Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band review

Now this is a big one. The 8th studio album by The Beatles is one of the first concept albums, one of the first art rock albums, is credited with starting the album era, is one of the best-selling albums ever and in terms of both being influential and critical acclaim, few, if any, albums can match this one. It is also number one of Rolling Stone's '500 Greatest Albums of All Time'.

Tracks:

1. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band: 8/10 while only a prologue, this is still both the most important conceptual part of the album and a fun rock song on its own.

2. With a Little Help from My Friends: 10/10 a fantastically catchy tribute to friendship boasting a surprisingly excellent vocal performance from Ringo Starr.

3. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds: 10/10 a brilliant trip through some of the best psychedelic imagery ever and a fantastic, wonderfully unique instrumental.

4. Getting Better: 9/10 with more music which makes you wonder how they created such brilliant sounds in the sixties and an intelligent mix of optimism and cynicism, this is an album highlight.

5. Fixing a Hole: 8/10 an underrated track, this boasts more unique sounds and is a pleasingly calming and tranquil experience.

6. She's Leaving Home: 9/10 not a cheerful listen, but a beautiful and melancholy song that could be justifiably described as a tear-jerker.

7. Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite!: 8/10 a weird and wonderful song with one of the most complex technical  productions on the album. Not bad for something written word for word from a circus poster.

8. Within You Without You: 7/10 an interesting exploration of a foreign musical style with some good lyrics, but the song is a little dull and the lyrics are difficult to hear.

9. When I'm Sixty Four: 8/10 less exciting than the rest of the album, but a lovely little song nonetheless.

10. Lovely Rita: 8/10 the intro is absolutely unreal and the rest of the song's not bad either, even if it loses some momentum in the second half.

11. Good Morning Good Morning: 7/10 more of a generic rock song but it still offers some fun Lennon cynicism.

12. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise): 8/10 just a bridge between 2 tracks, but as bridges go it's very good.

13. A Day in the Life: 7/10 the most overrated song by The Beatles. It's a technical marvel with a fabulous outro, but a car crash, a cinema trip, a thoroughly annoying Paul McCartney verse and some holes in a road don't really say anything, and it fails to mix art and entertainment like the rest of the album does.

Best song: Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Worst song: Within You Without You

Summary: I do see this album as overrated. The second half fails to reach the momentum of the first half and looking at the album as a track listing rather than a whole, it immediately becomes clear that this just doesn't quite represent the best of The Beatles. However, this does not mean for one second that I don't absolutely love this album. It is a brilliant work. Every song is unique and wonderful-sounding, the entire record is filled with art and in terms of technical skill it really is a masterpiece. The concept itself isn't even a big part of the record, but it's still just another innovative, spectacular element of the record. It's status as the most influential album of all time is justified, even if it isn't quite The Beatles' best album.




Final rating: 9/10