# Deep Tracks - The Beatles - "Revolver"



## Guest (Aug 27, 2018)

View attachment 107130


Please *choose up to eight selections* for this particular poll.

On all polls created if you click on the number of votes following the song title the username of all voters and their chosen selections will appear.

The tunes themselves will be found below the poll itself as links rather than as embedded videos due to bandwidth issues for those who wish to reacquaint themselves with a tune that may have receded a bit too far into the past to be remembered with the clarity that came when they were first released...

Next up is - The Beatles - "Revolver"

"Revolver" is the seventh studio album by the Beatles. Released on 5 August 1966, it was the Beatles' final recording project before their retirement as live performers and marked the group's most overt use of studio technology up to that time, building on the advances of their late 1965 release Rubber Soul.

The Beatles recorded the album following a three-month break from professional commitments at the start of 1966, and during a period when London was feted as the era's cultural capital. The songs reflect the influence of psychedelic drugs such as LSD and the increasing sophistication of the Beatles' lyrics to address themes including death and transcendence from material concerns.

With no thoughts of reproducing their new material in concert, the band made liberal use of studio techniques such as varispeeding, reversed tapes, close audio miking and automatic double tracking (ADT), in addition to employing musical instrumentation outside of their standard live set-up. Some of the changes in studio practice introduced by "Revolver", particularly ADT, were soon adopted throughout the recording industry.

In the UK, "Revolver"'s fourteen tracks were released to radio stations throughout July 1966. In the US, it was the last Beatles album to be subjected to Capitol's policy of altering the band's intended running order and content. The release there coincided with the Beatles' final concert tour, which was marred by the controversy surrounding John Lennon's remark that the band had become "more popular than Jesus". The record topped the UK Albums Chart for seven weeks and America's Billboard Top LPs list for six weeks.

The album cover was designed by Klaus Voormann, whose work combined Aubrey Beardsley-inspired line drawing with photo collage and went on to win the 1967 Grammy Award for Best Album Cover, Graphic Arts.

"Revolver" expanded the scope of pop music in terms of the range of musical styles used on the album, compositional form, and the lyrical content of its songs. The album was influential in advancing principles espoused by the 1960s counterculture and in inspiring the development of subgenres such as psychedelic rock, electronica, progressive rock and world music.

Writing in "The Beatles Forever", Nicholas Schaffner cites 1966 as the start of the band's "'psychedelic' period" and adds: "That adjective implies not only the influence of certain mind-altering chemicals, but also the freewheeling spectrum of wide-ranging colors that their new music seemed to evoke."

Music journalist Carol Clerk describes "Revolver" as having been "decisively informed by acid", following John Lennon and George Harrison's continued experimentation with the drug LSD since the spring of 1965. Through these shared experiences, the two musicians developed a fascination for Eastern philosophical concepts, particularly regarding the illusory nature of human existence.

Despite his bandmates' urging, after Ringo Starr had also partaken of the drug, Paul McCartney refused to try LSD. As reflected in the more conventional subject matter of his lyrics on "Revolver", relative to those of Lennon and Harrison, McCartney drew his inspiration from the intellectual stimulation he experienced among London's arts scene, particularly its thriving avant-garde community.

The camaraderie among the four Beatles was at its highest throughout this period. A disagreement between McCartney and his bandmates nevertheless resulted in McCartney walking out of the studio during the final session, for Lennon's "She Said She Said", on 21 June, two days before the band were due to fly to West Germany for the first leg of their world tour.

The Beatles spent over 220 hours recording "Revolver" - a figure that excludes mixing sessions, and compares with less than 80 hours for "Rubber Soul". Final mixing of the album took place on 22 June. The Beatles celebrated the project's completion by attending the opening of Sibylla's, a nightclub in which Harrison had a financial stake.

The sessions for "Revolver" furthered the spirit of studio experimentation evident on Rubber Soul. With the Beatles increasingly involved in the production of their music, Martin's role as producer had changed to one of a facilitator and collaborator, whereby the band now relied on him to make their ideas a reality.

The group's willingness to experiment was also evident in their dedication to finding or inventing sounds that captured the heightened perception they experienced through hallucinogenic drugs.

