Beatles Top 10 Lists - Part 1

If only David Letterman did lists like this...I would have probably watched it more often.

The top 10 longest Beatles songs:

1. Revolution 9 [8:22]
2. I want you (She's so heavy) [7:47]
3. Hey Jude [7:08]
4. It's all too much [6:28]
5. A day in the life [5:33]
6. Within you without you [5:05]
7. While my guitar gently weeps [4:45]
8. I am the walrus [4:37]
9. Helter skelter [4:29]
10. Come together [4:20]

Some interesting tidbits about this:

• All of the top 10 longest songs are from the last part of their career (i.e. Sgt Peppers onwards)
  
• You have to go to their 39th (!) longest song before you get to one from their earlier part of their career. And that song is only 3:22 (You won't see me from Rubber Soul)
• The Beatles were a very prolific band (they released 226 songs between 1962 and 1970 - not including their Anthology releases or live recordings). For a band who released this many songs, it's amazing that they only have six songs longer than five minutes.
• One of their most successful singles was Hey Jude, and it's their 3rd longest song. [On a side note, I think it was Bob Dylan who broke the time barrier for singles when he released Like a Rolling Stone, at a whopping six minutes and thirteen seconds. This was unthinkable in 1965.]

The top 10 shortest Beatles songs:

1. Her majesty [0:23]
2. Maggie Mae [0:40]
3. Dig it [0:50]
4. Wild honey pie [0:52]
5. Mean Mr. Mustard [1:06]
6. Polythene Pam [1:12]
7. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (reprise) [1:18]
8. Golden slumbers [1:31]
9. Carry that weight [1:36]
10. Why don't we do it in the road? [1:41]

Some interesting tidbits about this:

• Half of the top 10 are from the Beatles' last recorded album, Abbey Road. I'm sure this was helped by the fact that the 2nd side of this album had a medley of unfinished songs on it.
• The remaining 5 in the top 10 are, like the top 10 longest songs, from the latter part of their career. But unlike the longest songs, you only have to go to the 11th shortest song (I'll cry instead at 1:44) to get to their early part of their career.

What about albums? I hear you cry...

Without further ado, I will now introduce the top 5 longest Beatles albums , not including compilations or soundtracks :

1. The Beatles ("White album") [93:21]*
2. Abbey Road [47:16]
3. Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band [39:50]
4. Rubber Soul [35:39]
5. Let It Be [35:04]

*Double album

Some interesting tidbits about this:

• The Beatles only released one double album during their career, but what an album it is.
• The astute Beatles fan may notice the absence of Magical Mystery Tour, which should have taken fourth position at 36:45. As much as this will infuriate Brett, Magical Mystery Tour is not an album. The first half is a soundtrack from the movie of the same name and the 2nd half is a collection of (brilliant) singles and B-sides from 1967.

And the 5 shortest Beatles albums:

1. A Hard Day's Night [30:24]
2. Please Please Me [32:39]
3. With The Beatles [33:16]
4. Beatles For Sale [34:06]
5. Help! [34:15]

Hmm...I think there's something in that for all of us.