Hard Day's Night #1: The most concentrated explosion of genius. They wrote all the songs. It was their third album, right when most groups start petering out, having run out of accumulated material. But, instead of petering out. the Beatles stepped it UP. Whoa! Eff-ing amazing! Damn! What's more, the Beatles wrote these songs amazingly quickly while under the pressure of touring and public appearances. Lennon's was still in full testosterone flight, singing lead on the majority of songs, still throwing his weight around, giving full expression to the rough-cut, almost black-leatherish aspect of his personality -- so necessary to counterbalance McCartney's sweet, tasteful, even gorgeous sensibilities. Later, Lennon would get arguably too wrapped up in LSD, then heroin, and McCartney would step up to plate to a much greater extent.
Abbey Road #2: Polished, and, at times, profound. Beatles at their full, mature best. "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" and "Because" are works of genius, in my opinion. Nobody and nothing has ever conveyed so purely and simply the sentiments of each of these songs. No bullshit, no filler. "She's So Heavy" is distilled, completely stripped down, incandescently obsessive romantic/sexual passion. It doesn't get any more explicit than "She's So Heavy." "Because" is pristine transcendence -- again, like "She's So Heavy," sublimely simple and pure, nearly child-like. Prime cuts of Lennon's brilliance.
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