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Revolution in the Head
- The Beatles Records and the Sixties
- Narrated by: David Morrissey, Robyn Hitchcock, Danny Baker, Peter Curran, Matt Berry, David Hepworth, Geoff Lloyd
- Length: 11 hrs and 49 mins
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Revolution in the Head
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Summary
Regarded as the greatest and most revealing account of how the Beatles recorded every one of their songs, Revolution in the Head is brimming with details of the personal highs and lows experienced by Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, and Starr as they made some of the most enduring popular music ever created.
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What listeners say about Revolution in the Head
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mikey
- 23-02-18
This Book Is ABRIDGED
What did you like best about this story?
It's about The Beatles, and probably the best book on the subject i've read. Notice i said read. The printed book is full of foot notes, several on almost every page, that provide a real context to the history. The Audible version misses these out in their entirety. It also misses out much of the specific recording details, other than recording studio number, from each entry.
I love this book, but the Audible version is a definite letdown. Buy the printed book and enjoy...
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20 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- staedtler
- 26-05-15
What a pleasure!
What did you like most about Revolution in the Head?
I knew of this famous book being the best history, but found it quite hard to read a friend’s copy I borrowed. Listening to it though made a real difference. Knowing the details of how they made the songs and what was going on in their lives has made my understanding of the Beatles music much richer. I like the variety of great voices, men and women. Superb.
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12 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- JJ Varney
- 30-09-19
Pompous and over-rated
I real fail to understand why this book is rated so highly by so many and usually included as one of the top Beatles books. MacDonald has a style which combines the worst of arrogance and pomposity, it he isn’t vanishing up his behind waffling about the juxtaposed fluid zeitgeist he’s dismissing a Beatles song or performance with the self satisfaction of a friendless applied maths student yet to lose his virginity. Unless you are incapable of making your own mind up about the Beatles music then don’t waste your money on this flatulent guff
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10 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- barrelh
- 17-05-20
Often disappointing, but good in parts.
Some of the author's critiques make little sense and he dismisses many brilliant songs.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- IT Guru UK
- 27-10-20
A Comprehensive History and Analysis
I found Revolution in the Head a comprehensive history and analysis of every Beatles recording. Not being musical myself, most of the musical terms went over my head. None the less the depth of information was very interesting, and I could imagine myself in the the studio with the Fab Four watching them create some of the greatest popular music of the twentieth century. If I am to be negative about the book, I was turned off by Ian McDonald's rather unnecessary critique of a lot of the songs;. making snide remarks about the quality of their musicianship and lyrical content.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Yasmin Boland
- 01-06-15
Brilliant
Would you consider the audio edition of Revolution in the Head to be better than the print version?
Well I managed to listen to all over it in a few days - mainly on my computer's speakers - can't imagine I would have managed that had I been reading... books sometimes take weeks to read...
What was one of the most memorable moments of Revolution in the Head?
I enjoyed the little digs taken at the hippy movement... Was also v interested to learn about the history of the How Do You Do track. Had no idea about that...
What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
Getting to hear people like Danny Baker and Dave Hepworth narrating...
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Made me happy to live in a country with such a rich cultural history...
Any additional comments?
Definitely worth listening to...
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- MJC
- 15-04-22
The book is better - weak Audiobook version
I read the paperback several years ago and found it fascinating. Recently I thought I'd refresh my memory by listening the audiobook but this was a mistake.
I've made it as far as the Hard Days Night sessions and had to give up. The audio delivery ranges from turgid to pretentious. Interesting to note as well that Paul McCartney has challenged some of the interpretations the author has given as "facts".
Sorry, but even with the inaccuracies noted by McCartney the printed book is much better. Pity it's not available in Kindle format.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Pete
- 16-06-15
Not what I expected!
I thought I would hear about the social and plural influences on The Beatles music, and vice versa. However, it starts with a summary of the sixties which uses far too many long words to be comfortable. It resembles an academic work rather than a leisurely read.
This is followed by a comprehensive list of Beatles' recordings. Much of the detail of this is section was beyond my comprehension as I don't know the difference between an augmented 5th and a diminished 7th, if they exist. There were also many subjective critical comments about the value of the songs. I am one of gang who feel The Beatles did no wrong throughout there career so I am not happy hearing somebody say that any of the songs may have no worth.
Having said that, I did listen all the way through and some of it was of interest. On the whole I have to say that it is probably of more interest to a musician. It could have been so good.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Scarlet
- 03-06-15
This is really something to Twist & Shout about!
Revolution in the Head is an intriguing and revealing account of all things Beatles and the time in which they shined.
Listen to some of the bands most avid fans as they narrate an account of the journey though creating some of the most durable music in our existence …
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to these guys tell Ian MacDonald's non-fictional account who clearly writes with passion and energy.
I have yanked my albums off the shelf once again and have been listening abundantly!
Listen to this book!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- SHEKHAR DESHPANDE
- 12-08-22
A comprehensive dictionary of negative adjectives
Imagine a baker who is scientific, analytical and accomplished at making masterful cakes, with just one thing missing - any form of sweetness.
This hollow, lifeless book is a critical and analytical masterpiece. At the same time, conspicuous by its absence is is any spirit, love, or appreciation for music, let alone the Beatles - probably THE most loved band in the world. This is a pitiful example of the journalistic style where the minnows spit upon the statues of giants, perhaps to bandage their own frustrations as a musician. If you're looking for spirit, positivity, or inspiration on the Beatles, look elsewhere.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A. K. Moore
- 07-05-15
Five Stars with an Asterisk
Any additional comments?
