Guaranteed to start a pointless and bloody flame war. 
Okay, we all know the worst is Yellow Submarine; total dogshit. But which is the best?
Now, this is somewhat compliticated by the differing versions released in the UK and the US, especially in the early years, and the fact that so many iconic songs were singles, and not part of an album. Ah, well, we must muddle through. I'm going to go with the versions I was weaned on, mostly US for the early versions, UK for the later versions. The US versions have the virtue of capturing all the singles better. By Hard Day's Night this question is mostly moot anyway, as the releases start to stack up better. By Sgt. Pepper, there is no differnce at all. I wish I could say my list were consistent; it's not, but it's close enough.
My vote is unorthodox: The White Album. Reason: every song is good, even the bad ones. The rock critics who say Revolver are full of shit. Revolver isn't even as good as Pepper.
I place the albums in three categories: early, middle and late. Just like Beethoven! The early period is all pop/blues. Smokey Hamburg clip joint music and bubble gum pop. Some good stuff, but very little is original. "Love Me Do" stands out. The rest of the good songs are covers. The stuff that made teenage girls in Maspeth lose their minds in 1964 is drivel.
Hard Day's Night brings us to the middle period. It's still very poppy, but there is a new edge. (A great album, BTW.) The middle period culminates with Rubber Soul. The pop influence is fading, but psychedelia still has yet to appear in real force. The real driving force of the album is Lennon's bitterness.
The late period begins with Revolver. From here until the end, we have the iconic Beatles -- the great Beatles for whom all the rest was prolegomena. There are dizzying highs and terrifying lows, but the ride is exhilerating. Even Let it Be has its moments. "Let it Be" itself is a great song. I remember once, on a trip from Catalinia to San Dago, um, San Diego, getting caught in a godawful squall. Nothing life threatening, but unpleasant, and it required some vigilance. The chop was merciless. Thankfully our food was so bad I hadn't eaten. Anyway, we came out of it, and picked up an LA oldies station. They played "Let it Be" as if right on cue, for us personally. I hadn't heard the song in about ten years, maybe longer. It was a quasi-religious experience.
The addition of Magical Mystery Tour will probably not be controversial, even though it was not a proper studio album. The inclusion of Hey Jude may well be, but it has so many iconic singles, that not including it is really unthinkable.
Okay, we all know the worst is Yellow Submarine; total dogshit. But which is the best?
Now, this is somewhat compliticated by the differing versions released in the UK and the US, especially in the early years, and the fact that so many iconic songs were singles, and not part of an album. Ah, well, we must muddle through. I'm going to go with the versions I was weaned on, mostly US for the early versions, UK for the later versions. The US versions have the virtue of capturing all the singles better. By Hard Day's Night this question is mostly moot anyway, as the releases start to stack up better. By Sgt. Pepper, there is no differnce at all. I wish I could say my list were consistent; it's not, but it's close enough.
My vote is unorthodox: The White Album. Reason: every song is good, even the bad ones. The rock critics who say Revolver are full of shit. Revolver isn't even as good as Pepper.
I place the albums in three categories: early, middle and late. Just like Beethoven! The early period is all pop/blues. Smokey Hamburg clip joint music and bubble gum pop. Some good stuff, but very little is original. "Love Me Do" stands out. The rest of the good songs are covers. The stuff that made teenage girls in Maspeth lose their minds in 1964 is drivel.
Hard Day's Night brings us to the middle period. It's still very poppy, but there is a new edge. (A great album, BTW.) The middle period culminates with Rubber Soul. The pop influence is fading, but psychedelia still has yet to appear in real force. The real driving force of the album is Lennon's bitterness.
The late period begins with Revolver. From here until the end, we have the iconic Beatles -- the great Beatles for whom all the rest was prolegomena. There are dizzying highs and terrifying lows, but the ride is exhilerating. Even Let it Be has its moments. "Let it Be" itself is a great song. I remember once, on a trip from Catalinia to San Dago, um, San Diego, getting caught in a godawful squall. Nothing life threatening, but unpleasant, and it required some vigilance. The chop was merciless. Thankfully our food was so bad I hadn't eaten. Anyway, we came out of it, and picked up an LA oldies station. They played "Let it Be" as if right on cue, for us personally. I hadn't heard the song in about ten years, maybe longer. It was a quasi-religious experience.
The addition of Magical Mystery Tour will probably not be controversial, even though it was not a proper studio album. The inclusion of Hey Jude may well be, but it has so many iconic singles, that not including it is really unthinkable.
