We move further into the B's in this section with records I've bought from Holland, been handed down and found at thrift stores. Of course with us reaching further into the B's we have reached the inevitable selection of Beatles records that everyone has probably seen 100's of times before so I won't spend too long on them because they aren't anything particularly special, just single sleeves with a single black record. So let's kick off, first of all, with Beady Eye.
Beady Eye - Different Gear, Still Speeding
Not many people loved Liam Gallagher's band that he formed after the departure of Noel from Oasis, which is incredible considering the bulk of the members were what was left behind after the death of the Britpop group.Still, I loved the group but I may have been looking at them through rose tinted glasses because I loved Oasis so much, this album, however, is mediocre to say the most because it's just nothing special. The artwork however has this particularly old newspaper feel to it and it just has this 60's vibe right from the off, just like the album.
Inside the gatefold is some really cool artwork that is extremely aesthetically pleasing, because it's simple and effective, the name of the album printed out in big letters is immediately recognisable and looks like it could be directly out of a Pretty Green shop.
The artwork continues on the album sleeves where the records are held, this is just a collage of song names and random artwork but once again I think it looks really cool and it's just oozing with this 60's vibe. I love the fact that effort was put into these sleeves because it was something I really had a problem with on
my Arctic Monkeys records.
Also, I never really noticed this before but the sticker says Limited Edition so I thought I'd look it up online but I could never find out how many were printed, it is however going for under £15 on Amazon so it can't be that limited.
Beady Eye - BE
I had this album in constant rotation when I first bought it, and I have to say this sounds extra sweet on vinyl it's on 180 gram heavyweight which obviously makes it incredibly crisp. The cover is somewhat rude and when it was in the cellophane packaging the sticker was over the nipple, as it was on the CD as well. Must listens on this album are Flick of The Finger, Don't Brother Me and Shine A Light.
The inside of the gatefold looks incredibly cool, if you've read my other posts you know that I love simplistic art and this is right up my alley, the large Beady Eye stricken all across it looks amazing and I really like it.
The record sleeves are brilliant, with BE in large letters on one of them (This also came on a T-Shirt I got when I saw them live). The weird hallucinogenic pictures of the band on the other record sleeve look really cool. Not to mention, if you hold this record in it's entirety it feels incredibly thick and from that you can immediately tell that it is well pressed.
It comes with this massive poster of the album cover aswell, which is pretty cool but I don't plan on putting a topless lady on the wall of the house anytime soon.
The Beatles - Please, Please Me
I got this when we cleared out my Grandma's house after she passed away, it's in pretty brilliant condition considering it was probably in the attic for well over 40 years. This is also in mono aswell, just how the Beatles early stuff was meant to sound. Cool fact about this album aswell is that on Twist & Shout at the very end of the album, John Lennon's voice sounds croaky and broken because they had to record the album in one go so if someone messed up then they had to start again, I think it took something like 7 hours.
The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night
This is my favourite Beatles album, because all of these songs are extremely catchy and I think it is probably the most underrated in their discography, not to mention I think the cover is really cool.
The Beatles - Rubber Soul
I picked this up at a thrift record store that was built in a sort of big garden centre thing, a really cool place and it was only £4. This is one of my least favourite Beatles records but I could not avoid that price tag.
The Beatles - Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
This is the only Beatles album that I bought brand new, this has to be one of the most iconic albums of all time and it contains some of the most famous songs of all time. If you have never listened to Lucy in The Sky With Diamonds then you should go and check that out immediately.
The inside of the gatefold makes this album look incredibly dated but in a good way, it really shows what time period this actually was. It's actually quite a cool picture of all the band together. It's quite funny to see Ringo leaning in and being half cut off by the end of space in the gatefold.
I have to say the best thing about this record is probably the fact that it comes with a become a member of the Lonely Hearts Club Band kit. With fake moustache and epileps all made of card, they are useless but a nice touch!
