IN THE SUMMER of 1966, the Beatles dropped Revolver — an album so far ahead of its time that the world is still catching up with it. It’s the moptops mutating at warp speed, outgrowing all their former incarnations. Paul McCartney is exploring avant-garde art and music. John Lennon is reading The Tibetan Book of the Dead. George Harrison is studying sitar and Indian mysticism. Ringo Starr has installed a pub in his basement. They’re ready to shock the world — and themselves — with their masterpiece. The result: Revolver, routinely acclaimed as the greatest rock album ever made, by the Beatles or anyone else.
Except the world hasn’t heard it yet. Because in 2022 there’s more to Revolver than we ever knew. Over a few summer days in Abbey Road, the legendary London studio the Beatles called home, Rolling Stone gets a one-on-one exclusive tour of the brand-new Revolver, as good-day sunshine streams through the windows. Producer Giles Martin, son of the band’s wizardly producer George Martin, spins unheard outtakes from the sessions, along with the revealing new mix of the Beatles’ most wildly experimental album.
One of my faves, I remember where I was when I first heard it. Teachers apartment.
That is going to be one helluva an album. There were so many great songs on Revolver and it's be interesting to hear the additional songs. I expect this album will go Platinum when it's released.
The British release always had two more songs than the abridged US one. This is true for most British Beatle vinyl. It also has a slightly different EQ curve, and in general sounds way cool on decent vinyl playback equipment.
Beatle outtakes are always interesting. They experimented a lot. Sometimes the words weren't finished when they were refining the music, and they just put in funny nonsense stuff.
Scratch tracks are always great fun. R.E.M. has one real nice one on one of the collections. Stipe is reading off the back of a gospel album while the band runs through the instrumentals.
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