By Steve Marinucci
Published on November 18, 2003, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
• The Beatles, ``Let It Be . . . Naked,'' (Capitol) **
The year is 1970. The group: the Beatles. The album: ``Let
It Be,'' the last the Fab Four released before the breakup.
But the Beatles couldn't. Let it be, that is.
Which brings us to 2003 and ``Let It Be . . . Naked,'' a
name coined by Ringo Starr for the streamlined, revamped
version of the ``Let It Be'' album released today. (Also new
today are packages on the two deceased Beatles: ``Lennon Legend,'' a DVD
collection of John Lennon videos put together by Yoko Ono; and ``Concert For
George,'' a DVD and CD soundtrack of the 2002 tribute concert to George
Harrison.)
The surviving Beatles' intent was to remove the ``wall of sound'' excess wrought
by producer Phil Spector and let the original music shine through.
But the result isn't nearly as revealing as it should be. There are significant
differences on only a couple of songs. It may be that listening to all those bootlegs
of ``Get Back,'' as ``Let It Be'' was known in its early stages, makes this
album dispensable for all but the most die-hard Beatle fans.
``Let It Be'' was conceived as a movie and an album designed to give an inside
look at the Beatles in the studio. In January 1969, a camera crew headed by
director Michael Lindsay-Hogg recorded every note the Beatles played, with
no overdubs or special effects. Additional sessions, produced by Glyn Johns
and with Billy Preston on keyboards, also took place that month. The eventual
album and film were intended to show the Beatles ``warts and all,'' as John
Lennon loved to say.
But what was supposed to be a series of friendly musical moments to show the
band ``as nature intended,'' as a press release of the day proclaimed, became a
claustrophobic nightmare. So much bitterness crept into the sessions that George
Harrison walked out at one point.
The Beatles wanted nothing to do with the finished tapes, and handed them off
to Johns to make the ``Get Back'' album. Johns' attempts -- raw and unpolished
-- were ultimately rejected, although they later surfaced on bootlegs. Desperate,
the Beatles turned over the tapes to Spector, the eccentric producer of the
Ronettes, Darlene Love and the Crystals.
``They just gave the tapes to him, and so he did what Phil Spector does and overdubbed
and put orchestras on and all the rest of it,'' says longtime Beatles associate
Neil Aspinall in the press kit of the new album. ``In a sense, he did a really good
job. It's a great album, but it wasn't what the concept was in the first place.''
Spector made ``Let It Be'' his own, overwhelming the sound with echo, strings
and a choir. Given the simple concept of ``Get Back,'' it was the most overdone
and most unlikely album that could have emerged. But it was released, despite
the group's dissatisfaction.
``Let It Be . . . Naked'' came about after Paul McCartney and Lindsay-Hogg
discussed a DVD release of ``Let It Be.'' Although that appealed to McCartney,
he was more enthusiastic about the idea of a revised ``Let It Be'' album.
``I had been listening to the original mixes without any of the overdubs thinking,
`Wow! These are almost scary! It's so bare.' I really liked it!'' McCartney
says in the press kit for the new album, which he calls ``pure.'' ``It's the energy
that was in the studio and the great thing about the remixed version is that with
today's technology, it sounds better than ever.''
However, anyone who hoped for a radically different album than the original
``Let It Be'' will be disappointed. Even with the cleaner versions, many of the
songs closely resemble the original versions, minus the between-song chatter.
The new album does feature a new running order and is missing two songs from the
original: ``Maggie Mae'' and ``Dig It.'' ``Don't Let Me Down'' is added.
Unlike the extensive remixing that took place for the release of ``Yellow Submarine
Soundtrack,'' many of the differences here are more subtle.
The differences are most noticeable on ``The Long and Winding Road'' and
``Across the Universe,'' the most overblown songs on the original. In its new
version, ``Road'' sounds more tender and heartfelt; ``Universe'' has been stripped
to the bare bones. ``Get Back'' here is missing its original coda.
