Worst Beatles song on Magical Mystery Tour

(and not just "takes" but also the "final" remixed versions, just like all the rest of the album).

Yeah, but they're tacked on to the end, with each "final" version following two outtakes of itself.

Just calling it out because that's twice now I've run over to Spotify to hear a version of SPLHCB with those two songs in the sequence. Quit faking me out!

A compilation Magical Mystery Tour (the album) may be, but I'll still take it over Sgt. Pepper's as a collection of individual tracks and as an end-to-end listening experience.

Me too. Love the title tracks, Good Morning, Day In The Life, LSD and 64, but feel little love for the rest of Pepper, but love p much all of MMT.

Maybe it's my Boomer programming talking, but the carnivalesque conceit of Sgt. Pepper — the packaging, the moustaches, the "concept" — is at least as important to me as the music. It's like entering a particular funhouse. MMT has great songs and a similar vibe, but it doesn't feel like a single thing to me. And as a song collection, I might on any given day rather listen to one of the Past Masters.

Stevie otm when SP lags it laaaaags but MMT keeps the party going throughout

Could pretty much reverse thede rankings for my list

Just stumbled on this from archivist Ron Furmanek, who was asked to remix the soundtrack (sound as well as music) around 1988 for home video release.

George Martin was present for the final mix sessions, and when Furmanek played him the backing tracks to "Blue Jay Way," Martin laughed and said "this is rubbish! Did we release this??"

that's one of the least bad few songs on the album surely? and the production makes it. was he not embarrassed by AYNIL which sounds way worse

for the most part though I think this album sounds way better than it is

lol, love blue jay way but i can imagine how listening to just the isolated tracks could sound like an amateurish mess (especially if you hadnt heard them for 20 years.) it kind of only works when everything comes together for the whole effect

AYNIL sounds date-stamped to an exact week in 1967. It's always been a time capsule to me, which means it's not my idea of a great record, but it has the same appeal of an old photo where every anachronistic detail has vanished with time.

I wish I could enjoy "Blue Jay Way" more but it's flat-out dull. The production doesn't make anything because there's barely anything there.

That's the era when Harrison wrote on keyboards.

Well, guess what.

they shoulda done more stuff like “Flying”

Johnny L. & The BTs

Banger

https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/elvis-costello-the-beatles-live-aid-cover/

Except Costello played the whole song in 4/4; as with a number of Lennon’s Beatles songs, there’s a few odd measures thrown in (in this case, 1/4 between the verse lines, and a 3/4 before the chorus), and Costello just ignores those.

A decent salvage job. They were running over and basically told Costello that he only had a several minutes to get on the stage, perform and exit, so he settled on something easy that the crowd would know and somewhat fit the spirit of the event. Introducing it as "a Northern folk song" was very amusing.

*had several

Didn’t recall that. Nicely done.

I do like Costello's version, and along with Bon Jovi's stumbling rendition of "Here Comes The Sun" on some awards show just after Harrison passed, it's another reminder to musicians who cover Beatles songs that, oh shit, they sometimes messed around with time signatures, didn't they?

It won't convince the haters, but that B7 in the chorus (the last "all you need") is one of the great Lennon/Beatles chord changes, which Costello's stripped down cover shows off.

He’s on pretty cheery self-deprecating form here. The official Live Aid people just put a whole bunch of this backstage-celebs stuff on their YouTube. Funny to see he’s got the words (or something) written on his hand

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpxC4DzeOXg

I'll add that in addition to being a time capsule, it's musically pleasing on basic level. Even Lennon/McCartney's weakest material is typically very tuneful with at least one memorable hook, and it's easy to see why AYNIL was another #1 hit and why 20 years later it can be familiar to so many people. It's not inaccurate to think of it as a folk song in that way. It may be a dated sentiment rather than the profound philosophy some hoped it to be, but I don't think nursery rhymes have endured for any grand insight they have into life.