In their search for new sounds, the band incorporated musical instruments such as the Indian tambura and tabla, and clavichord, vibraphone and tack piano into their work for the first time.

The album is an early work in the psychedelic rock genre, which accompanied the emergence of counterculture ideology in the 1960s. Through its individual tracks, "Revolver" covers a wide range of styles, including acid rock, chamber music, R&B, raga rock, musique concrète, as well as standard contemporary rock and pop.

In its lyrical themes, the album marks a radical departure from the Beatles' past work, as a large majority of the songs avoid the subject of love.

The album's title, like that of "Rubber Soul", is a pun, referring to both a kind of handgun and the "revolving" motion of a record as it plays on a turntable.

Many music critics recognize it as the Beatles' best album, surpassing "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band".

In 1997 it was named the third greatest album of all time in the BBC's "Music of the Millennium" poll.

In 2000, Q magazine placed it at number 1 in its list of the "50 Greatest British Albums Ever"; four years later, the album topped the same magazine's list "The Music That Changed the World".

In 2001, the VH1 network named it the greatest album in history.

In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Revolver third on its list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", a position it retained on the magazine's revised list nine years later.

In 2006, it was chosen by Time magazine as one of the "100 Best Albums of All Time".

The album was ranked first in Colin Larkin's book "All-Time Top 1000 Albums".

In 1999, "Revolver" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, an award bestowed by the American Recording Academy "to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolver_(Beatles_album)

Your commentary on any and every aspect of the album and especially any memories reawakened as a result of the poll is welcomed.


----------



## Guest (Aug 27, 2018)

"*Taxman*" -






"*Eleanor Rigby*" -






"*I'm Only Sleeping*" -






"*Love You To*" -






"*Here, There and Everywhere*" -






"*Yellow Submarine*" -






"*She Said She Said*" -






"*Good Day Sunshine*" -






"*And Your Bird Can Sing*" -






"*For No One*" -






"*Doctor Robert*" -






"*I Want To Tell You*" -






"*Got To Get You Into My Life*" -






"*Tomorrow Never Knows*" -


----------



## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

Probably the Beatles most consistently good album.


----------



## philoctetes (Jun 15, 2017)

What I like about these threads is the chance to review how old popular music has aged while I have aged. I know this irritates some people but that's par for me. 

This one was once a cornerstone of psychedelia. But how good are the songs? Pretty darn good, but there be a couple duds. Drones were big on their mind. My fave is I'm Only Sleeping, even though it's based on drone.

The Beatle album that has aged best for me is Rubber Soul. I used to think it was mean, angry, but now it seems just right.


----------



## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

I love this album. I feel like it's their first album when they got past the pop (which I still like) and started making really genius stuff. There's a nice mix of colorful psychedelic stuff and darker, sadder stuff. My favorite is the dark sad stuff though.


----------



## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

Fredx2098 said:


> I love this album. I feel like it's their first album when they got past the pop (which I still like) and started making really genius stuff. There's a nice mix of colorful psychedelic stuff and darker, sadder stuff. My favorite is the dark sad stuff though.


I agree: The Beatles seriously were getting into their stride here, with _Eleanor Rigby, Tomorrow Never Knows_, etc. leading the way into my favorite Beatles genre--the druggy, Eastern, psychedelic songs that still strongly appeal to me today. Those songs, plus The Beatles' earliest pop hits, define their place in my musical horizon.


----------



## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

This was the close of the first chapter for me - 1966 was the final year when the Beatles machine was going at full tilt before various factors both personal and professional conspired to incrementally derail them. 1968 was the year when the rot set in but perhaps the seeds for their eventual destruction were inadvertently sown well before then.


----------



## Barbebleu (May 17, 2015)

I agree with all the previous comments. Easily their most consistent album and it and Hard Day's Night are my go to Beatles albums when I want to wallow in a bit of nostalgia. My first serious girlfriend gave me it for 18th my birthday in September 1966. Happy days and yes, I still have the album!


----------



## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

This is among my fave Beatles albums along with Rubber Soul, and Abbey Road.


----------



## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Ray Davies comments on Revolver tracks:

Here's the album, track by track, with Ray's inter-round summaries:
Side One: "Taxman" (by George)--lead voice, George: "It sounds like a cross between the Who and Batman. It's a bit limited, but the Beatles get over this by the sexy double-tracking. It's surprising how sexy double-tracking makes a voice sound."

