INSIDE: EVALUATING THE LATEST MACCA ARCHIVE RELEASES!
RINGO’S ALL STARR YEAR!
A NEW VERSION OF THE STORY OF THE GREAT TOURS!
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ first American tour, with Larry Kane, who was there every step of the way!
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YOU CAN SEND IT DIGITALLY IMMEDIATELY AS A GIFT FOR UNDER $5.00 AT AMAZON.COM. BUY IT OR ‘GIFT IT.’ THIS CLASSIC BOOK IS A FEW CLICKS AWAY. ‘TICKET TO RIDE’ YOU HAVE A TICKET TO THE BOYS’ MOST DRAMATIC TOURS FROM THE ONLY REPORTER WHO TRAVELED TO EVERY STOP IN 1964 AND 1965.
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I thought I’d explain why I decided not to spend part of this issue reliving that awful night of Dec. 8, 1980, to mark the 3 th anniversary of John Lennon’s murder. As I wrote five years ago on the 30th anniversary: After being interviewed by a newspaper about my memories of John’s death, I realized I really didn’t want to rehash it all again. Rather than dwell on Lennon’s death, we prefer to celebrate his life and music in Beatlefan. And, rather than focus on December, which ties it all to his death, we spread our Lennon coverage throughout the rest of the year. Over the past 12 months, Beatlefan has featured Lennon prominently, including: A story about an autograph collector who got Lennon to write back to him in the 1970s. In an issue that featured John and Yoko on the cover, we offered a consumer guide to Lennon’s albums including a “deep dish” look for those who want to go beyond the studio albums , an in-depth look at the making of the “Instant Karma” single, as well as a review of the “Lennon” vinyl set released this year. And, last issue, we offered a DIY on assembling a “Live Lennon Tapes” playlist.
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Beatlenews Roundup.................................4 Fan Back on the Run..................................9 Ringo’s Favorite All Starr Band...............10 “1 ” Special Section............................11-16 Michael Lindsay-Hogg Q&A.....................17 “Rubber Soul” at 50............................20-29 Reviews................................................30-32
Issue #217 (Vol. 37, No. 1, Nov.-Dec. 2015) Beatlefan ISSN 0274-690 , the authoritative publication of record for fans of The Beatles, is published six times a year by The Goody Press, P.O. Box 33 1 , Decatur, GA 30033. Editorial offices located at 3009 Delcourt Dr., Decatur, GA 30033. Subscriptions: 33 per year in U.S. 37. 0 for Express Delivery sent First Class Mail ; 44 in Canada; 1 in Mexico; 7 elsewhere sent Air Mail . Note: ONLY U.S. FUNDS. Credit cards PayPal accepted. Samples: 8 in U.S., 12 abroad. Display ad rates and wholesale rates available on request. Opinions and representations of individual writers and advertisers should not be taken to reflect the views of The Goody Press. Copyright 201 , The Goody Press. No original articles or artwork in Beatlefan may be reproduced without the permission of the publisher; all rights reserved. Periodicals Postage paid at Decatur, GA 30030. Postmaster: Send address changes to Beatlefan, P.O. Box 33 1 , Decatur, GA 30033. Publisher: William P. King; General Manager: Leslie T. King; Editorial Assistant: Olivia King; Office Assistant: Brigid Choi; Special Assistance: William T. King, Timothy
That’s in addition to pieces run over the past year in SOMETHI G E The Beatlefan Blog, including reprinting our lengthy 1981 interview with Cynthia Lennon as well as new Play It Again re-evaluations of John’s “Some Time in New York City” and “Walls and Bridges” albums. And there’s more to come, including a reminiscence of John in the studio by the late Dennis Ferrante, a recording engineer who worked side-by-side with Lennon from “Imagine” through “Rock ’n’ Roll.” That’s how we prefer to remember John. However, for those who perhaps weren’t around in 1980, or were too young to remember the anguish fans felt when John was taken from us, the SOMETHI G E blog has my “In Memoriam” piece from our special Lennon Commemorative Issue published at the time . It’s at beatlefansomethingnew. wordpress.com.
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One of the most gratifying moments for me this fall was seeing my buddy Rick Glover back on the road following Macca after having a very rough couple of months battling serious illness.
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Also heartening was the way his friends, and even fans who never have met Rick, rallied around him as an online Team Rick. In Detroit, some of Rick’s fellow Fans on the Run surprised him at the concert with a huge teamrick banner to welcome him back. At one point, Paul saw it and said from the stage, “Come on, Ricky ” Rick’s report on the show in Detroit is in this issue, along with his fan’s analysis of the new “1+” set, and it’s great to have him return to our pages. Welcome back, Ricky Read SOMETHING NEW: The Beatlefan Blog at beatlefansomethingnew.wordpress.com and Bill King’s pop culture journal Quick Cuts at billking.livejournal.com.
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Next up in Beatlefan: More with Michael Lindsay-Hogg, on the making of “Let It Be.” Plus, fan viewpoints; expert analysis; reviews of books, recordings, videos and performances; and, of course, our Beatlenews Roundup! Don’t miss it! Subscribe to a SS S for or . ress sent irst lass in envelo e in .S. in ana a in e ico else here ir ail . .S. fun s onl . re it car s Pa Pal acce te a to goo ress in s ring.co . Please e ail goo ress g ail.co for etails on ho ou can get Beatlefan E T A! ith its free e ail ne s bulletins an e clusive online articles P. King, Mark Gunter, Jonathan Parry King; Executive Editor: Al Sussman; Associate Editors: Justin Stonehouse, Mitch Darling; Senior Editor: Rick Glover; East Coast Correspondent: Garry Wilbur; West Coast Correspondents: Peter Palmiere, Richard S. Ginell; British News Editor: David Bearne; London Editor: Simon Rogers; German Correspondent: Evelyn Schwarz; Belgian Correspondent: Dirk Van Damme; Italian Correspondent: Renato Facconi; Japanese Correspondent: Gen Onoshima; Mexican Correspondent: Omar Sotelo; South American Correspondent: Tereza Gomes da Silva; Spanish Correspondent: Juan Agueras; Russian Correspondent: Sergey Shmelev. Contributing Editors: Howie Edelson, Al Becker, Randy Dry, Jorie Gracen, Bill Harry, Brad Hundt, Dieter Hoffman, Allan Kozinn, Kit O’Toole, Burley Peters, Wally Podrazik, Steven Prazak, Rip Rense, John Sosebee, Ken Sharp, Tom Frangione, Bruce Spizer, Jeff Cochran, Jeff Slate, Ken Orth. Reporters: Karen Dyson, Kris Tash, Barbara Pazmino, Cortney Kintzer, Frank C. Branchini.
Contributors: Robert Rodriguez, John Firehammer, Marc Catone, Steve Lanzel, Bill Monnell, Ian Barrett, PJ Dempsey, Richard Lukas. ront cover hoto b Bob annon. Back cover hoto courtes of le or s Lt .
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EATLENEWS RO ND P Auction Caps Ringo’s Big Year!
What a year 201 has been for Ringo Starr, what with a new album, his solo induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, wide publication of his photo book and more tour dates. Now, he’s topped it off with a charity auction of more than 1,300 of his and Barbara’s personal items, including clothes, instruments, pieces of jewelry and other items, that raised a whopping 9.2 million. The highlight of the three-day sale at Julien’s Auctions in Bevery Hills was one of Ringo’s Ludwig Beatles drum kits, which fetched 2.1 million. A 1964 Rickenbacker guitar once owned by John Lennon who gave it to Ringo sold for 910,000, and Ringo’s mono copy of the White Album, numbered 0000001, sold for 790,000, which is thought to make it the most expensive record ever sold. The LP had spent the past 3 years in a bank vault, but was not quite in mint condition, with Ringo telling Rolling Stone: “We used to play the vinyl in those days. We didn’t think, We’ll keep it for 0 years and it will be in pristine condition.’ Whoever gets it, it will have my fingerprints on it.” A portion of Ringo and Barbara’s proceeds from the auction will go to their charity, the Lotus Foundation, which aims to advance “social welfare” in a wide range of areas, including substance abuse, cancer, cerebral palsy, domestic abuse and animal protection. “Some of the stuff, it’s a real surprise that we still had it because it’s been in storage for so long,” Ringo told Rolling Stone. “I don’t mind getting rid of a lot of stuff and it goes to good use. That’s the deal.” Other notable results of the Dec 3auction included: 179,200 for George Harrison’s 1962 Gretsch Tennessean guitar, given to Starr by Harrison’s family after the Concert for George; 179,200 for an 18-carat yellow gold Moonphase watch by Patek Philippe; 12 ,000 for the back panel from Lennon’s psychedelic caravan, featuring the Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band logo; 11 ,200 for the Ludwig silver sparkle drum kit used in the 1967 “Hello Goodbye” video; 106,2 0 for a gold ring with rectangular sapphire that Ringo said he wore during every show he ever played with The Beatles; 100,000 for a gold and onyx ring, which was also worn for every Beatles show. The 2.1 million 1963 Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl three-piece drum kit went to Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, an avid rock music memorabilia collector, who in prior sales bought guitars belonging to the other Beatles and a drum head from a kit Starr played on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in 1964 which also went for 2.1 million . Said Irsay: “I was 11 years old when
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The Beatles broke up. I was a Lennon fanatic — I mean, I loved Paul too, but Lennon was the guy — and there was always this dream of The Beatles getting back together; there was always this hope. It took
in song on this evening, though both sent videotaped messages. Hosted by Kevin Bacon, the lineup of performers was supported by a house band that featured drummer Kenny Aronoff, bassist Lee Sklar, guitarists Sid McGuiness and Felicia Collins both formerly of the David Letterman “Late Show” CBS Orchestra and the evening’s musical director, Greg Phillinganes, on keyboards. While the pace of the evening was hampered by certain re-takes mostly for
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Photo: Bill Monnell
Ringo talks about his “Photogra h” book at oronto s n igo Books.
over 4 million and 4 years, but we finally got them back together. I know it’s a symbolic thing, but it really means a lot to me.” Before the sale, Ringo and Barbara attended an auction party along with Barbar’s sister Marjorie and her husband, Joe Walsh, along with actor Cary Elwes and musician Jimmy Vivino. The auction also included furniture, artwork and crockery from the couple’s homes in London, Beverly Hills and Monaco.
Show Fetes Lennon’s 75th
A varied lineup performed Dec. in Imagine: John Lennon’s 7 th Birthday Concert, held at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Tom Frangione was on hand and reports the show, scheduled to be seen at 9 p.m. Eastern Dec. 19 on AMC, raised funds for the Robin Hood Foundation, whose past events held at the Garden have included the Concert for New York and the 12/12/12 Hurricane Sandy benefits, both headlined by Macca. But neither Sir Paul nor Ringo would be on hand to celebrate
Bacon and downtime needed to ensure a polished final product, the musical performances were generally quite good, and in several cases, exceptional. Inclusive of the intermission and production breaks, the show ran just under three hours, so a two-hour broadcast seems likely. The set list: John Fogerty doing a partial “Give Peace a Chance” and then “In My Life”; Peter Frampton on “Norwegian Wood”; Latin pop star Juanes with “Woman”; Aloe Blacc on a booming “Steel and Glass,” one of the evening’s true highlights; Blacc and Phillinganes with a gospel-tinged piano-only reading of “Watching the Wheels”; Sheryl Crow doing “A Hard Day’s Night”; Kris Kristofferson and Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine with “Working Class Hero”; country star Chris Stapleton with Brandon Flowers and Crow for “Don’t Let Me Down”; Stapleton with Kristofferson and Willie Nelson on “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away”; the Roots with a blistering version of “Mother”; Spoon with “Hey Bull-
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in the acoustic set thing.” He did a single encore that did not drew a polite re- include “Yesterday.” sponse from the Macca did the standard set list Oct. 21 o v e r w h e l m i n g l y at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit see Rick 0-and-up crowd, Glover’s review on Page 9 . Said the GET and after “Hope Detroit Free Press reviewer: “He’d fought happy for the Future,” through a hoarseness as the night began, Macca joked how with early numbers like Got to Get You JPEG he and the band into My Life’ asking too much of his upper here knew when the range. But his voice opened up as the night crowd was not into went on, nailing the right intense spots in a song when they Maybe I’m Amazed’ and Band on the didn’t see a lot of lit Run,’ conjuring the euphoric scream for I phones out in the Saw Her Standing There,’ and having just audience he also enough left to get through Helter Skelter’ Peter ra ton Sher l ro lea “ a as.” noted how security in the final encore.” dog” and ”Cold Turkey”; a clip of Lennon once really went The 201 tour closed out Oct. 22 at and Yoko Ono doing “Attica State” from after photo-takers in the audience . First Niagara Center in Buffalo, NY, where their 1971 appearance on the David Frost The crowd was one of the more spirited the standard set list again was performed show; Nelson doing “Imagine,” garnering of recent shows. Also, Paul signed what in his first show ever in that city. Said the a well-deserved standing ovation; Flowers appeared to be an album sleeve or concert Buffalo News reviewer: “McCartney offered with “Instant Karma”; Train’s Pat Monah- program from someone sitting in the front his Buffalo fans a show befitting of a legan performing “Jealous Guy”; country star row as he exited. end.” Eric Church on “Mind Games”; the New Steve Lanzel reports the Oct. 1 show No new tour dates have been released, York Freedom Choir with Morello on lead at Bryce Jordan Center in State College, but BBC Radio 2 announced that Macca guitar for “Power to the People”; and Ste- PA, drew a capacity crowd of 1 ,000. It will be the headline act at the 10th anven Tyler rocking “Come Together” and, featured the standard set list. Two girls with nual Dine and Disco for Children in Need with Church, “Revolution.” signs were brought up onstage: one was in 2016. The show will take place June 2 The encores opened with video greet- from Florida celebrating her 16th birthday at London’s Mulberry Inn before an audiings from Ringo, who then introduced a — her sign read “ For My Sixteenth Birth- ence of 80 auction winners. All of the tickvideo of his most recent All Starr Band de- day I Chose Paul Over a New Car.” After ets were auctioned off within a few hours, livering “I’m the Greatest” from the “Ringo “Back in the USSR,” Paul acknowledged raising 2 million. at the Ryman” DVD. Then Frampton, Crow a sign being held by a woman asking him Meanwhile, Ringo and the All Starrs and Blacc were joined by a children’s choir to say hello to her father Viktor, who had wound up their latest North American tour for “Happy mas War Is Over .” Back to flown in from Russia. leg Oct. 31 at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn. the screens for some comments and a tip The Oct. 17 show at Air Canada CenIn keeping with it being Halloween, the of the hat from Sir Paul, though his mes- tre in Toronto featured the standard set list, band started the show in costumes, with sage was not accompanied by any musical with the usual Canadian addition of “Mull of Ringo wearing a skull mask. The stage set performance. It was unclear whether one Kintyre” to the second encore. Macca per- also sported a Halloween theme. would be added for the broadcast. formed the song with backing of the Paris Special onstage guests were Max The ensemble finale was “All You Need Port Dover Pipe Band. Weinberg and Steve Van andt of the Is Love.” Next, on Oct. 19, came a previously E Street Band, who joined in the “With a Merchandise, which is available from unannounced private blackbirdmusicgroup.com, included two show for about 1,000 different T-shirts, two different event post- people at the Penners, and a hooded sweatshirt. sylvania Convention You can read Frangione’s full song-by- Center in PhiladelGET song review of the show at SOMETHI G phia. The two-hour E The Beatlefan Blog beatlefansome- show was part of a paul state college lan el thingnew.wordpress.com . customer appreciaJPEG tion dinner hosted by here Freightliner Trucks Paul, Ringo Wind Up 2015 Tours Macca’s Out There tour resumed Oct. in connection with (crop on right side as 13 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, the 201 American marked on proof) Ohio, with the same basic set list as in Trucking Association recent shows, except for the addition of Management ConExhibition. “FourFive Seconds,” his colllaboration with ference Paul’s wife Nancy Rihanna and Kanye West. Brad Hundt reports Macca’s voice is an executive of grew stronger and he seemed more ani- her family’s trucking mated as the show progressed. While the company. The scaled-back first quarter of the show was fine, in comparison with other recent shows one got set list included a the sense that he was getting warmed up few changes, with in the early part of the concert some of “Jet” taking the secthat could have been due to the 10-week ond spot and “Drive layoff since Lollapalooza, with the excep- My Car’ changed to “Drive My Truck” tion of the L.A. PETA benefit . Photo: Steve Lanzel The inclusion of “FourFive Seconds” inserted after “Someacca erfor s in State ollege P .
Little Help From My Friends” finale. The show featured the standard set list: “Matchbox,” “It Don’t Come Easy,” “Island in the Sun,” “I Saw the Light” (Todd Rundgren), “Evil Ways” (Gregg Rolie), “Rosanna” (Steve Lukather), “Kyrie” (Richard Page), “Bang the Drum All Day” (Rundgren), “Boys,” “Don’t Pass Me By,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Black Magic Woman”/“Gypsy Queen” (Rolie), “You’re Sixteen,” “I’m the Greatest,” “You Are Mine” (Page), “Africa” (Lukather), “Oye Como Va” (Rolie), “I Wanna Be Your Man,” “Love Is the Answer” (Rundgren), “Broken Wings” (Page), “Hold the Line” (Lukather), “Photograph,” “Act Naturally” and “With a Little Help From My Friends”/“Give Peace a Chance.” In support of the trade edition of his “Photograph” book, Ringo also made a couple of bookstore appearances. Bill Monnell attended Ringo’s Oct. 20 appearance at Indigo Books and Music in downtown Toronto. Ringo was interviewed by Heather Reisman, founder of the Canadian retail chain. He discussed his book and some of the stories behind the photos. The appearance lasted only 15 minutes. He then went into the management office for a meet-and-greet and a photo with whoever could afford to pay $3,000 (Canadian). More substantial was his Oct. 26 appearance at Strand Bookstore in New York City, where Ringo was interviewed by his friend Little Steven Van Zandt. Those buying the book at the official U.S. launch received a copy with a special book plate commemorating the event, plus a bookbag with Ringo’s name and picture on it. Ringo did not sign books for the attendees (the first 200 people who bought the book in advance) but the bookplate included a reproduction of his signature.
Ringo Plans Album, More Dates
Ringo says he plans to start work on a new album in January, working out of his home studio. “I get weird basic tracks — a weird way to work,” he told Rolling Stone. “I call in a writer and we sit there and write something to the fantasy track I’ve recorded and it works out fine.” Ringo also plans to take the same incarnation of the All Starr Band back out on the road in 2016, Todd Rundgren told Billboard. “Yes, we are going out again, I believe next summer,” Rundgren said. “We decided to do another American tour, and I hear rumors of possibly going back to the Pacific Rim in October or something like that.”
Harrison Tribute Album Due
A recording of the September 2014 George Harrison tribute show at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles, featuring the likes of Conan O’Brien, Norah Jones, Brandon Flowers of the Killers, Ben Harper,
Brian Wilson and Dhani Harrison, is being released Feb. 26 by BMG Recorded Music/Hot Records in five configurations. “George Fest: A Night to Celebrate the Music of George Harrison” will be available in 180-gram vinyl and in a three-disc CDDVD or CD-Blu-ray set or as a download from iTunes. The official George Harrison Store also is offering a package of the CDDVD or Blu-ray plus vinyl and another that includes the above plus a limited-edition poster. The album was produced by Dhani and David Zonshine. Said Harrison: ‘I’ve always imagined a small club show where my generation of musicians could cut loose on some of the deeper tracks from his career. ... So, in a totally new and vibrant way, I once again found myself taking the stage with some of my most treasured musical heroes to the sound of the most familiar music in my life. ... I hope you enjoy listening to these as much as I do. They are some of the best interpretations of my father’s songs I could have ever thought possible.” The track listing: “Old Brown Shoe” (O’Brien), “I Me Mine” (Britt Daniel of Spoon), “Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)” (Jonathan Bates, featuring Dhani), “Something” (Jones), “Got My Mind Set on You” (Flowers), “If Not for You (Heartless Bastards), “Be Here Now” (Ian Astbury of the Cult), “Wah-Wah” (Nick Valensi of the Strokes), “If I Needed Someone” (Jamestown Revival), “Art of Dying” (Black Rebel Motorcycle Club), “Savoy Truffle” (Dhani), “For You Blue” (Chase Cohl, featuring Brian Bell of Weezer), “Beware of Darkness” (Ann Wilson of Heart), “Let It Down” (Dhani), “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)” (Harper), “Here Comes the Sun” (Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction), “What Is Life” (“Weird Al” Yankovic), “Behind That Locked Door” (Jones), “My Sweet Lord” (Brian Wilson), “Isn’t It a Pity” (the Black Ryder), “Any Road” (Butch Walker), “I’d Have You Anytime” (Karen Elson), “Taxman” (Cold War Kids), “It’s All Too Much” (the Flaming Lips), “Handle With Care” (Flowers, Daniel, Dhani, Bates, Wayne Coyne and Yankovic) and “All Things Must Pass” (Ann Wilson, Dhani, Elson and Jones).
