Your thoughts on Revolver?

Lately, I've been hearing a lot about Revolver. It'll be the 40th Anniversary of its release, after all. So, I thought I'd start a topic in its name! All Revolver-y thoughts go here!

A lot of people I know think that Revolver is the best Beatles album, hands down. Some even say it to be the best album ever. Personally, I dont agree. I honestly dont see the amazingness (yes, thats a word ) of the album. Sure, it's got some real good songs - some of my favorites actually,but I still dont see why people tend to worship it. A lot of people defend it and say 'Oh, it was the transition between the Mop Tops to being all serious' or 'Oh, it was such an influence!'. If anything, I feel Sgt. Pepper is more influencing and more their 'transition'. So, I'm curious to see what you think- is Revolver the best album ever? Maybe someone can convince me it is

And what about the songs? Favorites off of Revolver?
Mine are 'I Want To Tell You', 'For No One', 'Tomorrow Never Knows', and 'I'm Only Sleeping'.

One thing (certainly not the whole thing) about Revolver is that (perhaps with a couple of exceptions) it doesn't date itself quite so aggressively as Sgt. Pepper. It doesn't scream out "1966!" in the same way that Pepper shouts "1967! Acid! Love! Wow!" Revolver has too much cool for that, so that even though it contains, probably, MORE songs that relate overtly to drugs than Pepper does, the album as a whole doesn't come across that as trippy or psychedelic.

Tony

Originally Posted by AMBOISVERT

It doesn't scream out "1966!" in the same way that Pepper shouts "1967! Acid! Love! Wow!"

Exactly.

Whew... This album changed my life, literally.

I'm trying to find an old review I wrote about it some years ago (excuse the primitive English) in amazon.com

I do believe it is the greatest album ever made, so I will just copy it in order to not repeat myself...

Skip this one if you are not interested cuz this is a long post:

"I may lose some objectivty by writing this review, so I'm going to admit now that there may be lots of people who have strong arguments to consider "Sgt.Pepper's", "Abbey Road", the White Album or even "Rubber Soul" superior albums made by the Beatles. But to me, "Revolver" represents the album that changed my life completely. I had heard the *traditional* Beatles music from the "Red" & "Blue" vinyls that my dad had here at home, and received the "Free As A Bird" and "Real Love" songs with surprise and curiosity, as they were nice and strongly constructed. Then I thought there might be a whole lot of Beatle music I may have been missing, and God knows why I got obssesed with "Revolver", and finally got it by Christmas when I was sixteen (that was only two years ago!).And I wasn't wrong at all. I didn't find here the traditional Beatles singalong tunes that everybody knows (OK, maybe "Yellow Submarine", but that's all!), but an unusual experiment of brilliant music, frequently accompanied by excellent lyrics coming from the three most important composers in the history of pop music...

The excellent guitar work on the whole album was something I had never heard before, neither in the music of this generation, nor in any music I've heard... So it immediatly blew my mind. When I first heard "She Said She Said", I thought "that's the Beatles?"... And what about "Tomorrow Never Knows"! That sounds like the weirdest (but at the same time coherent) sound experiment ever made, with surprising results in the vocals and the tape loops that make that song a very rare and acid trip to... nowhere.

That's my global impression of the album: it's a trip (with even more taste than the "Magical Mystery Tour"), a conceptual experience (with even more cohesion than the nearly-perfect "Sgt.Pepper"), a production experiment (as it was the root for everything else done since in the pop music) and a call to change your life: you can "turn off your mind, relax and float downstream", and try to face another reality. with your own mind ("it's all in your mind, you know!"). So you may get out of the world for some time, and ask not to be awake, like John did in his brilliant "I'm Only Sleeping"; go to a walk and find other "kinds of mind" there, by looking at them without the horrible pressure of time, like Paul sang on "Got To Get You Into My Life"; or even transform your worst nightmares (like knowing what it's like to be dead on "She Said She Said" or surrendering to the void on "Tomorrow Never Knows") or your strangest dreams (living a life in a "Yellow Submarine") into something you could share with the world.

