The Beatles-Yellow Submarine OST

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 1/23/10.

Following the release of Magical Mystery Tour in its album and a disastrous TV special, the Beatles were about to enter a chaotic period in their career. The formation of Apple Corps. along with Apple Records where the band can handle their business along with other things. What was meant to feature the involvement of Brian Epstein, Epstein's death on late August of 1967 would trouble things as the band along with several of their key personnel would have no idea on how to run the business. While the band try to work things out for Apple along with a trip to India to meditate with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an animated project that featured the Beatles was in the works. The band only did minimal participation as they filmed their cameo in February of 1968 following their return from India.

The film entitled Yellow Submarine named after the song from 1966's Revolver was released in June of 1968 to widespread acclaim and box office. The film featured four new songs from the band that weren't officially released until January of 1969. The release was part of a soundtrack that featured the title track and the song All You Need Is Love that was released in June of 1967. Yet, the soundtrack would generally regarded among the Beatles' studio recording catalog as their weakest release yet.

The Yellow Submarine soundtrack is an album that features four new songs from the band that were recorded during the sessions for Sgt. Pepper and sessions that would precede the recording of The White Album. With two new songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and two other new songs written by George Harrison. The rest of the album along with two previously-released tracks would feature score pieces written and conducted by the band's producer George Martin. Despite the new material that the Beatles would make, Yellow Submarine is a record that without a doubt the band's worst release in their career.

Opening the album is the soundtrack's title track that originally appeared in Revolver. With Ringo Starr's drawling vocals and lyrics about a yellow submarine, the song is an inventive track that is filled with Mal Evans' pounding bass drum and loads of sound effects. The song's chorus features a group of friends singing along as it is a fun, playful song that children can enjoy. Only A Northern Song by George Harrison that was recorded during the Sgt. Pepper sessions is a hypnotic, psychedelic-inspired track. With lyrics featuring veiled jabs at the band's own Northern Songs publishing, Harrison is playing a wailing organ track with Starr's steady, pummeling drum fills as it features Paul McCartney playing a wailing organ with John Lennon on a tingling glockenspiel as it also features swirling tape effects by the band with waves of pianos and loopy bass lines.

All Together Now is a skiffle-inspired track with McCartney playing a washy acoustic track with playful, children-inspired lyrics that has a sing-a-long chorus. With Lennon on an acoustic guitar track and singing playful lyrics with a ukelele as also plays a harmonica. Starr accompanies the band with a pounding bass drum and tapping finger cymbals as the whole band sings the song's catchy chorus. Hey Bulldog is a rocking song with McCartney's melodic piano riff that is followed by Harrison's snarling guitar playing the same riff with Starr's rumbling drum fill. With Lennon singing the song with double-tracked vocals as he's joined by McCartney, the song is filled with quirky lyrics as it is a fun song with the band providing some amazing performances including Harrison's wailing guitar track along with howling dog voices with Starr talking in the song's coda.

Harrison's It's All Too Much is another psychedelic-inspired track with Harrison playing both guitar and a Hammond organ, the latter of which is the main musical accompaniment along with feedback-laden guitar drones that is also performed by Lennon. With Starr's pummeling drum fills, McCartney's thumping bass line and blazing horn arrangement that includes a sumptuous bass clarinet, the song is filled with haunting, imagery-laden lyrics by Harrison as he sings the song in a soothing vocal making it one of his finest tracks. The last song on the album is the anthemic All You Need Is Love with its simple message of love with an intro of the French national anthem as it was a song that was played during a climatic moment of the film.

The album's second half which is dominated by the symphonic score work of producer George Martin opens with Pepperland. A piece with serene string arrangements and soothing oboes to convey the beauty of Pepperland that includes an elegant harp flourish. Sea Of Time opens with a sitar drone and wavy string arrangements to convey an Indian-style tone for what started out as dark only to become this somber yet airy track of lush strings and flutes. Sea Of Holes is a dark yet mesmerizing score piece with ringing bells and oboes that play to the dark tone of the track.

Sea Of Monsters is a playful yet quirky track with twangy notes and sumptuous arrangements of strings and woodwinds carried by a driving cello and wailing flutes that is played calmly for the track's atmospheric tone. March Of The Meanies opens with a flourishing yet chilling vibraphone track with driving string arrangements playing in a suspenseful tone that works to convey the Meanies wreaking havoc on Pepperland. Pepperland Laid Waste is an eerie track filled with somber yet screeching strings and haunting oboe pieces with harp flourishes to convey the destruction that the Meanies have done. The album closer is Yellow Submarine In Pepperland is a score piece featuring the melody of Yellow Submarine played with tapping xylophones and bouncy string arrangements as it is a track that plays to the Beatles arrival as they emerge victorious in beating the Meanies.

Released on January 13, 1969, the album was widely considered to be the weakest release of the band's catalog. Particularly since the Beatles had little involvement to make it a proper album. Though it was successful in-conjunction with the film that was released seven months earlier in the U.K., many felt it was a throwaway release as the Beatles were about to embark on what would be a chaotic period that ultimately lead to their dissolution.

The 2009 remastered edition of the album that only appears in the stereo box set remastered series is wonderful for many of the remastering of the songs in the record. Yet, the only track that doesn't appear in stereo but appears in Mono Masters of the mono box set is Only A Northern Song. While the remastering work is superb, it's the weakest release of the catalog.

The Yellow Submarine soundtrack is without a doubt a hackneyed release from the Beatles. While the four new songs on the album are spectacular and George Martin's score pieces aren't bad. It's just that it's not a real proper album in comparison to many of the Beatles' other recordings. Though there's an improved version in the Yellow Submarine Songtrack album released in 1999 that features all the songs that was in the film. It's a record that is really only for hardcore Beatles fans and completists that they need to get as it's an okay record but not really an essential album from the Beatles.

The Beatles Reviews: Please Please Me - With the Beatles - A Hard Day's Night - Beatles for Sale - Help! - Rubber Soul - Revolver - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Magical Mystery Tour - The White Album - Abbey Road - Let It Be - (1962-1966) - (1967-1970) - Past Masters - (Live at the BBC) - (Anthology 1) - (Anthology 2) - (Anthology 3) - (Let It Be... Naked) - (Love)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Beatles-The White Album

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 11/22/08 w/ Additional Content.

1968 was a year of unbridled chaos that changed the world. The year before was about peace and love at the time of the Vietnam War. That changed as the Vietnam War peaked in its ugliness and despair. Around the world, that chaos was going around through protests all over the world including Mexico and France. It was around that same time, the Russians invaded Czechoslovakia as Communism was spreading around. In the U.S., it was an election year as the optimism and hope that was spread earlier in the decade was crashed by cynicism following the assassinations of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. that April and Robert F. Kennedy two months later. Followed by riots all over the streets in major cities in the U.S., the look for the country looked bleak when Richard M. Nixon won the election though the year ended with a glimmer of hope by the Apollo 8 space flight to the moon.

