This is a soundtrack and singles compilation released from
The Beatles. It was released in 1967. It was released in two formats. In the UK it was
released as a double EP soundtrack for the movie of the same name. In the US it was
released as a 12” album. All of the tracks from the UK double EP were on side A and a
short compilation of non-album singles are on the B side of the album. It has
become widely accepted that the US
version is the standard version. Although the movie was a complete failure the
soundtrack was a huge success. At one point a couple years ago I went crazy
looking for the albums on vinyl. This was probably the summer before the albums
were remixed and released in 09. I found about half of them used and the others
in new shrink from the 87 CD remixes. This album was one of the ones that I got
in new shrink. I can’t really say if the 87 CD remix versions of the albums are
better or worse than the originals. Either way the record sounds good to me.
There are no pops or crackles that happen when I play it. It actually made a
better MP3 copy of the album better because of this. I love all of the tracks
on the album on top of this. This is my second favorite album that The Beatles
put out. I am not a hard core fan but those that are would probably call me
crazy for thinking that. Anyway, The very first track is the title track for
the album, Magical Mystery Tour. I love how the song starts off with a short
fanfare then comes down to what the song really is. The song takes off on a
good beat and continues on with the fun. It reminds me of a circus a little bit
in the way it tries to get the kiddies and adults interested. The next one of
my favorites from the album is the song Blue Jay Way. The song plods away with
organ and stringed instruments then the bass guitar plucks in with the drums
following. The vocals are very dreamy sounding with what sounds like a chorus
pedal on them. It really reminds me of getting ready for bed as a kid, in that
sleepy haze when one of your parents is putting you to sleep because you have fallen
asleep watching TV or on the way home from a party that your parents wish they
could have gone to alone. The other track that I really liked from the A side
of the record (the EP side) is I Am The Walrus. The song reminds me of
something that would have been designed to make kids happy but the lyrical
content is pushed more for the young adult and older. I thought that it was
interesting to learn that Lennon composed the song by combining three songs he
had been working on. When he learned that a teacher at his old primary school
was having his students analyze Beatles' lyrics, he added a verse of nonsense
words. On the B side (non-album singles) I find that Strawberry Fields Forever
is just a perfect song. The song is inspired by Lennon's memories of playing in
the garden of a Salvation Army house named "Strawberry Field" near
his childhood home. I think that the idea is portrayed adequately in the song
and is part of why I like it. It reminds me of playing in the woods or nearby
fields of the campground that my family went to every weekend. They are happy
times for me and that is how I feel about the song too. The last song from the
album that I really like is the last song on the b side of the album, All You
Need Is Love. The Beatles were asked to come up with a song containing a simple
message to be understood by all nationalities. The BBC had commissioned The
Beatles to write a song for the United
Kingdom's contribution to the Our World
television broadcast in 1967. It was meant to be a simple direct slogan to the
world. The song reminds me of my mother who always believed that love could
solve almost all problems in life. The song was just that simple, all you need
is love. It is a perfect end to the album truly. This collection of songs will
always have a special place in my heart, because of my mother and because of
the time. Although I was not born at this time I know the songs very well. I do
recommend this album if not for the singles on the B side of the album then for
the childlike atmosphere on the A side of the album.
I recently purchased this compilation for a couple of
tracks. There are actually a few EPs included in this package if you want to
get them with out spending an arm and a leg trying to find them on vinyl. It is
a two disk collection released this year in preparation for the upcoming
remixes of the two full length albums. I have already reviewed these EPs in
past posts but I will list the EPs that are contained on the compilation. The
first EP that is included on the collection is called You Made Me Realize.
There are five tracks on this EP. The second is Feed Me With Your Kiss. There
are four tracks on this EP. The third EP is called the Glider EP. There are
four tracks on this EP as well. The second disk starts out with The Tremolo EP.
