Beatles News
If you ever wondered who took the clean-cut members of the Beatles and turned them into soul searching songwriters capable of penning wildly psychedelic tunes like “Tomorrow Never Knows” and “Within You Without You”, look no further than Bob Dylan. For it was on this day in 1964—so the story goes, anyway—when Dylan introduced John, Paul, George, and Ringo to the glories of smoking the ‘ol jazz cabbage.
Following their sold-out show at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, NYC on August 28th, Dylan arrived to meet the Beatles at the Delmonico Hotel across the river in Manhattan where the popular folk singer wasted no time in almost immediately pulling out a joint to smoke with the mop-topped foursome. While the band relayed stories to Dylan of trying cannabis once a few years prior in 1960, they said it hadn’t worked. Dylan clearly had the goods–as rock stars typically do–and the Beatles would go on to get ridiculously high on that fateful evening in New York City.
Source: Gideon Plotnicki/liveforlivemusic.com
What would music be without the Beatles? It’s a question we certainly don’t enjoy pondering because the legacy the Beatles created in just 10 years is nothing short of astronomical. It is interesting, though, that their success was created in a relatively short period of time, and their years spent performing live were even shorter. As one of the bands that rarely played live after finding their audience, each performance carries weight.
So, after searching through what film is still available to the public, we’ve rounded up just five of these notable performances. Read and watch below for a few unforgettable performances from Britain’s most beloved mop tops.
Source: americansongwriter.com
George Harrison said one of his songs could’ve had a good dance routine. Not many of George’s songs are danceable, but you could dance if you feel like it.
Granted, George was known for writing love songs and some of the most spiritual tunes, but he did know how to write danceable songs too. In a 1992 interview with Timothy White (per George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters), George said his song “Teardrops” could’ve had a good dance routine.
“That’s quite a nice song,” George said. “That could be done by some black group, because you could make a good dance routine to that one.”
“Teardrops” isn’t a typical George Harrison song, considering its heavy keyboards and pop tones. It’s a surprise the former Beatle even recorded it. George was not a fan of pop music by any means. The genre made him feel “uptight.” Regardless, it could’ve had a good dance routine.
Source: cheatsheet.com
Dedicated fans will go to great lengths to meet their favorite rock stars, staking out hotels, restaurants and backstage doorways to catch a glimpse. A group of teenage girls took things even further on Aug. 25, 1965, when they rented a helicopter to get close to the Beatles.
The band was in Los Angeles to perform a pair of shows at the Hollywood Bowl. Recordings from those concerts, held Aug. 29 and 30, would later be released on the album The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl. The days before showtime provided a rare moment to relax for the group. They'd rented a mansion owned by actress Zsa Zsa Gabor on Benedict Canyon in Beverly Hills.
The location was secluded and offered much more privacy than any typical hotel could – though they'd already run into trouble with a similar plan before.
Source: ultimateclassicrock.com
Beatrice McCartney was born on October 28, 2003 in London, England, and is known to be the daughter of Paul McCartney from his marriage to former model-turned-reality TV star, Heather Mills. A lot of attention has been given to Beatrice since her youth, mainly due to her father who was a member of the iconic band, The Beatles.As of mid-2020, Beatrice McCartney’s net worth is estimated to be over $1 million, largely due to her father’s success. Paul McCartney has an estimated net worth of over $1.2 billion, being one of the most successful musical artists of all time.
Source: shstrendz.com
The Monkees‘ “I’m a Believer” was a huge hit in the 1960s. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 longer than any of The Beatles’ songs except for one. Paul McCartney said he wrote a bad lyric for the Fab Four song in question.
During a 2016 interview with Entertainment Weekly, The Monkees’ Micky Dolenz discussed playing “I’m a Believer” in the 1960s. “I do remember lots of snatches of touring back then,” he said. “Unbelievable. No monitors. Screaming. Screaming, screaming.”
Playing had its challenges. “[When we played ‘I’m a Believer’] I couldn’t hear myself,” he said. “I just had to pound away. Even to this day, I sing with my eyes closed, because I had to close my eyes and hit myself in the leg to keep time on the drums. I had a big bruise.”
Source: cheatsheet.com
In the 1970s, the tight friendship between Eric Clapton and George Harrison hit a snag when Clapton started pursuing Harrison’s wife. Harrison and his wife, Pattie Boyd, had been growing apart, and she appreciated the attention Clapton paid her. Eventually, Boyd and Harrison divorced, and she married Clapton. He believed Harrison hadn’t fought to save his marriage.
Boyd met Clapton through Harrison. The two were close friends and often played together.
“He and George had become close friends; they played, wrote music, and recorded together,” she wrote in the book Wonderful Tonight. “At that time his girlfriend was a model called Charlotte, but I was aware that he found me attractive — and I enjoyed the attention he paid me.”
Source: cheatsheet.com
George Harrison‘s “My Sweet Lord” was inspired by a song that gave George a religious experience. Subsequently, “My Sweet Lord” became a hit once in the United States and twice in the United Kingdom. The song appeared on a hit album.
According to the 2013 book George Harrison: Behind The Locked Door, George discussed the origin of “My Sweet Lord.” “I remember Eric [Clapton] and [rock duo] Delaney & Bonnie were doing interviews with somebody in either Copenhagen or Gothenburg, and I was so thrilled with [The Edwin Hawkins Singers’] ‘Oh Happy Day,'” said Harrison.
George had a religious experience while listening to “Oh Happy Day.” “It really just knocked me out, the idea of that song and I just felt a great feeling of the Lord,” he said. “So I thought, I’ll write another ‘Oh Happy Day,’ which became ‘My Sweet Lord.'”
Source: cheatsheet.com
It was the summer of love, and The Beatles had just returned from a trip to Greece in search of an island on which they could all live together and build a recording studio. The island studio was John’s idea, but it quickly proved to be honey pie in the sky and they all gradually began to drift home.
Ringo had left early as Maureen Starkey was due to have a baby, George Harrison and Pattie flew home on July 29, 1967, to prepare to fly to Los Angeles.
Arriving in Los Angeles on August 1, George rented a house on Blue Jay Way. While he was waiting for Derek Taylor, the Beatles former PR man, to arrive that day, George wrote a song named after the street, which was included on the Magical Mystery Tour album.
Source: Richard Havers/yahoo.com
Paul McCartney compared one of the lyrics of The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” to a mutt.
He received letters about the lyric.
The track became a huge hit.
Paul McCartney initially had an issue with a lyric from The Beatles‘ “Hey Jude.” He later came to love the line. Subsequently, he received letters from cults about the lyric.
According to the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul had doubts about the line “the movement you need is on your shoulder” from “Hey Jude.” John convinced him to retain the lyric. “So of course, you love that line twice as much because it’s a little stray, it’s a little mutt that you were about to put down and it was reprieved and so it’s more beautiful than ever,” Paul said.
Source: cheatsheet.com
