The Beatles' "Rubber Soul" - Putting together the proper tracklist

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by yesstiles, Dec 23, 2017.

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  1. Somerset Scholar

    Somerset Scholar Ace of Spades

    Location:
    Bath
    The UK track listing was approved by The Beatles. That is my preferred track list.
     
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  2. humpf

    humpf Allowed to write something here.

    Location:
    Silesia
    Talking about possible changes, the transition from one side to the other is not exactly smooth. Adding Day Tripper and We Can Work It Out between sides could help.
     
  3. ShockControl

    ShockControl Bon Vivant and Raconteur!

    Location:
    Lotus Land
    Why have they been reissued on CD not once but twice?

    Were the paychecks that the Beatles cashed through the sales of these albums real?
     
    Last edited: Dec 26, 2017
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  4. Andreas

    Andreas Senior Member

    Location:
    Frankfurt, Germany
    Stronger according to the opinion of some people posting in this thread. If you're looking for a consensus, you will be disappointed by this thread.
     
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  5. schnitzerphilip

    schnitzerphilip "Modern Dad" Unlocked Award

    Location:
    NJ USA
    [​IMG]

    For tens of millions of Americans a) Rubber Soul is one of our favorite albums of all time and b) we only know the US Capitol version.

    So, no, there's no getting over it here in the United States.

    Asking us to live with Rubber Soul with "What Goes On" on it and without "I've Just Seen A Face" is as just a foreign concept to us as putting "All Together Now" on Sargent Pepper in place of "A Day In The Life" would be to you.
     
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  6. e.s.

    e.s. Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Oh, I’m not at all, which is why I find these kinds of threads off. Endless Monday morning quarterbacking over already great records.
     
  7. schnitzerphilip

    schnitzerphilip "Modern Dad" Unlocked Award

    Location:
    NJ USA
    Slightly different situation here, Rubber Soul as we heard it in the United States was an official release and there are more Americans used to listening to it our way then there are Europeans used to listening to it their way.

    I’m not saying the American way should be the only way but I am saying that both versions have equal amounts of credibility.
     
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  8. onionmaster

    onionmaster Tropical new waver from the future

    I did this one ages ago and I've had no reason to listen to any other variation since:

    1. We Can Work It Out
    2. Norwegian Wood
    3. You Won't See Me
    4. Nowhere Man
    5. Think For Yourself
    6. The Word

    7. What Goes On
    8. Drive My Car
    9. Day Tripper
    10. If I Needed Someone
    11. I'm Looking Through You
    12. In My Life
     
  9. Mike Bass

    Mike Bass Forum Resident

    Location:
    NY
    Side 1:
    1. Drive My Car
    2. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)
    3. You Won't See Me
    4. Nowhere Man
    5. Think For Yourself
    6. The Word
    7. Michelle

    Side 2:
    1. Day Tripper
    2. Girl
    3. I'm Looking Through You
    4. In My Life
    5. We Can Work It Out
    6. If I Needed Someone
    7. Run For Your Life
     
  10. Sheik Yerbouti

    Sheik Yerbouti Senior Member

    Location:
    Germany
    No matter how the proper or ultimate or best "Rubber Soul" tracklist should look like: I think it has to contain the US East coast stereo version of "The Word" with additional reverb. I've said it in other threads and I will repeat it here: That thing really rawks.
     
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  11. Cronverc

    Cronverc Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn,NY
    For me it's simple: if it's in any way different from what the band intended it to be - it shouldn't exist. That includes modern remixes of classic albums. That is not a question of better or worst, that is just WRONG!
     
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  12. Veech

    Veech Space In Sounds

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I would have tried an electric/rock side and an acoustic/folk side.

    Side One would have:

    Drive My Car
    You Won’t See Me
    Nowhere Man
    What Goes On
    We Can Work It Out
    Think for Yourself
    The Word
    Day Tripper

    Side Two would have:

    Norwegian Wood
    If I Needed Someone
    Girl
    Michelle
    Run for Your Life
    I’m Looking Through You
    Wait
    In My Life

    Probably mentioned earlier in the thread, I didn't check. Just a quick response with my thoughts.
     
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  13. NothingBrightAboutIt

    NothingBrightAboutIt Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    Side One

    1. "Drive My Car"
    2. "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"
    3. "You Won't See Me"
    4. "Nowhere Man"
    5. "Think For Yourself"
    6. "Michelle"
    7. "It's Only Love"

    Side Two

    1. "What Goes On"
    2. "I'm Looking Through You"
    3. "In My Life"
    4. "I've Just Seen A Face"
    5. "Wait"
    6. "If I Needed Someone"
    7. "Day Tripper"

    Alternatively, "12-Bar Original" works as a great album closer, especially if you rename it "Rubber Soul".
     
  14. ponkine

    ponkine Senior Member

    Location:
    Villarrica, Chile
    In my ideal 'Rubber Soul', I'd drop 'What Goes On' and 'Run For Your Life'. I'd add 'Day Tripper' and 'We Can Work It Out' instead

    I'd close the album with 'In My Life'

    :wave:
     
  15. Gems-A-Bems

    Gems-A-Bems Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Duke City
    The problem with that (besides the ALL CAPS!) is that would also eliminate classics like “Help!” & “Strawberry Fields Forever”, both of which were different than what the artist intended.
     