New & Upcoming Releases
A live album recorded at the Jan. 20, 2014, David Leaf Foundation Ringo tribute concert in Los Angeles was issued Dec. 4 in digital download form only by Communion Records. The evening’s performers were backed by a house band comprised of Don Was, Peter Frampton, Kenny Aronoff, Steve Lukather and Benmont Tench. The track listing for “Ringo Starr: The Lifetime of Peace & Love Tribute Concert” goes like this: “Can’t Do it Wrong” (Ark Life), “Octopus’s Garden” (The Head and the Heart), “Don’t Go Where the
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Road Don’t Go” (Brendan Benson), “It Don’t Come Easy” (Bettye LaVette), “Oh My My” (Ben Folds), “Walk With You” (Ben Harper), “Back Off Boogaloo” (Joe Walsh), and Ringo doing “Photograph,” “Boys” and “With a Little Help From My Friends.” Proceeds from the record will benefit the David Lynch Foundation, which aims to bring transcendental meditation to at-risk populations worldwide. ... The revised “1” album was issued on vinyl Dec. 4.The gatefold 2-LP 180-gram set is packaged with four art cards (11” x 8.5”), a poster (33” x 22”) and two inner jackets packed with images of original single sleeves. ... Harrison’s entire solo catalog is now available at iTunes and on streaming services worldwide. ... “I Can’t Imagine (A Tribute to John Lennon),” a digital single by Peter Noone (of Herman’s Hermits), has been issued by Plowboy Records. “I Can’t Imagine” was recorded in Nashville in 2012 when Noone was involved in an Eddy Arnold tribute album. Producer Don Cusic presented the song he had written to Noone; it had been waiting to be recorded since 1980. “I am pretty spiffed at the way it turned out,” Noone said. “Lennon used to buy me drinks in London after sessions at EMI’s Studios on Abbey Road. He would say ‘They have a two drink minimum and you aren’t 18, so you get two cokes, Herman, and I’ll get two Bacardis.’” Go here to view the song’s video: youtube.com/watch?v=dmvjoiHCQEs.
Briefly . . .
A new statue of The Beatles has been unveiled on Liverpool’s Pier Head. Lennon’s half-sister, Julia Baird, and Liverpool Deputy Mayor Ann O’Byrne officially unveiled the very realistic giant bronze of the Fab Four Dec. 4. The statue has been donated to the city by the Cavern Club. The statue was sculpted by Andrew Edwards and apparently was modeled on the Dezo Hoffmann photo used on the cover of “On Air — The Beatles Live at the BBC Vol.2.” Said Baird: “It’s a great honor to unveil this statue. I know John would have loved it. And I bet Paul comes to see it as soon as he comes back here.” ... Session drummer Andy White, who was featured on The Beatles’ first single, “Love Me Do”/”P.S. I Love You,” as well as several 1960s hits by other British acts, died recently at age 85. ... Two Dutch Beatles fans are involved in a legal wrangle with Apple Corps over their claim to own 504 tapes made during The Beatles’ “Get Back” recording sessions in 1969. The two men say the recordings were illegally taken from them by Dutch and British police 12 years ago and should be returned, the Dutch newspaper Volkskrant reported. They also want €700,000 in damages from the Dutch state in compensation for wrongful arrest. The recordings were made on Nagra tape recorders and are thought to be the basis for a large number of bootlegs. Stan Snelleman and Jos
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are headlining the April 1 -17 New York Fest for Beatles Fans at the Hilton Westchester in Rye Brook, NY. Check thefest. com for details. ... Liverpool Productions’ GET Danbury Fields Forever music festival dave todayPark in is set for July edmunds 23 at Ives Concert GET Danbury CT. For info, go to Fab4Musicpeg Festival.com or ToursAndEvents.com. ... beatles statue here stage musical is The “Let It Be” Beatles JPEG set for a tour of Britain and Ireland, playing 21 theaters, starting with Cliffs Pavilion here in Southend Jan. 11. After that, the tour will hit Southampton, Bromley, Bath, Torquay, Truro, Sheffield, Manchester, New Wimbledon, Dublin, Woking, Blackpool, York, Swansea, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Aylesbury, Darlington, Canterbury, Bristol and Oxford. ... Yoko group Dave un s never gotistofeatured ork ithin a ohn Lennon. of portraits of powerful celebrity women on back together and I’m have put the of riffthe in ” PireIt was a sort the producing, just released new edition you got a song?” He llisaid, me two little riff.shot I said, 2016“Give calendar. Annietar Leibovitz her “Oh shit said, stockings. “Let’s go into the weeks.” That takes something, pickhat up andhefishnet wearing a to a top the phone and ask Paul McCartney for atwoput it on.” nomina... Macca received Grammy weon did that. He boo song by the way. laughs I decided towith hisSo tionsBut in connection work Kanye e Beatles statue in Liver ool. andforI turned stick my head in the lion’s mouth. West’s “Only One.” The London track is up best up an Remmerwaal say they bought the tapes work was reprinted in the So, official program he said, “Yeah, rap giveperformance me two weeks” and we put ... the riff on and best rapboth song. from former Apple Records worker Nigel for Monterey Pop. Theand original 3/4” bytwo The he doesn’t play guitar on th sure 7 enough weeks later he“1”sent Beatles’ re-entered the Billboard Oliver for the equivalent of 36,000 in 12 3/4” psychedelic-inspired color poster for that part;atit was me a cassette of “On the a Night200Wings albumofchart in mid-November No. to put t 1992 after being outbid by Apple for other remained with art director Tom ingale” withWilkes, him singing6 and an acousmix, actually. It’s ... a lovely so with just first-week sales of 39,849 units. tapes at a memorabilia auction. Twelve who created Monterey tic Pop’s official conYouofalso guitar. But, he askedThe mearchive to put one little of “Tug releases War”were and a mem years later they were caught in a police cert program. Wilkes died in at 2009 and parts his of“Pipes All Starr riff in certain the song and I forof Peace” returned those Band albumswith a l sting when Oliver got in touch again and daughter arranged for got Rockaway to con-it with We recorded good musicians, cluded to the Billboard album chart in Eric their Carmen debut of th claimed to have a serious buyer to take duct the sale. ... The abandoned 18-acre Albert Lee and all of the guys,“Tug” and I sold played Jack Bruce and Simon weeks. 8,000 units its first week, VE&RS QrtPg BW 3.5x5 ad 1/21/11 10:14 AM Page 1 the tapes off their hands. In January 2003, ashram in the Indian ittown of Rishikesh Bad Company fame to Paul and he said, to “You’ve to “Pipes” place forgotten No. 6, while sold 7,000, Snelleman and Remmerswaal were ar- where The Beatles learned to meditate un- good for No. 70. On the Catalog Albums rested and charged with money launder- der Maharishi MaAlways Buying Rare Items Including: ing and fencing stolen property. The case hesh Yogi, is now against them was formally dropped in open to the public. It BEATLES & ROLLING STONES Beatle 2007. The two Dutchmen deny they were was abandoned by Beatle Also, Whole Record Collections! Beatle in possession of stolen property. In addi- the guru and his folBeatle We’ve Offered QUALITY Products, Beatle Beatle tion, they question why Apple never report- lowers in the 1970s. Service & Mail Order SInce 1977. Beatle Beatle ed the theft in the first place. “Apple wanted But the retreat, which PICK UP Beatle $ for on the tapes back and theft has nothing to do was taken over by GET ON OUR MAILINGery LIST! OUR CATALOG ( 3) INCLUDES: Beatle English ad Beatle with it,” Snelleman told the Volkskrant. the local forestry deBeatle Rare Beatles & Rolling Stones • Promo Goodies PICK UP Beatle “We are the victims in all this and we want partment in 2003, Page •7Colored & Pic Discs Unusual Pic Sleves ery • from Rock Clothing English ad the tapes back. They belong to us.” Apple remained a big draw of last issue Records would not comment on the case, with Beatles fans from Page 17 here the Volkskrant said. Most observers we from all over the Beatle Beatle of last issue spoke to gave the twosome little chance world. They would Beatle Beatle Beatle of prevailing in this dispute. ... The photo usually sneak in by here Beatle Beatle exhibition “Linda McCartney and Mary climbing the walls or Beatle Beatle McCartney: Mother Daughter,” featuring paying a small bribe Beatle Beatle shots by Mary and her mother, ran Nov. to a gatekeeper. Lo6/24/6 Beatle Beatle 20-Dec. 19 at the Gagosian Gallery in New cal uthorities recently MUSIC Beatle York City. The exhibition featured moments opened the ashram Beatle Beatle derived from relaxed interactions with fam- to paying visitors. ... Party Beatle ily; such celebrities as Aretha Franklin, The Australian play Beatle Beatle Jimi Hendrix, Mick Jagger, Brian Jones, “Lennon: Through ORD Kate Moss and Rihanna; and everyday a Glass Onion,” Thes $45.0 life. Mary conducted a signing at the gal- which has played Cana lery Nov. 21 for her book, “Monochrome off-Broadway in New ders requi Colour.” In attendance was her stepmom, York, is set to open for $5 Nancy. ... Kohl’s department store chain a run at Liverpool’s SHIP is using “All Together Now” in its holiday Epstein Theatre in $5.00 call f 717.627.2081 www.VeryEnglish.com advertising campaign.... Artwork that The April 2016, with LivBeatles created to help promote the 1967 erpudlian actor DanSales@VeryEnglish.com Fax 717.627.3227 OR Monterey Pop Festival recently was sold to iel Taylor in the lead PO Box 7061, Lancaster, PA 17604 USA a collector for 17 ,000 by Rockaway Re- role. ... Chad & JereThe cords. The “Peace to Monterey” poster art- my and Peter Asher ] t OR P a y P a l
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Beatles” podcast hosted by Robert Rodriguez and Richard Buskin has issued a 2016 calendar, featuring Beatles historical dates and artwork by Rick Wey. You can order it at somethingaboutthebeatles.com/ shop/ or on Ebay 2014 3600167 .
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chart, “Tug” debuted at No. 1 and “Pipes” at No. 2. So far, Billboard reported, all nine McCartney and Wings albums reissued in the Archive Collection series have reached the Top 10 of the catalog chart. Three of them have hit No. 1: “Tug of War,” “Wings Over America” and “Ram.”
BOOKNEWS
Kevin Barry’s “Beatlebone,” a fictional book about Lennon, has won the Goldsmiths Prize for innovative novels. ... Rufus Publications is publishing “Norman Parkinson With The Beatles” in February. The book features more than 00 rarely seen or previously unpublished photographs of The Beatles by ’60s fashion photographer Parkinson. The images include a group of unpublished photographs showing the band recording its second album inside Studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios, Sept. 12, 1963, as well as images taken earlier in the day at the President Hotel in Russell Square. This book will be available in two very limited editions, including a numbered leather-bound slipcase edition, personally signed by Parkinson’s son Simon Parkinson-Smith, who was also working on the shoot at Abbey Road that day. The leather edition will ship with an exclusive official Norman Parkinson Archive silver gelatin print produced especially for this project and a special protective slipcase. ... Steve Turner’s “Beatles 66,” due in November 2016, will look at the transformative year in the lives and careers of the group. ... To commemorate the 0th anniversary of The Beatles’ first visit to the United States, 1 0 quilt artists chose a different Beatles song to portray as a 24” x 24” fiber art quilt. The resulting quilts can be seen Jan. 7-9 at the Oklahoma Winter uilt Show, Oklahoma City; Jan. 24-Feb. 2 at the Barns of Rose Hill, Berryville, VA; April 7-9 at the M uilt Festival New England, Manchester, NH; May -7 at the Home Machine uilting Show, Salt Lake City; and June 23-2 at the Sew Original uilt and Creative Expo, Reno, NV. All 1 0 quilts are also beautifully captured in “Inspired by The Beatles: An Art uilt Challenge,” by Donna Marcinkowski DeSoto and available from amazon.com. ... The “Something About The
AWATCH
MEDI-
On Oct. 27, Rolling Stone’s website posted the Mark Seliger-directed film “Photographer,” which looks back at Ringo’s passion for photography. The film, which includes images taken by Ringo, is available exclusively on RollingStone.com. ... A nationwide poll in Britain for the ITV special “The Nation’s Favourite Beatles Number One” was topped by “Hey Jude,” followed by “Yesterday,” “Let It Be,” “Eleanor Rigby” and “All You Need Is Love.” ... In a recent issue of AARP the Magazine, Ringo said: “I could have been a better father, but there was a lot going on in my life besides music, like substance abuse, though I’ve been clean for a number of years. I’m a great grandfather now. When I became a grandfather, it was an out-ofbody experience. Jumping in the pool with them and listening to the same joke over and over again. I have a great time with my daughter Lee’s children. They’re the young ones, triplets at 6 now. When they were 2 1/2, I said, “Who wants pie? Who wants cake?” Now every afternoon, if I’m at their house or they’re at ours, we have pie-cake.” ... The Nov. 6 episode of CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0” featured Ringo and the All Starrs’ “Island in the Sun” in its concluding scene.
ARD DA S NET
This issue we look at sites whose features require — or at least encourage — the wearing of good quality headphones. Touring Abbey Road Studios may be at the top of many fans’ wish lists. While such a visit may not be feasible, everyone can virtually tour the building thanks to Google’s Inside Abbey Road Studios (insideabbeyroad.withgoogle. com/en). Offering 360-degree views of each room, the Abbey Road tour features Giles Martin leading fans on a fully interactive tour of the facility. It is an example of what multimedia can accomplish, as the user can view video and archival photos for a fully immersive experience. Footage of the London Symphony Orchestra recording in Studio 1 allows for viewers to pan over the entire room. Look for “hotspots” denoted by icons before leaving each room; these detours show photos, videos and essays that
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further describe aspects of the studios. Indeed, photos and footage from as early as 1931 demonstrate how remarkably little Abbey Road has changed over time. Seeing the studio where The Beatles recorded “All You Need Is Love” ignites the imagination — the room is so large that one can easily picture how the group, classical musicians and an audience could fit into the space. Another fun and educational feature is the virtual mixing console. Using it, try to replicate the supplied original mix; your work will be scored by how closely you match the first version. Inside Abbey Road Studios also provides an overview of the roles of producer and engineer, describing how they evolved over the years. A section on their collection of microphones allows you to explore a few examples up close. Overall, Google’s inside look at the historic Abbey Road serves as a master class in the recording process. A set of headphones is essential for BeatleDrops (beatledrops.com/index.html), a site dedicated to comparing vinyl pressings of various Beatles albums and singles. A collector has uploaded sound samples from his collection, inviting visitors to compare, for example, the original 1963 edition of “Please Please Me” with the 1982 U.K. mono reissue. Does a track like “Boys” sound different on the U.S. pressings or even the Vee-Jay album “Introducing The Beatles”? You be the judge. Japanese, U.K. and U.S. vinyl releases are discussed, and the webmaster even provides a guide on how to best record LPs to your computer. As a reference and research site, BeatleDrops looks very promising; hopefully, more sound clips will be uploaded for further analysis. Finally, Revolver Records & Video’s YouTube channel (youtube.com/user/keith27012) offers rare promotional films, commercials and other material that is often jaw-dropping. While each video bears a huge, distracting “Revolver TV” watermark, the scarcity of the clips is well worth the annoyance. An example is an alternate take of “Let It Be,” with the camera focused solely on Paul McCartney. The clip is titled “Brother Malcolm” because of an extra line McCartney sings in this version: “When I find myself in times of heartache / Brother Malcolm comes to me” (it’s theorized that “Malcolm” refers to Mal Evans). Another standout is a strange, meandering 1968 promotional film for Apple, although seeing McCartney perform “Blackbird” in the studio is a delight. An unintentionally humorous moment involves Magic Alex in a lab coat saying “I would like to say hello ... to all the girls around the world.” Check back often for new additions; as with many YouTube videos, the clips can disappear overnight. OT
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Catching Up With Macca in Motown
Paul McCartney wrapped up the fall 201 leg of the Out There tour with five shows in North America during October. I attended the show in Detroit, as that city has special memories, due to the fact that something unique always seems to happen there. A few years before, a couple had gotten engaged during the show, and at the most recent stop there, I’d had a chance encounter with Macca at the Motown Museum. The city is always buzzing nicely when McCartney comes to town. The sound check kicked off with a laid-back “Blue Suede Shoes,” as Paul seemed relaxed and in a good mood warming up on the painted Les Paul. The afternoon set list was fairly standard, with more familiar rockabilly tunes as Paul worked through the various instruments. “Honey Don’t,” then on to the Hofner for “Junior’s Farm” and “All My Loving.” Over the course of the sound check, Paul finished off two bottles of Gatorade. He mentioned that he remembered “writing the next song on a boat, in the Virgin Islands” as an intro to “Things We Said Today.” Next up, “San Francisco Bay Blues” and “Everybody Out There” on 12-string with the sound checkers continuing the “whoaoh’s” after the song finished, getting a reaction from Paul. “Ram On” was performed on the uke, with some exaggerated whistles. The highlights included a rousing read of “Miss Ann” while McCartney was working out on the grand piano, followed by “Let ’Em In,” and, later, a light, lilting take of “Bluebird” — as those attending the sound check made flying Wings signs with their hands. That evening’s show started nearly on time in the relatively small Joe Louis Arena, usually used for Redwings hockey games. The distance between the front rows and the edge of the stage was minimal, giving the venue an intimate feel. “Eight Days a Week” was the opener, and the crowd was on their feet from the opening “fade in.” “Save Us” was next, followed by a couple of alternates from the standard list: “Got to Get You Into My Life” followed by a high-energy “One After 909.” “Temporary Secretary,” next, has become a highlight of the early part of the show, with Paul clearly enjoying this one, and the audience reaction either confused or enthusiastic. The program followed the routine set list, and when Paul moved to piano, there were a few “squeaky” moments at the start
of “Maybe I’m Amazed,” but McCartney shook it off, and went on to deliver one of the best performances of this number. For the acoustic section of the show, beginning with “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” Macca included “FourFive Seconds,” which got a polite reception ... and came off very nicely live. Paul did an exaggerated little dance
Girl,” then “Birthday” subbed for “Hi Hi Hi” and finished with “I Saw Her Standing There.” During the first encore, Paul brought up onstage a girl with a sign that said she was celebrating her 17th birthday, and a couple that were just married, for autographs. As the band returned for the second encore, Paul held up the acoustic with the
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during the solo of “And I Love Her” — getting an intense reaction from the ladies in the audience, some of whom have dubbed this move the “McWiggle.” After the two numbers on the rising platform, “New” and “ ueenie Eye” seemed to fall fairly flat with this audience. Paul told an extended story about the poster that was the source of most of the lyrics for “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” and seemed to really be concentrating on his bass work during that number. He spent lots of time looking at the photos of George during “Something,” and seemed to get emotional as Rusty Anderson turned in a very nice run at the solo. The closing half dozen numbers rocked the arena — as usual — with some intense pyrotechnics for “Live and Let Die” with the rumbling intro section that gives Paul time to put in some hearing protection , and, of course, lots of audience participation during “Hey Jude.” The first encore began with “Another
Photo: Rick Glover
Redwings sticker for quite a while before he kicked off “Yesterday.” For the finale, Paul went into the “Golden Slumbers” section just a bit early — getting some surprised looks from the band, which quickly caught up with him. Overall, a hot show, with Paul in good voice and very good audience in the packed arena. On a personal note, this Detroit show was the first concert I had attended since the Columbia, SC, show where I was invited onstage myself. At that time, I had just been diagnosed with stage 4 thyroid cancer, and since that show I had undergone a series of chemotherapy and radiation treatments and I am currently in recovery. I have been overwhelmed with support from the Beatlefan community and readers of this magazine, including my fellow Fans On The Run, during this challenging time. Thank you one and all for your good vibes and support. Rick Glover
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PERSPECTIVE
Ringo Finds a Band Worth Keeping
A little over 10 years ago, Beatlefan Contributing Editor Allan Kozinn noted in The New York Times that Ringo Starr’s career moved on parallel tracks — there was his work with the band the Roundheads, with whom he collaborated for his albums and the accompanying promotional work, and then there was his life on the road with the All Starr Band, the conglomerations of fellow classic rockers with whom Starr had, in some cases, never worked with before and never would again think Eric Carmen, Ian Hunter, Paul Carrack or Rod Argent . Starr more or less walked away from the Roundheads in 2006, when his collaboration with producer Mark Hudson came to an abrupt end. The All Starr tours have continued. However, the latest iteration of the All Starrs has been a bit different from the rest. When the lineup was first announced in 2012, it was notably less starry than the groups that had been assembled previously. Todd Rundgren, who had been along on the 1992 and 1999 All Starr tours, was about the only name that would be widely recognized by most music fans. The others — Richard Page, Steve Lukather and Gregg Rolie — had far lower profiles. In fact, they carried far less name recognition than high-profile session players like drummer Jim Keltner, a onetime All Starr.
