Beatles News
In 1964, South American fans eagerly awaited the arrival of the Fab Four – but four Americans named Tom, Vic, Bill and Dave turned up instead. It’s a bizarre story of a con gone wrong, writes Ed Prideaux.Early in 1964, as Beatlemania swept the world, newspaper headlines announced that The Beatles would be travelling to South America later that year. Millions awaited their arrival with bated breath – and in July, when four young moptops descended into Buenos Aires Airport, it seemed that teenage dreams were about to come true.The Beatles were actually nowhere near Argentina at the time. The British group – who split 50 years ago this month – were back home in London, on a rare rest stop between concerts and recording. But with or without their knowledge, four young guys from Florida named Tom, Vic, Bill and Dave had taken their place.
Source: Ed Prideaux
A letter in which Paul McCartney settled a long-standing “debt” from before he achieved worldwide fame with The Beatles is to be auctioned.
In 1958, McCartney and George Harrison went on a hitchhiking holiday and visited the seaside resort of Harlech, in Gwynedd, North Wales, known for its castle and the song Men Of Harlech.
They knocked on the door of a farmhouse belonging to the Brierley family and were allowed to pitch their tent in the field at the rear of their bungalow.
After a downpour on their first night, the pair sought refuge in the farmhouse and ended up staying the week.
McCartney and Harrison became friendly with the young John Brierley, a musician himself, and later sat in with his local skiffle group The Vikings during a performance at the Queen’s Hotel pub in the village.
Source: theguideliverpool.com
The Beatles put many of their best songs on the White Album, however, not all of the tracks meant for it made the cut. For example, George Harrison wrote a song he liked a lot that was never included on the White Album. In addition, he liked the song a lot before forgetting about it. Here’s a look at how the world reacted to the song once George finally released it.
In 1979, George did an interview with Rolling Stone’s Mick Brown. Wenner asked George about his self-titled album, including the song “Not Guilty.” Wenner thought George intended “Not Guilty” as an attack on his critics.
“Actually, I wrote that in 1968,” George said. “It was after we got back from Rishikesh in the Himalayas on the Maharishi trip, and it was for the White Album. We recorded it but we didn’t get it down right or something. Then I forgot all about it until a year ago, when I found this old demo I’d made in the ‘60s.”
Source: cheatsheet.com
THE BEATLES refused to play their music at a gig in 1964 after they learned about segregation in their audience, prompting Paul McCartney and John Lennon to hit out at the idea. The band went on to draft a contract preventing them from being forced to perform to separated crowds from then on.
In 1964 the segregation of Black and white people was still rife in the USA. Although Black performers, such as The Supremes, were becoming more popular and accepted at the time, racism was still prevalent. The Beatles fought alongside the civil rights movement when they arrived at their gig at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida, USA.
Once the band learned they would be playing to a segregated crowd, they refused to get on stage.
Source: Callum Crumlish/express.co.uk
John Lennon's iconic 'bed peace' cardboard placard is among the most expensive pieces of music merchandise ever sold.
As one-quarter of the legendary and phenomenally influential band The Beatles, Liverpool-born John Lennon achieved global success and a legion of fans.
His legacy and impact on the music industry are still relevant today, so it'll come as no surprise that memorabilia from his life sells for a hefty sum.
According to online valuers valuemystuff.com, there are four important factors to bear in mind if you're looking to auction off your old pop and rock memorabilia; condition, provenance, demand - and your own patience.
Awesome Merchandise, who make everything from personalised apparel to pin badges, have compiled the top five most unique and costly items of music merchandise ever sold - which includes Lennon's cardboard placard.
Source: Jess Flaherty/liverpoolecho.co.uk
Beck delivered a supremely funky, electro-pop interpretation of Paul McCartney’s “Find My Way,” a song off McCartney III. The single was commissioned for McCartney III Imagined, which finds an array of artists – including St. Vincent, Josh Homme, and Phoebe Bridgers – offering their own renditions of the legendary artist’s newest material.
While McCartney’s original recording of “Find My Way” was certainly upbeat, Beck transforms the song entirely – swapping out guitars for synth-driven melodies and dropping in infectious beats.
