Beatles News
The solo careers of the four individual members of The Beatles received intense scrutiny from the press and music critics after the group’s breakup. And that attention really never let up.
Still, there are a few albums in their respective catalogs that feel like they never quite received their proper due. We’ve singled out one underappreciated album from each of the four members as examples.
‘Walls And Bridges’ by John Lennon
The music on Walls And Bridges gets somewhat overlooked because people tend to fixate on the biographical details of John Lennon’s early 70s period. For example, there’s a lurid interest in his so-called “Lost Weekend” antics in Los Angeles while separated from Yoko Ono. But Walls And Bridges came during a time when Lennon was able to pull focus. Commercially, it received a boost from “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night”, Lennon’s smash duet with Elton John. But folks need to check out this album from start to finish, as it’s one of Lennon’s most consistent records. Album tracks like “Scared”, “Steel And Glass”, and “Nobody Loves You (When You’re Down And Out)” are potent and piercing.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Jim Beviglia
Guests on Billy Corgan’s The Magnificent Others podcast have brought up some fascinating anecdotes in recent months. Gene Simmons told how Ace Frehley lifted a guitar solo from the Doors for a Kiss track. Zakk Wylde revealed how a chance to work with Guns N’ Roses sidelined his career with Ozzy Osbourne.
But few have delivered a history-changing story quite like Elliot Mintz. A friend of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Mintz has challenged the long-held belief that Lennon and Paul McCartney last met on April 25, 1976. According to that rather sad tale, McCartney turned up unannounced at Lennon’s New York apartment at the Dakota and was turned away by Lennon, who was busy with his son, Sean. Supposedly, the two former musical partners never met again.
Mintz, however, says the two men crossed paths two years later, during the Christmas holiday. And he knows, he says, because John and Yoko invited him over.
“They invite me to Dakota to spend one of the Christmas days with them,” Mintz tells Corgan. “And I go up to the Dakota, and I notice in the living room, there’s a vase with a single branch of a tree. That’s their Christmas decoration.
“I sat down on the white couch in the white living room, and we’re just making small talk,” he goes on. “Then there’s a knock on the door after the intercom. [Lennon] opens it, and Paul and Linda McCartney walk in.”
Source: guitarplayer.com/Phil Weller
Paul McCartney's 1970 song "Maybe I'm Amazed" was born during one of the biggest changes of his life: the end of The Beatles and the beginning of his solo career.
More than five decades later, the song remains one of his best-known love songs and has earned major recognition, including a spot on Billboard's list of the 50 Best Rock Love Songs.
In Billboard's ranking, "Maybe I'm Amazed" came in at No. 13. The publication described it as McCartney's purest love song from his early solo years, pointing to its piano runs, guitar parts, and powerful vocals.
The song also received top recognition from Rolling Stone, which placed "Maybe I'm Amazed" at No. 1 on its list of the 100 Best Beatles Solo Songs.
Released on McCartney's self-titled debut solo album, McCartney, the song became closely linked to his relationship with his wife, Linda McCartney. It also captured a period when McCartney was moving forward after the breakup of the band that had made him world-famous.
The Beatles had been dealing with growing problems before their split became public. During the making of the White Album, Ringo Starr temporarily left the group. George Harrison also briefly quit during the "Get Back" rehearsals. Later, disagreements over business matters added more tension.
Source: yahoo.com/Madz Dizon
64 years ago today, John Lennon wed Cynthia Powell in a small ceremony at the register office in Liverpool. With The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein as his best man and bandmates Paul McCartney and George Harrison present, the couple began what would be a short-lived marriage. But first, The Beatles had a show to play.
For Lennon, not even his own wedding stopped him from performing with The Beatles at the Riverpark Ballroom in Chester. The band played at the ballroom four Thursdays in the summer of 1962, with Ringo Starr joining the group for the first time only two days after they played their first gig there.
As the band began to soar into their newfound stardom, precautions had to be put in place for Lennon and his new wife to have a honeymoon. Their manager, Epstein, joined the couple for a belated honeymoon in Paris weeks after the ballroom shows, ensuring that the wedding news was kept private. But they couldn't hide the news for long — Cynthia was pregnant.