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tral and South America in 201 . Clearly, Starr likes this band. And, in fact, the longest-running incarnation of the All Starr Band isn’t done yet. Rundgren recently told Billboard the band will be going out again next year. “As far as Ringo’s concerned,” Rundgren said, “he’s probably just GET going to keep doing this all starrs frank b until either JPEG he can’t do it here anymore or one or more of us can’t do it anymore.” Starr himself has notPhoto: Frank Branchini ed, “I love this band. I love ll Starrs in Balti ore in ctober. the guys and we all get on well and everyone is cool. I’m But, unlike the previous All Starr Bands, keeping it together.” this lineup has endured with the excepAlthough I was disappointed when this tion of the replacement of veteran utillineup of the All Starrs was first announced, ity player Mark Rivera with Warren Ham . thinking it was stocked with anonymous After a swing through the United States in nonentities who hailed from Journey and the summer of 2012, the same band was Toto, I’ve become something of a convert together again for a jaunt through South — this is a solid, tight band, made all the America in 2013, an Australasian tour in more so because of the time they have 2014, another, more extensive U.S. tour logged together on tour. It could also be in the summer of 2014, and two separate that the lower profiles of Page, Rolie and swings through parts of the United States Lukather means the amount of ego being and a swing through the Caribbean, Cenlugged around in the All Starr tours has
been considerably lower. Rundgren appears to agree. “I think this is the band he’s always wanted, where everyone gets along and everyone has enough musical skill where we can effectively do each other’s material,” Rundgren said. “Part of the problem with an All Starr Band is his minimal requirement that you have three hit records. Well, it’s easy enough to find somebody who can play their three records, but they all have to be able to play everybody else’s hit records, and often you would get somebody who can just play their own records, and then when it comes to play everyone else’s stuff they just turn the volume on their guitar down and pretend to strum. That doesn’t happen with this lineup.” To a certain degree, it seems like this lineup of the All Starrs fulfills the role that the Roundheads once did. Think about it: Starr’s most recent album, “Postcards From Paradise,” featured the song “Island in the Sun,” a cheerful offering written by Starr and all the members of the current ASB. The title song was written by Starr and Rundgren, and “You Bring the Party Down” was penned by Starr and Lukather. All the All Starrs play on “Island in the Sun,” and it turned up in the set in the most recent batch of dates, with Starr noting in his introduction of the song that recording with the All Starrs is something he had long talked about. With the latest All Starr Band, Starr has arguably been able to bring the parallel tracks of his career together at last. Brad Hundt
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As We’ve Never Heard Them Before 1
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In remixing the tracks for yet another version of The Beatles’ ‘1’ hits collection, this time including videos, Allan Kozinn says Apple Corps finally has gotten it right or, at least, mostly right. ... I’ll admit it: When the original version of “1” was released in 2000, I thought it was thoroughly useless. It wasn’t just that anyone who collected The Beatles seriously already had everything on it, many times over — or even that those of us who collect everything, in all formats, would be in for a CD and a double LP that we were unlikely to play more than once to see how the sound was — which turned out to be another story . It was that Apple had a number of more important things to do, and given the pace at which they undertook projects at that time, it meant it would be a while — at the very least, a year — before anything of greater interest turned up. We had all heard, after all, credible reports from inside Apple, to the effect that remastered versions of “Let It Be” and the Shea Stadium concert had been sitting on the shelf since the early 1990s, and the footage from those films in “The Beatles Anthology” had us on the edge of our seats, waiting for them to be released on DVD. There had already been talk of remastering the standard CD catalog — although that discussion had recently been complicated by the 1999 release of “Yellow Submarine Songtrack,” on which the songs were remixed. Before that release, many of us me included would have opposed the notion of remixing, but hearing revamped tracks like “Nowhere Man,” with the opening harmony vocals spread across the stereo image, made us reconsider. So, “1” was released, and most of us shrugged, and some of us went on the warpath against the heavily compressed sound of the disc. Not my fight, particularly; just noting it. Still, upwards of 30 million people around the world bought copies over the next 1 years, making “1” the best selling album of the first decade of the 21st century. I confess that, my criticism of the album notwithstanding, I picked up quite a few myself. It made a nice gift for family members who were casual Beatles fans and didn’t already have it all. With 27 songs, it was more than 1/10th of the complete pre-“Anthology,” pre-“BBC” catalog. And, while you could argue about great tracks that were left out “Please Please Me,” “Strawberry Fields Forever,” etc. because they were not No.1 hits on the right charts, it was generally the most beloved 10th of the catalog. Moreover, when the album was reissued in 2011 — this time with the compressed tracks replaced by the versions from the 2009 remasters — the com-
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pleatists among us had to get it again, this time on CD, LP and in its iTunes incarnation. You would think that a second reissue within five years would have those of us who objected in the first place tearing out our hair. But, this time, Apple did it right, or mostly right. There are a number of issues, naturally: In any endeavor where choices have to be made, some will approve, some will disapprove and some won’t care. All told, though, Apple has transformed a useless release into an indispensible one. This time, instead of simply dropping in the 2009 remasters, Apple has engaged Giles Martin to revisit the unmixed multitrack session tapes, and remix the sound afresh. A video disc DVD and Blu-ray companion was added, with a compilation of promo clips, live television and concert performances and newly assembled clips, to match the 27 hits, and, for the deluxe “1+” edition, there were another 23 clips. The big treat here were the promo clips that The Beatles made to send out to television stations after they tired of making the rounds in person — clips that collectors have traded in varying quality since the 1980s. Apple included every song the group made a clip for, and in several cases — “Day Tripper,” “Rain,” “Paperback Writer,” “Hello Goodbye” — alternate versions although by no means all the alternate versions were included on the second “1+” video disc. That second disc also included the songs for which promos were made that did not turn up on the original “1,” most notably “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “A Day in the Life.” You could argue, of course, that the 201 version of “1” or “1+” is what Apple should have released in 2000. As “Yellow
Submarine Songtrack” demonstrated a year earlier, successfully remixing some of the most complex tracks in the catalog was clearly a possibility. All the promos were available to Apple, and even if the level of restoration possible in 201 was not yet available, the “Anthology” had included many excerpts from these films in quality that collectors would have killed for in 2000. Blu-ray had not hit the market yet, but DVD was available, as was .1 sound, although by 2000 the only Beatles project to have benefitted from it was “Yellow Submarine.” So, pretty much all the attributes of the new “1” could have been drawn upon for the 2000 release, and would have won Apple grateful praise instead of carping. I’m sure many of my colleagues at Beatlefan will have plenty to say about the release, and I don’t want to suck all the air out of the room. But having played the set pretty much nonstop for several weeks because I reviewed it for the Wall Street Journal, I got an early copy , I thought I’d make a few observations about some of the set’s anomalies, for better or worse. One interesting quirk of the set is that Apple has been able to have it both ways in the matter of which “Love Me Do” to use. For some of us, it shouldn’t actually be on the main “1” set at all: famously, “Love Me Do” made it only to No. 17 upon its original British release, whereas “Please Please Me” has a special place in the lore, according to which George Martin told The Beatles it would be their first No. 1, and it was. But because “1” was assembled using a combination of British and American charts on which “Please Please Me” never reached the top, but “Love Me Do” reached No. 1 in America nearly a year and a half after its original release, the track listing is what it is. As it turns out, that’s a good thing. Because the justification for including “Love Me Do” is that it was an American No. 1, the CD uses the Sept. 11, 1962, version, with Andy White on drums. That version was, of course, the only version available on an American release until 1980, when the Sept. 4 version, with Ringo Starr on drums, turned up on the American “Rarities” collection. But, because the video clip for “Love Me Do” uses British footage — a
performance filmed at Southport on Aug. 27, 1963, and first seen in “The Mersey Sound” — Apple decided to use the Sept. 4 version as the clip’s soundtrack. There are quite a few tracks, in fact, where the audio on the DVD or Blu-ray doesn’t match that of the CD. For “From Me to You,” Apple used the live Royal Command Variety Show performance. “She Loves You” is live as well, using the familiar “Drop In” clip. “A Hard Day’s Night” comes from the superb 1965 Paris concert, and “Can’t Buy Me Love” uses the semilive clip from “Around The Beatles.” I’m not sure I agree with all those choices. For “She Loves You,” since there’s no stereo recording available, it makes sense to offer a live alternative. But, much as I love the Paris concert, I think a better solution might have been to use film footage from “A Hard Day’s Night,” matched to a 5.1 remix. And for those of us who have long disliked Phil Spector’s production on “The Long and Winding Road,” the video includes the film version — without the orchestra and choir, and with Billy Preston’s short, soulful solo. It could be, of course, that the Royal Command, Paris and Shea Stadium clips (matched to “Eight Days a Week,” a song they didn’t perform there) are really just teasers for later releases — a way of showing us how glorious the footage is (particularly Shea, which is breathtaking) so that we’re lining up to get those releases when Apple finally gets around to them. Some choices were decidedly questionable. It should be noted that each of the videos has both a stereo and 5.1 soundtrack, and the stereo are not simply fold-downs of the surround mixes. For the most part, the stereo mixes are those heard on the CD, but, of course, some of the songs on the second video disc of “1+” are not among the 27 on “1,” so new mixes had to be made. In the case of “A Day in the Life,” Giles Martin made an odd decision: Instead of making a new stereo mix for “A Day in the Life,” he used the remix he made for the “LOVE” album. While “A Day in the Life” is one of the more straightforward mixes on “LOVE,” its most notable feature is that it uses only one of the two main piano parts heard in the original recording — and the one not used is the more dramatic of the two, particularly in the build-up to John Lennon’s vocal entrance. In the stereo mix here, it’s gone. That was a puzzling decision, but the 5.1 mix is complete, with both pianos. The video versions of “Free As a Bird” and “Real Love” have some differences, too, compared with the original releases. Different vocal takes are used in “Free As a Bird,” and some of George Harrison’s between-the-lines guitar figures come from different takes as well (although his solo, which one Internet site reported as different, turns out to be unchanged). There are some mixing anomalies on
the CD as well — minor or major, depending on how much such things mean to you. When I first heard “Yesterday” on headphones, and compared it with the original, it seemed to me that some of the ambience after Paul sings the first word was removed in the new mix. It wasn’t a big deal, but that brief section, for me, seemed to have a flow on the original stereo mix that sounded truncated on the remix. (On speakers, the difference was hard, if not impossible, to spot.) Another comes at the end of “Eight Days a Week,” although there is some question about exactly what happens there. During the outro, the guitars move slightly out of tune, and the percussion is a little out of sync. The reason, apparently, is that most of “Eight Days a Week” is Take 13, but a new outro was taped as an edit piece, Take 15. People who have been analyzing why the remix sounds so odd, in its final moments, disagree on what actually happened here. One theory is that Giles Martin neglected to replace the Take 13 outro with Take 15. (The good news, in that case, would be that we now have all of Take 13 — something we didn’t have before.) An alternate theory, born out by careful study of the 5.1 mix, is that Giles used both versions: the front right and left channels have the previously unused Take 13 ending, and the center channel has the Take 15 edit piece. Now, historical purists will be saying, “you see — this is why the mixes shouldn’t be messed with.” Other reasons have been cited, too: Before the set was even released, and apparently relying solely on the video clips that Apple posted to YouTube, some of the stereo mixes came under fire, apparently because the clarity of the new versions registered for some listeners as a lack of subtlety. I had a note from a friend who was extremely wary, pointing out that he wished EMI’s restoration team had not, for example, corrected the drop-out in “Day Tripper” while preparing the 2009 remasters. I understand that argument. I felt the same slight disappointment when the original CDs were released, and found that a particular touch of distortion I had always listened for during the vocal opening of “Nowhere Man” — on the instrumental channel, which is silent at that point — had been eradicated. But, as I pointed out to my friend, surely we don’t listen to “Day Tripper” or “Nowhere Man” to hear those flaws, and you couldn’t possibly argue that The Beatles intended them to be there. It made perfect sense for EMI’s team to fix them. And it makes perfect sense to remaster now. Think about what’s to be gained purely in sonic terms. From the end of 1963 to 1968, The Beatles made their recordings on four-track equipment. Because their vision became increasingly complex, and
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required more and more overdubbing, four tracks, while twice what they had available for their first two albums, quickly came to seem inadequate. As Mark Lewisohn, Kevin Ryan and Brian Kehew describe in their groundbreaking books on The Beatles’ recording process, their way around this limitation was to make “reduction mixes.” They would fill a four-track tape, then copy it to a second four-track tape, combining some of the tracks during the copying in order to free up space for more overdubbing on the second tape. Anyone who has worked with sound, or done any mixing, can immediately see the tradeoff here. First, when you copy a tape, even on studio quality equipment, you introduce minor distortions. Most noticeably, the sound is slightly dulled. Both instrumental and vocal timbres lose a bit of their brightness and edge. And tape hiss is introduced. But, also, once you make a reduction mix and then start adding material on the second tape, the balance you decided upon while making the original reduction mix is locked in: You can’t decide that a guitar line or a vocal should be a little louder, or perhaps eliminated, unless you want to re-do all the subsequent overdubs. Sometimes, a number of these reduction mixes took place before the track was finished. Look, for example, at “Penny Lane.” Paul McCartney filled the first fourtrack tape with nothing but keyboards and effects — straight piano, amplified piano with reverb, piano recorded at half-speed with tambourine, and harmonium, percussion and high-pitched whistles. Those four tracks were mixed to one, with lead and backing vocals, guitars, another piano and conga drums added before a second reduction mix was made. Now on its third four-track tape, handclapping and scat singing were added, leading to a third reduction mix, to which winds and brass, harmony vocals and a handbell were added. Then the stereo and mono mixes were made, creating yet another tape generation — more hiss, more incremental distortion, more dulling of timbres. And, generally speaking, the record you bought in your local shop was not made from that mono or stereo master, but from yet another copy, made to be shipped to the various territories (as EMI called them) around the world. If you have the Mobile Fidelity half-speed mastered box, you can see listings of when such copies were made, and where they were sent, on the sleeves for the individual LPs. Shortly before “Yellow Submarine Songtrack” was released, I interviewed Peter Cobbin, who had made the mixes for that album. Cobbin told me that, earlier in the 1990s, EMI had made digital copies of all The Beatles’ session masters, and that, in doing so, they included all the individual four-track tapes involved in making each song — meaning, the raw tapes as
they were recorded, before any reduction mixes were done. These were synched on a digital master, so that, in the case of the “Penny Lane” example, every individual keyboard line and all the subsequently added tracks were now available again, exactly as they had been recorded. Even if, for argument’s sake, you chose to use the first reduction mix, rather than remixing the original tracks, you would still save a couple of generations of tape copying. What this means is that EMI and Apple now have at their disposal multitrack masters with the first generation recordings of every sound The Beatles recorded in the 1960s — something the group and George Martin did not have at the time. A remix using that master will, by definition, bring you closer to the sound The Beatles made in the studio. And that explains why people have been particularly knocked out by the bass and drums on the new “1” remixes: It’s not just that they’ve been boosted in the mixes, it’s that they sound more textured, more rounded — more “real.” The big question, of course, is how the possibilities offered by these fresh new(ish) multitracks would be used. There are obviously many possibilities. For “Yellow Submarine Songtrack,” Cobbin said that his goal was to essentially reproduce the tracks as we know them, while correcting some errors and taking some liberties with instrument and vocal placement. Apart from the already cited case of “Nowhere Man,” there was the centering of Paul’s vocal in “Eleanor Rigby,” correcting the original stereo mix, where the first syllable of “Eleanor” is heard in the center before being quickly panned to one side. Another example: In the mono “Yellow Submarine,” in the verse beginning “And we lived a life of ease,” John repeats Ringo’s lines starting with “a life of ease.” In stereo, that repetition is left out; John doesn’t come in until “every one of us.” Cobbin made his mix conform with the mono version (but stopped short of restoring the guitar chord that accompanies the song’s first word in mono, but not in stereo). He also moved the “crew” voices (“captain, captain….”) across the two channels, where George Martin had kept them to one side in the original stereo mix. Giles Martin’s “LOVE” mixes can’t really fit into the discussion of mixing possibilities, because the project was a different animal: The goal was to come up with something new — including mash-ups using elements of multiple tracks — but it should be noted. As Beatles remixing goes, it was fairly radical, as it was meant to be. That was not what he was after here. For “1,” his goal was to present the tracks pretty much as we know and love them, but taking advantage of the first-generation sources. They are quite conservative. That said, he made some fixes. That boost in the bass and drums was one. The Beatles
complained throughout their recording career that their records lacked the punchy bass and drum sound that they loved on American R&B discs. That was the sound they wanted, and didn’t get, so when purists argue that the new mixes are a falsification, they should keep in mind that, if The Beatles had their way, and weren’t subject to EMI’s fear that if the discs were cut “hot,” people’s needles might jump the grooves, we’d have had more bass and drums in the first place. Martin also fixed the vocal placements on the early tracks, addressing one of his father’s longstanding complaints about the stereo mixes. Again, the historical debate on that issue presents a conundrum. George Martin has long insisted that the two-track mixes, with voices on one channel and instruments on the other, were never intended as stereo mixes, but rather, were recorded that way to give him greater flexibility in mixing mono. The Beatles have been critical of those early stereo mixes as well. So, yes, they were originally released that way — something Martin claimed in 1987 was done without his knowledge — but, as with the attenuated bass, the original releases were seemingly at odds with the intentions of the creators. So which do you honor: those intentions, or the historical fact? You can, of course, honor both, since the original mixes remain available. And, if you want the distortion on the original “Nowhere Man,” or the dropout on “Day Tripper,” the original vinyl releases are plentifully available in used record shops — or, most likely, on your own shelves. (If you don’t already have them, those probably aren’t issues you care about now.) Other tracks benefit from Giles’ remixes in different ways. Like Cobbin, he fixed Lennon’s repetitions in “Yellow Submarine,” but he left the “crew voices” to one side. “Eleanor Rigby” has a centered vocal as well, and the synch problems heard on the “Songtrack” have been repaired. A big winner here was “Paperback Writer.” The original stereo mix is a mess. In mono, after the echoing vocal intro, the band kicks in, loud and solid. In stereo, the band’s entry is oddly recessed — and then the bass comes tumbling in, as if the song is a bass concerto. In his remix, Giles used the mono mix as a guide. The band’s entry is loud and powerful, as in mono, and the bass (again, as in the mono mix) sounds like it’s part of the band, rather than something superimposed. For me, the new “Paperback Writer,” and many of the other remixes, are the best of both worlds, with the power of the mono mixes and the transparency of stereo. The 5.1 mixes are a little disappointing. There are several philosophies of 5.1 sound, of course. One is that the five main channels should be used as discreet sound sources — so, you might have The
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Beatles’ voices front and center, the guitars spread to the side, drums and bass behind you and other instruments spread around the surround image, putting you right in the middle of the band. The “Yellow Submarine” mixes do that, to a great degree, and some of the mixes on the latest version of “Help!” as well. In doing the mixes for “1” and “1+,” Giles went with the alternative philosophy — that the sound should generally be centered in front of the viewer, as if you’re watching the band onstage, and the surround channels should be used mostly for ambience, to create the feeling of being in a theater. There are some exceptions. The “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “A Day in the Life” mixes put you in the center of those extraordinary sonic maelstroms. A few other tracks have inventive placements as well, and, if you listen closely to the surround channels on some songs, you hear that. while the back channels are mainly ambient, certain elements of the recordings (the lead guitar lines on “Real Love,” for example) are in the front channels only, so that the rear channels reinforce other elements. Mostly, though, the musical information is in the front right, left and center speakers. The effect is pleasant enough, but it could have been more inventively done. For historical purists, of course, none of this matters: Either way, they’ll tell you, 5.1 sound is beside the point for this music. “It’s not the way we heard it back in the day,” is the argument I keep hearing. They’re right, it’s not. And I agree that the DVD and Blu-ray should have come with a mono option (and that the mono track should have had the sometimes unique mixes George Martin made to accompany the promo clips). But, the way we heard these songs, back in the day, was not only in mono, but for many of us, it was also played through a transistor radio, through a single speaker no larger than 3-inches in diameter — or, at times, through a single, plastic earpiece. Often, the songs were accompanied by a DJ overlay — “Here it is, the new Beatles record! Exclusively on WA-Beatle-C” (or WMCA, depending which station had a two-hour lead on the other). That was a kick, at the time. I used to be glued to the radio waiting for it. But it’s not how I want to hear this music now. I want to hear, as close as possible, the sound The Beatles made at Abbey Road when they were recording it. And, in fact, there’s the irony: Many of the same people who are arguing that remixes and surround mixes are uninteresting because that’s not how we heard it in the ’60s would give an eye tooth to sit at a console at Abbey Road, listening to the unmixed session tapes. And nothing could be farther from the way we heard it back then. Allan Kozinn
