magenta321's Full Review: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatl...
I grew up in a white-picket fence world, to two loving parents who were raised on a diet of true Americana. They were neither conformists, nor radicals. They were neither hippies nor yuppies. They were the result of a tumultuous generation, and came out about the most even-keeled people I've ever met. Strange, and I thought everyone from the 1960's was into that "flower-power" stuff.
My parents shared their world with me from a young age. I grew up listening to their "classic rock" (or "old fogy" as I called it) music. They were the ones who first introduced me to the Beatles. My dad worked hard and early to get me to appreciate their talent and beauty. However, who needed the Beatles when I had Wham! and Madonna.
As I grew older my parent's music became more and more uncool, until the day I started realizing the "older" and "cooler" kids were listening to the stuff from my parents' day. They were listening to Hendrix, Led Zep, Floyd, Sabbath, and yes, even those cream puffs, the Beatles. Hmm. So all I had to do was listen to that kind of music, and I too could fit in with those kids.
Luckily, something my father said was all true. "If it wasn't for all those guys you hate -- Fats Domino, Elvis, the Beatles, and everyone else you make fun of, you would be listening to 'How Much Is That Doggie In The Window' on the radio right now." Ok, so maybe that is a little extreme, but he was right. So many of those artists paved the way for the great bands of my generation.
One of the most influential albums of the 1960's was the Beatles' Sargent Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band. It was also the first Beatles album I ever bought for myself. When I finally gave the album a chance, I found new respect for my parents and their "stupid" music. Hey, most of this stuff was cool, even by my high-school standards.
The song that got me to buy the album was Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. This is perhaps the most infamous song with a "hidden" meaning, as the title of the song supposedly represents "LSD." Well, living in suburbia, a song about "LSD" was definitely a cool thing.
The song itself doesn't make much sense, to me anyway, unless it is taken from an acid-trip perspective. The music is trippy, and uses a lot of instruments rarely heard in Western music. The lyrics are odd, and talk about the "girl with kaleidoscope eyes." Ok, that is definitely a cool thing -- you know, drug references (real or perceived) are always cool with the high school crowd.
The other song of which I was particularly familiar with was A Little Help From My Friends. This is one of the few Beatles songs where Ringo sings. Well, his voice is, not wonderful, but it works for this song. I thought I knew the song, until I got the album. It became cooler when I realized he was talking about things he shouldn't be, a la "I get high with a little help from my friends" and "what do you see at the end of the night? I can't tell you but I know that it's mine." Cool, drug and masturbation references in one song. Wow, my parents would freak if they knew what these guys were talking about! Oh, wait. Oh, they must not have understood it back in the day. They weren't sophisticated like we are today.
After listening to the album a few times, I came to the same shocking conclusion as my father. Shock of all shocks, we both loved the same song off the same album. This song was A Day in the Life. It opens with a few melancholy, but grand lines from a piano. The lyrics are poignant, but seem disjointed. There are two pieces to the song, one is Lennon's masterpiece and the other is McCarthy's. The two parts are woven together to show a day in the life of a man. The effects are chilling, and the lyrics are cutting. This song is hella cool, and a great way to close a great album.
Another thread which is woven in this album is the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band theme. It opens the album, and is reprised later in the album. It is melodious and circus-like. It gives you a "greatest show on earth" type feel. It is a grand way to introduce an album, and to reinforce the grandiosity of the album.
Some of the songs are cute, but not outstanding. These songs include the overly happy ramblings of McCartney (a la Getting Better and Fixing a Hole). They also include the reintroduction of the circus theme with For the Benefit of Mr. Kite and the light-hearted look at life of When I'm Sixty-Four. Oh, and there is the rather pointless Lovely Rita Meter Maid. Each of these songs has stood the test of time, but doesn't really stick out too much in the grand scheme of rock. They are cool, but nothing overwhelmingly special, in my mind.
One of the songs I feel is underrated is She's Leaving Home. A lot of people don't take this song too seriously, but I really like it. It did start listening to it at a time where I was pulling away from my parents, getting ready to leave home. In the sense of the time it was written, it is most likely a "Father Knows Best" type-family looking at their little girl who has grown-up and is moving away from them and their values, into one of the radical movements of the time.
To me, it was just a song about growing up, and realizing that my parents want the best for me, and would love for me to grow in their image. It was about the differences between my parents and myself. It was the "they would never understand" generation-gap thing. Funny, as I became more like them (by listening to their music) I was also establishing my own being.
Overall, I love this album, and have for several years now. Perhaps, my parents' weren't so out of touch after all. Perhaps, they were once young, and cool, and listening to the same music I was. Perhaps they too felt that their parents "just didn't get it." Perhaps, this universality is what makes the Beatles a great band for everyone.
One of the most famous and influential albums ever recorded, Sgt. Pepper s Lonely Hearts Club Bandhad a huge impact on the music world, signaling the ...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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