Beatles News
We haven’t had much of an update about Sam Mendes’ ‘Beatles’ movies. However, the latest bit of info is coming to us from Production List, and it lists a July 2025 shoot in London.
Four separate theatrical films, one on each of the members of music’s most famous and enduring band, The Beatles’ Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon and George Harrison. They’ll tell interconnected stories, one from each band member’s point of view.
Mendes plans to release all four of his upcoming Beatles movies on the same date (via TheInSneider). Is this a good idea? Obviously, most people will first and foremost pay to see the John Lennon and Paul McCartney movies, then George Harrison and finally Ringo Starr. That’s just how it’ll go down.
If Sony does end up releasing all four films at once, then it would save them plenty on marketing costs. Mendes is directing all four, and although no casting has been formally announced, Harris Dickinson (John Lennon), Paul Mescal (Paul McCartney), Barry Keoghan (Ringo Starr), and Charlie Rowe (George Harrison) have all been rumored.
For the first time ever, Apple Corps. and The Beatles have granted full life story and music rights for a scripted film. Sony chief Tom Rothman stated that all four films would be released in 2027. There’s also been a rumor that Mendes regular Roger Deakins was asked to be cinematographer on these films.
Source: Jordan Ruimy/worldofreel.com
If The Beatles taught us nothing else, it’s that they were unafraid to follow their muses wherever they might have led, even if that took them way outside the established boundaries of rock and roll. And if that also meant that things got a bit weird at times, well that was part of the deal.
These are five Beatles songs that wear like their bizarre nature like a badge of honor. Let’s look back in chronological order.
“Good Morning Good Morning” from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
On the surface, this Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band track isn’t all that weird. It’s got a peppy rhythmic pulse and some sly John Lennon lyrics about the boredom of everyday life (a pervasive theme on that album). But then there are the little touches the band adds that take this one into strange territory. First, there’s the decision to suddenly switch to the German language at the end of the refrain: Good morning, good morning, gut. Even odder is the wild cacophony of animal noises tacked onto the end of the song.
“Blue Jay Way” from Magical Mystery Tour (1967)
George Harrison, while staying in a rented house in Los Angeles and fighting jet lag, decided to write a song on an old organ so he could stay awake until his friends arrived. The lyrics pretty much tell the story of the night without embellishment. But the music of “Blue Jay Way” (the name of the street where the house was located) tells a different, eerier story. Everything about the accompaniment is just a tad off-kilter, from the creaky organ, to the insinuating strings, to the backing vocals that sound like disembodied spirits haunting the song.
Source: Jim Beviglia/americansongwriter.com
He does think the world needs 'more not less Taylor Swifts' even if he's not personally a fan of her music
The son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono has been praising Taylor Swift, though he admitted there was one lyric in one of her songs which made him 'uncomfortable'.
Seán Ono Lennon took to social media recently to say that, while he'd never been a fan of Swift's music and didn't really know her songs, he thought she 'should be respected and in fact treasured'. His post seemed to hit out at Donald Trump's Truth Social post on 15 September where he wrote: "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!"
That had followed Swift's endorsement of his opponent in the US presidential race, Kamala Harris. Plenty had been waiting to see whether Swift would go as far as endorsing the Democrats as she did at the last election, and in a lengthy Instagram post she hit out at AI generated images of her claiming she was endorsing Trump.
Instead, Swift has endorsed Harris to be the next US president and signed off as a 'childless cat lady', mocking a comment made by Trump's vice-president pick, JD Vance.
Now you've got all that context, Seán Ono Lennon wrote on Twitter: "I have never been a fan of her music, although I can’t think of a single song so I don’t really know if I like it or not. "But I know she is a uniquely successful American. A young woman who has done things in a way that no one has done before her.
"She is the kind of American that should be respected and in fact treasured. We need more not less Taylor Swifts in our world. People who thrive continually and consistently are exactly the kind of person both parties should embrace.
"So for some old grumpy dude to get angry at her, no that’s not a good look."
Source: ladbible.com
McCartney is still getting high with a little help from his friends.
Paul McCartney crashed Black-ish star Deon Cole’s stand-up set at the Hollywood Improv on Sept. 17 after both reportedly “got high” backstage.
"I got high with my friend tonight, and we had a good time,” Cole told the crowd before telling them to “please give it up for my friend, Paul McCartney." As the surprised audience applauded the legendary musician’s arrival, McCartney leaned in and whispered a few words in Cole’s ear.
"I had to smoke, and that's why this is happening," Cole told the crowd. “See, you never know,” the comedian said of the show’s unpredictable roster. "And y'all motherf---ers did not give no love to me at all tonight,” he joked.
Far from a passive audience member, McCartney came armed with notes. “I’ve just enjoyed seeing you work through this material,” he told Cole. “And you’re right, some of it bombed,” he joked as the audience laughed. “But you got the gems in there, man, that’s great,” he added.
McCartney then offered some consolation, explaining even he had weathered disastrous performances. “In the beginning, when [The Beatles] started out, guys used to throw pennies at us,” he said. “Took a while to know what we were doing.”
Source: Declan Gallagher/mensjournal.com
John Lennon privately informed Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr that he was leaving The Beatles, although the news was initially kept quiet, as the band was about to sign a new recording contract.
McCartney then publicly announced his own departure in April 1970 as he released his debut solo album, angering Lennon, who later shared, “I started the band. I disbanded it. It’s as simple as that.”