She gave birth to their son, John Charles Julian Lennon, on April 8, 1963, in Liverpool. According to People, Lennon was on tour at the time and wasn't able to see his wife and newborn son until three days later.
In 2011, Lennon's son (who changed his name to Julian Charles John) spoke to The Times and revealed that he didn't have a strong relationship with his father.
"Mum was more about love than Dad," he said. "He sang about it, he spoke about it, but he never really gave it, at least not to me as his son."
Source: yahoo.com/Grace Chaves
A new biography about the six-frame photoshoot for the Beatles’ final recorded studio album asserts that Paul McCartney insisted the Fab Four use the zebra-stripe crosswalk and move single file while crossing Abbey Road.
“The photographer, Iain Macmillan, came to the shoot with a series of wild designs and playful sketches to promote the band’s bubbly, carefree image. One sketch had the band up in a tree. Another had them jaywalking on their hands. Another had all four seated in lotus position, blocking traffic,” said the biographer, Derry Anderson, whose book “Come Together: The Story of the ‘Abbey Road’ Photoshoot” drops later this month. “Paul shut it all down. He said he wanted the band ‘all walking, all in sync, and we’re using the fucking crosswalk!’ Apparently, it was like pulling teeth to get him to hold the cigarette.”
At first, McCartney claimed not to remember that sunny August morning in 1969, but eventually broke down and confessed to having wanted even more restrictions on the band.
“I had us holding hands and looking both ways, yeah? The album was going to be called ‘Safety First.’ I had John and George in helmets looking left, me and Ringo in helmets looking right. But John didn’t go for it. So I said okay, single file, bored stare, no hands in pockets,” said the singer-songwriter, with a little wiggle of his head. “And then John does what? Sneaks his hands in his pockets! I swear, it was like corralling little school children. I tried giving John a timeout, but he just crossed the street and kept walking.”
Source: thehardtimes.net/bobbykorec
THE BEATLES’ brotherhood is to be brought to life in four blockbuster movies – just as series star Barry Keoghan battles real-life ructions with his own sibling.
Barry will play drummer Ringo Starr in The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event, directed by Sam Mendes.
It will see movies from each of the Fab Four’s perspectives drop simultaneously in April 2028. But off screen, I can reveal the relationship between Irishman Barry and brother Eric has soured.
I’m told Eric previously acted as Barry’s assistant on set and would often accompany him to filming. But now, word is that Eric is no longer welcome and has been absent from filming in recent weeks.
A source said: “Eric is back in Ireland and is not living with Barry at the house he is renting near London.
“Barry is in the honeymoon phase with his new girlfriend, Danica Hall, and she is not Eric’s biggest fan. Barry decided it was best that Eric didn’t stay with him and he has not been seen at filming.
“Eric didn’t always bring out the best in Barry so it is probably better that the brothers are not in each other’s pocket.”
The films also star Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison and Harris Dickinson as John Lennon.
Source: thesun.co.uk/Hannah Hope, Emily Webber
The Beatles’ timing in starting Apple Records wasn’t the best. Right about the time it was revving up, their own inner drama was demanding much more of their attention. Still, the short-lived label produced some outstanding records.
Members of the Fab Four did indeed help out with these artists on occasion. For example, here are four songs that they wrote that were recorded by Apple acts. Paul McCartney’s track record of writing and recording hit singles with The Beatles earned him a lot of credibility from Apple acts. In the case of “Come And Get It”, he essentially demanded respect from Badfinger. He wrote the song and then made a full demo of it for the group. He then told them to make the recording of the song sound as close as possible to his demo. Otherwise, he wouldn’t allow them to have the song. Members of Badfinger initially fought against this insistence. But they eventually decided to relent to Macca’s wishes. That turned out to be a smart move. Their recording of the song, faithful to the demo, turned into their first major hit in 1970.
