Rating: 
Summary: Good...not essential
Review: I've read this book twice. It's an interesting book but I still find it somewhat irritating as well. MacDonald seems to almost have a personal vendetta against George Harrison...even for 'Something' and 'Here Comes the Sun' the best he can muster is a sort of backhanded praise. Most of the remaining Harrisongs, including 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps,' he dismisses as dour, unimaginative, and musically inferior. MacDonald seems to be trying too hard, in my mind, to find something negative to say about nearly every single song, including those by Lennon and McCartney. However, the 35 page introduction is worth the price of the book. It is one of the better analyses of the 60s and the Beatles' influence on that decade that I've ever read. Ultimately, this is an intelligent, highly opinionated, look at every Beatles song. I don't agree with much of what MacDonald has to say but at least he makes me think about the music and more importantly makes me want to go back to the albums and listen to them yet again. Walter Everett's two volume 'The Beatles As Musicians' is a much superior, if occasionally nearly impenetrable, analysis, though, and I'd urge you to seek them out instead of this out of print book.
Rating:
Summary: Good...not essential
Review: I've read this book twice. It's an interesting book but I still find it somewhat irritating as well. MacDonald seems to almost have a personal vendetta against George Harrison...even for 'Something' and 'Here Comes the Sun' the best he can muster is a sort of backhanded praise. Most of the remaining Harrisongs, including 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps,' he dismisses as dour, unimaginative, and musically inferior. MacDonald seems to be trying too hard, in my mind, to find something negative to say about nearly every single song, including those by Lennon and McCartney. However, the 35 page introduction is worth the price of the book. It is one of the better analyses of the 60s and the Beatles' influence on that decade that I've ever read. Ultimately, this is an intelligent, highly opinionated, look at every Beatles song. I don't agree with much of what MacDonald has to say but at least he makes me think about the music and more importantly makes me want to go back to the albums and listen to them yet again. Walter Everett's two volume 'The Beatles As Musicians' is a much superior, if occasionally nearly impenetrable, analysis, though, and I'd urge you to seek them out instead of this out of print book.
Rating: 
Summary: Hard to put down
Review: Ian MacDonald's analysis of the Beatles' music is lucid, measured and frank. Not for him blind worship of everything the Beatles put out. If a song is a dog, he calls it a dog, and I for one found myself in agreement with most, though not all, of his calls. Whether you agree or not, the important thing is that McDonald is no sycophant, so you can rely on some measure of objectivity in his arguments. It's interesting to note that at least one reviewer here, a collector, says MacDonald's research is "shoddy and out of date". Maybe, but that same reviewer claims to have found a glaring error on just about every page. I am more than a casual fan, but those errors were not obvious to me. Still, if they do exist in such abundance, I can see why the more knowledgable reader might be put off. In any case, MacDonald appears to have a good ear and that is what really counts with this sort of book. I always preferred Lennon, still do, but McCartney emerges from RITH with his reputation enhanced, even though he still irritates the bejesus out of me. (Does he EVER stop smiling?) But Lennon has had a bit of an easy ride, always thought of as the cooler of the two, the risk taker, and this book helps square the ledger. While there is some musical jargon in the book, it's not likely to present an obstacle to a lay person's understanding. As for another reviewer's complaint about McDonald's social commentary, ANY time is a good time to bash Reagan and Thatcher. Absorbing.
Rating:
Summary: Literate And Sympathetic But Technical
Review: Ian McDonald is both a classical and a pop critic so he is uniquely qualified to make a serious appraisal of the greatest act in the history of recorded music. The book is very enthusiastic about the Beatles and is full from start to finish with surprising musical insights that only a classicist could come up with. But this book is not only about music. The 35 page introduction analyzes the cultural and even philosphical meaning of the Beatles. I have read many Beatle books, but this book comes closer than any other to showing what the Beatles mean. The fact that the book is both the best musicological and cultural analysis of the Beatles is amazing. I have only 2 criticisms. First, McDonald reviews all of the Beatles' own songs,186 titles, together with all of their cover tunes. This means that some of the individual treatments are sometimes thin, and, of course, some of my favorites are not treated with the respect I think they deserve. Second, both the cultural and musical jargon tend to be dense and technical. This could put off casual fans and the larger part of the world who has not heard of Satre, Foucault, Derrida or Deconstructionism. But let's not quibble. This book is must reading for serious music fans, culture hounds and anyone who wants to understand Western Culture after it was swept up in Beatlemania.
Rating:
Summary: Literate And Sympathetic But Technical
Review: Ian McDonald is both a classical and a pop critic so he is uniquely qualified to make a serious appraisal of the greatest act in the history of recorded music. The book is very enthusiastic about the Beatles and is full from start to finish with surprising musical insights that only a classicist could come up with. But this book is not only about music. The 35 page introduction analyzes the cultural and even philosphical meaning of the Beatles. I have read many Beatle books, but this book comes closer than any other to showing what the Beatles mean. The fact that the book is both the best musicological and cultural analysis of the Beatles is amazing. I have only 2 criticisms. First, McDonald reviews all of the Beatles' own songs,186 titles, together with all of their cover tunes. This means that some of the individual treatments are sometimes thin, and, of course, some of my favorites are not treated with the respect I think they deserve. Second, both the cultural and musical jargon tend to be dense and technical. This could put off casual fans and the larger part of the world who has not heard of Satre, Foucault, Derrida or Deconstructionism. But let's not quibble. This book is must reading for serious music fans, culture hounds and anyone who wants to understand Western Culture after it was swept up in Beatlemania.