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Beatles’ ‘Little Films’ Brought Back to Life
As with so much else, The Beatles led the way in what we now call music videos. Back when the Fabs helped invent them, they were called “promo films” short for “promotional” . The intended purpose was expediency: rather than send the group out to every corner of the world that was demanding their presence to plug their latest singles, The Beatles began filming themselves “performing” at a film studio, miming along to their newest release, and sent out the clips in their place. Tony Bramwell, a Brian Epstein associate, was generally credited with overseeing the production of what he called their “little films” — sometimes directing them, sometimes producing, sometimes both. Over time, The Beatles developed a pretty good sense of visuals, one example being the performance of “Help ” seen at the beginning of the film of the same name. Oddly, it is one conspicuous omission from the new DVD set: the “dartless” version. In a particularly productive day Nov. 23, 196 , they produced 10 films of five different songs; taking care to change the set-up and/or their clothes between takes. The Intertel promos, as they came to be called, aired in markets around the world, netting The Beatles a tidy profit for what was a pittance in production costs. But either a desire not to repeat themselves paralleling their approach to music or perhaps simple boredom or a combination of the two led to a breakdown in the formula. Their collective lack of interest in maintaining the illusion of an actual performance led directly to films that documented their attempts to cut up as the cameras rolled, either subtly note Ringo’s background “drumming” pantomime in the “Ticket To Ride” clip or overtly John trying — and succeeding — in getting Paul to completely lose his composure, as seen in one take of “We Can Work It Out.” Going forward, strict adherence to simulating a performance would be the exception and not the rule in their video output. Instead, by 1966 the aesthetics of promo films had risen to a new artistic level, as The Beatles demonstrated with the pair of “Chiswick House” promos filmed in May to promote both sides of the “Paperback Writer”/“Rain” single. Rather than even entertain the notion of an actual performance, John, Paul and George appeared indifferently with their guitars, mouthing the words occasionally, while Ringo dispensed with his kit altogether. The day of what we now know as “concept videos” had arrived, as the films were edited to the rhythms of the songs. Director Mi-
Mystery Tour” would exemplify. Far more groundbreaking and suitably surGET realistic were the beatles on T pair of films shot for their first 1967 JPEG single. Swedish here filmmaker Peter Goldmann, a friend of Klaus Voormann’s, was recommended for the job of creating appropriate visual representation for “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane.” What he delivered — captured in glorious 3 mm Technicolor — stand as perhaps the finest and most adhe Beatles in an earl a earance on . . television. vanced concepts chael Lindsay-Hogg “Let It Be,” “Two of they presented. It Us” deserves much of the credit, employ- may have been the zenith of their promoing the experience he’d gleaned on the tional films, with impressionistic visuals set of “Ready Steady Go,” but so, too, do utterly suited to the songs and meant to Brian Epstein and The Beatles for em- stir moods rather than actually depict the ploying him in the first place to do some- content of the lyrics. thing more than simply place them before Like The Beatles’ sonic innovations, the cameras in full performance mode. experimentation with the visual presenLindsay-Hogg would work with the tation of their music seems to have been group again two years later, bringing things abandoned after 1967; henceforth, their full circle with the “Hey Jude”/“Revolution” promos would either be straight-up perforpromos; clips that partially simulated live mance clips, more or less “Hello GoodTV performances. bye,” “Lady Madonna” or visual collages But, during the time between those running with the song’s themes “Ballad of stints, The Beatles produced three of their John and Yoko,” “Something” . most visually adventurous clips: “A Day in Things would change, of course, with the Life,” “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry the advent of MTV and the modern senFields Forever.” One could make the sibilities that informed musical video case that the handful of musical inter- making: post-Beatles clips like “Baby It’s ludes populating their “Magical Mystery You,” “Words of Love,” “Free As a Bird” Tour” film counted as music videos, too; and “Real Love” reflected this significant that may be the best justification for the change in approach. existence of “MMT.” Considering the ephemeral intent of The “A Day in the Life” film, directed these films after all, who could have enby Bramwell though the direction is offi- visioned a purpose for them once the sincially credited to The Beatles , juxtaposed gle-of-the-day’s chart life had come and shaky home movie footage 16mm of the gone , they hold up surprisingly well 0 Feb. 9, 1967, orchestration session doc- years on. The restoration work done for umenting the party atmosphere, along the “1+” set is nothing less than stellar — with several well-known visitors with out- all the more so considering what the techs side footage depicting Beatle children and had to work with. Five YouTube mini-docBig Ben, among other sundry images. As umentaries detail the restoration efforts, a snapshot of its time, it evokes the era, including the appalling shape 1963’s though at the same time it presages the Royal Variety Show film was in. “From experimental if not to say undisciplined Me to You,” like other early singles, is repapproach to filmmaking that “Magical resented by live performance footage, in
this case the 2016 famous “rattletoyour jewelry” nees up for election the Songwritoccasion. ers Hall of Fame. Eligible voting members Theuntil colorDec. in the11non-black whiteballots. films have to turn in their really pops, looking perhaps even by more ... The original contract signed The striking would have been seen sold by Beatlesthan and itmanager Brian Epstein viewers back for in the screened at Sotheby’s 36 day ,000.when The 1962 docuon non-HD equipment. Knowing what we ment last went under the hammer in 2008 know about the work that went into these at an auction in London, when it went for restorations, make thecontract case 240,000. 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Mary’s There were cases where songs dad tweeted thattwo he was “very proud,” addincluded on athe original “1” CD ing: “What way for meBeatles to celebrate the collection did not existGod asbless live us perforueen’s achievement. all.” ... mances or as a and promo filmHarrison of any kind. Ringo, Barbara Olivia were The producers of this package, this reamong the celebrities attendinginJerry Lee viewer’s opinion, batted . 00 with their ef- 6 Lewis’ sold out 80th birthday show Sept. forts to make upPalladium. for that: theStarr 2000and “Come at the London RobTogether” a disappointment, ert Plant animation wheeled a is birthday cake onto the stagewhat and joined a host of othercomputer musicians being was state-of-the-art and fans inatsinging “Happy Birthday” the animation the time and a wasted tooprock ’n’ roll legend. ... Macca one of portunity. That’s especially trueiswhen it the is many contributors to anewly new iTunes judged alongside the createdsingle, clip “Love they Songnailed to theit:Earth.” proceeds will where “Eight All Days a Week.” be donated to Friends the196 EarthU.S. U.S. Visual representation forofthis and the United Nations Foundation. ... Disingle is stunning, employing pristine footrector Paul King “Paddington” is in talks age from “The Beatles at Shea Stadium” withfilm, Warner to song. helm an TV editedBros. to the Theanimated quickmusical, “Meet Thecapturing Beatles,”the industry recutting works here, dizzying ports say. of The film from producer David momentum Beatlemania in full flower. Heyman of thewould “Harrybe Potter” series will This juncture a good time to utilize songs fromtweaking The Beatles’ catalog. discuss the audio accompany... the About 2,000 people the gathered in Cening DVDs. Perhaps word “tweaktral belies Park’sthe East Meadow Oct. 6 aswork Yoko ing” amount of thoughtful Onowas leddone an attempt create theinto largestthat to bringtothe viewer the everashuman peace saw signitinascommemoramix, Giles Martin his brief to tion people of John’s 7 th birthday, which was give a never-before experienced Oct. 9. The effort fell short of the record sonic immersion via surroundsound. of ,000. ... Statues Theremixes Beatles from could Given the OK to createofnew be installed on Liverpool’s waterfront, the the original multi-tracks — something Liverpool Echo reports. Thewith Cavern that was previously done the Club 1999is paying Submarine 200,000 forSoundtrack” the 8-foot tallrelease bronzes “Yellow of Martin the Fabs. The club saidspace it was into donating — brought air and the the statues to thebetween city, andthe a planning apmixes by working Beatle-application has been submitted by Liverpool proved mono mixes and new stereo and City Councilthat forgives the statues tothe be expeplaced .1 imaging listeners prominently at the waterfront site near rience Martin reckons The Beatles and Brunswick Street and front of the his father would havein issued, hadThree the Graces. technology ... A recently discovered copy of listening existed in the 1960s. an original tape of The Beatles singing Double-tracked lead vocals, for example, “Some Other Guy” at the Cavern Club in were given a glorious spread between 1962 is to be auctioned in Liverpool Nov. channels; an improvement over the origi4. ... Fragmented footage of Lennon doing nal stereo mixes that directed them to one “I’m Losing You” at the Hit Factory in 1980 side, as well as the mono mixes that cenrecently surfaced online, and word is that tered them without giving them scope. there’s much more to come It was surely a challenge to create results that would satisfy every mode of BOOKNEWS listening today: a simple stereo set-up; a Philip Norman’s “Paul McCartney” .1 system, or through earbuds or com-biography is due to published Maybest 3 by puter speakers. ButbeMartin did the Little, Brown and Co. It will be available that could be done, and even beyond:in hardcover, audiobook, e-book, large print
Just to the editions. re-calibrating doneLennon to the andlisten download ... Julian two Threetlesatracks Lynne books, and is cowriting seriesby of Jeff children’s Martin. Both “Free As a Bird” and “Real about making the world a better place, Love” featureBart sonic elements not preswith author Davis. New York literary ent in theTrident original releases, formto agency Media Groupinisthe looking ofsell alternate vocals and George on the rights bridgeto international domestic ofthe “FAAB” and“Touch guitar the partsEarth.” lead ... fillsEnteron first title, “Real Love” . A purist may quibble with tainment Weekly reports Harrison is the this decisionmaking, for along sonic subject of a new comic bookwith biography improvements, some aesthetic judgments from StormFront Comics. “Orbit: George were rendered. at worst, we fansPagola now Harrison” wasBut, written by Carols have some The new variations to enjoy alongMorales. 32-page book is available side the original releases. in both print and across digital platforms Anyincludes remaining are relatively mi-In and art issues by Angel Bernuy. ... nor, the given works the frombounty Apcor they’ve Books isproduced. a print limThe Please from “The ited“Please edition of “Who’sMe” the clip Redhead on the Ed Sullivan Show” sounds spedBeatles up, given Roof,” a memoir by former aide that they Harrington brought the performing EKevin previously key onlyofavailflat up to to match original able asEan e-book.the The print recording. version will
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For but the hardcores, sitting through beallexpanded with a new chapter about multiple takes work of the song for three Harrington’s on same the Concert Ban“Hello Goodbyes,” might stir Beatle gla Desh. Also inetc. the pipeline from Apcor fatigue; keep in mind, that Stuart was not how is a new book by about Sutcliffe they to be viewed back in If andwere Peteintended Best’s lives after The Beatles. the day. Butany viewers have choice nowayou have news clippings, pictures and days, they can befrom watched wayreotherand memorabilia 1963intoany 1966 that suits the garding Stubeholder. and Pete or have seen Pete Lastly:bands the less said about thethe “bonus” Best’s in concert, email authors contributions from Paul and Ringo, the at fab2 aisforapplebook.com. ... “1974: better. may feel theYork opportunity The Some Promotion Manthat New City,” the forsecond them volume to go on with some inin record the memoirs of longtime sights wascompany blown, while others and can mainrecord executive Beatles tain that anything is better than nothing. collector Dave Morrell, is available now on ToAmazon.com each their own. in paperback and for Kindle. Robert Rodriguez RMEDIAWATCH R T Out on the stands
now are three special magazine issues commemorating
PICK UP rosenay ad august 015 (magical history tour) from page 7 of last issue here PICK UP rosenay ad august 015 (magical history tour) from page 5 of last issue here
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Beatles Fans Finally Get What They Want!
There have been four phases that Beatles fans have gone through regarding enjoying the promotional videos the band produced during their prime years. Especially for first generation fans and private collectors, the newly released “1+” package completes the cycle. Phase 1: Television. If you were around during the years of Beatlemania, you most likely saw The Beatles on TV — if you were lucky A weekly chore was scouring the TV Guide for listings that included the details of what shows were on, when they were broadcast, and — most importantly — who was going to appear. Programs like “The Ed Sullivan Show,” “Shindig,” “Hullaballoo” and the myriad variety shows on at the time were all good opportunities for a glimpse of the Fabs or some other music act. During those “dark ages,” being in front of the TV at the appointed hour was mandatory if you wanted to see whatever was being broadcast. Catching The Beatles or any of the other British Invasion groups was just that — catching it as it happened. An occasional rerun or special showing might provide a second chance, but, for the most part, one showing was it. Many of the videos that have been included in “1+” have only been seen by the general public during those one-off showings. Phase 2: The almighty VCR. Near the end of the 1970s, a new electronic toy became more common — a device to actually record and play back any television show. Anyone lucky enough to have access to any vintage TV shows was sought out, and the treasures that they had could be shared with other enthusiasts. Hours were spent with VCRs linked together, making copies and copies of copies of those ob-
scure broadcasts — the visual and audio quality deteriorating with each succeeding reproduction, all done in real time. If there was 6 hours of footage to share, it took 6 hours to make a copy Soon, collectors were networking and cataloging libraries of rare clips and unusual programs. International programming brought fresh new footage and interviews to our collections. And some collections took up entire closets full of these little black boxes of magic Phase 3: The DVD. Technology advances and the video disc becomes the standard for entertainment centers all around the world. The footage and rarities amassed during the VCR days now are transferred to the digital medium. No more deterioration of the quality and no more real-time copying process. Plus, the space for storage changed from a cupboard full of video cassettes to a shelf or two full of shining little hockey pucks. Now, with the release of “1+,” Beatles fans have been given an almost complete collection of the most famous promotional clips, most produced during their pinnacle of popularity. The groundbreaking approach, the visual barrage, the promotional ideals, the history of a band presented in pristine quality is something fans have been clamoring for. From the truly unique first black and white flickering images — showing the band either playing live or miming to the records — through the visually experimental days and including the final efforts, each of these gems captures an individual moment in The Beatles’ career. Regardless of how complete a collection is, how great the sound is or how rare the availability has been, almost every-
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thing paralleling the music on “1” is there. But not just a clip to go with the song, the sound is also improved and enhanced — and in several cases multiple versions are included. Many of these odd versions have been elusive to collectors in the past, like the alternate versions of “Hello Goodbye.” Some of the clips stir our emotions, like the early promo films, where the Boys are clearly having so much fun, or the clips from the Apple rooftop, where it is evident that the dream is nearly over. The interaction, especially between Paul and John, consistently shows that both truly loved being Beatles. This package, with two hours of video, new audio and a booklet, is an example of one time when Apple Corps actually “got it right.” One issue, certainly: Is it too late? Which brings us to ... Phase 4: Online Now, nearly every appearance, performance, interview, outtake and utterance is available as conveniently as typing in a few words into a search engine. As we see the interest in The Beatles hold steady, in fact making another surge in popularity due to this most recent release, yet another medium is in play to accommodate the fans. This raises the question about the place of “physical” media — and the future of more releases like this in the coming days. There is still a trove of treasures not accessible, such as “Let It Be,” Shea Stadium, Hollywood Bowl and so many more. “1+” shows us that it is possible to release this material, with a historical perspective and in high enough quality to meet today’s standards. Let’s hope Apple and the powers that be continue to give the fans what they want. Rick Glover
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‘Ready Steady Go’ Led to Filming the Fabs ren setters in song riting recor ing ro uction st le an fashion he Beatles also ioneere another area of o cul ture. Starting in re ating the revolution b ears the began aking the sort of ro otional l s for their songs that e no call “ usic vi eos.” s artl asse ble co en iu of the grou s for ar thinking vi eos long has been near the to of Beatles fans ish list along ith the release of the concert l of their a earance at Shea Sta iu an the reis sue of their nal l “Let t Be” . o the long ait is over ith he Beatles “ ” an elu e e ition “ ” ulti D D D sets offering so e ro otional l s an select a earances. isting u ashe out an egra e versions of this aterial have been ainstakingl re store to ristine visual ualit enhance b ne l re i e au io overseen b iles artin son of Beatles ro ucer eorge artin. he results are breathtaking an len a ne foun a reciation of he Bea tles visual canon. ichael Lin sa ogg irector of the grou s l “Let t Be ” as res on sible for several of the highlights of this collection na el the ro otional l s for “Pa erback riter ” Rain ” e u e” an Revolution ” along ith a selection of cli s lifte fro “Let t Be” “ et Back ” “Let t Be ” he Long an in ing Roa ” “Don t Let e Do n” . n this rst of t o install ents ontributing itor en Shar talks ith Lin sa ogg about his historic visual e cursions ith ohn Paul eorge an Ringo. ... What has been your overall impression of The Beatles’ “1” package I thought this project, which is overseen by Jonathan Clyde from Apple, did a really spectacular of restoration, tidying up, brushing up, parting the hair in the right place on the images as well as on the sound. I think it’s a really great package. Also, over the years the clip that we shot of “Rain” in Chiswick House and in Chiswick Gardens was the one that I had seen more and the one you see more on YouTube. But I think the one we did in the studio was really really good. It was interesting seeing the studio version we shot of “Rain” and then the Chiswick House “Paperback Writer.” We shot the band doing “Rain” and “Paperback Writer” at Abbey Road Studios because we were there and we had to get these songs done and then the next day we shot them again in a totally different way and a totally different look at Chiswick House. How did your background working on the TV show “Ready Steady Go” pre-
having met these people and figuring out a little bit about the way they worked, and this was before I met The Beatles, I had a little more confidence that I had some rock ’n’ roll chops than I would have if I’d GET met The Beatles a year before. I knew that paperback-writer I’d shot some good rock ’n’ roll. I’d done a couple of wonderful shows with the Rolling peg Stones when they first put out “Satisfachere tion,”’ and I’d done some wonderful stuff with the Who. So, to answer your question, working in rock ’n’ roll and directing “Ready Steady Go” gave me more confidence when I met The Beatles than I might otherwise have had. The first fruits of your work with the Fab Four were for the films for “Paperback Writer” and Rain,” their first in vivid color. Did you have a game plan in mind with these films Was the band’s manager, Brian Epstein, giving you input or ideas No, Brian Epstein wasn’t giving ideas, “Pa erback riter.” but Epstein, in fact, was sort of putting his pare you for working with The Beatles thumb down on ideas. What happened Well, I guess by the time I came to was, The Beatles themselves at that meet The Beatles, which was the spring of time were working on an album, so that 1966, I’d been doing “Ready Steady Go” was their main focus. One of the things I for pretty much a year. “Ready Steady Go” learned about them is, basically, they’re had gone on in August of ’63 and I came musicians before they’re actors. Of course, on in March of ’6 . But then I kept on it. they had acted in “Help ” and in “Hard Before me, there was sort of a rotating Day’s Night,” but they were musicians first group of directors, three or four or five of and foremost. They wanted the videos to them. They were all nice, but the problem be good, of course, but it wasn’t their main was they were in their 40s, if not older, and focus. I’d had an idea for a kind of story video. Now, story videos weren’t very much done at the time; I mean, videos weren’t very much GET done at the time. I did The Beatles in ’66 michael lindsay-hogg and then the Stones peg and then The Beatles here and the Stones again in ’68. I almost did a Kinks one in ’68 also. I also did a Who one at the end of ’66. So, you had a story idea initially ichael Lin sa ogg. for these songs they didn’t really like rock ’n’ roll. They reNo, only “Paperback Writer.” ally wanted to be directing Shirley Bassey What was the concept at the London Palladium rather than the The idea was they’d all be journalists Kinks or the Pretty Things or anyone like working in a newspaper office, but secretly that. So, I was the right age; I’m the same one of them, Paul, was trying to write a paage John Lennon would have been, so perback novel, and then it would be how I started doing “Ready Steady Go” and I they would help him or how they would not formed early on good relationships with the help him. But it would give us a setting of a Animals, the Who and the Rolling Stones. newspaper office, which I thought would be I’d always loved rock ’n’ roll music since I interesting. So, I suggested this to them, was a school boy. I used to hurry home for which, of course, in those days would have Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand.” But, been a very low-tech newspaper office
“What’s this shot gonna be?” When we came to do “Hey Jude,” “Revolution” and finally the “Let It Be” film, they were starting to pull in different directions, because they GET hadn’t been touring since ’66 and they’d been startbeatles rain ing to live separate lives, peg not sort of in each other’s pockets, which was the way here it had been since they were teenagers. I’d say that Paul was the one who was more focused on getting them all connected to a project, because I think he thought if they were just wandering around in their separate worlds that it wouldn’t be so good for The Beatles. I think he was very keen for The Shooting “Rain” at his ick ouse. Beatles to stay together. You can see that in the compared to what we have today. There still would have been typewriters and sec- “Let It Be” film, where Paul is trying to retaries taking dictation or whatever. So, I implore the rest of the band to do shows gave them the idea and they said, “Yeah, and work. Exactly. He recognized that the original maybe, let’s think about it.” Then, a couple of days later, which was probably about a week before the shoot, I got a phone call from NEMS, which was Brian Epstein’s company, saying quote unquote, “Mr. Epstein didn’t want anything unusual, just a video of the boys performing.” I suppose, from his point of view, I guess they hadn’t been seen for a while. They hadn’t had any videos made since the ones that came along after “Help ” So I think he just thought it would be simpler and I’m not sure he wanted anything fancy or complicated; he just wanted to show them performing to the world. Brian was a nice man; he was interesting. He was quite a reserved, sort of reclusive person, but he said no to that, so that’s why we shot “Rain” and “Paperback Writer” the way we did. What was the appeal of location shooting at Chiswick House It wasn’t that far away and it had beautiful gardens. I thought it would be the complete reverse of a studio set-up. In working with the band on those initial promos through the “Let It Be” film, was there one member of The Beatles most interested in the process I think the answer to that is really to do with them and how they changed over the years. I think when we did “Rain” and “Paperback Writer” they all had more or less the same degree of interest, which was on low boil, but, sure, there was interest. They were interested in all their work; music and movies. They’d made two movies and would go on to make “Magical Mystery Tour.” It wasn’t their primary thing they were interested in; that was always music. But, yeah, in ’66, for the first two films we did, they were interested and asking,
