Product Description

Though some might argue that the Beatles' unprecedented evolution from British Invasion pin-ups to pop music visionaries began with BEATLES FOR SALE, RUBBER SOUL is without a doubt the first album to definitively put the Fab Four in the running for Greatest Band Ever. Virtually every aspect of the Liverpool quartet's incredibly diverse sound is in evidence here: the dark, irony-filled Dylanism ("Norwegian Wood", "Nowhere Man"), pop perfection ("In My Life"), the passion for classic tin pan alley balladry ("Girl", "Michelle"), and thelove of good 'ol rock & roll music ("Drive My Car"). Peppered with nasty fuzz bass, exotic sitar, cartoonishly sped-up piano that sounds like harpsichord, and elements of country,Motown, and classical music, the album reveals a creative scope and willingness to experiment so revolutionary it can now only be termed "Beatlesque". Though the Fabs don't go as far out on a limb here as on the more overtly experimental REVOLVER, RUBBER SOUL is perhaps the Beatles' most finely crafted and accessible work, and consequently many fans' and critics' favourite.

Track Listing

1. Drive My Car
2. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)
3. You Won't See Me
4. Nowhere Man
5. Think For Yourself
6. Word
7. Michelle
8. What Goes On
9. Girl
10. I'm Looking Through You
11. In My Life
12. Wait
13. If I Needed Someone
14. Run For Your Life

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #489 in Music
• Released on: 1998-11-01
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Rank 'em how you like, Rubber Soul is an undeniable pivot point in the Fab Four's varied discography no matter where, or how, you first heard it. So many classics: "Drive My Car" and "Nowhere Man" merge the early combustible Beatifics to a burgeoning studio consciousness; "The Word" can be read as a pre-psych warning shot; the sitar-laden "Norwegian Wood" and the evocative "Girl" (the latter written on the last night of the sessions) stand as turning points in John Lennon's oeuvre. George finally emerges too, with the McGuinn-ish "If I Needed Someone". --Don Harrison

Customer Reviews

TODA UNA ENTIDAD DISCOGRÁFICA
Rubber soul es el mas claro ejemplo de como los discos larga duracion se convirtieron en obras de arte puro musical; antaño, los llamados lp's eran puramente un recurso para sacar provecho de artistas de un par de hits, haciendoles cantar canciones "de relleno" que eran intercaladas entre sus exitos; los beatles rompieron este esquema, puesto que ¡NUNCA TUVIERON TEMAS DE RELLENO!!; su obsesion por la excelencia les llevaron a cuidar y elaborar cada cancion de sus discos hasta darse el lujo de descartar y regalar aquellas piezas que no les parecian; el resultado lo podemos ver aqui, en un album que NUNCA PASARA DE MODA y sera el reflejo de que los discos larga duracion son PIEZAS MAESTRAS COMPLETAS; se puede ver la inclusion de instrumentos nuevos como la citara (Nowegian Wood), el Fuzz Bass (Think for Yourself), las armonías vocales (Nowhere Man) y la profundidad de sus mensajes (The Word); fue incluso su primer album con "viajes" o "trips" (uso de marijuana, LSD para inspirarse)... en total, un album que llego para quedarse.

A Must Have Classic
This is quite simply one of the greatest albums of all time. In my opinion, it is the Beatles at their songwriting best. It may not be as polished as Abbey Road or as revolutionary as Sgt Pepper, but song for song on pure likability alone, Rubber Soul is my favourite. The highlights from my point of view are Run For Your Life and Girl, but this is a classic album, and anyone would enjoy it.

I'm not going to buck tradition
But I sneaked here to Amazon UK to see if the American release (if a CD of the version *was* released, which now looks unlikely) might be here, since Amazon US has only the British release.

Sorry! I was born in 1954 and grew up on new Beatles recordings as they first came out. And the Rubber Soul I grew to love starts with "I've Just Seen a Face."

Oh, well. I guess I'll find the missing songs and burn a CD that sounds like the one I memorized back in the 60s.

Goodbye all!