Beatles News
George Harrison had many friends, but only those closest to him heard his ukulele playing, including actor Michael Caine. George once showed up at Caine’s home and played ukulele late into the night. Caine was surprised but couldn’t possibly kick the ex-Beatle out.
In a 2019 interview with Rolling Stone, Caine said he was close with The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
Caine said, “I knew all the Beatles, all the Rolling Stones. I knew everybody in the music business and we spent our lives in discotheques. I drank alcohol quite heavily for some time. But I never did any drugs.”
In his documentary My Generation, Paul McCartney told Caine about the moment The Beatles offered The Rolling Stones “I Wanna Be Your Man.”
Source: cheatsheet.com
Although The Beatles wrote and released some of the most popular songs of all time, their final years in a band together were bogged down by arguments and disagreements. The band's 1970 movie Let It Be showcased Paul McCartney and George Harrison becoming quite aggressive with one another during the recording of one track, The Two Of Us. But this led to the composition of a legendary song from Harrison.In 2001, just before Harrison's death, he looked back on the argument he had with McCartney in 1970. He recalled: "At that point in time, Paul couldn’t see beyond himself. He was on a roll, but… in his mind, everything that was going on around him was just there to accompany him. He wasn’t sensitive to stepping on other people’s egos or feelings." (Via Guitar World)
Source: Callum Crumlish/express.co.uk
Following his time with The Beatles, music legend Paul McCartney founded the band Wings in 1971, which included his wife Linda on keyboard. Paul has spoken out about what it was like taking his family on tour with the band.
Wings went on their first tour in February 1972, and Paul and Linda brought their three daughters with the band on the legendary trip. Known as the Wings University Tour, it was Paul's first tour since The Beatles' 1966 US tour, and involved several impromptu shows at universities across the UK.
On the blog on his website, Paul answered a fan's question: 'What was it like raising a family on tour?'. He responded: 'It was great for us, and I think it was great for them. It meant that we didn’t have to worry about them, because they were right there with us. And we figured if you want to know geography, actually going to all these places was helpful - it was part of their education. So yeah, it was interesting!'.
Source: planetradio.co.uk
Now open! Experience one of the most iconic moments of the 20th Century by stepping inside The Beatles’ January 1969 rehearsals, studio sessions, and legendary Apple Corps rooftop concert, the band’s final live performance.
This groundbreaking exhibition curated by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is an immersive complement to Peter Jackson's docuseries, “The Beatles: Get Back.”
Fans will experience The Beatles’ creative journey through the exhibit’s original instruments, clothing, and handwritten lyrics used by The Beatles and seen in the film, including items loaned directly by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the estates of George Harrison and John Lennon. The exhibit will feature high-definition film clips, audio, and custom projections, transporting fans into The Beatles’ vibrant world of January 1969.
Source: rockhall.com
John Lennon‘s Aunt Mimi didn’t exactly like how George Harrison‘s mother, Louise, encouraged The Beatles in their early days. Louise was very supportive of her son from the moment he asked for a guitar. She often cheered him and the group on whenever they performed. Meanwhile, John’s aunt was strict and didn’t want her nephew to waste his life on music.
However, Louise never lost faith in George and continued to be his No. 1 fan until she died in 1970.
When John was very young, his mother Julia sent him to live with her strict sister, Mary “Mimi” Smith, and her husband George. According to Paul McCartney, John was “the posh one,” living in a relatively wealthy neighborhood on Menlove Avenue.
Despite living in a nice home, John’s childhood was far from glamorous. His father abandoned him, and his mother moved on to have a family with another man. She later died in 1958 after being struck by a car.
Source: cheatsheet.com
Paul McCartney revealed Chuck Berry was a huge influence on The Beatles’ songs.
Berry commented on The Beatles as a whole and their cover of “Rock and Roll Music” in particular.
The Beatles’ “Rock and Roll Music” appeared on a hit album.
During their early career, The Beatles covered Chuck Berry‘s “Rock and Roll Music.” Berry revealed what he thought of The Beatles as artists. He also explained what he thought about the cover.
Paul McCartney posted an article on his website describing Berry’s impact on The Beatles’ songs. “From the first minute we heard the great guitar intro to ‘Sweet Little Sixteen’ we became fans of the great Chuck Berry,” he revealed. “His stories were more like poems than lyrics — the likes of ‘Johnny B. Goode’ or ‘Maybellene.'”
Source: cheatsheet.com
Sir Paul McCartney is being considered for a peerage to mark his 80th birthday this summer.
The Beatles legend, 79, could be made a Lord in recognition of his lifetime of musical achievements and service to British culture.
The Sun reports that sources are saying the prestigious honour is in the pipeline, 25 years after he was first knighted by The Queen.
Lord McCartney! Sir Paul McCartney is reportedly being secretly considered for a peerage to mark his 80th birthday this summer
If he is awarded with the title, he will join a very select group of musicians, including theatre mogul Andrew Lloyd Webber, 73, composer the late Benjamin Britten and late violin virtuoso Yehudi Menuhin.
Source: Milly Veitch/dailymail.co.uk
Pattie Boyd initially turned down a date with Beatles star George Harrison, but fate brought them back together.
The 77-year-old model was married to the The Fab Four guitarist for 11 years from 1966 to 1977, but when they first met in March 1964 she was in a relationship with photographer Eric Swayne and spurned George's romantic overtures, almost missing on a relationship with the 'Something' singer.
Speaking on the ‘Tea with Twiggy’ podcast, Pattie revealed the events that led to her eventual first date with George who asked her out after spending a day shooting The Beatles’ first film ‘A Hard Day’s Night' with her.
She said: “I had a one day shoot. The train went down to Cornwall and back, so it took like eight hours all together. And then at the end when we got near Waterloo station, George asked me out. He asked me if I’d go out with him that night. And I said no. I couldn’t, because I was seeing my boyfriend.
Source: femalefirst.co.uk
Famed producer and songwriter Mark Hudson believes The Beatles: Get Back documentary series zeroed in on something extremely important about The Beatles: their humanity.
Hudson, who's best known for his work with Ringo Starr, Aerosmith and Ozzy Osbourne, addressed the series on the latest episode of Ken Dashow's Beatles Revolution podcast.
He complimented director Peter Jackson for showing The Beatles as the multi-faceted people they truly were. Whether they were happy, surly, high, depressed, bored or elated, it's all plain to see onscreen.
"I think that we need to be able to see that," Hudson said, "because it also made The Beatles human in a complete different way. ...I want to see gods that are human. That's really what they were to me."
Hudson, who worked with Ringo live and in the studio for close to 10 years, then pivoted to one of the doc's more subtle revelations: how Ringo's professionalism anchored The Beatles through all of their highs and lows.
Source: iheart.com
Out of humble experiences, great things are born. That’s the history of the Beatles, four lads who came out of nowhere and changed the world. But histories written about the Beatles can also have humble origins, such as when Christine Feldman-Barrett, at 5 years old, clapped joyfully along to a 45 record of “Eight Days a Week” 12 years after the single’s release in February 1965. Feldman-Barrett is the author of “A Women’s History of the Beatles,” a groundbreaking addition to the band’s endless bibliography that documents how female fans created, cultivated and continue to ensure the band’s legacy. In this exhaustive work she explores the impact of fan clubs, magazines, word-of-mouth publicity, and the way mothers, wives, girlfriends and friendships influenced the four Beatles, as well as zeroing in on decades of homages from female singers and bands.
Source: Sibbie O’Sullivan/washingtonpost.com
