It's Certainly A Thrill: 'Sgt. Pepper' Is Best Album (Better than the White Album?!)

usa today ^ | 11-17-03

[steppenwolffe]

To everyone's complete lack of surprise, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band has been anointed the best album ever in a new Rolling Stone poll.

The Beatles' consecrated 1967 classic tops ''The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,'' a collector's issue on stands Friday. Though typically the odds-on favorite for such rankings, Sgt. Pepper wasn't a slam-dunk.

''There was a horse race,'' says Rolling Stone music editor Joe Levy. ''Early on, any number of albums in the top 10 were in the lead. The final result is no shock, but there's a reason for that. The Beatles, after all, were the most important and innovative rock group in the world. And Sgt. Pepper arguably set the tone for what an album could be.''

The Beatles have four albums in the top 10. Predictably, the list is weighted toward testosterone-fueled vintage rock. The top solo female is Joni Mitchell, whose 1971 Blue is No. 30.

The newest entry is this year's Elephant by the White Stripes, landing at No. 390. The most current disc in the top 20 is Nirvana's 1991 breakthrough, Nevermind. Recent albums by Coldplay and The Strokes also made the cut, as did all three Eminem releases and a wide range of hip-hop.

''A classic record proves itself over time,'' Levy says, ''so it's gratifying and surprising to see so many newer records on the list, considering they're competing against such beloved and titanic records as Rubber Soul and Dusty in Memphis.''

Rolling Stone asked musicians, critics, historians and key industry figures to rank their 50 favorites. The 273 participants included Beck, U2's The Edge, Jackson Browne, Art Garfunkel, Missy Elliott and members of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Linkin Park and The Doors. The Ernst & Young accounting firm devised a point system to weight votes for 1,600 submitted titles.

Voters were invited to identify favorites from any period or genre, allowing a smattering of country (Johnny Cash), jazz (Miles Davis) and seminal blues (Howlin' Wolf). The list also accommodates greatest hits collections and live recordings; four James Brown picks include two sets of hits and Live at the Apollo (1963). Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Hank Williams, The Drifters and Loretta Lynn, who flourished during the era of 45s, are represented only by hits compilations.

''Artists whose best works were singles are not going to be well represented,'' Levy notes. For example, he adds, ''Disco is under-represented because it's a singles-driven genre.''

[Mr. Mojo]

I agree, the White Album had a bunch of filler, and could easily have been made into a single LP. The album also very disjointed -- there's no natural flow at all, and even the recording quality is a mixed bag. It sounds like they just threw a bunch of songs together without regard for the whole.

[Mr. Mojo]

Ping

[AmishDude]

The Beatles did not age well. Some would say, that is because they were so innovative that all subsequent bands used their ideas.

Also, the lyrics were quite lame.

For the record, Boston's self-titled album is the best ever.

[oh8eleven]

So is piss.

Oh, I'm soooo sorry. I didn't hurt your precious feelings did I?
Why, you must take your rock and roll "seriously." LOL ...

[Skooz]

In other words, it's simply brilliant. :)

[eddie willers]

McDonalds of rock and roll. There's no there there, despite being carefully engineered and widely consumed, it's just not 'the best.' Not even close. Not even vaguely close. They're a mediocre 60s boys' band...they are pop, not rock.

You have bever been so wrong.
That's like saying Rush Limbaugh is nothing but warmed over Wally George.

Check what was in the charts before the Beatles.

The BEST were The Four Seasons and Bobby Rydell....for God's sake.

Show my any good, much less great, rock album before "With The Beatles". (US "Meet The Beatles")

PS..."Johnny Horton's Greatest Hits" (as good as it was) doesn't count. :-)

[theelephantway]

This was not millions of fans voting it was people in the industry...

"Rolling Stone asked musicians, critics, historians and key industry figures to rank their 50 favorites. The 273 participants included Beck, U2's The Edge, Jackson Browne, Art Garfunkel, Missy Elliott and members of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Linkin Park and The Doors. The Ernst & Young accounting firm devised a point system to weight votes for 1,600 submitted titles."

