Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band | The Beatles | The album that changed the history of...

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band | The Beatles | Something Lost

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	Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band The Beatles Capitol, 1987 average customer review:based on 1183 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The album that changed the history of music- and the world (and listening to it will certainly change you!)

I'm 12 years old, but I love the Beatles much more than the modern trash that kids today listen too. Every album they created offered something fresh and original, and always re-inventing themselves while retaining their always-expected quality. Perhaps the most renowned example of re-inveting themselves is SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, which arguably started the entire counterculture of the late 60s/ early 70s. Many people consider the fab four's breakthrough album, but while I think that RUBBER SOUL introduced the pschedelic feel, this one certainly has the smell of freshness and originality. I may have been born in 1995 (wish I had been born 35 years earlier though), but I can relate what this album meant at it's time and to the history of music. This is often considered their best work, and while I prefer REVOLVER, this certainly is amazing as anything else the Beatles have done.

First off, the first thing you see in SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND is the cover. This is back when album covers could be works of art, and this certainly is a fine example. John, Paul, George and Ringo are dressed in colorful uniforms with a crowd of famous people- ranging from actors, authors, comedians, to gurus- standing behind them. In front is a flower bed grown to spell "BEATLES," and in front of that is an Indian doll (possibly representing their love for India.) This could possibly be a metaphor of the Beatles' effort for the countries and lands of the world to unite and have peace with each other, and this message is certainly brought across to the viewer (and later, the listener.) There is also a bit of humor, like the Shirley Temple Doll wearing a "WELCOME THE ROLLING STONES" shirt.

Pop in the disc and the chattering of the crowd waiting for the band to come and spread their glory. You can almost feel their anticipation until the sound of guitars start strumming and the first song, the titular "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," begins to play. The next tune, the wonderful ditty "A Little Help from My Friends," comes in right when "Sgt. Pepper" ends so seamlessly they seem to be together as one song. One reason why I prefer listening to the album than regular singles is that the tracks blend together so nicely (back when the track order had a purpose) that one would think that the entire album is a singular, 50-minute extravaganza. And it certainly feels that way. You don't ever want to stop playing the disc even after a song ends because they all seem connected in some way or another. When you here the famous "final chord" of A Day in the Life, and the intelligible gibberish that follows that to end this wonderful album, why, you just might want to press the replay button. It's addictive and time-consuming, almost like a drug itself, but not time-wasting as every second is well spent.

Now I'll give a quick rundown of every song-

1. "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (9/10): A great way to open the album, it's a bit short, but it feels "harder" than most of the songs in the album. Certainly is memorable, but not my favorite.

2. "With a Little Help from My Friends" (10/10): Not only is this one of my favorite tunes on this disc, but it might as well be possibly one of my favorite offerings from the Beatles of all time. Joe Cocker's cover may be the most famous, but I prefer Ringo's peppy rendition of John and Paul's memorable lyrics.

3. "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (10/10): This is one of the Beatles' most popular songs, mainly because of the nonsense and druggy lyrics, and a title being an acrostics for "LSD." While John Lennon tells a different story of how the song came about- being of his son, a nursery drawing, a friend named Lucy, and the chapter "Wool and Water" from Through the Looking Glass (by my idol Lewis Carroll, who also appears on the cover)- it is obviously trip-induced, which most of the enjoyment from the song comes from. The switching between the slow verses and the upbeat chorus may seem strange to first listeners, but this is certainly one of the classics.

4. "Getting Better" (10/10): Such a fun and lovely song that teaches us that the new isn't always as bad as we think, even though we live in the past (although the Beatles themselves may prove this theory wrong.) I was a little concerned about the line "I used to be cruel to my woman, I beat her...," but then he mentions loving her, which I think this song is all about.

5. "Fixing A Hole" (9/10): Hypnotic sounds galore! Lots of fun to listen to, but not too memorable and sometimes not vibrant enough of musical. Still a worthy addition.

6. "She's Leaving Home" (10/10): I'm not too sure who's mother is being referred to in this songs apparently about divorce, but the feeling of sadness and foolishness of breaking up is certainly brought across in this melancholy selection.

7. "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite" (8/10): Apparently this one is about an old circus poster found at the Antiques shop. The lyrics are strange, and certainly not deep, but it will be stuck in your head for days (especially the circus-themed instrumental.)

8. "Within You, Without You" (9/10): Written and sung by George Harrison, this hypnotic, Indian-based tune was considered the most unpopular tune during the time of release. I wonder why, as there are beautiful parts and the lyrics make it seem as if the singer was speaking to the listener about saving the world. As crazy at is sounds, it feels like you have some importance in this world.