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about English weather. English weather can be pretty inconsistent. When we shot the videos, it was a gloriously beautiful day. We all turned up there, The Beatles, all the attendant road managers, chauffeurs and Brian Epstein, the vibe was very good just because it was a beautiful, beautiful early summer day. That’s the thing I remember most it about it. We got great Beatles weather. Did Paul or anyone else in the band or management tell you to stay away from close-ups of him, as he’d recently had a biking accident and a large piece of one of his front teeth had been broken No, none of that happened. I’ll tell you one of the things that was interest tangentially. When we were gonna go and shoot “Revolution,” I found myself walking along a corridor with John Lennon. He was looking a little tired, like he had been up late and was a little pale, so I said, “Do you wanna go to makeup?” And he said, “Well, what for?” and I said, “Well, it’ll probably make you look a little bit healthier.” And then he said, “No.” And I said, “Why not?” And he said, “Because I’m John Lennon.” What he meant was not that he was too grand or too famous to go to makeup, but that he wasn’t an acGET tor pretending to be hey ude John Lennon. He was a person, and, peg as such, if he didn’t here look as good as he might have the day before, it didn’t matter. That’s the way he looked that day. So going back to Paul and his chipped tooth, that was the same feeling they all had, which was, “We’re not actors pretending to be The Beatles, we actually are The Beatles, and we’re musicians. If we don’t look so good “ e u e” at ickenha . today and one of us has a chipped tooth, feelings they had for each other and for so be it.” each other’s music was starting to fray and Two years later, you were brought in he didn’t want that. He recognized how ab- to direct the clips for “Hey Jude” and solutely transformational The Beatles had “Revolution,” which are straight ahead been and he knew they still had good years performances. “Revolution” has its in them if they wanted to stay together. So, own special energy due to John’s live Paul was the one who was more focused vocal and live backing vocals from Paul on getting projects going. and George. Thinking back to the shoot at ChisThose videos were shot at Twickenham wick Park for “Rain” and “Paperback Studios. There was some issue with the Writer,” what are your most vivid memo- British Musician’s Union in that period, I ries can’t remember what it was exactly, but it Well, first of all, I chose that location and had to do with playing live and miming to the most vivid memory I have laughing is do with promos and to do with television
the obsessiveness about the intake to wouldn’t be proper considering his leappearances. written the song. his body and a sort of ritualistic spiri- gal problems with the Lennon estate Going back to “Ready Steady Go” for I was really glad to see “Revolution” tual neurosis took hold was there I had met Fred Seaman laughs on a a second, we were the first musical show at the recent Beatles “1” presentation for anything thatofyou abletotoactudid TV show a few...years ago,that in such man- I I think in new history rockwere ’n’ roll press in L.A. because looksagreat cover about that era ner that I don’t think he would’ve taken ally have live sound. Sometimes totally good and it sounds good too and GETthink ittolooks a parent, becoming father kindly an what approach from me’n’ laughs . liveBecoming sound, like when the Rollinga Stones also shows a great rock roll band sullivan 19was 5 I mean, to actually turned his mind verybeat much allied to the late did Sean “Satisfaction.” Sometimes you’daway have He they are.very, that, Rolling Stones. from himself. and when youvocals, are lookAlbert strangely enoughon when playback of theIf music and live so itpeg OfGoldman the four — clips you worked with ing after a small child, time passes more first I Beatles, went to the Dakota apartment, which wasn’t that unusual. The which one holds the most here only five months after John’s death, slowly can’t remember afterwards So, and Theyou Beatles would mime playing was significance what happened. Those years did sortand of the I’d person me around was their instruments to the backing tracks havewho said showed “Hey Jude,” just because pass in a haze in some ways. was Fred Seaman, very soft-footed, John would sing live with Paul andHe George the song is soagreat, until I saw discreet “Revoluslugging a child around wop” Central Park, voor person. kindday. of person I thought then singing the “shooby-doo backing tion” theThe other I haven’t yet seen the taking him swimming that in sort of day thing.we I John and“Hey YokoJude,” needed around cals. Since we kneworlater the restored but to I’mhave gonna take a also thatdo to “Hey say that he was very very quiet. So coin for this werethink gonna Jude” with aarecluse crowd, them; quarter outdiscreet, of my pocket. Flips It’s was wrong; was traveling. contact I didn’t approach I didn’t attach I spoke with he Paul and the rest His of the band book “Revolution.” laughs him. But that was on a with the Japanese, Yoko’sthat family, and an awful and they felt it was with important we have coin flip. lot of importance to the book that Japanese culturebetween became“Revolution” very important. because of the continual use of a big distinction and he wrote Did you get any specific feedback There was that story of seeing photo on of the word I think if you’re writ“Hey Jude,” so “Revolution” wasa filmed from The“apparently.” Beatles themselves regarding purposegreat-grandfather kind of down andand dirty. We didhe’d that ing theafour promos you you directed Yoko’s thinking riveting memoir, don’t say “apsong in theinafternoon then “Hey Jude” parently Yeah,this once we did the first two clips, I been him a former and life — and it turned happened.” afterthat a short break ublicit on intoshot the night. the same person at Yoko NEMS out Yoko’s great-grandfather had also didfrom youSho first up with BSmeal elevision fro the gotHow “a call Sullivan ” hook a earance. Both were filmed So at yes, Twickenham and in that had called me originally, saying The been assassinated. there was 1981 100 on 2 at No. 4 .said Thethat following 1. The Oct. thatvarithe we to contrast one from the other, Beatles were allBillboard pleased with those. They a lotwanted of Sept. information. Yoko they I came to30 New York toreported appear on week it moved was up todown the third spot before single had been certified gold. so “Revolution” and dirty. That’s were concentrating on touring America both had vowed that they wouldn’t do any ous things with the publication of “Shout ” reaching thewith top the on Oct. 9, them replacing the for Ringo’s “Act Naturally” someof why itand starts four of onstage laston time, so I didn talso get saw aAmerica” bunch work John was backsliding laughs and the I went the “Good Morning chart action, entering the Billboard Hot 100 McCoys’ “Hang on Sloopy.” It remained and the lights are dark and then the lights flowers from them but got a call from and was still writing songs. But he wasn’t show and in the office when I came outtheir of Sept. 2 ateveryone No. 87 and peaking atwith No.it No. 1 for weeks before to No.it’s 3, on come upafour and theyexistence sing it falling and, office saying was happywas leading solitary like bam, Howard the studio after appearance, there a being passed by the Rolling Stones’ “Get 47 itswe’d seven-week run. Cash Box over. andduring hoped work“Itogether As Hughes. … Bob Gruen said that Lennon call from Yoko saying just sawagain. you on OffThe My only Cloud” and the Toys’ “A Lover’s also charted the flip side for seven weeks, I had from theminwas John television for the latter wasabout “Hey John Jude” was planningnote to be a chronicler the end, and two, whatwhich you said Concerto.” The song spent a total of go 11 with a peak of No.I know 28. Record World resaying to me that for Niven, the lyrics, “Don’t and very “Revolution,” when “Hey Jude” someone like David and that he was nice and would you like to come ported the song even higherBrothers during its weeks with in the Hot 100.Mao, Cash Box not charted talking Chairman you’re gonwas shown on the Smothers TV would be theforone write the memoir to over?” So thaton same day, I did go“Act overNatuand “Yesterday” 13 to weeks, including seven weeks the charts, with na make it withera anyone anyhow” that three there she show everyone was really happy, because pull this whole together. met me in the office and she said, nearly Top 2060,000 while peakat a the top, while Record Worldhe listed the rally” be close-up on him because thought the next daymaking itlike hadtothe sold more Did you approach Fred Seaman “Maybe you’d see like where we were ing at No. 21. song for 12 weeks, with two weeks at No. that was the key lyric for the song, and he’d copies than it had the day before, so it was for the book, or did you think that it living?” And I talked to her and then Fred
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Seaman showedliterally me thecame apartment. “Yesterday” to Paul in a obviously a good promo. dream. He woke up onebedroom morning with the Did you see John’s The power of TV. lovely in wasn’t his head. He got out of I Yeah, did.melody The bed in there anymore the power of TV and, also, it was bed,there sat at the things piano and began playing and were up inBut carda great song and we packed did it well. then the tune. Concerned that the melody from board crates. It was just like someone the interesting thing was when we was were his dream was a song hewas hadstill previously moving house. TV set there, six I shooting “HeyThe Jude,” we did about heard,…Paul played the song…for singer recall. It was dark outside view takes, and between each take the there was AlmaCentral Cogan Park. on the…green deco Eavewas It wasart verycameras small about a 10-minute break fora the staff piano at herthe mother’s house, asking room, too. And corner room in to get repositioned and to get notesthe and if she had had heard tune. Alma told him apartment all the his clothes hanging on a for the videotape to be reloaded and get she did not know what was and that it revolving racks sortit breaks, of ghostly boufresh reel. And,like in a those after first was beautiful. After people kept telling tique. Really, everything he’d ever worn. standing on the stage doing nothing, The Pauldon’t it was lovely and as previously unheard, We think of John being careBeatles thought, oh well, there’svery a few hunhe and claimed the melody as he hiskept own.everyPrior ful hoarding things, but dred people here, we better do something to coming up with the lyrics, the song was thing. just to keep them from getting restive. And called “Scrambled Eggs.” and Ringo’s What Harrison’s then theydid started to play old Tamla MoIn Barry Miles’ “Shout!” “Paul McCartney Many camps say about town, blues and even old Beatles songs. Years From Now,”sure, Pauland tellsI of his think early really don’t SoI’m they werenot able to connect with an audiperformances of the tune: “The lyrics used either themwhich had much of a camp, reence of again, they hadn’t done since to go, Scrambled eggs, oh, my baby, how they’d touring two years before. ally, by stopped that point. … I didn’t get any sort I love your legs. ...’ There was generally a Watching “Hey Jude” the of feedback at the all, really. Laughsvideo, I don’t laugh at that point, you didn’t need to do band seems jazzed to be infair such close think I gave them a particularly shake. any more lyrics.” proximity to an audience. No, you didn’t. During the filming of “Help ,” Paul would Oh, they were. Then them Funnily enough, one ofthat themade aspects often sit at the piano and refine the song by think, huh, maybe we canwas do another projof John that I discovered that he alperfecting the melody and adding a middle ect. So, getting back to your original quesways liked Ringo. He thought Ringo was eight. While on vacation in Portugal in late tion, they enjoyed doing “Revolution” and truthful, Ringo represented May, he and began putting lyrics to his normalmelody. “Hey Jude” and connecting withshould people ity to weeks John. And felt that Two later,John the song washecomplete again. That’s what ledintothe what eventually see that Ringo was OK post-Beatle and ready to be recorded. endedAnd up as “Let Be.” world. a lot of Itpeople ofOn the evening of Junesaid 14, that Paulhe auditen mentioned that he wanted to see that tioned “Yesterday” before George Martin. : S Ringo was alright and getting fairthe income The decision was made to song I record in those later years. TV vocal accompanied only T as a solo Paul as The Beatles, you haveguitar. this by As hisfarEpiphone Texan acoustic reputation as this stern journalist, but
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1965 Holiday Season Was Special for Fans
The 196 holiday season was a special time for Beatles fans. On Dec. 3, Parlophone simultaneously released the double A-side single “We Can Work It Out” b/w “Day Tripper” and the album “Rubber Soul.” Three days later, the company issued a new EP titled “The Beatles’ Million Sellers.” These records gave British fans 16 new songs plus an EP containing four singles that each sold a million copies: “She Loves You,” “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “Can’t Buy Me Love” and “I Feel Fine.” In America, Capitol touted its release of “the latest and maybe the greatest Beatles album in time for the holidays” in the Dec. 11 Billboard. Its version of the “Rubber Soul” LP was issued Dec. 6, along with the same new single. Capitol’s promotional poster for “Rubber Soul” promised “12 Brand New Songs Never Before Available in the U.S.A.” Shoppers were told the album was “Great For Giving Or Just Groovy Listening ” Back across the Pond, the Nov. 2 Record Retailer reported EMI was facing huge demand for the new Beatles LP, single and EP, with advance orders for “Rubber Soul” at nearly 00,000. An EMI spokesman said, “The three Beatles records are going to place an enormous strain on our pressing resources.” Although the company considered having Capitol Records in the States press discs to help meet demand, this was not done. Capitol had its hands full with pressing its own copies of the new Beatles single and album. EMI had intended for “We Can Work It Out” to be the A-side of the group’s new single, but John insisted that “Day Tripper” be plugged as the top side. Producer George Martin told NME in its Nov. 19 issue that “After we gave both titles to EMI the boys decided they preferred Day Tripper,’ but both sides are extremely good and worth a lot of plays. As far as EMI’s official policy is concerned, there is no A-side — both will be promoted equally on the company’s Radio Luxembourg programmes, for example.” The Nov. 20 Disc Weekly reported that The Beatles were excited about the new single, considering it their best ever. George was quoted as saying, “We’re all made up about it.” As for which song was the best, Harrison said, “After a lot of talk, we decided Day Tripper’ is really the top track. This is what we wanted all along.” The single made its debut in the Dec. 9 Record Retailer as “Day Tripper”/“We Can Work It Out” at No. 2, sandwiched between the Seekers’ chart-topper “The Carnival Is Over” and the Who’s “My Generation.” The following week it moved up to No. 1, where it remained for five weeks before giving
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way to “Keep on Running” by the Spencer Davis Group. The Beatles disc charted for 12 weeks, including nine in the Top 10. Melody Maker reported the single as “We Can Work It Out”/“Day Tripper” in its chart listings. The record made its debut Dec. 11 at No. 3, infuriating Beatles manager Brian Epstein, who was livid that the disc was not No 1. “The chart must be made up of returns from inferior shops — fish shops and the like.” The magazine reported that people seemed to like both sides of the disc. It noted that the Beatles single sold out on Saturday the day after its release , but that the chart-topping Seekers’ disc had sales from the entire week. The next week the new Beatles single moved up to No. 1, where it remained for four weeks. It spent 11 weeks on the charts, including nine in the Top 10. New Musical Express also listed the single as “We Can Work It Out”/“Day Tripper.” The disc debuted at No. 1 on Dec. 10 and held down the top spot for five weeks on the charts. The BBC and Disc Weekly also reported the single at No. 1. The record reportedly shipped over 7 0,000 units by Dec. 8 and reached the 1 million mark Dec. 20. It was given a gold disc award by Disc Weekly, indicating sales of over 1 million units. In America, “We Can Work It Out” was the more popular track when the single was
released as Capitol . The song began its 12-week run in the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 36 on Dec 18. Three weeks later, on Jan. 1, 1966, it spent its first of two straight weeks at No. 1, temporarily displacing Simon Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence.” After falling behind for one week to “The Sound of Silence,” the song returned to the top for one more week Jan. 29, before dropping to No. 4 behind Petula Clark’s “My Love” not the later-written McCartney song with the same title , the Beach Boy’s “Barbara Ann” and an instrumental used in an Alka-Seltzer commercial, the T-Bones’ “No Matter What Shape You’re Stomach’s In .” Cash Box and Record World reported the song at No. 1 as well. “Day Tripper” also fared well, with Billboard reporting the song at No. , Cash Box at 10 and Record World at 13. The RIAA certified sales of 1 million units in January 1966. The Capitol single was packaged in a picture sleeve featuring a cropped version of the Robert Freeman color photograph that served as the cover for the British album “Beatles For Sale.” “Day Tripper” was written specifically for the singles market. Like the previous singles “I Feel Fine” and “Ticket to Ride,” the song is dominated by a memorable riff, this time played in tandem by George on lead guitar double-tracked and Paul on bass. The rhythm track was recorded on the afternoon of Oct. 16, 196 , with vocal overdubs taking place that evening. Highlights include John and Paul’s vocals, Ringo’s drumming, a strategically placed tambourine and the exciting instrumental break, accompanied with backing vocals, which boils over into the return of the dominant riff. “We Can Work It Out” was recorded four days later on Oct. 20. Once again, the afternoon session was used to perfect the instrumental backing acoustic guitar, bass, drums, tambourine and John’s overdubbed harmonium with vocals being superimposed during the evening. Additional vocals were added Oct. 29. The song is interesting from both a musical and lyrical standpoint. John’s observations during the song’s pessimistic bridge “life is very short” serve as an intriguing counterpoint to Paul’s optimistic verses “we can work it out” . While The Beatles had effectively used television appearances to promote their songs, the group was getting weary of these performances. Furthermore, their
popularity was so great that they could not possibly meet the demand of all of the worldwide networks that wanted the group to appear on their shows. This problem was solved by producing their own promotional videos for distribution to television networks in England and foreign markets such as America and Japan. To understand how innovative this concept was, one must realize this took place 1 years before MTV. As 196 drew to a close, only a handful of promotional clips had been produced. The Beatles entered Twickenham Film Studios where several scenes from their movies had been filmed Nov. 23, 196 , to shoot videos for five songs, including both sides of their upcoming single. Joe McGrath directed the clips, which were shot onto 2-inch black and white videotape. The Beatles lip-synced their way through three versions each of “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper,” two takes of “I Feel Fine” and one version each of “Help ” and “Ticket to Ride.” Tony Bramwell oversaw the session for NEMS. Videos of “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper” made their television debut on the BBC’s “Top of the Pops” Dec. 2, the night before the single was released in England. The videos of these songs were not broadcast in the United States until Jan. 3, 1966, when they were featured on NBC’s “Hullabaloo.” The deluxe video edition of “1+” contains all three “Day Tripper” videos and two of the three “We Can Work It Out” videos. In England, the “Rubber Soul” album made its debut in Record Retailer at No. 12 Dec. 9, while the “Help ” LP was at No. 3. The next week, it moved up to No. 2, sandwiched between the soundtracks to “The Sound of Music” and “Mary Poppins.” On Dec. 23, “Rubber Soul” moved up to the No. 1 spot, where it remained for eight straight weeks before being replaced by “The Sound of Music.” The Beatles LP spent 42 straight weeks on the charts during 196 and 1966, including 11 weeks at No. 2, 26 in the Top and 30 in the Top 10. The album debuted in the Dec. 11 Melody Maker at No. 1, where it remained for 13 straight weeks followed by seven straight weeks at No. 2. The magazine charted the album for 31 weeks. NME and Disc and Music Echo also reported the album at No. 1 for several weeks. The “Rubber Soul” sessions began Oct. 12. Due to the limited time available to have the album in stores by early December, The Beatles had to work quickly. During the next month, the group was in the studio for 100 hours over 1 days, producing a 14-track album and two songs for single release. During these sessions, the group began experimenting with different instruments, including fuzz bass, harmonium, Hammond organ and sitar. They produced a remarkable and diverse body of
work, all the more amazing given the time constraints. While The Beatles’ previous albums had been collections of great performances, “Rubber Soul” is best appreciated when considered as an entire record — one that set a new standard for the band and for rock albums. Martin’s reflections indicate that this record’s cohesive and innovative nature was intentional: “It was the first album to present a new, growing Beatles to the world. For the first time, we began to think of albums as art on their own, as complete entities.” This is not meant to take
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knew the words were a disaster, but liked the melody. Paul sought John’s assistance at Lennon’s home in Weybridge. After a fruitless attempt to salvage the song, the two took a break and then came up with “drive my car” to replace “golden rings.” The story quickly evolved into a movie-star wanna-be offering the singer the opportunity to drive her car. The theme worked well for the duo, as “drive my car” was an old blues expression for sex. In the end, the girl admitted she had no car, but had “found a driver and that’s a start.” “Drive My Car” was completed in a single night session Oct. 13 that started at 7 p.m. and ran until 12:1 a.m. This was the first time The Beatles recorded past midnight, a practice that soon become the norm. The group took four GET takes to complete the basic backing rubber soul billboard ad track, which was then embellished with overdubs. The backing includes TI Ringo’s drums providing the beat for here George on his Fender Stratocaster and Paul on bass playing in tandem a line similar to the bass part played by Donald “Duck” Dunn on the 196 Otis Redding song “Respect.” Other instruments include tambourine, cowbell, Paul’s piano and Paul’s slide guitar played on his Epiphone Casino, which is heard during the song’s introduction, middle solo and ending. Paul, in a soulful-sounding voice, sings the lead with John. George supplies backing vocals. The song’s fade-out is reminiscent of the ending passage to “Ticket To Ride,” but with “My baby don’t care” replaced with “Beep, beep, beep, beep, yeah.” The soulful instrumental and vocal feel of “Drive My Car” make a itol Recor s a in Billboar aga ine. it an ideal opener for an album titled “Rubber Soul.” anything away from the songs; many of the “Norwegian Wood” was originally titled tracks on the disc are among the group’s “This Bird Has Flown” when the song was finest. The proof of the quality is that six of recorded Oct. 12, during the first day of re14 songs on “Rubber Soul” were included cording for the album. Although completed on “The Beatles 1962-1966” hits collection, in one take, the basic backing track was the most from any Beatles album. When subject to numerous overdubs. The most “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper” striking musical contribution to the song are added, a remarkable half of the 16 was George’s sitar, marking the first time songs recorded during the “Rubber Soul” the Indian instrument was featured in a resessions are on the hits collection. leased rock song. Allan Evans reviewed “Rubber Soul” in The lyrics are equally interesting. Acthe Dec. 3 New Musical Express. He stat- cording to John: “I was trying to write about ed that the “great thing about this LP is that an affair without letting me wife know ... The Beatles are still finding different ways so it was very gobbledegook. I was sort of to make us enjoy listening to them.” After writing from my experiences, girls’ flats.” In describing each song, Evans concluded, Barry Miles’ “Many Years From Now,” Paul “Altogether a good album, with plenty of explains how the song basically wrote itself tracks you’ll want to hear again and again, from John’s classic opening line, “I once liking them better each time.” had a girl, or should I say, she once had The special nature of the songs is evi- me.” The song evolved into a story of an dent from the start. “Drive My Car” is a clev- evening at a woman’s flat where the priner and effective rocker that grabs and holds cipal decor was cheap pine, often referred the listener’s attention. The song’s music to as Norwegian wood. After being led on was written by Paul, who initially came up by the girl and then forced to sleep in the with lyrics full of corny things such as the bath tub, the singer awakes in the morning chorus “you can give me golden rings.” He to find himself alone. Although the ending
