The Best Beatles Solo Albums
The Cream of the Crop from John, Paul, George, and Ringo
The former members of the Beatles -- John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr -- have released over 50 albums. Which ones are the best?
When the Beatles broke up in 1970, they left many fans thinking "What's next?" Collectively, they were the most popular and influential band of all time. But would they be able to capture the same magic as solo artists? Here's a guide to finding the best of the solo Beatles' work.
Paul McCartney: Band on the Run (1973)
The absolute triumph of Band on the Run was all the more shocking because it followed 2 of McCartney’s least inspired efforts: 1971’s abysmal Wild Life and 1973’s tepid Red Rose Speedway. Paul had scored a handful of solo hits, but by the end of 1973, critics and fans couldn’t be blamed for thinking his best work was behind him.
But Band on the Run, recorded in Lagos, Nigeria, under less than ideal conditions, crackled with the fire of an artist reborn. Backed up against a wall, the sense of adventure and sheer determination Paul brought to the project recalled his work on Abbey Road and Sgt. Pepper.
The first-rate songs, expert musicianship, and tightly-focused arrangements wowed critics. Even Rolling Stone, who had savaged McCartney’s previous efforts, called it "the finest record yet released by any of the four musicians who were once called the Beatles." Bolstered by 3 hit singles -- “Helen Wheels,” “Jet,” and the title track -- the album dominated the charts throughout 1974, reaching the #1 spot on 3 separate occasions.
George Harrison: All Things Must Pass (1970)
All Things Must Pass arrived at the end of a dismal year for Beatles fans, but this lavishly-packaged 3-LP set, arriving just in time for the holiday season, helped erase some of the bad taste of 1970. Drawing on a huge backlog of songs, some originally rejected by the Beatles, George and co-producer Phil Spector piled on layers of instruments and vocals to create one of rock’s most majestic albums.
All Things Must Pass contains one of Harrison’s most-loved songs, “My Sweet Lord,” but there’s simply not a bad song on the entire set. Even the third disc, an all-star “Apple Jam” featuring Eric Clapton, Billy Preston, Ginger Baker and others, mostly avoids the mind-numbing tediousness usually associated with such affairs.
With his debut solo LP, Harrison proved that he could write songs the equal of Lennon and McCartney’s, and having his prodigious talents kept under wraps for so long only increased the power of the album’s monumental sprawl.
John Lennon: John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970)
John Lennon's first real solo album was also co-produced by Phil Spector, but it couldn’t have been more different from All Things Must Pass. While George’s solo debut explored grand, universal themes and featured Spector’s trademark “Wall of Sound,” John's turned inward, surrounding some of the most personal songs of his career with a stark, almost claustrophobic production.
Plastic Ono Band followed months of intensive “Primal Scream” therapy with Dr. Arthur Janov, in which John was encouraged to confront the demons that had plagued him his entire adult life. The cathartic songs he wrote for the album attacked his own idols and icons, including the Beatles (“God”), railed against the suppressive conformity of middle-class society (“Working Class Hero”), and attempted to make sense of his mother’s death at an early age (“Mother”).
Plastic Ono Band is not always an easy album to listen to, but it is absolutely riveting in its raw intensity, and it still cuts to the quick.
Ringo Starr: Ringo (1973)
For Ringo’s third solo album, he pulled together some of his most famous friends, including a certain John, Paul, and George, to craft an absolutely charming classic. His 3 former bandmates donated excellent songs and lent their talents to the recording sessions, making Ringo the closest they ever came to an actual reunion.
While it was obvious that Ringo had produced an excellent album, many were shocked by its huge commercial success. Ringo was a Top 10 smash on both sides of the Atlantic, and to date remains the only Beatles solo LP to spin off two number one singles on the Billboard charts: “Photograph,” and “You’re Sixteen.”
While the former Beatles may have never had the same critical or commercial success as solo artists, they have produced some truly great music. Most tragic, of course, is the fact that we will never hear new music from John Lennon and George Harrison. But Paul and Ringo continue to record and tour, and continue to add to the legacy.
Sources
- Rolling Stone 1973 review of Band on the Run
- Bronson, Fred. The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. Billboard Books, 2003.
- Shaffner, Nicholas. The Beatles Forever. McGraw-Hill, 1978.
