I love the song "Revolution" by The Beatles. I could have bought a greatest hits album by The Beatles but I wanted "The White Album". When I finally found the album, I was very disappointed by the songs "Revolution" and "Helter Skelter". "Revolution" is not the version I have heard on the radio for all these years and "Helter Skelter" is not the version I heard at the end of the old "Helter Skelter" movie from the 1970s.

How did these different versions happen? If these songs had come out in the 1970s or 1980s, I would say they were 12 Inch versions. These songs came out in the 1960s. I could be wrong but I have never heard of any 12 Inch Singles from the 1960s. Did they release a different version on a 45 or something? This is one I don't understand.

vainandy said:

There are two versions of "Revolution 1" .The single version is the harder one that the radio usually plays.It is on the "Past Masters Volume 2" Cd. The more quiet/laid back one is on the White Album.

The "Helter Skelter" you hear on the TV Movie is not the Beatles.Im guessing that they couldn't get the rights to the song.(Several Manson Family names are changed as well).The White Album's "Helter Skelter" is fine by me.

Album version of Revolution is much better IMO.

MrTation said:

You can also find the rock version of Revolution on the Blue "best of 1967-1970 album"
and Helter Skelter ROCKS!!!
but you do like the white album do you???

Lennon said:

White Album is easily their best album, and perhaps the best album of the 1960s. Truly truly an amazing album.

Followed closely by:

Revolution
Abbey Road
Sgt. Pepper
Let it Be
Magical Mystery Tour
Rubber Soul

[/quote]

I like about two thirds of the songs. This is my first Beatles album and I like it enough to explore some more of their albums. I'm thinking about getting "Let It Be" next. The one I hear everyone talking about is "Abbey Road".

vainandy said:

In the '60s, particularly in England, it was fairly typical for a group to release a slightly different single mix of a song. On the same Past Masters, Vol. 2 cd that has the "rock" version of "Revolution" there are also single versions of "Get Back" and "Let It Be" and a different version of "Across The Universe". Also, for much of the decade albums were released in both stereo and mono. The album The Beatles, for example, is also available in a mono mix. Although I've never heard it, several of the songs are mixed a little differently, some have added/different guitar and/or vocal parts. Of course, the mono album was never released on cd, and also never released in North America, so it's fairly rare today.

Again, I've never heard the mono version, but the Who's album The Who Sell Out is another example of differences between mono and stereo releases. I believe that nearly all of the Who's singles from the '60s were released in both mono and stereo versions. Some of these are available on cd.

savoirfaire said:

I still think Revolver is their best. The White Album has too much filler, ie: some of side 2 and most of side 4.

Cloudbuster said:

I'm kinda with you. I say Rubber Soul is number one followed closely by Revolver. Both are like one album to me. Sgt. Pepper is definitely NOT their best album.

oh please.. everything about the White Album is precious.. and important..


betta recognize.. best set they came out with... "non" commercially

Sdldawn said:

It is extremely good, but not as consistent as some of their other releases. I could do without Revolution #9.

vainandy said:

I like about two thirds of the songs. This is my first Beatles album and I like it enough to explore some more of their albums. I'm thinking about getting "Let It Be" next. The one I hear everyone talking about is "Abbey Road".[/quote]

Abbey Road is way more polished than Let It Be. I would go with Abbey Road. The nice thing about Let It Be is that it has some songs you don't hear all the time--Two of Us, Dig a Pony, & I've Got a Feeling to name a few. But you don't hear those songs as much because they aren't quite as classic as some of their other stuff.

I think the White Album is also my favorite. It also seems to hold up the best when compared to modern rock. Sgt. Pepper may have been the most innovative, but it doesn't rock as well as the White Album.

Rubber Soul is also great for early-mid style stuff, and Hard Days Night for the Beatlemania stuff.

rialb said:

And Glass Onion.
And Rocky Racoon.
And Don't Pass Me By.
And Long Long Long.
And Savoy Truffle.
And Cry Baby Cry.
And Goodnight.

