 "Unquestionably One of The Greatest Albums Ever Released" | 2008-09-25 |
| - Reviewed By wayne4403 |
| Not only was Sargeant Peppers one of the greatest albums ever released but it also proved at a time when The Beatles were thought to be finished - dried up and all out of ideas - they were just getting started. The drama surrounding this album couldn't have been scripted any better if it had been a full length feature film. Take a rock band which had become the biggest and best of all time and had the world at its' young feet. Every album that they put out was critically and generally accepted as important with every song on each a gem in and of itself. Add to that the incredible cultural influence The Beatles had on the world and I do mean the entire world. They were bigger than life itself. There was so much press on this band constantly from the beginnings of Beatlemania right on up to the eve of Sargeant Pepper's release. It seems as though by the time the lull between The Beatles' last release (Revolver) and their then future release of Sargeant Peppers had extended itself, everyone was pretty much listening for the fall. You know the adage: the bigger they are the harder they fall? Rumours were spreading that The Beatles didn't have any more ideas. The logic was that no one could sustain the kind of career these 'boys' had sustained for that long and still have anything new or worthwhile to say. The rumours were helped by the long silence from The Beatles after Revolver. It did seem like aeons at the time, since they had released Revolver and given their prodigious production through the years, it just wasn't like them to "slow up" like that. In retrospect, McCartney claims that he had relished the press comments about The Beatles being finished and dried up, etc. at the time. This because he of course, was privy to what The Beatles were doing in the studio and the direction they were taking. Indeed, his personal attitude was, 'just you wait'. Of course, history tells us that The Beatles were far from being dried up and the praises which followed its release were astounding. Again the band that had changed life for everyone in the world, especially the young, were doing it again. Sargeant Peppers was the work of a very confident (maybe even cocky) band who refused to allow themselves to become prisoners of their own successes. So many could have and would have lived on their laurels having had one tenth the success these guys experienced. And quite frankly, it could have been justified if they had. However, The Beatles was a living, breathing, and growing organism the entire time of their existence. When they couldn't grow anymore, they imploded and that implosion served their position in history very well. They never became the parodies of themselves that it would have been so easy to become. They came, they sang, they went! Sargeant Peppers was another hallmark album in the string of those already achieved by the band and those which were still unborn but coming. If you haven't yet, you must. Don't miss out on what is still an incredibly enjoyable, wonderful album full of some of the greatest songs ever written. Again, like all things Beatles, there are no throwaway songs on this album. |
| |
| "A masterpiece! A turning point in pop culture!" | 2008-09-24 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2OAKHL0E0A4YQ |
| People who are too young don't realize what a turning point in pop music history this album was. Released in June 1967, it changed the way musicians and people as a whole looked at albums. Before this release, with the exception of Revolver and Rubber Soul, most albums consisted of two or three hit songs and lots of filler. The Beatles raised the level of quality on albums to an art form. But the change was more pervasive. For better of for worse, it opened the gates for a new culture of drug-induced music. Let's face it, this album was a real experience under LSD, mescaline and even pot. The realm of time and space in a song form was creatively changed and also the concept of album art, production values and overall attitude. It was a landmark album, and although to many younger listeners it may seem dated, pretentious or weird, it was a historical cultural event that changed the course of pop music forever. It was said that it was influenced by Brian Wilson's Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys, another turning point in pop music. But Sgt. Pepper blew the lid off and made the "single", a thing of the past. Essential! An icon in music! |
| |
| "Always a good listen" | 2008-09-23 |
| - Reviewed By User: A7WL35Z2D05TJ |
| I purchased this album when it first came out, but somehow it wandered, I think my younger sister has it and never returned it. I have recently been buying some of the earlier Beatles albums, and wanted to add this, so I could listen to it on headphones. Apparently George Martin was still only using 4 track recorders at this point, so what he achieved was pretty amazing. The album still sounds as good as ever. I have my favourite tracks but it's all good stuff. Listening to all the earlier Beatles albums reminds me how far they were ahead of the other bands at the time, especially with the quality of their original songs. I think only Brian Wilson was doing stuff as good or better than the Beatles/George Martin combination. |
| |
 "buying this CD is good for "fixing a hole"in your collection!" | 2008-08-24 |
| - Reviewed By User: A29ZQE05FSIGVI |
| this is the very first beatles album i bought. i like most every song on it and i didnt live through the 60s. a must have for rock'n'rollers everywhere! |
| |
| "Pop music's first opera" | 2008-08-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3J3B5J63UVMRK |
| The final two minutes of Sgt. Pepper is far and away the greatest finale in rock history. After John's lazy proclamation that he loves to turn you on (albeit facetiously), the band carouses into a whirlwind of cacophony with reckless drums and horns and noises into the climax, a sustained piano drone keyed by all the members, followed by a bunch of nonsense chatter by the band (it sounds like "never-oozy-awsa-ohna-wa"). In the history of rock music, there has never been anything like it before or since. As far as the rest of the album goes, it just about lives up to the hype. In the expansive oeuvre of the Beatles, Sgt. Pepper is not the best, but it is certainly the most famous album of them all and with good reason. The no-pause method between songs was a first. The album reached for being more than a collection of songs, but rather as one contained unit, which remains vastly influential to this day (Public Enemy's Fear of a Black Planet being an example). The Beatles aimed for originality on Sgt. Pepper and they succeeded in spades. In songs like "Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite!" and "Good Morning Good Morning", they employed sound effects to serve the song rather than to show off, unlike some psychedelic bands of the time. The songs remained simple, but the concept did not, since the Beatles wanted to expand on the inventiveness of the previous year's Pet Sounds, which remains Paul's favorite album. Brian Wilson wanted to outdo Rubber Soul and Paul wanted to outdo Pet Sounds is how Sgt. Pepper came to fruition. Although John was the band's genius, Paul deserves the majority of the credit for Sgt. Pepper (and it pains me to say so, but it's true). It's as if a light bulb went on in Paul's head after he heard Pet Sounds. The basic theme of the album is that they are playing at a concert, until the riveting closing studio extravaganza of "A Day in the Life", which ranks second only to Revolver's "Tomorrow Never Knows" as the Beatles' most extraordinary album closer. The songs flow together cohesively and the album has actually aged very well. The reason Sgt. Pepper holds up is because of Sir George Martin's pristine, cutting-edge production, which amazes to this day. It ranks as one of the all-time great production jobs, rivaling Pet Sounds and the works of Phil Spector. Sgt. Pepper is not perfect however. All of the Beatles' albums have duds and on here the dud is "She's Leaving Home", masterfully conceived, played, and written, but sounds like a boring snooze-a-thon. Everything else is golden. Sgt. Pepper is a landmark album that changed the game forever. Legendary. A |
| |
| "The Mastery Of Sgt. Pepper" | 2008-08-18 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1LZ4Q5FQ6IUM2 |
| Sgt. Pepper changed it all,after Revolver,The Beatles tried a different approach that changed Rock-n-Roll forever,not only the classical music,the whole concept of wearing band uniforms,the longer hair,each sporting facial hair,changing their whole image and not to mention the greatest cover in the history of Rock-n-Roll with wax celebrities in the background,Marilyn Monroe,Cassius Clay,Fred Astaire,Bob Dylan,Laurel and Hardy,the early Beatles,flat out ingenious and so is the timeless music,A Little Help From My Friends,Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,She's Leaving Home,Lovely Rita,Fixing A Hole,and When I'm Sixty Four,don't forget one of the most distinctive and famous intros on a rock song ever,a simple,yet powerfully affective drumbeat on the title track,Sgt. Pepper,Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band,enough said. |
| |
| "A true classic" | 2008-08-17 |
| - Reviewed By lcg2005 |
| One of the best rock albums ever made. I have been teaching voice students from this album for years. These songs are so singable, catchy and just fantastic. Everyone who hears this album- no matter the generation will love them. |
| |
| "Landmark" | 2008-08-05 |
| - Reviewed By heas@alltel.net |
| From its elaborate cover (the most expensive in LP history), to its printed inner-sleeve lyrics, to its (in the original LP issue, anyway) toy insignia cutouts, to its complete lack of 45-r.p.m. singles, "Sgt. Pepper", from the summer of 1967, was groundbreaking in many ways. The Beatles, already the most famous musical entity in the world, had retreated from touring the previous year and devoted themselves to the recording studio full-time. This was the result. The idea of an alter-ego to the group was originally Paul McCartney's; the other Beatles joined in the concept, creating a loose framework for a wide variety of material. Paul indulged his penchant for music hall ditties with "When I'm Sixty-Four"; John Lennon got both ethereal, with "Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds", and earthy, in "Good Morning, Good Morning"; George Harrison's Indian absorption is reflected in "Within You, Without You"; and Ringo, who always got at least one song to sing, sallies forth bravely as Billy Shears with a little help from his friends. It should be noted that "Pepper" was produced with the aid of hallucinogens, so the record, given its brilliance, can't really be used as an anti-drug argument. The rock album was born. |
| |
| "Classic" | 2008-07-30 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2NS9WPRU3UVYV |
| Giving away my age here,but I did have the vinyl LP many years ago. I reckon this was the Beatles defining album. This,in my opinion, was their pinnacle and it was all downhill(sadly) from here. Buy it, listen well and enjoy. |
| |
| "Great Album - But Not Their Best" | 2008-07-18 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1N69F7WVWJDLM |
| This album is super sweet. I can listen to "Lovely Rita" over and over again. The only song that is kind of a bummer is "When I'm Sixty-Four". The only reason that I put what I did as my title is that many people think that this is the greatest record ever made, well I have news for them. The "White Album", "Rubber Soul", "Revolver", just to name a few. If you don't already own this, what are you waiting for, get it today. |
| |
International Available
![The Beatles - Rubber Soul [UK]](product_images/183000/183442_thumb.jpg)
![The Beatles - Revolver [UK]](product_images/183000/183386_thumb.jpg)
