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Beatles News
At the start of January 1969, the Beatles gathered at Twickenham Studios — a dark, sizable warehouse lent to them by the filmmakers of the film “The Magic Christian.” Pulling wooden chairs into a small circle, we see a Beatles member stick his half-smoked joint on the end of an uncut guitar string to face the daunting task: write and rehearse 14 new songs in three weeks to give a live performance on TV and in-concert at the end. It’s enough to make any average musician cry.
“The Beatles: Get Back” takes almost eight hours of original film documenting the making of songs from iconic albums “Abbey Road” and “Let It Be” during the month of January in 1969, and the struggles leading to The Beatles’ final concert on the roof of their London studio. While it is a bit long at times, director Peter Jackson — three-time Oscar winner known for directing “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy — uses this intimate and honest film to portray the love, conflict and humanity behind the final music of beloved rockers Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
Source: Krista Kroiss/dailyemerald.com
Yoko Ono paid tribute to late husband John Lennon on the 41st anniversary of his death by sharing a stark statistic detailing the reality of gun violence in America.
Ono, 88, shared on Twitter Wednesday a statistic that read, "Over 1.5 million people have been killed by guns in the U.S.A. since John Lennon was shot and killed on December 8, 1980."
The artist and peace activist also shared a photo that featured the same statistic atop the bloodied glasses Lennon was wearing the day he was fatally shot outside his apartment building in New York City.
Ono, who married the rock 'n' roll star in March 1969 after meeting three years earlier at a London art gallery, has regularly tweeted the same claim on the anniversary of Lennon's death, adding more numbers over the years as the number of gun violence deaths in the U.S. increases.
Though the source of the statistic is not cited, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates there have been about 1.3 million firearm deaths in the U.S. between 1981 and 2019.
Source: Rachel DeSantis/people.com
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John Lennon was killed on December 8, 1980. The singer and guitarist from The Beatles was murdered outside his home, The Dakota, in New York City by a deranged fan. The 40-year-old left behind two children and his wife, Yoko Ono. But the man who had been his friend since he was a teenager, Paul McCartney, was equally as bereft.
After the news of Lennon's death had been made public, McCartney was asked on the street how he felt about it.
His instant reaction was not what you might have expected. He quickly replied: "Drag, isn't it?"
Fans now know that McCartney had simply not come to terms with the event. He has since spoken out about how he really felt once Lennon's death had been announced.
Source: Callum Crumlish/express.co.uk
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“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison appeared in a scene of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. During an interview, director James Gunn explained why he chose to use the song in his film. Notably, Gunn said the song was related to one of the characters in the film.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 features classic hits such as Fleetwood Mac‘s “The Chain,” Cat Stevens‘ “Father and Son,” and the Electric Light Orchestra‘s “Mr. Blue Sky.” According to Rolling Stone, Gunn said the music in the film is supposed to reflect the taste of Meredith Quill, Star-Lord’s mother. “She’s a music lover, but she’s completely not elitist,” Gunn said. “If it’s something that’s thought of as goofy and pop, she likes it. If it’s cool or funk, she likes it.”
Source: cheatsheet.com
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Many fans know that George Harrison had a hard time bringing songs to The Beatles. However, some fans probably don’t know that George had another force standing against him, the group’s faithful producer, George Martin, who many refer to as the fifth Beatle.
Knowing that Martin was an integral part of The Beatles’ success, it’s surprising to hear that he was initially very hard on George. Martin “tolerated” him when he came with songs. Now, Peter Jackson’s new documentary, The Beatles: Get Back, has only reaffirmed that Martin wasn’t on team George. The producer didn’t support George in the recording studio, so why should he support him when he suddenly quit?
Source: cheatsheet.com
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The Beatles had many of their songs written by the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership. The duo, made of up Paul McCartney and John Lennon, wrote dozens of songs for the band, including Yesterday, Come Together, In My Life, Get Back, All You Need Is Love and many more.
It has now been revealed that the most popular song is a track that was predominantly written by McCartney.
Over 2,000 listeners of Union JACK Radio cast votes on what the best Beatles song of all time is, and today it has been announced.
The poll marked the four best songs from The Beatles, starting with Hey Jude.
The piano-led ballad is followed by the classic banger Eleanor Rigby.
Source: Callum Crumlish/express.co.uk
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It’s Beatlemania all over again: half a century after the Fab Four split, the Liverpudlians are once more dominating the cultural conversation thanks to Peter Jackson’s sprawling seven-hour documentary Get Back. In a recent five-star review, The Independent’s Ed Cumming argued that the film is so revelatory that “any future assessment of the band and its members will have to measure up against the people we see here”.
While Jackson’s film captures the pioneering band during the tumultuous recording sessions for their final record, 1970’s Let It Be, there was still plenty more to come from the four musicians. Over the course of the next decade, John Lennon released seven solo studio albums before he was assassinated by Mark David Chapman on 8 December 1980, 41 years ago this week. An eighth record, 1984’s Milk and Honey, followed posthumously.