"Eleanor Rigby" (by John and Paul)--lead Paul: "I bought a Haydn LP the other day and this sounds just like it. It's all sort of quartet stuff and it sounds like they're out to please music teachers in primary schools. I can imagine John saying: 'I'm going to write this for my old schoolmistress'. Still it's very commercial."

"I'm Only Sleeping" (by John and Paul)--lead John: "It's a most beautiful song, much prettier than 'Eleanor Rigby'. A jolly old thing, really, and definitely the best track on the album.

"Love You Too" (by George)--lead George: "George wrote this--he must have quite a big influence on the group now. This sort of song I was doing two years ago--now I'm doing what the Beatles were doing two years ago. It's not a bad song--it's well performed which is always true of a Beatles track."

"Here There and Everywhere" (by John and Paul)--lead Paul: "This proves that the Beatles have got good memories, because there are a lot of busy chords in it. It's nice--like one instrument with the voice and guitar merging. Third best track on the album."

"Yellow Submarine" (by John and Paul)--lead Ringo: "This is a load of rubbish, really. I take the mickey out of myself on the piano and play stuff like this. I think they know it's not that good."

"She Said She Said" (by John and Paul)--lead John: "This song is in to restore confidence in the old Beatles sound. That's all."

"Good Day Sunshine" (by John and Paul)--lead Paul: "This'll be a giant. It doesn't force itself on you, but it stands out like 'I'm Only Sleeping'. This is back to the real old Beatles. I just don't think the fans like the newer electronic stuff. The Beatles are supposed to be like the boy next door only better."

"And Your Bird Can Sing" (by John and Paul)--lead John: "Don't like this. The song's too predictable. It's not a Beatles song at all."

"For No One" (by John and Paul)--lead Paul: "This will get covered, but it won't be a hit. It's really better than 'Eleanor Rigby' and the French horn is a nice effect."

"Dr. Robert" (by John and Paul)--lead John: "It's good--there's a 12-bar beat and bits in it that are clever. Not my sort of thing, though."

"I Want To Tell You" (by George)--lead George: "This helps the LP through. It's not up to the Beatles standard."

"Got To Get You Into My Life" (by John and Paul)--lead Paul: "Jazz backing--and it just goes to prove that Britain's jazz musicians can't swing. Paul's singing better jazz than the musicians are playing which makes nonsense of people saying jazz and pop are very different. Paul sounds like Little Richard. Really, it's the most vintage Beatles track on the LP."

"Tomorrow Never Knows" (by John and Paul)--lead John: "Listen to all those crazy sounds! It'll be popular in discotheques. I can imagine they had George Martin tied to a totem pole when they did this!"

So, after listening to each track three or four times, the Ray Davies verdict: "This is the first Beatles LP I've really listened to in it's entirety but I must say there are better songs on 'Rubber Soul'. Still, 'I'm Only Sleeping' is a standout, 'Good Day Sunshine is second best and I also like 'Here, There and Everywhere.' But I don't want to be harsh about the others. The balance and recording technique are as good as ever."


----------



## Guest (Oct 3, 2018)

starthrower said:


> Ray Davies comments on Revolver tracks:
> 
> "But I don't want to be harsh about the others"


If this is what he sounds like when he doesn't want to sound harsh what must it be like when he does?

First-rate addition to the thread, ST, my compliments!

Here's a very informative site devoted to the Kinks -

http://www.kindakinks.net/

On the "Collectibles" section there is a sub-listing for "Books". I would personally recommend avoiding the three biographies written in the mid-80's by Mendelssohn, Rogan, and Savage respectively as I am just as sorry now that I read them as I was 30 plus years ago - relentlessly negative focus on the worst behaviour imaginable by everyone involved - truly distasteful revelations of internecine conflicts and thus the cause of a dreadful sense of profound disillusionment that lingered for years afterwards.

How I wish that I did not know now what I learned then... Embrace the music, shun the books...


----------



## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

It didn't seem too harsh as I read it. If he said it was all great it wouldn't mean anything. I completely agree about Yellow Submarine and his picks for best tracks. This critique is more enlightening than some mythology and distance praise from a non musician rock critic.


----------

