(Capitol Records)
Finally, after all these years of waiting, the Beatles’ remasters on CD are here, and yes, it was worth the wait! Beatlemania has struck once again.
Let’s consider the remastered “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” Immediately, one notices more space between the instruments, the vocals, and everything in between. There’s more depth and definition. John and George’s guitars are clearer and sharper than ever, while the subtleties in Ringo’s drumming are brought to the fore, and Paul’s bass is given a vital new dynamic.
In fact, the remastering of “Sgt. Pepper’s” (the original album was released in 1967) reaffirms its status as the greatest rock album ever made. For many years, this was taken as an incontrovertible truth, as unassailable as night following day, but lately it seems that “Sgt. Pepper’s” eminence has come under question, with another Beatles album, “Revolver,” gaining in respect.
While the adventurism explored on “Revolver,” first released in 1966, certainly paved the way for the “Sgt. Pepper’s” conception, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” is more than a collection of great songs—it is a momentous landmark in the history of modern popular music, an album that changed the way rock music was thought of and made. It is also an exciting album to listen to.
So many things about “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” were groundbreaking. For one thing, it was a concept album—the Beatles pretended to be members of a fictional band led by one Sgt. Pepper, onstage giving a concert. The opening title song introduced this notion, while a reprise of that song toward the album’s end reinforced it.
This offered a world of possibilities, and after this, a rock band could try and do anything. But even before one note of music was heard, the Beatles had changed the way things were done. Lyrics were included for the first time on any album, in this case printed on the back album sleeve.
But, of course, it’s the music that makes “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” so special. The Beatles came up with a number of classics, from the melodic punch of “With a Little Help from My Friends,” to the psychedelic flavor of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” and the vaudeville-hued “When I’m Sixty-Four,” the latter not a rock song at all, but yet another musical path to take.
“She’s Leaving Home” was another milestone. The sophisticated string arrangement gave the song air of art music. Though the Beatles had used strings before on “Eleanor Rigby,” from “Revolver,” the presentation here took this concept to a higher level. This song was a major force in the classical rock movement, exemplified by such bands as Yes and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer.
The closing song, “A Day in the Life,” is another landmark recording. A collage of several musical sections, the song ends on a mass of swirling orchestral strings, followed by a thundering, drawn-out note, created by—it was learned later—the pounding of several piano keyboards at once. No one had heard anything like this before.
Getting back to “Revolver,” sure it’s a great album, and if “Sgt. Pepper’s” hadn’t come along, it might very well be the best ever. But “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” is a magical, mystical album to listen to and appreciate. “Revolver” doesn’t reach that same level of excitement (no other album does), and didn’t have the same impact on popular culture.
And so, in the end, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” remains the greatest album ever.
David Gonzales writes on pop culture and lives and works in the San Francisco Bay area.
