Rubber Soul

nice groovy album. never realized how bad some of their lyrics are lol. favourite song: you won’t see me

Masterpiece, no notes

Nothing really needs to be said. This album is perfect. While listening I felt pure satisfaction from start to finish. It’s the exact moment where The Beatles stopped being just a great pop band and became something much deeper and more artistic. The songwriting is incredible, the arrangements are inventive, and every track feels essential. You can hear them evolving in real time — folk, rock, psychedelia, and pure melody all blended together effortlessly. John, Paul, and George are all at the top of their game, and the harmonies and studio touches are flawless. Rubber Soul is one of those rare records that feels complete. Timeless, brilliant, and impossible to improve. An absolute masterpiece.

Currently, this is my daughter’s favourite Beatles album - and it’s a good pick! Favourite track: I’m Looking Through You

An obvious 5

Good but I find their songs have a lack of diversity don’t feel like I was taken anywhere on the album

-1 for Drive My Car.

Conocia The Beatles pero nunca escucho y la verdad que me encanto, siento que por lo menos este disco me hace sentir una persona feliz, me dio vibes a cuando matilda se quedaba sola en la casa

My fave Beatles record probably

I like it

Good album with a few singles that I consistently listen to. Only thing I was kind of hoping for was to pick up on some pervasive theme, and I didn’t happen. It was kind of just songs put together.

It’s nice

Great way to start the project. This is a Beatles album, and a very good one at that. Everyone is on top form on this album; the breakdowns on “Drive My Car” remind you that Ringo is a world class drummer, George’s guitar solo on “Nowhere Man” is surprisingly crisp, and John and Paul are John and Paul the whole time. There really isn’t a miss on this album and I’d happily listen to it again for every day of this project. Some songs feel a bit dated, but it’s Rubber Soul so that is easily disregarded.

I just don't find the beatles exciting

Good and influential, but personally the song writing didn't captivate me

Groundbreaking album for the 60s and music in general. A significant step forward in the Beatles' career. Beautiful melodies, as usual, yet featuring new sounds and formula. It's a must-listen!

A landmark album for The Beatles. I think this one stands out more if you listen to it within the context of their discography, because you can really hear how much this record departs from their previous work and begins their more experimental "later years" sound. I'll argue that the shift starts with "Help!" but this record made their growth undeniable; they weren't the mop-headed boys from Liverpool anymore.

Probably a very high 3 for me, album felt a bit everywhere but it was also very good, I can see why its so highly regarded.

Drive my car: fengende, artig Norwegian wood: fin melodi, sitar, mørk humor You won't see me: melodisk, bra trommespill, oo lala Nowhere man: vittig, aa lala Think for yourself: repeterende, george sang Word: repeterende Michelle: søt, fint gitarspill, ooo What goes on: litt enkel, ringo sang Girl: fint gitarspill, kynisk/bitter kjærlighetsang, dududu, girl ffff Im looking through you: bitter breakup sang med futt, klapping My life: utrolig fin, den piano delen <3 Wait: tamburin, liker opptrappingen på ref If I needed someone: tamburin, harmonisering, bedre george sang, fortsatt noe repetetende Run for your life: fin melodi, fæl tekst Jeg foretrekker generelt Lennon sine sanger på dette albumet. Norwegian wood, Nowhere man og Girl er alle vittige med en kynisk og bitter undertone. Run for your life tar bitterheten litt for langt. In my life derimot er utrolig varm og nostaligisk med en nydelig melodi. Muligens favoritt låta mi på albumet. Michelle og Drive my car er begge artige og fengende sanger. Noen av sangene er litt repeterende og enkle som Word, Think for yourself og What goes on, men de fleste av låtene var veldig gode. Selv de mindre minneverdige sangene på albumet er interesange å høre på fordi det skjer så mye på hver sang. I tilleg til gitar og trommespill er det mye harmonisering (oo lala) og noen ganger tamburin og klapping osv. Et veldig fult lydbilde.

Pretty good if you don’t mind the jaunty threats to kill in the misogynistic song “Run For Your Life” It’s weird to think they were already six albums in when releasing this and were forever transforming.

No es el mejor de los beatles pero tiene grandes canciones. Cada vez que escucho In My Life me dan ganas de llorar

Let it be known that I declined to give this album five stars solely because of "Run for Your Life."

Rubber Soul marks a turning point for The Beatles that will lead to their most ambitious works. Beatles have always been talented musicians, but Rubber Soul shows that they have the potential to create masterpieces. This album packs in lot in it's short runtime. Not as strong as Revolver or Pepper's, but this is still a damn good album I can't rate below 5. Favorite Track - Norwegian Wood Least Favorite Track - Michelle ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.0 and good memories

It’s the Beatles and it’s good. But is it 5* good? Maybe, if only for In My Life.

One thing the exercise is forcing me to become clear on is my feelings about the Beatles. This is clearly one of their best albums because of its consistency over its inclusion of individual songs. The songs are all top notch, examples of the song writing that made the Beatles who they were. Later albums had the revolutionary songs, per se. But later albums are inconsistent as the boys fell apart as a band. And all the seed crystals of the revolutions to come are here. WITH a coherence that I never feel on Srg.Peppers or Abbey Road. 5 Boolean: True

Crying in my office listening to this album. Highlights: Drive My Car, Norwegian Woods, Michelle, In My Life,

dont really think im a fan, like maybe 2 or 3 songs but idk if i even really liked them, maybe i should listen to the genre more

Rubber Soul is one of those albums that has only gotten better for me with age. When I listen to The Beatles’ catalogue in order, this feels like the moment everything truly clicks into place. The songwriting becomes more mature, the production more adventurous, and the band sounds completely locked in. From the opening blast of “Drive My Car” to the reflective beauty of “In My Life,” every member feels like they’re firing on all cylinders. What stands out most is how effortless the experimentation feels. Whether it’s the sitar on “Norwegian Wood,” the fuzz bass on “Think for Yourself,” the folk influences throughout, or the hints of psychedelia on “The Word,” the band never loses sight of the songs themselves. Even tracks that sound closer to their earlier work, like “Wait” or “Won’t See Me,” show how much they’ve grown as musicians and studio craftsmen. The production is immaculate, with layers of guitars, vocals, bass lines, and little details that reveal themselves with every listen. It’s also an album packed with warmth and personality. Songs like “Michelle,” “Girl,” and “I’m Looking Through You” have grown on me tremendously over the years, while “In My Life” remains my favourite track—a beautiful reflection on memory, growing older, and appreciating the people and places that shape us. More than anything, Rubber Soul is endlessly replayable. It’s an album I can put on at any time and never get tired of, whether I’m listening closely or singing along while putting my daughter to sleep. For me, it’s the beginning of The Beatles’ greatest creative run and one of the best albums ever recorded. 10:20

I have been having a truly terrible morning and the album challenge gods have smiled upon me enough that this just turned my whole day around. I'm also literally wearing my Beatles sweatshirt today which is extra funny. I really struggle to choose a favourite Beatles album but I think Rubber Soul is tied with Revolver and the White Album for me. This is the moment when you can really hear their evolution and their commitment to trying new things and letting inspiration take them outside of the confines of what fans expected of them with their earlier work. This album also features one of my favourite tracks that I never really see mentioned anywhere, I'm Looking Through You (which ... Jane Asher absolutely deserved better from Paul McCartney but I can't deny the tumult of their relationship resulted in a really great if hypocritical song).

The bass and the dumming alone make this album very good. Add to that the great melodies and it's a very solid album. Favorite Songs: Drive My Car ; Girl ; In My Life

ese paneo??? 🗣️PUM PUM PUM 🗣️baby yₒᵤ caₙ dᵣᵢᵥₑ ₘy caᵣ

This album is the first in what I'd consider one of the best three-album runs in music history (with Revolver and Sgt. Peppers). They started to incorporate more psychedelia and branched out from their roots. Odd that my US-pressed vinyl copy has a quite different tracklist than the original UK version - I think I prefer the UK version starting with Drive My Car and a few of the other "more rock" tracks like Nowhere Man. However the quieter moments here are absolute classics, like Michelle and In My Life. The Beatles weren't quite what they'd eventually become yet on this album, but the seeds are there.

This isn’t their best album, but it’s a classic for a reason and definitely belongs on this list.

