Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 16-20 of 472
 One of their Most Solid Albums January 17, 2004
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
Probably the Beatles's most underrated and psychedelic album, MMT has it all. The title track is one of the Beatles's best hard rock songs that slows down until the jazzy finish. Other than George's slow and wierd song "Blue Jay Way", the album is near perfect. "Your Mother Should Know" is another one of Paul's catchy songs and yet, it's very melodic. "Fool on the Hill" is another Paul beauty that's absolutely pleasant with a light, but sad lyrics. A beautiful flute and 12-string guitar part can be heard on that. And what can't be said about John's eerie, wierd, psychedelic "I Am the Walrus." It's based on the Lewis Carrol poem from "Alice in Wonderland", but it actually has no meaning whatsoever. At the end, you can hear the words "Bury my body" and "Oh, Untimely death." Are these clues of Paul's death? Actually, their snips of a production of Shakespeare's King Lear which was on the radio at that time. "Baby You're a Rich Man" is yet another brilliant number. George Martin (their genius producer) said that the single "Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever" was the greatest rock album EVER. How true. Paul's incredible bass line as well as beautiful British melodies and harmonies shine on "Penny Lane". "SFF" stands as one of John's most brilliant songs as it combines his genius lyrics with a haunting, heartbreaking melody. And then there's "All You Need is Love", one of the greatest songs of all time. When the Beatles were asked to write a song for the first worldwide live television event, they needed a song that could be understood in every country. This song brought it. This album had three number one hits (and would have had four if "Strawberry Fields" wasn't knocked away by Englbert Humperdink's stupid song back in the sixties). Four out of eleven ain't bad. The most overlooked album, it doesn't quite work as a whole like "Sgt. Pepper", but is a must-have for Beatles and non-Beatles fans alike.
SGT PEPPER PLEASE STEP ASIDE December 15, 2005
Mumming Rocks (Wellington, NZ)
7 out of 9 found this review helpful
As much as I love Sgt Pepper, the White Album and Abbey Road, I must say this is my favourite Beatles Album. This is the album at the height of the Beatles pyschedelic period. It contains 10, in my opinion, 10 "5 Star" tracks with Paul's "Your Mother Should Know" lacking behind.
Magical Mystery Tour - Great Title track gives a great feeling of what is to come. I rank it higher than Sgt Peppers title track. Great Groove. 9/10
The Fool on the Hill - Paul's best song on this album. Superb experimentation with unusual instruments. I'm not fantastic when it comes to determining instruments but I'm pretty sure it's a flute! (correct me if I'm wrong) Great vocals. 8.5/10
Flying - Pyschedelic instrumental. Experimentation is lovely here and great to "chillax" to. 9/10
Blue Jay Way - Not the greatest but again great pyschedelic feel and cool drumming from Ringo here. Freaky Vocals. 8/10
Your Mother Should Know - Worst track on the album. Indeed one of "Paul's Granny Songs". Doesn't really fit on the album. I'm thinking perhaps "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" should have been included in this album instead of this track. 7.5/10 (hey it's still a great song)
I am the Walrus - This is where the album goes from great to LEGENDARY! One of the best Beatles songs and one of the best songs ever, the peak of pyschedelia. Think of the lyrical genius John Lennon when you hear this song, this is his peak. easily 10/10
Hello Goodbye - Catchy Lyrics, great groove, I love the guitar riff and the lyrics after the second verse. FARRRRRBULOUS. 9/10 (bit stale after a while)
Strawberry Fields - My second favourite track here. This is immoratal John Lennon. Lovely Vocals. This is about an orphanage where Lennon grew up, his Aunt Mimi didn't approve of him hanging around the children there (listen to the lyrics carefully and you will develop an understanding of the track. 10/10
Penny Lane - All you have to do is listen to this and if you enjoy good music you will lave it. 10/10
Baby Your A Rich Man - Pyschedelia starts to come back here. This isn't a classic but still a great groove. 9/10
All You Need Is Love - Classic. What else can you say? 9.9/10 (just can't give it a 10 compared to xome others on this album)
If you buy a Beatles Album this Christmas, buy this one. Truly, fantastic and if you wana trip out to something try this. I feel priveliged to be alive to hear this album. YOU SHOULD BE TOO
Sam, 14
Wellington, NZ
More Surreal than Pepper!!! November 24, 2001
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
Okay. Let's be honest. Getting away from the hype, this is a better album and a bigger trip than Pepper. Yeah, it's me. The 15 year old reviewer again. Magical mystery tour starts of with the title track, which is as good as Sgt Peppe (the song). Fool On the hill? IT'S GGGRRREEEAAATTT! Flying is forgetful but not a bore, It's the only Beatles instrumental, and like a calm before the storm (the storm being Blue Jay Way And Walrus)Blue Jay Way is a great George song, very surreal. Your mother should know. is timeless.So is walrus. (The first time I heard walrus, I heard i on my moms vinyl of the blue album, an I thought the album was warped, mainly because of the distorted sound of johns voice.)The rest of the songs weren't on the movie, they were released as singles, but still add a lot to the album. Hello Goodbye was classic, but not near as classic as the song after it, Strawberry Fields Forever. I was moved when I heard this song. I already knew about Penny Lane, so Immediatly came to the conclusion that SFF and PL was the greatest sing of all time. Baby your a rich man is very underrated and has that great instrument that sounds like a bumble be on something. Great Song. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE;the anthem for the age, this is a timeless beatles classic. As time magazine said, "JOHNPAULGEORGE&RINGO were a greater whole than the sum of its parts."
