Stand Out Albums has been a showcase for my favorite albums across the vast performers that I love. Covering a little bit of everything from classic rock to country hits, much like Key Movies of My Life, it has been the albums that shaped me. This year, I am going to take a slightly different approach by discussing the discographies of my favorite musicians, album by album, in release order.
The Beatles were my first love in music and so it only felt fitting that we began there, with the fab four. Today we discuss their 7th studio release Revolver.
Why This Album?
Revolver is in and of itself an evolution in sound, style and skill. While we could see the slow and deliberate journey in previous albums, it is Revolver that takes the Beatles to the next level. Filled with experimental sounds such as backtracking as well as a focus on a full album presentation rather than individual songs, Revolver demands to be listened to in one sitting rather than parceled out as random tracks. That’s not to say there are not highlights on this album, oh trust me there are, its just that this is one album best enjoyed in it’s entirety than in sips.
What I love most about this album is that, to me, the Beatles feel unfettered and unbound from their past allowing them to explore music as they see fit. John goes into the more introspective with songs like I’m Only Sleeping, Paul begins storytelling with Eleanor Rigby, Georges opens the album with a song about their frustration with Taxes and Ringo embraces his silly nature with the ever popular Yellow Submarine. For the first time you can actually feel the different personalities in a single album that somehow, despite their conflicting nature, these differences serve to unify the album instead of break it apart.
The first time I heard this album in it’s entirety was in the 90’s when The Beatles made a massive resurgence with the Anthology television specials and albums. This album reminded me of why I loved the Beatles and how I had adored both their early and latter work, but to me those periods felt like two district bands. This album showed me that this classic band I had loved all my life were more than just performers, they were artists and as artists they knew no bounds and could be both the Love me Do and Eleanor Rigby at the same time. I was astonished and delighted and then I gave Sgt Pepper a spin and my mind exploded. More on that next week.
Favorite Tracks
It is so very hard to choose which tracks are my favorite as every single track holds a special place in my heart. So, instead I am going to encourage you to click the link below and give this album a listen from start to finish. There are tracks on here that will hit you in the feelz and others that will have you dancing about your room. Trust me, it is a true joy of an album and you should listen to it from start to finish.
Ok, Where do I get it?
As usual, go grab a copy from our friends at Amoeba. We dont make anything off of these links but we love them and they have pretty much everything you could ever want when it comes to music. Or, just go to Spotify and give it a listen, either way, just let yourself dive into the album that is Revolver. It’s only 34 minutes but it will be a 34 minutes well spent.
Late to the Game 2/16/2021
Thanks for reading, If you would like to read more reviews I have a weekly series called Key Movies Of My Life that comes out every Thursday and also check out some retro tv goodness with the ongoing series Retro TV Reviews here. You can also find a few of my other Music Reviews Here.
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