RATING: 7.5/10 HIGHLIGHT: In My Life LOWLIGHT: Run For Your Life

last song is fucking crazy

Sort of boring but still very good maybe a 7/10 or a 6.5/10

Beach vibes. Amazing. Girl solo was spooky carnival like. Leah - 7/7 Leprechauns - Favourite - You Won't See Me/Girl Austin - 7/7 Leprechauns- Favourite - I'm Looking Through You/In My Life

La première c’est drive my car, beatlecore : niais et ennuyeux mais ça reste de la bonne musique ? Norwegian wood et you won’t see me : quel ennui. Pareil pour nowhere man en fait. Juste un rif de la chanson me fait penser à un autre mais j’arrive pas à mettre le doigt dessus. David Bowie ? Suede ? Je vais arrêter de noter les chansons que je trouve chiante ce sera plus simple J’arrive pas à comprendre que ce soit considéré un des 100 meilleurs albums all time Je vois que j’avais déjà noté cet album 3/5. C’est peut-être trop généreux L’Album finit bien : If i needed someone. C’est effectivement un 6, j’étais basé Et on finit sur une chanson qui parle d’un feminicide sur une « Little girl », berk. Et par ailleurs la chanson est super weak pour finir l’album 6/10

What is there to say about this album that hasn't already been said? It's severely underrated in my book, at least relative to their other massive albums. This record marks a huge sonic shift from Help!, especially with George getting heavily into the sitar and leaning into his jangly 12-string Rickenbacker, thanks to The Byrds. You can really hear the band growing up right in front of you. Paul and John are starting to write even deeper, more meaningful songs, and "In My Life" is just absolutely beautiful. This is the perfect transition from their early pop days into their experimental studio era. Favorite song - "In My Life"

Beatles, back to back. It's not a bad thing. Rubber Soul may be my favorite Beatles album. Just one great track after another. I've Just Seen A Face, Norwegian Wood, In My Life. They just don't quit.

Drive My Car: 6/10 Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown): 8/10 You Won’t See Me: 4/10 Nowhere Man: 3/10 Think For Yourself: 7/10 The Word: 3/10 Michelle: 10/10 What Goes On: 5/10 Girl: 10/10 I’m Looking Through You: 3/10 In My Life: 9/10 Wait: 5/10 If I Needed Someone: 9/10 Run For Your Life: 7/10

Sejak awal aku sudah sangat suka dengan album ini. Mulanya aku hanya menyukai Norwegian Wood tapi kemudian aku mendengarkan keseluruhan lagu di dalam lagu ini dan aku tidak pernah berhenti menyukainya

Bitels

轻松又欢快，运用许多新元素

Actually a decent album. Probably my favourite of theirs.

Sometimes I catch myself thinking the Beatles are overrated, then I relisten to them and I get it. Not a bad song on this album.

Beautiful album and genuinely the first big leap from "early Beatles" - hints of psychedelia and some jangle pop tricks that a million bands over the years would flagrantly rip off. The tunes are among their best - I think it sags in the middle a bit, but even those tunes have their moments. The fact that they hit another gear with Revolver, and then another with Sgt. Pepper's (and then on from there) is kind of incredible, and this kind of started that run.

The Beatles is one of the great bands of all time and I have heard many of their songs but its not a band I listen to a lot so most of these songs were new to me. They sound about what I expected, perhaps a bit slower. Its music that clearly show what time period its from and to me that isn't always a good thing. I get why it was popular in the 60s and how they have influenced countless artists and bands after them but I can't get in to it. I feel music has evolved in the 60 years since this and that makes most songs feel a bit lacking. I'm don't really know how to explain exactly what is missing but Its not music I will look up and listen to again. Their best songs still work fine but this album doesn't have any of those to me.

Favorite Track: Michelle Least Favorite Track: What Goes On

There are so many more erudite reviews of this album, from people who know and lived the era, that my 2 cents are essentially redundant. As someone who liked the later Beatles more than the earlier Beatles, I was surprised by how much I liked this mid Beatles offering.

I won’t be able to add anything that hasn’t already been said about Rubber Soul. A seminal record.

Предисловие: я хуй знает как оценивать альбомы Битлов, потому что в их дискографии как будто нет промахов. Ставить всем 5 не хочется, а низкие оценки - издевательство. Здесь начался поворот Битлз в сторону вечности

Front to back solid with some classics across its 50 min runtime

Pop Rock Favorite Tracks: Drive My Car, Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown), Nowhere Man, Think For Yourself, I’m Looking Through You, In My Life, Wait, If I Need Someone. Least Favorite Track: Run For Your Life I throughly enjoyed this album. I did enjoy more on the A Side than the B Side of this album. They’ve now fine tuned from their earlier stuff and made it a bit more mature than their earlier works. That being said, some of their other stuff like Girl and Run For Your Life is where I either thought that I didn’t like certain elements of the track or just flat out hate. Other than that, great album. 8/10

4/10

Always tough with a Beatles album to say it’s perfect because there’s always some bollocks on it somewhere. There’s a little here but also some out and out classics, so a 4!

Pretty much every Beatles album is an automatic 5 stars

Solid album, but I've never been a biggest fan when it comes to their Pre-Revolver catalogue.

Mad that this was their 6th album in under 3 years. You can see the shoots of progression whilst still mostly being a solid pop album. A 3.9 for me.

the songs were pretty good and relateable i recomend them to people.

i love the beatles and this album i would recomend it to others.

I always thought the Beatles were quite good, and some of their songs aren't my favorite, but these are very great.

Fairly good, I liked this album.

I like this album, I like all the different instruments they used and I like Paul and John's voices so this would probably be 4 stars.

Really really good I like all aspects of this song and I really recommend to most

Not the Beatles... (Jk, I just don't like them for some reason) Update 1: I have the vague memory of listening to Michelle somewhere... The only song I've liked so far. Update 2: I liked the slower songs better but no song was particularly interesting for me. I think I liked Michelle the most, but yeah I probably need to give this album a second listen to fully appreciate every song but honestly it's not my cup of tea and I'd rather to keep going with the next albums

The Beatles’ “weed” album. Great melodies and timeless music to be enjoyed and interpreted forever.

4.4/5 Favorite Songs: Drive My Car Norwegian Wood Nowhere Man Think For Yourself If I Needed Someone Run For Your Life

Rubber Soul is, in my opinion, the first Beatles album to truly feel authentic. Not that the previous albums were without good songs, but as a whole album experience, it’s elevated by a certain craftsmanship that wasn’t present before. This album is full of songs that are able to genuinely swoon me. It’s wistful and melancholic. This, and revolver, stand to me as the beginning of The Beatles golden era. Fav Tracks: In My Life, Nowhere Man, You Won’t See Me

Probably my favorite Beatles album. The standouts to me are You Won't See Me, Girl, Nowhere Man, and What Goes on, but there's other good and great songs. By no means perfect, even adjusting for the era, and honestly not so far removed from what they did before like diehard fans like to think, but still great.

I'm a fairly new Beatles listener (last 4 years) but I will say this album has a few of my all time faves of theirs: Nowhere Man and In My Life. Rubber Soul had a very cohesive feel throughout it.

felt like i had to be meaner as soon as i heard that british man sing in french but this was very listenable as the beatles tend to be. fav: im looking through you

I know every track intimately but always delighted to have an excuse to relisten. I noticed the sitar this time and lots of other details. There's such musical depth to these tracks. Fabulous. Are there actually people on this app who wouldn't give this fiver stars?

There’s nothing I can say about this album that hasn’t been said a million times before. All I will say is that I love The Beatles, and I love this album.

Not much more can be said of the Beatles. Rubber Soul was a sea change in popular music. It was years ahead of its time and influenced almost every other rock band for decades. There were songs that sounded like nothing that had come before and some that were timeless classics that had always existed. Whatever inspired the band to make this album set off a decade of creativity, not only for the Beatles, but for the industry as a whole. Are there any tracks that stand out? Yes - all of them. If I have to pick one: In My Life is truly a classic song that may be the best song they ever wrote and recorded. 5 stars

the turning point for the beatles. they’re starting to experiment and music will never be quite the same. yay.

Never met a Beatles album I didn’t love.

This is a classic, quintessential pop/rock album that shaped the music industry as a whole. Without Rubber Soul, there is no Pet Sounds.

1. beepbeep beepbeep yeahhhhh 2. sitar :0 3. great song - thank u paul 4. maybe the best song 5. i like this one a lot too 6. funkyyy 7. meechelle 8. yes 9. crispy breath sound girl 10. good 11. definitely the best song 12. 13. classic 14. true

Начало очень стильное и многообещающее, драйвовые и балдежные первые два трека. Если бы так было весь альбом, это было бы супер, но потом начинается типичный трынь трынь гитарно-балладный. В конце еще немного классной музыки. В целом, неплохой альбом, но в серединке сдувается...

This isn’t enough of a transition from the pop nonsense that they were before this. Norwegian Wood is a great song, but not enough of this ilk for my liking. It’s fine, but this iteration of the Beatles isn’t my cup of tea (yet).

i love it, the beatles are fire

4.5

8.0/10 Great album... really close to 5 stars for me

Great album, though far from The Beatles' best. They were really starting to find their magic here though. That said, -1 star for the annoying stereo mix. Favourite tracks: Norwegian Wood, In My Life, Girl, I'm Looking Through You

The Beatles. Great record, ofcourse. For Albums lik this I the possibility for half stars. Because this is a much stronger 4 then other fours I've given. But it is still not a five. Although very solid tracklist. You can feel the band moving forward. But it still doesn't compare with the albums after this.

imma give a 3 simply because it's got one of my fav and personal songs aka michelle but irl would be a 3.5

A pretty mixed album from the boys. It starts off strong enough, but loses it's luster partway through. The last track is very weird and I didn't much care for it. 3/5

One of my least favourite Beatles albums... still a 5 though. The existence of In My Life elevates it above most albums.

