The Beatles 14th Album

Let us know if you make any progress, because I was going to try this myself, and I would certainly defer to your expertise...

 

That sounds suspiciously like someone was shown an early sketch of the Rolling Stones' Metamorphosis and didn't understand what they had seen.

- M.

​

 

That's a very realistic scenario actually. They could have easily just fizzled out, with this album coming out as an afterthought sometime in the early 70s.

 

I forgot to mention that I took all the tracks from my needledrops of their respective albums, for that added touch of authenticity...

 

I tried something like this a long time ago (back when cassettes were
in vogue)... but I didn't limit myself to tracks from the early 70s.

The only track I remember using was Ringo's cover of the Bruce Chanel
song "Hey Baby" that was on his 1976 "Rotogravure" album.

Pretty interesting cover - and somewhat of a safe choice because its
a song that was NOT written by a Beatle... and the original Bruce Chanel hit
is often reported as the inspiration for the harmonica on "Love Me Do"...

The original harmonica was played by Delbert McLinton - who still
gigs around texas...

 

I'd probably opt for the "Wildlife" version, with the sound effects at the beginning and end removed. My favorite version is the "Anthology 2" take, but its sound doesn't really fit with the later material.

Oh okay, I see what you mean.

 

If I attempt this project again, I'm going to be very tempted to call it "Everest."

That's not sad. I did the same thing about a year ago when a friend and I put together a fantasy album.

What did you fix?

 

That doesn't mean it isn't sad. It just means that you did it too. That said, I've been questioning the amount of "sad" in making my own various comps over the past few days. Oh well, who cares?

I started a thread a couple years ago speculating on what would've happened had the Beatles broken up in 1968

 

I could live without the coda, but the LIBN version was faded way too quickly for my liking, so I put back the tail end of the single version, fading out on Paul's "oooooh." It seemed more natural that way.

 

Thanks for the support, big guy...

Seriously, though, I already admitted to being a little "sad," so I can't retract it now. Aren't we all a little sad for even participating in this thread? But if being sad makes me happy, then I'm happy to be sad.

 

Hey, that was a great thread -- it died way too soon, imo. Actually, I can't believe I missed it the first time around; I love this kind of "what if" alternate-history stuff. Without sidetracking THIS thread too much, I think if the Beatles had broken up after the White Album, Paul and George would have made BRILLIANT albums in 1969 -- Paul with George Martin, and George probably with Ringo, Clapton and his Delaney & Bonnie buddies, but without Spector. I'm not sure what would have happened to John in 1969, hooked on heroin with only Yoko to "look after" him, and without the structure of Beatle matters to keep him tethered to the real world. Who knows, maybe the Beatles dragging on for another year kept John alive.

 

Yeah, but whatever...

My post count was under 1000.

I think it's better that we keep all the "fantasy" in here. That's why I looked for a thread on the topic before posting my list. I think John would've pulled out of his heroin problem eventually. Or, if we're to believe his version of events, if there hadn't been the Beatles strife, then he wouldn't have started the heroin in the first place. I can't remember where he pegged that one on the stress he was facing within the group and Yoko.

 

Beatles XIV:

Side One:
Instant Karma
Maybe I'm Amazed
What Is Life
Look At Me
That Would Be Something
Isolation
Beware of Darkness

Side Two:

It Don't Come Easy
Love
Every Night
All Things Must Pass
Working Class Hero
Oh Woman Oh Why
Remember


This would follow the Revolver pattern of John and Paul having five songs, George three and Ringo one.

Evan

 

That's a good track list, and I think the 5-5-3-1 split might have worked (for a while). Great call including "Oh Woman Oh Why"; you might be the first to mention it -- I know I completely forgot about it. It's perfect for the more rough-and-ready feel I had in mind for my version; I might have to insert it in there somehow ... possibly replacing "That Would Be Something."

 

Actually realised that my version has six John songs and only four Paul songs so I redid mine......

Beatles XIV

Side One:

Instant Karma
Another Day
What Is Life
Look At Me
That Would Be Something
Isolation
Beware of Darkness

Side Two:

It Don't Come Easy
Every Night
Remember
Maybe I'm Amazed
Love
Oh Woman Oh Why
All Things Must Pass

The only problem is that Junk and Teddy Boy from McCartney's album sound very under produced compared to the Spector productions from John and George's albums. So they can't be used IMO.

Evan

 

Which is what I believe it would have been. White Album, Let It Be and Abbey Road all had 2 GH songs per LP. No way (imo) would there have been parity on this album however I do think John and Paul would have allowed 3 George tracks as a compromise, perhaps even knowing that Lennon would not be contributing as much. Perhaps 5 or 6 McCartney, 4 Lennon, 3 Harrison and 1 Ringo.

Yep, I agree that's a problem with using these tracks from McCartney. Not punchy enough.

 

On a semi-related note, are there ANY good sounding versions of "Instant Karma" on cd? I have three and the vocals are distorted in each version. I don't remember my vinyl sounding like that.

 

I don't know. So far the best CD version I've heard has been "The John Lennon Collection" from 1989 (IIRC).

The vocals are even distorted on the 5.1 remix on the Lennon Legend DVD so it might just be that the "high resolution" of compact disc brings it out more than vinyl did.

 

Boy, this thread!

I spent all evening revising my track listing and actually making a disc on my computer.....so here we go:

BEATLES XIV


Instant Karma
Another Day
Beware of Darkness
Look At Me
That Would Be Something
Love
It Don't Come Easy
Deep Blue
Every Night
Isolation
Maybe I'm Amazed
Remember
Oh Woman Oh Why
All Things Must Pass

Clocks in at 48:29, only a minute longer than Abbey Road. I used the Lennon Legend version of Instant Karma.


Evan

 

I've always thought the vocals were intentionally overdriven.

 

You dropped "What Is Life"?? Please tell me it's a non-LP single....

 

Nice set! When did this thread take a left turn? I thought we were trying to create a fantasy album from tracks they wrote while still group members, and in some cases, recorded together? My fantasy album would be much different if we were trying to take the best solo tracks from 1970 and compiling them together. I must say Isolation straight into Maybe I'm Amazed is PERFECT!! Don't worry about some songs sounding "under-produced" compared to others.... Think Julia and While My Guitar Gently Weeps.... or Blackbird and Savoy Truffle. It all works. Ron

 

I'll check out that version. Fortunately, I saved both cd and vinyl.

I think they are certainly supposed to be a little distorted, but what I hear sounds like damage. It's like the difference between a distorted guitar and the sound of a distorted guitar that is distorted.

Those songs all sort of sound the same though because they were produced and engineered by the same people at the same studio. I think that if the tracks were brought to an average volume level with a little EQ applied to 'fake' a more similar overall sound, the results would be as good as could be expected from something like this. One thing I noticed about these mixes is that they work best when the tracks revolve around George and Ringo as musicians. Since both of them played on John songs, and George and Ringo played on each other's song, it's possible to get an approximate continuity of style. "Oh My Love" can be followed by almost any George song with a strong guitar figure and it will sound good. The entire comp can be comprised of songs with Ringo on drums, except for Paul songs which feature none of the other three.

 

This is pretty good.. I would only probably remove "That Would Be Something" and replace it with "Junk" or something else. I'd also think about "Look at Me" and "Love." "Love" is the better of the two, but both sound very similiar.. and are solo efforts.