Revolver (Beatles album) transcendentalist lyrics, all kinds of rhythmic and harmonic surprises, and a filter that made John Lennon sound like God singing through a foghorn". In the 2004 edition of "The Rolling Stone Album Guide", Rob Sheffield wrote that "Revolver" found the Beatles "at the peak of their powers, competing with one another because nobody else could touch them"; he described it as "the best album the Beatles ever made, which means the best album by anybody". Writing for PopMatters that year, David Medsker said that "Revolver" showed the four band members "peaking at the exact same time", and he deemed it
The Beatles' Second Album available backlog of some 25 songs yet to be released by Capitol Records, it was decided to compile a follow-up album as soon as possible. "The Beatles' Second Album" was the first album of the group's work to be assembled by Capitol Records exclusively for the US market—"Meet the Beatles!" was a reconfigured, abridged version of "With the Beatles". "Second Album" was a potpourri collection that did not represent the Beatles' output at the time; the end result was an assembly of material from nearly a half-dozen sessions and sources. Capitol compiled the album using additional songs from four different