Lækkert album! Et skelsættende værk hvor jeg synes Beatles begynder at bevise sig selv som mere end et coverband eller en one-trick pony. Det er på samme tid et overgangsalbum hvor man stadig kan høre den ikoniske tidlige Beatles formular. Dertil kommer en række smukke bangers som Norwegian Wood, Michelle og In my Life. En af mine yndlings beatlesalbum, men har ikke hørt den sindssygt meget. der er desværre et par numre på albummet der ikke har siger mig så meget... endnu? Herunder The Word og de tre sidste numre.

The songs flow very well; they are smooth and easily digestible. This album marks a fundamental change in sound, more modern, but also with a somewhat rustic feel.

It's really good I'm a fan Will I listen to again: 100%

When I saw McCartney live the opening twang of Drive My Car dragged genuine uncontrollable Beatlemania screams from deep inside me. The cover is brilliant, the title is brilliant, the mood is brilliant. It is The Weed Album, after all. They’ve bought a sitar and by God they’re going to use it. Nowhere Man is a gentle, empathetic attack on us all and I find it incredibly moving. Michelle is delightfully lovely, and so is The Word, though the laziness of John’s line ‘in the good and the bad books that I have read’ astonishes me every time. In my Life is MONUMENTAL (and sort of about Paul, right?). A song tentatively accepting that nothing will ever be the same again, generally and also specifically, but with no conception (because how could they have imagined it?) of how much that is true. There is absolutely an undercurrent of bitterness to this album, which comes to a head properly when Run For Your Life pours a bucket of cold water over the good times and the misogyny becomes unignorable, casting everything that went before it in a new light. I suppose he did burn down the house in Norwegian Wood, I suppose the woman in Drive My Car is being mocked, I suppose they could be more fair to the women who have broken their hearts (What goes on, think for yourself, you won’t see me, Girl, I’m looking through you.) I used to wish they had just not included the final song, but now I see it has its place, and pretending it doesn’t belong on the album is cowardly. It unfortunately does, but it’s why I cannot award full marks.

Not much I can say about this. The production is great, every song is played to perfection and each one has some interesting instrumentation. I would be interested to listen to this on Mono, as I know the songs do sound different. Lyrically, there's a lot of woman-hating, but overall I enjoyed the songs a lot more on a second listen. The violence on 'Run For Your Life' reminds me of 'Maxwell's Silver Hammer', which used to scare me when I sang it as a child in primary school. What's changed? Or has nothing changed? Would probably listen to a lot of this again though.

Prima te luisteren maar ook niet spannend genoeg om later nog eens aan te zetten.

LOVE LOVE LOVE One of, if not my favourite Beatles album. It’s close between Abbey Road, Sgt Peppers and this. I’m looking through you and In my life have a special place in my heart. RIP DAD X

Pretty close to perfection. Who would’ve guessed from the biggest band in the world.

Just when you think you can’t have another masterpiece by the Beatles, they hit you over the head with the is one as they transition away from pop exclusively music and tie pop into their own sound. Totally marvelous album

Quite bland to my ears. I understand it's a classic, but I really don't vibe to it too much.

Regular Beatles. Nothing special, not so many catchy song.

Interesting to go back and listen to. It's the Beatles, so of course it's well done. But it sits at an interesting point in their musical career. Not sappy boppy like their earlier commercial work, but not yet crossing that Sergeant Pepper line into real experimentalism. Frankly, this is lest daring than the Beach Boys' 'Pet Sounds'. You can hear them trying to rise to that bar. So it remains a very solid album for what it is and very enjoyable to listen to. It has some excellent songs that remain relevant today. But not growing up with this and really experiencing that musical transition, I would expect this to feel very "meh" to a lot of newer audiences.

Short and sweet in terms of quality, but it’s a bit of an interesting mix of cheer and melancholy. You have the archetypal jolly Beatles songs but I enjoy the deeper cuts like Nowhere Man and I’m Looking Through You, and in spite of it being a love song, In My Life is a little bit of genius despite some eclectic medieval style bits on what I assume was a keyboard... Speaking of which, the album in general makes use of quite the variety of backing music. A highly enjoyable listen.

"Drive my car" - pretty standard Beatles pop classic... "Norwegian Wood" is much more my thing.  it's an amazing off the wall sound with sitar.  Cool fusion and really helps support and shape the review of this album. This is where I pivot to why this is not just another classic pop album.  They have an eclectic maturity at this point and when combined to their instrument collection, styles and lyrics it sets itself apart from the typical. Injecting foreign influences and oddities is the key sauce that made them culturally significant, and ultimately their exceptional story telling gave them the platform.  Unlike some other albums hard to find a real duffer and this whole album continues to allow some artistic freedom and clearly some commercial throttling as many songs can't be considered complex surely in their music.  It's their composition and lyrics that build them to epics.  At least on this album, their pop roots are not an anchor in my mind.  Sometimes simple with an excess of glossy sparkles but ultimately a great.

The best Beatles album. Rubber Soul is the best blend of very listenable tracks with that sixties vibe then just enough of the modern experimental elements to make it timeless. Norwegian Wood has long been my favourite Beatles track, it's got that Beatles catchy simplicity but with lots of interesting added elements. The production is so good and it still sounds incredibly modern. I will be generous because the significance of the Beatles is obvious and in my view this is their best work.

My 3rd favorite Beatles album (behind Abbey Road & Revolver). A tremendous collection of traditional pop songs (we’re not in the Abbey Road, Sgt Peppers, White Album stage yet). But each of these songs is a quantum leap beyond other songs of its time. Each track is a creative gem. I love it; it’s a 5.

Banger after banger. Paul dominates this album

It's the beatles innit

When the Beatles transitioned from the biggest band of all time to the greatest band of all time. Perfect.

The weakest Beatles album is better than most things ever recorded.

This is a solid album from them. Their first really good album IMO. But since Revolver is better this one isn’t quite 5 stars I don’t think. Great though.

Great. The first of their five 5-star albums

I think the first 4 songs on this album are amazing, and also Michelle and In My Life, but besides those songs there isn't really much I care for. Not to say they are bad, they just sound like early Beatles which is fine. I think this is closer to a 4 for me, but due to the cultural significance and it being the first great Beatles album I'll round it up to a 5. Low 5.

Great album, just like with literally every other genre from metal to ska to avant-garde to R&B to hip hop to shoegaze to breakbeat to hyperpop, The Beatles invented the laidback 'stoner rock' genre with this record, as most evidently shown on Norwegian Wood, Think For Yourself, Nowhere Man, or really, ANY of these tracks that crawl deep in your head and make you go, "where'd that sound come from?" I'm sure they're more often known as the speed or LSD kinda band, but they're clearly not as head-banging as they were on Please Please Me here, nor are they shooting up into space the way they do on Sgt Peppers. Throw some ice down the pipe and let it rip, In My Life will blow you straight towards a sunflower field.

Not sure how this is the highest rated album I have heard to date (i'm only 40 albums in). There are a couple of great songs on here, but the love I see posted for this album is a bit much.

Great album, surprised it took me this long to find a Beatles album. In My Life was my fav song of the album. Nowhere Man and Michelle (my fav first listen were my other highlights)

4/5 Favorite Song: Norwegian Wood

Would have been but last track not aged well. V odd

Album 208. Rubber Soul (https://open.spotify.com/album/50o7kf2wLwVmOTVYJOTplm?si=S6YGkSgyQhGuaFWGRWa-iQ) — The Beatles (1965) Well, okay. I listened to their early work (https://t.me/falton1001/14) filled with covers, their magnum opus (https://t.me/falton1001/481) and now it's middle of everything — the sixth album. An absolutely gorgeous album and a turning point from early Beatles to greatness. There're 7 of their albums in the challenge. I have to check the rest of them too. Now I want to know the whole discography. 5/5 Liked: — Drive My Car — You Won't See Me — Nowhere Man — Michelle — What Goes On — Girl — I'm Looking Through You — In My Life — Wait

Comecei ouvindo pela manhã já no trabalho, achei que combinou com a vibe. Gostei do álbum, ele acabou e eu nem percebi... Algumas músicas até tenho vontade de adicionar na minha playlist

Heerlijk album. Puur genieten, bijna elk nummer wel.

3.11

Pleasant but nothing captured me, which is pretty damning considering this is The Beatles of Beatle fame

Perfección absoluta

Much much better than White Album, not as good as Abbey Road in my opinion.