The Beatles continuously end up high on these types of lists. Many groups in history can take the claim to the following: they have one of the best love songs, OR best rock 'n roll songs, OR one of the best silly songs, OR one of the best albums made, OR they changed music in this way or that, but only one group did ALL of this - The Beatles.

[Skooz]

Lame? Lame?

A Day in the Life

I read the news today oh boy
About a lucky man who made the grade
And though the news was rather sad
Well I just had to laugh
I saw the photograph.
He blew his mind out in a car
He didn't notice that the lights have changed
A crowd of people stood and stared
They'd seen his face before
Nobody was really sure
If he was from the House of Lords.

I saw a film today oh boy
The English Army had just won the war
A crowd of people turned away
But I just had to look
Having read the book
I'd love to turn you on.

Woke up, fell out of bed,
Dragged my comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup,
And looking up I noticed I was late.
Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke,
Somebody spoke and I went into a dream.

I read the news today oh boy
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire
And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall.
I'd love to turn you on....

[eddie willers]

Also, the lyrics were quite lame.

"Yellow matter custard, dripping from a dead dog's eye"

[Scenic Sounds]

From a musical standpoint, I agree with you, but remember, the people who voted are in the music industry, and given the times, Sgt Pepper is probably the most influential album of all time, up to that point. George Martin didn't just push the envelope with Sgt Pepper... He created a whole new "postal system!"

You're absolutely right. Revolver was very innovative, but Sgt. Peppers really blew people away in a way that would be just impossible to describe to folks who weren't around at that time. ;-)

[Mr. Mojo]

The Beatles did not age well. For the record, Boston's self-titled album is the best ever.

Boston's music - overly distorted/sustained guitars, ultra-high-pitched Journey/Kansas-type vocals - is about as dated as it gets, and their lack of radio time these days (even on classic rock stations) confirms it. (Most of) the Beatles music, otoh, is absolutely timeless. And the fact that we're discussing it right now (after all these years) confirms it.

[Skooz]

LOL!

I wrote that on a sheet of paper in the 6th grade and got sent to the principal's office.

[Mr. Mojo]

"Yellow matter custard, dripping from a dead dog's eye"

"Crabalocker fishwife, pornographic priestess..."

[eddie willers]

Hmmmm...we both pick Lennon for the lyrics.

But that's to be expected.
He and Paul together were much greater than the sum of their parts.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...electronic toilet paper.

Ouch!

[Petronski]

Show my any good, much less great, rock album before "With The Beatles"

So since everything else came afterward, you conclude everything else was derived therefrom?

[AmishDude]

Compare to:
---------
On a dark desert highway
Cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas
Rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance
I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy, and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself
This could be Heaven or this could be Hell
Then she lit up a candle
And she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor
I thought I heard them say

Welcome to the
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely place (background)
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the
Any time of year
Any time of year (background)
You can find it here
You can find it here

Her mind is Tiffany twisted
She's got the Mercedes bends
She's got a lot of pretty, pretty boys
That she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard
Sweet summer sweat
Some dance to remember
Some dance to forget
So I called up the Captain
Please bring me my wine
He said
We haven't had that spirit here since 1969
And still those voices are calling from far away
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say

Welcome to the
Such a lovely Place
Such a lovely Place (background)
Such a lovely face
They're livin' it up at the
What a nice surprise
What a nice surprise (background)
Bring your alibies

Mirrors on the ceiling
Pink champagne on ice
And she said
We are all just prisoners here
Of our own device
And in the master's chambers
They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives
But they just can't kill the beast
Last thing I remember
I was running for the door
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before
Relax said the nightman
We are programed to recieve
You can check out any time you like
But you can never leave

--------------
Like I said, lame. The Beatles' metaphors are nonexistant, vocabulary is limited and poetic rhythm is stilted.

[eddie willers]

I wrote that on a sheet of paper in the 6th grade and got sent to the principal's office.

LOL....as well you should!

[Skooz]

You dare compare mid-70s top 40 AM radio muzak to "A Day in the Life?"

[AmishDude]

Boston's album is the greatest concentration of recognizable songs on a single album. They had no range, though, as evidenced by the fact that none of their other albums were halfway decent.