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“I remember hanging out with Paul and his wife Nancy several years ago, and Nancy mentioned that she wanted to go out dancing before calling it a night,” recalled Beck in a statement. “We ended up at some club in West Hollywood and I remember noticing that Paul and Nancy were tearing it up – really enjoying themselves more than anyone else on the dance floor. Last year, when he asked me to remix this track, I remembered that night and wanted to try to recapture that amazing spirit I felt while watching him on the dance floor … sort of my little tribute to Paul ‘in his groove.’”
Source: udiscovermusic.com
Sir Paul McCartney is set to release a cookbook filled with recipes from his late wife Linda McCartney.
The Beatles legend – who is now married to Nancy Shevell – was married to his first wife Linda from 1969 until her death from breast cancer in 1998, and is now set to honour her memory and her love of meat-free cooking by releasing a cookbook.
Paul will release ‘Linda McCartney's Family Kitchen: Over 90 Plant-Based Recipes to Save the Planet and Nourish the Soul’ alongside his and Linda’s daughters Mary, 51, and Stella, 49, on June 29.
According to a press release, the book will feature a collection of Linda’s best-loved recipes reimagined for the modern cook, and will "bring Linda's kitchen up to date, reinventing her best-loved recipes for the plant-based cook, alongside their favourite family stories and the dishes that they now eat at home”.
Source: The West AustralianSat/thewest.com.au
On March 22nd, 1963, The Beatles released their first album titled “Please Please Me”. No one really knew how much music history this 32 minute album would kick off in the 1960s, but it definitely started a whirlwind of a life for John, Paul, George and Ringo. Voted 39th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time,” this is “Please Please Me.”
I was able to get my hands on a “Please Please Me” original record a few years ago when I was given a turntable for my 16th birthday and started collecting vinyl records. Although it was the first full album that The Beatles released, it was not the first Beatles record that I could find at a record store.
I began listening to The Beatles at a very young age; I think I was about three or four years old. But I didn’t listen to their earlier albums, like “Please Please Me” and “With The Beatles” until years later when I really began to appreciate the history of the band. Most people my age only know The Beatles for their most famous albums like “Magical Mystery Tour”, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”, “Let It Be” and, of course, “Abbey Road” that have cemented their place in music history. But listening to their earlier music in addition to their late 1960s hits shows how far the band has come and how well they changed with the times by their different sounding albums. Each one of The Beatles albums, with the exception of “Please Please Me”, “With The Beatles” and “Help!”, sounds completely different, and that is one of the many reasons why I’ve come to love The Beatles.
Source: udreview.com
JOHN LENNON and Yoko Ono spent their honeymoon in a rather bizarre protest, known as the ‘bed in' - but can you stay in the same hotel room now?
John Lennon and Yoko Ono took the idea of spending your honeymoon in bed to a new level. Rather than getting up to what most would consider expected on such an occasion, they lay in bed together in a hotel room, inviting the world’s press. This was a protest against the Vietnam War which began on March 25, 1969, and continued on and off until June 1.
Can you stay in the hotel rooms from the Bed-Ins for Peace?
John Lennon fans can absolutely stay in the first hotel room the couple slept in - but for a big price.
The Bed Ins for Peace began at the Amsterdam Hilton on March 25, 1969, the room for which has been permanently memorialised.
Source: Jenny Desborough/express.co.uk
The Beatles weren’t an especially political band, however, John Lennon revealed one of their most famous No. 1 hits, “Come Together,” was originally supposed to be a campaign song for a famous 1960s politician. In addition, John said the original version of the song sounded like another famous British band — The Kinks.In Jann S. Wenner’s book Lennon Remembers, John discussed his attitude toward The Beatles’ classic album Abbey Road. He liked the A-side but wasn’t a huge fan of the B-side. He ultimately deemed Abbey Road “competent” but lifeless. When discussing Abbey Road, he couldn’t even remember most of the songs on the album. However, he said one of the most famous songs on the album, “Come Together,” was “alright.”
In addition, John revealed he wrote “Come Together” for “the Learys.” He was talking about noted psychedelic drug advocate Timothy Leary and Rosemary Leary, his fourth wife. “See the Learys wanted me to write… them a campaign song. And their slogan was ‘Come together.’ I wrote it, I’ve still got it, it’s actually very like The Kinks – (sings) ‘Dra-a-a-a-g,’ you know, some song of theirs.”
Source:cheatsheet.com