This album shows some hints of the great things to come from The Beatles. An enjoyable transition from their poppy rock n roll early days to their more psychodelic later years. Great listen--this is where the magic really started!

master piece

7.5 / 10

Another Beatles album I started by psyching myself to rate it a 4 and quickly discovered I had no chance. Five stars.  My initial case for a four starts with the execrable lyrics to “Run For Your Life,” which is the one Beatles song I would obliterate from existence if forced to choose. Yet musically it is still a good example of the early era and I love its jangly country side.  Weirdly, I also grew up thinking of "Rubber Soul" as a transitional or filler album even though it is a favorite album of many people. That shaped some of how I listen to it... in the wrong mood I can think of "Girl" and "Michele" as cheesy gimmicks, "The Word" and "Think For Yourself" as needlessly didactic, and "In My Life" as insincere. I still rank it below (at least) Revolver, Sgt. Pepper, White Album, Abbey Road, and Help! And yet. "Drive My Car" is peak red album Beatles. "If I Needed Someone" reveals the beauty of George's soul to the world. "Norwegian Wood" shows where they were headed. "Wait" is vastly underappreciated. "What Goes On" is such a good Ringo song. "I'm Looking Through You" is a transition from more simple love songs to complex relationship dynamics. And and and.  And when you look it through any ONE of the genius tracks, the whole thing seems brilliant. How could four people be so brilliant and also have so much casual fun? "Rubber Soul" isn't a highly intentional work of art like "Revolver" or "Sgt. Pepper" or even "A Hard Day's Night." In many ways it's as spontaneous and authentic as "Please Please Me." I'll take that any day, even with John's barely sublimated bloodlust.

4 AmbI being harsh maybe

This album has one of my favorite Beatles song and all time favorite songs with In My Life. It's such a beautiful song. For some reason I always forget about this album, but it's a great one. All of the Beatles albums are great though.

great classic, but at the same type it's not my cup of tea

Taattua Biitlesiä.

Ending an album with a song about murdering a woman for being with another man is certainly a choice. These fellows could write songs, but ehhhhhhhh.

se fossem o one direction esse album seria o four deles

I had respect for this album but it never really clicked with me until now. Until this weekend, I had never listened to my vinyl copy- which is sleeveless, and for some reason squeezed into my copy of the White Album- and to my surprise it’s the mono mix, which I had never heard. And that was all it took- the depth of field is so much rivher and the subtle production innovations are much clearer in mono. Though I grew up with the Beatles stereo mixes, these days I find them to be clumsily executed. The technology was just too new and George Martin and the band saw stereo as a gimmick, so they made weird, rushed choices. The mono mix, on the other hand, is meticulously crafted and it’s immediately clear why this is considered the band’s ‘pothead’ album. It’s alive with detail and completely immersive. My favorite details are the double tracked bass (one of them so fuzzed out it sounds like a guitar) on ‘Think For Yourself’ and ‘The Word’, and McCartney’s double tracked lead vocal on ‘You Don’t See Me’ which turns his upper register into a razor blade. Beyond the immaculate production, the songs are obviously flawless- all are fully developed melodic journeys, and somehow still often under 3 minutes. ‘In My Life’ is Lennon’s first great song, with a lyrical elegance rarely heard before from him. Another note on my newly treasured, sleeveless vinyl copy: it replaces ‘Drive My Car’ with ‘I’ve Just Seen a Face’ and ‘What Goes On’ with ‘Its Only Love’, which overall really works for me. ‘Face’ into ‘Norwegian Wood’ eases us into the record with a folkier vibe, before lifting off with the more soul and Motown-style songs. And cutting the Ringo song for another great Lennon sung number (which, incidentally, was my 3 year old’s clear favorite on the record) will never sit wrong with me. It does also unfortunately cut ‘If I Needed Someone’, which is too bad- the chiming, Byrds-esque number is a welcome added flavor to Rubber Soul’s American Music homage.

Rubber Soul is one of those albums I just keep coming back to—it never really gets old. For me, it’s where The Beatles hit that sweet spot between the early catchy stuff and the more experimental phase that came later. For me, it’s one of their most listenable albums—maybe not the most flashy, but definitely one of the most consistent. Just a really solid, quietly brilliant record.

This is the first in a series of perfect or almost perfect albums by the Beatles. It all, really started here. These were the new Beatles, leaving the teenage craze and beat music behind, mixing pop and folk and psychedelic rock and Indian influences into iconic songs like "Norwegian Wood", "Nowhere Man", "Michelle", "Girl" and "In My Life". "Rubber Soul" foreshadows album masterpieces like "Revolver", "Sgt. Pepper", "The White Album" and "Abbey Road".

I'm sure it's an incredibly influential album but to my modern ears I didn't find much of note beyond the first two songs

A 4 given the bigger hits on the album that drags it up.

A bit bland

Le pire bon album des beatles

Hgh

fantastic album! heard it before obviously but damn it is good 1. Abbey Road 2. Revolver 3. Rubber Soul 4. White album

not their best stuff

What else do I gotta say about this one? 4.5 bumped up to 5.

I’m practically at a 10. The only reason I’m not definitively at a 10 is because “Run for Your Life” feels a bit petty / overly harsh as a closing track, especially coming off of the lovely trifecta of “In My Life”, “Wait”, & “If I Needed Someone”, all of which feel like tracks with a singular devotion towards love, which the Beatles preached about finding & sharing to the world on “The Word” just a bit earlier. It really feels like it goes against most of the album to that point, and while it’s not an especially bad track (quite good, honestly, even with the taboo lyricism), it just doesn’t thematically fit well as a closer, or on the album at all really. That said, I totally hear why this is the first Beatles album with across-the-board critical praise: their melodies have improved, their songwriting added a lot of emotional depth, & their instrumentation is starting to move towards the bigger energy & bombast that would feel especially present on Sgt. Pepper’s. The jury is out, at least for me, on if Revolver has that energy present, since I haven’t heard it yet. That’s the last Beatles album we’ll get to as a group, and I really cannot wait to get it. I see no point in going track to track here, since everyone has analyzed all of these tracks up & down for 61 years. They still hold up perfectly, even with that much time between, and the list of influences that stem from this point onward feel apparent. “If I Needed Someone”, for example, feels like a La’s track, and you can make connections like this for most, if not all of the tracks here. Bob Dylan’s influence rubbed off on these guys, and with the harmonizations here, it’s no wonder the Beach Boys & Brian Wilson felt compelled to make something like Pet Sounds. It’s ironic that an album that sharpened so much iron down the musical tree of influence is named after rubber, but I don’t think it’s a stretch to call this one of the most important albums ever made. Hence, a 10, even with that little snag at the end. I’m a broken record when it comes to my surprise at how much I’m appreciating the actual substance of the Beatles’ discography past the hit singles at this point, but they really have been that good. “Revolver” better be that damn good.

Yeah this was great. 5 stars.

pretty good, but so short! makes total sense how much this busted through norms, sounds really good even today

Se pasa volando. Entretenido a cagar

Good variety. Classic.

Haven't liked the Beatles in the past too much, but this album continues to grow on me. Very peaceful and has great vibes

Dober

Not my favourite of theirs, there were a few stand out tracks but overall I’d call this a skip which is wild for me

The Beatles was the collective noun for Len Houmous’ wives 12-19. 4.5 12/14 Wait

Rubber Soul marks a genuinely crucial moment in the Beatles Discography. Half the songs were never performed live, and it's a totally different sound from all of their previous hits. In My Life is still one of my favorite songs ever. Without Rubber Soul, there is no Revolver. But it's important for another big reason. Was it their most forgettable? No it isn't Beatles For Sale. Was it their most unique? Nope that's the White Album. Was it their most famous? Still no, that's Abbey Road. That's right, it's Ringo's first writing credit on a song. Ringo stocks have skyrocketed.

Very clearly a transitional album for the band moving away from their simpler pop roots into a more experimental direction. Some of the songs here are all timers and some are just good to me. Probably my fifth favorite Beatles album. Favorites were Drive My Car, Norwegian Wood, You Won’t See Me, Michelle, and In My Life.

Muy lindo haber vuelto a escuchar lo beatles.Son una banda que no falla y cada canción es hermosa.Muy buen album

Interesting channel mixing, remaster isn't terrible. Songs are okay I guess, it's Beatles so the historical significance is rather obvious. It's also pretty obvious this album is from a point where people had stopped saying "no" to the band because some of the songs should never have left the writer's table (dishonourable mention to "Michelle" here for example), but ah well. Yet another 2,5 which tips to a 3 because of mixing and some upbeat and non-misogynistic songs.

Still such a great album!

YSSSSS GOOD GOOD

beatles r gud whoulda thunk it

Why isn't this in my collection

I think I wasn't in the right mood for this because I found a lot of it grating. But, trying to be objective, there are some good/classic songs on this and I understand this little band is somewhat influential, so I'm probably being too harsh in the moment.

A classic

So I’ve always previously stated that I was a bigger fan of the Beatles later works rather than the early stuff. What this project has taught me is that I now think my favourite Beatles era might actually just be the music that falls in the middle, in that period of transition between the early and later sound.

Another great album with Norwegian Wood and In My Life being the top tracks.

I prefer the earlier/mid Beatles stuff. I think this is the point before the albums start turning into sums of their individual parts rather than feeling a consistent album.

incroyable !

One of their better ones…

Beatles are always pretty good. I'd definitely rather listen to them over the majority of other bands on this list

Sorry but I love the Beatles!! It's just good! It just hits!!

