Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

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Madzong
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Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Madzong »

I read recently (on another forum) that at one point Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane were initially at one point part of Sgt. Pepper before pressure for a new Single meant that these tracks were removed from the album. George Martin apparently talked about how much more amazing the album would have been had these tracks been included.

He also reportedly thought that if they had been part of the track list one of the tracks he would have chosen for replacement would possibly have been ‘Within You Without You’.

However that would have meant that no George Harrison song would appear on the album. I have seen playlists and other forums which have suggested that ‘A Northern Song’ (which was recorded during the same sessions) in its place but it has been documented that the other Beatles and George Martin were not fans of this track and preferred ‘Within You Without You’.

George Martin also states that in that case the tracks that probably wouldn’t have made the cut would have been ‘Lovely Rita’ and ‘When I’m 64’.

However as both these tracks were on Side 2 of the album, how would you have re-sequenced the album?

What are people’s thoughts?
Last edited by Madzong on Fri Jan 01, 2021 7:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Listyguy
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Listyguy »

I have to agree that "Within You Without You" probably wouldn't have been cut since it's the only George Harrison track on the album. Adding one Paul and one John track, it would probably make sense to cut one of each from the existing album, Perhaps "Good Morning, Good Morning" and "When I'm Sixty-Four" would have been the compromise? (And while I don't really like the song that much, "When I'm Sixty-Four" probably would've done well as a single.

As for the actual placement of the two tracks on the album I think adding them both to side 2 probably works. I'd sequence side two like this personally:

Strawberry Fields Forever
Within You Without You
Lovely Rita / Good Morning, Good Morning
Penny Lane
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Day in the Life

This might be my favorite album ever if it had happened
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Madzong »

Listyguy wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 3:19 pm I have to agree that "Within You Without You" probably wouldn't have been cut since it's the only George Harrison track on the album. Adding one Paul and one John track, it would probably make sense to cut one of each from the existing album, Perhaps "Good Morning, Good Morning" and "When I'm Sixty-Four" would have been the compromise? (And while I don't really like the song that much, "When I'm Sixty-Four" probably would've done well as a single.

As for the actual placement of the two tracks on the album I think adding them both to side 2 probably works. I'd sequence side two like this personally:

Strawberry Fields Forever
Within You Without You
Lovely Rita / Good Morning, Good Morning
Penny Lane
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Day in the Life

This might be my favorite album ever if it had happened
Nice job! I’m going to give this tracklist a listen.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Harold »

Listyguy wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 3:19 pm As for the actual placement of the two tracks on the album I think adding them both to side 2 probably works. I'd sequence side two like this personally:

Strawberry Fields Forever
Within You Without You
Lovely Rita / Good Morning, Good Morning
Penny Lane
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Day in the Life
But if you put "Penny Lane" between "Good Morning, Good Morning" and the title song reprise, you lose what's probably the most famous segue in rock history: the clucking chicken into the guitar squawk. Better to keep "Within You, Without You" up top, then the two new additions, then "Lovely Rita" et al.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Madzong »

Edit
Last edited by Madzong on Sat Dec 26, 2020 10:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Madzong »

Harold wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 8:56 pm
Listyguy wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 3:19 pm As for the actual placement of the two tracks on the album I think adding them both to side 2 probably works. I'd sequence side two like this personally:

Strawberry Fields Forever
Within You Without You
Lovely Rita / Good Morning, Good Morning
Penny Lane
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Day in the Life
But if you put "Penny Lane" between "Good Morning, Good Morning" and the title song reprise, you lose what's probably the most famous segue in rock history: the clucking chicken into the guitar squawk. Better to keep "Within You, Without You" up top, then the two new additions, then "Lovely Rita" et al.
So what about this:

Within You Without You
Strawberry Fields Forever
Penny Lane
Good Morning Good Morning
Sgt. Pepper Reprise
A Day In The Life

Or should it be:

Within You Without You
Penny Lane
Strawberry Fields Forever
Good Morning Good Morning
Sgt. Pepper Reprise
A Day In The Life
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Fred »

A1 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
A2 With a Little Help From My Friends
A3 Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds
A4 Strawberry Fields Forever
A5 Getting Better
A6 Fixing a Hole
A7 She's Leaving Home
A8 Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!
B1 Within You Without You
B2 When I'm Sixty-Four
B3 Lovely Rita
B4 Penny Lane
B5 Good Morning Good Morning
B6 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
B7 A Day in the Life
Last edited by Fred on Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by poorpete »

I agree with everyone so far not touching the first three songs, a sequence of songs that made all future artists and music fans obsessed with album sequencing, one that the Blue Album refused to adjust. Though speaking of the Blue album, they didn't go wrong with Strawberry Fields -> Penny Lane -> Sgt. Pepper -> With a Little Help -> Lucy.