So how will ``Naked'' be received? Some Beatle fans certainly will wish they'd
gone further with the remixing. And as cleaned up as it is, ``Let It Be . . Naked''
is not going to satisfy fans who had hoped the wonderful ``Get Back'' albums
available for years on bootlegs would surface officially.
But, at least Paul McCartney now has the version of ``The Long and Winding
Road'' he's always wanted.
© 2003 Mercury News and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
../millennium/news/03_nov/18_bayarea_7285334.htm
Tuesday, November 18, 2003
Friday, November 7, 2003
Four Fab shows: New DVDs provide a complete picture of the Beatles' visits to 'Ed Sullivan' in 1964, '65
By Steve Marinucci
Published on November 7, 2003, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
In the house where I grew up during the 1960s, there was one TV show above all others that spelled ``family time'': ``The Ed Sullivan Show.''
Sullivan started his career as a New York newspaper columnist, a journalist pounding a typewriter, but became one smart variety-show host. He knew that to attract a big audience every week he had to present something for each member of the family -- adults, youngsters and teens.
More often than not, what the teens got was that wild, raucous rock 'n' roll music they loved. If you're too young to remember those days, you might be surprised at what raised the ire of '60s parents: hairstyles that today seem tame; unusual clothes; and a noisier style of music than expected by those accustomed to Frankie Avalon and Paul Anka.
You can check out some of that with ``The Four Historic Ed Sullivan Shows Featuring the Beatles,'' a new two-DVD set from Sofa Entertainment, distributed by Goodtimes Video.
The discs include not just the performances by the Fab Four, which are available in clip compilations of the Sullivan show elsewhere, but also everything else on the show: Sullivan's introductions, other performers and the commercials. But forming the centerpiece are the 20 songs performed by the Beatles, 11 of which haven't been seen since they first aired. There are no extras; the shows speak for themselves.
Sullivan liked to tell the story of how he found out about the Beatles, on Oct. 31, 1963. ``My wife, Sylvia, and I were in London, at Heathrow Airport,'' he has been quoted as saying. ``There was the biggest crowd I'd ever seen in my life! I asked someone what was going on, and he said, `The Beatles.' `Who the hell are the Beatles?' I asked. But I went back to my hotel, got the name of their manager and arranged for them to do three shows.''
The first, on Feb. 9, 1964, attracted a TV audience of 73 million, setting a record that stood for years. That show is still vivid in my memory. The adults at my house were relaxing in chairs, the kids lying on the floor. Mom and Dad wanted to see the cast of the Broadway musical ``Oliver!'' (which included a young British actor named Davy Jones, later one of the Monkees) and British singer Tessie O'Shea. But my sister and I cared only about the band our schoolmates buzzed about and whose records we'd coaxed our parents to buy for us.
Finally, Sullivan got down to business. ``Now, yesterday and today, our theater's been jammed with newspapermen and hundreds of photographers from all over the nation, and these veterans agree with me that the city never has witnessed the excitement stirred by these youngsters from Liverpool who call themselves the Beatles,'' he told viewers, looking almost frightened at what he was about to unleash.
``Now tonight,'' he continued, ``you'll be entertained twice by them -- right now and in the second half of the show. Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles!''
Screams from ecstatic fans pierced the TV speaker as the Fab Four launched into ``All My Loving.'' My sister and I sat hypnotized.
Our folks were less enthralled. The musicians had long hair. And Ringo -- was he homely!
The band performed ``Till There Was You'' and what would become its American trademark, ``She Loves You.'' But all too soon, the segment ended.
Sullivan reminded us the Beatles would be back in the second half, which meant we'd have to wait through magician Fred Kaps, the ``Oliver!'' cast, impressionist Frank Gorshin (the Riddler on the ``Batman'' TV series), Olympic athlete Terry McDermott, Tessie O'Shea and comics Mitzi McCall and Charlie Brill.
Whew!
After what seemed an eternity, the band was back on camera to do ``I Saw Her Standing There'' and ``I Want to Hold Your Hand.'' The screams of the audience blared through the speaker. The Beatles appeared to be having a great time.
