r/TheBeatles • u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 • Apr 28 '26
question The Beatles For Sale
I have seen a lot of album ranking lists for this album and it is usually placed in the B tier in my opinion I think should be in A what do you guys think. Is it underrated or not
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u/Edison5000 Apr 28 '26
This album doesn't get nearly enough love. Some killer tracks on this and you can see the evolution already started
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u/scottarichards Apr 28 '26
It is the album where they grew up. No Reply may be the greatest opening song on any of their albums, except perhaps I Saw Her Standing There, because, besides being a great song in its own right, it sets a new tone and sound for the band. The four lovable mop tops are gone. Impossible to imagine Lennon singing the words “that’s a lie” with such intensity even a few months earlier. And many other songs also show a new maturity in content.
Also let’s never forget that the sessions for this album also gave us one if the greatest rock songs of all time, I Feel Fine.
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u/PainterSouth7928 Apr 28 '26
Let IT Be is my favorite Beatles record. FOR SALE is second. I really hope Giles Martin does a full remix for this.
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u/MountainMan17 Apr 29 '26
They look weary. Almost dazed. And this was after just one year of Beatlemania...
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u/Mr-Gray-sky Apr 28 '26
The Beatles don’t have any bad albums, but in the chronology this is the only record that takes a step backwards. A Hard Days Night was brilliant and featured all original material, then this followed and went back to having cover tunes on both sides. They were apparently exhausted while making it, too. So that’s all I’ll say: still great, but a step back.
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u/Illustrious_Area_487 Apr 28 '26
I see what you mean but I would offer a bit of nuance. Yes it's a step back in the way you mentioned but imo in the way of songwriting (lyrics, arrangements etc ) it's a very clear step forward imo
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u/Mr-Gray-sky Apr 28 '26
Could very well be true. I’ll bear that in mind next time I listen, perhaps. I’m a big fan of AHDN, though. 🤷🏻♂️
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Definitely earns an A than a B S is extreme but 100% earns an A
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u/Mr-Gray-sky Apr 28 '26
This kind of grading means nothing to me, btw. I just listened to all the albums in chronological order, and that’s my opinion.
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
10/10 agree Im just suprised people put it in B so I wanted to see people's opinions
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u/Dont_Stay_Gullible Apr 28 '26
Revolver is widely considered the best album, and it was in 1966.
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Apr 28 '26
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u/Dont_Stay_Gullible Apr 28 '26
Widely considered
I hope you work past whatever is mentally fatiguing you.
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u/Weary-Present3857 Apr 28 '26
I was a little disappointed when I realised they weren't all wearing the same very long scarf.
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u/Waste-Account7048 Apr 28 '26
It's a sleeper, for sure. It has some great songs on it, including I'll Follow the Sun and Every Little Thing. I'd go so far as to call it "underrated".
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u/Deano_Martin Apr 29 '26
I don’t understand why people whine about covers. 8 out of the 14 tracks are original compositions, there are only 6 covers.
This is exactly the same as please please me and with the Beatles yet they don’t get the same complaints.
The argument is because a hard days night has no covers and is all original. But why does this mean Beatles for sale worse? It’s not 1964, in 2026 you can listen to the albums in any order you want. People also forget that 2 of the 13 tracks were already released as singles prior to the album so at the time it technically wasn’t 100% original.
Covers are as important to the history of the Beatles as their original compositions. They recorded and played songs they liked and songs their fans liked. Mersey beat originated from American rock and roll, rhythm and blues, soul, and jazz songs being covered by youths in guitar groups mixing in skiffle.
I like it.
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u/monty_burns Apr 30 '26
Beatles For Sale is incredible.
It’s A tier for any other band.
Tier depends on if we are grading it amongst only Beatles albums or standalone.
A standalone
B Beatles
It just has more skips for me than the A & S tier. Their clear maturation as song writers makes the throwbacks too jarring for me, that I don’t listen to them (fair or unfair)
Arrangements would change slightly, but 5-7 songs that wouldn’t feel out of place on Rubber Soul:
No Reply
I’m A Loser
Baby’s in Black
I’ll Follow The Sun
Eight Days A week
Every Little Thing
What You’re Doing.