These solo records feature some of the most famous and significant work of Lennon’s career, including activist anthems “Give Peace a Chance” and “Imagine” and perennial festive favourite “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”. Look beyond the hit singles and there are still plenty more gems to be details
Convincing the masses to watch a three-part, eight-hour docuseries on a band that broke up over 50 years ago? The only subject monumental enough to make that possible is the Beatles. Peter Jackson’s Get Back follows the band members through the making of the last studio album they would release together, Let It Be, and everything that happened behind the scenes that led to the end, showing never-before-seen footage and giving an in-depth look into the power dynamics among the bandmates. Any casual fan could tell you what became of Lennon, Harrison,
Source: Meredith Moran/slate.com
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Mr. Hester is the editor in chief of The City and the author of “Raising a Beatle Baby: How John, Paul, George and Ringo Helped Us Come Together as a Family.”
Paul McCartney is stressing out.
At various points in “The Beatles: Get Back,” the three-part, nearly-eight-hour documentary chronicling the 1969 sessions that would lead to the band’s final public performance, Mr. McCartney is clearly more frustrated at the creative and interpersonal roadblocks to the group’s progress than any of his bandmates are.
But Mr. McCartney is also the Beatle most visibly invigorated by a daunting challenge.
Source: Jere Hester/nytimes.com
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After the Beatles disbanded, McCartney emerged as a solo artist, and then formed the band Wings, together with his first wife Linda and Denny Laine. The group’s debut studio album - Wild Life - was remarkably recorded in only eight days and quickly found a place in the top 10 after its release in December 1971. On the album’s 50th anniversary (December 7, 2021) McCartney revealed that there is going to be a reissue of the Wings’ debut LP, this time as a limited edition half-speed mastered vinyl pressing. What fans of the musical genius may not know is that at the height of his fame, McCartney suffered with mental health issues, but instead of facing his demons, he and his fellow bandmates used their craft to make light of the issues.
Source: Lauren Russell/express.co.uk
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John Lennon was assassinated on December 8, 1980 at the age of just 40-years-old. It had been a decade since The Beatles broke up, but had he truly made up with Paul McCartney before his untimely death? During his last hours, the star gave his final interview and actually had some lovely things to say about his songwriting partner.
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Last year, Express.co.uk spoke with Kenneth Womack, author of John Lennon 1980: The Last Days In The Life.
Instead of focusing on his murder, the book celebrates all the creative activities the Beatle was up to during his final year.
When asked if Lennon and McCartney were truly made up by the time of his death, the author said there was clear evidence that this was the case.
Womack said: “I do think so. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. I think they were good in the ways they needed to be.”
Source: George Simpson/express.co.uk
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Denis O’Brien, the former manager of George Harrison, has died aged 80.
O’Brien’s daughter, Kristen O’Brien, told The Associated Press (via Billboard) that her father passed away at the Great Western Hospital in Swindon last Friday (December 3).
He had been admitted for severe abdominal pains although an exact cause of death has not yet been determined.
Kristen said that Denis was essentially retired over the past 20 years and had been “enjoying life with his wife, Phyllida O’Brien”, who died in 2019. He was married four times.
A native of St. Louis, Missouri, O’Brien relocated to Europe after receiving a law degree from Washington University.
Source: Tom Skinner/nme.com
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Like any good story, the documentary about the making of the Beatles’ latest album — neither of which existed yet — needed a climax.
It was Jan. 30, 1969, and the world-renowned rock band decided to stage a performance on the roof of its Apple Corps building in London for family, friends and film cameras. The 42-minute show became the grand finale of the band’s documentary, “Let It Be.”
It was also the last public performance that the most commercially successful band in history would ever give. As police shut down the show for causing a ruckus, John Lennon declared: “I’d like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we passed the audition.”
“It wasn’t an audition,” said Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn. “But they always had the perfect lines.”
The rooftop show and the associated “Let It Be” album are a
Source: Marisa Iati/washingtonpost.com
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Convincing the masses to watch a three-part, eight-hour docuseries on a band that broke up over 50 years ago? The only subject monumental enough to make that possible is the Beatles. Peter Jackson’s Get Back follows the band members through the making of the last studio album they would release together, Let It Be, and everything that happened behind the scenes that led to the end, showing never-before-seen footage and giving an in-depth look into the power dynamics among the bandmates. Any casual fan could tell you what became of Lennon, Harrison, McCartney, and Starr after the Beatles fell apart, but the series has introduced casual fans to a whole new cast of characters: the musicians, producers, lovers, and hangers-on who made the sessions what they were—for good and for bad. Yoko Ono’s a household name, and most viewers probably know a thing or two about Linda Eastman as well, but what happened to the rest of
Source: Meredith Moran/slate.com
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During a November discussion with B&N CEO James Daunt, legendary Beatle Paul McCartney revealed that when The Beatles first entered the music scene, the band was excited just to be making money.
“It was only later that we discovered that what we were doing was art, and there were things like muses,” McCartney said, adding, “When we first got out of Liverpool, it was money … we were kids without jobs, suddenly there was a job, and so we wanted to get paid, and the more money, the better.”
Though McCartney said the band enjoyed having money and made jokes — such as, “‘Well, let’s write a swimming pool! You need a new extension, let’s write it. Come on, sit down’” — McCartney believes that money and art don’t need to be mutually exclusive.
Source: By Jenna Romaine/thehill.com
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