The Beatles (album)

The white Album of the Beatles, to the mythical cover, leaves the November 22nd 1968, like symbolizing the nearest end of the group. During its creation, environment in studio 2 of Abbey Road had become, appears it, unbreathable.

The White Album , actually called The Beatles , is a Double album (what also was worth to him the nickname of “ Double White ”) thus including/understanding two discs, an opening small pocket entirely white - sobriety marking a contrast striking with their preceding album - of which each one is numbered . Also Spartan is the title which is simply The Beatles pressed in relief. The small pocket contains a poster, the texts and the portraits of the four artists. A legend affirms that the cover of this album is white because John Lennon wanted that it is placed there a photograph dared enough of him and its wife Yoko Ono; for him it was “either this photograph, or nothing” and it was “nothing”. Reality is that Paul McCartney and Richard Hamilton imagined the small pocket of the album. They thought of making a joining with photographs of Beatles, childhood and others having more or less relationship between them on a white zone.

Like the precedent, this album left under their own label Apple Records .

Musical analysis

This album gathers thirty titles including four compositions of George Harrison including famous the While My Guitar Gently Weeps with a solo of Eric Clapton. The album is composed of scattered research, a mixture of titles that each one had composed at the time of a training course of meditation transcendantale in India at the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and had arranged in his corner with the studios of Abbey Road.

It is the album of the beginning of the end, where start to appear the disagreements between the members. A production with Orchestra S, Guitar S acoustics for half of the pieces and the elaborate mixings, but more hardly of unit except some short mutual references of the songs between them. Even humor ( Back in the U.S.S.R. in reference to the Back in the USA of Chuck Berry, and placing the expression “ Georgia… is one my mind ”) does not seem any more to strike. This album is almost with the antipodes precedent. Experimental work Revolution 9 of John, inspired by work of Edgar Varèse, that George Martin begs John to withdraw album (without any chance, since it is a double) will complete to disconcert the public, which had however accommodated at one time well Tomorrow Never Knows .

The album is double, therefore, and each one of its members type-setters places there and there Chant E all that he wants. But often without more hardly dealing with the others than it does not use whereas like simple musicians of studio. Well off this war, Ringo Starr plays of sound better, him which only of all hardly seems eager to draw the cover with him. It will be also the only one which will remain in good terms with all the others during separation, and besides will join together them all also - but separately - in one of its future albums, Ringo .

The series Anthology which will leave a long time after will show that the song Not Guilty , of George Harrison, and who was later one of his successes, had been recorded at this session, but had not been in the final analysis placed on the disc.

“Is this the end of the Beatles? ” questions in France the magazine Rock & Folk at the time of the exit of the disc.

List songs

All the songs are written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, except where mentioned.

Disc 1

Back in the U.S.S.R. - 2:43
* Song: Paul McCartney
Dear Prudence - 3:54
* Song: John Lennon
Knell Onion - 2:18
* Song: John Lennon
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da - 3:09
* Song: Paul McCartney
Wild Honey Black and white - 0:53
* Song: Paul McCartney
The Continuing Story off Bungalow Bill - 3:14
* Song: John Lennon
While My Guitar Gently Weeps (George Harrison) - 4:45
* Song: George Harrison
Happiness has Warm Gun - 2:43
* Chant: John Lennon
Martha My Dear - 2:28
* Song: Paul McCartney
I' m So Tired - 2:03
* Song: John Lennon
Blackbird - 2:18
* Song: Paul McCartney
Piggies (George Harrison) -
* Song: George Harrison
Rocky Raccoon - 3:41
* Song: Paul McCartney
Don' T Not Me By (Ringo Starr) - 3:50
* Song: Ringo Starr
Why Don' T We Do It in the Road? - 1:42
* Song: Paul McCartney
I Will - 1:46
* Song: Paul McCartney
Julia - 2:54
* Song: John Lennon

Disc 2

Birthday - 2:43
* Song: Paul McCartney and John Lennon
Yer Blues - 4:01
* Song: John Lennon
Mother Nature' S Its - 2:48
* Song: Paul McCartney
Everybody' S Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey - 2:25
* Song: John Lennon
Sexy Sadie - 3:15
* Song: John Lennon
Helter Skelter - 4:30
* Song: Paul McCartney
Long, Long, Long (George Harrison) - 3:04
* Song: George Harrison
Revolution 1 - 4:16
* Song: John Lennon
Black and white Honey - 2:41
* Song: Paul McCartney
Savoy Truffle (George Harrison) - 2:55
* Song: George Harrison
Cry Baby Cry - 3:02
* Song: Paul McCartney
Revolution 9 - 8:21
* “Joining musical” instrumental creates by John Lennon and Yoko Ono
Good Night - 3:11
* Chant: Ringo Starr

The gray album

Beginning 2004, DJ Danger Foams, follower of the Remix had mixed a version has cappella Black Album of the Rappeur Jay-Z and the white album of the Beatles, and, with 3.000 specimens, a disc of 12 pieces, naturally baptized had published some… The Grey Album .

But the major EMI informant which the DJ had not acquired of right for Remix er of the pieces of Beatles, required the withdrawal of its disc of the sale. For Nicholas Reville, militant site downhillbattle.org , “it had no means for Danger there Foams to acquire these rights, if prohibitory that even a Rappeur with success could not acquire them. (…) nothing in the album Danger Foam would discourage from the public buying the album of the Beatles, quite to the contrary. ”

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