Beatles is the easiest 5 of my life

cant beat the meatles

I mean it’s never going to be anything other than a 5, but it deserves a better relisten. RYM: Y (#106) Saved a song: Y

The cover of Rubber Soul shows the Beatles we know and love from the early 60s, but the image is stretched, tilted and distorted, as if the old mop-top image is being pulled out of shape. This was the turning point. I like to organise things into clean categories. In my mind, there are two versions of the Beatles. You can essentially split them down the middle of their discography: there’s the early 60s guitar pop group, and then there’s the later more experimental group. The earlier band suffered Beatlemania, screaming fans and fainting girls. The later band grew facial hair, embraced Eastern culture, took LSD, and created experimental masterpieces that pushed boundaries while sounding great. But his clean-cut categorisation falls apart when you consider Rubber Soul. It doesn’t fit in either category. It’s a record that catches a moment somewhere in between those two versions of the Beatles. Like the cover, it was still the fab four, but they were distorting themselves into something that was a bit more out there. They ease us in with “Drive My Car”. It’s a great tune with Paul’s gravelly vocals and George’s bright guitar breaks being particular highlights. But, it’s still very much part of that “old Beatles” sound. The biggest shift comes as early as track number two. “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” must have absolutely blown people’s minds back in 1965. The acoustic guitar melody is more folk than guitar pop or rock ‘n’ roll for a start. But then George’s sitar comes in and signals a whole new direction for the band. Bob Dylan could be a real asshole. It was clear that John idolised him at the time, and this song was clearly John taking a stab at a Dylan-esque folky composition. Dylan was apparently bemused by what he saw as imitation rather than inspiration, and wrote “Fourth Time Around” as a parody. Both songs came from imitation or parody, but because both Bob and John were such amazing songwriters, we end up with two of the all-time great songs out of it. “Michelle” is pure Macca. It’s got some fantastic acoustic guitar playing and Paul’s bright-eyed optimism is peppered with impressive French pronunciation. I always group it with “Girl” being Lennon’s rebuttal: darker, wearier, and more suspicious of the whole romantic ideal. Then there’s “In My Life”. Lennon’s fantastic lyrics are as simple as they are profound, and that guitar riff is as iconic as it is gorgeous. It’s one of those songs that’s just perfect in every way. I always think of that later version of the Beatles starting with Revolver, but really it started with Rubber Soul. It’s such an important, key moment for the band. It’s the first step in their transition towards the more experimental. The distorted cover wasn’t some grand psychedelic statement, it was basically a happy accident. But the warped photo suited where they were at with Rubber Soul: still obviously the same band, but starting to stretch into something stranger. 4.5 stars

Rubber Soul. What can I say man this is easily the most addicting, and replayable Beatles album. Bar none. I revisit this one more than any other record by them. If I had to put someone onto the Beatles, this would be the record. An album, that feels like the most perfectly curated playlist. And though the record hits various emotions, sounds, and concepts it’s still perfectly cohesive in the soul. Get it?👴🏻 God. The things I’d do to go back in time, fall in love with a girl, and spin this on the record player and dance in a dimly lit room.

Brother! Only one song is longer than 3 minutes and that is you won't see me. A song about longing for love and they have the most to say about it. That is what Rubber Soul is a selection of moments that are in daily life that BBare universal driving a car, Telepathy, and an empty man. The guitar playing is hardcore the drums are perfect, the vocals are whiny in some parts and jumpy in others it is insanity. How do they make Girl so fascinating? I love every second of this and I think their is no nore beatles song than Michelle genuinely

I've not listened to the Beatles' backlog. I know their big singles and this is just okay by comparison.

thought it was pretty good! still dont really get the Beatles. im sure I will one day and then I'll be pissed I never got around to it earlier. I liked the first song.

The whole album sounds like the beginning of something wonderful.

now we're GETTING somewhere with these blokes

Full disclosure, I'm a Beatles junkie. With that out of the way, I think Rubber Soul might be my favorite album of theirs. It's the perfect bridge between their more simple early sounds and their later more experimental and emotionally deep records. This is a record that I can always listen to front to back without condition.

Definitely a transition album for the Beatles as they figured out their sound for the later 60s. Some deep cuts that I didn’t know I liked so much, and in my life is one of their best. Run for your life is not so good.

Beetles

I'm not a Beatles person, i think this is personal though.

Incredible. One of my favorite Beatles albums. In My Life is pure art. I listen to this album nearly monthly.

Lotta songs were kinda hollow, but I really liked "girl" and I did not mind the majority of them

This is a pivotal album in the story of the beatles, it marks their transition from "happy 60s boy band" to "what the fuck?" I would love to know what that was like to experience in real time. It's almost a foregone conclusion that it's a 5. There was never any doubt. I wish there was a separate category called "beatles" lol Personal fave is What goes on but Norwegian wood is the best one.

For some people this is the turnaround for the Beatles. Well it’s a no skip album full of banging tunes however simple they turned out to be. Just a treat.

Legendary album

Pretty standard Beatles stuffs gets a higher star for that but I can’t say I was massively excited to keep listening

Didn't feel like there was any stand outs, not yearning for a relisten but didn't hate it, the crime of being boring and also some wtf songs drags this from mid to not it

Has some real good hits, beep beep and such but has such a weird low point with run for your life. The song feels like it was written from the pov of a serial killer but apparently it's not some deep cut critisim but just some weird casual misogyny

Jäklar vad det har åldrats väl.

En av mina favoritskivor. Det är här de verkligen börjar visa vad de går för. Fullproppad med vackra låtar, till och med ringos spår håller hög klass! Inte en enda riktigt svag låt med andra ord. Guldstjärna för grek-bouzouki-gitarrbreaket i ”girl”. ”Run for your life” är fan grövre än jag minns den. Riktigt vidrig. Men också catchy.

Vilken platta! Och Michelle. Oh La La. Stort fan av låtar som svävar mellan moll och dur i samma tonart, men frågan är; går den ens till f eller är det en 2-5-1 i eb? 🤯

Högt och lågt. Finns mmyxket att hämta här. Oftast otroliga melodier och idéer men som bär de upprepas och dras ut, till vad som känns som långa låtar, blir lite segt. Bängskallar

i have never really done a deep dive into the beatles' discography (a mistake for sure) but god how i loved this! i don't think there was a single song i didn't like but i had to listen to this record twice, because the first time i felt like i didn't focus enough. it would honestly be quite hard to pick a fave, but some include: "norwegian wood", "michelle" or 'in my life" (which i've known and loved for a long time!) i think that the beatles perfectly executed the idea for this album, it had really all the things that a good record should have. i will be coming back for sure

Tää on yksi parhaista bändin levyistä. Hyviä biisejä ja tätä on tullut kuunneltua aiemminkin.

The greatest example of those early Beatles records. Probably as good as they could get before something had to change, and deepen. And man, it's pretty damn good. Still pop-y with some extra depth to it; basically every song is a hit; and some are iconic even until today. Not perfect, but a great listen.

i love the beatles Favorite Songs: Norweigan Wood (This Bird Has Flown), You Won't See Me, Nowhere Man, Think For Yourself, Michelle, What Goes On, Girl, I'm Looking Through You, In My Life, Wait, If I Needed Someone

First Beatles album on the list! Obviously not their best, but still a great album 4/5

4/5. It’s kind crazy how smoking weed with Bob Dylan irreversibly changed the course of the Beatles career. All jokes aside, Rubber Soul was a major turning point for the band. It marks the transition point where the Beatles shifted from the Boy-band they were on their first five albums to the album focused studio wizards they would be from this point forward. And there’s a lot of great cuts on this one like “Norwegian Wood” which sees John Lennon trying to write a Dylan-esque song (something Dylan himself would respond to with the song “4th Time Around which shares an extremely similar vocal melody and progression.) or “Girl” which has this great section halfway through with chugging background vocals, or even “Michelle” which sees Paul getting a bit French with it which is cheesy in the best possible way. And of course there is “In My Life” which is one of the Beatles best songs. My only real complaints with rubber soul actually lie with the two songs that bookend the album “Drive my car” at the start and “run for your life” at the end, neither of which I personally care for particularly much.

I found it really odd when I arrived at uni and one of my good friends was a raving Beatles fan, at the age of 18. Of course I knew the Beatles, everybody does! But I actually didn't own any of their albums of my own because I'd always just known they were downstairs in my dad's collection. But that year, he got me started on properly listening to Beatles albums and I came to appreciate them for myself very quickly. Rubber Soul was his favourite album, and In My Life his favourite song of all time. I eventually came to understand why. I still think they got better and better beyond this point but this is a phenomenal album of straightforward pop songs from a band just starting to push the envelope. Even on the less spectacular numbers, you hear the immaculate ear for a melody, while the vocal harmonies are always first rate. I'm probably being harsh giving this a 4 - if it was in anyone else's catalogue it could easily be a 5 (Along with In My Life, there's also the brilliant I'm Looking Through You, What Goes On and Norwegian Wood) but when you know what was coming around the corner, it was about to get so much better, I just have to hold one back. There are four or five Beatles albums I'd turn to before Rubber Soul.

Great album

very chill album- luv the beatles. In My Life is probably my fav, ended the album with a banger too- probably a 6/10 i enjoyed it.

Great album

3.5

Off to a pretty good start! I wasn't familiar with most of this album but I was pleasantly surprised. Definitely dropped in quality a bit in the middle but the rest of the album is strong enough to carry it.

Great Album

All good or great songs! No filler!

