Post by queenofthehours on Feb 9, 2015 20:49:51 GMT
1. Come Together – I wouldn’t have picked this as the opener but it’s a good opening track all the same. It doesn’t feel like a Beatles track when you hear it out of context or, as here, as the first track you hear. Very much a John track.
2. Something – Imagine what the next Beatles album would have sounded like if George was writing tracks like this! It could have changed our whole perception on the Beatles sound – and brought George the same status as John and Paul. This is one of the most beautiful songs ever. I love everything about it. The drums, the guitar and the bass – lovely bass from Paul. 90% of my respect for Paul comes from the bass-work here.
3. Maxwell's Silver Hammer – If I had to pick a Beatles track, nay, track by any band where the first thought in my head, as it begins, is “oh, it’s *that* song! I’m going to enjoy this!” it would be ‘Maxwell’s Silver Hammer’. It’s so much fun, so jaunty you can’t help singing along. No one singing along to this can help but feel cheerful. Yes, it is a bit silly but that’s where Paul excels. Just because he’s been titled the world’s best songwriter doesn’t mean his best songs can’t be his most silly. So what if Abbey Road has such miracles of music as ‘Something’ or ‘Here Comes the Sun’? - ‘Maxwell’s Silver Hammer’ provides a more humble, less lofty, but no less pleasing, contrast. I love the backing vocals and never play the album without hearing this track at least three times.
4. Oh! Darling – This has never been a favourite of mine yet on the album it gets a chance to shine. I like it more as part of Abbey Road more than I like it separately. Great drums from Ringo. The guitar has a bit of a 'Moonlight Sonata' quality to it - which is later picked up in 'Because'.
5. Octopus's Garden – I always forget that this is here – a nice surprise! It always seems to me that non-Beatles fans like this track while so-called “real” Beatle fans, the serous ones, don’t. Great backing vocals here, in fact everything is great – Ringo excels. Apparently George helped Ringo to write it. One of the best songs in the world ever – what’s not to like? Very clever effects and brilliant guitar.
6. I want you (she's so heavy) – I’ve never really had much of an opinion of this track separately but, like ‘Oh! Darling’, it really feels it has a home on this LP, it fits in nicely and has enough space away from the “classic” Beatles tracks to really breathe. The music is better than the lyrics.
7. Here Comes the Sun – It wasn’t until I really got into the Beatles instead of just hearing them in passing, that I actually found out that this track wasn’t a solo George track but a Beatles track. I always thought it was it was 100% George which, really, it is; just like ‘Something’. Both George’s tracks here are quite noticeably “George” tracks rather than “Beatles” tracks and so sound very refreshing after the albums full of Lennon/McCartney sounds. It's heartening to hear an album featuring two of George's very best tracks. And not only that but both those tracks are really the best tracks on Abbey Road too making this not just the last Beatles album but the first album of George's career. This is a fantastic song that works better still with just plain acoustic guitars - as shown on the Concert for Bangladesh with Badfinger. Ringo's drums are really special and the doo-doo-doo-doos top it off nicely.
8. Because – I sometimes think I’d be brave and choose this as my most favourite ever Beatles track. I love it. It’s so clever and beautiful and one of the few Beatles tracks you don’t hear very often. I would bet that some so-called Beatles fans wouldn’t even know this track exists! The three part harmony is lovely and perfect, George Harrison's Moog is tasteful and the Beethoven 'Moonlight Sonata' inspiration is wonderful too - echoing the guitar in ‘Oh! Darling’.
9. You Never Give Me You Money – I always think of this as a sad song, the piano at the start sounds very sad to me. Paul’s little masterpiece, like a symphony in one pop song.
10. Sun King – Isn’t that ‘Albatross’ at the start? I think this is the only time I can think of where the Beatles have taken inspiration from a contemporary band. I like this track a lot, it has it’s own place on the album but separately I don't think it can stand up to any other Beatles track. Love the drums
11. Mean Mr. Mustard – Another good track, while it doesn’t stand up to the ‘Something’'s of this world it still has a place on Abbey Road.
12. Polythene Pam – Like 'Mean Mr M'. I also believe it is between those two tracks that 'Her Majesty' was originally cut from. If these two songs aren't the best Beatles songs ever, they are certainly better than most groups best songs.
13. She Came in Through the Bathroom Window – Great backing vocals. I believe Joe Cocker originally recorded it first.
14. Golden Slumbers – I’ve always thought this was very beautiful song. Another of Paul's masterpieces. Great singing too. The words come from a Thomas Dekker poem but by adapting it Paul shows his talents - he is always best at best simple things and this is a fine, simple song. We are an awful long way from songs like 'All My Loving' here. Beautiful orchestration that always feels sad to me.
15. Carry that weight – I love the echoes of 'You Never Give Me You Money' – with the trumpet and guitar that comes after it.
16. The End - Great drums and when the guitar kicks in after the solo, all the better. A great end to the album and some wise words.
17. Her Majesty - A nice little extra. I wonder what it would sound like in it's proper place on the album? Between 'Mean Mr. Mustard' and 'Polythene Pam'.
I adore this LP. The backing vocals are more than perfect, the bass is wonderful too. This is a thousand miles away from early Beatles music and it's sad to think of all the great albums they didn't get to make.
George's guitar is tasteful and melodic and isn't used to hold the song up. You don't really hear much Lennon on this album though. I love suites on albums even though it's not fooling anyone that they are just leftover pieces of music no one could find anything to do with!
Abbey Road is a perfect album. Not just by the Beatles but by any band. It has a great mix of styles and moods and is the one Beatles album where every member gets a chance to shine.