This is a fascinating book - lovingly narrated by an ensemble cast - all listenable, and a couple of them exceptional. After an introduction it traverses the Beatles recording career song by song - going session by session rather than album by album, including unreleased oddities. The writer is very intelligent and almost invariably brilliant in terms of his analyses of the lyrics and the broader role of the group in the culture of the 20th Century. He's also *sometimes* brilliant in his musical analyses - often enough to warrant 5 stars across the board. That said, he's also sometimes annoyingly stupid on strictly musical elements, making some technical musical errors and overlooking critical details. A perfect example is the song Day Tripper, which he pans rather ruthlessly. Failing to grasp the importance of layered thematic riffs in popular music (and frankly, failing to grasp what a musical hook is) he thinks this is merely a 12-bar blues variant that the Beatles rushed out in an uninspired moment. I find it hard to believe that anyone interested enough in the Beatle to consider buying this book could fail to hear the virtues of this song. He's even more critical of All You Need Is Love, whose thematic 7/4 riff is stunningly brilliant to anyone with ears but he ignores this entirely and damns the song for what he considers its nonsensical lyrics ("nothing you can do that can't be done") but then a few songs later he heaps near-Shakespearean praise on the (similarly full of convoluted word-play) lyrics of I Am The Walrus and lavishes modern "concept art" superlatives on Revolution 9. My point is that Walrus and All You Need is Love - whatever you think of their lyrics - are both dumbfounding brilliant and original from a musical point of view and to say that the first is pure genius and the second is a pathetic piece of rubbish is just infuriating. That said, many of his analyses are spot on and the fact that he's so arrogantly opinionated will challenge you to think, even if you sometimes want to reach through the speaker and slap the guy. So, 5 stars, take each opinion with a pillar of salt, and don't let his sometimes inaccurate use of highbrow technical musical terminology override what your ears are telling you. If you filter out the nonsense, there's an abundance of really great insights to be had.
If you're looking for a 5 star Beatles book without the asterisk, Lewisohn's Tune In is without the slightest doubt the gold standard in terms of both content and narration. Can't Buy Me Love is also fantastic.
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19 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 16-10-21
Malicious, uninformed takedown by a group of amateurs
Colossal disappointment. The writers speak with imagined authority but clearly have neither the experience nor education to speak coherently about the Beatles, the 60’s cultural revolution, or music in general. The thinly veiled compliments are at all times backhanded and suggest an imagined general consensus about how trite or weak a particular song is, while presenting zero evidence to support their simplistic assertions. As a reader I wonder what led each writer to harbor such unbridled and uninformed vitriol. This book reads like the wild and inchoate ramblings of a lover scorned; I wish I could give it a negative-star rating, and I want my time back.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Gregg Anderson
- 03-07-20
Audio is not the best medium for this book
This is a great book. But it's best experienced as an actual book for reference. The audio book just doesn't translate into a satisfying listening experience. The author will keep you guessing as to what he's going to like as he has some strange favourites, and some shocking negative views of amazing songs. The narration runs from brilliant (Matt Berry anyone?) to downright almost unlistenable (the woman who did the White Album time period). So go buy this in a book store and save your credits here on the near perfect "Solid State" if you need a Beatles fix that works in the audio format.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jared
- 18-06-15
Unbelievable.
An unbelievably great in-depth critique of the Beatles' entire recorded output, song by song. Indispensable for the serious Beatles fan.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- LIAAmazon
- 18-08-23
Not worth it
The author is a shadow of the artists he's just critiquing.
Reads like a bitter failed artist (who eventually takes his own life in 2003) who can't tell a very good story and so resorts to arbitrarily "breaking down" each song in the beatles discography.
So boring and his "insight" to the beatles personal life is outdated to say the least.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 15-08-23
Crap
just a bunch of long winded pretentious "over analysis" and opinions. not worth an hour of your time
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul R. Kronst
- 23-04-23
Fantastic Book – Lots of details on their records
I highly recommend this book, “Revolution in the Head: The Beatles Records and the Sixties”
Ian MacDonald wrote a super interesting account of all the Beatles’ music.
I have a lot of the Beatles' music and some of their bootlegs, so I knew most of the songs that Ian MacDonald talked about. He has very good insights.
I read that this was the second-best book on the Beatles. I rank it very high—in the top 5 Beatle books. My favorite is Mark Lewison’s “The Beatles Recording Sessions,” which I loved and was fascinated by. My second favorite is Mark Lewison’s “Tune In.”
Ian MacDonald first talked about when the Beatles’ songs were recorded. Then Ian follows with details, descriptions, and backgrounds—sometimes a lot of them, sometimes he barely mentions anything about the song. He ended with his opinion on the song. Very interesting.
Overall comments?
A fun and interesting book. I think those who enjoy the Beatles will like this book. I don’t think you will need to be a die-hard Beatles fan.
Would you consider the audio edition to be better than the print version?
Yes. The different narrators do a great job.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Dan
- 01-02-23
Dropping the Baton
Multiple readers passing the “Beatles baton” was the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Multiple accents which got difficult to understand- one was definitely Irish— book itself was nothing more than critique of every Beatles song. What music did this MacDonald guy ever write that changed the world? Oh he’s just another critic you say? Yeah I wish I got the book so I’d at least have had something to wipe with for a few months.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- MEMLF
- 24-04-21
Robyn Hitchcock blows away the other narrators
Still an enjoyable trip through the Beatles catalog. For true fans only. I learned a lot.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Paul
- 23-12-19
For any Beatles fan or pop-rock music lover
Once I realized most of the book was comprised of chronological synopses of each song, I accepted and enjoyed the content, even while I disagreed with some of the author's more scathing critiques. The variety of readers was necessary and made the listening more enjoyable.
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