It has 11 songs, which include Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields Forever, Fool on the Hill, All You Need Is Love, Blue Jay Way and I Am the Walrus. I'd say that's a proper album. A bit on the short side, but not terribly so.
It has 11 songs, which include Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields Forever, Fool on the Hill, All You Need Is Love, Blue Jay Way and I Am the Walrus. I'd say that's a proper album. A bit on the short side, but not terribly so.
It's not a proper album though, it's a double EP. The US release just included non-album singles (Strawberry Fields, Penny Lane, etc) onto it to make it a full LP.
It's not a proper album though, it's a double EP. The US release just included non-album singles (Strawberry Fields, Penny Lane, etc) onto it to make it a full LP.
To rephrase then, the collection of 11 songs that makes up the Magical Mystery Tour album that you can find in U.S. stores is my favorite Beatles album. Fool on the Hill is one of their best songs; that minor chord that they throw in there is such a stroke of genius. And the other songs that I mentioned are all personal favorites as well.
I Get Around, for example, is one of the strangest and most original hit singles ever written. And Brian was recording beautiful songs as early as their second album (early 1963), with Lonely Sea and Farmer's Daughter. Hell, the first song he ever wrote was Surfer Girl, which is no sloucher by any means.
The problem a lot of people have with the Beach Boys is confusing lyrical content with musical content, and while I personally enjoy a good deal of the pre-Today/Pet Sounds lyrics (Mike Love could pen some pretty bitchin' lines), I can see how most would write them off as simple and throwaway. That does not, however, say shit about the actual music, which was breaking molds and blazing paths from the getgo.
I'm actually reading a fascinating book on the subject that offers serious analyzation and insight into all that Brian did musically. I'm only through the first couple of albums but it's incredibly interesting, and I haven't even gotten into the groundbreaking stuff yet. It's not for the faint of heart-- it's very technical-- but I'm eating this shit up.
I realize that the Beach Boys were always quite dynamic musically however back in their earlier days they did follow the status quo in making easily consumable songs about cars, girls, and being a teenager. I love much of their older material though, the fact they made a lot of teeny-bopper stuff doesn't really phase my interest.
yeah. pet sounds had a sincere, mature concept (the process of growing up and young relationships). the whole thing just hangs together so damn well. i doubt it was genuinely the first concept album, but it was certainly good and by a big name band at the time.
