Distilling The White Album to a Pure Concentrate
Our friend and star commenter Fitz recently made the point that The Beatles The Beatles (commonly known as The White Album) was perhaps too full of filler; he posited that it could be a KILLER single LP.
This got me thinking - if YOU were to select the songs for the single White Album, what songs and running order would you choose? This is our contest. Post your versions in the comments. Adrienne and I will pick a winner and the winner gets a spankin' new Singles Going Steady T-Shirt, free shipping to US/Mexico/Canada. Deadline is Midnight, Monday December 17th (EST). You must select FIFTEEN songs, two sides, 7 on one and 8 on the other. Song choice AND running order will be considered. See my picks below.
In the classic iteration, there are two LP’s with thirty songs, in this order:
Record 1 /Side A
1. Back In The U.S.S.R. (Side A)
2. Dear Prudence (Side A)
3. Glass Onion (Side A)
4. Ob - La - Di - Ob - La - Da (Side A)
5. Wild Honey Pie (Side A)
6. The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill (Side A)
7. While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Side A)
8. Happiness Is A Warm Gun (Side A)
Record 1 /Side B
9. Martha My Dear (Side B)
10. I'm So Tired (Side B)
11. Blackbird (Side B)
12. Piggies (Side B)
13. Rocky Racoon (Side B)
14. Don't Pass Me By (Side B)
15. Why Don't We Do It In The Road? (Side B)
16. I Will (Side B)
17. Julia (Side B)
Record 2/Side A
1. Birthday (Side A)
2. Yer Blues (Side A)
3. Mother Nature's Son (Side A)
4. Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey (Side A)
5. Sexy Sadie (Side A)
6. Helter Skelter (Side A)
7. Long, Long, Long (Side A)
Record 2/Side B
8. Revolution 1 (Side B)
9. Honey Pie (Side B)
10. Savoy Truffle (Side B)
11. Cry Baby Cry (Side B)
12. Revolution 9 (Side B)
13. Good Night (Side B)
And of course the 2018 Deluxe version expands the album to SIX discs and offers outtakes and incorporates alternate versions. Let’s go the OTHER way. So, for our argument, we will parboil the original to just FIFTEEN songs, 7 or 8 on either side.
Here’s my choices:
Steve’s KILLER White Album:
Side A
1. Back In The U.S.S.R
2. Dear Prudence
3. Happiness Is A Warm Gun
4. Julia
5. I Will
6. I'm So Tired
7. Blackbird
8. While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Side B
9. Yer Blues
10. Mother Nature’s Son
11. Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me And My Monkey
12. Sexy Sadie
13. Revolution 1
14. Cry Baby Cry
15. Helter Skelter
Or; Steve’s KILLER White Album v. 2 (Yoko Edition)
Side A
1. Revolution 9
2. Revolution 1 (Just kidding...it's REALLY Revolution 9)
3. Revolution 9
4. Revolution 9
5. You Become Naked
6. Revolution 9
7. It’s A Goal!
Side B
8. Revolution 9
9. Revolution 9
10. Bagism
11. Revolution 9
12. Revolution 9
13. Being Hit By A Car
14. Revolution 9
15. Revolution 9
What say you? Too Fluxus? Please post YOUR versions in the comments…
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/f/fluxus
Here is ADRIENNE'S super-cool version, using the Esher Demos and studio outtakes (cause who said she couldn't):
(SIDE A)
1. You’re So Square/Why Don’t We Do It In The Road?
2. Helter Skelter
3. Glass Onion
4. Back in the USSR
5. Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except for Me And My Monkey
6. I’m So Tired
7. Yer Blues
(SIDE B)
8. Revolution 1 (Rehearsal)
9. Happiness is A Warm Gun (Esher)
10. Dear Prudence (Disk 5)
11. Blackbird (Esher)
12. Julia (Esher)
13. Cry Baby Cry (Esher)
14. While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Esher)
15. Across the Universe (from CD 6)