I came across this site a few days ago, and am very impressed with the content. I was 15 when Sgt Pepper's was released, and as another poster mentioned, we just weren't aware of the historical musical period we were in. Magical Myster Tour and Abbey Road were my favorite Beatle albums, but this program brought out so many things I never knew...Excellent..
Fascinating listening with new insights. Good hearing again. "I had to be there" having been born in 1949! None of us knew we were living through historical musical times. But then we realized it in retrospect. Thanks for a very enjoyable 2 hours!
I'm a musician, and a radio producer and a boomer/Beatlemaniac, so this program hits me right where I live. And it succeeds on all levels: as familiar and significant as Sgt. Pepper may be after 40 years, Paul and his informants have delivered some new insights.
(Note: I am one of the voices appearing in the program.)
Another great Paul Ingles production drawing on many sources for a look at a classic LP. Sgt. Pepper is undeniably a milestone album but many of the voices heard here feel it's been overrated. That's refreshing to hear. They're not saying it's an awful album, just that it's neither the best album to come out of the Beatles nor the best album to come out of its time.
In addition to a track-by-track look at Sgt. Pepper, with generous helpings of all the songs, we also hear about Penny Lane in the first hour and flipside Strawberry Fields Forever in hour 2. A bonus for radio fans is the newcast filler in hour 2, which includes airchecks from the golden days of WABC and WABC-FM while talking about the emergence of FM radio as an outlet for rock album tracks.
If you're doing any programming around the 40th anniversary of the "summer of love" don't forget about this program. I heard no mention of "It was 40 years ago today..." in it so even though this is targeted to air in June 2007 the program should be good anytime.
Brilliant! Ideal June programming for any station whether music or talk is your format. There's a fantastic balance of both interesting speakers and iconic music. The two-hour special can easily be split into two one-hour programs, with or without newscast.
When Sgt. Pepper was released on June 1st 1967, I was three weeks short of my 15th birthday and more into Rogers & Hammerstein than the Beatles. Sure, I bought the Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields single (best of all time?) which came out a few months earlier and played it all summer long. But I never got into Sgt. Pepper even when friends were still raving about it in college a few years later. But I was a fan of many of the concept albums which followed like The Who's Tommy and anything by the Moody Blues.
I mention this personal anecdote because this program not only brought back so many memories of the past, it also made me think about who I am now - 40 years later. It brought up a whole range of ideas on the development of rock music, cultural cross-fertilization and the impact of art on society. But it never got bogged down with too much over-intellectualizing. In fact, after I listened to the whole two hours I listened to it all again - like people do with any great album.
My personal favorite bit: the 5 minute newscast section at the beginning of side 2 (or, hour 2) about how the shift from AM to FM radio helped airplay of Sgt. Pepper and what's been lost with the shift from record to CD. It's too bad some listeners will miss out on this little gem of info when replaced by news.
Though pegged to the June anniversary of the album's release, this musical history is as evergreen as Sgt. Pepper itself and should appeal to listeners of all ages and musical tastes. Classic!
Comments for The Two Sides of Sgt. Pepper: An Honest Appraisal of The Beatles' Classic
Produced by Paul Ingles / Cedar Creek Studios
Other pieces by Paul Ingles
Rating Summary
6 comments
Jim Sensenig
Posted on January 12, 2011 at 01:02 PM | Permalink
Sgt. Pepper's
I came across this site a few days ago, and am very impressed with the content. I was 15 when Sgt Pepper's was released, and as another poster mentioned, we just weren't aware of the historical musical period we were in. Magical Myster Tour and Abbey Road were my favorite Beatle albums, but this program brought out so many things I never knew...Excellent..
Ed Ovett
Posted on October 04, 2009 at 01:30 PM | Permalink
Ed Ovett, podcast producer & host
Fascinating listening with new insights. Good hearing again. "I had to be there" having been born in 1949! None of us knew we were living through historical musical times. But then we realized it in retrospect. Thanks for a very enjoyable 2 hours!
David Gans
Posted on June 12, 2007 at 07:46 AM | Permalink
Review of The Two Sides of Sgt. Pepper: An Honest Appraisal (New 2-hour Special - Available to All Stations)
I'm a musician, and a radio producer and a boomer/Beatlemaniac, so this program hits me right where I live. And it succeeds on all levels: as familiar and significant as Sgt. Pepper may be after 40 years, Paul and his informants have delivered some new insights.
(Note: I am one of the voices appearing in the program.)
ralph ashbrook
Posted on June 04, 2007 at 03:14 AM | Permalink
Review of The Two Sides of Sgt. Pepper: An Honest Appraisal (New 2-hour Special - Available to All Stations)
Excellent memory/analysis piece with emphasis on the music.
David Harris
Posted on May 17, 2007 at 06:14 PM | Permalink
Review of The Two Sides of Sgt. Pepper: An Honest Appraisal (New 2-hour Special - Available to All Stations)
Another great Paul Ingles production drawing on many sources for a look at a classic LP. Sgt. Pepper is undeniably a milestone album but many of the voices heard here feel it's been overrated. That's refreshing to hear. They're not saying it's an awful album, just that it's neither the best album to come out of the Beatles nor the best album to come out of its time.
In addition to a track-by-track look at Sgt. Pepper, with generous helpings of all the songs, we also hear about Penny Lane in the first hour and flipside Strawberry Fields Forever in hour 2. A bonus for radio fans is the newcast filler in hour 2, which includes airchecks from the golden days of WABC and WABC-FM while talking about the emergence of FM radio as an outlet for rock album tracks.
If you're doing any programming around the 40th anniversary of the "summer of love" don't forget about this program. I heard no mention of "It was 40 years ago today..." in it so even though this is targeted to air in June 2007 the program should be good anytime.
David Swatling
Posted on May 06, 2007 at 12:42 AM | Permalink
Review of The Two Sides of Sgt. Pepper: An Honest Appraisal (New 2-hour Special - Available to All Stations)
Brilliant! Ideal June programming for any station whether music or talk is your format. There's a fantastic balance of both interesting speakers and iconic music. The two-hour special can easily be split into two one-hour programs, with or without newscast.
When Sgt. Pepper was released on June 1st 1967, I was three weeks short of my 15th birthday and more into Rogers & Hammerstein than the Beatles. Sure, I bought the Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields single (best of all time?) which came out a few months earlier and played it all summer long. But I never got into Sgt. Pepper even when friends were still raving about it in college a few years later. But I was a fan of many of the concept albums which followed like The Who's Tommy and anything by the Moody Blues.
I mention this personal anecdote because this program not only brought back so many memories of the past, it also made me think about who I am now - 40 years later. It brought up a whole range of ideas on the development of rock music, cultural cross-fertilization and the impact of art on society. But it never got bogged down with too much over-intellectualizing. In fact, after I listened to the whole two hours I listened to it all again - like people do with any great album.
My personal favorite bit: the 5 minute newscast section at the beginning of side 2 (or, hour 2) about how the shift from AM to FM radio helped airplay of Sgt. Pepper and what's been lost with the shift from record to CD. It's too bad some listeners will miss out on this little gem of info when replaced by news.
Though pegged to the June anniversary of the album's release, this musical history is as evergreen as Sgt. Pepper itself and should appeal to listeners of all ages and musical tastes. Classic!