  16. My re-sequencing rules.
    #1 Where multiple lead vocalists are involved I try to spread out their songs to avoid the same lead vocalist on two or more tracks in a row.
    #2 Balance the time between Side 1 and Side 2 as much as possible to maximize bass response and fidelity as if the album was going to be released in the LP format. (All track times derived from Wikipedia.) 'I've Just Seen A Face' and 'It's Only Love' should've stayed on "Help!". There never should have been a "Yesterday and Today" so 'Drive My Car', 'Nowhere Man', 'What Goes On', and 'If I Needed Someone' stay put. I've added 'Day Tripper' and 'We Can Work It Out' as the contemporary single.
    And no '12-Bar Original'.
    PS, I grew up listening to my older sister's American copy, but I can't say I got very attached to the track listing. When I got old enough to earn my own money which was about when the UK import LPs became available, I went out and bought those. The only thing that was a bit jarring was hearing 'I'm Looking Through You' without the false starts.

    Rubber Soul
    Side 1
    Drive My Car P+J w/G 2:28
    Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) J w/P 2:05
    You Won’t See Me P w/J+G 3:22
    In My Life J w/P+G 2:28
    Think For Yourself G w/J+P 2:18
    Wait J+P 2:16
    The Word J w/P+G 2:41
    Michelle P w/J+G 2:40
    20:18
    Side 2
    Nowhere Man J w/P+G 2:44
    What Goes On R w/J+P 2:50
    We Can Work It Out P w/J 2:15
    Girl J w/P+G 2:33
    I’m Looking Through You P w/J 2:27
    Run For Your Life J w/P+G 2:18
    If I Needed Someone G w/J+P 2:23
    Day Tripper J+P w/G 2:50
    20:20
    Total 40:38
     
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  17. ralph7109

    ralph7109 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Franklin, TN
    Or....trying to get folks who grew up in the 1960’s to accept Magical Mystery Tour as a canon album.
     
  18. YpsiGypsy

    YpsiGypsy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    Here's my take on the US vs UK Beatles albums (btw I know that the thread got hijacked and I am just aiding it)

    Between these 3, US Rubber Soul, US Revolver & US Yesterday And Today, I like Yesterday And Today the best.
    Between these 3, UK Rubber Soul, UK Revolver & US Yesterday And Today, I like Revolver the best

    I would add We Can Work It Out last song side one and Day Tripper first song side one and move Drive My Car first song side two on the UK album
     
  19. beatleroadie

    beatleroadie Forum Resident

    I think "The Word" makes a stronger opener than "Drive My Car" and "In My life" is a great emotional closer. And I'd probably shuffle the deck like this:

    1. The Word
    2. I'm Looking Through You
    3. Nowhere Man
    4. Michelle
    5. Girl
    6. If I Needed Someone
    7. Norwegian Wood

    8. Drive My Car
    9. Run For Your Life
    10. What Goes On
    11. You Won't See Me
    12. Think For Yourself
    13. Wait
    14. In My Life
     
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  20. Pawnmower

    Pawnmower Senior Member

    Location:
    Dearborn, MI
    they didn't have much of a choice.. the other songs were already out on HELP or the single being released the same day.
    and it's not like they sequenced their own records.
     
  21. Pawnmower

    Pawnmower Senior Member

    Location:
    Dearborn, MI
    they're real albums.
    that's never been in dispute.
    they are collections of songs, therefore they are albums.
     
  22. AFOS

    AFOS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brisbane,Australia
    No they don't have equal amounts of credibility - what if China released a Rubber Soul that dropped In My Life and added Can't Buy Me Love. On the world stage would it share equal status with the UK version? I understand Americans who grew up with it preferring it for sentimental reasons but at the end of the day it's just an American Beatles compilation. Just like many others around the world. The one American compilation that matters is the one that became canon - MMT. IMO the best thing Capitol did ever
     
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  23. notesfrom

    notesfrom Forum Resident

    Location:
    NC USA
    Back in the 60s, any mainland China album wouldn't be recognized; but the Rubber Soul released in Taiwan would, though - even if the mainland one outsold the island one by twenty times.

    As posted in the other 50th thread:

    The LP sales figures are interesting for this one (according to wiki) - or two, since there are two albums involved here with the same title.

    United Kingdom (BPI)[157] Platinum 300,000^

    United States (RIAA)[69] 6× Platinum 6,000,000^

    Though the bulk of US sales happened in 1965, and also by the end of the 60s (...'In America, Rubber Soul sold 1,800,376 copies by the end of 1965 and 2,766,862 by the close of the decade.[65] As of 1997, it had shipped over 6 million copies there.[69]) - it looks like the sheer bulk of sales of even the UK version of Rubber Soul have also happened in the US as well.

    So Americans got and loved both versions of the album nearly twenty years apart - enough to have bought three million of each (give or take a half a million or so either way, considering whatever the figures are for US RS sales during the 1970-1987 period in all formats).

    And it sold nearly 2 million copies of the US version 'by the end of 1965'? That's a three-and-a-half-week period. Is that a typo (meaning '66)? Or merely the selling power of a new Capitol Beatles album released for the Christmas/Holidays season?

    The 'real' Rubber Soul album?

    Whichever one you grew up listening to and liked the best.
     
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  24. notesfrom

    notesfrom Forum Resident

    Location:
    NC USA
    The closest thing to aurally inhaling a jazz cigarette is the opening one-two punch (puff) of 'I've Just Seen A Face' into 'Norwegian Wood'. After that, the contact high is in full effect.
     
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  25. e.s.

    e.s. Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Given that everyone who was introduced to the band’s catalogue via CD is familiar with the original UK tracklisting The Beatles and George Martin agreed on, I think the notion that some worldwide majority prefers the Capitol tracklisting is somewhat dubious. Older fans and colllectors are the only ones concerned with the US albums.
     
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