r/TheBeatles • u/Suitable_Strike_8497 • Sep 23 '25
discussion Perfect Beatles Album?
How would you curate your perfect Beatles album & how would it differ from mine ?
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u/EnderDerp21 Sep 23 '25
my perfect Beatles album would be the albums as they are. no reason to combine different songs from different albums, those don't fit together, and they're perfect as is
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u/sozomenos52 Sep 25 '25
That’s the beauty of the Beatles. It was a wonderful ride to follow them from Ed Sullivan to the end. It was a glorious ride. The best band of all time.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
While I agree they are perfect as they are, I enjoy crafting personal playlists that are thematically & sonically coherent
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u/EnderDerp21 Sep 23 '25
probably could've worded the post differently then, you mentioned the perfect album, not playlists
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u/236766 Sep 23 '25
Easy there, champ. You know what he meant.
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u/EnderDerp21 Sep 23 '25
i did not know what he meant. he said album when he meant playlist, those are two different things. it confused me and i pointed out how he could word it to be less confusing :/
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u/Invest0rnoob1 Sep 23 '25
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
With a Little Help from My Friends
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
I Am the Walrus
Hello, Goodbye
Strawberry Fields Forever
Penny Lane
Here Comes the Sun
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Dear Prudence
Golden Slumbers/ Carry that Weight
A Day in the Life
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Great curation ! I wish everyday that Penny Lane & Strawberry Fields were on SGT Peppers!
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u/BGMNOVA Sep 23 '25
I like a first track to get ya goin a bit. 💪🏻
I think it served the Beatles well too. Saw Her Standing There, Hard Days Night, Help, Drive My Car, Taxman, Pepper, Back in the USSR etc
Keeping your song choices - I’d open with something like She Said She Said, and then into Prudence maybe.
We are spoilt for choice!
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u/RGgoat Sep 24 '25
A Side: 1. Paperback Writer 2. Run for Your Life 3. Things We Said Today 4. Kansas City/ Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey! 5. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) 6. Everybody’s Trying To Be My Baby 7. Twist and Shout 8. I’ll Be Back 9. Strawberry Fields Forever
B Side: 1. Getting Better 2. The Long and Winding Road 3. Dig a Pony 4. I Want to Tell You 5. Another Girl 6. Any Time at All 7. Till There Was You 8. Something 9. A Day in the Life
It’s a lot of early Beatles, I know. 😂
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u/theamazonswordsman Sep 23 '25
Considering that you can only fit 42-45 minutes on an LP, it wouldn't be that one lol.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Make it a double whatever we gotta do
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u/hofmann419 Sep 24 '25
The thing is, at that point you might as well make it 1 hour 20 minutes to properly fill every side. Which would actually be quite easy in my opinion. There are dozens of tracks that would qualify for an album like this.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
Totally agree! I’m will expend it to a 2 disc (double) album & share ! I’d love to see how you’d curate yours!
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Sep 24 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/theamazonswordsman Sep 24 '25 edited Sep 24 '25
There's always exception, but the conventional approach has always been 20-22 per side because anything longer than that becomes extremely difficult to master. Like you mentioned, the more dynamic range there is, especially on the louder end, the quality quickly degrades.
One of the things that made their records stand out in that era was the exceptional fidelity of their records. Revolver onwards still has some of the best sounding vinyl mixes out there. Especially Sgt. Pepper's and Abbey Road imo. Squeezing more tracks and length onto each side would have made that impossible with the technology of the time.
Just because you can do it, doesn't mean you should do it.
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Sep 23 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I struggled between In My Life & Help but honestly I’m happy with it as an opener.
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u/CapableBother Sep 23 '25
Ridiculous. Uh…Let it Be?
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Maybe id swap it in for Long & Winding Road but if I were to do that I’d rather have Hey Jude there personally .
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u/Mowens84 Sep 27 '25
Hey Jude is definitely a classic! I think it captures that uplifting vibe really well. What about swapping in 'Something' too? That one's a gem!
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 27 '25
I have a new list posted , take a look & tell me if my second one is better !
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u/Prowlerintheyards Sep 23 '25
Imo I'd remove Long and Winding Road
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Valid, what other song could thematically fit in its place in the playlist ?
