THE BEATLES – RUBBER SOUL LP – EXC/VG+ UK STEREO

The Beatles – Rubber Soul
(Parlophone Records  1979  PCS3075  Stereo)
Black/Silver Label with 2 EMI Logos
Matrix No’s: YEX 178-6 / YEX 179-5 – UK Pressing

G&L Sleeve in Very Good+ condition
– some wear to edges/corners with small scuff/split in middle of spine

Vinyl in Excellent/Very Good+ condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality apart from some light pops/crackles & a scratch for the first few revolutions of Norwegian Wood)

The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960. With members John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, they became widely regarded as the foremost and most influential act of the rock era. Rooted in skiffle, beat, and 1950s rock and roll, the Beatles later experimented with several musical styles, ranging from pop ballads and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock, often incorporating classical elements and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways. In the early 1960s, their enormous popularity first emerged as “Beatlemania”, but as the group’s music grew in sophistication, led by primary songwriters Lennon and McCartney, they came to be perceived as an embodiment of the ideals shared by the counterculture of the 1960s.

The Beatles built their reputation playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg over a three-year period from 1960, with Stuart Sutcliffe initially serving as bass player. The core of Lennon, McCartney and Harrison went through a succession of drummers, including Pete Best, before asking Starr to join them. Manager Brian Epstein moulded them into a professional act, and producer George Martin guided and developed their recordings, greatly expanding their popularity in the United Kingdom after their first hit, “Love Me Do”, in late 1962. They acquired the nickname “the Fab Four” as Beatlemania grew in Britain the next year, and by early 1964 became international stars, leading the “British Invasion” of the United States pop market. From 1965 onwards, the Beatles produced increasingly innovative recordings, including the albums Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966), Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), The Beatles (commonly known as the White Album, 1968) and Abbey Road (1969). After their break-up in 1970, they each enjoyed successful musical careers of varying lengths. McCartney and Starr, the surviving members, remain musically active. Lennon was shot and killed in December 1980, and Harrison died of lung cancer in November 2001.

The Beatles are the best-selling band in history, with estimated sales of over 600 million records worldwide. They have had more number-one albums on the British charts and sold more singles in the UK than any other act. According to the RIAA, the Beatles are also the best-selling music artists in the United States, with 178 million certified units. In 2008, the group topped Billboard magazine’s list of the all-time most successful “Hot 100” artists; as of 2016, they hold the record for most number-one hits on the Hot 100 chart with twenty. They have received ten Grammy Awards, an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, and all four were inducted individually from 1994 to 2015. They were also collectively included in Time magazine’s compilation of the twentieth century’s 100 most influential people.

Rubber Soul is the sixth studio album by English rock group the Beatles, released in 3 December 1965. Produced by George Martin, it was recorded in just over four weeks to make the Christmas market. Unlike the five albums that preceded it, this album was recorded during a specific period, the sessions not dashed off in between either tour dates or during filming projects. After this, every Beatles album would be made without the need to pay attention to other commitments, except for the production of short promotional films.

Rubber Soul is a folk rock album, and also incorporates pop and soul music styles. The album was described as a major artistic achievement, attaining widespread critical and commercial success, with reviewers taking note of the Beatles’ developing musical vision. Also, it was the first Beatles’ album (other than the British A Hard Day’s Night album) which contained original material only; the Beatles would record no more cover songs for their records until 1969 (the “Maggie Mae” excerpt appearing on the Let It Be album).

Rubber Soul was successful commercially and critically, and is often cited as one of the greatest albums in music history. In 2012, Rubber Soul was ranked #5 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”. In September 2013 after the British Phonographic Industry changed their sales award rules, the album was declared as having gone platinum.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by John Lennon Paul McCartney except where noted.

Personnel

• John Lennon – lead, harmony and backing vocals, rhythm and acoustic guitars, electric piano
• Paul McCartney – lead, harmony and backing vocals, lead, acoustic and bass guitars, piano
• George Harrison – lead, harmony and backing vocals, lead, rhythm, acoustic and bass guitars, sitar on “Norwegian Wood”
• Ringo Starr – drums, tambourine, maracas, cowbell, bells, cymbals, Hammond organ on “I’m Looking Through You”, lead vocals on “What Goes On”

Production and additional personnel

• George Martin – production, mixing, piano on “In My Life”, harmonium on “The Word”
• Norman Smith – engineering, mixing
• Robert Freeman – photography
• Mal Evans – Hammond organ on “You Won’t See Me”