Overall, their onstage performances here are livelier than the studio versions. Given that they had an audience of screaming young girls, that's really no surprise.
Sullivan had booked the Beatles again for the following Sunday, from the Deauville Hotel at Miami Beach, and for Feb. 23 in New York, a segment actually prerecorded before the band returned to England.
Those shows are here, too, as well as the Beatles' Sept. 12, 1965, appearance on the Sullivan show, when the fresh-faced group looked far more self-assured than the year before.
In addition to the Beatles, the shows spotlight comics Allen and Rossi, dancer Mitzi Gaynor, comic Myron Cohen, the British comedy team of Morecambe & Wise, singers Gordon and Sheila MacRae, Cab Calloway, instrumentalist Acker Bilk, Soupy Sales (who does his big hit, ``The Mouse'') and Cilla Black, a Liverpudlian who, like the Beatles, once worked at the Cavern Club and was managed by Brian Epstein.
Some of the acts were dreadful. Gordon and Sheila MacRae's takeoff on ``The Garry Moore Show,'' with Gordon's horrible impersonation of that show's host; Dave Barry's embarrassing comedy routine about teenagers on a show a lot of teens were watching; fellow Britishers Morecambe & Wise doing a weak routine about rare antiques. (The comic duo comes off much better in an appearance with the Beatles included on the ``Beatles Anthology'' videos.)
Still, the images are pristine. Watching them is like being transported back to the '60s.
And oh, by the way, my parents finally did become Beatles fans -- once they saw the Rolling Stones on the Sullivan show six months later.
Published on November 7, 2003, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
In the house where I grew up during the 1960s, there was one TV show above all others that spelled ``family time'': ``The Ed Sullivan Show.''
Sullivan started his career as a New York newspaper columnist, a journalist pounding a typewriter, but became one smart variety-show host. He knew that to attract a big audience every week he had to present something for each member of the family -- adults, youngsters and teens.
More often than not, what the teens got was that wild, raucous rock 'n' roll music they loved. If you're too young to remember those days, you might be surprised at what raised the ire of '60s parents: hairstyles that today seem tame; unusual clothes; and a noisier style of music than expected by those accustomed to Frankie Avalon and Paul Anka.
You can check out some of that with ``The Four Historic Ed Sullivan Shows Featuring the Beatles,'' a new two-DVD set from Sofa Entertainment, distributed by Goodtimes Video.
The discs include not just the performances by the Fab Four, which are available in clip compilations of the Sullivan show elsewhere, but also everything else on the show: Sullivan's introductions, other performers and the commercials. But forming the centerpiece are the 20 songs performed by the Beatles, 11 of which haven't been seen since they first aired. There are no extras; the shows speak for themselves.
Sullivan liked to tell the story of how he found out about the Beatles, on Oct. 31, 1963. ``My wife, Sylvia, and I were in London, at Heathrow Airport,'' he has been quoted as saying. ``There was the biggest crowd I'd ever seen in my life! I asked someone what was going on, and he said, `The Beatles.' `Who the hell are the Beatles?' I asked. But I went back to my hotel, got the name of their manager and arranged for them to do three shows.''
The first, on Feb. 9, 1964, attracted a TV audience of 73 million, setting a record that stood for years. That show is still vivid in my memory. The adults at my house were relaxing in chairs, the kids lying on the floor. Mom and Dad wanted to see the cast of the Broadway musical ``Oliver!'' (which included a young British actor named Davy Jones, later one of the Monkees) and British singer Tessie O'Shea. But my sister and I cared only about the band our schoolmates buzzed about and whose records we'd coaxed our parents to buy for us.
Finally, Sullivan got down to business. ``Now, yesterday and today, our theater's been jammed with newspapermen and hundreds of photographers from all over the nation, and these veterans agree with me that the city never has witnessed the excitement stirred by these youngsters from Liverpool who call themselves the Beatles,'' he told viewers, looking almost frightened at what he was about to unleash.
``Now tonight,'' he continued, ``you'll be entertained twice by them -- right now and in the second half of the show. Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles!''