I used to be one of those morons who thought the Beatles' early work was just goofy pop stuff they put out just to sell records and satisfy the record label. Then the band broke out on their own and recorded what they wanted to, beginning with Rubber Soul. As I said, I was an idiot. Those first five albums were pure, perfect pop, but they weren’t just cotton candy and bubblegum. Now, we get to Rubber Soul, where the Beatles are coming into their own and realizing there’s more to creating music than a good hook and some oh-ahs, and they start experimenting. The Beatles turned into a band more excited about what they could create in a studio than playing live. A lot of the songs they would start writing and recording after the first five albums, they’d have a hard time playing live. Hell, they probably had a hard time even recording the songs in the studio. Rubber Soul would be the first album in which all the songs were written by the band. There were no cover songs. Track 1 is maybe the best song on the album, but, of course, it’s not, Drive My Car. You listen to the lyrics, and it sounds like they could have been written today about our world of social media influencers. “Asked a girl what she wanted to be She said, "Baby, can't you see? I wanna be famous, a star of the screen But you can do something in between” "Baby, you can drive my car Yes, I'm gonna be a star Baby, you can drive my car And maybe I'll love you." Basically, the girl is telling the dude, "You’re nice and all, maybe you can be my chauffeur, amongst other things, when I’m a star." Later in the song, she tells the guy she has no car for him to drive, but at least she’s got a chauffeur, and that’s a start. If that wasn’t a twist enough, it turns out, in blues terms, "Drive My Car" would have meant something totally different, which is what John Lennon ad Paul McCartney were going for when they wrote the song. Great song, great lyrics, suggestive undertones, more cowbell and the “Beep-beep, beep-beep, yeahs” are genius. Track 2 is Norwegian Wood, and this song is about Lennon having an affair with a woman who treated him unkindly, so he burned down her apartment. Yep, the first track is about sex, and this one is about arson. George Harrison brings in the sitar to play on this song, which is otherwise acoustic guitars and a small amount of percussion. It’s arranged like an old English folk song. At two minutes long, it gets in and gets out and leaves you wanting more. Track 3 is You Won’t See Me and I love this song. The song talks about a McCartney relationship where he felt ignored and frustrated, knowing it was about to end. Just a cool little pop song that makes me feel kind of sad. The Beatles' songs have a way of making me feel sad. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because their music is upbeat, but their lyrics sometimes are sad or dark. Maybe it’s because you hear these songs and you kind of think maybe music peaked when they were putting out music? We’re all just chasing what the Beatles achieved 60 years ago. And that’s sad. The Rolling Stones make songs that you know other bands could create in the future. The Beatles did so much and invented so much that is now just taken for granted. I think I may have written about this before, but the Beatles’ songs are almost like children’s songs that have been passed down through generations. You know, songs like London Bridge Is Falling Down or Ring Around the Rosie. It felt like those songs had been here on earth since time began. The Beatles kind of feel that way, too. Maybe it’s just me. Anyway, You Won’t See Me is a nice-sounding pop song about a relationship going bad. Track 4 is Nowhere Man and this is a sad song, that sounds sad. Supposedly, Lennon wrote it about his inability to write a song at the height of Beatlemania. He was John Lennon, bigger than Jesus, yet he couldn’t write one song in that time period he allotted himself. The song is sung in three-part harmony by Lennon, McCartney, and George Harrison. This band, man, they had it all. Three of the greatest songwriters who ever lived, one of the greatest guitar players who ever lived, one of the greatest drummers who ever lived, three great singers, and it just makes me wonder. How did these guys all end up together? Why do the Beatless seem to get me thinking like I’ve just smoked pot? And I’ve never even smoked pot. How can you not believe there is a God? Nowhere Man isn’t one of my favorite songs, personally, but it can’t be denied. Track 5 is Think for Yourself and it’s the first song I don’t feel like everyone would know if they heard it. McCartney has his fuzzy bass in this song, and for me, it’s the secret sauce. Lots of great harmonies with this one, too. Apparently, this song was inspired by Bob Dylan. It was around this time that the Beatles and Dylan crossed paths and, of course, they were huge admirers of each other. I think Dylan kind of taught the lads how to broaden their horizons, so to speak, and sing about more than just falling in and out of love. Track 6 is not familiar to my ears, just hearing it. The song is The Word, and The Word is good. It’s also one of the first psychedelic songs by the Beatles. It definitely sounds lof the time. Especially, as the word is love. Not the best track on the album, but Rubber Soul was the time for the Beatles to really stretch themselves and see what they could achieve by writing in a new way. In a lesser band’s hands, this would have been a throwaway song, but the Beatles make it a catchy little pop song. Yes! There’s a part in The Word that reminded me of a newer song, and it just hit me. There’s a bridge or something in The Word that sounds like Wet Leg’s Wet Dreams. I’ve been wracking my brain this whole time, and I finally got it. By the by, if you’ve never listened to Wet Leg, do so now. They are a cheeky little band from the Isle of Wight who write perfect pop songs. The latest album, Moisturizer, is brilliant. Track 7 is Michelle, and Tony Kornheiser hates this song. He thinks it’s easily the worst song ever written and recorded by the Beatles. I think he thinks it’s a little too simple. It doesn’t fit that well on an album full of experimentation. I think it’s a nice little pop song. Is it my favorite on the album? No, but it’s not terrible. Track 8 is What Goes On and it’s the obligatory Ringo Starr country song. Ringo really was into country. In fact, his first solo album after the Beatles broke up, I think it was his first, was a country album made with some of Nashville’s best session players at the time. It’s not a great album, but there are a couple of good songs on there. This song is alright. Aren’t most of Ringo’s songs just alright? The song was written by Lennon and inspired by Buddy Holly. Starr, besides singing the song, contributed lyrics and got a songwriting credit. Track 9 is Girl, and I love this song. Lennon wrote the song about an unattainable girl. He said he later found the Girl in Yoko Ono. And, for the record, I think the Yoko hate has gone too far. Just about everyone in the Beatles at the time was frustrated and wasn’t exactly heartbroken when the band broke up. In fact, McCartney fired the first shot, as he was the first to quit the band. So, Yoko being the agent of destruction is just an untruth and misogynistic in my eyes. Anyway, this song sounds beautiful. I love the chorus and the harmonies. It has the sound of a song you’d hear in a cabaret in France in the 1940s. The hissing sound of Lennon taking in a breath before singing, you know what that's supposed to be. The Beatles were such bad boys, no? The middle of the song with McCartmney and Harrison singing tit-tit-tit, was inspired by the Beach Boys. Also, they thought it was funny they were getting a naughty word by the censors. You know it was one of the seven words you couldn't say on TV at the time, right? The guitar solo is brilliant. It’s off kilter. Track 10 is I’m Looking Through You and I love the song, except for the requisite 1960s organ playing during the little freakout after the verse. The song again is written by McCartney as one of his relationships is dying. In fact, it was the same dying relationship as You Won't See Me. Hmmm, You Won't See Me, and I'm Looking Through You. Got to love the Beatles. McCartney thought his girlfriend was becoming emotionally distant and wasn’t really present in the relationship. Sad song, but great song. Track 11 is In My Life and I already feel like I’m welling up a little. This is a beautiful song about life and the people you meet, love, and lose. Lennon wrote the song and believed it was his first true major piece of art. I think he had other brilliant songs, but this is truly a work of art. In one verse, he talks about all the things he experienced and the people he knew, and how even though everything might not have worked out, he loved them all. The second verse he talks about how even though he loves all those people and things in his past, none of them compare to the person he’s singing the song to. The song is both about remembering the past and looking toward the future. Just lovely. Harrison’s guitar playing, as on the whole record, is just incredible to hear. Track 12 is Wait and I don’t have any memory of this song just by seeing the title. Oh, yeah, this song rules. It’s a really good rock song during the verses and pops out during the chorus. The song is what someone in Wikipedia termed a “coming home” song by the Beatles. I guess you have to write what you know. Track 13 is If I Needed Someone and it has a 1960s feel to it. It’s another one that people probably don’t readily recall. The singing harmonies are brilliant. Does any band sound so good singing together as the Beatles? Probably not, maybe the Bee Gees” Maybe Crosby, Stills and Nash? Low key, Van Halen has some of the brightest, poppiest vocal harmonies in rock and roll. If Rubber Soul hadn’t had 14 songs with eight all-time classics, this would have been a song more recognized in their catalog. Track 14 and the last song, Run for Your Life. This song is dark. “You better run for your life if you can, little girl Hide your head in the sand, little girl Catch you with another man That's the end, little girl I'd rather see you dead, little girl Than to be with another man You better keep your head, little girl Or you won't know where I am” The song was inspired by an Elvis Presley song called, Baby Let’s Play House. One of the lyrics in Presley’s song was “I'd rather see you dead, little girl, than to be with another man,” and that’s the lyric Lennon used to write the song. The song, of course, is about jealousy, but it’s overtly misogynistic, which didn’t really fit the Beatles' style. Back then, being so close to the old-time blues songs, it might not have seemed so out of place. Today, it seems harsh and cruel. The group was kind of formed by old country and blues records from the U.S. when they were kids, and there were plenty of murder ballads written back then. I think the song was meant more as an homage to those songs, rather than Lennon actually dreaming about killing his lover. That’s it. That’s Rubber Soul. It’s packed with all-timers and a few also-rans that for other bands would be all-timers. Is this album a must-listen? Of course. I think all the Beatles' studio albums are a must-listen. In fact, I think you need to listen to them in order of release to truly gauge the way they changed over time and also changed music, both pop and rock and roll. I love this album, and I can’t see why you wouldn’t as well.