The Beatles officially disbanded following McCartney’s announcement. They released their final album, Let It Be, one month after their breakup, although it was recorded before their previous album, Abbey Road, which came out in September 1969.
Although Lennon died in 1980 and George Harrison passed in 2001, The Beatles released a new song, “Now and Then,” in 2023, which used vocals Lennon recorded on a demo in the late ’70s, along with guitar Harrison recorded in the mid-’90s, and new recordings from McCartney and Starr.
Source: kslx.com
Although best known for his work in the pop world (particularly with The Beatles), producer Sir George Martin had a lifelong love of classical music which he put to great use over his career.
Born and raised in North London, Martin saved up for piano lessons as a teenager, desperate to perform the piano sonatas of Beethoven and Mozart. At school, meanwhile, Martin's interest in classical music was further fuelled by a visit from the London Symphony Orchestra and their conductor Adrian Boult.
After serving in the Royal Navy during World War Two, Martin consolidated his grounding in music, studying composition, conducting and orchestration at the Guildhall School of Music. He also took up the oboe to ‘earn a bit of living’ – in later years, he cited Mozart’s Oboe Quartet, K370 as one of his favourite pieces. Martin spent a brief time after his graduation working in the BBC’s classical music department, before his move to Parlophone records in London (a subsidiary of EMI) in 1950. At this time, he developed an interest in comedy recordings. In one of these, the actor Peter Ustinov sang in a 'mock' Mozartian opera style.
Martin's work with The Beatles, whom he famously signed in 1962, saw him gradually introduce classical music elements into their recordings, beginning with a string quartet arrangement to accompany Paul McCartney’s song ‘Yesterday’ in 1965. He later developed more complex orchestrations, including the famous glissando performed by a 41-piece orchestra in ‘A Day in The Life’ on the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band.
Source: BBC Music Magazine/classical-music.com
here s a test
Though their run was short, the Beatles amassed a career that left them with very little to regret. Though they might have had qualms shortly after their infamous breakup, in hindsight, it was a pretty stellar tenure. In fact, if Ringo Starr regrets anything it’s that they didn’t push harder to get back together. Learn more about why Starr wished he got the band back together before it was too late, below.
There was never an official Beatles reunion. The individual band members joined forces from time to time, but they never operated under that banner again. Any hopes of that happening were dashed in 1980, when John Lennon was murdered by Mark David Chapman.
Then, a couple of decades later, George Harrison passed away after a battle with lung cancer. His death firmly cemented that any Beatles reunion that might happen in the future would only be halfway complete.
Even before their breakup and those losses happened, the band had taken a step back from touring. After years of playing countless shows with roaring fans, the foursome felt their touring life had grown too complex and difficult to manage. Their solution to that problem was to retire from the stage entirely.
Source: Alex Hopper/americansongwriter.com
The Beatles’ arduous breakup often overshadows the love and camaraderie the Fab Four had for one another, but John Lennon’s go-to pep talk for cheering up the band in their early years is a heartwarming window into a time before fame, scandal, and psychedelics. Pre-Beatlemania and post-Quarrymen, the future Fab Four were hard-working musicians trying to cut their teeth.
And as anyone who has tried to dedicate their lives to music for any amount of time can attest, that endeavor can be taxing on the spirit. When that happened for the Beatles, Lennon stepped in. John Lennon’s final major interview took place in his New York City home in August 1980, just three months before Mark David Chapman would murder the ex-Beatle on the front steps of that very residence. In the sprawling conversation, Lennon talks about his perception of himself, his former band, nearly every Beatles tune, and musings that oscillate between profound and vain.
While discussing his general outlook on life, Lennon offered an example of his optimism in the face of hardship—something he exercised often throughout his tragically short life. He subtly references his “motto” in “Strawberry Fields Forever” with the line, It’s getting hard to be someone, but it all works out. “It’s like a little gag that the Beatles used,” Lennon told interviewer David Sheff.
Source: Melanie Davis/americansongwriter.com
Ringo Starr may have contributed the least in terms of songwriting to The Beatles, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a stellar drummer. In fact, there are a few songs by the Fab Four through the years that really showcase his drumming talent. Let’s look into four times Ring Starr proved he was a genius drummer for The Beatles!
1. “Something”
“Something” is one of George Harrison’s best songwriting efforts, and even marginal fans consider it one of The Beatles’ very best songs. Ringo Starr shines as a drummer on this track with drum fills that are both simple but very prominent. If you get a chance to listen to the isolated drum track, it’s really impressive. His iconic “slinging shoulder” influenced a number of rock drummers who followed in his footsteps as well.
2. “She Said, She Said”
John Lennon penned this tune for the 1966 album Revolver. One could say this song marked the band’s departure from pop music fodder and their entrance into psychedelic, experimental works. Due to an in-studio argument, Paul McCartney left and isn’t featured on the recorded track. However, Starr managed to make up for his absence with his drumming.
Starr’s rhythm on this acid-psych tune is quite underrated. He pulled out the most unique aspects of his drumming style for this track and managed to be precise and intentional.
3. “Ticket To Ride”
It’s wild to think “Ticket To Ride” was released in 1965; it was truly ahead of its time. Part of what makes this particular song so addictive is Starr’s energetic drumming. Lennon famously said that this song was the first “heavy metal” record and that much is evident in Starr’s style of drumming. The drums are heavy, effortless, and masterful.
Source: Em Casalena/americansongwriter.com
