Beatles News
While former Beatles bassist Paul McCartney and drummer Ringo Starr have enjoyed lengthy careers well into the mid-2020s, six decades after they got their start together as half of the Fab Four, their bandmates have not been so lucky. John Lennon died by gun attack in 1980. George Harrison died of cancer in 2001. Their deaths were pivotal moments in global musical history, without a doubt.
But even more than that, their deaths marked significant and tragic milestones in the lives of their former friends and colleagues. That emotion remains years later, as proven by Ringo Starr’s tearful testimony about George Harrison’s last words to him in the 2011 documentary, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, by Martin Scorsese.
Ringo Starr Recalls George Harrison’s Final Words
If one were to embark on the strange and macabre practice of comparing deaths, John Lennon’s was easily far swifter than George Harrison’s. Better? Impossible to say. But quicker? Yes. Lennon died after Mark David Chapman shot him multiple times mere steps from the musician’s front door of his apartment building, the Dakota, in New York City. He was pronounced dead by the time he got to the hospital. It was brutal and violent, but it was swift.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Melanie Davis
The Beatles first formed way back in 1960 in Liverpool. At the time, I doubt they knew just how big the band would become in just a few short years. Today, the Fab Four are known as some of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. And it will be centuries more before their legacy is truly forgotten.
It’s hard to say what the formula was for their success. They were talented and composed of excellent songwriters, sure. But those elements alone don’t lead to enormous international success. Perhaps it was a mix of factors, including smart management and production moves, coupled with the musical and cultural climate of the 1960s.
Though, it would take a few years for the band to truly blow up the way they did. Their beginnings were humble. Beatlemania wouldn’t be in full swing until around 1963. But before then, The Beatles were introduced to the world through their musical releases. And they also made minor waves with their very first television debut in 1962.
The Beatles Made Their TV Debut Back in October of 1962 on ‘People And Places’
The Beatles’ TV debut took place on October 17, 1962. The Fab Four appeared on a program called People And Places. Their slot aired in England at about 6:30 pm. The band played their now-famous debut single, “Love Me Do”.
The People And Places gig wouldn’t be the band’s breakout moment, but it was a factor among many that led to their breakthrough. It was the start of something enormous, and I can’t imagine any of the members knowing just how big of a deal they were going to be at the time.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Em Casalena
The Beatles penned hit after hit, all of which demonstrated their mastery of the songwriting form. But while they racked up classic songs for themselves beyond counting, they still found the time to write songs for other musicians.
Not everyone was aware that the song they were hearing on the radio had been written by John, Paul, George, or Ringo, especially if the song had been credited to a pseudonym. Here are some examples of songs that were recorded by other artists but dreamed up by the world’s favorite Liverpudlians.
1. "I Wanna Be Your Man" by The Rolling Stones
1963
Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, this song became one of The Rolling Stones' early hits. In fact, it was such a good tune that Lennon and McCartney borrowed it back so they could record their own version of it on their 1963 sophomore album, “With the Beatles.”
2. "Come and Get It" by Badfinger
1969
Written and produced by Paul McCartney, this song became a top 10 hit for Badfinger, a band signed to the Beatles’ Apple label. The band had several big hits of their own, so they didn’t necessarily need Macca to write material for them. But hey, when you’re signed to the Fab Four's label, it doesn’t hurt to ask if they have potential hits lying around that they’re not using.
3. "Bad to Me" by Billy J. Kramer With the Dakotas
1963
“Bad to Me” was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for British pop singer Billy J. Kramer. His recording of the song topped the U.K. charts. It was covered by other artists, most notably Graham Parker, but the Beatles themselves never took a crack at it. The only known Beatle-adjacent recording of "Bad to Me" emerged in 2013 on iTunes in the form of a John Lennon demo that was part of the compilation, “The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963.”