Rating:
Summary: Must Read!
Review: If you need to get one book about the Beatles, this is the book. A terrific romp through each Beatle song explaining what it meant, musically, lyrically, and politically. Although I wish I had more of a music education so I could understand many of the references, this book showed me new interesting things in Beatles recordings. The author does have a negative bent toward John Lennon, especially in the later years of the Beatles. His refusal to kiss the Beatles behind might offend some, but the offense is well worth it. You will come from reading this book wanting more.
Rating: 
Summary: ...and it's not what it appears to be....
Review: Of all the books I have read and discussed, there is one book that we never should trust...when I got this book out from the library I was all geared up for a great read...therefore was greatly disappointed as I read this book. MacDonald is unfortunately negative about all of The Beatles songs, and in particular has it in for George and Ringo's numbers. I found that he did not have a single positive comment about any of The Beatles songs - no matter who wrote them. It makes one wonder why he wrote a book on them. If you are looking for a book with a positive approach to the Beatles masterpieces, this isn't the book you should be buying. I reccommend "A Day In The Life, the Music and Artistry of The Beatles, by Mark Hertsgaard, instead of MacDonald's sloppy, single-minded musings. This book should be put to shame.
Rating:
Summary: A fab book about the fab four.
Review: Revolution in the Head - the Beatles' records and the sixties. If you ever only buy one book about the Beatles, this is the one to buy. It gets right to the heart of what the Beatles were all about: the songs. Each and every song they recorded, released or not, is detailed, discussed, and dissected. All the information you could want about each song and album is given to you, the date recorded, the producer, engineers, who played what, where , why and when. But more than that, all one hundred and eighty six songs are discussed and explained. Take "Eleanor Rigby" for example. McDonald discusses the title (was she a real person in Liverpool?), the morbid subject matter ("death is a subject normally avoided in pop music"), as well as the critique of religious practise then current ("no one was saved"). All of the seedy sides of the group aren't left out. The drugs, the women, the rivalry. These things were an integral part of the development of the group, and none are ignored. Each song is given an honest and thoughtful treatment. McDonald doesn't just blindly love each and every song, some of them he likes, some of them he doesn't, and he lets you know. Whether you agree or not is up to you. The copious notes and quotes makes this an invaluable resource for any Beatles fan out there, and the chronology, discography, bibliography and glossary just add to its usefulness! As I read the book, I would find myself wanting to listen to the songs as I read about them, and vice versa. I now understand the songs much better, and now they mean more. It might be going a bit over the top to say that the songs actually sound better, but my appreciation of them has certainly gone up. I found that this book helped me become an even bigger fan than I already was. If you like the Beatles, you should get this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting take on the Beatles
Review: Revolution In the Head is a song by song survey and analysis of all the Beatles songs, and the fan will find himself fascinated by all the tidbits and details. The author shows how the songs were developed, and one leaves this book very appreciative of the "hooks" in their songs, and the undervalued importance of the "middle eight" and the "bridge" in pop music. One thinks of songs of the last decade of so, and how they contrast with the two and a half minute gems that Lennon and McCartney composed. Today's songs tend to drone on and on for 5 minutes, with no change of pace, and songs tend to have the whole bag of tricks thrown in right away. Reading this book was a refreshing antidote, especially playing the Beatles while reading this. The author shows the good and bad, the brilliant mixes, the bad editing and cutting on some songs, especially the earlier ones, and gives credit where credit is due. He can get a bit too overbearing at times, I happen to love the keyboard solo in "In My Life", I hardly notice the little flourish at the end of it which the author dislikes. On certain songs such as "Revolution", the author dispenses with song analysis altogether and starts writing an essay about the politics and culture of the time. This I found a bit annoying. The Beatles were a phenomenon, but as John Lennon once said, "we were just a little band who made it big". The music is meant to be enjoyed, from "Little Child" to "Glass Onion" to "For No One", there's no great social meaning to all this, it's just a rich pop tapestry. Overall, a fascinating book, well worth it for Beatles fans and for those just discovering them.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting take on the Beatles
Review: Revolution In the Head is a song by song survey and analysis of all the Beatles songs, and the fan will find himself fascinated by all the tidbits and details. The author shows how the songs were developed, and one leaves this book very appreciative of the "hooks" in their songs, and the undervalued importance of the "middle eight" and the "bridge" in pop music. One thinks of songs of the last decade of so, and how they contrast with the two and a half minute gems that Lennon and McCartney composed. Today's songs tend to drone on and on for 5 minutes, with no change of pace, and songs tend to have the whole bag of tricks thrown in right away. Reading this book was a refreshing antidote, especially playing the Beatles while reading this. The author shows the good and bad, the brilliant mixes, the bad editing and cutting on some songs, especially the earlier ones, and gives credit where credit is due. He can get a bit too overbearing at times, I happen to love the keyboard solo in "In My Life", I hardly notice the little flourish at the end of it which the author dislikes. On certain songs such as "Revolution", the author dispenses with song analysis altogether and starts writing an essay about the politics and culture of the time. This I found a bit annoying. The Beatles were a phenomenon, but as John Lennon once said, "we were just a little band who made it big". The music is meant to be enjoyed, from "Little Child" to "Glass Onion" to "For No One", there's no great social meaning to all this, it's just a rich pop tapestry. Overall, a fascinating book, well worth it for Beatles fans and for those just discovering them.
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