What follows are some of my favourite albums from The Beatles’ incredible discography, along with a few of my most beloved songs.
I should start this article off by making a note that this is one of the hardest things I’ve done in my life, but I don’t regret it one minute. The Beatles are my favourite band and getting to relisten to some of my favourite albums and songs to write an article about has been such a joy.
For a brief history lesson, The Beatles consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The official lineup didn’t form until 1962 after Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison asked Starr to join them.
The Beatles released 12 studio albums over eight years. During that timeframe, they won seven Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award (Best Original Song Score for their 1970 film Let It Be) and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, along with individual inductions between 1994 and 2015.
The band also released five films, A Hard Day’s Night (1964), Help! (1965), Magical Mystery Tour (1967), Yellow Submarine (1968), and Let It Be (1970). Between 1962 and 1966, The Beatles toured nonstop and played around 1,400 concerts internationally. Their last concert was on August 29, 1966, at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco, and the last time they performed together was on January 30, 1969, infamously on the top of their Apple Corps headquarters in London.
The four mop tops from Liverpool created an entire empire and are still inspiring generations with their music today. From “Beatlemania” to the “British Invasion,” writing their own songs to creating concept albums, The Beatles did it all. They truly learned to grow as musicians and as artists over their extremely short stretch as a band. What follows are some of my favourite albums from their incredible discography, along with a few of my most beloved songs.
5. A Hard Day’s Night
A Hard Day’s Night is the only Beatles album to be fully credited to Lennon and McCartney; the greatest songwriting duo of all time. For that reason and many others, this album had to be included on my list of favourites.
None of the songs from this album are over three minutes long. It’s clear being the biggest band in the world had its disadvantages, like having less time to write songs and record music. Still, A Hard Day’s Night is filled with gooey love songs that are catchy and romantic. “And I Love Her” has to be one of Paul’s best songs, and we’re only four albums into their discography.
For most of the songs on A Hard Day’s Night, I can’t help but think of the movie they released by the same name. Who doesn’t love the scene where the band runs around in the middle of a field to “Can’t Buy Me Love”? Their marketing team was really onto something back then.
Favourite Songs: “And I Love Her,” “If I Fell,” “Can’t Buy Me Love”
4. The Beatles
The Beatles’ self-titled album, otherwise known as The White Album, is a chaotic cluster of songs. The band wrote the majority of these songs while visiting India, which is evident by the amount of acoustic-oriented tracks on the album.
Over 50 years later, the debate rages on as to whether or not this double album should’ve been edited into one fantastic masterpiece. I lean towards keeping the album as is. The White Album is a one-of-a-kind experience within The Beatles’ discography. Its faults seem in their place, especially when you have an overwhelming amount of wonderful music spread throughout the rest of the album.
Sure, “Revolution 9” still gives me nightmares, but it’s sandwiched in-between two of the softest songs Lennon has ever written in “Cry Baby Cry” and “Good Night.” This combination of good and not-so-good is what makes The White Album truly stand out against any other Beatles album.
Favourite Songs: “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” “Happiness Is a Warm Gun,” “Martha My Dear,” “Mother Nature’s Son,” “Good Night”
3. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
It’s strange to say, but “Lovely Rita” was the song that got me hooked on this album and The Beatles in general. During university, I took a popular music class, and I remember learning about Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. I went back to my house and listened to this song on repeat for the rest of the night.
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band is Paul’s baby through and through. It’s so easy to see how beautifully put together the entire album is and how stunning his songs are. “Fixing a Hole,” “She’s Leaving Home,” and “When I’m Sixty-Four” bring a vulnerability to McCartney’s songwriting, which we hadn’t seen up until this point.
Of course, I can’t get through discussing this album without mentioning the brilliance of “A Day in the Life.” It has to be up there with some of McCartney and Lennon’s best joint work. Again, they come together so well, and this song is just the beginning of bridging the gap between different pieces of music.
Favourite Songs: “She’s Leaving Home,” “Lovely Rita,” “A Day in the Life”
2. Revolver
For the longest time, I couldn’t decide whether or not I preferred Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band or Revolver more. At first listen, both albums can seem a little out there. Despite my love for theatrics, I determined Revolver was always my go-to Beatles album if I only had time to listen to a few tunes.
In its own trippy way, this album flows extremely well together. Revolver is also where the majority of The Beatles’ experimentation began and was most successful. If you haven’t already heard the story of how they recorded “Tomorrow Never Knows,” it’s worth the search.
From Rubber Soul to Abbey Road, The Beatles created some of the greatest music ever released. Revolver is one of the more criminally underrated albums of their entire discography, which is a shame because of the firsts explored on this album.
Favourite Songs: “Here, There And Everywhere,” “Good Day Sunshine,” “Got To Get You Into My Life”
1. Abbey Road
At number one, we have Abbey Road. Not only is this album the best work The Beatles created together, but it’s the greatest album of all time. Despite half a century since the release of Abbey Road, the album remains as fresh as a daisy on every listen. To this day, there are still new things to enjoy on this album.
The kookiness of “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” is unlike anything The Beatles had even done before; “Come Together” has some obscure lyrics, even for John’s standards, and “Something” might just be one of the most romantic songs out in the universe today.
Plus, that medley. Nothing can beat it. The mastery to interlace several unfinished songs together and have them fit so incredibly well is something otherworldly. I’m forever grateful for McCartney, Lennon and George Martin for that one.
Favourite Songs: “Oh! Darling,” “Here Comes the Sun,” “The End”
