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Enthusiatic amateur banjo playerJun 24
Why did Ray Davies give a scathing review of The Beatles’ ‘Revolver’ album?
When he was asked to review Revolver, Ray Davies gave his honest reaction to the songs. He was scathing about some of the songs – Yellow Submarine, for example:
This is a load of rubbish, really. I take the mickey out of myself on the piano and play stuff like this. I think they know it’s not that good.
But he was complimentary about other tracks, for example I’m Only Sleeping:
It’s a most beautiful song, much prettier than ‘Eleanor Rigby’. A jolly old thing, really, and definitely the best track on the album.
The magazine took his most negative comment, about Yellow Submarine, and used it as a sub-title for the review, as though he thought the whole album was as bad as his least favourite song:
That’s sensationalism. Ray Davies dissing The Beatle was a great headline. But in his concluding remarks, Ray Davies says that although Rubber Soul has better songs, “I’m Only Sleeping” is a standout, and he doesn’t want to be too harsh – all the songs are well recorded.
Any fan of The Beatles is going to like some songs and some albums more than others, and one would hardly expect a singer-songer of Ray Davies’ calibre to rave “Every song is a masterpiece and I am going to give up my musical career because I am not worthy.” Ray Davies didn’t like “And Your Bird Can Sing” – well, in retrospect, nor did John Lennon. I’m sure The Beatles appreciated a bit of honesty.
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