Revolver - Beatles (The) > Reviews > The transition album

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Groundbreaking
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	The Beatles
Disadvantages:	None

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Hi there!

The contract they signed was clear: two new albums released every year. But 1966 was kind of an exception, because this revolver would have been the only album released by the band this year. The reason, they were very tired. 1965 hapened to be a good year, with this great 'Rubber soul' and of course, with full stadiums at every concert. Also 1966 started good. But it was also a weird year, with lots of problems, like a whole country against them (political reasons), the church against them (Lennon said the beatles were bigger than Jesus Christ...or at least, that was the translation to what Lennon really said), they were threatened to be shot at some performance, they play at some sacred japanese building so Japanes people got mad about it, and some stuff like that. That's why they decided to take a break, a six months break, just after releasing 'Revolver'. Thats why every one thought the beatles were spliting, but the thing is that they were just resting...and thinking about their future. In that future, there were no concerts, no touring. Just good songs, making good albums, and that would mean long time spent at recording studios. In fact, the Beatles never played any song included in this album, but not only because they stoped their touring days, but the songs were to complex to be permorfed at concert. The beatles were improving too much, and what most beatles fans consider the best beatles period, 1967-1970, started with this album, 'Revolver', recorded and released in 1966.

As I was saying, its a complex album. The name was going to be 'Abracadabra', but they discovered there was already an album released with that title. Then they considered a lot of diferent names, like 'Magic circles', 'freewheelin' the beatles', and a few more, but they finally choose the name of a record turntable (not a gun).

Theres not a bad song included, and for the first time, one of Harrisong songs would've been considered the best from the whole album by loads of fans. More than ever, the songs signed by Lennon and McCartney are, as a matter of fact, only Lennon's or McCartney, but they didn't collaborate with each other. I'll be telling you the main composer for each song.

The cover of the album shows the first big diference. There's not a photograph of the members of the band, as they always did before. In this case, the cover shows the faces of the beatles drawn, with a lot of little photographs mixed all around the drawn hair of them. And it was a black and white cover (their only black and white cover). The album includes 14 tracks, and the only disadvantage its probably the duration, just around 35 minutes, but this was the normal duration of an album in the 60's (remember by that time, the common thing was to release singles, maybe EP's with four tracks, and long albums were kind of a luxury for a few bands).

These are the songs:

1.Taxman (Harrison)

Main composer: Harrison, Singer: Harrison. This was the first and only album that'd atarts with a song writen by George Harrison. This is a fact, my opinion is that this is probably the best or at least one of the best songs of this album, and also one of the bests songs writen by this musician. Its a hard rock song (when I say 'hard rock' I don't mean at all 'heavy', just remenber we are talking about 1966). It starts with a guitar riff (and a bass riff doing the same line), and talks about the high taxes the beatles always had to pay. It's a line that I love that talks about these coins they used to put on dead people's eyes, and Harrison says those pennys must be declared too. The Beatles, a few years after, would found themselves in serious taxes problems, and thats why the'd create their Apple company.

Rate: 10/10

2.Eleanor Rigby (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: McCartney, Singer: McCartney. A nice song with weird psychedelic lirycs. Lots of fiddles and orchestra musicians for this track. Theres a line where Paul sings 'Father McKenzie...', but it was going to be 'Father McCartney...'...he just thought his father might not like it. The name of the song was the name of some one that was buried at Liverpool Cemetary.

Rate: 8/10

3.I'm only sleeping (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: Lennon, Songer: Lennon. Another unclassifiable song writen and sung by John Lennon that starts with an E minor played in the oposite direction (I mean, from down to up in the guitar, instead of the normal way to play a chord, from up to down). The song talks about spending a lot of time sleeping, something Lennon liked a lot. Paul's second voice is as good as his 'mini' bass lines.

Rate: 10/10

4.Love you to (Harrison)

Main Composer: HArrison, Singer: Harrison. The first 'indian song' writen by Harrison. He was discovering and learning how to play 'Sitar', and all he had learn by that time, was shown in this song. He was begining to enjoy the instrument, and, as a matter of fact, he spent the next 6 following months at India, learning with one of the biggest 'Sitar' players (also, learning about their culture). Not one of the best songs from the album, I'd say...

Rate: 7/10

5.Here, there and everywhere (Lennon-McCartney)

Main Composer: McCartney, Singer: McCartney. A lovely slow song, that reminds of Rubber soul album 'Michelle'. 'Yesterday' was a great hit from 1965, and since it, he was always trying to do it again, with slow songs, trying to show every one he wasn't just a 'pop writer', but an excelent writer. He tried the same with 'Michelle', and in this album with this 'Here, there and everywhere'. Anyway, the song is excelent, and very very well sung by Paul and Lennon and Harrison at second voices.

Rate: 9/10

6.Yellow submarine (Lennon-McCartney)

Main Composer: McCartney, Singer: Ringo. Paul wrote this song specially for Ringo Starr to sing it. It was a 'kids song', a simple song, and it was a doble A side of a single (the other doble A side was 'Eleanor Rigby'). In the song there a lot of special sound effects, pretending to be the noises of a ship sailing. In fact, there were just bathroom noises.... This song would name an album 3 years before, and also a cartoon film, both at 1969.

