FanNation - The Republic of Sport

 

The date: August 8th, 1969. The location: a pedestrian crossing outside of Abbey Road Studios. The importance: it is here that the famous cover photograph of Abbey Road is being taken; not in the Himalaya Mountains as had been suggested, but on an ordinary street crosswalk.

But the ones in the photo are not ordinary. Many would say that they are the greatest band of all time. But had you known them five years earlier, you might not even recognize them. George Harrison has grown his dark brown hair long, and sports a full beard. Paul McCartney has let his once clean-cut hairsyle become messy.
Ringo Starr has swept his hair back, and now pairs two thick sideburns with a moustache. John Lennon now has a shaggy beard to go with his long brown hair.

Their looks have changed. And so has the music.

What had once been a one-dimensional band, producing predominantly love songs and ballads, has grown into a mature group of artists; each contributing diverse interests and ideas to create a band the likes of which have never been seen. Despite the major tensions in the band, they have gathered to work on their penultimate album. That album is Abbey Road.

(end of present tense intro)

While Abbey Road was, indeed, the second to last album released, it was actually the last album started. Most people agree that Abbey Road exhibits the growth that The Beatles had experienced since their early days. They still wrote about love, but it was no longer in short, two-minute tracks. Their skill and mastery of rhythm and melody were at their peak. Quite obviously, The Beatles had evolved into more intelligent and creative songwriters.

There has always been a mystique around the famed Abbey Road album. It is greatly due to the strange cover photo. Is Paul dead? If not, then why is he out of step with the others? Why is he barefooted? Why are his eyes closed? Isn't it possible that John symbolizes God, Ringo the undertaker, Paul the corpse, and George the gravedigger? These questions and more abound when looking at the details of the cover. Whether they have any truth to them is unknown.

The music itself, however, is the main focus of this album. The track listing is as follows:

1. Come Together - 4:20
2. Something - 3:03
3. Maxwell's Silver Hammer - 3:27
4. Oh! Darling - 3:26
5. Octopus's Garden - 2:51
6. I Want You (She's So Heavy) - 7:47
7. Here Comes the Sun - 3:05
8. Because - 2:45
9. You Never Give Me Your Money - 4:02
10. Sun King - 2:26
11. Mean Mr. Mustard - 1:06
12. Polythene Pam - 1:12
13. She Came in Through the Bathroom Window - 1:57
14. Golden Slumbers - 1:31
15. Carry That Weight - 1:36
16. The End - 2:19
17. Her Majesty - 0:23

Time to press play.

1. "Come Together"

The first track begins in a strange way. The sounds are difficult to comprehend, but according to what I've read, John Lennon mutters "Shoot me," followed by hand claps. The fading in and fading out of the pattering drums adds an interesting effect. The lyrics, like in many songs of the later part of The Beatles' career, are bizarre. But somehow, they make sense.

"He say 'One and one and one is three'
Got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see"

The first line is actually true (1+1+1=3), and the second is a clever pun. Overall, a classic song.

5/5

2. "Something"

In my opinion, this is George Harrison's finest song. The bass is great through the whole song. Sometimes, I wish this song were a bit longer, since it's so slow and graceful.

5/5

3. "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"

John Lennon once described this song as McCartney's "granny-style" music. I see what he means. This track is really nothing of what would be considered a classic, fantastic work of music. But I like it. While it is a ballad about a serial killer, its tune is bouncy and upbeat. Not great, but a fun song, nonetheless.

3.5/5

4. "Oh! Darling"

With this song, the album switches to a slower, more bluesy pace. "Oh! Darling" is an interesting song. McCartney exerts extra passion into it. The bass controlls most of the melody while the guitar adds accents to each measure.

4/5

5. "Octopus's Garden"

Many serious Beatles fans believe this song, like "Yellow Submarine" on Revolver, should have been left off the album entirely. But I disagree. One, it gives Ringo some time in the spotlight, and two, it shows that The Beatles never took themselves too seriously. They were focused musicians, but they liked to have some fun every once in a while. And what's more fun than an octopus's garden? I can't think of anything. Seriously. What could be better than this?