Screams from ecstatic fans pierced the TV speaker as the Fab Four launched into ``All My Loving.'' My sister and I sat hypnotized.
Our folks were less enthralled. The musicians had long hair. And Ringo -- was he homely!
The band performed ``Till There Was You'' and what would become its American trademark, ``She Loves You.'' But all too soon, the segment ended.
Sullivan reminded us the Beatles would be back in the second half, which meant we'd have to wait through magician Fred Kaps, the ``Oliver!'' cast, impressionist Frank Gorshin (the Riddler on the ``Batman'' TV series), Olympic athlete Terry McDermott, Tessie O'Shea and comics Mitzi McCall and Charlie Brill.
Whew!
After what seemed an eternity, the band was back on camera to do ``I Saw Her Standing There'' and ``I Want to Hold Your Hand.'' The screams of the audience blared through the speaker. The Beatles appeared to be having a great time.
Overall, their onstage performances here are livelier than the studio versions. Given that they had an audience of screaming young girls, that's really no surprise.
Sullivan had booked the Beatles again for the following Sunday, from the Deauville Hotel at Miami Beach, and for Feb. 23 in New York, a segment actually prerecorded before the band returned to England.
Those shows are here, too, as well as the Beatles' Sept. 12, 1965, appearance on the Sullivan show, when the fresh-faced group looked far more self-assured than the year before.
In addition to the Beatles, the shows spotlight comics Allen and Rossi, dancer Mitzi Gaynor, comic Myron Cohen, the British comedy team of Morecambe & Wise, singers Gordon and Sheila MacRae, Cab Calloway, instrumentalist Acker Bilk, Soupy Sales (who does his big hit, ``The Mouse'') and Cilla Black, a Liverpudlian who, like the Beatles, once worked at the Cavern Club and was managed by Brian Epstein.
Some of the acts were dreadful. Gordon and Sheila MacRae's takeoff on ``The Garry Moore Show,'' with Gordon's horrible impersonation of that show's host; Dave Barry's embarrassing comedy routine about teenagers on a show a lot of teens were watching; fellow Britishers Morecambe & Wise doing a weak routine about rare antiques. (The comic duo comes off much better in an appearance with the Beatles included on the ``Beatles Anthology'' videos.)
Still, the images are pristine. Watching them is like being transported back to the '60s.
And oh, by the way, my parents finally did become Beatles fans -- once they saw the Rolling Stones on the Sullivan show six months later.
Friday, October 31, 2003
Under its spell again: "Sleeping Beauty" still superb on DVD
Under its spell again: "Sleeping Beauty" still superb on DVD
Published Oct. 31, 2003 in San Jose (CA) Mercury News
Ever since I was young, I've had a love affair with ''Sleeping Beauty.'' The Disney animated movie, that is.
First released in 1955, and the last of the classic fairy tales filmed by Walt Disney, the movie cast its spell on me. From today's perspective, it was probably Princess Aurora herself and the striking design and standout music influenced by Tchaikovsky that got to me back then.
All this came back after I watched ''Sleeping Beauty: Special Edition,'' Disney's two-disc DVD release with lots of bonus features, the first DVD version available in stores rather than via mail-order.
The film itself, restored frame by frame, looks beautiful with rich colors and a great-sounding Dolby 5.1 audio track. It was Disney's first widescreen film, and thankfully this set avoids forcing the shopper to choose between video formats by including both widescreen and full screen.
The film tells the story of a young princess who, at birth, is cursed to die at age 16 by the evil witch Maleficent, easily one of the scariest villains in Disney's animated films. The thrilling climax will likely send the youngest viewers into mommy and daddy's arms. But don't worry, kids; your folks did that, too.
The host of memorable characters includes the heroic Prince Phillip and the fairy trio Flora, Fauna and Merryweather, who hope to protect the princess from Maleficent's spell.
