7/10. Give another listen for sure. Favorites: "Yoshimi Part 1 &2," "Fight Test," "Are You Hypnotist??," and "Approaching Pavonis Mons by Balloon (Utopia Planitia)" (for its title alone).
Strong first half, fades toward the end for me. Track 2-4, new favorites. Any album with "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "God Only Knows" is perfection.
Deserves another listen to get full scope of it but I can see myself getting into individual tracks more. First song was my favorite. The length was working against it and I'm give 4 stars off the assumption that with more time I will return to it and gain more love for it.
Love sound of it, but distinction of it is lost with only 5 tracks but then the first and last track are parts all together. Am I supposed to recognize the distinction from part 1 fading into part 2. Though it was good for doing work to.
One of the easiest listens. Could throw this on at any time and be into. Fits any occasion. Best time: listening while baking baklava. Plan upon return.
Hard-hitting music that you can just sit and listen to. Feels like culmination of Bowie's mysticism, ending with Lady Grinning Soul (still remains my favorite). Kicked off with a jazzy, chanting tone and slowly descending into further otherworldly feelings. The Prettiest Star most fascinating. Let's Spend the Night Together should be a required lesson on how to do a cover and make it your own.
Unexpectedly favorable toward it, but tracks blend together and I can't Billie Joe Armstrong's voice, but I'd call it decent. Might even put it on again. Perfect length of an album.
This album is only saved by the instrumental tracks, specifically "Beck's Bolero" otherwise it sounds like a person's idea of a classic rock album, rather than a classic rock album. Won't degrade it further by calling it AI's idea of a classic rock album because I wish to continue my faith in the human race over AI (but AI probably would have better vocals).
Did B.B. ever try his hand at stand-up comedy? Made me shimmy my shoulders with the music and shake my shoulders with the jokes. The audience is an additional instrument within the music, showing how to truly make a great live album. They shout, they laugh, and they participate in the music as much as a back-up singer would.
Personal favorite: "Worry, Worry" for B.B.'s "A wife, woman, or whatever you want to call her, she don't do like you think she should, don't go' upside her head. That don't do but one thing, that make her look smarter, and she won't let you catch her the next time."
I've recently decide this was my favorite Beatles album. The medley alone makes it worthy of it. This listen around I found it a bit less cohesive. Of course, this is in part due to The Beatles going their separate ways, and it's not messy in the same way White Album is. It definitely has the best parts of themselves coming together (pun not intended) and working together, as seen in the medley. However, the first half can feel a little jumbled at times.
"Come Together" used to be viewed less favorably by me, but I think I've come around to it recently. Its overplayed status still stands for me, but John's voice is at his strongest here, and his psych lyricism started with "I Am the Walrus" is now sharpened here. It makes coherent sense, but still includes lines like "toe-jam football" (a personal favorite). I realized I've never read through the lyrics of "Come Together" and I'm shocked at how different it makes my view. I never realized he said "Ono sideboard."
"Something" was Sinatra's favorite love song and it's definitely up there for me, however it's definitely their BEST love song.
"Maxwell" has the same quirkiness as "Ob-La-Di" and I love both, but I think it once again is a case of sharpening what had been on previous albums.
"Oh! Darling" once again used to be a skip, now, might be in my top 3 from this album. Paul's voice at his strongest.
"Octopus's Garden" is Ringo at his best. I never skip this. It always gets me in a good mood. I don't care, I love it.
"I Want You" Is this the best Beatles song? It has aged better than any fine wine. Definitely best Beatles side closer.
"Here Comes the Sun" Overplayed status tends to be my reason for disliking a Beatles song, but maybe that excuse doesn't apply when the overplayed-ness is the reason I love this song. It's a smiling sun. The Teletubbies Sun Baby. The song's quality is tripled by the fact it comes after a sharp cut-off from the dark and grimy "I Want You"
"Because" I will forever picture Alice Cooper doing a spoken word of this in the Sgt. Pepper movie. One of the few good performances. The scene captures why this song is so good. It takes the sereneness of "Here Comes the Sun" and mashes it with the darkness of "I Want You." It's creepy, but also beautiful. "Across the Universe" done in a basement.
"You Never Give Me" I love the opening and ending of this song. The middle can be mixed for me. I jam along to it, but it does lean slightly musical theater and doesn't live up to why the beginning of the song is sooooooo good. The jumbled nature of this album can be witnessed in this song. It's good, but sometimes it's Frankensteinish.
"Sun King" I have always felt this song is underrated. Feels like sunbathing, but on the roof of a house, in a plastic lounge chair. The garbled Spanish/Italian is a cherry on top.
"Mean" & "Pam" I love when Beatles do characters and I like to imagine a more elaborate story where all these characters are connected. Movie Sgt. Pepper kind of tries to do this and perhaps that acid dream is what this would look like.
"She Came" ALWAYS GOOD. No comment. Just let the music play. The transitions are at its peak here.
"Golden Slumbers" This is my favorite song on the album. I will prefer other songs at different times but I always have to let this one play up to the climax. Paul is at his best of doing what Paul does. Strong voice, strong lyrics, and taking nostalgic tunes from his childhood and transforming them.
"Carry" & "The End" Just let the music flow. Very symbolic that "The End" was unknowingly (or sort of knowingly) the end.
"Her Majesty" I heard someone complain recently that this album didn't end with "The End" but somebody replied back that they liked this as the ending because it goes back to how The Beatles started as just boys messing around and making music. It's a similar reason I've warmed to Let It Be (album) with songs like "Maggie Mae" and "One After 909" as being this tribute to Liverpool and boys being boys. Gonna go board my flight now.