3.5/5

6. "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"

This is a marathon of a song, with a rather pessimistic dreariness to it. The entire song is basically the same idea, said over and over. See for yourself. But the music is great, though dramatic and in bluesy, depressing style. As the song nears the end (from about 4:37 on), a static-like roar builds and builds, until the song comes to a sudden halt. It's certainly not bad, but it's not as good as some other tracks on here.

3.5/5

7. "Here Comes the Sun"

The second of two Harrison contributions, this one has a great backing melody. It always seems to (ahem) brighten my day.

Wow. Did I just say that? Ugh...

4.5/5

8. "Because"

This song... kind of strange. It's like a dream, or something. But it works because the harmony sounds great, though the song has a haunting sound to it.

3.5/5


Halve Thyme.

This is not the break between sides on the original record. However, the songs from this point onward are known as the Abbey Road suite. Each one runs into the next, most of which are intertwined with the others.


9. "You Never Give Me Your Money"

The massive medley begins with quiet piano and bass, and the soft voice of McCartney. He sings a couple of verses before the pounding piano and drums lead into a different style. McCartney's voice is now deeper and sounds like he's not singing directly into the microphone; like he's singing from a radio or through something that alters his voice. Whatever it is, it works. It ends with the seemingly random repeated line,

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
All good children go to heaven."

4.5/5

10. "Sun King"

The Sun King in history was King Louis XIV of France, but it is unclear if The Beatles are referencing him. The slow, low, cool, and calm feel of this song is more of an introduction to the next song than a song by itself. That's not to say that Mean Mr. Mustard is the Sun King, but it just flows really well into the next track.

3.5/5

11. "Mean Mr. Mustard"

This track begins with a couple drum beats followed by back-and-forth rhythm and makes use of many rhymes.

4/5

12. "Polythene Pam"

This track begins with a bold guitar, and continues with a quick tempo until it blends seamlessly into the next song. But it's really nothing special on its own.

3/5

13. "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window"

The song makes a transition to a slower pace, and this song lasts a little longer than the two previous. The lead guitar and bass play off one another in a great way.

4.5/5

14. "Golden Slumbers"

The piano begins the song, again with soft vocals from McCartney. The song builds as drums are added, and McCartney's voice alternates from bold to gentle.

4/5

15. "Carry That Weight"

This is one of the few songs in Beatles history in which all four members sing together at the same time. A brass fanfare is countered by Harrison's bluesy interlude. The song returns to the style of "You Never Give Me Your Money," and a sadder feel becomes more apparent. Then, there is a return to the chorus of

"Boy!
You're going to carry that weight,
Carry that weight,
Carry that weight a long time!"

As the song ends, the guitar sounds almost like a question...

4.5/5

16. "The End"

As if to answer, the guitar responds with two pairs of rising bursts of sound. After a short guitar intro, Ringo takes center stage with a short, but fantastic, drum solo. The pattern occurs again, but this time, Ringo's solo lasts for a full 15 seconds. Then, we hear a great solo from Harrison. It's as if everyone is taking a solo before the end of the album. But before you know it, the upbeat tempo is gone, and replaced by a piano. Then McCartney utters the words referenced on Saturday Night Live's fictional Chris Farley Show.

"And, in the end,
The love you take
Is equal to the love
You make."

5/5


17. "Her Majesty"

"Her Majesty," considered the first hidden track, is really not a much of a song, but it's a nice little ditty. However, I would have preferred it if the album had ended with the fitting closer, "The End."

3.5/5



Average of song ratings: 4.1/5

Actual rating of album: 5/5

Favorite Tracks:

5. "Here Comes the Sun"

4. "You Never Give Me Your Money" (video is not full song)

3. "Come Together"

2. "Something"

1. "The End"

Final Thoughts.

I can't lie. This album is a 5 out of 5. Call me a "Beatles homer" if you want. The song ratings don't tell the whole story, which is why there's a difference of .9 between the average of the ratings and the actual rating. Listening to this album as I reviewed it only reaffirmed that this is an amazing album. There are no bad songs here. The reputation it has earned in the music world is well-deserved. It's amazing that a band that could barely stand to work together could produce an album so great as this, but The Beatles accomplished it. This album will never be forgotten as one of the greatest works by the greatest band of all time.