Around that same time as the world was brewing into chaos, somewhere in Abbey Road studios, the Beatles were set to make a new album. A year after the release of their landmark album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the death of their manager Brian Epstein. The Beatles seemed loss as they went into a spiritual retreat to India that left John Lennon extremely disillusioned as he became attracted to avant-garde artist Yoko Ono. Entering Abbey Road with longtime producer George Martin, the Beatles set out to create a record that veered away from the band's previous experimental and psychedelic recordings for something more basic and diverse in various genres. Yet, the making of the record proved to be as difficult as tension between the band was starting to rise.

During those sessions, the individual members would work separately with various engineers with a lot of discord and infighting prompting longtime engineer Geoff Emerick to stop working with the band once the record was complete. Things were getting worse as drummer Ringo Starr quit the band for two weeks following his frustration for his lack of input into the record. John Lennon and George Harrison would also have brief departures during the sessions with Paul McCartney becoming frustrated as well. Finally in October of that year, the band was finished recording as on November 22, 1968. The band released their self-titled album often referred to as The White Album.

Performed by the Beatles and produced by George Martin with many songs written by the duo of Lennon-McCartney with four tracks written by George Harrison and Ringo Starr writing his first solo composition for the band. The White Album is a double album that explores the chaos of 1968 as well as personal songs reflecting on loss, love, innocence, and anger. Featuring contributions by Eric Clapton, Jack Fallon, and the spouses of the Beatles in Yoko Ono, Pattie Boyd, and Maureen Starkey. The White Album is a brilliant yet chaotic masterpiece that would prove to be the beginning of the end for the Fab Four.

The album begins with Back In The U.S.S.R. with the sound of a flying airliner as it turns into this chugging, upbeat rocker with bass-thumping rhythms and warbling guitars as Paul McCartney sings dark, comical lyrics with a smooth, bluesy vocal style as he's accompanied by a piano, swift drums, and an old-school style of 50s rock with a George Harrison wailing solo. Dear Prudence opens an arpeggio guitar track by John Lennon as he sings in his cool, eerie vocals about a depressed woman in this smooth, mid-tempo song. With McCartney's thumping rhythm in drums and bass, Lennon sings lyrics filled with dark imagery with Harrison accompanying Lennon with a droning, ringing guitar riff as the tempo picks up a bit at the song's coda. Glass Onion is an upbeat, angry song with Lennon singing dark lyrics as if things aren't the way it seems with Ringo Starr's swift, crashing fills and McCartney's thumping bass line. With Harrison's striking guitar, the song revels in the songs that the band had done as they're stripped down to the core.

Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da is an upbeat, reggae-inspired song of sorts with loopy bass line, striking piano, and McCartney singing whimsical, nonsensical lyrics filled with a memorable chorus as it brings a unique sense of humor. With its thumping rhythm, it's a strange but wonderful song that shows McCartney's weird sense of humor and upbeat personality. Wild Honey Pie is an upbeat, acoustic track with washy, boing-boing beats filled with detuned, scratchy acoustic guitar tracks filled with Lennon and McCartney's weird vocals. The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill is a mid-tempo song featuring Yoko Ono, Patti Boyd, Maureen Starkey, and Beatles roadie Mal Evans singing the chorus about what Bungalow Bill killed as it goes into a slow, shimmering verse with Lennon's raspy vocals and lyrics about Bill's dark deeds. With shifting tempos, it's a standout cut that reveals Lennon's dark sense of humor and the tone of what was going on in that year.

Harrison's While My Guitar Gently Weeps opens with McCartney's somber yet eerie piano accompaniment, Starr's hi-hat cymbal taps, and Lennon's accompanying guitar as Harrison sings softly about the despair of the world as he's accompanied the wailing guitar solos of Eric Clapton. Harrison's vocals are the song's highlight along with Clapton's wailing blues-driven solos along with Starr's striking drum fills along with Lennon and McCartney's backing vocals in the chorus. The eerie ballad Happiness Is A Warm Gun opens with Lennon singing with his arpeggio-laden guitar with strange, eccentric lyrics as he's followed by Starr's smooth, thumping drums, Harrison's droning guitar, and McCartney's smooth, low bass. With Lennon getting into lyrics about addiction and then going into a dream-like tone, the song goes into a memorable chorus he sings lyrics filled with comfort but in a dark complexity. Martha My Dear is another ragtime-inspired track led by McCartney's melodic-laden piano as he sings lyrics about a naive woman leaving her old world as it turns into something more upbeat with its drums, horns, and guitars as McCartney continues to be whimsical.

I'm So Tired is a slow, haunting song with Lennon singing about weariness with his smooth, dark lyrics with slow, striking rhythms accompanying him along with Harrison's guitar. When the song goes into its rocking chorus, the tempo picks up a bit as he and the band just goes into a brief, angry mode as it returns to its somber, weary presentation. Blackbird is an acoustic ballad sung by McCartney reflecting on the dark times that is going on as it reflects on death and loss as McCartney sings in a calm vocal style with a foot-tap accompanying him and later, a bird chirping in the background. Harrison's Piggies is a whimsical, charming song led by a harpsichord being played by engineer Chris Thomas with sounds of grunting pigs in this baroque yet soothing song as Harrison creates a song that is innocent yet strange as he sings softly with distorted vocals that come in later on along with the band singing along as it gets darker. Rocky Raccoon is an acoustic ballad where McCartney sings in a country, bluesy drawl about a guy entering a world as he then sings a chorus where it's clear he's there to kill someone. With its soft, thumping rhythms, it's a song about a duel as it's in the style of Bob Dylan along with a flourishing, melodic piano by producer George Martin in the coda.

Ringo Starr's Don't Pass Me Buy is an upbeat, warbling, country-inspired song with Starr's array of percussive fills and country-style vocal drawl as he's accompanied by reverb keyboard sounds and thumping bass. Along with Jack Fallon's violin track, it's a truly brilliant country track as Ringo proves to be a talented songwriter who works in his own world. Why Don't We Do It On The Road? is a blues-inspired track that opens with Starr's rumbling bass drum fills as it becomes this thumping, upbeat blues track with McCartney's thumping pianos and growling vocals along with soft, ringing guitars from Lennon and Harrison. I Will is a McCartney love-ballad that is largely inspired by the Everly Brothers as he sings the song with his acoustic guitar along with a flourishing solo and warm lyrics that's directly to McCartney's then-girlfriend and love-of-his-life Linda Eastman. The ballad Julia is a haunting, somber ballad from John Lennon as he sings this haunting yet sad song about the mother he lost when he was only 17 with descriptive lyrics and eerie vocals.

The album's second half begins with the upbeat, rocking Birthday with Starr's rumbling, hard-hitting snares and Lennon's wailing guitar solo, Harrison's warbling bass lines, and McCartney's screeching vocals about a birthday. While the song seems something upbeat, it's really a dark, chaotic song with its warbling guitars, crashing rhythms, McCartney's striking pianos, and the backing vocals of Yoko Ono and Pattie Boyd as it plays in its rocking tone. Yer Blues is a slow but heavy blues-inspired song with Lennon singing in a growling vocal style as he delves into the blues with Starr's rumbling drums, thumping bass, and growling guitar riffs that follow Lennon. With a break that sounds like a wailing blues, it's Lennon at his angriest. Mother Nature's Son is a folk-inspired song about McCartney's experience in India as he brings a soft, horn playing along with a bass drum that he plays himself in this soothing, folk track. Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey is a fast-charging rocker with Lennon singing in a growling vocal about his own private life and his refusal to be uncompromising. With Starr's rattling cymbals and hard-hitting snares, wailing guitars, rumbling bass, and Lennon's vocals, it's a true, uncompromising song from Lennon.