4. "Love of the Loved" by Cilla Black
1963
"Love of the Loved" is a song credited to John Lennon and Paul McCartney and was recorded as part of their unsuccessful audition sessions for Decca Records. While that recording was never officially released by the Beatles, pop singer Cilla Black recorded the song and got a top 40 U.K. chart hit out of it.
5. "Step Inside Love" by Cilla Black
1968
Five years after “Love of the Loved,” Cilla Black’s career had progressed to the point where she had her own musical television show, simply called “Cilla.” For its theme, another Lennon-McCartney composition was used, “Step Inside Love.” The Beatles recorded the song during sessions for their 1968 self-titled album, but it didn’t see an official release until its inclusion on the “Anthology 3” compilation in 1996.
Source: aol.com/Daniel Bukszpan
Elvis Presley’s worn Omega wristwatch, gifted to him by Johnny Cash, sold for $103,700 this week.
Goldin, a leading sports and pop culture memorabilia auction house, sold the engraved timepiece as part of its inaugural music memorabilia auction, which closed Wednesday night. Other high-selling items included a D.A. Millings & Son custom suit worn by John Lennon in 1963 ($102,480), a signed copy of Led Zeppelin’s album “Presence” ($19,520) and George Harrison’s sunglasses ($47,590). Goldin also set a new sale record for a type 1 photo — or photo developed from an original negative within two years of when the picture was taken— of rapper Tupac Shakur, which sold for $10,370, according to the auction house.
Though sports and trading card auctions are Goldin’s “bread and butter,” the company is venturing more into pop culture, said head of revenue Dave Amerman. This transition is documented in Goldin’s Netflix show, “King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch,” which premiered in 2023 and was just renewed for a third season.
“We realized that we get so many music items and we build them into our pop culture sales, we just want to separate it and make its own event out of it,” Amerman told The Times.
Source: latimes.com/Lauren Harvey
Listen! Do you want to know a secret? Screen tests for Sam Mendes' four separate Beatles biopics are officially underway.
Joseph Quinn, who will play George Harrison in the upcoming films, confirmed the development when speaking to his costar Barry Keoghan, who will star as Ringo Starr, during a game of “Sitting Down or Standing Up” with Ebon Moss-Bachrach on BBC Radio 1’s Breakfast show on Friday. As its name implies, the recurring segment sees A-listers attempt to predict whether or not their famous friends are sitting down or standing up before giving them a call and asking them live on air.
“Are you standing up or are you sat down?” Quinn asked, prompting Keoghan to nervously reply, “I’m sat down. What’s happening? Are you pregnant? What’s happening?”
“I’m on Radio 1 and we’re playing a game where I have to call you and we’re guessing,” Quinn began, to which Keoghan interrupted, “Oh! What’s happening, everyone in England, U.K.? What’s up?”
Host Greg James jumped in to explain that they’d decided to give Keoghan a ring-o to see how he was doing. “Is Joe pregnant? Can I be the godfather?” Keoghan asked. Quinn replied, “Yeah, of course. Thank God you were sat down.”
The Stranger Things alum then attempted to hang up, but the Saltburn actor wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye just yet. “I’m on the radio," he remarked. "I wanna make most of this.”
So, naturally, Quinn pivoted to ask if Keoghan was currently in the middle of a screen test for their upcoming Beatles films. In addition to Quinn and Keoghan playing Harrison and Starr, respectively, Paul Mescal and Harris Dickinson are set to round out the remaining members of the onscreen version of the Fab Four as Paul McCartney and John Lennon.
Source: ew.com/Emlyn Travis
Ringo Starr marked his 85th birthday on July 7 at a star-studded gathering in Beverly Hills, California. The event, which took place in Beverly Gardens Park, was the latest edition of the famed Beatles drummer’s annual “Peace and Love” birthday celebration.
