Why Revolver

Is The Most

Influential Beatles Album

By Lucy Faulkner

On April 6th, 1966, The Beatles headed to London to record their seventh studio album in EMI studios. Since then, ‘Revolver‘ has influenced thousands of successful artists in many different ways, from cultural music impacts to the lyrics they use; Revolver was completely different to the albums The Beatles were releasing a few years prior, they were using new themes for their music; they, of course, had the odd love song in there in obvious Beatle fashion, but this album was completely different to the rest, which caused a lot of different opinions on the album. But over the years, Revolver has gained the respect it deserves as a genre-defining masterpiece.

They released ‘Revolver’ on August 5th 1966, along with a double A-side single “Eleanor Rigby” and “Yellow Submarine”. This album was The Beatles’ last recording sessions before they stopped touring and the real avant-garde stage with this being the group’s most noticeable use of studio technology along with their instruments. It has become known as one of the greatest and most experimental albums in the history of music. Its recognition is usually centred on its range of different musical styles, intense and diverse sounds, and psychedelic lyrical content. A lot of critics may say that The Beatles have better albums than Revolver, which isn’t exactly wrong. But there’s something very special about revolver to a lot of fans. Recorded over the course of three months, The Beatles really took a left turn with this album, making it their most progressive music yet.

 I think what made Revolver stand out to so many, was the real turnaround The Beatles had. After John Lennon and George Harrison’s experimentation with LSD, it really unlocked a new sound for the band, which led the rest of the group to jump on the LSD wave. and it was clear to fans that they had left their Beatlemania days behind them and were ready to really take a dive into something new. After attempting some of this new psychedelic sound on their previous album, “Rubber Soul”, they really gave the world a glimpse of what was to come on songs like “Norwegian Wood (this bird has flown)”. With George integrating the use of a sitar onto the album partly, it became a staple on the revolver album in songs such as “Love you to” and the infamous “Tomorrow never knows”. To me, Revolver is an outstanding piece of work because of its unique sound. The song “Tomorrow never knows” has an ability to transport the listener to a psychedelic world of sound where each time you listen, you can hear something new. Whether it’s the tape loops used on the BTR3 tape machine, the sitar and guitar sounds that were looped and reversed or the different notes they played on a mellotron flute. There’s something new to pick out each time and that’s what makes this song so special to me, it has a sense of intensity that draws me in as the song tends to take you on your own sort of trip as you listen.

Revolver has always been a fan favourite, and I believe it’s down to how strong the album actually is. The 14 songs on the album hold up really well together, each song complimenting the next with an array of sounds that many fans adapted well to, although revolver had some criticism from some of course, it still sounds fresh and innovative today, 57 years on. 

Overall, this album is, in my opinion, The Beatles most inspirational work. Over the years it has always grabbed my attention most compared to other Beatles albums because with Revolver they really put as much of themselves into the music as possible, and they have drawn from their own personal experiences in life to create some masterful pieces of art, which have gone on to inspire many aspiring musicians. Along with the rest of their discography, revolver really holds up, and sort of ‘waves the flag’ for the change in The Beatles overall style and direction which has always been inspiring to me as a fan because it shows that a band as big as The Beatles can change their sound and style and still carry the same amount of impact without having to explain themselves to anyone. Although there were, of course, many people to disagree with their change in sound, they didn’t let this change their minds and they still progressed and their music as a group grown with them. Which really gives The Beatles that timeless feel that they have. To me, this is why The Beatles music will never get old. As they grew up together so did the music they made and they really knew where the music scene was heading so their decision to move with the times is probably why The Beatles are so well respected still to this day.

Words by Lucy Faulkner