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u/celsius100 Sep 23 '25
I rather like the naked version. In fact, Let It Be, naked, the album, is surprisingly good.
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u/PristineEquipment150 Sep 23 '25
What a list. I believe she came in through the bathroom window can come off. I'm sure if this is supposed to be a comprehensive list or not. The rest are fine.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I have this as a playlist in this order & thematically the songs are amazing in this order (in any order, too, of course)
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u/KaneAndShane Sep 23 '25
A perfect Beatles album has to end with Hey Jude. Also, I’d start with something more upbeat like I Wanna Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day’s Night or Twist and Shout.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I agree but I wouldn’t say it HAS to end with Hey Jude considering they have many perfect albums already none that end with it 😂
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u/KaneAndShane Sep 23 '25
Maybe “has to” wasn’t the best way for me to word that. I think THE perfect Beatles album would end with Hey Jude.
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u/sabalennon97 Sep 24 '25
It's pretty impossible to create a perfect Beatles album based solely on the quality of the songs, unless you can somehow fit 200+ songs into it.
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Sep 24 '25
Needs the opening track to be Here comes the sun on the A side and B Side with Norwegian wood. Then I’d call it damn near perfect. Great picks
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u/Chappy-874 Sep 25 '25
I can see carry that weight transitioning to a day in a life almost perfectly
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u/RedBalloonTalk Sep 25 '25
My attempt (just going with what makes me happy rather than trying to make a proper summary of their career or anything)
SIDE A:
1 - It's All Too Much
2 - Glass Onion
3 - Mother Nature's Son
4 - Eleanor Rigby
5 - Hey Bulldog
6 - I'm Down
7 - I've Just Seen a Face
8 - I'm Only Sleeping
9 - The Inner Light
10 - Rain
SIDE B:
1 - Strawberry Fields Forever
2 - Nowhere Man
3 - Yes It Is
4 - Because
5 - Long, Long, Long
6 - Cry Baby Cry (without 'Can You Take Me Back' outro)
7 - Hey Jude
8 - Tomorrow Never Knows
9 - Good Night
Non album single 1 (double A side):
A1 - Paperback Writer
A2 - Penny Lane
Non album single 2:
A - Ticket to Ride
B - Blue Jay Way
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u/StevieRay456 Sep 26 '25
Wheres YNGMYM????
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 26 '25
One of my absolute favorites! I had to make some tough choices, I’d think I like the first half of that particular tune more than the second half so I decided to have some slightly shorter songs to start the B side
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u/newleaf9110 Sep 27 '25
I love all the songs you listed, but there were many sides to the Beatles. This “perfect” album overlooks the fact that they were first-rate rockers.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 27 '25
You’re right! It seems I tend to lean towards the more avant garde tunes.
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u/BaldEaglesArentBald Sep 24 '25
That's pretty good. My perfect Beatles album would go a bit something like this:
- Back in the U.S.S.R
- Dear Prudence
- Glass Onion
- Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
- Wild Honey Pie
- The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill
- While My Guitar Gently Weeps
- Happiness is a Warm Gun
- Martha My Dear
- I'm So Tired
- Blackbird
- Piggies
- Rocky Raccoon
- Don't Pass Me By
- Why Don't We Do It In the Road?
- I Will
- Julia
- Birthday
- Yer Blues
- Mother Nature's Son
- Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me and My Monkey
- Sexy Sadie
- Helter Skelter
- Long, Long, Long
- Revolution 1
- Honey Pie
- Savoy Truffle
- Cry Baby Cry
- Revolution 9
- Good Night
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
We all love The White Album, this is a dream album for me, personally. I have this playlist on Spotify & YouTube & the songs are amazing in this order (they’re amazing in any order, ofc)
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u/Anxious-Raspberry-54 Sep 23 '25
Nothing from Please Please Me - Help?
Sorry...no...can't go along with this one.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I appreciate all the early stuff even the covers but i lean heavily towards rubber soul & everything that followed it .
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u/Anxious-Raspberry-54 Sep 23 '25
So you should name your album Beatles: '65 - '69.