But how about keep side 2 and turn side 1 into

1. Sgt. Pepper
2. With a Little Help from My Friends
3. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
4. Strawberry Fields
5. Penny Lane
6. She's Leaving Home

Then move Fixing a Hole/Getting Better/Mr. Kite to Magical Mystery Tour, which could handle a resequencing itself. Though I like these three better than "She's Leaving Home" I feel Sgt. Pepper can't lose a harp-based song for more guitar and harpsichord songs, and if the Beatles are going to urge you to run away from home, it's probably a bit more potent on this defining release than stuck somewhere in Magical Mystery Tour.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Nick »

From what I’ve heard, Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Land were the “lost” songs from Sgt. Pepper’s, much like how Hey Jude and Revolution were the lost White Album songs and Paperback Writer and Rain were the lost Revolver songs.

Imagine a Revolver track list like this...

1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I’m Only Sleeping
4. Rain
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Yellow Submarine
7. She Said She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Paperback Writer
12. I Want to Tell You
13. Got to Get You Into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

Leaving out Love You To and Doctor Robert.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Madzong »

Nick wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 6:16 pm From what I’ve heard, Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Land were the “lost” songs from Sgt. Pepper’s, much like how Hey Jude and Revolution were the lost White Album songs and Paperback Writer and Rain were the lost Revolver songs.

Imagine a Revolver track list like this...

1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I’m Only Sleeping
4. Rain
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Yellow Submarine
7. She Said She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Paperback Writer
12. I Want to Tell You
13. Got to Get You Into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

Leaving out Love You To and Doctor Robert.
Awesome idea!

I came up with something similar except I would keep ‘Dr. Robert’ and remove ‘I Want To Tell You’.

1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I’m Only Sleeping
4. Rain
5. Here, There and Everywhere
6. Yellow Submarine
7. She Said She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Dr. Robert
12. Paperback Writer
13. Got to Get You Into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows
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Madzong
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper

Post by Madzong »

Nick wrote: Wed Dec 30, 2020 6:16 pm From what I’ve heard, Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Land were the “lost” songs from Sgt. Pepper’s, much like how Hey Jude and Revolution were the lost White Album songs and Paperback Writer and Rain were the lost Revolver songs.
I also had a go with The Beatles (White Album). I replaced Revolution 1 with the single version of Revolution and replaced Revolution 9 with Hey Jude.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Fred »

The White Album!

A1 Back in the U.S.S.R. 2:45
A2 Dear Prudence 4:00
A3 Glass Onion 2:10
A4 Lady Madonna 2:07
A5 Wild Honey Pie 1:02
A6 The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill 3:05
A7 While My Guitar Gently Weeps 4:46
A8 Happiness Is a Warm Gun 2:47

B1 Martha My Dear 2:28
B2 I'm So Tired 2:01
B3 Blackbird 2:20
B4 Piggies 2:04
B5 Rocky Raccoon 3:33
B6 Don't Pass Me By 3:52
B7 Why Don't We Do It in the Road? 1:42
B8 I Will 1:46
B9 Julia 2:57

C1 Hey Bulldog 3:11

C2 Yer Blues 4:01
C3 Mother Nature's Son 2:46
C4 Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey 2:25
C5 Sexy Sadie 3:15
C6 Helter Skelter 4:30
C7 Long, Long, Long 3:08

D1 Revolution 1 4:13
D2 Honey Pie 2:42
D3 Savoy Truffle 2:55
D4 Cry Baby Cry 3:11
D5 Hey Jude 7:09
D6 Good Night 3:14
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Fred »

Abbey Road (soon)
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Madzong »

For Abbey Road I took off a lot of people’s least favourite song - Maxwell’s Silver Hammer and added The Ballad Of John And Yoko in it’s place.

It sounded a little jarring on first listen but I don’t know if that’s because it’s in the wrong place or because Im so familiar with Maxwell being there...
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Fred »

Have they decided to remake the "Get Back" album songs during the Abbey Road sessions...personally, Phil Spector was a good thing...but I'm far off now...seldom play the first side of this album...like the transistion from "Ballad" into "Come Together"...and never was a fan of "She's So Heavy"...

The Ballad Of John & Yoko
Come Together
Something
Don't Let Me Down
Oh! Darling
I've Got a Feeling
Across the Universe

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
Let It Be
The Long and Winding Road
Last edited by Fred on Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by belfast »

I've tried sequencing in singles for all of their albums, but I've usually gone back to the original LP's since it's a little tricky deciding what would or should have been dropped in favor of the appropriate singles.

