The Beatles, Album by Album--Past Masters, Vol. II

Collecting all of the non-album singles of the mid- to late-period Beatles, this CD expectedly has lots of hits, but some of them we've heard so many times that they deserve relistening so that we understand afresh what makes these such legendary recordings. I know that a lot of these songs I've heard so many times on the radio growing up that I basically tune them out when they come on. But if you listen to almost any of the Beatles' songs with a blank slate, they will manage to astonish you with little details that you never heard before.

"Day Tripper" is a huge leap from the songs on Past Masters, Vol. I. Although singles that came out and were placed on the album Help! (the title track and "Ticket to Ride") somewhat bridge this gap, there is still a leap in John and Paul's songwriting in 1965 and 1966 that makes this their most experimental period. There is an irony and wit in the lyrics of "Day Tripper" and "Paperback Writer" that wasn't present in pop music before this. "We Can Work It Out" is a great showcase for the contrasting personalities of John and Paul. They both seem to be approaching the same problem, and we are led to believe that the whole song is some sort of argument between themselves that they want to settle so they can make music together. Paul's answer is "We can work it out," while John's response to their bickering is "Life is very short, and there's no time for fussing and fighting, my friend." In the end, I suppose, they did work it out, because they came up with a great song about it! "Rain" was a big step for them, heralding the psychedelic masterpiece Revolver. It has early trippy vocal effects and harmonies, as well as acid-drenched lyrics. Ringo's drumming really drives the psychedelic groove, providing you with something to latch onto while your ego vanishes and you melt into the music.

There is a distinct jump on here between "Rain" to "Lady Madonna," which sound years apart. They are indeed a year apart (which in terms of the Beatles' development is a very long time), as the 1967 psychedelic singles weren't included on here, since they are on Magical Mystery Tour. While a lot of this 1967 psychedelic period I've described as sloppy and overflowing with excess, their singles did manage to really exemplify the beauty and promise of the period, especially the "Strawberry Fields Forever"/"Penny Lane" single, which probably is their finest. In any case, none of these singles are on here.

"Lady Madonna" is a good example of a song that I tend to block out whenever I hear it. It's been played so many times that I just don't usually pay much attention. But it really is a fun song, and rides completely on Paul's White Album-era, genre-leaping charm, where it seemed like he could tackle any type of music with equal aplomb. He has some arresting vocals on here--he was able to convey great empathy for the subjects in his songs through his lyrics and singing. It always seemed like Paul was endlessly interested with others he saw in the world around him, whereas John was most interested in himself. This just shows that there are two different kinds of artists out there. Again, in "Hey Jude," Paul delivers such compassionate vocals in a song about someone else. In this case, it seems to be about a friend getting over a girl, and Paul convinces him beautifully that things will be alright. Of course I've heard like everyone else that this song is about Paul trying to reassure John's son after John's divorce of his first wife, but the lyrics really have nothing to do with that. The song is an absolute masterpiece, and contains the finest coda in all of rock music (and that is including "I Want You [She's So Heavy]," 'Hotel California," "Comfortably Numb," "November Rain," and "Fade to Black"). Again, Paul's vocals in this period just showed absolute and complete confidence and control.

We have the more commonly played version of "Revolution" on here, complete with fuzzed-out-yer-ass guitars and a great keyboard solo. Who hasn't heard this? Supposedly the one on the White Album is a little edgier because John sings something like "But when you talk about destruction/Don't you know that you can count me out (in)," but let's be honest--the single version sounds a lot more hard-edge. That guitar tone must've been pretty slamming in 1968. "Don't Let Me Down" is a song I ignored for many years, but treating it as a classic soul song (much in the vein I talked about with "Oh! Darling" here) has really helped me appreciate it. The bluesy keyboard work of Billy Preston and the great guitar work complements John's passionate howling on the choruses. The raw, sub-English simplicity of the lyrics ("She done me good") really reflect the primitive power that love can have on us. Soul music is all about simplicity, about what is not being said more than about what is.

"The Ballad of John and Yoko" carries John's self-obsession in his songwriting to somewhat annoying heights. It seems just like a laundry list of his life and what he thinks are the media's attempts to destroy the perfect love between him and Yoko. As seemingly pointless as the lyrics are, it's still a catchy song. John's song "Across the Universe," which we previously heard in a different version on Let It Be, is unique-sounding on here in its stripped-down format without Phil Spector's production. It was originally released on a charity album for the World Wildlife Fund, and complete with animal sound effects, a children's choir, and gentle wah guitar that sounds like ripples in a pond, it really does depict the beauty of nature and the universe. It is one of the Beatles' most poetic songs. "You Know Me (Look Up the Number)"...you could probably answer what this is about just as well as me. It's a pretty haphazard parody/comedy song, but it's actually not half-bad. I fucking love Paul's vocals on this track. It reminds me of a Monty Python movie or something. And apparently Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones plays sax on here. Definitely one of the least-heard Beatles songs ever.

--Edward