Sexy Sadie is another Lennon-sung song with him playing piano about a sexual being proving that it's not who it claims to be. With its slow, thumping rhythms and Harrison's distorted, warbling guitar, and Lennon's calm lyrics filled with lyrics about disillusionment and identity. The hard-rocking, loud, and abrasive Helter Skelter features a wailing guitar track from George Harrison as McCartney sings in a growling vocal about the chaos that surrounds the world. With Ringo Starr's crashing drums, Lennon's thumping bass and raging guitars, it's the Beatles at their most abrasive with McCartney playing a droning solo as if the world is going to hell. Long, Long, Long by Harrison is a love song in the style of Bob Dylan as Harrison sings in his soft, atmospheric vocal with Starr's bass-pounding rumble and McCartney's eerie organ track that is followed by McCartney playing a striking piano track. Revolution 1 is a slower, blues-inspired version of the single Revolution with a thumping rhythm and Lennon's wailing guitar. With lyrics about the world going into a revolution and its fallacies while Lennon says, "When you talk about destruction, don't you know that you can count me out, in". That line reference Lennon's sense of being unsure in the participation of violent revolutions.

Honey Pie is a music hall-inspired track with McCartney's piano leading the track about a famous woman yearning to return to England to her old lover. With its thumping rhythm and clarinet track by Harry Klein through George Martin's arrangement, it's a whimsical song from McCartney that relies on McCartney's love for old, music-hall style music. Harrison's Savoy Truffle is an upbeat rocker with McCartney's melodic organ track and Harrison's snarling vocals with striking guitars and Starr's thumping drum fills. With lyrics about sweets, it features wailing guitar spurts from Harrison as it proves Harrison's growing strength as a songwriter. Cry, Cry, Cry is a folk-driven song that has Lennon singing about an old fairy tale as he's accompanied by McCartney on piano, Harrison on sliding guitar, and Starr's rumbling fills. The last portion of the song has McCartney singing in a bluesy, thumping track with his acoustic guitar.

Revolution 9 is an eight-minute experimental song with the words "number 9" repeatedly with breaks of conversations and such going back to those words with tape scratches, distortions, and loops Lennon, Harrison, Starr, and Yoko Ono along with samples of their own songs from the record. While it's a controversial track filled with backward messages and such but it's also groundbreaking for its time that harkens back to the Beatles' experimental days. The album closer Good Night is a symphonic, sweeping track filled with George Martin's wondrous arrangements and a soothing string orchestra as Ringo Starr sings the song as a lullaby-style in his somber vocal that gives the album a fitting close.

Released on November 22, 1968, the album was hailed as a masterpiece while being another big seller. Yet, it proved to a critical point for the band as tension and discord were rising as in retrospect. Many felt that this was where the band was starting to get tired of each other as a series of events would lead to the band's break-up in early 1970. Yet, The White Album proved to be influential in pop music as it started the era of double-albums as the Beatles were once again, ahead of their times in terms of creating big, double-pop albums. 40 years since its release, the album proves to be seminal in popular music while considered to be one of the greatest recordings of all-time.

The 2009 Remastered Edition shows a remarkable upgrade of what the record sounds like in comparison to previous reissues. Released as part of a new series of remasters in its stereo version along with the stereo box set and some tracks on the mono box set. The reissue goes into more detail of the production work as every sound and note is heard much clearer including stuff in the background. Notably Ringo's scream at the end of Helter Skelter. The work in the remastered version is truly a must-have for fans as it adds more of an atmosphere and chaos that is captured in this amazing album.

The White Album is a brilliant yet chaotic, sprawling, ambitious, and adventurous masterpiece from the Beatles. Thanks in large parts to George Martin's production that varies from stripped-down to layered and atmospheric, The White Album is a record that truly revealed what the Beatles can do when things get tense and out of control as it's also their most uncompromising record to date. Newcomers wanting to know what the band could do in terms of versatility should get this record to see the types of musical styles they can concoct. With many great songs and a lot of adventurous to complement those classics, it's a testament to an art form known as the double album that is starting to wane in today's pop music world. In the end, for anyone that wants to get an idea of what chaos sounds like in a pop record that is very long and challenging. The Beatles' The White Album is the record to get.

The Beatles Reviews: Please Please Me - With the Beatles - A Hard Day's Night - Beatles for Sale - Help! - Rubber Soul - Revolver - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - Magical Mystery Tour - Yellow Submarine OST - Abbey Road - Let It Be - (1962-1966) - (1967-1970) - Past Masters - (Live at the BBC) - (Anthology 1) - (Anthology 2) - (Anthology 3) - (Let It Be... Naked) - (Love)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Beatles-Magical Mystery Tour

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 1/21/10.

The release of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was a huge moment in the world of pop culture and the history of the world. The Beatles suddenly peaked as far as creativity and in terms of commercial appeal was concerned as everything was going great. The band followed up the release of the album with a new song called All You Need Is Love for a broadcast of Our World as it was seen by 400 million people in 26 countries with the Beatles representing Britain. Following the release of the album and All You Need Is Love, the Beatles went on a spiritual retreat to Bangor to study meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. During the retreat, the Beatles received devastating news that many said was the beginning of the end for the band.

The death of Brian Epstein on August 27, 1967 from an accidental drug overdose at age 32. Epstein's death would cause troubles for what the band would do with a lot of business issues including their publishing and plans to form their own company called Apple. The band took on a TV project that was loosely-plotted and be accompanied with a bunch of brand new material the band had been recording following the period of Sgt. Pepper along with their new film project. Originally released as a six-track double EP in the U.K., the band's U.S. label Capitol released the record with five more songs that were released as singles and a B-side that many said was the only U.S. album superior to the rest of the band's U.S. catalog. The film project and album would be known as Magical Mystery Tour.

Produced by George Martin, Magical Mystery Tour is an album that has the Beatles continuing their fascination with psychedelic music. Featuring more abstract yet pop-laden material, the album is a combination of six tracks the band recorded for the film project plus a new single and previous material that were released prior to the making of Magical Mystery Tour. With the majority of material written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney plus a song by George Harrison, the album also features a rare track written by the entire band as an instrumental piece. While it may not have rich sophistication of Sgt. Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour is still a brilliant follow-up that showed the Beatles evolving more and more into psychedelic pop.

The album opens with the upbeat title track filled with nonsensical lyrics and a blazing horn section of blaring trumpets. With Ringo Starr's bopping beats and harmony vocals from John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison singing the chorus with McCartney singing weird lyrics along with a melodic piano. Featuring some clanging percussions tracks with contributions from associates Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall, it's a brilliant track that works in its presentation and whimsy. The ballad Fool On The Hill is led by McCartney's somber piano with his calm vocals filled with melancholic lyrics. Featuring an arrangement of flutes playing in the background, it is one of the Beatles' best ballads as it features a soft, finger cymbal accompaniment from Starr as Harrison plays an acoustic guitar in the background with McCartney playing a solo from a recorder.

