Abbey Road is the greatest album of all time. The Beatles - no doubt - saved the best for last. The second side is particularly special, but the album demonstrates the incredible talent the Beatles had and how well they really worked together. Each track offers something unique and the second side (from "Here comes the Sun" on) has lots of little ditties that blend together wonderfully well.

Come Together Something Maxwell's Silver Hammer Oh! Darling Octopus's Garden I want you (She's So Heavy) Here Comes the Sun Because You Never Give Me Your Money Sun King Mean Mr. Mustard Polythene Pam She Came in Through the Bathroom Window Golden Slumbers Carry That Weight The End Her Majesty

Abbey Road

 

1. "Come Together" has great John Lennon wit. My favorite lines are, "He got feet down below his knees," and, "Got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see." It has a great bass part and John's vocals are not as edgy as his New York Live, but they have a good tone to them. My students in 6th grade have taken a real liking this song off the recently released Beatle's #1 album.
2. "Something" is probably George's best song. Frank Sinatra called it the best love song written in the last 30 years. That's quite a compliment. I think George peaked on this album. Although he has had some great moments of song writing he is clearly not the songwriter that John and Paul were. The strings add quite a bit to the song.
3. "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" nearly broke up the Beatles for good. Paul showed his obsessive compulsive disorder side in recording nearly a million takes. George had almost lost it. He even commented that they used to do songs in a day and they were really good. Paul couldn't get satisfied, but all in all it is kind of a fun tune. I particularly like the cowbell.
4. "Oh! Darling" is a song I respect a lot. Paul screamed for 3 weeks to get his voice raw enough to do the song. It is a great rock tune that has a lot of passion. It is one of my all time favorite songs.
5. "Octopus's Garden" is a cute kid's song sung by Ringo and supposedly written by him as well. Some friends and I think that it was actually written by George and given to Ringo.
6. "I Want You (She's so Heavy)" is probably the last song all four Beatles worked on simultaneously. It is cheeky and raw. The guitar is heavy throughout, and it has a very long guitar interlude. It is my humble opinion that this paved the way for Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls." My first roommate in college listened to heavy metal noise and amidst this edgy sound I heard the guitar from "I Want You" and told him the band ripped it off. Now my roommate had very little respect for the Beatles (and knew little about them) and I forced him to hear this track to prove to him that his band indeed did rip off the Beatles. Coincidentally, I do not remember the band and don't really care to, but somehow I am certain the Beatles will be remembered.
7. "Here Comes the Sun" is George's other great tune. It is happy and bright. A stark contrast to "I Want You." The CD allows that contrast. The album starts fresh with this track. It is wonderful.
8. "Because" is beautiful. It shows how strong the Beatles were vocally. They each sang 3 parts and dubbed it over. I personally like the a cappella version with the instrumentation added later, but the album's version is great and the anthology version strips away the instruments so you can hear just the voices. IF you listen carefully you can hear the instruments on Anthology 3. It is reminiscent of "This Boy" and "Yes it Is."
9. "You Never Give Me Your Money" starts with a quiet piano part that sets a great tone. It has great harmonies. It reflects the money problems that the Beatles were having at the time. I think many of us can relate to Paul's line "Out of college money spent. See no future pay no rent. All the money's gone no where to go." My wife and I married right after college and there were about 3 months in a row where we had $12 total in our credit union account. We couldn't afford anything or do anything but those were really special times for my wife and I. I loved to play this album at that time. "Oh that magic feeling... no where to go."
10. "Sun King" is a song I used to hate as a kid. Now I love it. It is mellow and sets you up for the best finish an album ever had.
11. "Mean Mr. Mustard" is a great tune. I love it. "Takes him out to look at the queen. Only place that he's ever been. Always shouts out something obscene." It introduces Pam on the next track.
12. "Polythene Pam" is "attractively built." John was definitely having some fun on this song. It has a great guitar in the beginning. The drum part is most effective. The "Ahhhs" are well placed and subtle.
13. "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" actually happened to Paul. Some fan actually tried. The song is part 4 of this medley. The bass part is well played on this part particularly. The lead guitar echoes the vocals. There are more subtle "Oohs" and "Ahhhs" that are very nicely placed. Joe Cocker redid this song and does a good job, but the Beatles really are hard to outdo.
14. "Golden Slumbers" reveals that Paul cannot read music. He took this lullaby out of a book and he couldn't read the music so he created his own melody. He did a fantastic job on the piece. We hear strings again and the piano is reintroduced. It is a beautiful little piece.
15. It moves right into "Carry That Weight" in which I think Ringo sings the loudest on. It revisits some themes of the previous tracks ("You never give me your money") and then more "Carry that Weight." Paul McCartney used this ending on one of his early 1990 concert tours. It was great. Better that "Hey Jude."
16. "The End" is the sendoff. I think the Beatles knew this was the last album and they tried to treat everything like it was their last track. Ringo starts with the drum solo. The guitar solos are simply outstanding with each John, Paul, and George taking part. They each play about 2 measures each. I think Paul starts, then George, then John. I don't know for sure, but in any event it is something to feel as much as to listen. The piano calms the solos and the Beatles get to send one last message of love with "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make." Now clearly there are double meaning in making love, but if we all spread a little love, we would get so much more in return.
17. "Her Majesty" is a fitting end although I heard that Paul was not particularly fond of it there. It finishes in a typical Beatle fashion in the fashion of "Strawberry Fields," "Penny Lane," and "Helter Skelter." The Beatles always one more thing to say. "Her Majesty" is another cheeky piece that has a cute little guitar part.