9. "When I'm Sixty-Four" (9/10): This is probably the most Un-Beatle-like song from SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, although Paul said he wrote it when he was 16, in 1958. It feels a little dated, sort of like the people mentioned in this song, but the "Ah-" part does sound like a product of it's time. Don't get me wrong, I love this song and you probably will too.

10. "Lovely Rita" (10/10): An extremely peppy love song about Rita, the metre maid. A lot of fun to listen to, and another great selection from the album.

11. "Good Morning, Good Morning" (8/10): Possibly the weakest of the album, but based on the past selections, that's not saying much and it still is pretty good and memorable. You may have this one stuck in your head for a while.

12. "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band- Reprise" (9/10): A replay of the titualar song, but that's not detracting much considering the enjoyment delivered from the said tune. Now including the famous -"One and Only-" addition to "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." According to the lyrics, the wonderful time we had with the fab four is about to end, but it just can't be, because we haven't listened to...

13. "A Day in the Life" (10/10): Nonsense lyrics led this essential song to becoming banned by the BBC. Odd, because as unlinked as the verses are, "A Day in the Life" still seems to make sense. Of course, this wouldn't be complete without the famous final chord. You are probably wondering why I am making such a big deal of this "final chord," but as Rolling Stones (who also placed this ditty in the agreeable place of #26 on their list of Top 500 songs of ALL TIME,) said:

"The final thundering piano chord concluded the Sgt. Pepper's album and made rock music seem like it had infinite possibilities."

I couldn't of put it better myself. When you hear it, you feel blown away, as it ends SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND. Not just a collection of songs, but an experience you will never forget.
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Total Rundown:
Songs- 10/10
Tilt (or the "blend" of the songs I was talking about earlier)- 10/10
Cover- 10/10
Value- 10/10

This album is a masterpiece. My 3rd favorite work from the fab four (only to be beaten by REVOLVER AND ABBEY ROAD,) you must buy this if you ever wanted to understand why everyone lovesthe Beatles or why everyone loves MUSIC in general. Highly recommended, possibly the best spent $10 ever.

FINAL SCORE- 10/10

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Something Lost

Breaking down each track on this album is not something that I would even attempt as many other reviewers have down a great job of that. This album is to be judged by it's overall effect as a contribution to society. Yes, that sounds absurd, but I believe that sometimes things can be way more than what they appear, and the Beatles and Sgt Peppers are part of that. 5 stars can't begin to express the rating of this work of art. I react very strangely to listening to it however. It causes me pain. The pain that comes with realizing that time travel is impossible. I was a young kid in 67 and every person on the planet (or so it seems) owned this album. Everywhere you went, the sound of "Pepper's" could be heard from windows if you were walking the street. Every house you walked into had this as it's theme. It was as if the world was actually united in it's awe of what these guys had produced. The music is timeless, a work of genius. You hear so many critics and fans use the word genius in reference to musicians and 90 per cent of the time it is overstatement. Not so with these guys, together they formed a force that was way more than a music group. Rubber Soul and Revolver were works of art, but this one took it over the top, sealed the deal, made it clear that there were no limits. I don't listen to Sgt Peppers anymore, but I love it like a lost friend or lover. If I listen to Pepper's it makes me yearn to return to those days of the summer when it all was so fresh and new. I honestly feel that everything past Pepper's is somehow a re-work, an attempt to capture whatever constitued that hold on the world that the Beatles had. John would have said "we were just a rock combo, nothing more", but then by the time he said that the "we" was gone and so was the magic. As a young boy I went to Woodstock and when I was there, in the middle of the mud, I only thought it was a rather uncomfortable rock concert and not until I was back home with my parents did I realize what a big deal it was. In a similar way, because he was in the eye of the storm, John was unable to see the significance of the Beatles. Seeing what society has become, what the music industry is producing, there is no doubt that the "magic" is lost. My god, I heard a guy say on MTV the other day that Nirvana was that generations Beatles. God, did they get short changed or what? I liked Nivana, I like the Foo Fighters, but I don't even begin to call that art or magic. Grunge, like Punk etc. was a phase, a step on a walk, the Beatles were the journey itself. Pepper's is a monument to a place in time, a pinicle that cannot be equalled. If you haven't "experienced" this music, it is a must, but like reading and understanding what greatness there is in a Hemingway novel, you really need that time machine.

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Lonely Hearts Club

I got the record for my granddaughter for Christmas and she was VERY pleased. Not my cup of tea but she was happy and that's what we were aiming for.

sgt. peppers lonely hearts club band

hey, it's the beatles! what's not to like? got it for my son, who's 21, and he requested it so i rest my case!

The album that changed the history of music- and the world (and listening to it will certainly change you!)

for more information click here