I call bullshit on anyone who says The Beatles is a well-sequenced album. It isn’t. Oh, it has it’s moments, especially the synergy created by some of the transitions and sub-sequencing decisions: the sound of the jet landing at the end of Back in the U.S.S.R. just as the guitar begins on Dear Prudence; the pairing of Mother Nature’s Son with Everybody’s Got Something to Hide; the musical jolt produced by the acoustic guitar opening to Cry Baby Cry seconds after the distorted horn end of Savoy Truffle (and the entire Honey Pie – Savoy Truffle – Cry Baby Cry triple is a nice organizational choice). The beginning and ending songs for each side are also nice choices, particularly on side two, pairing Martha My Dear at the top with Julia at the bottom.
But anyone who isn’t frustrated by the ordering on this album is deluding themselves, probably because they’ve listened to it so many times that the original ordering has become imprinted on their brain. The entire balance of the record is completely off — side 1 was obviously well thought-out, but the rest of the album has the unmistakeable air of sequencing slap-dash. Side 3, in particular, lurches around like a drunken demo tape. There’s absolutely no excuse for putting Yer Blues, Everybody’s Got Something to Hide, Helter Skelter, and Long, Long, Long on the same side of a double record — the whole side manages to never get started and yet still wander around aimlessly. A classic whole-is-less-than-the-sum-of-it’s-parts moment. Those are all decent songs (well, all except Yer Blues), but they just kill each other so close together. I don’t think anyone has ever listened to side 3 and not had a fleeting moment of boredom. And that gave some of those songs a bad rap.
I’m not saying the White Album sequencing needs a little improvement. I’m saying that a random iTunes shuffle of the White Album is unlikely to detract from it’s listen-ability, and that a random shuffle with a few constraints would almost automatically improve the overall experience of a straight listen-through. I’ll have a full essay on this soon enough, but for now here is my provisional alternative sequence, with a few notes afterwards:
Side 1
- Revolution (from Hey Jude B-side)
- Cry Baby Cry
- Sexy Sadie
- While My Guitar Gently Weeps
- Martha My Dear
- Glass Onion
- I Will
Side 2
- Back in the U.S.S.R.
- Dear Prudence
- Wild Honey Pie
- The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill
- Mother Nature’s Son
- Savoy Truffle
- Julia
- Everybody’s Got Something to Hide
Side 3
- Happiness is a Warm Gun
- Honey Pie
- Helter Skelter
- Piggies
- Rocky Raccoon
- Long, Long, Long
Side 4
- Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?
- Don’t Pass Me By
- Birthday
- Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
- Yer Blues
- I’m So Tired
- Blackbird
- Revolution 1 (from original white album)
A few notes:
1) Careful observers will note that I’ve cut two songs off the album. It’s always been my dream to go back in time and remove Revolution 9 from the white album, so I’ve done that. I can’t imagine I’ll get many complaints. I’ve also cut Good Night, because that song is as black hole anywhere but last on the album, and I’ve always wanted to…
2)…put both the hard and soft versions of Revolution 1 onto the white album, in first and last position. Obviously, the up-tempo version of Revolution 1 is not on the original album (it’s on the back of the Hey Jude single). But much like Sgt. Pepper, I’ve always thought the White Album could gain some structure/theme by having it bookended with two versions of the same song. The real question is which should go first and which should go last? Ordered as I have it above, the implication is the mellowing of a frenzy; putting the laid-back version first would imply some sort of awakening from lethargy. And that decision might make us rethink the ordering of the internal songs.
3) The ordering above may not have been possible in 1968 on an LP — I have not checked the song timings to make sure they could actually fit on each side as presented above.
So re-order the album in your iTunes and give the above sequence a listen. Comments and thoughts most certainly welcome.