The set's best extra is the audio commentary. In documentary fashion, it presents a wealth of information from the film's art director Eyvind Earle, supervising animators Ollie Johnston and Marc Davis, background painter Frank Armitage and the actress who provided the voice for Princess Aurora, Mary Costa. It also includes the unused lyrics of the song ''Riddle Diddle,'' whose instrumental melody is heard in the film.
With an almost girlish glee, Costa recalls her audition, how her Southern accent was made to sound British and what it was like working with Disney.
The animators discuss the Renaissance influence on the backgrounds, the creation of the music and what made the characters, especially the animals, unique to this film. Davis remembers Disney as a tough boss who seldom gave out compliments.
Other extras include a panel discussion with some of the animators and critic Leonard Maltin, a close look at the creation of the backgrounds, alive-action dance sequence done by Helene Stanley to show how a dance scene was animated and a look at the restoration.
Also included are ''The Peter Tchaikovsky Story,'' a segment from the ''Disneyland'' TV series, and the Oscar-winning 1958 live-action short ''Grand Canyon'' (which has nothing to do with ''Sleeping Beauty'').
For kids, there's the Rescue Aurora Game, which gives them a chance to pick the right forest path to save Sleeping Beauty, and the Princess Personality Game, designed to show girls what princess they most resemble after a short quiz. Two features showcase the film's standout song, ''Once Upon a Dream.''
Published Oct. 31, 2003 in San Jose (CA) Mercury News
Ever since I was young, I've had a love affair with ''Sleeping Beauty.'' The Disney animated movie, that is.
First released in 1955, and the last of the classic fairy tales filmed by Walt Disney, the movie cast its spell on me. From today's perspective, it was probably Princess Aurora herself and the striking design and standout music influenced by Tchaikovsky that got to me back then.
All this came back after I watched ''Sleeping Beauty: Special Edition,'' Disney's two-disc DVD release with lots of bonus features, the first DVD version available in stores rather than via mail-order.
The film itself, restored frame by frame, looks beautiful with rich colors and a great-sounding Dolby 5.1 audio track. It was Disney's first widescreen film, and thankfully this set avoids forcing the shopper to choose between video formats by including both widescreen and full screen.
The film tells the story of a young princess who, at birth, is cursed to die at age 16 by the evil witch Maleficent, easily one of the scariest villains in Disney's animated films. The thrilling climax will likely send the youngest viewers into mommy and daddy's arms. But don't worry, kids; your folks did that, too.
The host of memorable characters includes the heroic Prince Phillip and the fairy trio Flora, Fauna and Merryweather, who hope to protect the princess from Maleficent's spell.
The set's best extra is the audio commentary. In documentary fashion, it presents a wealth of information from the film's art director Eyvind Earle, supervising animators Ollie Johnston and Marc Davis, background painter Frank Armitage and the actress who provided the voice for Princess Aurora, Mary Costa. It also includes the unused lyrics of the song ''Riddle Diddle,'' whose instrumental melody is heard in the film.
With an almost girlish glee, Costa recalls her audition, how her Southern accent was made to sound British and what it was like working with Disney.
The animators discuss the Renaissance influence on the backgrounds, the creation of the music and what made the characters, especially the animals, unique to this film. Davis remembers Disney as a tough boss who seldom gave out compliments.
Other extras include a panel discussion with some of the animators and critic Leonard Maltin, a close look at the creation of the backgrounds, alive-action dance sequence done by Helene Stanley to show how a dance scene was animated and a look at the restoration.
Also included are ''The Peter Tchaikovsky Story,'' a segment from the ''Disneyland'' TV series, and the Oscar-winning 1958 live-action short ''Grand Canyon'' (which has nothing to do with ''Sleeping Beauty'').
For kids, there's the Rescue Aurora Game, which gives them a chance to pick the right forest path to save Sleeping Beauty, and the Princess Personality Game, designed to show girls what princess they most resemble after a short quiz. Two features showcase the film's standout song, ''Once Upon a Dream.''