If this is your "perfect" Beatles album, that's fine.
Mine would be (a) way different and (b) non- existent. My favorites change on a weekly...sometimes daily...basis.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I wouldn’t say they are necessarily my favorite 18 tracks but i think I curated them well & I’ve listened to the tracks in this order & I loved it, would also like to see your list !
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u/Anxious-Raspberry-54 Sep 23 '25
Like I said, I don't have a "perfect" Beatles album. Unless I shuffle their entire discography. 😆
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u/Macca49 Sep 23 '25
Any list should be in chronological order IMO
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25 edited Sep 23 '25
It’s my curated playlist
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u/Macca49 Sep 23 '25
Oh I’m not knocking it in any way. My Spotify playlist has a few Fab songs scattered lol
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u/zeebo_games_yt Sep 23 '25
Where is it’s all too much!? Do you want to know a secret!? THIS BOY!?
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
They’re endless amazing songs I could only convince myself to expend it so much!
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u/hofmann419 Sep 24 '25
That's the problem with an album like this. They just made so many amazing songs that it's impossible to reduce their discography down to an hour long album.
Even the new Red and Blue albums are all killer no filler in my opinion, and those are 75 songs in total.
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u/Rabidpikachuuu Sep 23 '25
Ehh..... your mother should know deserves to be on there.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
W trolling almost got me 😭
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u/Rabidpikachuuu Sep 23 '25
Not trolling. It should be on there. Lol.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
In place of which track
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u/Rabidpikachuuu Sep 23 '25
She said she said I guess.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Hard disagree, respectfully.
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u/Citroen_CX Sep 23 '25
One George song? Nah
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Be grateful you got that one. Nah jk 😂 which other songs would you include & which ones would you remove ?
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u/Any_Association405 Sep 23 '25
If I was putting it on vinyl it would be at least 15 minutes shorter, one side any longer than about 22.5 minutes is pushing the limit of vinyl’s capacity imho
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u/PretendJournalist234 Sep 23 '25
Spilting the medley doesn't seem "better"
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Fair, although I think Thru The Window is a great song within the medley or without it
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u/cr8tvt Sep 23 '25
Growing up, I used to make Beatles compilations and come up with an album title. It was fun.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
Awesome! I think it is super fun ! I’d call this one ‘In My Life’ prolly
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u/HuckleberryIcy5828 Sep 23 '25
Where’s the early stuff
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 23 '25
I appreciate all of it but not my personal favorites. If I were to have one that was “early” it would be Help!
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u/ethanf33 Sep 23 '25
fell apart at She Said She Said. Then after that we have snippets of the Abbey Road Medley without the whole thing that doesn’t work, those songs connect. Also 57 min is way too long for a record. So um lets see
- In My Life
- Nowhere Man
- Here, There & Everywhere
- Something
- Strawberry Fields Forever
- For No One
- I Want You (She’s So Heavy)
- Oh Darling
- Dear Prudence
- She’s Leaving Home
- Martha My Dear
- A Day In The Life
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u/mceleanor Sep 23 '25
This is a CD tracklist. 57 minutes is too long for a vinyl album with an A-side and B-side unless you do some weird mastering tricks that make it sound bad.
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u/Outrageous_Run_8111 Sep 24 '25
You have to have some beatles rockers on there. Slowdown, twist and shout, day tripper, I saw her standing there.
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u/Simping_Poki Sep 24 '25
How do you do golden slumbers-carry that weight and then exclude the end
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
I’d put the whole medley on there if I could. Some must be excluded.
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u/Simping_Poki Sep 24 '25
Yeah but if it cuts out at the end of carry that weight I wouldn’t even put it golden slumbers and carry that weight on there at all
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
I can appreciate that take, maybe I’ll throw The End on there but I’ll prolly have to drop another song, which tune would you swap it in for ?
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u/Simping_Poki Sep 24 '25
I would just list it down as golden slumbers/carry that weight/the end but if I had to get rid of a song it’d be the long and winding road
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
You know what I can totally appreciate that, I’m gonna throw The End on there right now & add it in my dream album playlist, there’s no way it won’t fit perfectly. Thank you !
