Greatest hits albums are rarely considered art. Typically, they are money grabs in the latter half of an artist’s career. Not to downplay the inherent merits of a greatest hits compilation, as they are a good way for newcomers get a foothold in an artist’s sound. The Beatles had many greatest hits compilations, but the two that encompass the breadth of their time together are 1962–1966 and 1967–1970, a.k.a the “red and blue” albums. Allen Klein, the Beatles’ late-stage manager, compiled both of these albums. One grievance (of many) that fans have with Klein was his decision to remix the songs on both of these compilations in stereo. John Lennon also joined in on that grievance. Learn more about Lennon’s qualms with these compilations below.
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The Beatles Albums That Sounded the Worst, According to John Lennon
There was much contention towards the end of the Beatles’ career. Klein was meant to sort out the band, but only ended up sending them into further turmoil. There was really no fixing the band’s numerous issues. If you stopped one leak, another would only let in water faster.
Creative differences ran rampant towards the end of the Beatles’ tenure. This certainly drove a wedge between the foursome. Nevertheless, their efforts as a band on their studio albums always resulted in strong pieces of work. The same, according to Lennon, can’t be said for the compilation albums made on their behalf.
“It Was Embarrassing”
Both the “red and blue” albums were made in response to a bootleg “greatest hits” pair that was circulating at the same time. Klein and Apple decided to label this project with a stamp of “authenticity” so as not to miss out on any potential income opportunities.
According to Lennon, he only heard the compilations after they were released. Much to his dismay, the project had been remixed to stereo, leaving it a muddled recording that didn’t reflect the band’s original intent.
“I didn’t realize it until they put it out,” Lennon once said. “I presumed they would just copy them from the masters. I didn’t even listen to it until after it was out. I took it back and played it, and it was embarrassing.”
“Some of the tracks survived, but some fool tried to make it stereo, and it didn’t work,” he added. “If you mix something in mono and then you try to fake it, you lose the guts of it, and a lot of them lost the guts.”
Despite Lennon’s objections to the compilations, they did prove successful. Many fans from future generations found their way into the Beatles through this project. To the untrained ear, there isn’t much wrong with either of these albums, but listening to them with Lennon’s comments in mind changes the experience, for sure.
(Photo by NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
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