Beatles News
The return of our Behind the Curtain column continues with another anecdote from longtime music journalist and writer Steve Rosen — recalling his encounters with a big-time meet-up with George Harrison at Warner Bros. Records, circa 1974.
The day was a California postcard. A startling and fiery sun perched high above in a crystal blue sky, blazed down in diamonds of promise. It was an essential day, a meteorological marvel meant to be stored away for future reference. A day by which all other days would be measured.
“Dude,” a friend would ask the following week, “was last Tuesday the best day ever?”
You tell him it was — a sui generis day like no other. Even if the day itself was all you’d been given, that would have been gift enough. But the weather was merely an underscoring for the occasion, a gilded and golden opportunity to spend an hour with George Harrison. You would forget how to breathe before you forgot this. Simply saying the words out loud was enough to render you stupid all over again because the event was cloaked in so much magic and improbability. You muttered the words to yourself in a hushed and reverential whisper: “I hung out with a Beatle.”
Source: rockcellarmagazine.com/Steve Rosen
In February of 1968, the Beatles gathered in EMI Studios to shoot a pair of videos for their song “Lady Madonna,” their first single of that year.
Back then, of course, they weren’t called “music videos,” but instead “promotional films.” And as was often the case with the Beatles, the original plan turned into something else.
At first, the idea was to film the band miming to “Lady Madonna,” but ultimately the Beatles decided to use the studio time to record an entirely different song, “Hey Bulldog.” This is why, if you pay close attention to the video, you’ll notice the images of the band playing and singing does not match up with the lyrics and instrumentation of “Lady Madonna.”
“The group were on a roll as far as recording was concerned and didn’t want to lose a day,” film producer Denis O’Dell recalled in his book At the Apple’s Core: The Beatles From the Inside. “Rather than mime for the promo film, they asked us instead to film them recording a new song they were working on at the time. The song, a forceful rock number written predominantly by John, was called ‘Hey Bulldog,’ and that’s the song that audiences saw in the clip. We tried to edit the footage so that it echoed the rhythm of ‘Lady Madonna’ (which wasn’t too difficult since the songs have roughly similar tempos), but if you’ve ever wondered why that promo isn’t lip-synched now you know!”
There were actually two films made, similar but with slightly different clips. In the second film below, you’ll notice a section devoted to, of all things, George Harrison eating a plate of beans.
Source: aol.com/Allison Rapp
Nowadays, a studio-only artist is pretty much unheard of. It’s a shock when a musician decides not to perform live anymore, but that career trajectory was more common in decades past. The most famous outfit to ever do this was The Beatles. The band gave up life on the road long before they actually decided to split up. This decision was the result of many factors, but notably, a disastrous final tour that was destined to fail before they even played the first date. From dictators to fiery protests, one particular tour spelled the end of The Beatles’ career as a live band.
Before The Beatles’ final tour, the band had already racked up a fair amount of controversy. Between John Lennon’s “More popular than Jesus” comments and an angry encounter with President Marcos from the Philippines, the band wasn’t situated to have a smooth run when they entered into their 1966 U.S. tour.
A trip to the Philippines prior to the tour’s start set the band up for disaster. The Beatles were supposed to meet Marcos’ wife but opted to take a day off instead. This angered the leader and ultimately sparked a mob outside the show they were set to play that day. Though they delivered a public apology, it didn’t erase the bad press.
“He tried to kill us, President Marcos,” George Harrison once said years later, clearly still reeling from the experience.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Alex Hopper
On March 9, 1966, the Beach Boys began recording their infamous single "God Only Knows" as the opener to the second side of their critically acclaimed album Pet Sounds.
The song was an immediate hit upon release, with many influential artists praising the simple songwriting and effective musicianship. Paul McCartney of the Beatles has frequently called it the best song ever written.
'God Only Knows' Marked A New Era for The Beach Boys
One of the countless reasons that Pet Sounds is so frequently cited as the greatest album ever recorded is that it was so foundationally different from anything the Beach Boys had released before. While songs like "Surfin' U.S.A." had cemented them as icons of lighthearted "surf rock", Pet Sounds proved that frontman Brian Wilson was capable of much more.
"God Only Knows" is a perfect example of the vulnerable, tender songwriting that's on display throughout Pet Sounds. It's an incredibly simple love song on the surface, with lyrics that discuss the narrator's pure love and adoration of their partner—it's not trying to be experimental or edgy, and that's what made it so refreshing.
Source: aol.com/Jack Walters
The actor, who has been cast as Ringo Starr, has been enjoying his time in Liverpool away from filming
Barry Keoghan issued an emotional update as he opened up about filming in Liverpool. The 33-year-old has been cast as Ringo Starr in the eagerly anticipated Beatles cinematic event series.
Sir Sam Mendes is adapting the Fab Four's story in what promises to be the definitive account of how the lads from Liverpool conquered the world. The upcoming films are particularly exciting as it is the first time The Beatles and Apple Corps Ltd. have authorised the use of the band members’ life stories and music to be used in a scripted movie.
In addition to Barry, Paul Mescal has been cast as Sir Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon and Joseph Quinn as George Harrison. Barry has been pictured in character as the legendary drummer as filming for the upcoming movies has taken over the city over recent weeks.