“Goodbye” by Mary Hopkin
A good chunk of time passed between “Those Were The Days”, Mary Hopkin’s smash debut single, and the release of “Goodbye”, the song that delivered her second big hit in 1969. Paul McCartney produced the former and then got caught up with other business before returning his attention to Hopkin. He went one better with “Goodbye”, writing the song as well as producing it. Here was another case where he came in with a demo. Hopkin’s version added some slight embellishments around her piercing lead vocal. McCartney never quite worked with Hopkin again after he disagreed with her decision to move away from pop-oriented material towards a folk-based sound.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Jim Beviglia
There’s a lot to cover in the life of The Beatles. Which is astounding, given they were together for such a short period of time, comparatively speaking. Many people have tried to tell this band’s story in narrative form. Inevitably, there is always something glossed over or left out for time’s sake. The highly anticipated upcoming films about the Fab Four need to devote serious time to the three songs below. These songs helped shape the band in consequential ways. Without these staples, The Beatles wouldn’t have become what we know them as today.
“Yesterday”
“Yesterday” did a lot for The Beatles. It expanded their demographic, proving they could be more than just pop sensations. The subject matter and song structure were far more sophisticated than their previous material. But more than that, “Yesterday” also opened the door to individualism for The Beatles, a development that would eventually become a thorn in their side.
Paul McCartney took on this song solo. This would develop into a trend, eventually separating him from John Lennon until the divide was too great to bear. There’s an alternative reality where songs like this never made it out of McCartney’s notebook, and he and Lennon stayed strong, formidable partners. Perhaps the outcome of The Beatles would’ve been different as well.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Alex Hopper
Ringo Starr quit The Beatles on August 22, 1968, during the tense recording of the White Album.
Starr recalled telling John Lennon, “I’m leaving the group because I’m not playing well and I feel unloved and out of it.” That account comes from Anthology. Lennon replied, “I thought it was you three!”
Starr reportedly spent two weeks on Peter Sellers’ yacht in the Mediterranean before returning.
Lennon sent him a telegram that read, “You’re the best rock’n’roll drummer in the world. Come on home, we love you.”
Despite the brief split, Billboard has since ranked The Beatles the best rock band of all time.
Arrival and Press Conference of the British Rock and Roll Band The Beatles.Universal History Archive / Getty Images
Inside Ringo Starr’s Brief Departure From The Beatles
Tensions had been building for weeks during the White Album sessions. Starr’s departure came as the band was working on “Back in the USSR.”
The remaining three Beatles recorded the song without him. Paul McCartney played drums on the track, with George Harrison on guitar and Lennon on bass. Starr’s departure was kept quiet at the time.
“I think they were all feeling a little paranoid,” producer George Martin said, describing the tension within the group.
Source: aol.com/Paolo Songco
Thanks to John Lennon, the Beatles played their final Cincinnati concert 60 years ago at Crosley Field on Aug. 21, 1966.
When their concert was rained out the night before — Saturday, Aug. 20 — Lennon was the one who agreed to stay overnight here and perform Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. despite having a Sunday evening concert in St. Louis, DJ Jim LaBarbara said.
LaBarbara was one of seven people I interviewed in 2016 as part of a two-hour 50th anniversary special of the Beatles concert for Cincinnati Public Radio. Here’s the link to both hours, which has interviews interspersed with the songs played that day.
image of a ticket stub
A box seat ticket to see the Beatles cost $5.5.0 in 1966.
LaBarbara credits former WSAI-DJ Steve Kirk, who was one of the five Cincinnati DJs to bring the Beatles to Cincinnati Gardens in 1964, with convincing Lennon to reschedule the show for Sunday.
“John liked Kirkie. He had met him in '64 ... and he remembered how nicely he and the group at the radio station treated the Beatles in '64. So he said, 'We'll stay over and we'll do the show on Sunday. We'll go on at 11 or noon.' And Kirk said, 'Make it 1 o'clock because the kids go to church with their moms and dads.' Thanks to Steve Kirk and John Lennon, the show went on," LaBarbara said.
Source: wvxu.org/John Kiesewetter, WVXU
