Rubber Soul vs Pet Sounds vs Revolver vs Smile vs Sgt Pepper

Rubber Soul....

 

I far prefer an autoloader.

Revolver is an excellent album however.

 

It's gotta be Rubber Soul. One of my favorite albums ever.

 

I think that 45 years down the road, Revolver stands out because the songwriting is so strong. Paul, in particular, was at his peak as a songwriter. He did some great things, but the ability to dash off ballads with the melodic and lyrical strength of Here There and Everywhere, For No One, and Eleanor Rigby was, in retrospect, amazing. The mono version of the album sounds better to me. I never liked the odd mixes, especially mixing snare drum and snare drum overdub to different channels in Good Day Sunshine.

 

Do you mean with regards to the opinions?

I find it very surprising that Pet Sounds isn't in 1st or 2nd place also, if that was what you meant.

 

It has always interested me how the same person who wrote the words to "For No One" and "Eleanor Rigby" later struggled (or no longer cared) to match his brilliant melodies with decent lyrics.

But man, "For No One" is some good stuff right there packed in 2 minutes.

 

I wonder if "Rubber Soul" is also often rated so superlatively because people are still thinking of the 12-track U.S. version? I think that the 14-track U.K. "Rubber Soul" is sprawling and overlong (yes, even at 36 minutes), musically kind of all over the place, enjoyable to listen to and undeniably great but not really leaving you all that excited at the end of it. The 12-track U.S. version makes some critical substitutions, creating an album that's shorter, tighter, achieves a more unified sound, and is much more exciting to listen to.

 

Revolver.

Definitely.

(though Rubber Soul is a brilliant album, too...)

 

When Paul was inspired he could turn out some great lyrics.

 

Possibly. On a not unrelated side note, I have the US version of The Rolling Stones' Aftermath which has Paint it Black in place of Mother's Little Helper, along with other changes. Is the UK version generally more favoured?

 

Thanks god there aren't any Beach Boys fanboys in this forum.

 

It doesn't look like there's a definitive opinion on this one. Scanning through opinions on this board, it's almost like it's Coke and Pepsi. That said, I don't think there's a definitive opinion on the U.S. and U.K. versions of "Rubber Soul", either.

I kind of prefer the U.S. tracklisting myself. In either incarnation, I think "Aftermath" is overrated; while it's good enough to be worthwhile, I wouldn't put it in the same league as the albums named in the title of this thread. But I also tend to feel that way about mid-period Rolling Stones (1966-67) in general, so take that with a grain of salt. I love the early R&B period, and the classic run from "Beggars Banquet" to "Exile on Main Street" is amazing, but the middle period seems kind of confused, a band that isn't exactly sure what it is trying to do.

If you want to get into nitty-gritty details of how the CDs sound and how the tracks overlap with what's available and not available on other CDs, lukpac has an outstanding FAQ at

http://www.lukpac.org/stereostones/stones-cd-faq.txt

One issue that's relevant: is your version of "Aftermath" (U.S.) the original Abkco CD? If so, it's worth picking up a different version. I have the original "West German" London CD (which is the U.K. version), and it sounds miles better; it's got a different mix and sounds completely different. I don't have the 2002 remaster of either version, but that is supposed to be really good, too.

 

I think many would agree with you, myself included; to me the late 60s/early 70s was the Rolling Stones' absolute peak - despite releasing their first album only a year after the Beatles', it took several years for them to really catch up with the Fabs in the songwriting stakes. Having said that, I'm probably not as big a fan of the Stones as you - Let it Bleed and Sticky Fingers are virtually flawless masterpieces, but I find Beggars Banquet and Exile in Main Street a bit uneven in quality (and in the latter case, poorly produced) - they're very good, as is Aftermath, but in their different ways those three are pretty interchangeable in quality for me.

You mean this one from Discogs? That's the one I have. Thanks.

 

The Abkco "Aftermath" that I was describing as the "bad" one is the original Abkco CD from the mid-'80s. That was the version I had for years. The one you linked to on Discogs--the one you've got--is the remaster, which I haven't heard but (according to lukpac's FAQ) is supposed to be good.

It's funny--you like the Stones' classic-era output in roughly the opposite order that I do--I'd put "Exile" and "Beggars" ahead of "Sticky" and "Bleed". They're all brilliant, though.

 

Revolver.

Best. Album. Ever.

 

Classic!



I don't honestly know if I can vote. I love all 5 of these just about equally.

That said, I tend to come back to Revolver the most!

 

Pepper's always

 

rubber soul.

 

amazing even rubber Soul is beating Pet Sounds

 

I'm no Beatles expert, but I've always felt that Rubber Soul simply had better songs than Revolver.

Revolver is viewed as a huge artistic leap for sure - but as far as musical enjoyment, I just liked Rubber Soul quite a lot more.

Am I crazy for saying this?

 

Rubber Soul

 

a Beatle Fan must have put this poll together ,only two Beach Boys Lps to three
Beatles Lps, wheres Today to Rubber Soul that at least makes sense

 

It's so easy...



"Rubber Soul"

 

Pet Sounds
then
2. Revolver
3. Smile and Pepper's
5. Rubber Soul

 

Sorry but The Beatles are the greatest band of all time. Even if they are not your favorite (and they aren't mine) Can you name any other band in history that had the combination popularity, historical importance, musical ability, and influence The Beatles had?

The Beatles are the greatest band ever because their influence was in-calculable.

Oh and the music intended for Smile is the greatest ever, but as Smile is not finished Pet Sounds is the best album