There are Four songs from this EP. Now, The reason that I had to get this two
disc set was, A to have the two instrumental tracks that were originally
released as a bonus 7” included with their first album, Isn’t Anything, and B
to get my hands on a few alternate mixed tracks and three other unreleased
tracks that are included on the end of the second disk. The two instrumental
tracks were only released as a bonus 7” on the initial release of the first
album. I had been looking for them as a download of some sort for some time but
could only find the second one of the two. I have listened to it and it is very
interesting but the first of the two instrumentals is much more elegant than
the second and I am very happy that I now have a copy of both of them. The full
length version of Glider is after these two instrumentals. This version of the
track was only found on the remix 12” of Soon as the B side track. I would love
to have the A side of this 12” but have not gotten around to it yet. This full
length version of Glider is a ten minuet track of droning drawn out from the
original three minute standard version. It is for sure not a track that you
need to hear unless you are a hard core fan. When I listen to it I find my self
waiting for the song to kick in and it never does. The last few minutes of the
song just sort of fade away into oblivion. The next track, called Sugar,
originally comes from the French version of the single Only Shallow. The song
has a cool electronic drum track that is continuous through the song. The sound
reminds me of a click track but easier to listen to. For those of you who don’t
know, a click track is a musician’s marker to keep time in a song. It is
usually just as it says a click sound that is played during recording to keep
pace but is not usually a part of the song. The next song, called Angel, has
never before been released. This song reminds me of something that the group
Lush would have done. It is more straight forward than I would have expected
from the group. It is still easy to listen to though. The next song, Good For
You, has also never been released. This track is more on the jangle pop side
than I would have expected. It reminds me of something from the mid 90s. It has
distorted guitar with no lead and the vocals are more male oriented. The last
track on the compilation is called How Do You Do It. This is the last track and
was also never before released until this compilation. This last track is more
along the lines of the usual sound from the group. The different thing about
this track is the vocals. During the verse part the stand out more than I would
have expected but the chorus has heavy echo on it making it more interesting in
the contrast. There are some hard to find gems on this compilation for sure. It
is also a cheaper way to get a few of the EPs from the group. The problem is
that it was released only in the UK. You can maybe get a copy as an
import from Amazon or go over to Discogs.com and find a used copy for a couple
bucks cheaper. If you are interested in reading more about the EPs that are contained on this album you can read what I had to say about some of them here, here, and here. You can read my thoughts on their second album here. I will see if I can dissect the first album and some of the EPs in the future.
This is the tenth album from Stereolab. It was released in
2008. I got this album on vinyl when it first came out. After the release I
found out that the Japanese version had three extra tracks. I then bought the
Japanese import for those three tracks. They really make the album and that is
why I did it. I first found out about the album from my local radio station.
They were playing the song from the album called Self Portrait with
"Electric Brain". There were other songs that were played/singles
from the album as well. Those songs are Neon Beanbag, Three Women and one of
the extra tracks from the Japanese version called Spool of Collusion. The album
is standard fan fare from the group. The interesting thing about the group is
that nothing ever overlaps exactly. What I mean is that although everything
sounds similar from the group it is always new music from them. I had heard or
read somewhere that one of the members of the group had stated that their music
is like chipping a piece of the Stereolab glacier every time they make a new
song. I guess that they make music that I can depend on to always be unmistakably
theirs. That is the big reason that I like their music. It is a shame that they
are not together any longer.
Radiohead – Kid A & OK Computer (8-Bit)
I recently found, through one of the Radiohead fan sites,
that a fan had put out the full albums of both Kid A and OK Computer covered in
the 8-Bit/Chiptune genres. They are both great takes on these now classic
albums. For me the albums are so played out but I now have renewed interest in
both of the albums because of this new covered version. They are spreading over
the internet like wild fire. I got my copies as soon as I could because of the
problems that Mediafire are having with their sharing and the US government.
They are really a joy to listen to. I would recommend getting copies of both
albums as soon as possible as they may be gone from download sooner than
expected. You can “watch” them at YouTube though still.
That is all I have for now...
Remember, if you have requests for albums to be looked at just leave your ideas in the comments section.
No comments:
Post a Comment