Tuesday, July 22, 2003
Beatle at the beginning: Fired from a place in rock history, Pete Best tells his side of the tale and plays in his own touring band
By Steve Marinucci
Published July 22, 2003 in San Jose (CA) Mercury News
BEATLE AT THE BEGINNING
FIRED FROM A PLACE IN ROCK HISTORY, PETE BEST TELLS HIS SIDE OF THE TALE AND PLAYS IN HIS OWN TOURING BAND
The Beatles that Americans saw on their TV screens Feb. 9, 1964, looked a lot different from the group Pete Best knew.
In earlier days, they fancied leather outfits, not the tailored, collarless suits they wore on that first appearance on ''The Ed Sullivan Show.''
Then, there was the group itself. Two members were missing from the band Best knew. One was Stu Sutcliffe, the band's bassist before Paul McCartney. Sutcliffe died of a brain hemorrhage in April 1962.
The other was Best himself. He'd been the Beatles' drummer since 1960 and had played on the well-known ''My Bonnie'' session in Hamburg. But in August 1962, he was kicked out of the band and left to watch the Beatles' rise to fame from the sidelines.
Today, Best, 61, is touring the United States with his own group, the Pete Best Band, which includes his brother, Roeg. The band plays Campbell's King's Head Tavern on Wednesday.
Besides his brother, who plays drums in the band with Best, the band also includes lead guitarists Phil Melia and Mark Hay, bass player Dave Deevey and singer Chris Cavanagh. (The Campbell show will also include a pre-show question-and-answer session with Best and an autograph session afterward.)
Best calls the pre-fame Beatles ''more powerhouse, more charismatic.'' And though it may seem strange today to see the Beatles in leather jackets, he says they fit the group's Hamburg lifestyle, when they played six- and seven-hour sets six to seven nights a week.
''We found that the stage jackets basically just disintegrated along with the rest of the stage clothes. Leather was . . . something we could utilize onstage and live in it offstage as well. It served a dual purpose,'' he says.
Best sang a few songs during his days as drummer, among them ''Matchbox'' (also sung on the BBC radio program by John Lennon and on record by Ringo Starr) and ''Peppermint Twist.''
''That was about it. That's all they could persuade me to sing at that time.''
There are rumors of rare live recordings and possibly video of the Beatles circulating among collectors with him on them. Best says he doesn't know for sure, but says, ''We're not always aware of what people have recorded.''
Of all the Beatles, Best says he was closest to Lennon. ''John was very much what the people saw, the acidic human person,'' he says. But he was ''a very tender and a very loving person as well.''
McCartney was ''very much at the early stage a public relations man, and I think he still is, you know,'' he says.
And George Harrison? ''George was very much into his music. He spent most of his time trying to improve his guitar technique.''
He describes Sutcliffe as ''very much, again, a quiet guy. Smallest in the band stature-wise, but we all knew deep down he was very much into art, even though he loved the Beatles 200 percent then.''
Film is a love story
Best calls the 1993 movie ''Backbeat,'' which revolved around the group's early days, ''a good movie,'' though he says it was more ''the wonderful love story of Astrid Kirchherr and Stu Sutcliffe, and we were there while this was just going on.''
On Jan. 1, 1962, John, Paul, George and Pete were booked into a Decca Records studio for an audition. (Decca wouldn't sign them to a contract.) Five of the tracks were later released on the Beatles' ''Anthology 1'' CD.
Best recalls, ''I remember that we'd celebrated the night before, because it was New Year's Eve. And we got to the recording session late, which Brian'' -- manager Brian Epstein -- ''wasn't too happy about. . . . We were fortunate because Mike Smith, who was going to be the A&R man, he'd been celebrating as well, so he landed up late.''
When asked about the day he was sacked from the Beatles, Best is hesitant, but then recalls.
''I was called into Brian Epstein's office. We'd played the Cavern the night before. . . . After talking around the subject for a while, he turned around to me and said, 'Pete, I don't really know how to turn 'round and tell you this. You're out of the band on Saturday.' That's as fast as it happened. There was no forewarning. It was done. The boys weren't there, so I couldn't discuss it and find out what their views were. But that was it. One day I was a Beatle and next day I was out.''
