Revolver

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
There are only three stories worth knowing from the last 2,000 years of history: the life of Mohammed, the life of Jesus and the career of The Beatles. They invented all music ever. John was the best one; but Paul is--despite the knighthood and everything--still the most under-rated songwriter of the 20th century. This is the album with "Eleanor Rigby", "Here, There and Everywhere", "For No One", "I'm Only Sleeping" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" on it--but then, you knew that anyway. We presume you have this album already and you're just getting a second copy in case you lose the first. --Caitlan Moran

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-09-21 rating:
Getting Better All The Time
Nowadays critical consensus often ranks this as The Beatles' best album, and indeed one of the best albums ever made. While it's only my second favourite by them personally (The White Album being first), this is still one of the greatest albums I own.

Revolver is the point where The Beatles ceased to be a pop group and became something else entirely. Shortly after its release they gave up touring, having tired of performing to screaming fans when they'd much rather be holed away in a recording studio making new music. This also allowed them to be more experimental, recording sounds that could never have been recreated in stadiums and arenas at the time. Importantly they had all begun to experiment with drugs as well, witnessed by some of the songs here: She Said She Said is based on an LSD trip, Dr Robert is about a supplier of mind-altering substances, and Got to Get You into My Life was actually addressed to marijuana rather than a love interest.

So what of the music itself? Eleanor Rigby is a string-based ode to loneliness that cuts deeply, I'm Only Sleeping is Lennon's plea to be left alone to dream the day away, Love You To continued Harrison's interest in Eastern music and the sitar (which he had first played on Norwegian Wood the previous year), and Yellow Submarine is effectively a children's nursery rhyme with some nice sound effects. Good Day Sunshine is unashamedly cheerful, For No One unashamedly gloomy. I Want to Tell You is based around the same piano note being played over and over again, a technique that is utterly entrancing.

Revolver closes with Tomorrow Never Knows, a Lennon composition which quotes The Tibetan Book of the Dead and required the complex overlaying of tape loops to produce psychedelic sound effects. Although most of The Beatles' work is well-produced enough to stand up by today's standards, this sounds especially undated and isn't that far removed from modern dance music.

Revolver is a great album, and the band's first wildly experimental release. Far from alienating fans with this relentless boundary-pushing, their international success continued, allowing them free rein to continue doing whatever they wanted.

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review by: date: 2008-09-12 rating:
Hand me a pistol!!
Help!!!

What on earth have the Beatles ever done for the music scene in this country? They just popped up at the end of rock n roll in the late 50's made a few flouncy songs about roads, strawberries and women, smoked some pot, meditated (which they copied from The Doors) and then disbanded??

As for Smug McCartney, god I wish Heather Mills had taken him for every penny he owns and left him busking on the street. And STILL I would not give him a penny. How long can a man like that keep on pretending that he's "down with the kids" when he makes music for wrinklies?

Paul, do us all a favour and go and live back at the Mull of Kintyre and stop bothering the rest of the world!!

As for Mark Chapman (Chappers as he is affectionately known), he used to e-mail me many moons ago before he met Comedy Dave, then he just dropped me like a stone!!

All in all, I wouldn't waste my time writing a review about this album, it's THAT bad!!

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review by: date: 2008-09-03 rating:
their first genuinely awesome album
Really great tunes here! For a contemporary comparison I recommend Nick Worrall. His album is FREE to download as well.

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review by: date: 2008-08-28 rating:
Haunting and Soothing
With haunting melodies like "I'm Only Sleeping", "Eleanor Rigby", "Good Day Sunshine" and "She Said She Said" to name just a few, this is a very pleasing Beatles effort to listen to. If anyone needed proof that there's more to the Beatles than their hits, look no further. This album fluctuates effortlessly between Lennon & McCartney's vocal-centered pieces and George Harrison's much-loved sitar-driven melodies, and here I've only scraped the surface of the creativity that goes into the instrumentation.

For Revolver is a creative album, a joy to listen to and to take in. The melodies are a true musical mind-scape, ranging from easy-going melodies to the mysterious sound effects of "Tomorrow Never Knows". It is, finely put, a mystery of an album in itself. A truly solid piece of music-making, a year before Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which is generally considered a cornerstone in that area. Revolver is a very special album to me, and as I hear "I'm Only Sleeping" drifting through my mind yet again, I can see why.


review by: hippymusicman date: 2008-07-23 rating:
THE MOPTOPS TUNE IN, TURN ON AND TAKE OFF
Though not as immediately accessible as the folk rock of Rubber Soul, 1966's Revolver is an album that had aged with consumate grace. Having largely shaken off the mop-top image of songs such as 'She Loves You' and 'Please Please Me', the hugely successful Beatles were now in a position where they could afford to spend months in the studio perfecting their music and craft. The dicision to quit touring also allowed for greater experimentation as none of the new tracks had to be recreated in a live environment.
Revolver has, for over 40 years, lived in the shadow of Sgt Pepper but, in all honesty, it is a far better record. Paul supplies the quota of ballads with the lovely 'For No One' and his career besting 'Here There And Everywhere' - one of John Lennon's favourite ever Beatles tracks. Macca also contributes 'Elanor Rigby' and 'Good Day Sunshine' - both of which are peerless examples of contemporary pop (and yes they do still sound modern and fresh).
Lennon himself was no slouch either and it's his willingness to push the boundaries that really lifts Revolver - 'She Said She Said', 'Doctor Robert' and the harmony driven 'And Your Bird Can Sing' effortlessly bridge the gap between ringing guitar pop/rock and the drug feulled mini symphonies that would dominate Sgt Pepper a year later. George's fine 'Taxman' also showed a songwriter poised on the edge of true greatness and is a real 'pot boiler' of an opening track.
Revolver was a landmark album in 1966 and it still sounds just as contemporary and exciting today - even 'Yellow Submarine' !

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