The Beatle's Best Three Albums

I'm a Beatles fanatic. I own every single album The Beatles ever released (including The Beatles Anthology series and Love.) I will be purchasing both The Beatles Mono Box Set & The Beatles Stereo Box Set the day they are released on September 9, 2009. In fact, I've actually already pre-ordered both of them even though the combined price is nearly $500! Needless to say I think every single Beatles album is essential.

But that doesn't mean I think they are all of the same quality. And that doesn't mean that I would recommend that a new Beatles fan listen to their music in chronological order. I've heard some suggest that as a good way to introduce someone to The Beatles and I don't agree at all. I think that would likely turn off many potential fans who would think that their earlier material isn't that great. I think one can come to appreciate The Beatles earlier albums more so if they are first introduced to the stuff that is more relevant today.

When it comes down to it, there are some Beatles albums that stand above the rest. If I had to select just three of The Beatles albums with me in a deserted island scenario I would select The White Album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, & Revolver.

1. The White Album

My absolute first selection would be The White Album (which is officially titled The Beatles.) It wouldn't be only because it's a double album which includes a total of 30 tracks, although that is a reasonable thing to consider in such a situation.

What I really love about this album is the incredible variety. So many different styles of music can be heard on this album and they are all done perfectly in my opinion.

There's the heavy rock of "Helter Skelter" and the beautiful "Blackbird." There's the down home story teller's classic that is "Rocky Raccoon" and also the abstract brilliance of "Happiness is a Warm Gun" which combines three song segments into one of The Beatles most interesting songs. There's George Harrison coming into his own as a songwriter with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and John Lennon pushing the boundaries of what music is with the avant garde "Revolution #9."

In short, this album has it all. It includes all of the elements that makes The Beatles music so timeless. The elements that make their music eternally relevant. While it may not necessarily be the best album to introduce new fans to The Beatles music because it's not as consistant or coherent as Revolver or Abbey Road, to me and to many other long time fans, it's the best album they ever recorded.

2. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

People have been calling this album "overrated" for so long that I now believe it to be underrated. While it's probably singled out too often by some as being The Beatles first "artistic statement" (that's a disservice to Revolver & Rubber Soul), I think it's also singled out too often by certain groups (ie: "hipsters") as being overrated when it really is an amazing album that is filled with brilliant ideas.

This album has the variety of The White Album squished into 13 tracks instead of 30. It has far more coherence than the other two albums on this list, although I think it's place in the history of "concept albums" is probably somewhat overstated.

It includes some of The Beatles most timeless songs including the incredible album closer "A Day in the Life" and the quintessential psychedelic song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." It also includes the most perfect song ever written for Ringo Starr to sing: "With a Little Help From My Friends" and I far prefer the Ringo sung original to the over the top Joe Cocker version heard on Wonder Years.

One of the greatest elements of this remarkable album are Paul McCartney's bass parts. McCartney was an extremely creative bassist who worked relentlessly to get down the perfect parts. The bass was mixed was more prominently in this album than was the norm for rock albums at that time, because of that these great bass parts are quite easy to hear if you listen for them. I definitely suggest that the next time you put Sgt. Pepper on that you take a close listen to McCartney's great bass parts.

3. Revolver

It's become so hip to say that Revolver is The Beatles best album that conversely I think it's actually become slightly overrated recently. But that's not to say I don't think it's a great album, obviously I do as I'm placing it above other great Beatles classics such as Abbey Road & Rubber Soul.

Like the other two albums on this list, Revolver brings the variety in spades. I think that's a big part of what makes their albums so endlessly listenable. As much as I love The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and The Who, I think their stuff doesn't stay quite as fresh as The Beatles does with repeat listens because there's not nearly as much variety in style on their albums.

I think one can make a strong argument that Revolver is The Beatles most consistantly great album. It has no weak songs in my opinion. It's also the beginning of The Beatles really starting to use the studio as an instrument, the most obvious example of that being the groundbreaking techniques used on "Tomorrow Never Knows."

While I said earlier that Harrison came into his own as a songwriter in 1968 with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," I think that's actually a bit unfair to some of his earlier songs including the great three songs he wrote for this album: "Taxman," "Love You To," & "I Want to Tell You." That being said there's no doubt that Lennon & McCartney were the real stars of this album.

McCartney wrote some of his greatest songs for Revolver including "Eleanor Rigby," "Here, There, & Everywhere," "For No One," & the Ringo sung "Yellow Submarine." Lennon brought the acid rock with "She Said She Said" & "Dr. Robert." Lennon also wrote "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "I'm Only Sleeping" which are both among my favorites (and that's saying a lot.)