I sometimes wonder if this album would have had quite the impact that it did had it been released in plainer packaging, no gatefold, no lyrics, no psychedelic artwork. Or maybe it’s the band-playing-another-band concept that grabbed people, although as said upthread the concept soon fizzles out.
Simply as a collection of songs, it’s not really their best. I guess it is the epitome of an album being an event rather than just a bunch of songs.
Agreed - it works, and was a huge event, because of how the Beatles positioned it as a concept album - it’s us, but as a San Francisco psychedelic band. And that it ends with A Day in the Life, pretty much the ultimate mind-blower. From Love Me Do to He Blew His Mind out in a Car in 5 years - whoa.
But, song for song, it doesn’t come remotely close to Revolver - but good on the Beatles for figuring out how to still make it an event.
I really enjoy Lucy and A Day. Getting Better has that signature tight little chord that starts off and defines the song - I hear that chord and know it immediately. And I like both Lennon’s cynical counterpoint and his lyrics sung by Paul about beating his woman. Obviously, I really do NOT like them - but it leads to good discussion with my kids. We all like Lennon, but discuss how he was really a jerk who had some work to do - but appeared to want to do the work, so good for him; there’s a lesson there…
I wonder what your pick will be when we get to Abbey Road.
I thought I’d be the first to select “Fixing a Hole,” but I’m happily surprised to see I’m number three!
I’m sure “Day in the Life,” “With a Little…,” and maybe “Lucy” and “…Sixty-Four” are going to get all kinds of love in this thread, but I’m torn between Paul’s terrific “Fixing a Hole” and John’s awesome “Good Morning Good Morning.” I went with “Fixing” because it’s easier on the ears.
Relatively easy one for me. “A Day in the Life.”
“When I’m Sixty Four” and “With a Little Help From My Friends” are both great songs. But yeah, my favorite is “A Day in the Life”, by a long shot.
I think A Day in the Life is easier to appreciate than it is to love, but it still gets my vote because it’s the one I’ve listened to the most (ahead of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds). But my favorite Beatles song from this period is Strawberry Fields Forever, and there’s nothing that comes close to second place. I’m one of those people who think Sgt. Pepper’s would be a much better album if Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane had been included. One of John’s best and one of Paul’s best, respectively - you could substitute them for just about any two songs on the album.
Yeah, favorite song: Sgt. Pepper’s (Reprise). I’m just a sucker for the guitars, the hooks, the tempo. There’s not much on the album that “rocks,” so this 1:19 jumps out at me.
If I had to try and justify, I could say Hendrix only covered a few Beatles songs in concert, and SPLHCB was apparently the most frequently performed. (Not the shortened “Reprise” version, but certainly closer to it in feel.)
That has got to be the best 7-inch single release ever. I’d do a poll if I could think of a few comparable options to populate it with. There’s the two versions of “Love will tear us apart” along with “These Days” by Joy Division and then ummm.
Agree that it’s not their best collection of songs, but, even apart form the “event,” a great album is more than the sum of its parts, which is certainly true of Sgt. Pepper.
So, yeah A Day In The Life.
Count me as one who also doesn’t get the appeal of Sgt. Peppers. I was, what 5 years old when it was released and bought the album when I was maybe 14 or 15.
It’s a good album, but Revolver, Abbey Road, Rubber Soul and A Hard Days Night were better. IMHO.
I’m not sure if those statistics are accurate, but if you’re looking for Hendrix Beatles covers, make sure you hear the “Sgt. Pepper” from Stockholm in 1967 released as part of the Stages box set - and the raucous “Day Tripper” from Radio One.
I went with Mr. Kite for its minor key and deranged carnival mood.
I figured A Day in the Life would lead this, which is amusing to me because I never heard anyone raving about it when the album came out. It was just a curiosity from the fact it was made up of two uncompleted songs. If people mentioned their favorite song, it’d be Little Help or Lucy
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Good lord, yes.
Now: imagine that vs. Revolver with the addition of Paperback Writer and Rain. Revolver, impossibly, gets even freakin’ better.
The fact that they left their singles off the albums in British fashion still boggles the mind.
I’m one of the outliers. “Getting Better” got my vote. ADITL is just a little overfamiliar/overplayed by this point in my life.
I’ve tried including them with a playlist using modern computer dohickies. They just don’t work with the rest of the material. Yeah, I found that really weird, but I did actually try it a bunch of different ways. But I also like the album Magical Mystery Tour as much as Sgt Pepper. And I tried a double album playlist. That didn’t work either.
Two uncompleted songs that mixed together explain each other based on existential dread that the Beatles often explored with songs like Nowhere Man and Eleanor Rigby. The genius of the Fabs was how swinish John and sunny Paul were two sides of the same coin.
Yes. John obviously had profound emotional issues regarding women, and could be a shockingly callous and cynical asshole; it can be difficult to reconcile that with the “Give Peace A Chance” “Imagine” persona he presented to the world. I’ve long felt that the “gentle hippie” was in fact the person he wished he was, and tried to be. That line in “Getting Better” speaks volumes. A man struggling to conquer his demons.
I voted for A Day In The Life before I checked the poll. Wow, I had no idea it was that outstanding.