The White Album (Not a DLC question)

[wrecklass]

Huh, double post?

[wrecklass]

Yes, with Brian Epstein's death in late 1967 after the amazing high of the release of Sgt. Pepper's they went through a difficult emotional swing. Magical Mystery Tour was really just a big party in which they kind of tuned out the pain. Then when they returned to the studio for the first time in earnest, they had to deal with the fact that Brian wasn't there keeping things down to earth.

As a result I think they just kind of laid down whatever songs came out of the entire experience. Likely they should have listened to George Martin and cut back the album to a single disc. However, had they done that we would have missed some amazing stuff.

The White album is like listening to the Beatles in therapy. A ton of creativity with a big helping of pain and misery.

The worst part was that they didn't really deal with the biggest problem created by Epstein's death: The lack of a business manager. As a result they would go through a lot of money trying to sort out what they really owned. And a lot of pain realizing they had signed away the biggest part of their work to the vultures.

Ultimately, this is the beginning of the end of The Beatles.

[Celebrated_Mr_K]

Ah, the White Album...a great topic of discussion.

The Beatles had done Revolver, experimenting with new styles. They topped it with Sgt. Pepper. You have to consider that album when talking about the White Album. Sgt. Pepper took rock into uncharted waters. It's gothic and lush and unprecedented. Indian music? Psychedelia? Even the cover was unprecedented, filled with information and a riot of color. And the extravagant title: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band.

When they'd finished that record and the Magical Mystery Tour TV show, the Beatles went off to India to meditate and to recharge the batteries. They wrote a lot of songs during that trip. Those songs would become the White Album.

When they returned to the studio, they wanted to get back to basics. So the new album was the antithesis to Sgt. Pepper. The cover was...blank. The title was: "The Beatles." And the songs were mostly pared back to guitars and drums.

The music itself is fabulous..."Back in the USSR" is a parody of the Beach Boys. "Dear Prudence" is about Mia Farrow's sister, who wouldn't come out of her room to join in in India. "Bungalow Bill" was about a knuckleheaded rich young American who went to shoot a tiger while they were in India. "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" seems to be a lament about the band members growing apart. "Blackbird" is about the U.S. civil rights movement. "Julia" is about John's mother. "Savoy Truffle" is George's cross-album dig at Paul's penchant for lighter material. "Glass Onion" is John's dig at people trying to analyze his music. "Long Long Long" is George's spiritual hymn. "Helter Skelter" is Paul's sonic blast at those that said the Beatles didn't rock like Hendrix. "Everybody's Got Something to Hide 'Cept Me and My Monkey" is John telling people to kiss his ass if they didn't like Yoko.

The songs are dark, funny, intelligent, happy, heartbreaking, eerie, soothing, bouncy, ear-splitting...and brilliant. I often hear new bands these days cite the White Album as their all-time favorite record. A couple of years ago, I read one musician say his one goal was to someday record something as good as "Dear Prudence."

[gamegyro56]

"Back in the USSR" is a parody of the Beach Boys.

I thought it was mostly a parody on Back in the USA.

[jimmerhoft]

"Savoy Truffle" is George's cross-album dig at Paul's penchant for lighter material.

I agree with everything else you said, but Savoy Truffle is actually George poking fun at Eric Clapton and his sweet tooth.


"'Savoy Truffle' on The White Album was written for Eric (Clapton). He's got this real sweet tooth and he'd just had his mouth worked on. His dentist said he was through with candy. So as a tribute I wrote, 'You'll have to have them all pulled out after the Savoy Truffle.' The truffle was some kind of sweet, just like all the rest-- cream tangerine, ginger sling-- just candy, to tease Eric." - 1977

[elitemastersam]

Indian music? Psychedelia?

Both found in Revolver.

[neger-katten]

probably my favorite album XD

[FierDancr]

This is my favorite Beatles album and this one has infected more of my friends over the years than any other.

This is also the album that did have a Beatle quit. Ringo was tired of listening to the other three bicker all the time, Yoko being in the actual studio instead of in the control room like all the other females, being ignored for hours and had to be coerced back into the band.

Still think Yoko disrupted the harmonic flow of the quartet.

[Celebrated_Mr_K]

I agree with everything else you said, but Savoy Truffle is actually George poking fun at Eric Clapton and his sweet tooth.


"'Savoy Truffle' on The White Album was written for Eric (Clapton). He's got this real sweet tooth and he'd just had his mouth worked on. His dentist said he was through with candy. So as a tribute I wrote, 'You'll have to have them all pulled out after the Savoy Truffle.' The truffle was some kind of sweet, just like all the rest-- cream tangerine, ginger sling-- just candy, to tease Eric." - 1977

You're correct that it was the initial inspiration for the song. But it's pretty clear from the lyrics that there's a dig at Paul.

"You know that what you eat you are,
But what is sweet now, turns so sour--
We all know Obla-Di-Bla-Da
But can you show me, where you are?.."

It's like Lennon's explanation of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Sure, it was inspired by a drawing of son Julian's. But you're kidding yourself if you think Lennon wasn't smart enough to know what he was doing when writing a psychedelic song with the initials LSD in the title.

[Celebrated_Mr_K]

Both found in Revolver.

Yeah, I know. I mentioned Revolver. Sgt. Pepper took it even further.