The actor said it has been special to be on location in the city where it all started for The Beatles. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, he said: "It's an absolute joy. We're up in Liverpool filming now so that's sort of a thing in itself.
Source: Ryan Paton/liverpoolecho.co.uk
He was born in Liverpool, but where does Paul McCartney live now? In the years since The Beatles formed in their hometown in 1960, the English music icon has collected properties across the United Kingdom and the United States—and rarely lets them go. McCartney still maintains his first home, a London townhouse that he bought in 1965. “Do I know anything about property? Not really,” the musician said in an interview the following year. “Well, I suppose I do, come to think of it. I’m being vague. But don’t think I’m a big property tycoon. I only buy places I like.”
Many of the homes that McCartney has liked enough to buy are sprawling ranches or farms that have provided him privacy and respite from the chaos of stardom, and most seem to hold sentimental value for the Beatles bassist. Below, we’re examining the homes that Sir Paul McCartney has owned over the years.
Source: architecturaldigest.com/Katie Schultz
A piano used by John Lennon to compose songs for the iconic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album sold for a record £2.5 million ($3.2 million) at a Christie’s auction in New York on March 12, 2026.
- Instrument: A Broadwood upright piano originally built in 1872.
- Historical Significance: Lennon used this piano to write several Beatles classics, including "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds," "A Day In The Life," and "Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite!".
- Auction Context: The piano was part of the "Jim Irsay Collection: Hall of Fame" sale, which featured memorabilia amassed by the lateIndianapolis Coltsowner Jim Irsay.
- Price Performance: The final price of $3,247,000 (£2,448,968) far exceeded its initial pre-sale estimate of $400,000 to $600,000
Source: BBC
For much of The Beatles’ career, the songwriting spotlight fell predominantly on the partnership between John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Their prolific writing was at the forefront of the band’s records, and often left limited space for songs written by George Harrison and Ringo Starr. But, by the late 1960s, Harrison had developed his songwriting to a place of quiet sophistication, and one tune in particular would prove that he deserved greater recognition.
“Something” is Harrison’s beautiful masterpiece that was first featured on Abbey Road and described by Lennon as “The best track on the album.” The song quickly became one of the most celebrated songs in rock history and was a great introduction to Harrison’s philosophy. “Something” truly marked the point where Harrison’s abilities could no longer be overlooked, firmly establishing him as an equal creative force in The Beatles.
The Beatles are most famously associated with the songwriting partnership of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with around 180 songs in the band’s catalog credited to the pair. While they certainly wrote the majority of the material, their dominance in quantity didn’t necessarily mean their contributions were qualitatively superior to those of their bandmates, particularly George Harrison.
Source: collider.com/Fiona MacPherson-Amador
A concert film of John Lennon and Yoko Ono‘s monumental 1972 Madison Square Garden concert will hit cinemas this spring. The film, whose official title is longer than its 81-minute running time, Power to the People: John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band With Elephant’s Memory and Special Guests – Live at the One to One Concert, New York City, 1972, will hit theaters on April 29 and May 3. Tickets go on sale March 20 via a special website for the film.
As every armchair Lennonologist and Onoologist knows, the former Beatle performed only two full concerts, the now legendary benefit gigs to raise a reported $1.5 million for developmentally disabled children, after the Fab Four broke up. Both took place on Aug. 30 with a truncated matinee preceding a full-length, star-studded extravaganza. Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack, Melanie, and Sha Na Na all made appearances at the gig. The set list included “Give Peace a Chance,” “Imagine,” “Come Together,” and “Instant Karma!” among other hits.
Director Steve Gebhardt filmed the concerts, which originally came out as a 40-minute TV special, John Lennon and Yoko Ono Present the One-to-One Concert, and was later re-edited into the 55-minute John Lennon Live in New York City in 1986. Footage from the concerts was later used in Kevin MacDonald and Sam Rice-Edwards’ recent documentary, One to One: John & Yoko, which focused more on rehearsals and preparation for the concerts.
Source: Kory Grow/rollingstone.com
Cinematic Event is one of the most ambitious on-screen projects of all time: four interconnected biopics of each member of the seminal British Invasion band. As the project's Ringo Starr, Barry Keoghan is loving the experience, especially as they film on location in Liverpool. He recently spoke with Collider's Steve Weintraub while promoting his latest film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.
Keoghan discussed getting to know the Beatles, both in person and via his extensive research for the role. When asked about his experience filming the project for Sam Mendes in the same locations where the band had their formative years, Keoghan told Collider:
He also expressed his admiration for the artistry of cinematographer Greig Fraser, who also worked with Keoghan on The Batman. While he couldn't share any updates on The Batman 2, Keoghan was quick to praise Fraser's incredible work alongside Mendes."It's been great working with Greig," said Keoghan. "I've learned so much from watching him and Sam [Mendes] work together and just being a part of that, and how they work together and seeing the stuff he's doing. I've also really upped my game on my photography, and Greig has been showing me a lot of film and photography. I'm addicted now, basically." The Beatles is filming now, but it won't be released in theaters until April 7, 2028.
Source: collider.com/Rob London, Steven Weintraub