The Beatles reached here near to perfection. John's reflexive lyrics on "I'm Only Sleeping" are perfectly accompanied by George's excellent backwards guitar solo; he amazed us with the incredible musical and lyrical construction of "Tomorrow Never Knows" and the greatest guitar work ever made by The Beatles, evidenced on songs that are underrated by many, like "She Said She Said", "And Your Bird Can Sing" (now hear THAT solo!) and "Doctor Robert". His vocals and backing vocals are also stunning. Paul also got involved into this other world the Beatles were discovering on "Got To Get You Into My Life", but he didn't lose the opportunity of reaching his peak as a pop composer, writing his most beautiful ballad EVER ("Here, There And Everywhere"), a very special, quite sad but lovely social comment, with delightful orchestral arrangements courtesy of sir George Martin ("Eleanor Rigby"), a lovely ode to the love that's not with him anymore ("For No One", hear the lovely horn solo!) and an up-beat and optimistic song about the happiness of being in love ("Good Day Sunshine"). Ringo gets deep into your subconscious with his spectacular lead vocal on "Yellow Submarine" (probably the most-known track of this album), but he also shines as a drummer, showing us what he's capable of on "She Said She Said" (congratulations, one of his best!) and "Tomorrow Never Knows".

George Harrison gets an apart mention. His contributions to The Beatles records were always underrated, but in this album he comes to the peak of three songs, and the three of them are masterpieces, helping us to value him more as a writer, singer and composer than ever, as his vocals and backing vocals (hear "Good Day Sunshine" or "She Said She Said") are nearly perfect. And what about his own compositions! "Taxman" (the best song of the album, in my opinion) combines that ironic sense of humor George had with a rock'n'roll-guitar-and-drums structure that you can't get out of your head. Paul's stunning "indian" guitar solo and the tambourine and cowbell percussion only help this song to grow bigger and bigger... "Love You To", the first absolutely INDIAN Beatle song ever, was an audacious experiment that turned out pretty well thanks to the excellent guitar and percussion work overdubbed later by George, the intriguing lyrics and the serious double-tracked lead vocal; and "I Want To Tell You" is a nice piece of work, with a crackling and out-of-tune piano (Paul?) and the simplest lyrics, just to say "I'll make you maybe next time around"...

Other short mention: "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" (my favourite song in the entire Beatles' catalogue) were realased weeks after "Revolver" as a single, but were recorded in the same sessions. They absolutely follow the spirit of the album, as they bring beautiful and spectacular guitar work, lots of drug inspiration and "other kinds of mind"... You can find them at "Past Masters Vol.2"

So buy this album and enjoy it. Turn off your mind, relax and... simply enjoy it. It surely will change a part of your life."

Wow! Very well said, my friend!
I agree with a few of your points, but I'm still not completely convinved it's one the best.

I used to think Revolver was my favorite album til
I finally got it on cd recently. Not that it was a
let-down, but probably because I have some of the
songs on other cd's and things. A lot of my fave songs
were on singles, too. I don't like "Dr. Robert," but I
still like most of the other songs alot. I like my George
songs, of course.

I do believe it was the album that linked the black-and-white,
three-guitars-and-a-drum, suit-wearing Beatles to the
amazing-technicolor, flower-power, Sgt-Pepper Beatles
of a year later. You can hear the outrageous experimental
sounds in "Love You To," and "Tomorrow Never Knows" alongside
the sophisticated arrangements of "Eleanor Rigby" and "Got to
Get You Into My Life." Yet, there were still the basic four-
piece set-up (maybe an occasional piano) in "I'm Only Sleeping"
and "I Want to Tell You."

Even the album cover had elements of the past and future
Beatles, with the surreal drawings of the Fabs, done by
Klaus Voorman, overlaid with images of their mop-top past,
all in black and white. On the back cover, they're out of
the suits but are still dressed in "normal" clothes. (Dig
John's John Sebastian look there!)

I used to think Sgt. Pepper was the Great Change, but it
may be because in 1966, the band was still touring, playing
a lot of the tired songs they always had done on tour. And
we all know how by then, the fun had gone out of touring in general
for them, on top of all the trouble they had on those last tours.
The Beatles knew the changes that were going on within the
band, it's just that the public probably didn't have a
clue til Sgt. Pepper came out. And the changes in the way
they did everything and the way they presented themselves
when it came out were so tremendous that people probably didn't
reflect on Revolver so much or pick up on the clues that were there,
that the mop-top Beatles they thought they knew were growing up.
And, of course, after Sgt. Pepper, they never looked back and
"album rock" was born.