Starr has just posted a recap video of the event on his social media pages. The four-minute-plus clip captures glimpses of some of the
The guest performers included Jackson Browne, Molly Tuttle, Lucius singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, and Sam Phillips. The backing band featured longtime All Starr Band drummer Gregg Bissonette, veteran country/bluegrass multi-instrumentalist John Jorgensen, violinist David Mansfield, bassist Colin Linden, and guitarist Dennis Crouch. Tuttle, Wolfe, Laessig, Mansfield, Linden, and Crouch all contributed to Starr’s country-influenced 2025 album, Look Up.
The video starts with footage of a performance, appropriately enough, of the Beatles classic “Birthday.” Browne, Tuttle, the Lucius members, and Phillips all contributed vocals to the song. The rendition features a slight lyrical adjustment to acknowledge the birthday boy.
The clip also captures Starr arriving to the party in a limousine with Joe Walsh and their respective wives, who happen to be sisters. In addition, there’s footage of Starr chatting with various members of the press. He tells one interviewer from Access Hollywood that the 2025 gathering was “the biggest we had so far.”
The Other Performances
The recap then proceeded to show some of the various other performances. Tuttle played a countrified version of “Octopus’s Garden,” augmented by some fiddle from Mansfield.
Phillips then joined Tuttle for a duet version of Ringo’s chart-topping 1973 hit “Photograph.”
Browne took to the stage to sing the 1963 Buck Owens country hit “Act Naturally,” which Ringo recorded with The Beatles in 1965.
All of the performers joined in for a rousing version of the Starr-sung Beatles classic “Yellow Submarine.”
Other Interview Segments
The video also captured other snippets of media interviews with Ringo. One journalist comments to Starr about the fact that Ringo had recorded a special audio message that was transmitted to the moon on July 7. You can find out more about the transmission at IntuitiveMachines.com.
Another journalist asked Starr, “When you blow out the candles on your birthday cake, what will you be wishing for?” Quipped Ringo, “New lungs.”The “Peace and Love” Declaration … and Birthday Cake!
For the finale of the gathering, Starr came up on the stage, joined by the musicians and performers, as well as family members, friends, and celebrity guests. Among them were Walsh, ex-Guns N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum, and Toto and All Starr Band guitarist Steve Lukather. After the crowd sang “Happy Birthday to You” to Starr, a psychedelic-colored birthday cake was brought out. The cake was topped with a white cowboy hat like the one Ringo wears on the Look Up album cover.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Matt Friedlander
John Lennon was well aware of his limitations as a guitarist. When asked how he rated himself during a December 1970 interview with Rolling Stone, he didn't hesitate or waffle.
“Well, it depends on what kind of guitarist,” he replied. “I’m okay. I’m not technically good, but I can make it fucking howl and move.
“I was rhythm guitarist. It’s an important job. I can make a band drive.”
There’s no denying Lennon’s rhythm guitar talents. From his chord voicings to his impeccable timing and sense of dynamics, he combined the skills, knowledge and drive that made him one of rock’s greatest rhythm guitarists.
One of his standout moments comes early in the Beatles’ catalog, on 1963’s “All My Loving,” where he pushes the verses along with steady triplet strumming. He does it while flawlessly navigating chord changes every measure on his 1958 Rickenbacker 325 Capri electric, making for a remarkable show of stamina and precision.
In his 1980 Playboy interview, Lennon called the song “a damn good piece of work,” before adding, “but I play a pretty mean guitar in back.”
For all his rhythm work in the Beatles, Lennon played only a few guitar solos. They include the first solo in “Yer Blues,” the lap-steel slide work on “For You Blue,” the bluesy solo breaks on “Get Back,” and the third, sixth and ninth solos on “The End,” among a few others.
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But there’s one solo of his that impressed Beatles guitarist George Harrison above the others. And it’s not even on a rock and roll track — it’s on one of Paul McCartney’s so-called “granny" songs, as Lennon dubbed his songwriting partner’s old-timey tunes.
The solo is on “Honey Pie,” from the Beatles’ White Album. It’s brief — just four measures — but, stylistically, it’s right on the money.