But some folk will tell you that the Beatles never wrote a half-assed song.

Cloudbuster said:

number nine....number nine.....og god you just got me started.

Cloudbuster said:

haha! sorry! had revolution on my mind. I meant to say revolver

SquirrelMeat said:

I'm almost one of those people. Revolution 9 was just their attempt at musique concrete. In that area I haven't heard much better or much worse, be it Zappa or Varese. It's soundplay, nothing more.

I like most of the songs you mentioned

MrTation said:

There's only one Beatles song called 'Revolution 1' and that's the "softer" version on the white album. The single version is just called 'Revolution'. It isn't a remix, it's a completely different recording with slightly different lyrics.

If you like 'Revolution' and 'Helter Skelter', get yourself the Yellow Submarine Soundtrack or Songtrack and listen to 'Hey Bulldog!' - its got the same noisy punky vibe.

vainandy said:

I like about two thirds of the songs. This is my first Beatles album and I like it enough to explore some more of their albums. I'm thinking about getting "Let It Be" next. The one I hear everyone talking about is "Abbey Road".[/quote]

If you buy Let it be, try the naked version, IMO better than the original.....

savoirfaire said:

Try to play NUMBER 9 backwards. you'll be amazed... turn me on dead man, turn me on dead man....

Sdldawn said:

Oh jeezUS.

Lennon said:

The Naked version IS much better. I could hardly tell the difference at first, but in the end it makes a much better album with Don't Let Me Down and without Maggie May & Dig It. I Like the sequencing better, and I don't miss the talking in between songs. And the production is much cleaner & less dated.

I still don't like The Long & Winding Road, though, strings or no strings.

Pity the ones u dont dig it


just pity it...


[This message was edited Fri Aug 6 12:46:32 2004 by Sdldawn]

rialb said:

Yes its very unordinary and bland if you call it a piece of music.. but I find it relevant in many ways.

Sdldawn said:

It's an easy song to pick on. Obviously it's kind of ridiculous, a joke among Beatle fans, a sign of someone on too much acid.

But it shows the extent of John Lennon's creativity. It's the same guy who did a Hard Days Night. Not even another Beatle would've been brave enough to do something like it. Not Prince either.

I tried to create something like it and it made me realize how good it is. It has momentum and repeats stuff in the right spots. Mine had no real flow to it even though I tried, not to mention had #9 as a model.

I've got a cover version of Revolution 9 by a band called The Shazam. It's very interesting.

savoirfaire said:

Try to find the "video mix" of Revolution. It is similar to the single version but sounds harder. It also uses the same lyrics as Revolution 1... "you can count me out....in"

andyman91 said:

There are actually a few artist that base their loop creativity/song creation on this song.. and actually the way they did loops back then wasnt an easy chore.. it took a long time.. they didnt have the computer programs to copy and paste like today.. there was time into that.

Sdldawn said:

It's an aural collage .Alot of groups expirimented with them at the time. "Revolution 9 " is hardly the worst one out there.

Cloudbuster said:

I really like Glass Onion and Rocky Racoon, great tunes IMO. I'll give ya the rest,though I feel sorry for good old Ringo picking on his masterpiece Dont Pass Me By.

I always find it hard to pinpoint which Beatles album I like best coz I heard them all at pretty different times,so I became bored of certain ones and not others, if I was to pick I'd have to go Revolver and Sgt Pepper ,3rd White. I think that there has been some kinda long standing backlash against St Peppers ,in that it seemed to be the album most namechecked through the 80s and early 90s and now people seem to diss it,though I think from and objectional point of view its an ace album,nice coverwork to match.

Sdldawn said:

You're right. It's constructed a lot like rave music, but it's not as conventional or accessable.
I think the way he did it was to collect 20 or so tape recorders and simply mix the different music & sounds coming from them.

And MrTation: you are right too. I think John Cage had popularized this movement. I know Lennon didn't invent it but he was probably one of a very few pop musicians to do it, and do it well, IMO