Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - Part 1

For our 25th episode, we’re diving into the first half of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The moment the Beatles stopped being a touring band and became something completely different. We walk through the end of Beatlemania, the “Strawberry Fields”/“Penny Lane” detour, and the five-month studio marathon that turned Abbey Road into a playground.

Then we break down every track on Side One: the brassy welcome from the Pepper band, Ringo’s Billy Shears spotlight, Lennon’s technicolor dreamscape, Paul’s bursts of optimism and introspection, the heartbreaking runaway story, and the full circus that closes the side.

It’s the sound of a band reinventing itself in real time — and realizing the studio could take them places a stage never could.

Part Two drops next week! Side Two, the categories, and the finale that still gives everyone goosebumps.