Top Ten Albums From The 60s That Are More Important Than Sgt Pepper’s
Words: Tom Whelan

Back in the very first issue of REAX, I had a list of “classic” albums that if you owned, it was likely that you probably didn’t listen to and therefore didn’t need anymore and could safely dispose of.  In its wake, nothing stirred up more shit than the inclusion of 1967’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band on that list.  This album has been called the most influential record of all time—and I disagree with that statement. 

There is so much variety in music that to call one record the most important thing to ever come out seems kind of silly.  Most people are automatically recoiling at the thought of someone saying that Sgt. Pepper’s was not the most important thing in 20th century music.  However, I’m not alone in my sentiment—Sgt. Pepper’s did not meet unanimous acclaim when it was released.  Some reviewers, such as Richard Goldstein of the NY Times, panned it as a sloppy pastiche where the Beatles’ reach surely exceeded their grasp.  I’m not denying that it is an important album to a lot of people, but to say that it’s the best thing to happen to music is horseshit.  That would be to say that the funk of James Brown or the sonic revolution that Robert Moog enabled were garbage in the larger scope of the history of music, and as such, I can’t see how Sgt. Pepper’s could possibly have a wider impact than such things.  Sure, there were a lot of studio techniques borne of the sessions for this album, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that this is the best example of any of those techniques.

What follows is a list of albums that were released in the general chronological vicinity of Sgt. Pepper’s that, for my money, were more important or were more influential to the evolution of music.  Granted, some of them might not have been as popular, and I’m completely ignoring genres outside of pop or rock music to boot, but in terms of what these records did for music in general, they’re definitely more influential than Sgt. Pepper’s ever was.

Vanilla Fudge – Vanilla Fudge (1967)
Vanilla Fudge was a cover band when they started out.  Despite the banality of cover bands in general, the way they reinterpreted songs hadn’t ever really been done like this before, where poppy songs were slowed down, rearranged, and given a good kick in the pants.  That might not necessarily be how people always do it now, but Vanilla Fudge helped pave the way for bands to do radically different versions of other people’s songs.  Check out their versions of “Keep Me Hangin’ On” and “Ticket to Ride” in particular. 

Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde (1966)
With Blonde on Blonde, Dylan took his sometimes repetitive folk music and went electric.  The result is an attack on Dylan’s music that divided some, but was undeniably important.  More apropos, however, is what Dylan did for songwriting.  Do you hear Dylan writing shitty love songs like “Penny Lane”?  No, you don’t.  Even his love songs don’t really come across as love songs.  Dylan has been more important to the quality of song lyrics than the Beatles could hope to be, despite the fact that Dylan sings like crap.

Booker T & The M.G.s – Hip-Hug Her (1967)
These guys were the house band at Stax.  Eminently influential to the music you hear, even now.  Case in point—the Beatles were heavily influenced by Booker T & The M.G.s; Lennon and McCartney were huge, huge fans.

Van Morrison – Astral Weeks (1968)
I hate “Brown-eyed Girl” with a passion.  However, most people forget that Van Morrison crapped out this gem of a record as well, and together with Veedon Fleece it is probably the best thing he’s ever recorded.  High on its own poetry, this album swirls in jazzy arrangements that’ll give you a contact buzz.  Where Sgt. Pepper’s veers erratically from one song to the next, Astral Weeks is a deftly woven record that really rewards listening to it as an album rather than as a collection of songs.

The Band – Music from Big Pink (1968)
This is the band that pissed Clapton off enough to break up Cream.  The Band were damn near virtuosic for their time, spewing out great tunes with very few missteps.  When the Beatles tried to do Americana on the white album, who do you think they took the cues for that from?  From who everybody else did—from the Band.

James Brown – Cold Sweat (1967)
This song by itself kicked ass and took names.  Late 60’s James Brown music was on the cusp of becoming what we pretty much know today as funk.  So, four stoners with jittery tape edits are somehow more influential than Cold Sweat?  I don’t see it.

Beach Boys – Pet Sounds (1966)
Even though both Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper’s were originally recorded in mono, this album achieves a clarity and professionalism that made Sgt. Pepper’s look juvenile.  Do you know what it takes to balance out an entire band and multiple harmony parts in one channel of audio?  It ain’t easy.  The production value of this album makes George Martin look like a hack.

Cream – Disraeli Gears (1967)
Listen to this shit and tell me that Cream didn’t absolutely nail what a psychedelic rock band should sound like.  Where’s the sitar noodling?  Nowhere, because that shit should be left to sitar players.  Cream were the guys that are more or less responsible for the inception of jam bands, since Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker came from jazz backgrounds.  The whole concept of “power trio” comes from these fellas.

Sly & The Family Stone – Dance to the Music (1968)
Sure, you can argue that Stand! might have been their more famous album, but Dance to the Music was the first time Sly and company were patently badass.  The far-reaching impact of this record can be summed up in two words: Larry Graham.  Don’t know who that is?  Look it up, bitch.

Johnny Cash – Live at Folsom Prison (1968)
When country music was deep into its devolution of orchestral arrangements and ninny songwriters, Cash kept it real.  So damn real, in fact, that he recorded a live album at a prison.  Who the hell else has done that?  The Beatles stopped playing live for the most part in 1966 and became a studio band.  Know who else gave up playing live and only worked in the studio?  Steely Dan.  Enough said.  I’m sure most groups would rather play to adoring fans, even if those fans are inmates at Folsom, though few would be able to win over reprobates with the same panache as Cash did here.

Please mail all love letters to tomw@reaxmusic.com