Our Favorite Albums #5
5. The Beatles – Rubber Soul [1965]
Nominated by DJ Jagged Little Thrill of What the Funk & Word on the Street, DJ McKenzie of Splitting Hairs & The Beatles: A Week in the Life, Richard Kamins of River Valley Rhythms, and Leith of The Light Fandango.
DJ McKenzie says: Essentially a “Part 1” to Revolver, providing a stepping stone to the experimentation that would be seen on Revolver. It doesn’t reach the same heights, but songwriting-wise, it’s a masterpiece.
Richard Kamins says: No longer a teeny-bopper band, this was the first of 3 albums in a row that cemented The Beatles reputation as artists!
Lennon recalled that Rubber Soul was the first album over which the Beatles had complete creative control, with enough studio time to develop and refine new sound ideas.
Before the recording sessions, McCartney was given a new bass guitar, a solid-body Rickenbacker 4001, which produced a fuller sound than his hollow-body Hofner. The Rickenbacker’s design allowed for greater melodic precision, a characteristic that led McCartney to contribute more intricate bass lines. Harrison used a Fender Stratocaster for the first time during the sessions, most notably in his lead guitar part on “Nowhere Man”. The variety in guitar tones throughout the album was also aided by Harrison and Lennon’s use of capos, particularly in the high-register parts on “If I Needed Someone” and “Girl”. To mimic the sound of a harpsichord on “In My Life”, after Lennon had suggested he play something “like Bach”, Martin recorded the piano solo with the tape running at half-speed. When played back at normal speed during the mixdown, the sped-up sound gave the illusion of a harpsichord. In this way, the Beatles used the recording studio as a musical instrument, an approach that they and Martin developed further with Revolver. (wikipedia.org)