However, Let It Be (or Get Back) is the ONE exception. I've always disliked the albums Spector and Glyn Johns put together, but after Let It Be...Naked came out, I pieced together a version using the elements I liked most from everyone's work. It's the one I've listened to ever since, still highly enjoy it. Here's what I did:

I used Let It Be...Naked's track sequence as a starting point because it had the best flow out of all of them. Some cuts had to be re-equalized to make them match everything else. When I ripped a track, I usually left it as-is, leaving in any chatter if present, but I've noted any additional editing I may have done:

(kept John's "I Dig a Pygmy" intro, but now it cuts to a different song...)
1. Get Back (stereo 45 version, I really like how it goes from a clapboard to a slow build)
2. I Dig a Pony (Spector's version from Let It Be)
3. For You Blue (Spector's version from Let It Be)
4. The Long and Winding Road (dry mix from Anthology 3, but spliced in Billy Preston's solo from the Let It Be...Naked mix into the appropriate place; additional EQ was needed to make the edit piece match)
5. Two of Us (Spector's version from Let It Be but John's intro isn't here - as mentioned, I kept it as the intro for the whole album)
6. I Got a Feeling (Spector's version from Let It Be)
7. One After 909 (Spector's version from Let It Be)
8. Don't Let Me Down (stereo 45 version)
9. I Me Mine (dry mix from Anthology 3 but cut out the spoken word intro about "Dave Dee")
10. All Things Must Pass (George's overdubbed solo recording from Anthology 3)
11. Across the Universe (alternate master from Anthology 2)
12. Let It Be (45 version)
(a somewhat longer pause here between tracks, probably 5 seconds)
13. Get Back (their very last live performance together from Anthology 3 but since they removed the "...I hoped we passed the audition" bit, I restored it by lifting it from the very end of Let It Be; I agree with Spector's choice to end the album with this)

"All Things Must Pass" is a big addition. It's not in any other sequence, but George originally wanted it on a Beatles album. The bootlegs have conversations where they seriously consider having George perform it solo, on the album and in the climactic show, even though he originally wanted to arrange it like The Band, and since he cut this less than a month after the rooftop show, it seemed like fair game. Also George's contributions to the album would feel pretty minor without this track.

Glyn Johns originally wanted a "Get Back" reprise on the album, but he used the same fragment that plays at the end of the movie's credits. The movie proper (before the end credits) finishes with this actual performance, and as mentioned it's their last live performance together, so it seemed more than reasonable to use it. Also, John's comments are a classic way to finish an album, I didn't want to lose it like Naked did. The levity also keeps the back half of the album from getting too solemn, and it does bring in some of the rough sloppiness that was supposed to be key to the project's concept.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by Toni »

Madzong wrote: Sat Dec 26, 2020 8:26 am I read recently (on another forum) that at one point Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane were initially at one point part of Sgt. Pepper before pressure for a new Single meant that these tracks were removed from the album. George Martin apparently talked about how much more amazing the album would have been had these tracks been included.

how would you have re-sequenced the album?
I've never been that fond of Sgt. Pepper's because of the great fall of quality we see around the album's middle.

Then I've been listening to a version I did that substitutes Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane for both the tracks George Martin said could have been put out. I consider this sequence perfect, and it could have been a potential All Time top 10 for me.




I also have been listening to a similar playlist I did for the White Album, with a curated version including just the "obligatory" tracks.
I followed some "rules":

1) one Ringo sung track (chose the one he composed)
2) at least two George songs
3) Not more than 2 Paul ou John tracks after each other
4) Tried to avoid lots of "rocker-ballad-rocker-ballad" sequences not to screw the flowing
5) Limit of 14-16 songs to keep the size of a single LP
6) A sequence that would be compatible with the A and B side structure
7) Aproximately the same numer of John and Paul songs in the album
8) I remember having read somewhere a George Martin statement that "Piggies" and "Savoy Truffle" would have made this single LP for sure

And so I got to this single LP sequence and, man, I'm loving to listen to this playlist.




The White Album had been my All Time #1 for long time, but the size, the great numer of filler tracks, the messy structure, had made it gradually fall, even achieving top 20 placements.
I've read some people comenting, although, that due to the great number of tracks, everyone is able to creat their "own White Album" conform their taste. I think this personal version could have been a great contender for making my #1 again.
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Re: Re-sequencing Sgt. Pepper (And Other Albums by The Beatles)

Post by whuntva »

I once did a hybrid album, fusing the tracklists for Sgt. Pepper/Magical Mystery Tour. I combined them both and rearranged the sequence for the best listening experience. It went a bit like this:

Sgt. Pepper
With a Little Help From My Friends
Good Morning, Good Morning
All You Need is Love
Strawberry Fields Forever
Fixing a Hole
Baby, You're a Rich Man
Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!
She's Leaving Home
When I'm Sixty-Four
Lovely Rita
Sgt. Pepper Reprise
Magical Mystery Tour
Fool on the Hill
Flying
Blue Jay Way
Your Mother Should Know
I Am the Walrus
Hello, Goodbye
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Getting Better
Penny Lane
Within You, Without You
A Day in the Life
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