Beatles Best March 28, 2002
David C. Heires (New York, NY USA)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
So many Beatles albums being excellent, "Magical Mystery Tour" seems to have a hard time making it to the top of people's lists. Nevertheless, I am comfortable in saying it is my favorite Beatles album, altho it is in a virtual tie with "Sergeant Pepper," "The White Album," and "Abbey Road." C'mon, detractors, this album contains "Fool on the Hill," "I Am the Walrus," "Strawberry Fields," "Penny Lane," and "All You Need is Love." The title cut is not bad either, setting a lighter, and brighter, tone. We are given a bright carnival, pleasant for the family. It is true that "Mystery Tour" does not have much in the way of hard-driving rock songs, which the Beatles do well like all their other stuff, but let's face it, these types of songs account for only a limited portion of people's favorite Beatles tunes anyway. I also like "Flying" and "Blue Jay Way," simple and repetitive, respectively, but nicely done and creating present, dreamy moods. "Baby You're A Rich Man," "Your Mother Should Know," and "Hello Goodbye" are on the lighter pop side of things, but the Beatles always do that well too. "Fool", with its nice woodwinds, is one of the best things Paul ever did, as is the highly evocative "Strawberry" for John. "Walrus" has great texture as it zig and zags to fun effect. "All You Need Is Love" is an authentic 60s anthem, no less. This album is magical, all the way.
Jam packed with classic Beatles recordings April 18, 2003
Daniel Jolley (Shelby, North Carolina USA)
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
If it is even possible for a Beatles album to be somewhat underappreciated, Magical Mystery Tour is that album. Maybe it's the cover image of the Fab Four dressed in wholly ridiculous garb; that image is rather offsetting. As for the music, it's something of an odd mix of songs. The first six tracks come from the rather obscure television film Magical Mystery Tour, and the remaining five are made up of singles added to the pot in order to cook up enough material for an American album release. Thus, what you end up with is not a concept album such as the incredible Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band but rather a densely packed collection of huge hits complemented by several other very fine songs in their own right. Of the seven tracks, seven are bonafide Beatles classics: Magical Mystery Tour, The Fool On the Hill, I Am the Walrus, Hello Goodbye, Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane, and All You Need Is Love. The last of these songs became a veritable theme song for the culture of love thriving at the time of this album's release in 1967. I Am the Walrus is unquestionably the strangest song the Beatles ever released, but John's unique delivery of the seemingly nonsense lyrics is inherently fascinating. I don't even need to expound upon the fascinating, psychedelic, and wholly unique Strawberry Fields Forever. Besides being two of the Beatles' most amazing songs, I Am the Walrus and Strawberry Fields Forever also hold an important place in the mythology of the Beatles, supposedly containing clues pointing to the "death" of Paul.The four less familiar tracks are rather remarkable in themselves. Your Mother Should Know and Baby You're a Rich Man are fun and somewhat bouncy little tunes. Flying is a short instrumental (short being the best kind of instrumental in my opinion) that is notable for its existence as such among the Beatles discography. Then there is Blue Jay Way, George Harrison's sole contribution to the album. It is a terrific song wholly in keeping with the strange, oriental-influenced type of psychedelic sound showcased in Sgt. Pepper's Within You, Without You. It is a pity that George Harrison was never allowed to contribute more than one or two songs to any Beatles release because his songs prove the most fascinating and oddly compelling of all the group's recordings. Clearly, this is an album all Beatles fans should cherish and listen to on a fairly regular basis. Few Greatest Hits albums can boast as many chart toppers as Magical Mystery Tour can.
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