lyric could be interpreted to mean lighting a fire to keep warm, Paul said that it meant the singer burned down the house as an act of revenge. While the initial Oct. 12 recording of the song is quite remarkable, The Beatles decided to completely re-record the song nine days later. The previously unissued Take 1 was later released on “Anthology 2.” The remake and finished master of “Norwegian Wood” was recorded Oct. 21. The day’s third attempt at the song Take 4 proved to be the charm. The basic track consists of John’s lead vocal and acoustic guitar, Paul’s backing vocal and bass, and George’s acoustic 12-string guitar. George overdubbed his sitar part. Other embellishments include tambourine, claps or someone tapping their thighs and Ringo’s bass drum and crash cymbal faintly heard at the end of the song. “You Won’t See Me” was recorded in two takes at the Nov. 11 final recording session for the album. The song, which McCartney described as “very Motownflavoured,” features Paul on lead vocal, piano and overdubbed bass, with backing vocals from John and George. Ringo is on drums, and George provides a chopping rhythm guitar part. The album’s song credits on the back cover list Mal “organ” Evans on Hammond organ, which can be heard providing a sustained A note throughout the last verse. “Nowhere Man” was the first Beatlescomposed song with no reference to love. As such, it has been subjected to much interpretation, with some suggesting it was written about a particular person or as commentary on the loss of faith in modern society. The song’s origin is actually much simpler. According to John, the song resulted from the pressure of having to come up with more songs for the album. “I’d spent five hours that morning trying to write a song that was meaningful and good and I finally gave up and lay down.” This lowered John’s self-esteem. “I thought of myself as Nowhere Man — sitting in his nowhere land.” The song, “words music, the whole damn thing,” then came quickly. The group’s first attempt at the song took place toward the end of the Oct. 21 session. After a series of rehearsals, two takes were recorded. The first was an immediate false start, and the second left much to be desired, so the group called it a night. The following afternoon The Beatles recorded three more takes numbered 3- , with Take 4 being the best. The initial backing consisted of acoustic guitar, bass and drums. George and John then overdubbed Fender Stratocaster parts, including the song’s melodic middle eight guitar solo that ends with a fifth-fret harmonic. At the group’s request, the electric guitars were given extra full treble sound by the Abbey Road engineers. John, Paul and George then double-tracked their harmony vocals
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3 and then double-tracked on Track 4. The four-track master was then copied to a new tape with Tracks 1 and 2 transferred to Tracks 1 and 2, and GET the backing vocals on Tracks 3 beatles 5 group and 4 mixed down to Track 3 to leave Track 4 open for overJPEG dubs. This was identified as here Take 2. Paul then overdubbed bass, played on his new Rickenbacker 4001S bass guitar with a capo on the fifth fret through a Fender Bassman amp, while George superim“Rubber Soul” set a ne stan ar . posed a guitar solo on his Epiphone Casino, and John added over two tracks, with John singing lead. George’s “Think for Yourself” was com- nylon-string acoustic guitar, all onto Track pleted in one take with overdubs during a 4 to complete the recording. Side 2 opens with “What Goes On.” late night session held Nov. 8. The song, originally identified as “Won’t Be There The group first considered recording the With You,” features George on lead vo- song March , 1963, but ran out of time. It cal, with backing harmonies from John was resurrected to give Ringo his customand Paul. In addition to the usual lead gui- ary lead vocal. According to Beatles road tar, rhythm guitar, bass guitar and drums manager Neil Aspinall, in order to show lineup, the recording contains fuzz bass, Ringo how “What Goes On” sounded, Paul tambourine, maracas and keyboards. The made a home demo multi-track tape with fuzz bass is actually Paul matching his Paul singing and playing lead guitar, bass bass part with an overdub on his Epiphone and drums. Ringo listened to the tape and Casino played through a fuzz box, an elec- added his own ideas before the recording tronic device that overloads the signal to session. Although Ringo characterized his contribution as “about five words,” he was cause controlled distortion. “The Word,” which was the first Beatles generously given a co-writer credit by John song to preach the message of love “it’s and Paul, making “What Goes On” the so fine, it’s sunshine, it’s the word, love” , only song credited to Lennon-McCartneywas completed in three takes Nov. 10. The Starkey. The song was recorded in one take instrumental backing consists of John on rhythm guitar, George on lead guitar, Paul Nov. 4. Like many of the songs featuring on piano and overdubbed bass, Ringo Ringo as lead vocalist, “What Goes On” on drums, maracas probably Paul and has a country western sound. The backGeorge and Martin on harmonium. John’s ing track consists of George’s lead guitar lead vocal is double-tracked, as are the on his Gretsch Tennessean, John’s rhythm guitar on his Rickenbacker Capri, Paul backing vocals of Paul and George. Side 1 ends with “Michelle,” a McCart- on his Hofner bass and Ringo on drums. ney ballad recorded Nov. 3. Paul had com- Ringo apparently provided an off-mike posed the chord structure and melody sev- guide vocal during the recording of the ineral years earlier, but did not come up with strumental backing. Ringo’s lead vocal and proper lyrics until 196 , when John sug- the backing vocals of Paul and John were gested he prepare the song for a Beatles superimposed at the end of the late-night album. The words are a charming mixture session. “Girl” was the last new song recorded of English and French. Jan Vaughan, wife of Ivan Vaughan, the man who introduced for the album. It was written primarily by Paul to John, came up with “Michelle, ma John. The song was completed in two belle.” She provided Paul with the French takes Nov. 11. The backing track consists translation “sont les mots qui vont tres of John and George on acoustic guitars, bien essemble” for “these are words that Paul on bass and Ringo on drums. George go together well.” John’s contribution to may have also played bouzouki, a Greek the song was the “I love you” middle eight, string instrument. Although Martin recalls which was influenced by Nina Simone’s re- Harrison playing bouzouki on “Girl,” Paul cording of “I Put a Spell On You.” John did doesn’t remember it that way. In describthis to give the ballad a “bluesy edge.” Ac- ing the “ orba-like” Greek-influenced incording to Paul, the song’s guitar part was strumental passage at the end of the song, Paul says that he got the idea for the line inspired by Chet Atkins. The basic backing was completed while on vacation with Ringo in Greece in in one take, with Paul’s acoustic guitar, September 1963, and that the group “did it George’s acoustic 12-string guitar and on acoustic guitars instead of bouzoukis.” Ringo’s drums on Track 1, and Paul’s vocal John’s lead vocal is double-tracked, as are on Track 2. Backing vocals by Paul, John the backing vocals of Paul and George. and George were overdubbed onto Track The Abbey Road engineers used a special
compressor on John’s vocals to enable his breathing to be heard on the chorus following the word “girl.” During the bridge of the song, the boys can be heard singing “tit, tit, tit, tit” behind John’s lead vocal. “I’m Looking Through You” was written by Paul at a time when he was bitter about then-girlfriend Jane Asher leaving him to go to Bristol to act. It is another song that went through a complete remake. The group’s first version of the song was recorded Oct. 24. The basic rhythm track was completed in one take, with numerous overdubs added. This terrific performance features a great vocal from Paul, backed by nylonstring acoustic and electric guitars, bass, organ, maracas and extremely effective hand claps. At this stage, the song did not have any lyrics during its bridge. Although the group later re-recorded the song from scratch, there is nothing wrong with this version. Paul, ever the perfectionist, just believed the song could be improved. Take 1 is included on “Anthology 2.” The group returned to the song Nov. 6, with Paul adding lyrics to the bridge. Once again, the group completed the song, this time in two takes, but Paul still was not satisfied with the recording. Four days later, on Nov. 10, the band went through its third go at the song, with the vocals superimposed the following evening. This performance is the final master that appears on the album. The backing track consists of acoustic guitar, lead electric guitar, bass, drums and tambourine. Ringo superimposed Hammond organ to emphasize the beat. It is heard after each verse and during the fade-out ending. John provides backing vocals behind Paul’s doubletracked lead vocal. “In My Life” is another of the album’s highlights. It was the first song John wrote that was consciously about his life. His original lyrics described his favorite childhood haunts. In addition to Penny Lane, John wrote about Church Road, which runs from Penny Lane up to Picton Clock (a popular meeting place) and the Abbey Cinema, the Smithdown Road tram sheds (located about 20 yards from Penny Lane), the Dutch cafe, St. Columba’s Church (which John calls “St. Columbus”), the docker’s umbrella (an overhead electric railway at Seaforth Docks that dock workers used for shelter when it rained until it was removed in 1958) and Calderstones Park (another popular meeting place). John realized that his references to Liverpool places would mean nothing to most listeners, making the song “the most boring sort of ‘what I did on my holidays’ bus trip song.” Because he believed “it wasn’t working at all,” John reworked the song. His revised lyrics focused on his recollections of friends and lovers, both dead and living, but without getting specific and naming names (although Pete Shotton said that John told him that former Beatle
Stuart Sutcliffe was among the dead and that he was among the living). By making it general, everyone could relate by thinking of their own places, friends and lovers. He also turned it into a love song with the line “In my life, I love you more.” John and Paul had different memories as to the extent of Paul’s contribution to the song’s music. John said Paul helped on the bridge, while Paul recalls writing the melody, described by him as “inspired by the Miracles,” on John’s Mellotron. “In My Life” was recorded in three takes Oct. 18. The backing track consists of John and George on electric guitars, Paul on bass and Ringo on drums. John’s lead vocal and the backing vocals of Paul and George are all double-tracked. Overdubs from the session include tambourine and additional electric guitar, which may have originally provided the song’s solo. On Oct. 22, Martin added the song’s breathtaking piano solo. Martin first attempted his solo on a Hammond organ, but wasn’t satisfied with the sound. He then got the idea to play the solo on piano at half speed and an octave below its desired sound so that upon playback at full speed the solo would flow rapidly and be in the proper octave. The plan worked to perfection, making his baroque-influenced interlude sound as if it were played on harpsichord. John was quite pleased with the recording, calling the song his “first real major piece of work.” “Wait” was recorded June 17, during the “Help!” LP sessions. Although a finished master featuring John and Paul on lead vocals was completed in four takes, the song initially suffered the same fate as “If You’ve Got Trouble” and “That Means A Lot,” making it one of three “Help!” session songs left off the album. When it was realized that another song was needed for “Rubber Soul,” the “Wait” tape was resurrected for additional tweaking. On Nov. 11, the group overdubbed tambourine, maracas, tone pedal guitar by George and additional vocals to the previously finished master. “If I Needed Someone” was written by George, who commented that it was “like a million other songs written around the D chord.” He later told Derek Taylor that he was influenced by two songs recorded by the Byrds: “The Bells of Rhymney” (a Pete Seeger adaptation of a poem written by Idris Davies) and “She Don’t Care About Time” (written by Gene Clark of the Byrds). This brought things full circle since the Byrds sound was heavily influenced by Harrison’s use of a Rickenbacker 12-string electric guitar on the songs featured in “A Hard Day’s Night.” The backing track, which features George playing lead guitar on his Rickenbacker 12-string, John playing rhythm guitar on his Fender Stratocaster, Paul on bass and Ringo on drums, was recorded in
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one take Oct. 16. Two days later, George overdubbed his double-tracked lead vocal. John and Paul supplied backing vocals, and Ringo played tambourine. The album’s closing track, “Run for Your Life,” was the first song recorded for “Rubber Soul.” It was completed in five takes on the afternoon of Oct. 12, and features John on lead vocal backed by Paul and George. The backing track includes John on his Jumbo acoustic guitar, George on electric guitar, Paul on bass and Ringo on drums, along with overdubbed tambourine. The song’s opening line, “I’d rather see you dead little girl than to be with another man,” was taken from Arthur Gunter’s “Baby Let’s Play House,” which was also recorded by Elvis Presley. Although John was later quoted as saying “I always hated ‘Run for Your Life,’” his negative feelings toward the song are not universally shared. In addition to the 14 album tracks and the two songs recorded for single release, The Beatles recorded an instrumental titled “12-Bar Original” during the sessions on Nov. 4. The live recording, credited to Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starkey, has George playing lead on his Fender Stratocaster with a tone pedal, John playing rhythm and lead on his Epiphone Casino, Paul on bass, Ringo on drums and George Martin on harmonium. Take 2 ran for over 6 and a half minutes. The song was first issued on “Anthology 2,” edited down to 2:54. The primary mixing sessions for the album took place Oct. 25 and 26 and Nov. 9, 10 and 11. After Capitol was sent masters of the album’s songs, an additional mixing session took place Nov. 15, during which “The Word” received a new stereo mix and “Michelle” was given a new mono mix. These last-minute remixes were not used by Capitol on its version of “Rubber Soul” because the company had already cut its lacquers prior to receiving the new mixes. The Capitol stereo album has a brief guitar false start on “I’m Looking Through You” that was edited out for the U.K. album. Nearly all of the stereo mixes of the songs recorded during the “Rubber Soul” sessions have the vocals almost exclusively in the right channel, with the instruments in the left channel. On many of these songs, the right channel has little, if any, instrumental backing. On some songs, percussion or one guitar is heard throughout the song. On others, the left channel occasionally has backing vocals, but on most songs, it is limited almost exclusively to instruments. This drastic stereo separation has led to speculation that the “Rubber Soul” stereo mixes were rushed. In a 1987 interview with Allan Kozinn of The New York Times, Martin explained that this was not the case. Martin was experimenting with the mixes in hopes of achieving mixes for stereo records that would sound good when played on mono equipment.
According to Martin, his “attempts on ‘Rubber Soul’ were to find a decent mono result from a stereo record.” Martin explained that “if you put something in the center, it comes up four dB louder in mono than it does in stereo.” So Martin balanced things between one side and the other, knowing that with most home stereo record players “the speakers were about three feet apart, and the stereo picture was very near mono anyway.” Martin said he “exaggerated the stereo to get a clearer effect.” While these off-center vocal mixes can be distracting when listening with headphones, they give the listener the opportunity to focus on either the vocals or the instrumental backing in isolation. The album’s striking front cover was once again shot by Robert Freeman. (See Page 26 for the story of the making of the album cover.) In America, “Rubber Soul” became the first Beatles album to have the same title and front cover art work as that of a British album. This decision was undoubtedly influenced by pressure exerted by The Beatles. By memo dated Aug. 31, 1965, Capitol President Alan Livingston informed International A&R Director Dave Dexter of the group’s desires: “In a meeting with Brian Epstein yesterday, he expressed the very strong hope that we would consider using the same art work for our Beatle album covers as England does.” Capitol’s Voyle Gilmore, who was sent a copy of the memo, sent a memo to Livingston and Dexter on Sept. 2 stating that it was a good idea to use the same artwork used by EMI. He went even further, proposing the following idea: “I would like to have the songs in the album identical and released simultaneously. I don’t know if this is possible, but I feel we should do everything possible to release in this fashion.” Gilmore’s recommendations did not sit well with Dexter, who gave his reasons why Gilmore’s suggestion could not be followed and provided a defense of his handling of the Beatles catalog: “Firstly, no Capitol LP is ever identical in repertoire to the British LP. This affects billing, pose of artists, etc. Timing is another (and perhaps the most frequent factor) in our going ahead and rushing out a Beatles album with our own art. Because EMI persists in the 14-track package we will never ever be in position to release with them simultaneously.” Dexter also was of the opinion that Capitol’s artwork was superior: “We consider our art work in virtually every case superior to the English front cover art, artistically as well as commercially. Ours is slanted more to the merchandising end; we also use more color than EMI. Our billing is vastly different. Their type on front cover is smaller, underplayed, at some cases at the side or bottom of the cover instead of at the top as we must do.” To further bring home his point of the
superiority of the Capitol covers, Dexter added: “Have you noticed than when Japan EMI, and numerous other affiliates, issue Beatles albums they more often than not use the Capitol front covers?” Despite Dexter’s arrogant attitude toward EMI’s art department, “Rubber Soul” was issued in America with its striking front cover, as well as the back cover’s photo montage, left intact. This was done even though the front cover contained neither the group’s name nor the titles of any of its songs. Still, Capitol’s marketing strategy of holding back songs for subsequent release as singles, as well as the practice of placing less than 14 songs on its albums, meant that some changes would be made. Fortunately, Capitol’s alterations were relatively minor. While not exactly what The Beatles and Martin had in mind, Capitol’s version of “Rubber Soul” is still a great album. Capitol released “Rubber Soul” Dec. 6. The album entered the Billboard Top LP’s at No. 106 in the Dec. 25 issue. The following week it moved up to No. 60 before leaping to the top of the chart Jan. 8, ahead of the soundtrack to “The Sound of Music” and “Whipped Cream & Other Delights” by Herb Albert’s Tijuana Brass. After six weeks at the top, “Rubber Soul” spent two weeks at No. 2, surrounded by two Herb Albert albums, “Whipped Cream & Other Delights” and “Going Places.” Billboard charted the LP for 59 weeks, including 14 in the Top 10 and 25 in the Top 20. Cash Box and Record World also charted the album at No. 1. Capitol had complete confidence that “Rubber Soul” would be a tremendous seller. Its initial pressing of 2 million units was the most in the label’s history at that time. In a Jan. 1, 1966, article titled “‘Rubber Soul’ A Whopper for Beatles,” Billboard reported that the group had topped themselves by selling 1,200,000 copies of the album in its first nine days. Heaviest sales were in major markets such as New York (over 200,000 units) and Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco (over 100,000 units each). Capitol indicated that the record was selling approximately 140,000 copies a day and that 60 percent of the 2 million copies initially manufactured had been sold. The RIAA certified sales of over 4 million copies for the Capitol version of the album. In programming its version of “Rubber Soul,” Capitol was faced with the luxury of having two tracks from the British “Help!” album that had yet to be released in America, namely “I’ve Just Seen a Face” and “It’s Only Love.” As these songs had been issued in England four months earlier, Capitol decided it was time to put them out. The overall quality of the “Rubber Soul” songs gave Capitol the confidence to program the record without a hit single. There was no need to anchor the album with the recent
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American hit single “Yesterday” or with the songs from The Beatles’ latest single, “We Can Work It Out” and “Day Tripper.” And, for the first time since “Meet The Beatles!,” Capitol prepared a regular Beatles LP with 12 selections instead of the usual 11. Out of the 14 tracks on the British album, there was only room for 10, due to the addition of “I’ve Just Seen a Face” and “It’s Only Love.” Capitol decided to replace the British album’s opening track, the rocker “Drive My Car,” with the folk-sounding “I’ve Just Seen a Face.” This move works well, with the song’s intricate acoustic guitar intro grabbing the listener’s attention. Its upbeat folk-rock sound and lyrics blend well with the other tunes on “Rubber Soul.” Capitol wisely did little else to Side 1 of the album. The remaining tracks appear in the same order as on the British LP, except that “Nowhere Man” was pulled from the lineup and held for issuance as a future single. Capitol programmed Side 2 in a similar manner. The opening track from the British LP, the country-flavored “What Goes On,” was replaced with “It’s Only Love.” Once again, this move was effective due to the song’s folk-rock sound. The remaining tracks on Side 2 appear in the same order as on the British LP, except that “If I Needed Someone” was pulled from the lineup. Many people, particularly those who grew up with the American LP, actually prefer Capitol’s “Rubber Soul” over its British counterpart. The Capitol version of “Rubber Soul” has more acoustic and less rock songs than the British disc, giving the album a cohesive folk-rock sound. At the time “Rubber Soul” was released in 1965, British LPs were seldom imported into the U.S. There was no Internet, iTunes or YouTube to enable Americans to hear The Beatles’ U.K. discs. Thus, it was the Capitol album that was heard by and that influenced American recording artists. It was the Capitol version of “Rubber Soul” that motivated Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys to strive for even greater studio achievements, resulting in “Pet Sounds,” which in turn pushed The Beatles to create “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” The above analysis, however, misses the point. Beatles fans should not concern themselves over which version of “Rubber Soul” is better. The original British LP and the Capitol album are different listening experiences. It’s like comparing a great red wine to a great white wine. Both have their own special subtleties and both should be savored. Bruce Spizer The above article was extracted from “Beatles For Sale on Parlophone Records” by Bruce Spizer and Frank Daniels and the revised and expanded digital editions of “The Beatles’ Story on Capitol Records, Part One: The Singles” and “The Beatles’ Story on Capitol Records, Part Two: The Albums” by Bruce Spizer, all of which can be ordered at beatle.net.
