sgt peppers lonely hearts club band delux edition

In comparison, Lennon's contributions seem fewer, and a couple of them are a little slight but his major statements are stunning.

He dominates the album in terms of compositions, setting the tone for the album with his unabashed melodicism and deviously clever arrangements. 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. 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. With Revolver, the Beatles made the Great Leap Forward, reaching a previously unheard-of level of sophistication and fearless experimentation.

Sgt peppers lonely hearts club band delux edition