Abbey Road - Beatles (The) (Cassette 1987)

Since their age of dominance that began in 1962, no group before or since then had garnered more power, acclaim, and influence phenomenally than the Beatles. Through their catalog of pop classics including twenty-seven number one singles worldwide, and groundbreaking albums like Revolver , Rubber Soul , and Sgt. Pepper s Lonely Hearts Club Band . By that time, the Beatles could do no wrong. All that changed in August of 1967 when the band s manager Brian Epstein died of a drug overdose where many Beatle historians claimed was the beginning of the end for the band. Following Brian Epstein s death, the band released a TV special for their album Magical Mystery Tour which was panned by critics at the time for its psychedelic indulgence and silly sketches. The band retreated to India to study with the Maharishi Yogi in early 1968 that proved disastrous for the band as they returned home to England. John Lennon meanwhile, hooked up with avant-garde artist Yoko Ono and began working on experimental albums with her that drew scathing reviews from critics and her appearances at recording sessions for the Beatles annoyed Lennon s band mates.

The year 1968 was filled with turmoil through political deaths, riots, and anti-war protest as the Beatles themselves began to disintegrate during the sessions for their new record that would be known as The White Album . Tension was driving the band apart and drummer Ringo Starr left in frustration for a brief period of time before returning. The double-record release of The White Album in November 1968 proved to be another hit for the band but their relationships were beginning to fall apart. As they went ahead to work on another album Get Back (later known as Let It Be ), creative tension and personality conflicts began to tear the band apart relentlessly as the band played their final show on the rooftop of their Abbey Road studios. The concert was recorded for the new album but was stopped by the police and the recordings for the new album were scrapped, as the band was ready to call it quits.

Business issues concerning their Apple label as well as publishing (which they would lose after the break up and again when Paul tried to get them back but was outbid by 80s pop star Michael Jackson) were driving the band apart as well as creative tension. John Lennon was becoming interested in music outside of the Beatles while Paul McCartney was trying to produce hits for the band and keep them together. George Harrison was becoming frustrated with the lack of input he would put into Beatles albums as his songwriting began to grow while Ringo Starr was upset over his role in the band as it dwindled. Beatles producer George Martin knew about the tension and heard they were ready to call it quits but felt it would be a sad way for the band to end like that. Martin decided to get the band together to record one more album without pressure and tension and see what the result would be. The results turn out to be another masterpiece and a grand farewell for the band known as Abbey Road .

Abbey Road is a back-to-basics album where the band returns to the sounds of blues and melodic pop songs as well as experimenting with the Moog synthesizer on some of the tracks. The songs on Abbey Road are by far some of the band s best songs as Lennon brings out blues-driven songs with McCartney s melodic pop sensibility. George Harrison finally gets a chance to show his prowess as a songwriter with two of the album s huge standouts Something and Here Comes The Sun while Ringo Starr finally gets another chance as a songwriter while belting some his best drum chops into that album. With one side of the album devoted to full songs, the second half is devoted to short song fragments where tempos would change frequently and would at times return to a previous song. With Abbey Road , the Beatles decided to leave the music world with a bang instead of a whimper.

The album s opener is the mid-tempo blues of Come Together with its smooth bass groove and bass-pounding rhythms as John Lennon sings, Here comes old flattop, he come grooving up slowly/He got joo-joo eyeballs, he one holy roller/He got hair down, to his knees/Got to be a joker, he just do what he please as George Harrison belts a bluesy guitar track as Lennon continues to sing, He wear no shoeshine, he got toe-jam football/He got monkey fingers, he shoot coca-cola/He say, I know you, you know me /One thing I can tell you is you got to be free as he leads to the bluesy chorus of Come together, right now/Over me as contributing organ player Billy Preston (the only session player to receive any credit for his session work with the Beatles alongside Eric Clapton) belts in a bluesy organ solo as Lennon sings his idiosyncratic lyrics and its chorus as Harrison brings in a blues-drenched guitar solo in the middle and in the song s coda as Lennon sings, Come together, yeah repeatedly.

Next is the classic Something from George Harrison as he brings in an opening guitar slide and his smooth vocals as he sings this love song to his then-wife Patti Boyd (who would later marry Harrison s friend Eric Clapton in the mid-70s) with opening lyrics of Something in the way, she moves/Attracts me like no other lover/Something in the way she moves me as Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr bring in a slow and seductive rhythm to Harrison s slow-paced love song as he sings the chorus of I don t want to leave her now/You know I believe her now as he brings in that trademark guitar slide solo as he then sings, Somewhere in her smile, she knows/That I don t need no other lover/Something in her style that shows me as he comes to the chorus and guitar solo as the tempo picks up a bit where he sings, You re asking me will my love grow/I don t know, oh I don t know/You stick around and it may show/I don t know, oh I don t know as he follows it up with a lovely guitar solo and his lyrics of love and passion are powerful that Frank Sinatra called it one of the greatest love songs ever made and the song went to number one which was a first for Harrison as a Beatle.

The next two Lennon-McCartney compositions are both sung by Paul himself. First is the thumping Maxwell s Silver Hammer led by Paul s melodic bass and his vocals as he sings his strange lyrics of Joan was quizzical, studied metaphysical/Science in the home/Late nights all alone with a test-tube/Oh-oh-oh-oh as he sings the chorus of Bang bang, Maxwell s silver hammer/Came upon down her head/Bang bang, Maxwell s silver hammer/Made sure that she was dead as the song was followed by a soft Moog synthesizer after the first chorus but on the second time the chorus was sang with the banging hammer percussion, John and George bring a country-flavored guitar solo. Next is the bluesy Oh! Darling as Paul sings, Oh darling, please believe me/I ll never do you no harm/Believe me when I tell you/I ll never do you no harm as it is followed by Ringo s bass-pounding drumbeats. Paul sings in his bluesy snarl of Oh darling, if you leave me/I ll never make it alone/Believe me when I beg you/Don t ever leave me alone as he follows up with a verse of When you told me, you didn t need me anymore/Well you know, I nearly broke down and cried/When you told me, you didn t need me anymore/Well you know, I nearly broke down and die-ie-ie-ied in his bluesy growl as he repeats the same lyrics throughout the song as Lennon and Harrison bring a bluesy guitar track to the song.

Next is a composition from Ringo himself on the country-tinged Octopus s Garden that opens up with melodic country riffs and a thumping backbeat rhythm as Ringo sings the opening chorus of I d like to be, under the sea/In an octopus s garden, in a shade/He d let us in, knows where we ve been/In his octopus s garden, in a shade as he follows it up with the verse of I d ask my friends to come and see/An octopus s garden, with me/I d like to be, under the sea/In an octopus s garden, in a shade with its innocent lyrics and country-setting that makes this song an enjoyable standout and the importance of Ringo Starr in the Beatles who many felt was the most underrated member of the group and is, rightfully so. I Want You (She s So Heavy) opens up with a slow and droning guitar riffs as it then turns into a smooth-laced blues track as Lennon sings, I want you, I want you so bad babe/I want you, I want you so bad, it s driving me mad in his bluesy growl as Billy Preston brings in crashing organ solo followed by McCartney s melodic bass hooks and the song returns to its heavy guitar drone as Lennon sings, She s so heavy back and forth throughout the song.

Next is another Harrison masterpiece for the acoustic-drenched Here Comes The Sun as Harrison opens up with an acoustic guitar riff and sings the chorus of Here comes the sun, here comes the sun/And I say, it s alright as Harrison belts out his melodic acoustic guitar riff followed by its smooth mid-tempo track as Harrison sings, Little darling, it s been a long cold lonely winter/Little darling, it feels like years since it s been here/Here comes the sun, here comes the sun/And I say, it s alright/Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces/Little darling, it seems like years since it s been here as he follows it up with the chorus and instrumental break with Ringo s pounding drumbeats and Harrison singing Sun, sun, sun, here it comes five times as he is accompanied by Ringo s drums and a soothing synthesizer tracks as Harrison sings the final verse of Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting/Little darling, it seems like years since it s been clear as he follows it up with the chorus in the last of his two defining masterpieces for the album. Because is a harmonious and atmospheric-based track opened up with Lennon s melodic guitar track and a soft synthesizer track as the band sings, Because the world is round, it turns me on/Because the world is round, ahhhhhhh with their luscious vocal harmonies as they sing lyrics of Love is all, love is new, love is all, love is new with harmonies that almost outrival the Beach Boys in its delivery as the track is accompanied by space-tone synthesizer melodies.

The second half of the album is a medley piece filled with fragmented tracks and tempo changes in songs and tracks that are short ranging from a minute or less. First is You Never Give Me Your Money that is set in tempo changes. First in a piano-based ballad as Paul McCartney sings, You never give me your money/You only give me funny paper/And in the middle of negotiation, you break down/I never give you my number/I only give you my situation/And in the middle of investigation, I break down as the temp begins to change to a more mid-up tempo blues driven track with full instruments as Paul sings, Out of money, college spent/See no future, pay no rent/All the money s gone, nowhere to go/Any jobber got the sack/Monday morning, turning back/Yellow lorry, nowhere to go/But oh that magic feeling nowhere to go/Oh that magic feeling nowhere to go/Nowhere to go as Lennon and Harrison bring in some melodic guitar riffs as well as blues-driven guitar riffs as the tempo changes more dramatically into a more blues-based rocker as Paul sings, One sweet dream/Pick up the bags and get in the limousine/Soon we ll be away from here/Step on the gas and wipe that tear away/One sweet dream came true, today/Came true, today/(repeat) as the band starts a brief bluesy jam as they sing, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7/All good children go to heaven .

Sun King opens up with a melodic-driven guitar texture from John Lennon as he is accompanied by Paul McCartney s bass line as their vocals come in with Lennon singing Ah, here comes the sun king/here comes the sun king/Everybody s laughing/Everybody s happy/Here comes the sun king as he then sings in Italian or Spanish that still confuses some fans as he sings something that turned out to be just mumbo-jumbo but that s Lennon for you. The song then segues into a mid-tempo blues-driven track called Mean Mr. Mustard with its thumping blues rhythm from Lennon s piano as he sings, Mean Mr. Mustard sleeps in the park/Shaves in the park trying to save paper/Sleeps in a hole in the road/Saving up to by some clothes/Keeps a ten bob note up his nose, such a mean old man/Such a mean old man/His sister Pam works in the shop/She never stops, she s a go-getter/Takes him out to look at the Queen/Only place that he s ever been/Always shout out something obscene/Such a dirty old man/Dirty old man .

Next in the 2nd half medley is the rocking Polythene Pam that opens up with a crashing acoustic guitar riff from Lennon who then sings, Well you should see Polythene Pam/She s so good looking but she looks like a man/Well you should see her in drag dressed in her polythene bag/Yes you should see Polythene Pam/Yeah, yeah, yeah as McCartney brings a rocking guitar track as Lennon sings, Get a dose of her in jackboots and kilt/She s a killer diller when she s dressed to the hilt/She s the kind of girl that makes the News of the World/Yes you could say she was attractively built/Yeah, yeah, yeah as McCartney brings in a killer guitar solo. Next is the up tempo blues of She Came In Through The Bathroom Window as he sings the opening line of She came in through the bathroom window as Ringo brings in a pounding bass drum rhythm as McCartney sings the song s lyrics of Didn t anybody tell her/Didn t anybody see/Sundays on the phones to Monday/Tuesday on the phones to me as he belt out a country-style guitar solo with Harrison accompanying on bass.

Next is the McCartney piano ballad of Golden Slumbers as he sings, Once there was a way, to get back homeward/Once there was a way, to get back home/Sleep pretty darling, do not cry/And I will sing a lullaby as he is accompanied by Ringo s crashing drums and a powerful string orchestra as he sings, Golden slumbers fill your eyes/Smiles awake you when you rise/Sleep pretty darling do not cry/And I will sing a lullaby as the string orchestra accompany him as he sings the first verse again. The song then segues into Carry That Weight with full band as the band sings the chorus of Boy, you re gonna carry that weight/Carry that weight a long time as the orchestra plays the opening melody of You Never Give Me Your Money where Paul used the melody to sing, I never give you my pillow/I only send you invitations, and in the middle of the celebrations, I break down as the track returns to its sing-a-long chorus followed by Harrison s melodic guitar solo. Next is The End that marks as the album s climax with its wailing guitar solos from George Harrison and John Lennon as Paul sings, Oh yeah, all right/Are you gonna be in my dreams tonight as Ringo Starr brings in a phenomenal drum solo where he incessantly pounds the bass drums with a full-on intensity as he then hits the snare as the band begins to jam with Lennon and Harrison each taking turns for a guitar solo proving the band won t go away quietly as McCartney then brings in a thumping piano solo as the band sings, And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love with a flowing string orchestra following as Paul finishes up the lyrics saying You make as Harrison closes the song up with a soothing guitar solo.

The album s closer is a soft, little Liverpool-based folk song as Paul sings, Her majesty s a pretty nice girl but she doesn t have a lot to say/Her majesty s a pretty nice girl but she changes from day to day/I wanna tell her I love her a lot but I gotta get a belly full of wine/Her majesty s a pretty nice girl, someday I m gonna make her mine/Oh yeah, someday I m gonna her mine . The End.

Released in the fall of 1969, Abbey Road was an instant hit as the Beatles begin to drift apart. Political and personal problems have overwhelmed the band when they all decided it was time to call it day in the spring of 1970. Since then, each member have all immersed in successful solo careers until Lennon s shocking death in 1980 when he was shot by a deranged fan and most recently in late November of last year when George Harrison died of cancer. Since the band s breakup, the influence of the Beatles have been overwhelming as the band continues to sell their old albums and in 2000, the band were on top again with the 1 singles collection that became a worldwide hit proving the Beatles can be bigger than anyone else including themselves. Abbey Road marks as a final chapter in the band s career proving that if you re going to go out, at least go out on top and that s what the Beatles did with Abbey Road . Ending their glorious career with a bang.