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Iconic Image Result of a ‘Happy Accident’
If you were paying attention, you might have seen it coming. In March 196 , the “Bringing It All Back Home” album showed Bob Dylan surrounded by a blurry circular frame, the result of using an edge-softening camera lens to snap his cover picture. In June, The Byrds released their distorted panoramic group portrait photographed with a fisheye lens on the cover of “Mr. Tambourine Man.” These unusual photographic touches were part of an artistic zeitgeist that caught The Beatles by the year’s end and gave us their distorted early-psychedelic portrait on the front cover of their sixth album, “Rubber Soul.” Most of the work that led to the cover likely occurred during the frenzied album recording period between Oct. 12 and Nov. 16. But one important event happened earlier — on June 14 — when The Beatles recorded three songs for their upcoming fifth album and single, “Help ” In the studio chatter that followed the first take of the song “I’m Down,” Paul McCartney commented, “Plastic soul, man … plastic soul.” He later explained that he had read about an old American blues guy who said, “ Mick Jagger, man. Well you know they’re good — but it’s plastic soul. So, plastic soul’ was the germ of the Rubber Soul’ idea.” John Lennon recalled, “Oh, that was Paul’s title. … Rubber Soul’ is just a pun. There’s no great mysterious meanings behind all of this. It was just four boys working out what to call their new album.”
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In a few months the idea of rubber’s stretchy quality would permeate their next album cover. Photographer Robert Freeman had
p h o t o graphed The Beatles’ previous four covers and was again GET hired for this album’s UB b cover shot. peg This time, he wanted here to use “a different color tonality — greens, browns and black — an almost monochromatic look.” He also wanted to change the viewer’s perspective, later recalling photographing the guys “straight “Rubber Soul” cover b Robert ree an. from a lower asked The Beatles to dress for the shoot angle because I wanted to try and get a rubbery, in “clothing that was either dark, or dark brown, or greenish, and actually John stretched look to them.” Paul and Freeman remember the photo and Ringo wore suede jackets. I think shoot taking place at Kenwood, John’s Paul wore something darker, and maybe house in Weybridge, Surrey, with the pho- George, too.” Paul recalled that they had tographer describing John’s “our new gear on — the polo necks,” algarden as having “the right el- though the polo neck turtleneck style had ements — a high, dark green been a staple of the band’s wardrobe for hedge backing a grass knoll many years. But the band’s wardrobe was that sloped away steeply. This upstaged by their hair, which was always a provided the background and prominent feature on their covers and now reached their collars. When asked if The the angle.” However, Alf Bicknell, The Beatles were assisted by a team of stylBeatles’ chauffeur, remem- ists and hairdressers during photo shoots bered it occurring about 8 Freeman replied, “Not at all, not even for miles southwest of Kenwood the covers of the albums.” Freeman generally used his Pentax sinin a wooded area at Old Lane, Hatchford End, not far from gle-lens reflex camera for his Beatles sesBolder Mere Lake and the sions, and this time he shot color slides. abandoned Wisley Airfield. The Several Beatles histories have stated that only clue to the actual location Freeman used a fisheye lens to achieve is the background vegetation, the effect on the “Rubber Soul” cover, but which looks like rhododen- there is no evidence he used any special dron. This evergreen shrub lens, fisheye or otherwise. For at least the was introduced to Britain as a cover shot, Freeman positioned himself in garden plant but then invaded front of and below the group, looking up at the natural countryside, so its an angle from a distance of, say, about to presence alone is inconclusive. 7 feet away. According to Paul, for the “Rubber Soul” Regardless of the site, the final shoot “we were doing straight mug shots, cover photo reveals that Freeman found the conditions of color and perspective he the four of us all posing.” Looking through his lens, Freeman saw that The Beatles’ set out to capture. In keeping with his vision, Freeman faces, hair and clothing against the background vegetation provided natural green
graphs exactly onto it ’cause you can imagine exactly how it would look then as an album cover, which is kind of a good way to do it.” As these things tend to go, The BeaGET tles were undoubtedly looking at how they appeared in UB 03 each photo and were trying peg to find that one shot where they looked best. Eventually, here they agreed on one. (dark photo will need lightening) In a few moments the selected picture would undergo a radical change, but before then it was simply the best of the lot. We know from the final cover that it had the colors Freeman wanted, and Re creation of original albu cover hoto. that it showed, from left to and brown tones. But, more importantly, his right, George, John, Ringo position below and at an angle to the group and Paul, all slightly foreshortened by the caused a slight foreshortening effect, giv- shot’s perspective. Although we have not ing the illusion that they were receding into seen this original photo, a re-creation illusthe background and somewhat vertically trates how it may have looked. It’s striking compressing their features. It wasn’t much how uninteresting the re-creation looks. of an effect, but enough to make them look The selected photo had a brief lifespan just a little bit off. due to what several authors have called Freeman estimated that his cover the “happy accident.” Again, Paul rememshoots took about half an hour to complete. bered, “Whilst projecting the slides on to We don’t know how many shots he took for an album-sized piece of white cardboard, the “Rubber Soul” cover, but it would have Bob Freeman inadvertently tilted the card been about 36 or so if he shot at least one backwards. The effect was to stretch the roll of typical slide film. None of the out- perspective and elongate the faces. ... And takes from this shoot have been released. we went, ooh can we have that, can you
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Soon after the shoot, Freeman met with The Beatles at a friend’s flat in London one evening to review the slides and choose a cover picture. As Paul described the scene, Freeman “had a little carousel of slides and he had a piece of cardboard stuck up on a little chair, it was album cover size, and he was projecting the photo-
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they were surprised by what they saw. Not only were their faces unnaturally stretched but the foreshortening effect seemed to be intensified. You can get a good idea of what they saw by rotating a “Rubber Soul” front cover about 4 degrees clockwise and imagining a larger field of background vegetation. Freeman kept his commitment to “print it like that” through several steps in the darkroom. We don’t know the steps’ sequence, but they probably went something like this: First, Freeman re-created the elongated image on an enlarger, a piece of equipment that creates a photographic print, negative or transparency from and usually larger than an original negative or transparency. Normally, both the original and receiving films lie flat and parallel to one another in the enlarger. But, to create the desired effect, Freeman said he “found a way of matching the slideshow distortion by tilting the image in a controlled fashion on the enlarger and copying it onto a larger transparency.” The tilt was probably in the range of 1 to 20 degrees. Freeman could have quit with his recreation of the slideshow’s elongated faces. But, perhaps he was looking for a better aesthetic image, or simply trying to pack the most Beatle-face into an LPsized square. Regardless of motive, the final product shows that Freeman rotated the elongated image counterclockwise to position the faces on about a 4 -degree diagonal rising from bottom-left to top-right. He also maximized the size of the faces within a square, effectively cropping the vegetated background to within a hair’s width of the outlying George and GET Paul. The results were just as visualUB 0 b ly dramatic as the prior distortions. peg If the foreshortening and elongahere tion were not weird enough, the rotation gave an added sense of motion and imbalance, while the crop cut away extraneous background, making the heavily distorted faces the picture’s commanding focus. This post-shoot work was most likely completed quickly in a single session. One job remained. Since the “With The Beatles” cover, Freeman had advocated for little or no typography over his photos. But neither The Beatles nor their manager, Brian Epstein, had auRingo Starr s enesis Publications book “Photogra h.” thority over their album artwork, which Freeman recalled “had do it like that?’ And Freeman said, Well to be passed by the head office at EMI. yeah, I can print it like that.’ And we said ... That changed when we came to RubYeah, that’s it. Rubber Soul ’” ber Soul’.” One result of this change was Keep in mind that The Beatles and any- the decision to print only the LP title and one else in the room were the only people not The Beatles’ name on the front cover. who experienced the change from the orig- While this would be a Beatles first, nameinal photo to this new elongated look, and less covers had already been issued by,
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faces — distorted.” are turned toward the viewer’s right and “Rubber Soul” was who looks down directly at the viewer. The released in Britain on others are facing and looking toward the Dec. 3, 196 , and in the viewer’s left, although curiously they all apU.S. on Dec. 6. For the pear to be looking in just slightly different first time, Capitol used directions. Their eyes and even their faintGET the Parlophone artwork est of smiles betray thoughts. The cover for the front and back pose was probably held for no more than rubber soul sessions covers although, yet a moment, and it begs answers: Just what peg again, the song list was was John thinking, and what were the othsomewhat different. ers looking at? here The front cover of If you were looking for relief from the the “Rubber Soul” album front cover, the back cover provided it, presents a close-up, with eight black and white photos — two head-and-shoulders por- of each individual Beatle — again taken by trait of The Beatles. The Freeman. In one picture, John peeks out picture is dominated by from under what is almost certainly a Lawa diagonal swath formed son cypress tree at Kenwood. In another, by the faces of George in a relaxed-looking Paul, with a cigarette the lower left corner, ris- between his lips, gazes down. George is ing to John, then Ringo dressed in cowboy gear and standing in a and, finally, Paul in the grassy field near his Esher home. Ringo upper right corner. Below looks thoughtful in pictures from a photo the faces we see snatch- shoot at a residence a few blocks away es of their wardrobe; from the EMI Studios. The photos are arabove them is the rho- ranged salon-style around a song list with dodendron background writing and performing credits at the top with the title letters in and just left of center. the upper left corner. Paul remembered, “The album cover Freeman’s color scheme is another example of our branching out: During the “Rubber Soul” sessions. comes through in the the stretched photo. That was actually one browns of the group and of those little exciting random things that for example, Elvis Presley “For LP Fans Only,” 19 9 and The Rolling Stones self- title and the green vegetation. The band’s happen.” pose looks spontaneous, random and natGeorge also remarked about the distitled first British LP, 1964 . With that decision, an album title and ural enough, not ordered and structured tortion, saying “I liked the way we got our a distorted cover photo in hand, Freeman as “With The Beatles” and not as motion- faces to be longer on the album cover. We hired British illustrator Charles Front to de- less as “Beatles For Sale.” Still, their pose lost the little innocents’ tag, the naivety. ...” John recalled “With Rubber Soul’ ... we sign the title typography. The title would be is tight, undoubtedly at the photographer’s placed in the upper left corner on a diago- request. Freeman noted that “John is the took over the cover and everything,” while a more modest Ringo nal almost parallel to The Beatles, coverjoked, “People say, oh, ing an S-like design in the rhododendron they musta spent a milabove John’s head. lion bucks on that. It’s a While it’s not clear if Freeman had the piece of cardboard that benefit of knowing the title during the photo was fallin’ over.” shoot, Front indeed took his design cue Freeman had mixed GET from it, recalling, “It was all about the name feelings about the covof the album. If you tap into a rubber tree, UB 05 er. Although he would then you get a sort of globule, so I started peg have preferred a sepiathinking of creating a shape that representtoned picture, he coned that, starting narrow and filling out.” here cluded, “Despite this, Front’s lettering had an Art Nouveau I think that, in graphic look, and although it resembles other typoterms, Rubber Soul’ graphic styles, it has no official style name was the most successand is categorized as simply “hand letterful cover.” ing.” Originally designed in a light brown, And, with that, Robover time the title has also been printed in ert Freeman ended his other shades of brown, orange, gold and career as a Beatles green, depending on the pressing. The incover photographer. Or fluence of Front’s style would soon be seen did he? on posters and other psychedelic art of the Ken Orth period. And, yes, if you hold the cover upT side down in front of a mirror, the LP title C I may be read to spell “Road Abbey,” kind S T of, perhaps. With printing starting on Nov. 17, it’s Back cover of original “Rubber Soul” LP. S T likely that the cover artwork was approved by The Beatles and Epstein early in the C S P month with, according to Freeman, “just the only one looking at the camera.” Indeed, S S S C C John is the only one whose face and body title and a photograph of four well-known S C
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PERSPECTIVE: 1965
Classic Climax to a Classic Musical Year
Anyone who sees my posts on Twitter and Facebook or has heard me over the course of this year on “Things We Said Today” and other podcasts or shows knows all too well that I consider 196 to be the greatest year in the history of rock ’n’ roll. It was the year that the first wave of the British Invasion reached high tide, with much of the focus moving away from the poppy Merseybeat bands and toward harder-edged, more musically adventurous groups like The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Kinks and The Who. It was also the year that a new breed of young American bands, modeled on The Beatles and the other British bands, began to emerge. One of those, The Byrds, helped bring a new musical idiom, folk-rock, to the pop charts. It was the year that soul music approached the peak of its golden era via classic records from Motown and Stax and the mainstream breakthrough of James Brown. And it was when Roger Miller and Buck Owens had country-pop crossover hits with records quite different from the mainstream country hits out of Nashville. In December, the undeniably classic musical year climaxed with the release by the biggest pop act in the world of a new album that synthesized many of 196 ’s musical gifts while also serving as a crucial move forward in the group’s musical development. An album that didn’t have The Beatles’ name on its front cover but, rather, a slightly distorted photo of the group and, in the upper left-hand corner, a similarly misshapen title: “Rubber Soul.” Actually, that first musical leap forward began on Side 2 of the U.K. “Help ” LP, released in August ’6 . That side included Paul McCartney’s “Yesterday,” which was
released as a U.S. single that September and launched at least a thousand covers actually, many more than that ; his country-flavored toe-tapper “I’ve Just Seen a Face”; and one of John Lennon’s new inward-looking tunes, “It’s Only Love.” Trimmed from the U.S. “Help ” soundtrack, those last two songs led off each side of the American version of “Rubber Soul” and, in the opinion of many, gave the American album more of a folk-rock flavor. Others contend that could hardly be the case, since the two songs most reflective of the folk-rock influence on The Beatles — Lennon’s Bob Dylan-esque “Nowhere Man” and George Harrison’s admittedly Byrds-derived “If I Needed Someone” — are among the four tracks not on the U.S. version of the album. The U.K. “Help ” LP had been something of a songwriting “coming-out” for Harrison, with two of his compositions included, the first since his ’63 composing debut, “Don’t Bother Me.” While “If I Needed Someone” was only on the U.K. edition of “Rubber Soul,” his gritty but philosophical “Think for Yourself” made both versions and gave the album one of its musically harder-edged moments. The other was Lennon’s album-closer, “Run for Your Life,” with its threatening theme and lyric nick from Elvis Presley’s “Baby Let’s Play House.” Indeed, Lennon’s considerable contributions to “Rubber Soul” were a mixed bag, ranging from one of the songs for which he’s best remembered, the beautiful and haunting “In My Life,” to the enigmatic story songs “Norwegian Wood” with Harrison’s on-record debut on sitar and “Girl” with its mischievous “tit tit tit” middle-
eight and the first of his peace-and-love anthems, “The Word.” But Lennon’s efforts were equaled, if not bettered, by the songs McCartney brought to the project, not to mention his very influential instrumental work. “Michelle” was the next of his growing list of classic ballads. “Drive My Car” the U.K. LP’s lead-off track , with its loping bass line, was an irresistible piece of Anglo r b.And “You Won’t See Me” and “I’m Looking Through You,” even with their themes of relationship problems, were classic Macca pop. As well, McCartney wrote the bulk of “What Goes On,” a very countryish song to which Ringo Starr contributed enough plus a great vocal to get a composing credit. And we can’t forget that other major contribution The Beatles made to the musical riches of 196 and the dominant single of the first month of ’66 , one of their finest double-A-sides in “We Can Work It Out”/“Day Tripper.” Perhaps “Rubber Soul” wasn’t the musical quantum leap that Dylan’s “Bringing It All Back Home” and “Highway 61 Revisited” or the Stones’ “Out of Our Heads” had been earlier in the year. But, given The Beatles’ place as the dominant pop act in the world, “Rubber Soul” was very important. It showed that, despite their massive popularity, The Beatles weren’t ready to coast along on their fame and, like so many of their contemporaries that year, they were in search of new musical horizons. That set the stage for even more radical musical shifts on their next two albums that would challenge their contemporaries to take their own musical giant steps in 1966. Al Sussman
GET statement 1, statement and statement 3 JPEGS here (reduce to fit and run them side by side)
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REVIEWS RECORDIN S
“Tug of War” and “Pipes of Peace” Deluxe Editions, the Paul McCartney Archive Collection (MPL/Concord Music Group). “Pipes of Peace” deserves better. That’s the conclusion I came to after listening to the remastered edition that was released in early October. When it came out in 1983, it received only fair-to-middling reviews, was the first Paul McCartney solo album to not crack the Top 10, and was released three months before John Lennon’s more raw and rocking posthumuous swan song, “Milk and Honey,” to which it was unfavorably compared by most critics and some fans. But, after listening to the remastered edition, I thought “Pipes of Peace” is an eminently listenable, well-crafted album. Sure, there are a few dodgy tunes in the second half of the album, but overall it fits nicely into the middle of McCartney’s canon — it may not be adventurous, but it’s held up better than, say, “Press to Play,” which followed it three years later, or the light-asair “London Town.” Being able to listen to an album with fresh ears is one of the advantages of remastered reissues, along with improved sound, expanded liner notes, bonus tracks and other goodies. That’s delivered in spades in the deluxe edition of “Pipes of Peace,” along with the deluxe edition of “Tug of War,” which was originally released the year before. Of all the solo Beatles, McCartney has done the best job of overhauling his solo catalog, and the latest entries in the Paul McCartney Archive Collection don’t disappoint. As with previous albums in the series, the high-end deluxe editions, each costing around 7 , contain two books of photos and liner notes; a companion CD of demos, B-sides and outtakes; and a DVD with videos and behind-the-scenes footage. The “Tug of War” deluxe edition contains an additional treat — a remixed version of the album, carried out early in 201 , that notably improves on the sonics of the original album. One hopes that McCartney will allow additional albums to be remixed as the series progresses. It could well be that “Tug of War” was tapped to be remixed because it’s considered to be one of his two or three best albums, along with “Band on the Run,” “Ram” and “Flowers in the Dirt.” Thirty-three years later, “Tug of War” remains a gem — more mature and reflective than his albums with Wings, less whimsical than the solo albums that preceded it, such as “McCartney II” or “Ram.” It also marked the first time, aside from the one-off of “Live and Let Die” in 1973, that McCartney was produced by George Martin, and the discipline of having Martin behind the boards clearly worked to
McCartney’s benefit. Another virtue of the Paul McCartney Archive Collection, particularly for die-hard fans, is detailed notes on when songs were recorded and mixed. I immediately noticed that “Here Today,” McCartney’s ode to Lennon, was recorded on Dec. 9, 1981, a year London time after John’s death. Did he feel maybe that recording the song on that day would give it extra emotional heft? It’s also notable how much work on the “Tug of War” and “Pipes of Peace” sessions overlapped. Both sets contain demos that McCartney made in 1980 for songs that ended up on the albums. They have been widely bootlegged, but appear on these editions in appreciably better sound quality. It would have been interesting if rehearsals of the same material with Wings in the fall of 1980 — also previously bootlegged — had been included. “Pipes of Peace” also has a demo for the never-released “It’s Not On” a slight tune that’s pleasant enough, though it’s easy to see why it was dropped from the final lineup and the instrumental “Christian Bop.” And, there’s a remix of the hit “Say Say Say,” which switches around some of McCartney’s and Michael Jackson’s vocals. The next album in the Paul McCartney Archive Collection is supposed to be “Flowers in the Dirt.” I’ll be counting the days and saving my pennies. Brad Hundt
OO S
