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ITT: We argue over which Beatles album is best


Franconia

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This may be a metal forum but I'm willing to bet that a good chunk of this community likes The Beatles, some as much as I do (i fucking love this band).

For those who like The Beatles, argue which one is their greatest album.

 

I choose Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, even though I like Revolver and Rubber Soul more. By 1967, there was nothing in the mainstream that was nearly as ambitious, experimental and determined as SPLHCB. It's a completely flawless album-each song is amazing, the transitions and production by Martin is outstanding (just listen to A Day in the Life), and it showed the band at a tripped-out creative peak that very few artists could match, especially back then. I could argue for Revolver but it's more of a collection of songs and not really a concept album, but it's still probably my favorite album of all time. No song is weak and each one is a true 5-star track that I love listening to and shows an immense level of creativity and a second-to-none ability to write songs.

Which album from this legendary band do you consider their best and why?

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I've been meaning to post here for ages now. I'm a pretty big fan of The Beatles and there are no fewer than seven albums in my collection. 

Firstly, I'll make a distinction between my 'favourite' album and their 'greatest'. If I was going with social/musical impact then I would rank 'Please Please Me' and 'Sgt Peppers' as the equal most relevant. Here's why: 

Biggest Impact Beatles Albums:

Please Please Me (1963)

The first official full length is probably the most significant of their career. It seems to have really changed the way people saw rock music as well as the celebrity attached to musicians, and it kick-started that 18 months of mania. Tracks like 'I Saw Her Standing There', 'Love Me Do' and 'Twist and Shout' are obviously big hits, but every single song on here is a masterpiece (although that applies to all of their albums). The savagery and 'metalness' of 'Twist and Shout' is brilliant. Listen to it now - the performance was rebellion incarnate. 

Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

This is also equally momentous. Can't believe it was only three years after their debut album as it is world's away - what an era! This has huge experimentation that opened doors for bands to push boundaries. 'A Day in the Life', 'Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds', and 'She's Leaving Home' are sheer genius. Yes, by 1967 a lot of new bands were creating new sounds, but this came from the world's biggest band and therefore made the biggest splash. 

As for my personal favourite, I'm going with 'Rubber Soul' a hair's breadth above 'Revolver'.

Personal Favourite Beatles Albums:

Rubber Soul (1965)

This one of the 'Rubber Soul'/'Revolver' pair is probably just my favourite. The mid-era of The Beatles is so goddamn engaging. It's more advanced than the early 60s dork rock of their beginnings, yet not overly experimental like they would later become - right here they're in the zone. 'Norwegian Wood' and 'If I Needed Someone' are spacey enough, and tracks like 'Michelle' and 'Girl' are brilliant. Every song here is a masterpiece and I could just list the whole thing. This is one of my favourite albums of all time actually. The epitome of meaningful and catchy music. 

Revolver (1966)

This is right there too. 'Eleanor Rigby' is hugely emotional, but there's a lot of fun here like 'Got to Get You Into My Life' and 'Good Day Sunshine'. The Indian influence is here, but it fits perfectly with 'Love You To' and 'Tomorrow Never Knows'.  Fabulous music. After this they release great albums, no doubt, but like most major experimentation, some of the rock solid quality gets compromised in my view. 

 

 

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