The Beatles, Revolver
(Parlophone) - Released: August 5, 1966.
The album’s first side is a display of diversity.
Each song takes you to a new place. From the brutal drive of “Taxman”
(that’s McCartney playing the solo) to Paul’s wistful “Eleanor Rigby”,
then sleepy Lennon drifts through the backward guitars of “I’m Only
Sleeping”, before Harrison’s “Love You To” introduces real Indian music
to a rock and roll album, and just when that strangely haunting mix of
sitar, tabla and tambura fades, Paul is back with “Here, There And
Everywhere”, the most beautiful Beatles-song ever, all ethereal harmony
voices gracing a tender, summery melody.
Then Ringo arrives in his “Yellow Submarine”, a
happy-go-lucky sing-along that actually is Ken Kesey’s Merry Pranksters
under water dressed up as a children’s song. The amazing first half of
“Revolver” ends with a blistering “She Said She Said”, packed with
chiming, metallic guitars and manic thunderous drums, John’s vocals
nearly drowned in a tsunami of sound.
Side 2 doesn’t have the same diversity, but all
tracks are wonderful and last stop is the forever magnificent “Tomorrow
Never Knows”.
“Revolver” has been rated the greatest album of all
time by numerous critics. I think they are right.
Contents: Taxman/Eleanor Rigby/I’m Only
Sleeping/Love You To/Here, There and Everywhere/Yellow Submarine/She
Said She Said/Good Day Sunshine/And Your Bird Can Sing/For No One/Doctor
Robert/I Want to Tell You/Got to Get You into My Life/Tomorrow Never
Knows
Bob Dylan, Blonde On
Blonde
(Columbia/CBS) - Released: July 1966
“Blonde On Blonde” is a travelling carnival of
Americana populated by enigmatic characters that move in the shadows
where flickering torchlight battles darkness, half unreal,
half-recognizable. There is humor here and unparalleled beauty, hissing
putdowns and cheering speed trips, and deep inside behind the burlesque
images and puzzling stanzas you find Dylan himself, at that time the
loneliest soul in the world, kneeling before his muse in the album’s
forever swaying finale, “Sad Eyed Lady Of the Lowlands”.
Musically “Blonde On Blonde” is extraordinarily rich.
It opens with the slide trombone driven Salvation Army pastiche “Rainy
Day Women Nos. 12 & 35” that managed to get the holler “Everybody must
get stoned!” past the censors. It dives deep into the blues with
“Pledging My Time”, slaps Lennon’s fingers with the guitar picking “4th
Time Around” (poking fun at “Norwegian Wood”), and hits tender, naked
nerves with “One Of Us Must Know (Sooner Or Later)” in a woosh of organ
chordes.
Then it delivers the surreal pop tune “I Want You”,
hits epic heights with the enigmatic, fascinating stories of “Stuck
Inside of Mobile with The Memphis Blues Again” and “Visions of Johanna”,
mixes salt with sugar on the bittersweet and very commercial sounding
“Just Like A Woman” and checks out with the extraordinary “Sad Eyed Lady
Of The Lowlands” that lasts for 11 minutes and 23 seconds, and still
feels too short.
Contents: Rainy Day Women #12 & 35/Pledging My
Time/Visions of Johanna/One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)/I Want
You/Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again/Leopard-Skin
Pill-Box Hat/Just Like a Woman/Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go
Mine)/Temporary Like Achilles/Absolutely Sweet Marie/4th Time
Around/Obviously 5 Believers/Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands
The Beach Boys, Pet
Sounds (Capitol) - Released: May 16, 1966.
If God made records, this would be one of them. Beach
Boys released a couple of strong albums in 1965, but nothing like this,
nothing like this at all.
“Pet Sounds” is out of this world, created by the
genius mind of Brian Wilson in his absolute prime and painstakingly
pieced together by Brian over a period of several months by using some
of LA’s top session musicians (apart from Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys
themselves did not participate until it was time for laying down the
vocals). And then the whole thing ignited.
If there is a theme to this album apart from feeling
the pain of growing up and missing the innocence of childhood, it is the
sound of all ingredients coming together, the complex vocal and
instrumental arrangements reach such heights of overwhelming beauty and
melancholy that you feel like going down on your knees. For me “God Only
Knows” might be the most beautiful pop recording ever made.
“Pet Sounds” was a work of innovation and its
influence on the development of rock music cannot be overrated. It was
one of the first rock albums made to be digested as a complete listening
experience, a precursor to art rock and prog rock.
Contents: Wouldn’t It Be Nice/You Still
Believe in Me/That’s Not Me/Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My
Shoulder)/I’m Waiting for the Day/Let’s Go Away for Awhile/Sloop John
B/God Only Knows/I Know There’s an Answer/Here Today/I Just Wasn’t Made
for These Times/Pet Sounds/Caroline, No
Donovan, Sunshine
Superman (Epic) - Released: August 26, 1966.
Donovan took all the best of the new trends on both
sides of the Atlantic and mixed it with stuff he already had on his
mind; medieval romance, Victorian poster art, oriental wisdom, the
guitar techniques of Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, British folk, jazz,
and of course The Beatles - and drugs.
“Sunshine Superman” is so different from its
predecessor, “Fairytale”, that one can hardly believe that it’s the same
artist. Allied with the legendary British hit producer Mickie Most and
music arranger John Cameron, Donovan made music that both captured the
spirit of the times and moved boldly on to unmapped territory.
Cameron treated every tune as an individual being,
providing it with its own unique arrangement. Even if this was supposed
to be pop music, he picked quite unusual instruments to paint Donovan’s
musical images. With Donovan’s acoustic guitar as a starting point, he
added harpsichord, strings, woodwinds, sitar and double bass in addition
to traditional instruments like drums, electric bass and electric
guitar.
Each song is a stunning creation. And Donovan has the
perfect voice for these beautiful melodies and poetic lyrics, mild, warm
and intimate. “Sunsine Superman” is a summery slice of psychedelic
chamber pop. A treat.
Contents: Sunshine Superman/Legend of a Girl
Child Linda/Three King Fishers/Ferris Wheel/Bert’s Blues/Season of the
Witch/The Trip/Guinevere/The Fat Angel/Celeste
The Rolling Stones,
Aftermath (Decca) - Released: April 15, 1966
And finally Mick and Keith decided they were ready
for a full album of self written songs, and Brian on the other hand,
temporarily found great pleasures in his new role as the Stones’
flamboyant multi-instrumentalist.
There are still traces of the Chicago electric blues
on this album, but it’s much less obvious than before. The group’s
fascination with the Memphis groove and contemporary soul music is also
present.
But “Aftermath” is so much more as the Stones are
entering swinging London with this collection of songs, showing a
musical versatility not present on previous records. There’s colourful
pop music here, airy acoustic sing-a-longs, country pastiches, folk, a
gorgeous piece of Elizabethan balladery (“Lady Jane”) and a piece of
satire (“Mother’s Little Helper”) that is so close to The Kinks of
1965-66 that Ray Davies probably thought they stole it from him. The
lyrics are both playful and stinging, but there are also moments of
sexism and plain evil (“Under My Thumb”, “Stupid Girl”).
Brian Jones sprinkles magic on most tracks. The
fragile dulcimer on “Lady Jane”, the electric slide on “Mother’s Little
Helper”, the sensual, bubbling marimba runs on “Under My Thumb” and “Out
Of Time”, the koto (and triangle) on “Take It Or Leave It” (a tune so
immediately likeable they gave it to The Searchers who released their
version as a single), the fuzz guitar on “Think”. The wonders of
“Aftermath” are unthinkable without Brian Jones’ contributions.
I highly recommend the mono mix, it sounds so much
greater than the pale and tinny stereo-version.
Contents: Mother’s Little Helper/Stupid
Girl/Lady Jane/Under My Thumb/Doncha Bother Me/Goin’ Home/Flight
505/High and Dry/Out of Time/It’s Not Easy/I Am Waiting/Take It Or Leave
It/Think/What To Do
Mothers Of Invention,
Freak Out (Verve) - Released: June 27, 1966
Frank Zappa was a pretty vicious satirist. But he was
also a spectacular musician with exceptional abilities when it came to
editing chaos down to a structured plan. “Freak Out!” was his debut.
Contents: Hungry Freaks, Daddy/I Ain’t Got No
Heart/Who Are the Brain Police?/Go Cry on Somebody Else’s
Shoulder/Motherly Love/How Could I Be Such a Fool/Wowie Zowie/You Didn’t
Try to Call Me/Any Way the Wind Blows/I’m Not Satisfied/You’re Probably
Wondering Why I’m Here/Trouble Every Day/Help, I’m a Rock (Suite in
Three Movements) I. Okay to Tap Dance II. In Memoriam, Edgard Var่se
III. It Can’t Happen Here/The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet
(Unfinished Ballet in Two Tableaux) I. Ritual Dance of the Child-Killer
II. Nullis Pretii (No Commercial Potential)
The Butterfield Blues
Band, East-West (Elektra) - Released: August 1966
This album offers sparkling guitar playing from both
Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop, and plenty of examples of Paul
Butterfield’s outstanding harmonica technique.
Contents: Walkin’ Blues/Get Out of My Life
Woman/I Got A Mind to Give Up Living/All These Blues/Work Song/Mary,
Mary/Two Trains Running/Never Say No/East-West
The Kinks, Face To
Face (PYE) -
Released:
October 28, 1966
The Kinks deliver a superb album containing narrative
songs about everyday people with a lovely twist of social satire to it.
Contents: Party Line/Rosie Won’t You Please
Come Home/Dandy/Too Much on My Mind/Session Man/Rainy Day in June/A
House in the Country/Holiday in Waikiki/Most Exclusive Residence for
Sale/Fancy/Little Miss Queen of Darkness/You’re Lookin’ Fine/Sunny
Afternoon/I’ll Remember
John Mayall with Eric
Clapton, Blues Breakers (Decca) - Released: July 22, 1966
An extremely important album that represents the
beginning of a new era for British rock in general and British guitar
players in particular. The young Eric Clapton is outstanding.
Contents: All Your Love/Hideaway/Little
Girl/Another Man/Double Crossing Time/What’d I Say/Key to Love/Parchman
Farm/Have You Heard/Ramblin’ on My Mind/Steppin’ Out/It Ain’t Right
Buffalo Springfield,
Buffalo Springfield (Atco) - Released: December 5, 1966
The amazing start of two giants: Stephen Stills wrote
the majority of the songs, but Neil Young is responsible for the
magnificent “Burned”.
Contents: Go and Say Goodbye/Sit Down, I Think
I Love You/Leave/Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing/Hot Dusty
Roads/Everybody’s Wrong/Flying on the Ground Is Wrong/Burned/Do I Have
to Come Right Out and Say It/Baby Don’t Scold Me/Out of My Mind/Pay the
Price (“Baby Don’t Scold Me” was replaced with “For What It’s Worth”
when the album was re-released in March 1967)
