Going along with the recent group of ranking threads I though I’d start one that I’m really curious to hear people’s opinions of on here. I’m excluding the Capitol releases and just focusing on what Apple Corp. considers their “official canon”, meaning the UK releases and US Magical Mystery Tour. Past Masters/Non-album singles excluded. I also enjoy all of these albums in their own way, so being low on the list doesn’t mean I dislike it.
1 - Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band: This was the first album I ever owned and sparked my fascination with music
2 - Abbey Road: I actually used to rank this around the middle for some reason but over the years I’ve realized the entire album’s brilliance, specifically side 2
3 - The Beatles [White Album]: Basically the complete opposite of Sgt. Pepper, and I used to dislike it for that reason, but after tracking down the vinyl long ago I reevaluated it and at one point even considered it better than Abbey Road.
4 - Revolver: Yet another album that I considered to be lesser than I now do. What can I say? It really represents a turning point in their career, and delves into some brilliant psychedelia. Tomorrow Never Knows is also pretty damn mind-bending.
5 - Rubber Soul: I used to think of this as my favorite Beatles album, even more than Sgt. Pepper at one point, but after my reevaluations of Revolver, Abbey Road, and The Beatles I have to rank it at the bottom of the top five. Again, I haven’t lost any appreciation for this album, I just gained appreciation for the ones above it. It almost hurts to rank it this low given how much I love it, but oh well.
6 - A Hard Day’s Night: This is by far my favorite of the pre-Rubber Soul albums, and it marks an important moment in that it’s the first album with all original songs, although sadly George and Ringo are completely excluded from both singing and songwriting, with the exception of Harrison’s vocals on I’m Happy Just to Dance with You.
7 - Please Please Me: This album has a very distinct vibe to it; it almost feels like it was recorded at the Cavern Club.
8 - Magical Mystery Tour: This has some of my favorite Beatles songs of all time on it, but ultimately it wasn’t really something the Beatles had much to do with. It’s a great lineup of songs but as an album it just doesn’t hold up to their later work.
9 - Let It Be: I struggled with where to place this. It’s a good album but after all of the great records that came before, it just doesn’t fit quite right. The attempt to go for a straight up rock band playing raw un-tampered with music just didn’t quite work for the Beatles coming after the brilliance of Abbey Road (which I know was recorded later, but it did come out before Let It Be). Let It Be and Across the Universe are absolutely incredible, but I prefer the single version of Let It Be. I just don’t love the raw sound they were going for. I love the concert on the roof footage though!
10 - Help!: Yet another album populated with my favorite songs, but as an album it just doesn’t quite do it for me. It is the last time they had full length cover songs though, which is a plus.
11 - With the Beatles: I enjoy this one a lot for casual listening, and it has some of the best covers of other songs on here. It feels more like a compilation of singles than an album though.
12 - Yellow Submarine: It’s hard not to put this one last since it is really just four new songs, along with a side of score. That being said, I really like side 1, and it has some of Harrison’s best psychedelic work on it.
13 - Beatles for Sale: This is usually at the bottom of everyone’s lists. For me the covers, which aren’t particularly exciting, really drag the album down. It was the height of Beatlemania and their fatigue is felt.