Highlights: In My Life, Wait, Girl, Michelle, The Word. In a nutshell: something for everyone. Appropriate that this is the last Beatles album I pulled from the deck. I think this is my favourite of the lot. It's the transition album- you hear the A Hard Day's Night style guitar riff on Nowhere Man and the sitar on Norweigan Wood. This would have been surreal, but a delightful one, for a new listener in the year of its release. Overall: 8/10

There are better Beatles albums. This one's alright

Owned Magnifique

9/10

Bra. Väldigt Beatles förstås. Michelle, norweigan Wood och In my life gillar jag bäst. Det är oförargligt men tänker också att det inte är helt fel. Musik som är lätt att gilla och sjukt trallvänliga låtar. Det kommer man långt på.

Not sure if much needs to be said here. One of the essential classics. So many examples of masterful songwriting. So amazing to think of where they’ll go from here towards their end.

"Norwegian Wood" has always been one of my favourite melodies from The Beatles, but Rubber Soul is probably one of my least listened-to Beatles albums. Definitely a good record but not their best, in my opinion.

One of the Beatles albums I grew up listening to was the red compilation album which has their hits from 1962-66. I've never actually listened to Rubber Soul until now, but six of these songs are included on the red album so I've listened to them many times (Drive My Car, Norwegian Wood, Nowhere Man, Michelle, Girl, and In My Life). Those six songs are great and the rest of the album is solid too. This album feels like the first one in their discography that ventures into more interesting territory and begins to carve out their distinct sound. I really like the folkier, acoustic sound on Norwegian Wood, Michelle and Girl. And In My Life is an all-around fantastic song. The lyrics and melodies are simple and lovely, the drums are doing something interesting (not coming in until 2nd beat of bar - idk drum lingo), and the baroque piano fugue interlude is iconic. Some (or even most) of the songs on this album would earn 4 stars from me, but the handful of excellent songs warrant 5 stars so that's where I'm going to land.

Top notch from start to finish.

One of my favorites from the Beatles (Alongside Revolver and the White Album). I feel like this is like the classic sound we all know and love from these guys. I was unsure if I was going to give this a 5 or not, just from feeling obliged to pay my respects where respects are due. But the respects are well deserved here, its just simply really clean song writing. Claiming that these tunes are trash is just going against the grain for the sake of it IMO. Its easy listening, although definitely not for everyone I guess. Love the album art too, the font/decal is super fun! 9/10

Loved it

Great album. Banger album even

The first great Beatles album. No duds, but the highlights pale in comparison to later albums. 8/10

Listen, I love the Beatles as much as the next guy/girl, but their biggest problem is that they lean HEAVILY into stereo sound. Sure it was groundbreaking tech of the time, but nowadays when you have one earbud in at work and just hear the digeridoo and bassline while the other 50% of the sound plays in the other earbud it gets kind of weird. They sound great with both headphones in or on a surround-sound stereo system. Stereo sound complaint aside, this album is very good. Standout tracks are "Norwegian Wood", "Nowhere Man", and "In My Life". I am particularly fond of "Nowhere Man" because I grew up watching the Yellow Submarine animated movie and that particular sequence was always a good time. 8/10 because of stereo sound, otherwise at least a 9/10.

one of the greatest albums ever released. thats all i’ll say.

I was just arguing with nick gentry about how In My Life has annoying and gay lyrics.

Adore adore adore The Beatles. Definitely my favorite album from them. I think it's crazy that, even though they recorded together for such a short time, almost all music made during or after Beatlemania connects back to them.

An album I don’t need to listen to as I’ve played it incessantly from when it was released. It marks the end The Beatles pop and covers period and the start of their more serious experimental and groundbreaking era. Includes one of my all time favourite Beatles tracks Girl. The album also serves to date any female you come across called Michelle. At time of writing this will be (unbelievably) 60! But for me they will be still little girls as there were so many of them in the late 60’s. One interesting thing I learnt today is that I always thought John Lennon made the fire up in the fireplace after his overnight stay in the bath. It seems according to Wiki he was in fact a pyromaniac and burnt the whole house down. 5/5 2/5/26

Rubber Soul is an incredible album! It combines folk music with the rock n roll style they've established. This is a great album and you should 100% listen to it. It is one of my favorite Beatles albums and is definitely worth the listen. It's a great starter to folk music and is a staple in the genre. Truly one of the greatest albums ever!

Literally in the running for the greatest album or at least the first real album of all time. For anyone to speak ill of this is to either be so contriarian they can't appreciate anything or to just be blind to any musical context. Listen deeply to what music was and was not like after this. When people are like, oh this doesn't rock hard enough, literally there was no such thing as rock before this. An album that truly gets better with age, hard to believe they were so young writing this.

The Beatles – Rubber Soul (1965) On Day 131, I finally understood the hype. This album is a breath of fresh air and serves as the perfect introduction to the Beatles and the progressive rock genre. They didn't just sound ahead of their time; they revolutionized the sound entirely, creating a project that is perfect and cohesive from start to finish. The highlights are endless. Drive My Car sets a sweet mood, followed by the sweet riffs of "Norwegian Wood." "Nowhere Man" tells vulnerable tale, and "Michelle" is quite simply one of the most beautiful songs I've heard (the best on the album imo). The harmonies on "I’m Looking Through You" and "In My Life" showcase an impeccable chemistry that gives the voice real weight. From the vocal range to the serenade tone, this is an absolute masterclass and a definitive 5/5.

An editor’s note to start the review: I listened to the American version of this record, because it is the one I have owned for decades. I miss three outstanding tracks from the British one: “Nowhere Man”, “If I Needed Someone” and “Drive My Car.” The major gain is “I’ve Just Seen a Face.” I would rate the non-North American one even higher due to the extra songs. “Girl”, "Norwegian Wood” and “In My Life” showed that John could write ballads just as well as Paul. (It seems stereotypical to state that the John's are superior because they never fall into the sentimentality of a Paul song like “Michelle”, but it is true.) In the U.S. release, George only gets one song, “Think for Yourself”, which is the best rocker on the record. A buzzsaw fuzzed out bass and guitar, plus a touch of John/Dylan’s disdainful lyrics. Ringo gets a solid version with country tinged “What Goes On.” No slighting Paul as “You Won’t See Me” and “I’m Looking Through You” are first-rate pop songs that match the surprisingly forlorn lyrical theme of the album. The latter quality lifts the album into new heights for the group. Weariness and love’s near misses prevail throughout the record. “Drive My Car” would throw off the balance in many ways for me. I suppose “The Word” foreshadows “All You Need Is Love”, but otherwise the group brought a bittersweet tone to the record that echoed 1965’s other massive British hit “Satisfaction” in a downbeat manner. Hard to imagine that this record was about to be topped by the next ones.

More than ever I was able to see the transitionary significance of this album in the Beatles catalog. Previously I had only seen this album as the start of their experimentation, which is definitely is, but I noticed the early Beatles peeking through. The album feels playful in a way that would continue in future albums, but usually through their experimentation which can sometimes come across sloppily (see: White Album's dud tracks). Here it still has the refinement of the early Beatles tracks, mainly that of A Hard Day's Night where you can feel their power but that they are still holding back, still holding on to their rockabilly roots with the harmonica, whereas here it is replaced by something more suitable for their songs, whether sitar, organ, maracas, etc. Lyrically, they are at their strongest point for a classic rock song, not yet psychedelic confusion, though the LSD was beginning to kick in, just not yet in songwriting. Songs affected by it, still make sense, namely "Norwegian Wood" which never misses and I consider The Beatles at their most poetic and layered (in the words of McCartney: "We just wanted to write songs about prostitutes and lesbians."). The cheese is still there ("Drive My Car" and "The Word") but is slightly more suitable because the instrumentals kill, mainly the guitar on the opener. Future Beatles classic song formats, in my opinion, debut here, mainly McCartney songs like "Michelle" which has a humor in it with the French reminiscent of "Maxwell" or Spanish-Italian gibberish on "Sun King" "Girl" is a top track that exposes a dark Beatles core that I find might be its strongest here until a song like "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" paired with "Run For Your Life" which I'm still not sure how to feel about. Except that it shouldn't be the closer. "In My Life" should be the last track. It is possibly the Beatles song that makes me feel the most, which is truly saying something when it comes to The Beatles. This is the debut of George, who was and probably is restrained here, but at least allowed to begin to flourish with his work, mainly "Think For Yourself" and the lyrics on "If I Needed Someone" Best Ringo song might also be on this album with "What Goes On" "Wait" used to bug me, but now it's one of my top tracks. Along with "I'm Looking Through You" I still don't like "The Word" probably the only song I would skip on this album, but it's not a horrible song. It just kind of bores me. (Replace it with "Day Tripper"?) Top: "Girl" "In My Life" "Norwegian Wood" No mention of "Nowhere Man"...I still don't know how to feel about this song.

shit must've been DIRE in the 60s for this to be as important as it is people talking about "the songs demonstrate the Beatles' increasing maturity as lyricists" and the lyrics in question are like "baby baby, call me on the phone / little girl please can't you throw this old dog a bone"

This is some great musicianship. It's also the Beatles. Sometimes they can be so...the Beatles.

light 4.