So there, Marm.

You have very good arguements there, GG. I agree with you totally about the cover.

we could always go into the UK vs US debate......but i'd rather not!

I also found this weird picture of Revolver in Russia from some ebay auction....it looks cooler and has How I Won The War Stuff!

"Fiddlesticks?" Such language!

It is just another great Beatle album like Rubber Soul, Abbey Road, and Sgt Pepper are great albums. Its obviously a masterpiece of course but it has become a bit over rated. Still it is easily one of the best albums ever made! Dr. Robert is the only weak spot for me and overall I think John was a bit off on this album. Paul makes up for it with the incredible Eleanor Rigby, For No One, and Here There And Everywhere. Mind blowing songwriting. George contributes my favorite song, I Want To Tell You and Love You To is severely under rated.

Wow come to think of it, this album rules!

But again, so do so many other of the Beatles albums.....

Revolver is one of many. Just another piece in the puzzle that make the Beatles such cultural icons.

Originally Posted by darkhorse

I'm trying to find an old review I wrote about it some years ago (excuse the primitive English) in amazon.com

You writing in primitive English????

Where?

This is primitive English: Thou hast not drums!

It's late, what can I say.

Replace Yellow Submarine with Paperback Writer......

Replace Dr. Robert with Rain......

wow....wow.......WOW!!!!!!!


1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I'm Only Sleeping
4. Love You To
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Paperback Writer
7. She Said, She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Rain
12. I Want to Tell You
13. Got to Get You into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

whaddya think?

Originally Posted by matt5

Replace Yellow Submarine with Paperback Writer......

Replace Dr. Robert with Rain......

wow....wow.......WOW!!!!!!!


1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I'm Only Sleeping
4. Love You To
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Paperback Writer
7. She Said, She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Rain
12. I Want to Tell You
13. Got to Get You into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

whaddya think?

Sounds a lot more appealing, I must say.

Oh, and add "If I Needed Someone!"

Originally Posted by Georgie Girl

Oh, and add "If I Needed Someone!"

sure! why not?

But I love Dr Robert! Keep that in!!!

I think Revolver is an absolutely fantastic album and defo one of my favs. I love it so much and like darkhorse feel that in a way it sort of changed my life....although I can't remember when that change happened since I cant remember a time when I didn't know all of the songs on it! Sometimes I wish that I could hear it again for the first time just to see what that felt like because I must have first heard it when I was very young because the songs have always been known to me...I have never been through that sense of discovery with Revolver. Maybe that is another reason why I love it so much - it has always been a part of me.


I think the opening is wonderful with Taxman and ER and IOS. I think the middle is great and the end is supreme too! I loooooooooove it! From start to finish. It all just fits together so well.

As for favourite songs off it, well as some of you know I am really bad at picking favs because I love all the songs but She Said She Said is one of the best songs I think to have ever been written. I really can't explain why I love that song so much, it just really does it for me.

To be honest with you, the highlight for me is every single track.

"revolver" seemed a dark and mysterious album when it was released, but i was 8 years old and an avid monkees fan. the beatles were just so grown up and cool by comparison. my favorite song from the album was "she said she said," and it still is. i won't analyze the music because my feelings are undoubtedly clouded by nostalgia. the monkees albums certainly didn't hold up as well.

Revolver came out the year I was born, so I can't really comment on any impact it had upon release. However, it's still probably my favorite Beatles album. I'm not going to go into any deep meaning of why I love it so much other than to say I simply enjoy most of the songs. It's that simple.

For No One is probably my favorite Beatle song ever (hence my username). Here, There, and Everywhere is another great song. Just two beautiful and moving songs, IMO. Macca at his peak. John's I'm Only Sleeping is another one I like a lot. My favorite Lennon period is '65-'67. I have to admit I don't like Taxman at all, unlike most.

Btw, I love the title too.

Revolver (and Rubber Soul) are actually are two favorite albums. It's hard for me to pick a favorite between these two, because I like them just about equally. But as for Revolver, I just love it. And just for the record, I LOVE Dr. Robert!! Just the sound of it, the beat, the harmonies when they sing "Well Well Well, you're feeling fine..' etc.

I like Matt's line up with Paperback Writer and Rain added - but I'd also want to keep Yellow Submarine and Dr. Robert! That would be my perfect album!