track that didn't make the chart but I wished it had, was "I feel fine", because I told Alice that they used to make videos in a very simple way back then, in fact one time The Beatles supplied overseas countries with one where they mimed while having their lunch: Fish and chips out of a bag! Take That, Lady Gaga!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG3EJIsJDeI
― Mark G, Sunday, 17 July 2011 22:18 (twelve years ago) link
some quality product, that
― Ismael Klata, Sunday, 17 July 2011 22:25 (twelve years ago) link
This is preaching to the choir, but the mind reels from how many truly great songs they had in a relatively small corpus. Listening to it again all in one piece as I did for this poll was jaw-dropping, I thought I was going to be "meh" but just. wow.
― Iago Galdston, Sunday, 17 July 2011 22:57 (twelve years ago) link
I had "Honey Pie" at number ten on my ballot. To me, that's old world channeling of a deep nature and a very high level, comparable to The Basement Tapes or Tiny Tim.
― timellison, Monday, 18 July 2011 01:02 (twelve years ago) link
I don't understand the above post in the slightest.
― Inevitable stupid samba mix (chap), Monday, 18 July 2011 06:51 (twelve years ago) link
Been listening to early Beatles all day today. Conclusion: it's alright, but a bit shit but kinda great in parts but mostly meh.― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Saturday, July 16, 2011 7:27 PM (Yesterday) Bookmarkthis post is almost as stupid and meaningless as the one where you said a Beatles song is like their equivalent of a Blue song― dread the flopson (some dude), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:22 (Yesterday)
― dread the flopson (some dude), Sunday, 17 July 2011 18:22 (Yesterday)
When did I say this?
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 08:54 (twelve years ago) link
To clarify, there are (what I think of as) early Beatles songs that I really love - "She Loves You" particularly. But there's so much stuff I'd consider throwaway or hugely dated, I found them hard to listen to in anything other than an educational context. The earliest stuff sounds like it's from a completely other time to the Rubber Soul material. IMO it wasn't until after Beatles For Sale that they stopped being scholars and started being masters. Your opinion may differ, of course.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 09:20 (twelve years ago) link
I do have a lot of time for Magical Mystery Tour. It represents the Beatles at their most colourful and psychedelic. Carrollian surreality merging with everyday Merseyside landscapes. The Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields and I Am The Walrus triumvirate might eclipse a lot of moments on here, but there are few songs I don't like. 'Flying' works as one of the only Beatles instrumentals (discounting Yellow Submarine s/t). 'Fool On The Hill' sees McCartney getting wistfully rural and uncharacteristically self-deprecating. 'Baby You're A Rich Man' is gloriously barmy. 'Your Mother Should Know' has a really interesting winding chord sequence that goes all over the place. And it's all rounded off as a concept EP - a stronger concept than Sgt Peppers, one might argue.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 09:26 (twelve years ago) link
39. Getting Better Sgt Pepper (Points: 211, Voters: 10, Number Ones: 0)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCcU2xfvz0o
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:26 (twelve years ago) link
38. Golden Slumbers / Carry That Weight Abbey Road (Points: 211, Voters: 10, Number Ones: 0)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=je_VObgUwzM
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:27 (twelve years ago) link
I made an excutive decision here: Everyone who voted for this track put "Golden Slumbers" only, apart from one voter who had put "Carry that weight" so I combined the votes for this medley.
Apols if you really only like one (or the other) of this songsection..
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:29 (twelve years ago) link
Oh, and the "Trash" cover above came out ahead of the Beatles version..
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:30 (twelve years ago) link
Whoop! Getting Better's where Sgt Peppers really hits its stride (along with Fixing A Hole) for me. I feel like that album's got such a big preamble you have to get over. The intro, the hoary tedium of With a Little Help, and the tiresome LITSWD (which is okay really, but a bit obvious and played out).
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:30 (twelve years ago) link
I couldn't separate them and didn't want to use two votes, so I voted for You Never Give Me Your Money instead.
― Ismael Klata, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:31 (twelve years ago) link
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 11:29 (1 minute ago) Bookmark
If I'd known these were gonna be combined, I'd have voted for them. My favourite section on Abbey Road, but they work really well together and are too meagre in themselves to vote for individually. Oh well...
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:32 (twelve years ago) link
Or what Ismael Klata just said.
37. Hello Goodbye Single (Points: 238, Voters: 10, Number Ones: 0)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLAcxCkjqJs&feature=related
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:36 (twelve years ago) link
Getting Better was my #10!
― BIG HOOBA aka the stankdriver (Phil D.), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:36 (twelve years ago) link
Hello Goodbye is good, but something about it irks me. I think it's the lyrics, they sound like a parody - more like something the Rutles would do.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:36 (twelve years ago) link
lyrics are kinda stupid, melody is superb though
― V79, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:37 (twelve years ago) link
The true reason why the Beatles split up was songs like "Hello Goodbye" and "Obladi", as John really didn't like them but recognised that they should exist for Paul's sake. Just, that he really didn't want to have to be involved in making them.
― Mark G, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:39 (twelve years ago) link
I like Paul's story of the Sgt Pepper sleeve - that it all came from a vision he had of a marvellous floral clock, which made him then think of a ceremony where the four of them were getting presented with medals by the mayor of a northern town. Hence the band uniforms. Then the idea of a crowd of family & friends watching, which became the gallery of heroes.
Then come the day of the shoot everything went to plan except someone didn't order enough flowers, so the marvellous floral clock died a death at the last, and instead there's that crappy guitar shape at the front because that's all they could do with the few that were left. But the clock had been the point all along!
― Ismael Klata, Monday, 18 July 2011 10:41 (twelve years ago) link
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Clock Band
― BIG HOOBA aka the stankdriver (Phil D.), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:43 (twelve years ago) link
Hmmm none of these were anywhere near my top 20 (Getting Better maybe). From a horse-race point-of-view I guess it's good that they're out of the way now...
― Volvo Twilight (p-dog), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:44 (twelve years ago) link
This run is "Getting Better" afaic.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:52 (twelve years ago) link
Anyone see a parallel, lyrics wise, between "Getting Better" and "She Knows Me Too Well" by the Beach Boys including crepey admissions of being a complete bastard to one's spouse.
― Post-Manpat Music (dog latin), Monday, 18 July 2011 10:55 (twelve years ago) link