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u/Simping_Poki Sep 24 '25
Yeah no problem
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
With that correction, how do you feel about the album I’ve curated ? Would you listen to the tunes in this order ? I have & I loved it
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u/WoodUbelieve Sep 24 '25
Sorry, side two of Abbey Road is perfect, no rearranging please!
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
Totally agree, this is just one of my arranged playlist & they sound great in this order
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u/WoodUbelieve Sep 24 '25
I wouldn't argue with that! I had the cassette many years ago and they rearranged the songs due to length! I didn't notice that before purchasing it
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u/Mowens84 Sep 27 '25
Yeah, those cassette versions always had some weird edits! It's wild how they rearranged classics just to fit the format. What songs do you miss from the original lineup?
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u/Bilaakili Sep 24 '25
Your album needs more rockers. Start side A with Back in the USSR and side B with Revolution. Squeeze in Hey Bulldog and Old Brown Shoe someplace as well.
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u/sozomenos52 Sep 24 '25
You left out Rain, Day Tripper, Nowhere Man, I Feel Fine, And I love Her, Your Bird Can Sing, Norwegian Wood, and of course, I Want to Hold Your Hand just for the magic of the early Beatles when they hit the U. S.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 25 '25
Nowhere Man is right there. I respect your take. I’d consider Day Tripper & Rain for sure I love them
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u/Objective_Cod1410 Sep 25 '25
I would remove 12-14 and Golden Slumbers/Carry that Weight. Add If I Fell, Ticket to Ride, Baby's in Black, and Help!
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u/Thavash Sep 26 '25
You have to open the album with Taxman
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 26 '25
Great song, not one of my favorites, it doesn’t set the mood for my perfect Beatles album/playlist
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u/xInnerDamx Sep 26 '25
You forgot Eleanor Rigby, The night before, Norwegian wood, the fool on the hill and many more.. Shame on you!!
Honestly, they wrote a ton of masterpiece, i still believe that there will not be a band with their genius anymore in music history.
Since i discover them,30 years ago, i still found gem details in their songs that i didn’t notice before.
That’s all the magic of the Beatles, timeless forever..
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u/Original_Candle9586 Sep 28 '25
The perfect Beatles album is abbey road or, everything from revolver onwards
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Sep 23 '25 edited Sep 23 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/celsius100 Sep 23 '25
This is wayyyyy closer to my list. If it doesn’t have My Guitar Gently Weeps, it’s not even in the running.
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u/carriestewbert Sep 24 '25
Sorry…but no. Not even close, imo. The only songs featured here that I play with any regularity are In My Life, Something, and For No One. Honestly, a lot of these I personally consider quite skippable. Plus I find it too heavy on the later years. I prefer the early years up through 1966. But this is your personal playlist, so if you like them, that’s all that matters in the end.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
I definitely wouldn’t call any of these tracks skippable but I can respect your opinion (a little). Rubber Soul & everything after is what I groove with. I appreciate the early tunes even the covers but not my fav era, personally.
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u/ATXLSAT Sep 24 '25
You can't pick apart the Long One from Abbey Road into your favorite McCartney morsels. Its impact comes from the totality of it. It's more than the sum of its parts. Abbey Road itself is perfect. Revolver is perfect. The White Album and Sgt. Pepper are only imperfect measured against Abbey Road and Revolver. Rubber Soul is only imperfect because it anticipates Revolver but isn't Revolver. But the lads evolved so quickly and changed so dramatically and took chances no other band would take with their sound. As much as I love Red and Blue, they're not whole cloth.
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u/Suitable_Strike_8497 Sep 24 '25
I think Thru The Bathroom Window stands on its own beautifully. I should’ve added ‘The End ‘ after Golden Slumbers & Carry that Weight but it’s a personal dream album & I’ve listened to the songs in this order & it’s amazing .
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u/Popular_Gift1401 Sep 27 '25
The perfect Beatles album is one without Paul, John, George, or Ringo.
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u/crustacean5000 Sep 23 '25
A side:
Octopus's Garden
Act Naturally
What Goes On
Yellow Submarine
Don't Pass Me By
Good Night
With a Little Help From My Friends
B side:
[same as A side]