Rate: 8/10

7.She said she said (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: Lennon, Singer: Lennon. John Lennon wrote this song that starts with a weird line 'She said, I know what is like to be dead'. Aparently, this is what Peter Fonda, friend of him, said to Lennon one day at some party in the States. Lennon liked that line, and he wrote a song with it. The song is as weird as that line, but its another unclassifiable great song, very far away from the popo style, with diferent timings, and all...

Rate: 9/10

8.Good day sunshine (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: McCartney, Singer: McCartney. Another nice kinda pop song by Paul. He wrote it during the United States tour, to be exact, the days after or before the Miami concert. He liked Miami's weather, Miami's sun, and he wrote this song, a love song to the sun. It starts with an uncommon fade in, and more uncommon is the kind of fade out at the end of it. The Beatles were discovering, by this time, an important instrument, piano. This is basically a piano song, and year by year, piano would become an important instrument for their songs ('Hey Jude', 'Let It Be', ...).

Rate: 9/10

9.And your bird can sing (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: Lennon, Singer: Lennon. This is one of my favourites songs from this album, a fast rock song writen by John Lennon, who also sing it with Paul doing a lovely secong voice. It seems they really enjoy recording this one, and there's a bootleg version (not bootleg anymore since it was released at some of the 'Anthology' albums) with a diferent structure and a great bass guitar by Paul. There are also some out takes in wich Lennon and McCartney can't stop laughing and changing the lyrics (I've read they were druged while recording this song...)

Rate: 10/10

10.For no one (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: McCartney, Singer: McCartney. Another slow song by Paul. A very acoustic one, more into the pop style than in the new psychedelic one (or 'flower power', as you mind...). Nothing special to say about this song...

Rate: 8/10

11.Doctor Robert (Lennon-McCartney)

Main composer: Lennon, Singer: Lennon. Doctor Robert was the first man to give LSD to The Beatles. He was a dentist, and also a friend of them. The thing is that Lennon and Harrison were at his home. Doctor Roberts (I'm not sure if that was his real name) offers them a tea, so this man put some LSD over the suggar. When the bealtes were told about (of course after they had drink their teas), they run out the house, kinda annoyed. Inside the elevator, there was a little red light, that Harrisong though it was a big fire. He started to scream asking for help, then they say they spent the rest of the day laughing at everyone, cuase everyone was 'pig headed'. Anyway, the song talks about 'feeling fine thanks to Doctro Robert', but they are not really talking about medicine, they are talking, as you can imagine, about drugs.

Rate: 10/10

12. I want to tell you (Harrison)

Main Composer: Harrison, Singer: Harrison. Nice song, and the third writen by Harrison (something very unussual). This is a slow song with Paul singin in this high tune the second voice. A good one by Harrison, thou not one of his bests...

Rate: 8/10

13.Got to get you into my like (Lennon-McCartney)

Main Composer: McCartney, Singer: McCartney. I'd say this the worst song included in this album. IS not any 'common' beatles style, it's more of a 'cabaret' song, with trumpets, organs and all that. But there's a diferent version, again you can find it at the second 'Anthology', that looks more like a Beach Boys song, with very 'beach boys chorus'. A pity they would decided to change it to what they finally released...

Rate: 7/10

14.Tomorrow never knows (Lennon-McCartney)

Main Composer: Lennon, Singer: Lennon. This song is very weird. There's a lot of noises and the song goes in the same tune again and again and again. It's an A played by some many instruments, including trumpets and some other wind instruments. The lyrics are completely mad and a bit nonsense, and in some parts it looks like the instruments are playing a little bit out of tune. But the song is just great, and very representative of this movement they were starting, called psychedelic (now you can see why is this album considered the first and neccesary step to the psychedelic years, starting with the 'Sgt. Pepper's' album). Some groups have tryed to record this song but none's as good as the original one.

Rate: 10/10

And this is all, this 14 songs (34:40 minutes). After realising the album, they would take a big break. Paul would kept on working, writing the music for some tv show. Harrison would spent this time learning 'Sitar' and Indian culture. Lennon would spent this time at Spain (my country, where he would write 'Strawberry fields forever') making a movie, and Ringo would go with Lennon to Spain, just for hollidays.

But in november, Paul would get the phone, called the others, and tell them: 'Hey, I've got an idea for our new album. It's going to be called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and WE are going to be that band'...

If it's true that 'Sgt. Pepper's' is their best album, don't you miss this 'Revolver', the natural step to the other one...

The musicians, for both of them are:

-John Lennon: Rhythm Guitar, lead vocals, vocals and harmonica.
-Paul McCartney: Bass guitar, lead vocals and vocals.
-George Harrison: Lead guitar, lead vocals and vocals
-Ringo Starr: Drums and lead vocals.
-George Martin: Fifth beatle, and producer....

Ciao!

BLUESY