The Beatles 'disaster' was 'all caught on film' but it led to iconic moment
The Beatles decided to stop touring in 1966, tired after years on the road, playing to huge crowds of screaming fans. Their final tour, which was across the United States and Canada that summer, was marred by controversy around John Lennon's comment that the band was "more popular than Jesus".
John had made the comment in an interview with the Evening Standard in July 1966 and it didn't even cause a stir in the UK. However, when it was reproduced by US magazine Datebook later that month, there was outrage directed toward The Beatles from American Christians.
The band had grown tired of the media attention, heavy security and the demands that Beatlemania brought with it. They knew that the tour's final night - at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, would be their final gig.
About the decision to stop playing live, George Harrison later said: "We'd been through every race riot, and every city we went to there was some kind of a jam going on, and police control, and people threatening to do this and that... and (us) being confined to a little room or a plane or a car.
"We all had each other to dilute the stress, and the sense of humour was very important... But there was a point where enough was enough.” Retiring from playing live allowed the band to focus their effort on recording, trying exciting and inventive things in the studio.
The following years saw them reinvent popular music with 'Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band' before 'The White Album' was recorded during tetchy and difficult sessions, marked by John bringing Yoko Ono into the studio and serious creative differences within the band emerging.
The difficulties during 'The White Album' saw Ringo Starr leave the band for two weeks, so Paul McCartney wanted to soothe relations and take things back to basics with their next project. ‘Get Back’ was meant to mark a return to performing live for The Beatles as they embraced their early rock and roll style.
The Beatles convened at Twickenham Film Studios in London in early January where they would prepare and record a new album. The idea was that their rehearsals would be filmed for a TV special to accompany their return to the stage. However, it did not go to plan.
In 'The Beatles Diary', Barry Miles wrote: "It was a disaster. They were still exhausted from the marathon The Beatles (White Album) sessions.
"Paul bossed George around; George was moody and resentful. John would not even go to the bathroom without Yoko at his side... The tension was palpable, and it was all being caught on film."
Source: liverpoolecho.co.uk/Dan Haygarth