“Conversations With McCartney” by Paul Du Noyer. Hodder & Stoughton, London. Published September 2015. 368 pages, trade paperback. $18. (Also available in hardcover and e-book editions.) Coming across a new bit of information in a Paul McCartney interview is a little like finding a gold nugget in a long abandoned mine. It seems like he’s told all the stories he’s ever going to tell. From playing “20 Flight Rock” at the Woolton Church fete to meeting George Harrison on the bus and John telling him to keep “the movement you need is on your shoulder” in “Hey Jude,” you can pretty much predict every anecdote. Yet, sometimes he’ll surprise you. All those old stories are in this new collection by Mojo magazine founder Paul Du Noyer, but McCartney discusses less familiar topics, too. It helps that many of the interviews, which were conducted for various magazines from 1979 through the current decade, focus on McCartney’s post-Beatles and post-Wings career. So, while he talks a fair amount about “Sgt. Pepper,” usually viewed as The Beatles’ great triumph, there’s also quite a bit about “Back to Egg,”
which he sees as Wings’ big failure. It also probably helps that Du Noyer is from Liverpool and has worked for McCartney over the years, writing liner notes and copy for tour programs. The former Beatle is comfortable and open when speaking to him. Du Noyer doesn’t reprint the interviews as they first appeared, but jumps around among them, linking themes with freshly written background material. He describes what it’s like to interview and be around McCartney and puts all the quotes in context. The first half of the book progresses chronologically, covering the Beatles and Wings years and Paul’s return to touring in 1989. From there, material is broken into various themes: Paul’s symphonic music; his collaborations with other artists, such as Michael Jackson and Elvis Costello; the “Beatles Anthology”; songwriting; and Linda. Du Noyer doesn’t push McCartney very hard to answer tough or uncomfortable questions, but some controversies are addressed, such as his bossy assumption of leadership in the late Beatles years and his reputation for being cheap when it comes to finances and paying band members. For the most part, though, it’s just him listening to McCartney talk, which can be fun. I was surprised and amused by some of his pop culture references. Who knew that Paul was familiar with “the Troggs tapes,” for example? Yet he mentions them twice here, along with “The Gong Show” and Brian Eno’s “oblique strategies.” There are a few less familiar Beatles stories, too. He mentions John Sebastian’s “Daydream” being a big influence on “Good Day Sunshine” and claims that he snuck Linda into the studio to sing a high part on “Let it Be” that was beyond his range. There’s also a nice quote about life after The Beatles: “It’s like if you’ve been an astronaut and you’ve been to the moon. What do you do with the rest of your life?” Plenty, as this book demonstrates. While it may not add much to devoted fans’ knowledge of McCartney, the book presents him discussing big chunks of his career in his own words and is great fun. John Firehammer “The Songs We Were Singing: Guided Tours Through The Beatles’ LesserKnown Tracks” by Kit O’Toole. 12 Bar Publishing, Clarendon Hills, IL. Published August 2015. 275 pages, trade paperback, $19.95. Kindle edition: $9.99. As John Lennon playfully noted in a song he wrote for Ringo Starr, The Beatles were “the greatest show on earth.” So true. And in the 4 years since The Beatles officially called it quits, appreciation of their songs has grown — across the generations. It isn’t hard to imagine a family re-
union where the great-grandmother fondly remembers “Love Me Do” and “If I Fell” from her children’s Beatles albums while the great-grandson is listening to “Hey Bulldog” on his iPhone. Yes, it’s the act we’ve known for all these years; the act that entertains and intrigues — the act we wish to learn more about. Helpful in that regard is this new book by Kit O’Toole, a writer well-versed in all things Beatle. As noted in the subtitle, O’Toole’s work delves deeply into overlooked songs by the greatest act in the history of recorded music. The Beatles’ output guaranteed a splendid time for all, as they recorded 201 songs for album release over a period of seven years and 2 months (March ’63-May ’70). And, despite all the vigorous attention given their albums and singles, some of their best material still eludes full consideration. O’Toole does an excellent job in pointing out what she believes slipped under the radar, while also covering the vital aspects of the lesser-known tracks. A contributing editor to Beatlefan and author of the Deep Beatles column for the Something Else! website, O’Toole possesses a genial authority when handling her subject. One may not agree with all her choices — for example, “Eight Days a Week” is deemed a lesser-known track while its flip side, “I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party,” isn’t — but, overall, O’Toole’s selections are spot-on. By focusing on great but neglected songs such as “I Want to Tell You,” “Hey Bulldog,” “I Call Your Name” and “You Won’t See Me,” O’Toole reinforces the great truth about The Beatles: They were entertainers and artists. Their melodies are not only catchy and irresistible, but also complex and smart. Their music draws you in, and the intricate paths taken in creating the music keep you in. Even when completing the “Please Please Me” album in just one day, it was obvious The Beatles weren’t just recording songs – they were building songs. Also, especially on their original material, they raised the bar several notches higher with sharp and observant lyrics. And, finally, The Beatles — all four of them — could really sing. John Lennon and Paul McCartney were great singers at the beginning; then they got better. Both George Harrison and Ringo Starr developed fine vocal chops as well. In fact, many of The Beatles’ songs would be far less spirited were it not for the harmonizing of Harrison. It’s his and McCartney’s backing vocals on a 1964 Beatles track, “You Can’t Do That,” that O’Toole calls an “essential ingredient” of the song. In “Songs We Were Singing,” 59 Beatles songs are explored in manifold ways by O’Toole, but, in the end, readers are brought to the same conclusion: The Beatles were a band of great individual talents who often found their collective genius was most evident in blending each others’
strengths. O’Toole includes essays on 14 Beatles tracks featured on 1964 U.S. albums: songs that revealed the greatness the group had already achieved and foretold the greatness ahead of them. Two of the tracks O’Toole seems most impressed with are from The Beatles’ debut album, “Please Please Me,” released in the U.K. in March ’63 (most of the album’s tracks were included on “Introducing The Beatles,” issued the following January in the U.S. by the Vee-Jay label). The two songs, “Misery” and “There’s a Place,” were overlooked then and continue to be. In fact, neither song was included in the 1962-1966 compilation released by EMI Records in the spring of ’73. Still, “Misery” and “There’s a Place” have not only retained their freshness, but also amplify how far ahead of the pack The Beatles were, even before the first “yeah, yeah, yeah.” “Misery,” which Lennon said was “kind of a John song more than a Paul song, but it was written together,” was unlike anything else released in the world of pop music in those days. Rollicking along to producer George Martin’s piano, “Misery” has a gospel/r&b feel. Lennon’s vocals on the heart-on-my-sleeve song are raspy and direct, perfect for the situation the singer describes. But, O’Toole asserts, we should pay closer attention, as “the rapid tempo, chiming guitars and cheerful vocal style all suggest The Beatles are performing their rather depressing lyrics with a sly wink.” O’Toole captures the essence of “There’s a Place” as well. Again, we have a beautifully structured song that not only gets high marks for its melody and vocal performances, but also for its contemplative lyrics. Perhaps thematically inspired by “Somewhere,” the Bernstein-Sondheim composition from “West Side Story,” “There’s a Place ” is mostly Lennon’s song, naturally devoid of Broadway trappings. The song “was my attempt at a sort of Motown, black thing,” Lennon told Playboy interviewer David Sheff in 1980. That makes sense, as does conjecturing what the Impressions or Sam Cooke could have done with the song. Cooke and the Impressions’ Curtis Mayfield could swing, sway and light up a place as their prescient songs took hold, lingering like the earnest words of a trusted friend. You could dance and think at the same time. And so it is with The Beatles’ music. As McCartney told his biographer, Barry Miles, “we were getting a bit more cerebral.” “There’s a Place” focuses on a common plight. Lennon’s everyman is deeply in love, but sometimes he feels blue and unsettled. So he goes to a peaceful place: his mind. There, he focuses on what makes him happy, putting his sorrows aside. In the Playboy interview, Lennon stated the song “says the usual Lennon things. ‘In my mind there’s no sorrow…’” O’Toole writes of the words in the song’s bridge that Lennon referred to, declaring his view “emphasizes the narra-
BEATLEFAN Page 31 tor’s happiness, that sadness does not exist in his mental space.” In other words, do not feel sorry for this character — just leave him alone with his thoughts, and he will never be lonely. Lennon would return to this general theme repeatedly, celebrating the value of contemplation and seemingly doing nothing in later tracks like “I’m Only Sleeping,” “Tomorrow Never Knows” and Watching the Wheels,” among many others. In a very direct but discerning way, O’Toole gets to the heart of why The Beatles’ songs remain so profoundly embedded in our culture, 45 years since the group’s sad and untimely breakup. O’Toole also covers the basics as to who played and wrote what, as well as behindthe-scenes information on what inspired the songs and how ingeniously they were brought to life. Beauty and resourcefulness coming together. “Songs We Were Singing” provides great insight for new fans as well as for those who knew from the start The Beatles were “guaranteed to raise a smile” and much more. Jeff Cochran
“The Twenty-first Century Legacy of The Beatles: Liverpool and Popular Music Heritage Tourism” By Michael Brocken. Ashgate Publishing, Farnham, England. Published 2015. 244 pages, hardcover. $81.35. Liverpool and The Beatles have a complex relationship. From anywhere else in the world, the two are often viewed as synonymous: Liverpool is the rough and tumble town that birthed The Beatles, simple as that. But, within the city — the real one, not the mythologized one — it’s different. For starters, there’s a lot more to Liverpool than just The Beatles. The city was founded more than 750 years before the rest of the world heard “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” Liverpool became a worldwide center for shipping and trade. People of all nationalities and cultures settled there. Before The Beatles, it was known for producing some of Britain’s most popular comedians. It has two fervently followed football clubs. And it’s weathered deep economic hardships for decades and somehow survived. Some residents are proud of The Beatles and all they achieved, while others accuse the group of leaving the city and never looking back, asking “What did The Beatles ever do for Liverpool?” To many nonwhite Liverpudlians, The Beatles never meant much at all. They didn’t relate to the group musically or culturally. Beatlemania was primarily a white phenomenon. And, to the local musicians who have followed in The Beatles’ wake, the band’s legacy is sometimes viewed as annoying and limiting. Even 50 years after Merseybeat, local bands face getting compared with The Beatles even if they sound nothing like and draw no inspiration from
the group. It’s these conflicts and more that Brocken, director of the Beatles master’s degree program at Liverpool Hope University, examines in his new book. After detailing Liverpool’s mixed feelings about its famed native sons, Brocken investigates the rise of Beatles-related tourism in Liverpool, how it came about, and what it means. As Brocken details, the notion of The Beatles as a tourist draw is a relatively new notion in Liverpool. Throughout the late 1960s and into the 1980s, city leaders showed no interest — and, often, an active disinterest — in doing anything to acknowledge the group’s legacy, even if it might bring in much-needed tourist money. It was only through the entrepreneurial efforts of fans such as Bill Heckle and Dave Jones, creators or Cavern City Tours and developers of the new Cavern Club; and Mike and Bernadette Byrne, creators of the Beatles Story attraction at Albert Dock, that Beatles tourism became a viable and highly profitable enterprise. Brocken charts this story, but also looks at the motivations behind it, asking many interesting questions. Why do Beatles fans want to visit Liverpool? What do they hope to find? Is it even the same city today as the one The Beatles left? Brocken writes: “Liverpool is now an imagined and/or mythologized city. … It continues to exist in the real world but also finds itself in a curious netherworld between a place created by propaganda of the present and a dramatization of a past that may or may not have existed — but does it really matter?” The text is highly academic in its tone. It’s not an easy read at all, and part of me wishes that Brocken had decided to write for a more general audience, as this is a fascinating and compelling story. Also, due to it being published by an academic press, the book is quite expensive. But, to fans with a deep interest in The Beatles’ history and legacy, and to anyone who’s made or contemplated the “pilgrimage” to the band’s hometown, the book provides much food for thought. John Firehammer “1974: The Promotion Man New York City, the Morrell Archives Volume 2” by Dave Morrell. CreateSpace. Published September 2015. 112 pages, trade paperback, $12.99. Kindle: $9.99. Beatles collector and record promoter Morrell entertained readers with his 2014 book “Horse Doggin’.” Recalling his years as a passionate Beatles and music fan, he regaled fans with stories of how he transformed his hobby into his career. Working his way up from the warehouse to the promotions department, Morrell eventually became Warner Bros. Records’ East Coast promotions man. In the meantime, he forged an unlikely
friendship with John Lennon; the ex-Beatle shared Morrell’s enthusiasm for collecting Beatles bootlegs and memorabilia. This second volume picks up where “Horse Doggin’” left off. At just 21, Morrell had to learn the rules of record promotion quickly. In several chapters, he details how he learned to court radio program directors and record store owners, persuading them to air an artist’s latest single or carry a specific album. Morrell’s easygoing manner and obvious enthusiasm for music charmed his targets and delighted Warner Bros. with his rapidly developing promotional skills. However, Beatles fans will be most interested in reading more Lennon stories, and Morrell does not disappoint. Tales of visiting Lennon at Record Plant East and hearing early versions of cuts from the “Rock ’n’ Roll” album provide rare glimpses into Lennon’s creative process during this time. Perhaps the best section of “The Promotion Man” is when Morrell recalls visiting Lennon and then-girlfriend May Pang at their New York apartment in 1974, showing the couple, as well as former Beatles publicist Derek Taylor, footage of The Beatles’ famous Washington Coliseum concert. As images of the group playing “This Boy” flickered on the window shade, Lennon bounced up and down in excitement. He then pulled out a very rare record at the time: The Beatles’ then-unreleased recording of “How Do You Do It.” “It was out of this world,” Morrell writes. “A REAL Beatles song, fully produced, that no one had ever heard.” Morrell also was lucky enough to attend Elton John’s Madison Square Garden Thanksgiving concert, where the singer surprised the crowd with a very special guest: Lennon. The two performed three numbers, and Morrell marveled at Lennon’s reinvigorated attitude and strong appearance. In addition to his Lennon memories, Morrell shares stories about the 1970s music business and promoting records such as Maria Muldaur’s “Midnight at the Oasis,” Jethro Tull’s “Bungle in the Jungle” and America’s “Tin Man.” As with the first volume, this one is written in an informal tone, resembling a diary. Its appeal lies in the core story of a young fan becoming an insider in the music business, yet never losing his youthful enthusiasm for his idols. Many readers will identify with Morrell, wanting to turn their love of music into their profession. For that reason, this book should appeal to both Beatles fans and general music enthusiasts. Kit O’Toole
ROADCASTS
“The Nation’s Favourite Beatles Number One.” ITV, Nov. 12, 2015. Britain’s ITV capitalised on the reissue of The Beatles’ “1” collection with this twohour tribute framed around a public poll. The show basically is what it says in the title: a rundown of the favorite Beatles
BEATLEFAN Page 32 No. 1s voted by the great British public and made with full approval of Apple Corps. As usual with this type of program, a wide list of the good and great offered soundbites. Noel Gallagher, Bjorn from ABBA, Lamont Dozier, Sandie Shaw, James Bray and some person called Naughty Boy represented the new and old of the pop industry. Filmmakers Michael Lindsay-Hogg and Joe McGrath provided interesting background to the Beatles films they worked on, Lindsay-Hogg going into great detail on the rooftop concert from “Let It Be.” Fans of the band from the ’60s were covered by British actress Sue Johnson, a Cavern regular; Twiggy; and ex-Apple shop employee Jeni Crowley. Celebrities talking about their love of the Fab Four included ex-“Doctor Who” star David Tennant, Michael Palin, Ken Dodd and British politician Alan Johnson, who showed extensive knowledge of The Beatles and took great delight in reciting the running order of “Beatles For Sale” from memory for the single “Eight Days a Week.” The music and the videos were the real stars of the show. Each of the videos shown was in widescreen and not in the 4.3 version shown on The Beatles “1+,” which really added to the enjoyment. The Merseybeats told of being at Abbey Road two days before the “Our World” broadcast of “All You Need Is Love” and asking John Lennon if he had written the song to be telecast around the world on the first global TV hookup. The way they tell it, while Paul McCartney was starting to fret about deadlines, John couldn’t see the rush, saying, “We got two days yet.” The show at times did seem a little bit like The Beatles for Beginners. This was countered by the use of experts Paul Gambaccini and Mark Eillen, who filled in the details of the recording sessions and the chart performance. Giles Martin, looking and sounding more and more like his father, used the original Abbey Road mixing desk to break down the songs track by track, to illustrate how they were made. He joked that guitar players find it so hard to identify the opening chord to “A Hard Day’s Night” because it has two pianos overdubbed at the start of the song. Some rare clips were shown in the special, including a bit of the “Doctor Who” episode “The Chase” from the 1960s, which preserved the only known footage of The Beatles performing “Day Tripper” on “Top of the Pops.” Some nice outtakes of The Beatles from the Granada TV archives as well as the band performing at the Cavern Club also were included. There was no real surprise in “Hey Jude” being voted the nation’s favorite Beatles No. 1, but this does not detract from what was a really enjoyable show. This program really does deserve a showing in America. Simon Rogers
BEATLEFAN Page 33
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Issue #141: Ringo, Mark Hudson, Peter Q&As. $5.00$5.00 Issue #143: Ringo, Mark Rivera, George.$5.00 $5.00 Issue #142: Macca Tour, Beatles ‘63,Unreleased Liverpool, Ringo. Issue #144: Beatles’ Apple, Macca Faves, Ringo Tour. $5.00 Issue #143: Ringo, MarkBig Rivera, Unreleased George. $5.00 Issue #145: “Naked”, Harrison Surprise, Eric Idle Tour. Q&A.$5.00 $5.00 Issue #144: Beatles’ Big Apple, Macca Faves, Ringo Issue #146: Fab 40th SpecialSurprise, Issue: Beatles onQ&A. Sullivan. Issue #145: “Naked”, Harrison Eric Idle $5.00$5.00 Issue #147: ‘69, Brian RayBeatles Q&A, Sam Brown Q&A. Issue #146: FabSpring 40th Special Issue: on Sullivan. $5.00$5.00 Issue #148: Macca Klaus Q&A, Macca engineer. $5.00 Issue #147: Spring ‘69,Toons, Brian Ray Q&A, Sam Brown Q&A. $5.00 Issue #149: DickToons, Lester,Klaus Vic Spinetti Q&As,engineer. Tour Wrap-up Issue #148: Macca Q&A, Macca $5.00 $5.00 Issue #150: Covers, Man Tour Who Wrap-up Killed Macca Issue #149: Dick Lester,Lindsay-Hogg, Vic Spinetti Q&As, $5.00$5.00 Issue #150: Covers, Lindsay-Hogg, Macca $5.00 $5.00 Issue #151: Capitol Box, Beetles,Man TourWho Pix,Killed HandMade. Issue #151: Capitol Box, Beetles, Pix,ofHandMade. $5.00 $5.00 Issue #152: Folk-rock Beatles, Tour 2 Sides John, Tributes. Issue #152: Folk-rock Beatles, Photos, 2 Sides of John, Tributes. $5.00 $5.00 Issue #153: Hello/Goodbye Breakfast With Beatles. Issue #153: Hello/Goodbye Photos, Breakfast With Beatles. $5.00 Issue #154: Color Macca Cover!, T. Bramwell, Ringo & Mark. $5.00 Issue #154: Color Macca Cover!, T. Bramwell, Ringo &Films. Mark.$5.00 $5.00 Issue #155: “Help! “Cover!, Shea, Toons, Ringo’s Issue #155: “Help! “Cover!, Shea, At Toons, Ringo’s Issue #156: Lunchbox Cover!, Abbey Road, Films. Ringo $5.00 Films II $5.00 Issue #156: Lunchbox At Abbey Road, Ringo Films II ‘80. $5.00 Issue #157: ChattingCover!, With Macca!, “US” Tour, Olivia, Dec. $5.00 Issue #157: Chatting With BBC Macca!, “US”Will Tour, Olivia, Dec. ‘80. $5.00 Issue #158: TV Chaos, Vaults, Lee, Filming John. $5.00 Issue #158: TV Wings Chaos,‘76, BBC Vaults, Will Lee, $5.00 $5.00 Issue #159: Geoff Emerick, MalFilming Evans,John. Teen Mags. Issue #159: Wings ‘76, Albums, Geoff Emerick, Mal Evans, Teen Mags. $5.00 Issue #160: Capitol Geoff Emerick II, Fab Mags. $5.00 Issue #160: Capitol Albums, Geoff 1966, Emerick II, FabDenny Mags. Laine. $5.00 $5.00 Issue #161: LOVE, Ringo Tour, Butcher, Issue #161: LOVE, Ringo 1966,Denny Butcher, Denny Laine. $5.00 $5.00 Issue #162: Lennon in Tour, Germany, II, Coffeetable Beatles. Issue #162: Lennon in & Germany, II, Coffeetable Beatles. $5.00 Issue #163: Bagels Beatles,Denny Sean Q&A, Giles & Sir George. $5.00 Issue #163: Bagels & Beatles, Sean Q&A, Giles & Sir George. 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I know there’s a reason why you’re not here
Maybe it’s to show us that dreams live on
And the songs are still sung though the singer is gone
AND
Music Don Cusic
The Beatles and Country Music breaks new ground in looking at the Beatles. Don Cusic interviewed people in Nashville who worked with a Beatle and who have never been interviewed before, uncovering new information. Don Cusic is a leading scholar of country music and ties the world of country music and the Beatles together in a way that will cause readers to take a new look at the Beatles. The book is available in hardback or soft cover from Amazon.com. On October 9, 2015 – which would have been John Lennon’s 75th birthday – Plowboy Records released “I Can’t Imagine” (A Tribute to John Lennon) by Peter Noone, formerly with Herman’s Hermits. The recording was written and produced by Don Cusic and is available on YouTube and iTunes for download.
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THE BEATLES AS WE’VE NEVER HEARD THEM BEFORE!