2.8/5 There was probably only 1 song I'd heard off this album before listening to it, but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

This is a great album of! A few songs I never heard.

Honestly best beatles album

i liked this album

la raíz del rock actual

Liked it but some blah songs.

Perhaps it’s because I don’t fully understand the context, perhaps it’s because I’m insufficiently enlightened, perhaps it’s because I spent my teens and twenties getting brains addled in mosh pits at punk shows. Whatever the reason, I cannot see the Beatles as anything more than a mid-tier 60s pop band.

It’s fine. Kind of sad. Guys singing harmonies in the sixties depress me.

bon

Favorite Beatles album.

7/10

This, and the Abba album are how I finally figured out I don't like unison style group singing. Lots of this album is musically sensational.

I guess I hate the Beatles less than I thought.

classic and cant give this anything lower than a 4 since i literally have this vinyl. the instrumentation is really interesting though and u can tell that they were doing some kind of substances.......

I’m not a crazy fan of the Beatles, their melodies don’t sit right with me and same with the voices

Bueno, in my life esta aquí!

a true classic

비틀즈는 비틀즈네...

This was better than I remembered it being.

My favorite Beatles album and one of my all time favorites. Every song is so good and so many great melodies and wonder lyrics. Really showcases their brilliance and musical abilities

YOOOOOOOO

люблю битлз

139. ok

Very much a transitional album for the lads, it feels like they’re drawing more heavily from their influences than on later albums. Lots of all timers here but there’s also a noticeable lull in the middle of the track list. Great record but they still had a few months before their first real masterpiece 3.5ish

About two years ago a gay guy i was pretending not to have a crush on in my Beatles class who would later sour on me as a friend once i started wearing a Jewish voice for peace button around made fun of me for liking Michelle. Immediately following this we watched a documentary as a class which opened with some self-described Beatles expert spending a good 2-3 minutes ranting about how much he fucking hated Michelle. You would think Michelle was a real person who had personally slighted him. This guy fucking hated Michelle and by extension Paul McCartney, he said it revealed his weaknesses as a writer or some stupid shit like that. It was maybe the hardest I have ever laughed at anything. I don’t care if it’s slop I still like Michelle. I feel kind of silly “reviewing” this album having not experienced what popular music sounded like before it existed. But from my limited perspective I feel like a little most than half of it is like the best shit around at its time (DRIVE MY CAR!!!!!!!) and the other half-ish is them still figuring stuff out with mixed results, some of which I still enjoy. I love this album overall but it’s not a fave Beatles album for me. Definitely worth going back to though.

Hell yes. In My Life. Oh yeah. George Harrison shoulda put down that mf sitar though, out of pocket. Ringo is the fucking best

Why studio ghibli food look so good🤤🤤🤤🤤

it still blows my mind that they went from please please me to THIS in the span of two years. some days i think this might be my favorite beatles album. you can really feel how happy they were to be there - still young, still a Band, but starting very slowly to splinter apart

aw fuck. shit and fuck. fuck shit shit fuck. shittity fuck. fuckity fuck Fuck. right then. let's see why brian wilson #locked in for pet sounds. but before that, an anecdote: i took a songwriting class in college and our 2nd assignment was to write a cover of a beatles song we'd never heard. i ended up making (to quote my group members/classmates) some charli xcx lcd soundsystem berghain eurotrash type beat with a jersey club breakdown in the middle. the song? drive my car. nonetheless i'm a little underwhelmed. as for the rest, white washed temptations songs (they're not bad but it must be said) and some mad alright to decent rock. nowhere man + michelle + in my life would do it for the wilson level up but. i'm leaning 80-20 on the spector of it all (pun intended). he didn't think ringo tapped the phones, did he? the "i'm fucking your cat" cover pretty fuego tho. 3.4-4.1. no homo jann wenner smoking MANDINGO if he thinks this is the 5th greatest album of all time. like yeah. baby(whitey? that feels mean. i mean that shit tho)'s first exposure to various genres due to racism + payola + the economics of owning records but i mean. FIFTH?

4/5

Cool, one more song on my playlist

I have this whole album memorized and i didn’t even know it. Listened to the whole thing before work. Triggered memories of a time before I knew who epste*n was. It’s actually all bangers. No notes.

No creo que este sea el mejor trabajo de los Beatles. Igual he percibido con estas grandes bandas, que no todos sus albums son grandes albums. Creo que su impacto es más a través del tiempo, sobre todo cuando tienen sonidos tan característicos que marcaron un momento. Pero de ahí a que le tire más estrellas y me siente a escucharlo completo y diga "ay, dios mío, que rico". Not.

I usually find Beatles albums terribly overrated but this one wasn’t so bad

4 fat sluts <3

While I'm not the biggest Beatles fan, there are still some excellent songs on here, most of it is pretty catchy, and it _doesn't outstay its welcome_.

Some great tracks on here, some ok tracks on here. Why do they like little girls so much? Ugh. Lennon always comes off pretty sus.

An album filled with “safe songs”. They’re all catchy, they’re all short, and they still within their lane the whole time. Honestly front to back there’s not really a dry moment. But this isn’t what I look for in music

It’s one of those albums that does fall into the “you must hear it before you die” category, even if it is just to see what all the fuss is about. I agreee with the prevailing trend of the last decade or so to put this above Sgt Peppers or the White Album. SPLHCB is too conceptual and psychedelic while The White Album is too experimental. Rubber Soul shows their full capabilities while having a high level of remarkable and well known songs.

I grew up with the Beatles, though I never listened to this album much. I quite like the sound, as it feels like Beatles with a faint rock/punk edge to it.

I honestly didn't finish a couple songs at the end, but that was just because I was busy. I really enjoyed the album! This was my first one and I'm really exited to explore more music.

pretty good not really my style or fav but good 1 time listen

Great album - really like Norwegian wood, In my Life and Michelle. Fun dual audio in remastered versions

Wow. What is not to love.

Hard to not give any Beatles album a 5. A great album, and a big step for them artistically. Highlights: "Norwegian Wood" and "In My Life"

2/5 very plain

ziemlich cool

already listened

Kinda sucks lowkey? I mean a few of the best songs I’ve ever heard and then some str8 trash. “I’d rather you be dead than with someone else” foh

Îmi place mult sound ul diferi de la piese… foarte fain!

First Beatles of the list and I only knew two of the songs off this. Really liked it, although I found the final song uncomfortable to listen to, regardless of whether or not it’s a character piece. In My Life is so good

Owned

I feel I can only describe this album as shrill. John's voice awful. The content of songs is probably good.But overall , the sound of it is just not to my taste and How much prefer of our psychedelic records of the era

Drive my car is awesome, always loved it - harmonies are cool, lyrics are funny - I also like what they are doing with key changing and dissonance, i think its fun and easy to listen to, i shall rate it highly. Point off for the remastering, sounds weird in my headphones.

Really love this one, but there are others that are better!

OK, this record is absolutely god-tier. Not much comes close. Every song is amazing.

the beatles' Pot Era reaches its apex in an album increasingly known for how it takes a sugary pop band and makes them feel sour and bitter. thats not the whole story ofc...being me, i must take the chance to do my periodic shilling for the wonderful Beatles For Sale, the actual warning shot of the bands forthcoming stylistic and emotional eclecticism, but ultimately that record did walk so this one could run. i think a big part of what makes rubber soul so enduring as a pop album, to the point where i feel like its been growing in stature after years of being overshadowed by the followups, is that good art Benefits from this kind of tension, release, and lack of clear emotional signposting. before this, they might have had individual tracks that could be sad or strange in contrast to the other material, but here there are productive gear shifts inbetween sections of the songs themselves, winding themselves up and providing wildly different kinds of catharsis. that such a seemingly downcast song as nowhere man has a section as viscerally musically and lyrically uplifting as the "nowhere man please listen..." part rly speaks i think to the amount of moment to moment songcraft the beatles were perfecting on this record, and ready to take to new heights of idiosyncrasy. its all so good that i can honestly forgive the inclusion of yet another random ass british band that no one has thought about since nme gave them their highest possible rating of "Pretty Good" or whatever. what a silly list.

4.8 - Excellent album. Top 3 songs: Michelle, Nowhere man and Norwegian Wood

I love all of The Beatles albums, but this definitely isn't one of my favorites. I own it on vinyl. My favorite songs on this album are Norwegian Wood, Girl, In My Life, and Run For Your Life. The only song I didn't know was What Goes On. I knew all of the other songs. Any Beatles albums are going to automatically be 5 stars.

Got three Beatles records in a 10 day span but I’m not complaining.