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 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
First released: 1967, June 1 Buy
 Sheet music, guitar tabs, song books at Sheetmusicplus.com |
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Producer: George Martin Engineers: Geoff Emerick, Malcolm Addey, Adrian Ibbetson, Peter Vince, Ken Townsend Second engineers: Graham Kirkby, Richard Lush, Phil McDonald, Keith Slaughter Photography: Michael Cooper Score: Mike Leander Design: Peter Blake, Jann Haworth, MC Productions & The Apple Art Direction, Liner Notes: Peter Blake George Harrison: Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica, Sitar, Tamboura, Tambourine John Lennon: Percussion, Vocals, Guitar, Hammond Organ, Marimbas, Rhythm Guitar Paul McCartney: Conductor, Vocals, Bass Guitar, Guitar, Hammond Organ, Harpsichord, Piano Ringo Starr: Drums, Vocals, Bongos, Harmonica Michael Barnes: Tuba Sheila Bromberg: Harp Tristan Fry: Percussion Roger Lord: Oboe Marijke: Tambourine Flutes: David Sandeman, Clifford Seville Violins: Trevor Williams, Donald Weekes, Ernest Scott, Sidney Sax, Lionel Bently, Dean Bradley, Henry Datyner, Jose Garcia, Hans Geiger, Erich Gruenberg, Jurgen Hess, Derek Jacobs, Granville Jones, David McCallum, Bill Monroe Violas: John Underwood, Stephen Shingles, John Meeks, Bernard Davis, Gwen Edwards Horns: Neil Sanders, Tony Randall, James W. Buck, John Burden, Alan Civil Clarinets: Basil Tschaikov, Frank Reidy, Henry MacKenzie, Jack Brymer, Robert Burns Cellos: Dennis Vigay, Alex Nifosi, Francisco Gabarro, Alan Dalziel Trumpet: Monty Montgomery, Harold Jackson, David Mason, Dave Mason Saxophones: Alan Holmes, David Glyde, Barrie Cameron Trombones: T. Moore, Raymond Premru, John Lee, Ray Brown Bassoon: Alfred Waters, N. Fawcett Double Bass: Gordon Pearce, Cyril Macarthur |
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| 1967, June 1 | Parlophone PMC 7027 / PCS 7027 (UK) |
| Reviews & comments |
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AndrГ© Damoiseaux (2012, February 23)  the forty-one-piece orchestra on 'A Day In The Life" should be a thirty-nine-piece orchestra plus one percussionist according to Mark Lewisohn in his book 'the complete Beatles recording sessions' [p.96] and reads as follows: Michael Barnes: Tuba John Marson: Harp (omit Sheila Bromberg) Tristan Fry: Percussion Roger Lord: Oboe Marijke: Tambourine (this is possibly the anonymous percussionist mentioned by Mark Lewisohn) Flutes: David Sandeman, Clifford Seville Violins: Donald Weekes, Ernest Scott, Sidney Sax, Lionel Bently, Dean Bradley, Henry Datyner, Hans Geiger, Erich Gruenberg (add: leader), Jurgen Hess, Granville Jones, David McCallum, Bill Monroe (shown as Bill Monro) (omit Trevor Williams, Jose Garcia, Derek Jacobs) Violas: John Underwood, John Meeks, Bernard Davis, Gwen Edwards (shown as Gwynne Edwards)(omit Stephen Shingles) Horns: Neil Sanders, Alan Civil (omit Tony Randall, James W. Buck, John Burden) Clarinets: Basil Tschaikov, Jack Brymer, Robert Burns (omit Frank Reidy, Henry MacKenzie) Cellos: Dennis Vigay, Alex Nifosi, Francisco Gabarro, Alan Dalziel Trumpet: Monty Montgomery, Harold Jackson, David Mason (omit Dave Mason) Saxophones: (omit Alan Holmes, David Glyde, Barrie Cameron, no saxophones involved) Trombones: T. Moore, Raymond Premru, Ray Brown (shown as Raymond Brown) Bassoon: Alfred Waters, N. Fawcett (omit John lee) Double Bass: Gordon Pearce, Cyril Macarthur (shown as Cyril MacArther) |
Joe (2011, June 2)  Fabulous. With A Little Help From My Friends and Getting Better are great and Sgt. Pepper itself is quite a tight and catchy song. |
Maxwell (2011, May 5) 3 words, BEST ALBUM EVA!!! |
Ingemar Andersson (2009, November 10)  There must be someone playing guitar on With a Little Help from My Friends. |
Никола Коматовић (2008, July 3) Albums like this doesn`t require any comment. Genial, masterpiece, beside "Abbey Road", their best album ever, and probably the second best rock album ever. |
john cocks (2006, July 22) is sgt pepper the greatest album ever recorded? well yes it is REVOLVER you may well shout at the screen, yes to must people but not in my opinon,pepper is the everest of pop music culture, the cover the lyrics even the cardboard cut outs hten thiers the music the sound of an orchestra warming up then the rip roaring guitar of the first track sgt pepper then introduced to billy shears [ringo]who needs a little help from his friends then sent on a trip to tangrine skys then maccas tellin us its gettin better has the bass guitar ever sounded better on an album then hes fixin a hole short but class,then a northern soap opera shes leaving home beatiful, next up were traveling with a circus for the benefit of mr kite. next up the msytic within you without you sitar,tabla world of george harrison then maccas when im 64 not the greatest song of his but still has charm then rita meter maid givin macca a ticket then its off to work with lennon then going home for tea and meet the wife .sgt. peppers band are back to ask us if we enjoyed the show oh yes,encore a day in a life, one of the greatest songs ever. thank you john ,paul george and ringo a splendid time guarenteed for all. |