'Very murky' decision
Best says he has never learned the person really responsible for his firing. ''Over the years . . . I tried to find out. It's still very gray and very murky.''
In 1964, U.S. TV audiences saw Best on the prime-time game show ''I've Got a Secret,'' hosted by Garry Moore. Best's secret, of course, was that he'd been a Beatle.
In addition to the current tour, Best is also co-author (with brothers Roeg and Rory) of the recently published ''The Beatles: The True Beginnings,'' a coffee-table book filled with rare photos celebrating the Casbah Club, a Liverpool coffee club opened by his late mother, Mona, in 1959. McCartney contributes an introductory quote about the club to the book.
Though Americans know the Cavern as the birthplace of the Beatles, Best says that title should go to the Casbah.
''It was the catalyst for the Mersey Beat sound long before the Cavern,'' Best says. ''The Casbah was the birthplace of the Beatles, the birthplace for many of the bands in Liverpool.''
Best has plans for more books -- a prequel detailing more of his mother's early story and another with his more recent history. The first, he hopes, will be published late in 2004. The family also plans to re-open the long-closed Casbah Club in early 2004, complete with the name ''John'' scratched in the wall by Lennon, as pictured in the book.
Though Best says he and McCartney haven't met up again since those early days, he'd be glad to get together with his former bandmate.
''And as far as I'm concerned, the door's always been open. But I hope that one of these days we will meet up. It'd be nice to meet up again after all this time.''
Pete Best Band
Where: King's Head Pub, 201 Orchard City Drive, Campbell
When: 6:30 and 9 p.m. Wednesday
Tickets: $20; (408) 871-2499 or through Streetlight Records in San Jose at (888) 330-7776.
Also: 8 p.m. Thursday, McNear's Mystic Theatre, 23 Petaluma Blvd. North, Petaluma, $20, (800) 225-2277, www.tickets.com, mystictheatre.com
8 p.m. Saturday, Avalon Ballroom, 1290 Sutter St., San Francisco, $18.50, www.ticketmaster.com
Published July 22, 2003 in San Jose (CA) Mercury News
BEATLE AT THE BEGINNING
FIRED FROM A PLACE IN ROCK HISTORY, PETE BEST TELLS HIS SIDE OF THE TALE AND PLAYS IN HIS OWN TOURING BAND
The Beatles that Americans saw on their TV screens Feb. 9, 1964, looked a lot different from the group Pete Best knew.
In earlier days, they fancied leather outfits, not the tailored, collarless suits they wore on that first appearance on ''The Ed Sullivan Show.''
Then, there was the group itself. Two members were missing from the band Best knew. One was Stu Sutcliffe, the band's bassist before Paul McCartney. Sutcliffe died of a brain hemorrhage in April 1962.
The other was Best himself. He'd been the Beatles' drummer since 1960 and had played on the well-known ''My Bonnie'' session in Hamburg. But in August 1962, he was kicked out of the band and left to watch the Beatles' rise to fame from the sidelines.
Today, Best, 61, is touring the United States with his own group, the Pete Best Band, which includes his brother, Roeg. The band plays Campbell's King's Head Tavern on Wednesday.
Besides his brother, who plays drums in the band with Best, the band also includes lead guitarists Phil Melia and Mark Hay, bass player Dave Deevey and singer Chris Cavanagh. (The Campbell show will also include a pre-show question-and-answer session with Best and an autograph session afterward.)
Best calls the pre-fame Beatles ''more powerhouse, more charismatic.'' And though it may seem strange today to see the Beatles in leather jackets, he says they fit the group's Hamburg lifestyle, when they played six- and seven-hour sets six to seven nights a week.
''We found that the stage jackets basically just disintegrated along with the rest of the stage clothes. Leather was . . . something we could utilize onstage and live in it offstage as well. It served a dual purpose,'' he says.
Best sang a few songs during his days as drummer, among them ''Matchbox'' (also sung on the BBC radio program by John Lennon and on record by Ringo Starr) and ''Peppermint Twist.''
