BEATLES (THE WHITE ALBUM)

The Beatles, also known as the White Album, is the ninth studio album , released on 22 November 1968. A double album, its plain white sleeve has no graphics or text other than the band's name embossed, and was intended as a direct contrast to the vivid cover artwork of the band's earlier Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Although no singles were issued from The Beatles in Britain and the United States, the songs "Hey Jude" and "Revolution" (a slower version of "Revolution" did appear on the album) originated from the same recording sessions and were issued on a single in August 1968. The album's songs range in style from British blues and ska to tracks influenced by Chuck Berry and by Karlheinz Stockhausen.Most of the songs on the album were written during March and April 1968 at a Transcendental Meditation course in Rishikesh, India. The group returned to EMI Studios in May with recording lasting through to October. During these sessions, arguments broke out among the Beatles, and witnesses in the studio saw band members quarrel over creative differences. The feuds intensified when Lennon's new partner, Yoko Ono, started attending the sessions. After a series of problems, including producer George Martin taking a sudden leave of absence and engineer Geoff Emerick quitting, Ringo Starr left the band briefly in August.

IMO this album is a monster, and that is meant both good and bad. There are some exellent songs on the album, but also a lot of songs, that probably shouldn't had been released in the Beatles-name, especially Lennon's crap called "Revolution 9". If they had included "Hey Jude" (one of my alltime favorite songs) instead of that piece of shit, and another favorite of mine : "Lady Madonna" instead of "Honey Pie" (probably what Lennon would call Granny-music from McCartney) the album would definitely had been my personal favorite Beatles-album. Now, I'm not so sure. Definitely a top 3, though (my top 3 will differ from day to day). "Martha My Dear" and "Happiness Is A Warm gun" are (if you can call them that) the best hidden gems on any album. The first 1/3 of the album is by far the best. Even though, it feels like, there aren't as many great wellknown Beatles-classics as on Revolver or Hard Days Night, I still love this album, and treassure it as one of my absolute favorite albums, or at least one of my favorite double-albums of all. I keep getting back to it, if I feel like listening to a Beatles-album. But then it's mostly CD 1, that I listen to. What do you think?

As said, the single "Lady Madonna (another masterpiece from McCartney)/The Inner Light" was released 15 March 1968.

Usefull information:

On "I'm So Tired", at the end of the song, John whispered incomprehensible words (backwards and forwards). The writer Mark Lewishon heard; " M'sieur, m'sieur, how about another one?" Others heard: "Paul Is Dead. Miss him, miss him".But if you listen carefully, the phrase is completely incomprehensible. John no doubt added a tape loop on which he had recorded
a sentence. The results had no meaning.

The intro to “Ob-La-Di Ob’La-Dah”, was Lennon, who walked in to the studio, where McCartney were recording the song, and he (Lennon) just sat at the piano and played that intro, even though he later claimed not liking the song.

McCartney did a similar thing on Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. That intro on the piano is pure Paul McCartney.

Album Ranking:

1. Revolver

2. The White album

3. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band

4. Rubber Soul

5. A Hard Days Night

6. Help

7. Please Please Me

8. Beatles For Sale

9. With The Beatles

10. Magical Mystery Tour

Niels' Ultimate Beatles Playlist:

1. I Saw Her Standing

2. Love Me Do

3. Please Please Me

4. She Loves You

5. All My Loving

6. I Want To Hold You Hand

7. A Hard Days Night

8. I Should Had Known Better

9. If I Fell

10. And I Love Her

11. Can't Buy Me Love

12. Anytime At All

13. Things We Said Today

14. I Feel Fine

15. Eight Days A Week

16. She's A Woman

17. Every Little Thing She Does

18. Help

19. The Night Before

20. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away

21. You're Gonna Loose That Girl

22. Ticket To Ride

23. I've Just Seen A Face

24. Yesterday

25.We Can Work It Out

26. Day Tripper

27. Drive My Car

28.Norwegian Wood

29.Michelle

30.Girl

31.I'm Looking Through You

32. In My Life

33. Paperback Writer

34. Taxman

35. Eleanor Rigby

36. Here, There And Everywhere

37. Yellow Submarine

38. For No One

39. Got To Get You Into My Life

40. Strawberry Fields Forever

41. Penny Lane

42. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds

43. With A Little Help From My Friends

44. Fixing A Hole

45. She's Leaving Home

46. A Day In The Life

47. All You Need Is Love

48. Fool On The Hill

49. I Am The Walrus

50. Hello, Goodbye

51. Hey Jude

52. Lady Madonna

53. Back In The USSR

54. Dear Prudence

55. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La Dah

56. Happiness Is A Warm Gun

57. Martha My Dear

58. Blackbird

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by RJhog (Admin) on May 11, 2016 at 8:48pm

I agree with you. The first disc is much better than the second disc. The second one does have a couple of decent songs, but nothing I'd put on my playlist. The closest there for me would be Everybody's Got Something To Hide...This is a very heavy album for the Beatles. Songs like the one I just mentioned and Helter Skelter are quite heavy. If the album were only one disc (the first one) and had Hey Jude on it, it would probably make my top 3, but that's not the case. So it will appear lower than that for me. I will say, however, that it does contain what is probably the greatest Beatles track ever (for me), While My Guitar Gently Weeps.

Running Album Ranking:

1. Rubber Soul

2. Revolver

3. Help!

4. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

5. The White Album

6. A Hard Days Night

7. Please Please Me

8. Magical Mystery Tour

9. Beatles For Sale

10. With The Beatles

RJ's Ultimate Beatles Playlist: