It was 40 years ago today

Fully agreed, was born in 1971 so missed out on it at launch, I discovered in the 90's and it is one of the great records of all time. People who criticise this record are just being wise after the event (and also trying to appear clever by taking a contrary view, although the irony is this stance has the opposite effect). Revolver is perhaps the btter album but is marred by the ghastly yellow submarine. Sgt Pepper just works beautifully I am going to listen to it tonight!

I also got it on the day that it was released. Wouldn't it have been fitting for EMI to have issued a remastered version today, with 'Penny Lane' and 'Strawberry Fields' interpolated between Sides 1 and 2!

quote:

I remember buying this album the day it came out

I bet you never imagined the day would come when you would be talking about it 40 years on.
Super scary!

yep, i remember carrying it around w/ me in the little town we lived in, at about 14. i went to dinner at someone's house w/ my mom and made them listen to it. must have listened to it 1 million times ....

I remember listening to it in a booth in WH Smiths in Kingston upon Thames, on the Sat after it came out. I had just bought John Renbourn's fist LP, and left wondering if I'd made the right choice! But of course I had, 40 years on they're still both in my collection and both get played, and strange as it may now seem there was much more street cred walking around with a JR LP under your arm than the Beatles!

A splendid time was guaranteed for all!

Chris

It's rubbish!
" Guitar bands are dead"

[JEALOUS]You old farts have been around in Swinging London and I haven't &"%ç+"&%&!!! :-( :-( [/JEALOUS]

Sorry, don't remember it - I was 3. (But I do remember the prototype Concorde flying over my house not so long after...)

I'll listen to Sgt Pepper today anyway!

James

quote:

Originally posted by BigH47:
It's rubbish!
" Guitar bands are dead"

I hear Decca is still looking for a new talent spotter

Just finished listening to it..
IMHO the only track i think is not a 'classic' is "Within you Without you"......just doesn't do it for me,
maybe cos george wrote it....

Anselm

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:

I remember buying this album the day it came out and I was totally amazed at it - I was young and everything seemed possible. Just played it again and it still sounds as good as it ever did. There is something special about it - it seems so complete.

I also bought Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band the day it came out, and because our family's stereo was on the fritz, went over to the home of some friends of my parents to listen to it (must have seemed slightly odd to them at the time ... I just sat there by myself and listened straight through).

Fantastic then and now, an iconic work of art. What particularly stays with me from that first listening is that the orchestral rave-up in A Day In the Life was the first piece of music I had ever heard that produced a drug-like euphoria ... I was literally dizzy from its disorienting effect.

All best,
Fred

quote:

Originally posted by anselm:

IMHO the only track i think is not a 'classic' is "Within you Without you"......just doesn't do it for me,
maybe cos george wrote it....

Speaking for myself, I love the track, and every track on that album.

Further, I think George Harrison was a brilliant songwriter, and if not for his being in the shadow of the mighty Lennon-McCartney team, he would be more widely considered one of the all-time greats.

All best,
Fred

quote:

I know on the great albums thread some posters said it was overrated, but I don't think so.

I agree ROTF, it's easy to take for granted. There are better Beatles albums, but this was a turning point and should be feted for "A Day in the Life" - which changed and inspired so much of what we now accept as read.

Steve

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:
I know on the great albums thread some posters said it was overrated, but I don't think so. The Beatles created some fantastic music and I could listen to any of the albums and enjoy them, but this one remains extraordinary.

And I may have been one of them. There is some very good stuff on this album, but there is als quite a bit that just doesn't do it for me. And, as a whole, I don't feel it works nearly as well as some of their others - I'd take Abbey Road over it any day. But each to their own (and I suspect I'm probably with the minority on this one).

However, I would disagree with woodface, you seem to be suggesting this album is beyond criticism. I don't think that can, or should be said of anything. Certainly I don't criticise it because I'm trying to be clever, more because I just don't love it as an album.


There was an interesting piece on Radio 4 about it this morning, talking about the cover version. Which doubtless it will be interesting to hear. But I'm always a little wary of covers (I have a disc of various people singing Leonard Cohen songs which almost never gets played), I don't know how much that has to do with their quality and how much it's simply that the originals are so ingrained.


regards, Tam

"Within you and without you" is one of my favorite tracks.

Twenty years later an irish band stole the title, mixed the words up a little bit, added a different tune and yep, another classic song was born: "With or without you"

Now I have to go downstairs to find that Sgt. Pepper record and to play it ...

Miow,

the fat cat

I don't care if it's the best Beatles album or not...it changed the face of music and I'm going to play it right now.

So why can't Paul write any good songs now??? His new offering is sad crap... Actually, everything post Wings is pretty horrible...Ebony and Ivory? Gag me.

I remember when it was 20 years old. I worked at a record store at the time and it was a big deal. "it was 20 years ago today"... 20 years flew right by!

quote:

Originally posted by fred simon:
[QUOTE]

[QUOTE] Further, I think George Harrison was a brilliant songwriter, and if not for his being in the shadow of the mighty Lennon-McCartney team, he would be more widely considered one of the all-time greats.

I completely agree. 'Something' has to be one of the most covered songs in history (probably beaten by 'Yesterday' though). All the greats have sung 'Something'. It is possibly one of the greatest pop songs of all time. 'Here comes the sun' and 'While my guitar gently weeps' ain't too shabby either. His solo stuff is at least as good as McCartney's imo.

Definitely a landmark album. Every significant memory of my childhood is accompanied by a Beatles song and I don't think people who didn't live through Beatlemania can fully appreciate the impact they had not just on music, but on society in general.

quote:

Originally posted by acad tsunami:

All the greats have sung 'Something'. It is possibly one of the greatest pop songs of all time.

All the greats, indeed, including Frank Sinatra, who called it "the greatest love song ever written."

Now, I don't think there ever can be one greatest song of any type, but it surely is one of the greatest.

All best,
Fred

Pepper is one of those rare and precious albums (Dark Side Of The Moon is another, Hejira by Joni Mitchell is in the same class too) where listening to it seems to put one outside of the normal flow of time.

There are Beatles albums I listen to more often, but putting on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band puts me in a very special, personal space; essentially I can be back with the same sense of wonder I had when I was fourteen and first hearing it.

BTW I'm listening to it right now.

quote:

Actually, everything post Wings is pretty horrible...

Not true. This is excellent and it also has strong Jeff Lynn and Steve Miller contributions. Two or three of Macca's songs written against the backdrop of Linda's failing health are superb.




Steve

I was 2 when it came out, 12 when I first became aware of it, had it on cassette and played it to death.

Must have another listen today but I'll have to skip "when I'm 64" which, although I loved it when I was 12, is now up there with good old maxwell and his silver hammer in my books!



SJB

Not bad part 1 BBC Radio 2 (especially on FM, but Cable and Freeview versions were o.k.) show last night.

IMO BBC2 TV show also last night was better.

Great album/fine memories/interesting that most brave re-creating artistes' songs were broadcast in mono ...

Some performers surprised even said that they now realize that simpler e.g. 4-track analogue can sound sound better than rerererere bounced digital...

I wonder if Oasis were one of the entourages who pulled out ...

Kaisers (I am biased) were fine with a not great song.

Still a surprise no 'Pepper' single by The Beatles has ever been released...

Although the BBC2 experiment was interesting - I don't feel particularly enthused by the new groups renditions of the songs: though I thought some of the groups like Kaiser Chief were fine. However, I particularly disliked Bryan Adams' horrible voice, but I suppose I'm not alone in that

I think I'll just stay with the originals.