''That was about it. That's all they could persuade me to sing at that time.''
There are rumors of rare live recordings and possibly video of the Beatles circulating among collectors with him on them. Best says he doesn't know for sure, but says, ''We're not always aware of what people have recorded.''
Of all the Beatles, Best says he was closest to Lennon. ''John was very much what the people saw, the acidic human person,'' he says. But he was ''a very tender and a very loving person as well.''
McCartney was ''very much at the early stage a public relations man, and I think he still is, you know,'' he says.
And George Harrison? ''George was very much into his music. He spent most of his time trying to improve his guitar technique.''
He describes Sutcliffe as ''very much, again, a quiet guy. Smallest in the band stature-wise, but we all knew deep down he was very much into art, even though he loved the Beatles 200 percent then.''
Film is a love story
Best calls the 1993 movie ''Backbeat,'' which revolved around the group's early days, ''a good movie,'' though he says it was more ''the wonderful love story of Astrid Kirchherr and Stu Sutcliffe, and we were there while this was just going on.''
On Jan. 1, 1962, John, Paul, George and Pete were booked into a Decca Records studio for an audition. (Decca wouldn't sign them to a contract.) Five of the tracks were later released on the Beatles' ''Anthology 1'' CD.
Best recalls, ''I remember that we'd celebrated the night before, because it was New Year's Eve. And we got to the recording session late, which Brian'' -- manager Brian Epstein -- ''wasn't too happy about. . . . We were fortunate because Mike Smith, who was going to be the A&R man, he'd been celebrating as well, so he landed up late.''
When asked about the day he was sacked from the Beatles, Best is hesitant, but then recalls.
''I was called into Brian Epstein's office. We'd played the Cavern the night before. . . . After talking around the subject for a while, he turned around to me and said, 'Pete, I don't really know how to turn 'round and tell you this. You're out of the band on Saturday.' That's as fast as it happened. There was no forewarning. It was done. The boys weren't there, so I couldn't discuss it and find out what their views were. But that was it. One day I was a Beatle and next day I was out.''
'Very murky' decision
Best says he has never learned the person really responsible for his firing. ''Over the years . . . I tried to find out. It's still very gray and very murky.''
In 1964, U.S. TV audiences saw Best on the prime-time game show ''I've Got a Secret,'' hosted by Garry Moore. Best's secret, of course, was that he'd been a Beatle.
In addition to the current tour, Best is also co-author (with brothers Roeg and Rory) of the recently published ''The Beatles: The True Beginnings,'' a coffee-table book filled with rare photos celebrating the Casbah Club, a Liverpool coffee club opened by his late mother, Mona, in 1959. McCartney contributes an introductory quote about the club to the book.
Though Americans know the Cavern as the birthplace of the Beatles, Best says that title should go to the Casbah.
''It was the catalyst for the Mersey Beat sound long before the Cavern,'' Best says. ''The Casbah was the birthplace of the Beatles, the birthplace for many of the bands in Liverpool.''
Best has plans for more books -- a prequel detailing more of his mother's early story and another with his more recent history. The first, he hopes, will be published late in 2004. The family also plans to re-open the long-closed Casbah Club in early 2004, complete with the name ''John'' scratched in the wall by Lennon, as pictured in the book.
Though Best says he and McCartney haven't met up again since those early days, he'd be glad to get together with his former bandmate.
''And as far as I'm concerned, the door's always been open. But I hope that one of these days we will meet up. It'd be nice to meet up again after all this time.''
Pete Best Band
Where: King's Head Pub, 201 Orchard City Drive, Campbell
When: 6:30 and 9 p.m. Wednesday
Tickets: $20; (408) 871-2499 or through Streetlight Records in San Jose at (888) 330-7776.
Also: 8 p.m. Thursday, McNear's Mystic Theatre, 23 Petaluma Blvd. North, Petaluma, $20, (800) 225-2277, www.tickets.com, mystictheatre.com
8 p.m. Saturday, Avalon Ballroom, 1290 Sutter St., San Francisco, $18.50, www.ticketmaster.com
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