The instrumental track Flying is the only track written by the entire band as it features melodic guitar tracks from McCartney and Harrison plus Starr's bopping drums as it is led by Lennon's soothing mellotron performance. The track also features vocal-like wails from the band as it is driven by Lennon's mellotron playing eerie notes. Harrison's Blue Jay Way is a haunting track filled with imagery-laden lyrics inspired by Harrison's visit to Los Angeles in the Hollywood Hills. Featuring Harrison playing an atmospheric Hammond organ solo with Starr's pounding bass drum. The song is an eerie cut where the song's tempo picks up a bit with Starr's steady drum fill as Harrison's vocals are sung through a distorted mix as it includes a driving cello performance in the coda.

The upbeat Your Mother Should Know is led by McCartney's bouncy piano melody with soothing backing vocals from Lennon and Harrison as McCartney sings playful lyrics of nostalgia. With Starr's thumping drum fill, Lennon's wailing organ, and Harrison's washy guitar in the background, it is one of the band's catchiest songs as it is presented in one of the TV special's strangest sequences. I Am The Walrus opens with Lennon's melodic keyboard track from a mellotron with a wavy string arrangement. With Starr's steady, mid-tempo drum fill and McCartney's bouncy bass lines, Lennon sings lyrics filled with nonsensical meanings and ideas where the only thing makes sense is the chorus where Lennon says "I am the eggman, I am the eggman, I am the walrus, koo-koo-ka-choo". With Harrison's driving guitar track, it is one of the band's strangest but enjoyable songs that is not meant to make any sense.

The album's second half begins with the upbeat single Hello Goodbye which opens with McCartney's bouncy piano and playful vocals as he sings weird but peppy lyrics. Featuring Starr's bopping beat and wailing guitar notes from Lennon and Harrison, the song is a catchy yet bouncy pop song that features a wonderful drum fill from Starr along with brimming viola arrangements. The song also includes an amazing coda with bouncier rhythms and the band chanting in a Hawaiian-like style. Next is Strawberry Fields Forever, a song that originally came out as a double A-side single in February of 1967. Opening with McCartney's flute-like mellotron solo, the song has Lennon singing haunting lyrics filled with imagery and nostalgia as it features Harrison's melodic guitar and Starr's slow, steady drum fill. The song intensifies with Starr playing more, thunderous fills with Harrison playing a flourishing swarmandal with other instruments like Neil Aspinall's guiro, Mal Evans' tambourine, and George Martin's blazing arrangements of horns and cellos as it is definitely the band's most groundbreaking tracks.

Penny Lane, the other A-side single released with Strawberry Fields Forever in February of 1967, is a playful piano-style track that has McCartney singing about a street in Liverpool. Filled with an air of nostalgia, the song has Starr's bouncy drum fill with Lennon playing a bouncy piano track with Harrison's soft guitar as he and Lennon sing backing vocals. Yet, the song is dominated by an arrangement of flourishing flutes and horn solos orchestrated by George Martin that also features string tracks as it one of the band's richest cuts. Baby, You're A Rich Man, a B-side to the single All You Need Is Love, is a mid-tempo rocker with Starr's bopping drum fills and McCartney's bouncy piano that is carried by a swirling clavioline track by Lennon as he sings the song. The song's weird lyrics about gain and wealth is a strange cut as it features Harrison playing a soft guitar track in the background as he, Lennon, and McCartney sing the song's chorus.

The album closer is the single All You Need Is Love that opens with La Marseillaise French national anthem with a song that is simply about love. Wtih Starr's bouncy drum fill with Lennon's bopping harpsichord track, the song is an anthemic track devoted to love as it features a wonderful string arrangement from George Martin. With McCartney's soft, thumping bass line and a wailing solo from Harrison, the song's chorus is sung by all involved including some special guests like Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithfull, Keith Richards, Harrison's wife Pattie Boyd, Starr's wife Maureen Starkey, Graham Nash, Keith Moon, Eric Clapton, McCartney's then-girlfriend Jane Asher, and many others as it closes with McCartney singing bits of She Loves You in this amazing anthem.

The album was released in the U.S. on November 27, 1967 just nearly a month before the release of the Magical Mystery Tour TV project. The album was acclaimed and sold well but when the TV special aired in the U.K., the Beatles were hit with negative reviews from critics and audiences for the very first time. Though it was shown on black-and-white TV since color TV wasn't invented yet, it was the first time the Beatles got into some trouble. Though the TV special later proved to be popular with Beatles fans, it did mark the beginning of some troubles for the band.

The 2009 remastered edition of the album does provide some fantastic moments in the recording. Notably for the production of several tracks where the instrumentation is presented in a grand fashion. Even a song like Strawberry Fields Forever is presented in a broader presentation to give more idea of what was being played as the remastered version is one of the top albums in the remastered series.

While it may not have the overall consistency of Revolver or Sgt. Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour is still a fantastic album from the Beatles. The album in comparison to their other albums is one that is ranked very highly as it is the only U.S. studio release that lives up to the U.K. albums. With one half of the album that showed the band's progression of what they were doing for the TV special and another half filled with singles and B-sides. The album by itself is remarkable as Magical Mystery Tour is another winning achievement from the Beatles.

The Beatles Reviews: Please Please Me - With the Beatles - A Hard Day's Night - Beatles for Sale - Help! - Rubber Soul - Revolver - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The White Album - Yellow Submarine OST - Abbey Road - Let It Be - (1962-1966) - (1967-1970) - Past Masters - (Live at the BBC) - (Anthology 1) - (Anthology 2) - (Anthology 3) - (Let It Be... Naked) - (Love)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Beatles-Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 1/19/10.

When the Beatles announced they would no longer tour in late August, it was officially the end of Beatlemania. A turbulent period that saw the band touring non-stop to screaming fans, chaos at the Phillippines, and John Lennon's comments over the Beatles being more popular than Jesus. The band decided that they were officially done with touring as they found the studio to be an escape. After the decision to stop touring, the band went their separate ways to pursue individual projects. John Lennon took a role in Richard Lester's war comedy How I Won the War while Paul McCartney worked with the band's producer George Martin for a film score for the movie The Family Way. Ringo Starr took a low profile to be with family while George Harrison traveled to India with new wife Pattie Boyd where he took sitar lessons with Ravi Shankar.

In early November of 1966, the Beatles reunited to commence recording some new material. Realizing that they had unlimited time to work on their new album and unlimited resources to do anything. The band also felt challenged by the Beach Boys' 1966 album Pet Sounds along with the non-LP single Good Vibrations as that band's leader Brian Wilson would start work on the group's next album Smile. Realizing that Wilson had upped the ante of what was possible in pop music and in production, the band decided to step up their game as they decided to take on all different musical styles for their next album.

In February of 1967 at the demand of their manager Brian Epstein who wanted a new single, the Beatles released the double A-side single for Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane. Upon its release, the single along with the promotional video for the former baffled audiences by the band's new look as they were sporting mustaches and Lennon wearing glasses that he kept from the set of How I Won the War. Still, the double A-side single was a huge hit though it was the first single since Love Me Do to not reach the number one spot in the U.K. single charts due to the popularity of Engelbert Humperdinck's Release Me. The single's popularity would only provide problems for Brian Wilson's mental state as he would end up shelving Smile for nearly 30 years while the Beatles were hard at work on their new album that would be a cultural moment in the history of the world.

Produced by George Martin through recording sessions that spanned 129 days from December of 1966 through April of 1967. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is an album where the Beatles take pop music into a new stratosphere of sophistication. Spanning various genres from music hall, jazz, rock, classic, and Indian music. The album has the Beatles taking on themes of life along with the joys of childhood and other elements into a loose concept album where the band performs as a fictitious band known as the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. With twelve songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and one written by George Harrison. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a mesmerizing and sprawling album that truly defines what pop music can do and be more than 40 years since its release.

The album opens with its title track, a bouncy, mid-tempo rocker with Ringo Starr's slow, pummeling drum fills and Paul McCartney's wailing guitar as he sings in a gruff vocal style as he introduces everyone as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Featuring a blazing solo of French horns, the song is followed by McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison singing the song's chorus as McCartney then introduces a member of the band in Billy Shears for the next track. With A Little Help From My Friends which is an upbeat, mid-tempo track that has Ringo Starr singing the song with its bouncy rhythm spurred by Starr's drums and Harrison's slithery guitar. With McCartney on a playful piano melody and the rest of the band joining Starr on backing vocals, it's a powerful song with touching lyrics of friendship that includes George Martin playing a soft organ accompaniment in the background. The song is Starr's best vocal performance as he hits all the right notes for the song's optimistic tone.

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds opens with McCartney's haunting keyboard solo and thumping bass line as the instrumentation accompanies Lennon's high-pitch vocals with cosmic lyrics inspired by a drawing made by Lennon's son Julian. With a break that has McCartney's bass line intensifying with Starr's soft drums as Lennon's vocals are mixed on a higher pitch. The song then goes into a driving, bouncy rhythm for its chorus as it moves back forth in structure with dream-like lyrics as it features a crisp, atmospheric production from George Martin with ringing guitars from Lennon and Harrison. Getting Better opens with a swanky guitar riff with bopping drum fills as Lennon and Harrison sing harmony vocals following McCartney as he sings upbeat lyrics filled with optimism despite some dark elements. Featuring a soft, flourishing tambura drone by Harrison with Martin playing a bopping piano track in the background, it's a song that reflects on life's ups and getting back up from its downs.

Fixing A Hole opens with George Martin's ringing harpischord solo with McCartney's atmospheric, double-tracked vocals with Starr's steady, mid-tempo drums and lead guitar swirls from McCartney and Harrison. The song's whimsical lyrics filled with drug references about wandering is one of the richest cuts on the album as it supported by Martin's layered production. The ballad She's Leaving Home is led by an elegant, flourishing harp solo with lush orchestral arrangements created by Mike Leander and conducted by George Martin. Featuring somber yet melancholic lyrics by McCartney who sings the song, the track includes Lennon singing from the perspective of the girl's parents in what is probably the most emotionally devastating track the Beatles ever made as well as one of its sophisticated in terms of its mesh of classical music and pop.

Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite is a strange, circus-style song with flute-style keyboards and wailing organs by George Martin as Lennon sings whimsical, crazy lyrics about a strange circus as Starr plays a tapping, hi-hat cymbal track with pounding bass drum fills. Featuring warbling tape loops from McCartney and engineer Geoff Emerick, the song features twangy notes and rollicking pianos as it also features harmonicas from Lennon, Harrison, and two of the band's associates in Neil Aspinall and Mal Evans. George Harrison's Within You Without You is a hypnotic, Indian-style song with droning sitar flourishes with soft tambura twangs by Aspinall with vibrant, hollow percussions by various Indian session musicians. The song has Harrison singing softly with spiritual-laden lyrics as it is an exotic track filled with amazing string arrangements by George Martin who also gives the song a sprawling, atmospheric production that is truly remarkable.

The playful When I'm Sixty-Four is a music hall-inspired track led by bouncy clarinets from session musicians with McCartney's vocals mixed in a high pitch to sound younger. The song's lyrics has McCartney singing about becoming older and the future of being old with grandchildren named Vera, Chuck, and Dave. Featuring McCartney playing a thumping bass line with Starr's soft, sputtering drum fills as he also plays clanging tubular bells. It is certainly one of McCartney's humorous yet joyful songs that pays tribute to an old musical style. Lovely Rita opens with a washy acoustic guitar track from Lennon who sings opening wailing notes that is followed by Starr's pounding drum fills. With Lennon, Harrison, and McCartney singing the song's chorus, McCartney leads the way with the song's whimsical lyrics about a meter maid. With a playful piano track from McCartney and George Martin, the song features kazoo-like backgrounds performed by the whole band.

Good Morning Good Morning opens with a chicken clucking as it leads to a swirling sound of blazing horns playing around with Starr's sputtering drums as Lennon sings the song's lyrics about starting the day anew. With McCartney's thumping bass line, the song is led by its horn arrangements with animal sound effects provided by engineer Geoff Emerick. Even as it features a wailing guitar solo performed by McCartney and Harrison. The title's track reprise is a faster-paced rocker with a more intense drumming performance from Starr along with Harrison's wailing guitar solo as he, Lennon, and McCartney sing the song as the Sgt. Pepper band saying it's time to go.

The album's closer is A Day In The Life, a song that reflects on life's tragedies sung by Lennon with a washy acoustic guitar track and McCartney's somber piano. During a section in the song, Starr plays a haunting yet powerful drum fill with rumbling bass and snare hits with Harrison accompanying on a soft maracas. The song then goes into a section led by wailing instruments of strings and other orchestral pieces orchestrated by Lennon, McCartney, and George Martin as it goes into an upbeat, mid-tempo section sung by McCartney. In the section, McCartney sings about the day-to-day things that people do in life as it returns to its original section with Lennon singing about another tragic event as the song reaches a powerful coda with a crashing final chord performed by Lennon, McCartney, Starr, and Mal Evans on piano with George Martin on a harmonium as it closes the album with a bang.

Released on June 1, 1967, the album was a watershed moment in the history of the world. Reviews were enthusiastic as the album soared to the top of the charts proclaiming the period that was the Summer of Love. Days after its release, Jimi Hendrix did a cover of the song's title track that was seen by Paul McCartney and George Harrison as the album was becoming massively popular. The album would win several Grammy Awards including Album of the Year as the Beatles reached a creative peak. After that, the band would never hit that same peak of creativity or personal accomplishment ever again.

Since its release nearly 43 years, the album has often been placed in many lists as the best albums of all-time whether it would reach the top or nearby. The album is still considered by historians, music critics, and musicians as a hallmark in the history of pop music. The album for many would be the prototype of what it takes to create an album that changes the landscape of what is possible. Many claim if it wasn't for this album, there wouldn't be Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon or Radiohead's OK Computer of what is possible in pop and rock music. Yet unlike those albums, Sgt. Pepper remains an album that is still groundbreaking in how pop music can remain sophisticated with unconventional ideas since its release back in June of 1967.

The 2009 remastered edition does add more of a hypnotic yet enchanting element to the production work of George Martin. The sounds of the orchestral arrangements sound more elegant than ever along with a lot of other textures as it is truly a layered album. While it may not beat Revolver in terms of overall quality in the remastering series. It is the best produced record among the Beatles' catalogue as the remastering work is truly superb from start to finish.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is truly a masterpiece that is still an album that reaches a high standard of how great pop records should be. Fans of rock and pop music must have this album for its overall quality and versatility. Notably George Martin's production as it is definitely an album that still holds up as far as a band wanting to reinvent themselves. While it may not have the noisier sound of Revolver, Sgt. Pepper is an album of a different kind as well as something that revels in how a band can take something and turn into art. In the end, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a true, first-class piece of brilliance from the Beatles.

The Beatles Reviews: Please Please Me - With the Beatles - A Hard Day's Night - Beatles for Sale - Help! - Rubber Soul - Revolver - Magical Mystery Tour - The White Album - Yellow Submarine OST - Abbey Road - Let It Be - (1962-1966) - (1967-1970) - Past Masters - (Live at the BBC) - (Anthology 1) - (Anthology 2) - (Anthology 3) - (Let It Be... Naked) - (Love)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Magnetic Fields-69 Love Songs

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/14/06.

Whether in being in side projects like the Gothic Archies, the 6ths, and the Future Bible Heroes, Stephin Merritt truly has an uncanny knack for pop music with his unique ability to write catchy pop songs in a variety of styles. While he often does various other projects including doing a bit of solo work, his main work is in the four-piece band the Magnetic Fields. Featuring vocalist/percussionist/pianist Claudia Gonson, guitarist/banjo player John Woo, and cellist Sam Davol, Merritt leads the group on vocals and on various instruments. Since forming the band with Gonson, who is also manager, in 1990, the Magnetic Fields released five albums and an EP to critical acclaim and underground devotion. By the end of the 1990s, Merritt was clearly becoming an interesting figure in the underground scene, especially in his native New York City as he and Gonson are openly gay. Then in 1999, Merritt and the Magnetic Fields released their most ambitious work to date, a three-CD box set of material devoted to love simply titled 69 Love Songs.

The concept of 69 Love Songs is simple, a collection of songs about love, it's joy and disappointments. Played in a variety of styles led mostly by synth-pop songs plus dabbles of country, rock, R&B, folk, and experimental music, a lot of the work is conceived by the extremely talented Stephin Merritt. Featuring several collaborators including accordion player Daniel Handler and vocalists LD Beghtol, Dudley Klute, and Shirley Simms. 69 Love Songs is an adventurous collection of songs about love in all of its wittiness and complications. While it's a three-disc collection, some songs do stand out on their own in its various formats. That doesn't mean some songs aren't meant to be overlooked. Some cuts do stand out on their own but played as an album or a box set, the album as a whole forgets the sum of its parts. Then there's short cuts that might be described as filler but as part of the album, it provides a sense of relief into the silliness on the subject of love. Particularly since each disc contains 23 tracks.

Vol. 1

The first disc is filled with an array of songs ranging from acoustic ballads like All My Little Words, I Don't Believe In The Sun, Boa Constrictor, Nothing Matters When We're Dancing, and the wonderfully descriptive The Book Of Love that is led by Merritt's haunting baritone. The synth-pop suites like The Luckiest Guy On The Lower East Side, My Sentimental Melody, Let's Pretend We’re Bunny Rabbits, and Sweet-Lovin' Man show the full range of synth-pop in its most experimental and melodic. Notably Sweet-Lovin' Man led by the amazing vocals of Claudia Gonson who also shines in the brief, banjo-ditty Reno Dakota that features amazing playing by John Woo. Vocalist LD Beghtol also shines in the eerie My Sentimental Melody and the melancholic All My Little Words. Some songs like Let's Pretend We're Bunny Rabbits and I Don't Want To Get Over You are catchy that they’re filled with wonderful imagery, especially Let's Pretend We're Bunny Rabbits which is inspiring in its lyrics to put on bunny suits.

Vol. 2

The second disc is more synth-pop driven with a full suite of catchy synth-pop tunes like If You Don't Cry, You're My Only Home, My Only Friend, Promises of Eternity, and Long-Forgotten Fairytale. If You Don't Cry is a real standout thanks to Gonson's dreamy vocals and Long-Forgotten Fairytale has a catchy melody that is a great track to listen to in a roller rink. There's also more country-inspired tracks from Papa Was A Rodeo and Kiss Me Like You Mean It both featuring vocals from Shirley Simms. The album opens with the atmospheric Roses led by LD Beghtol that segues into the jazz-idiosyncracies of Love Is Like Jazz. Rock is featured more in songs like (Crazy For You But) Not That Crazy, Epitaph For My Heart, Washington D.C., and When My Boy Walks Down The Street in its most conventional terms. Acoustic numbers like Time Enough For Rocking When We're Old, Asleep & Dreaming, Abigail, Belle Of Kilronan are presented in traditional formats while Grand Canyon, No One Will Ever Love You, and The Way You Say Good-Night reveal more styles of music.

Vol. 3

The third and final disc is far more diverse than the previous ones with its range from synth-pop, folk, acoustic ballads, accordion-driven tracks, electronic music, country, rock, and most of all, pop. The disc's biggest standout tracks are the Bo Diddley-rhythm, country romp of I'm Sorry I Love You, the acoustic ballad Acoustic Guitar, the electro-reggae of It's A Crime, the dreamy guitar wash pop of Yeah! Oh, Yeah!, the hypnotic theremin-led Blue You, the Badlands-inspired The Night You Can't Remember, and the circus-melodic of Zebra which closes everything. The disc features a lot more ranging from the piano-ballad Busby Berkeley Dream to experimental collages like Experimental Love Music and Underwear along with psychedelic textures in The Death Of Ferdinand de Saussure. Gonson shines on songs like Yeah! Oh, Yeah!, Acoustic Guitar, and Zebra while Simms ruled on I'm Sorry I Love You leaving most of the cuts to Merritt while Dudley Klute hypnotizes everyone in Blue You and It's A Crime.

There are so many songs to cover but not enough time yet all of them have something to offer. Lyrically, there Merritt explores all the ideas of love like ageism in Time Enough For Rocking When We're Old to breaking up in I Don't Want To Get Over You. The main theme of love is dominant throughout the entire album, even in the shortest tracks of Punk Love and Experimental Love Music might seem like fillers but they're fun to listen to. Yet there are some great songs that feature great lyrics. Here is a sampler of some of these tracks, three from each disc:

Not for all the tea in China
not if I could sing like a bird
not for all North Carolina
not for all my little words
not if I could write for you
the sweetest song you ever heard
It doesn't matter what I do
not for all my little words

-All My Little Words

The book of love has music in it
In fact that's where music comes from
Some of it is just transcendental
Some of it is just really dumb
but I...
I love it when you sing to me
And you...
You can sing me anything

-The Book Of Love

For the love of a sweet-lovin' man
some have traveled far and wide
some of have given up and died
For the love of a sweet-lovin' man
some have broken down and cried
some have turned to dust inside
but I'll stay right here and hide
in the arms of my sweet-lovin' man