Source: guitarplayer.com/Christopher Scapelliti
Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono's relationship was notoriously strained even before The Beatles split up, but it was what she later said about the legendary musician that hurt him the most
The legendary Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono, widow of fellow Beatle John Lennon, had a tumultuous relationship that persisted long after the iconic band went their separate ways. The friction between them started when Lennon began inviting Ono into the studio, granting her an up-close view of The Beatles' creative sessions during the recording of their final albums. McCartney, in particular, was peeved by her presence, feeling his bond and musical collaboration with Lennon diminished as Ono became more involved.
After Lennon's tragic passing in 1980, McCartney often found himself the target of Ono's sharp words in media interviews, where she made some rather bold accusations and didn't shy away from expressing harsh criticisms about the Jet singer.
In the Peter Jackson-directed docuseries, The Beatles: Get Back, viewers witness a candid McCartney expressing his genuine sentiments regarding the impact of Lennon and Ono's partnership on the band. Paul McCartney revealed Yoko Ono's harsh words about him
McCartney is captured saying to others in the studio, "See, but their point is that they're trying to like be as near together as they can," referring to Lennon and Ono's desire to remain inseparable. "They wanna stay together, those two. So, it's alright. Let the young lovers stay together. But it's not that bad, you know. We got a lot out of The Beatles, so that if I think John's thing now, if it came to a push between Yoko and The Beatles, it's Yoko."
Source: irishstar.com/Hannah Furnell
In the early days of The Beatles, the Fab Four often modeled their work and their look after Elvis Presley. They covered several of his songs early on and didn’t hide their appreciation for him. However, after The Beatles broke up and Presley’s act had changed, John Lennon once expressed his dislike for The King.
Over a couple of decades, Lennon had seemingly changed his mind about Elvis Presley. Much of it came down to Presley’s theatrical movements, his over-the-top stage acts, and even the music itself. Lennon explained the lack of love to Rolling Stone in 1971.
“This is interesting: in the early days in England, all the groups were like Elvis and a backing group, and The Beatles deliberately didn’t move like Elvis,” said Lennon. Although The Beatles admired Presley, they apparently didn’t like his dance moves. “That was our policy because we found it stupid and bulls–t.” John Lennon Once Explained Why He Fell Out of Love With Elvis Presley
The Beatles’ stoic stage act worked for them. At least, for a time. When The Rolling Stones burst onto the scene, Elvis-like movements became the big new thing. “Then Mick Jagger came out and resurrected ‘bulls–t movement,’ wiggling your arse,” John Lennon continued. “So then people began to say The Beatles were passé because they don’t move. But we did it as a conscious move.”
Lennon mentioned that in their early days, The Beatles used to move around the stage much more. “When we were younger, we used to move, we used to jump around and do all the things they’re doing now,” he said. But they quickly decided that wasn’t the look they were going for.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Lauren Boisvert
Everybody, well, mainly everybody, seemingly knows the name George Harrison. He is one of the most famous guitar players of all time, and a former member of the most famous band of all time, The Beatles. Harrison was an innovator, a trailblazer, and a musician who extensively experimented with a plethora of different sounds. One decade of music that isn’t known for this type of musical experimentation—The 1980s.
By the time the 1980s rolled around, Harrison was well underway in his solo career. Specifically, Harrison had released acclaimed albums, All Things Must Pass, Living in the Material World, Dark Horse, as well as three others. Harrison was cranking out music, but in the 80s, he cut that number in half, as he only released three solo albums during the decade. Matter of fact, Harrison took a five-year hiatus between the albums Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine.
There is no definitive reason as to why Harrison’s musical production slowed down, and we aren’t here to assume. However, in a 1980s interview with Guitar Player Magazine, Harrison divulged his displeasure with the business antics and redundant musical tropes of the decade.
Source: americansongwriter.com/Peter Burditt
