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[Kevin]

Just trying to start a bit of Beatles related convo here.
I think we can accept that Pepper gave birth to, or at least made possible, the 70's fad of concept albums, 12 minute tracks and overblown solos. By 1980 the genre was pretty well dead in the water.
But was rock better off for it? Or is/was  it better in its pure form - 3 minute bursts of energy about "girls and cars."? * It seems to have returned and stuck to that format for the last 20 years. Did it lead rock up a blind alley that it would have been better off without?
ps I'm not judging Peppers quality, just questioning its legacy.
* thanks to Prefab Sprout.

[Mairi]

Wow, interesting topic. Well, I think in the general course oif things someone was bound to start a new revolution which incorperated (sp?) the things you mentioned. While you'll probably not see a track like A Day In the Life on an album today, I think it was important that an album like Sgt. Pepper's was made to show that rock was not just a bunch of throwaway songs about "girls and cars." The culturally elite can get into rock music too. Some may argue that this is a bad thing, but in the end, most artists want to reach as wide an audience as possibel.

[somedude210]

hmm, might. ive noticed as im slowly making my way into indie music, that some bands are trying to do concept albums similar to Sgt. Peppers but im sure theres some form of critizism hanging over them that they are just trying to do a copycat album.

[Bobber]

The funny thing is that Sgt Pepper itself is not an album with 12 minute songs and overblown solo's. A Day In The Life is the longest one at 5.33 minutes. The whole idea of 'concept album' was given to Sgt Pepper later on, The Beatles were hardly thinking of a concept when they were putting the album together. But the fact that it was later regarded as the first concept album and because it had such a great impact, it might as well been the inspiration for a lot of other bands in the late sixties and seventies. The Beatles themselves seemed not to believe in the conceptual way of thinking, for they left the idea immediately with their next album.
The offspring of Sgt Pepper has had its impact on the music of the seventies, which gave a reaction: punk. Punks were fed up with these 12 minute monsters with never ending solo's and made short, catchy and agressive songs. And that gave another reaction: the bands in suits like ABC and Spandau Ballet in the eighties. I think that's the way it goes: every kind of musical trend will have a reaction and Sgt Pepper and the Beatles were nothing else in that kind of matter. Thinking of that, Sgt Pepper was not a dead end: its impact took about 12 years before it was as good as dead.

[zilch]

I thought that 'Sgt. Pepper' did start off with a concept (from Paul) in mind, but that it drifted after the first two tracks? (just the title of the album remained) - so it's an intersting point - did it influence the 'concept' albums of the late 60's and early 70's, or were they going to happen anyway? And were they really overblown solos? Why should a 3min song be any better? Whatever the answers, in the world of 'throw away' music, I doubt if they will ever return!

[tkitna]

I get where your going with this Kev, but I havent put much thought into it. I will eave you with this though, whether its rock, jazz, classical, etc,,,and whether its a 1 minute tune or a 45 minute tune,,,,,,I dont care just as long as its good. Come to think of it, the majority of the albums I really dig (Beatles not included) have a lot of long songs, but I like a ton of prog music so its neither here nor there.

There have been 'concept' pieces forever. Whether it was Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, Sinatra's 'Dance' albums or 'Moonlight Sinatra' all songs about the moon. When you got into prog rock, some of which were very well thought out, like some of Yes' or Genesis' music may have taken the concept album to longer pieces and tried to make a statement. Sgt. Pepper was a great concept album without being a concept album., A song about a meter maid hardly fits with a concept of this 'band'. The legacy of Sgt. Pepper is that it is a cool distillation that flows. It doesn't preach, it doesn't try to make a statement, it just is...And that's pretty cool. Nice try Kev.

[The End]

The Beach Boys were arguably doing concept albums in 1963.

[Kevin]

The Beach Boys were arguably doing concept albums in 1963.

I was always on thin ice with this one. No Pepper wasn't a concept album, and even if it had been it wasn't the first. But I believe that it was Pepper that showed the great unwashed that there was a new way for rock to go.
Cheers to everyone for being so gentle with me. THis thread is over.

[Kevin]

The Beach Boys were arguably doing concept albums in 1963.

I was always on thin ice with this one. No Pepper wasn't a concept album, and even if it had been it wasn't the first. But I believe that it was Pepper that showed the great unwashed that there was a new way for rock to go.
Cheers to everyone for being so gentle with me. THis thread is over.

[raxo]

I was always on thin ice with this one. No Pepper wasn't a concept album, and even if it had been it wasn't the first. But I believe that it was Pepper that showed the great unwashed that there was a new way for rock to go.
Cheers to everyone for being so gentle with me. THis thread is over.

I forgot to be gentle with you  :-/ ... so I declare this bridge open ... again  

[tkitna]

Damn, I just reread my post and i've come to the conclusion that I should probably try to atleast be somewhat awake when I type. I made no sense what so ever.

[pc31]

it was stated to be the first rock concept album....funny how it came to be about just albums and music...no wonder there are so many disagreements....no two have the same facts...if you wants facts get them from raxo..his may not be original either....

[pc31]

but at least someone will agree.....

[apple sauce]

The Lp ushered in the summer of love and the Beatles had their own unique take on the pshycedellic era. The fact that they morfed into these colurful lads and litterly left the forlorne mop tops beside the grave on their cover pretty well sums up why we as a generation  we need this lp.

It was the beginning of their end and the beginning for a thousand other bands.

[apple sauce]

"Help" was the beginning of their end. Dissillusion on "John's part" had allready set in.

[Loco Mo]

I think Pepper was pronounced a concept album simply because of the name and the fact that the intro is reprised at the end.  I think it was a dead end for the Beatles because nothing greater followed.  They couldn't top this album.  SP was, however, an important idea for other bands who took the concept aspect to a more accurate rendering than the Bs did.

SP was considered a landmark event in music history.  Lennon said they felt they were expected to top themselves with every new lp and they couldn't top SP, IMHO.

I hoped for another SP, but it never came.

[andersonCouncill]

I don't think so. The bands that were most inspired by Sgt. Pepper's (Yes, King Crimson, Jethro Tull, and especially Pink Floyd) were not so much part of a "fad" as ahead of their time. By expanding on The Beatles innovations they scored their own hits, but their subsequent efforts (like Floyd's gothic masterpiece Animals) tended to be to much. More often then not these bands faded into the dinosaur bin, only to be brought back by a new, younger, generation of more educated rock fans like The Smashing Pumpkins, Tool, Dream Theater, and others.

[Loco Mo]

Your points are well taken.  I base mine on various disputes as to the definition of a "concept" album.  Aside from the technical components, there is the interpretative quality which I think applied to Sgt. Pepper.  That is - it seems like a concept to me; therefore, it is.  I never cared much for Floyd's Animals but I took it to be evidence of the influence for that particular genre.  

Sgt. Pepper was a catalyst for others to pursue the concept.  But in a money-making singles-based market, I don't think there was much incentive to continue the process.  The concept lp seems a luxury for the spirtually-filled integrity-blessed but materially-starving artist .  Kudos to him/her/them for trying.