-Sweet Lovin' Man

Dying all day in thousands of little ways
Dancing alone and drinking a lot
Closing the clubs and haunting the cabarets
looking for what
Another five years off your life...
A year goes by
She doesn't...
If you don't cry, it isn't love
If you don't cry
then you just don't feel it deep enough

-If You Don't Cry

And a long-forgotten fairytale is in your eyes again
And I'm caught inside a dream world where the colors are too intense
And nothing is making sense

-Long-Forgotten Fairytale

Papa was a rodeo, Mama was a rock n' roll band
I could play guitar and rope a steer
before I learned to stand
Home was anywhere with diesel gas
Love was a trucker's hand
Never stuck around long enough for a one-night stand
Before you kiss me, you should now
Papa was a rodeo

-Papa Was A Rodeo

A single rose in your garden dwells
Like any rose it's not itself
It is my love in your garden grows
but let's pretend it's just a rose
Well I'm sorry that I love you
It's a phase I'm going through
There is nothing that I can do
and I'm sorry that I love you

-I'm Sorry I Love You

Acoustic guitar, if you think I play heard
well, you could have belonged to Steve Earle
or Charo or GWAR
I could sell you tomorrow
so bring me back my girl
You'd better bring me back my girl

-Acoustic Guitar

If you really loved me, you'd buy me a beautiful pearl
but you've already bought me all the pearls in the world
so there's one thing I crave when my days become ho-hum and blah
I want a zebra

-Zebra

Those are just examples of Merritt's brilliance as a lyricist. They're all filled with imagination and cleverness through the catchiness of pop tunes. It's not just a three-CD album of love song but great love songs. Anyone interested in the works of the Magnetic Fields or Stephin Merritt himself should get all three of these records. Whether as a box set or through separate CDs, it's an experience that is indescribable to listen to. Anyone wants funny, touching stories of love, get 69 Love Songs.

The Magnetic Fields Reviews: (Distant Plastic Trees) - (The Wayward Bus) - (The House of Tomorrow EP) - (Holiday) - (The Charm of the Highway Strip) - (Get Lost) - (i) - (Distortion) - (Realism)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Magnetic Fields-69 Love Songs Vol. 3

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/14/06.

The third and final volume of the 69 Love Songs opens with the bass-heavy Underwear with its droning bass and Stephin Merritt's baritone vocals as he sings about the joy of seeing pretty people in their underwear as he sings a French chorus with smooth, metallic beats. It's A Crime is a reggae-inspired track in terms of its rhythms and melodies while it's mainly based on synth-pop as the track is sung by guest vocalist Dudley Klute with his soulful, ethereal vocals to Chris Ewen's bouncy arrangements. Klute sings the strange, idiosyncratic lyrics of Merritt that is filled with the disappointments of falling in love. Busby Berkeley Dreams is a simple piano ballad with the piano performed and arranged by Claudia Gonson sung by Merritt who weaves into the melancholia of love in its devastating description. I'm Sorry I Love You is a Bo Diddley-rhythmic track meets country guitars filled with thundering beats and guest vocalist Shirley Simms' raw, countrified vocals as she sings Merritt's lyrics of love at its most desperate. It’s one of the album's biggest standout tracks due to its rhythm and catchy chorus of "Well I'm sorry that I love you/It's a phase that I'm going through/There is nothing that I can do and I'm sorry that I love you".

Next is a lovely gem called Acoustic Guitar sung by Claudia Gonson who sings Merritt's weird, hilarious lyrics of being in love with an acoustic guitar. The acoustic ballad is filled with great catchy lines and how many loves songs would even mention people like Steve Earle, Charo, and GWAR? Gonson's dreamy vocals make this song one of the greatest gems in the entire album. The Death Of Ferdinand de Saussure reaches to the psychedelia of Prince's Around the World in a Day with its string arrangements and simple ode to psychedelia as Merritt leads the way with this acoustic track on lyrics about a man longing to know what love is. Love In The Shadows is a low-key electronic track filled with throbbing beats and bass-chiming synthesizers as Merritt sings very dark descriptions of love in secrecy that suggests of extramarital situations. Bitter Tears is a simple mid-tempo song filled with folk-rock textures from washy guitars from Merritt and John Woo as LD Beghtol sings the track with his more atmospheric vocals to the song's painful side of breaking up.

Wi' Nae Wee Bairn Ye'll Me Beget is a folk-inspired track led by Merritt and Woo on guitars and banjos with Sam Davol on a flute as Merritt sings an old style of British folk on the subject of reincarnation where he aims to be everything from a vampire to a cockroach which reveals Merritt's humor. Yeah! Oh, Yeah! is a guitar-wash driven track led by jangly guitar washes from Gonson, Merritt, and Woo as the song is a lovely duet between Gonson and Merritt. Gonson also does drums as she sings Merritt's lyrics of love in a dueling way as Gonson's dreamy vocals and Merritt's baritone works on all levels. Experimental Music Love is a short, experimental track where the song's title repeats in a loop to convey the band's enjoyment of experimentation. Meaningless is another Velvet Underground-inspired track in its drum settings led by Gonson's thunderous drumming and Merritt's lyrics leading towards cynicism on the ideas of love.

Love Is Like A Bottle Of Gin is a bass-driven track led by Merritt's baritone and an accompanying bass of how love can make any do stupid things in all of Merritt's strange yet funny descriptions as he compares love to many things. Queen Of The Savages is an upbeat, acoustic ditty performed by Merritt with a ukelele as he sings about a girl who is the queen of jungle as she commands her people with John Woo leading the way with a melodic guitar solo in the middle of the song. Blue You is a hypnotic, electronic track led by a theremin performed by engineer Chris Ewen as Dudley Klute sings the song in his eerie, deep vocals to Merritt's worldly lyrics as the song brings chills in its electronic presentation and Ewen's theremin as it closes with Claudia Gonson whistling to the song's eerie tone. I Can't Touch You Anymore is another electronic-inspired track with a more rhythmic track and Merritt's vocals as he reaches towards more robotic vocal ranges as he sings about love gone wrong as the track features great synthesizer melodies and electronic beats. Two Kinds Of People is a short, distorted track led by Merritt's distorted vocals and a fuzzier production with dreamy guitar melodies and Merritt's imaginative lyrics of ideal lovers.

How To Say Goodbye is a song about the aftermath of love as Merritt leans towards the pain of breaking up through a simple, mid-tempo rocker filled with guitars, bass, drums, and a bit of synthesizers in the background. The song is filled with catchy melodies and rhythms with Merritt leading the way as he brings in another great song. The Night You Can't Remember is a Badlands-inspired track in its rhythm and chiming melodies while Sam Davol accompanies the song with his cello and guest musician Daniel Handler's accordion. Merritt leads the way about the joys of love and a great night that is so great, its experience was only brief. For We Are The King Of The Boudoir is an ode to 18th Century classical music with its harpsichord and LD Beghtol's wonderful vocals that plays to the times as he sings Merritt's funny lyrics of royals as if he takes the song back in time.