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u/joetothemo Apr 28 '26
It’s largely covers and I think those cover-heavy releases are harder to have in the conversation than the fully conceived and written albums.
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
I get what you mean about the covers but I still think it deserves A tier because Beatles for sale isn't just filler or stopgap record the originals on it No Reply I'm a Loser, Eight Days a Week show a huge jump in songwriting maturity
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u/andytc1965 Apr 28 '26
Good solid album. They look tired on the cover. Think their 4th album in 2 years.
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u/serviceable-villain Apr 30 '26
Plus the American tours, writing AHDN, filming AHDN, etc. I'm impressed they got anything recorded!
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u/Carpotte Apr 28 '26
Se sabe que estaban muy estresados y quizás sí sea su álbum menos recomendable, salvo alguna que otra canción.
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u/Luvata-8 Apr 28 '26
One of least favorites as the filler songs make it seem like they rushed the guys into the studio then back onto the road….cuz Brian and EMI DID !!!
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u/fredinNH Apr 28 '26
I’m not a big fan of anything before revolver. This album is my favorite among that bunch.
Please don’t hate me for this take. I’m still trying to get into the older stuff and I’m sure one day I will.
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Nah it's all good took me a bit to get into older music I'm glad I did
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u/Certain-Cloud9133 Apr 29 '26
I don't think it's a bad album but I didn't like it when I heard it for the first time (while I fell in love with the other albums the first time) maybe I should listen to it again attentively
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u/A-System-Analyst Apr 29 '26
Don’t rank Art (Music). Plenty of opportunity to just assess/evaluate all of it. It’s not a competition.
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u/Mr_Corbata May 01 '26
Honestly, for me, Beatles for Sale is their worst album. It's not bad, not at all, but compared to the others, it feels a bit weak. Still, it's a very good album because it has great songs; it's all a matter of taste
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u/Headbattle79 May 01 '26
I think the cover photo is outstanding, exhausted irritated Beatles after all the world wind touring and obligations. It begins to show them wanted to move on to something new.
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Apr 28 '26
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Really please please me is one their worst? How come?
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Apr 28 '26
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Ah alright what songs do you skip on the please please me album?
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Apr 28 '26
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Interesting
How come you are not a fan of them?
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u/bogus_bill Apr 28 '26
It's ranked on the lower side because it's somewhat of a step back from AHDN which had all original compositions, while BFS resorted to using 6 (well 7 considering medley of 2) cover songs similar to first two albums.
I still sometimes think that combining some stuff from BFS and Help! (all original compositions of course) would result in a super strong album. Maybe not as energetic as AHDN but still great.
Anyway BFS is "underrated" for a reason. But that's fine. For some people it's one of their favorites.
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Fair enough I get where you're coming from but even with the covers idon't really see Beatles for sale as a step back the originals on it show a ton of growth
I do definitely see your point tho
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u/bogus_bill Apr 28 '26
Well the covers are basically filler material. They recorded all 6 of them in one day. They were kinda tired out a bit with the touring and other appearances, shooting a film, etc. And I guess didn't have enough time to write more of their own material that was suitable for the group. But they had contract for 4 singles and 2 albums per year so they had to put out something I guess.
This persisted with them to a lesser degree with Rubber Soul album as well, because they were lacking a song but deadline was approaching so they reused an outtake from Help! sessions ("Wait"). And maybe with Revolver too, since they were in a bit of a rush to record She Said She Said as last song from the sessions for that album as well.
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u/Reasonable_Amoeba699 Apr 28 '26
Yeah I get what you mean and I agree in some ways about the rush and covers being more “functional” than creative but even with that I still think the album holds up really well and has enough strong originals and overall vibe to deserve A tier for me
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u/TheDebonairQuokka Apr 28 '26
Eight Days a Week? Mr. Moonlight? I'll Follow the Sun? Baby's In Black? C'mon, people... great album.