I've heard just about every side to every opinion on this compilation. I've heard people say this isn't a true representation of the Beatles because some great songs were left off for not hitting #1. I've heard people say this is just the Beatles once again opening up their pockets and having huge grins on their face as the money pours on in. I've also heard what seems to be the most popular opinion: that while this is not the most "definitive" one disc collection the Beatles could come up with, it is still damn good in it's own right. I tend to agree with that last opinion.
I guess I should start by saying I'm certainly not a huge Beatles fan. In fact, up until earlier this year, I disliked the Beatles, with the exception of 5 or 6 songs. Most of this was due to ignorance and the deep impression both of my older brothers made on my musical tastes. To them, great English rock music consisted of The Who, Led Zeppelin, and to a much lesser extent, the Rolling Stones. Unfortunately, this impression left me going 19 years without really knowing exactly what the Beatles were or how just how good they were.
The first Beatles album I bought earlier this year was Sgt Pepper's, one of the coolest and greatest records of all time. However, with my huge wishlist of music, I hadn't bought anything else. When I saw that this compilation was coming out, I decided that I definitely needed to buy it next, and soon.
The album spans, in chronological order for the most part, 27 #1 singles the Beatles had either here in the US, or "across the pond" in the UK. One of the greatest benefits of the CD being organized this way is that you get to see the evolution of the Beatles from making simple pop songs such as Love Me Do to the gentle, folksy leanings of the classic Yesterday (recently named the greatest pop song of all time in that awful Rolling Stone/MTV collarboration of the top 100 pop songs ever), and finally to the revolutionary music of tracks like Come Together and Let It Be.
While I am not a huge fan of the early poppy material contained here (and those of you who know me know this isn't a surprise), I do find it 100X better and more bearable than the boyband trash that is on the airwaves today in the form of Backstreet Boys (anyone else notice they just don't seem very into it anymore?) and the completely awful 98 Degrees.
Lastly, there surely are omissions that would have made this album stronger, and there are songs on here that had they been left off, the album would be even better on a whole. Revolution and I Am The Walrus come to mind immediately for the former, and Lady Madonna and the Ballad of John and Yoko fitting the latter.
If you are a casual Beatles fan, this may be the place to start your collection, and then moving onto Sgt Peppers and The White Album (both of which are not represented here at all) for example. If you are the obsessed Beatles fan who has it all, then this is merely nothing more than for the completists out there who have to have everything the band puts out. Either way, as we close the year 2000, does anything say better just how weak current music is when the Beatles collection of 30 year old songs is the #1 album in the country?
Featured Songs: Ticket To Ride Can't Buy Me Love A Hard Day's Night 1. Love Me Do 2:20 2. From Me to You 1:56 3. She Loves You 2:21 4. I Want to Hol...More at NBC Universal
This album is a must have for music fans young and old. Never before has one disc by one musical group contained so much musical and cultural history....More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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