Strange Eyes is a bouncy, synth-pop track filled with hypnotic rhythms and beats led by Shirley Simms' eerie, enchanting vocals to Merritt's strange lyrics of love filled with crazed metaphors as the song is perfect to Simms' vocals. Xylophone Track is a dreamy, acoustic driven track filled with dreamy guitar melodies and mandolin washes as Merritt leads the way with his blues-laden baritone as he sings a song about the sadness of love through its innocent description and subjects ranging from a mother's love to toys with an accompanying harmonium from LD Beghtol. Closing the third volume and the entire 69 Love Songs collection is Zebra. The smooth circus-rhythm track is filled with more of Merritt's idiosyncratic lyrics sung by the wonderful Claudia Gonson as she is accompanied by Daniel Handler's bouncy accordion. Gonson sings all of Merritt's lyrics of how to win someone's love as Gonson sings, "If you really loved me, you'd buy me the Great Pyramid" and closes the song with the line, "Zelda looks lonely, I want a zebra".

The Magnetic Fields Reviews: (Distant Plastic Trees) - (The Wayward Bus) - (The House of Tomorrow EP) - (Holiday) - (The Charm of the Highway Strip) - (Get Lost) - 69 Love Songs: Vol. 1 - Vol. 2 - (i) - (Distortion) - (Realism)

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Magnetic Fields-69 Love Songs Vol. 2

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/14/06

The 27-second opening track Roses arrives to open the 2nd volume of the 3-part 69 Love Songs collection by the Magnetic Fields as the vocals of guest collaborator LD Beghtol arrives with his ethereal vocals to Fields' leader Stephin Merritt's quirky, strange lyrics about millionaires. Next is Love Is Like Jazz sung by Merritt in this strange, jazz-inspired track filled with rhythms and Daniel Handler's offbeat, accordion melody. Merritt's lyrics are far more idiosyncratic as he sings in his baritone-like vocals as he plays a jazz-like bass line with Claudia Gonson's abstract percussion with references to Strange Fruit and other jazz-filled love lyrics. When My Boy Walks Down The Street is a mid-tempo, Velvet Underground-inspired track with washy, droning guitar riffs and echo, reverb drums from Gonson as Merritt and Woo wail on the guitars to Merritt's more high-pitch vocals as he sings about a boy he loves as this song is one of the few detours to rock.

Time Enough For Rocking When We're Old is a nice, little acoustic number with arpeggios with Merritt's baritone with his innocent, descriptive lyrics of old love and ageism that is filled with catchy lyrics in its imagery. Very Funny is an amazing piano ballad arranged by Gonson who leads on piano to Dudley Klute's ethereal, soulful vocals that is sung well to Merritt's sad, longing lyrics that speaks love to its truest form. Grand Canyon is a strange mix of electronic textures and acoustic arrangements in Merritt's ode to love with his imaginative lyrics referencing to Paul Bunyan with melodic, synthesizer textures playing in the background. No One Will Ever Love You is an R&B-inspired track with its smooth rhythms and reverb guitar melodies sung by guest vocalist Shirley Simms whose enchanting vocals are wonderfully sung to Merritt's lyrics of desperation and longing.

If You Don't Cry is a bouncy, melodic synth-pop track sung by Claudia Gonson's robotic yet dreamy vocals as she sings to Merritt's spacey vocals that are filled with the disappointments of love as she sings the chorus, "An hour goes by, she doesn't/If you don't cry, it isn't love/If you don't cry, then you just don't feel it deep enough". You're My Only Home is another synth-driven track led by droning synthesizer melodies and Merritt's baritone vocals as he sings more desperate lyrics of love and the flaws of one person. (Crazy For You But) Not That Crazy is another synth-driven track led by an electric bass from Merritt and Woo’s melodic guitar as Merritt retreats to the innocence of love as the song yields back to straight-ahead melodic rock with touches of synth-pop. My Only Friend is a short, two-minute track led by speedy piano melodies and electronic backgrounds as Merritt sings his sad lyrics of love as he calls for Lady Day as the song reaches to the depth of pain.

The pain reaches a higher level with the synth-driven Promises Of Eternity with arrangements by guest collaborator Chris Ewen as Merritt sings the song with his desperate, powerful baritone in an angst that isn't heard in many pop songs. Merritt's lyrics are filled with great imagination as he even pulls our references to some movies ranging from Fellini to Blake Edwards. World Love returns to more vibrant rhythms in its acoustic setting of guitars and percussions with Merritt's description of a world tour of love as if this song was a less idealistic but more realistic cousin of songs that says love makes the world go round. Washington D.C. is lovely melodic-rock pop tune with an opening cheer of "W, ASH, ING, TON baby, D.C" as Gonson bangs on the drums and sings the song with her dreamy vocals for the innocence of falling in love in the nation’s capital. Long-Forgotten Fairytale is another melodic-driven synth-pop track filled with descriptive innocence of love with bouncy, whip-hitting beats and melodic riffs to Dudley Klute's robotic, droning vocals as he sings of Merritt's child-like lyrics that is like a fairytale. This song is perfect to listen to if anyone is in a roller-rink on a fast circle thanks to its robotic, bouncy melodies.

Kiss Me Like You Mean It is a short, acoustic song sung by Shirley Simms that is an ode to old, country ballads in its lyrics and Simms' vocals as Merritt plays a ukelele. Papa Was A Rodeo is another country-inspired song of sorts in its tone with its slow, dreamy guitar melodies and bass lines as Merritt sings many of the song's verses. The song is sung from a guy to a guy as it could be a lost song for Brokeback Mountain with the final verse sung by Shirley Simms as this song is a nice take on country in its unique way. Epitaph For My Heart starts off with a dreamy section of caution through high-pitch vocals as it segues to a more straightforward, washy pop tune of guitars and drums with Merritt going into his usual baritone with his melancholic lyrics of love. Asleep And Dreaming is an accordion-driven track performed mostly by Daniel Handler’s whose dreamy arrangements lead the way for Merritt's melancholic lyrics and vocal delivery.

The Sun Goes Down And The World Goes Dancing is a return to more basic instruments with its mid-tempo percussions and John Woo's banjo playing with the background of shimmering synthesizer melodies. Merritt reaches now to the song's more upbeat tone of love with his innocent lyrics as he goes out and have fun. The Way You Say Good-Night is led by Sam Davol's menacing cello playing as he accompanies Beghtol's ethereal vocals as he sings more of Merritt's descriptive lyrics of love that features great lyrics like "The stars begin their Busby Berkeley dance: 'The Way You Say Good-Night' and the night becomes... a musical extravaganza" as song leads the way in its eerie, hypnotic cello playing. Abigail, Belle Of Kilronan is a wonderful acoustic track as Merritt plays the straight man to this song about a woman named Abigail in this folk-inspired tune with wonderful lyrics about the woman and where she’s from. I Shatter closes the 2nd volume of 69 Love Songs with Merritt's distorted, robotic vocals as he is accompanied by scratchy violin tracks performed by Sam Davol as he sings about love's fragility.

The Magnetic Fields Reviews: (Distant Plastic Trees) - (The Wayward Bus) - (The House of Tomorrow EP) - (Holiday) - (The Charm of the Highway Strip) - (Get Lost) - 69 Love Songs: Vol. 1 - Vol. 3 - (i) - (Distortion) - (Realism)

(C) thevoid99 2011