Bruce Beatlefan (2005, December 9) 1967 is called the "Summer of Love", and this album was, by acclamation, the soundtrack. Although much about that era was misguided and destructive, the hope, the love for life, and the conviction that something beautiful was being built was very genuine--contrasting sharply with the nihilistic cynicism or self-gratification of artistic 'expression' of recent decades. Even (nearly) 40 years later playing this album puts a smile on my face. Although this is not the Beatles' strongest album musicwise (only "Sergeant Pepper's LHCB", "A Little Help...", "She's Leaving Home", and "A Day in the Life" rate as outstanding songs), the Beatles overwhelmingly succeed in capturing the era's euphoric yearnings. |
Bruce Beatlefan (2005, December 9) 1967 is called the "Summer of Love", and this album was, by acclamation, the soundtrack. Although much about that era was misguided and destructive, the hope, the love for life, and the conviction that something beautiful was being built was very genuine--contrasting sharply with the nihilistic cynicism or self-gratification of artistic 'expression' of recent decades. Even (nearly) 40 years later playing this album puts a smile on my face. Although this is not the Beatles' strongest album musicwise (only "Sergeant Pepper's LHCB", "A Little Help...", "She's Leaving Home", and "A Day in the Life" rate as outstanding songs), the Beatles overwhelmingly succeed in capturing the era's euphoric yearnings. |
Carlos Perez (2004, May 31)  This is considered by many to be the Beatles' magnum opus, the Greatest Album of All Time. Though this is arguably NOT the Beatles best album, it is hard to say so in the midst of the grand spectacle this album is. Taking approximately four months to create-the time which has since been called "the most creative 129 days in rock history"-Sgt. Pepper eclipsed the production values of any album before, and paved a road for all albums to follow afterwards. Though labeled by some as a 'concept' album, most of the songs on the album have nothing to do with 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'; Lennon himself said that NONE of his songs had anything to do with it. However, this is also the first Beatles album in which Paul dominated, while John took more of a backseat approach in the affairs of the band. The biggest and bestest album at its time, Sgt. Pepper was a seminal soundtrack to the Summer of Love. |
All Music Guide (2002, April 28) With Revolver, the Beatles made the Great Leap Forward, reaching a previously unheard-of level of sophistication and fearless experimentation. Sgt. Pepper, in many ways, refines that breakthrough, as the Beatles consciously synthesized such disparate influences as psychedelia, art-song, classical music, rock & roll, and music hall, often in the course of one song. Not once does the diversity seem forced — the genius of the record is how the vaudevillian "When I'm 64" seems like a logical extension of "Within You Without You" and how it provides a gateway to the chiming guitars of "Lovely Rita." There's no discounting the individual contributions of each member or their producer George Martin, but the preponderance of whimsy and self-conscious art gives the impression that Paul McCartney is the leader of the Lonely Hearts Club Band. He dominates the album in terms of compositions, setting the tone for the album with his unabashed melodicism and deviously clever arrangements. In comparison, Lennon's contributions seem fewer, and a couple of them are a little slight but his major statements are stunning. "With a Little Help from My Friends" is the ideal Ringo tune, a rolling, friendly pop song that hides genuine Lennon anguish, ala "Help!;" "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" remains one of the touchstones of British psychedelia; and he's the mastermind behind the bulk of "A Day in the Life," a haunting number that skillfuly blends Lennon's verse and chorus with McCartney's bridge. It's possibly to argue that there are better Beatles albums, yet no album is as historically important as this. After Sgt. Pepper, there were no rules to follow — rock and pop bands could try anything, for better or worse. Ironically, few tried to achieve the sweeping, all-encompassing embrace of music as the Beatles did here. — Stephen Thomas Erlewine |