Two Beatles, Sean Lennon mourn Prince; see his stunning George Harrison tribute

Beatles Examiner

April 21, 2016

Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and members of the Beatles family reacted today to the shocking news of the death of Prince. On his Twitter account, Paul McCartney recalled his personal friendship with the singer.

Saddened by Prince's death. Proud to have seen in the New Year with him. He seemed fine and played brilliantly funky music.

God bless this creative giant. Thanks Prince. Love X Paul

Ringo Starr also tweeted out some personal thoughts.

God bless prince we will all miss him I still have my Purple  whistle. I will blow it tonight peace and love 

Paul McCartney's daughter Stella also said on Twitter Prince was an “inspiration.”

Rest in peace... a true lifelong inspiration. I am so blessed to have witnessed your musicality in person! X Stella

In a series of posts on Twitter, Sean said,

One time I was having dinner randomly at house of blues and suddenly they announced Prince was gonna jam. He shredded blues covers for 3 hrs

One time I saw D'Angelo play Dorothy Parker w Prince at an after show gig at Tramps in NYC.

I got to see Prince at MSG when Purple Rain came out. Sheila E. was opening. I learned a lot about sex and music that day.

I was at a club in NYC and I told Prince he was the best bass player and he looked at me and said, 'better than Larry Graham?' I felt stupid

He continued.

 Prince also told me all artists should self publish w no label, and that I should stop smoking. I took his advise in both cases.

I'm just really shocked. Prince seemed so fit and healthy. It's hard to process. He was a super nova of talent.

I've got a vinyl 10" of Pop Life that's a club mix that goes on forever. It's so dope. Also have Raspberry Beret.

The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger also expressed his condolences in three Twitter posts. (1) “I am so saddened to hear of Prince's passing. Prince was a revolutionary artist, a wonderful musician and composer. (2) Prince was an original lyricist and a startling guitar player. His talent was limitless. (3) Prince was one of the most unique and exciting artists of the last 30 years.”

If there any lasting memory of Prince for Beatles fans, however, it was in 2004 when he played an incredible guitar solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" in a group with Dhani Harrison, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Steve Winwood and others to help induct George Harrison into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. According to Rolling Stone, it almost didn't happen because George's widow, Olivia Harrison, only wanted those who knew George. But in the end, she allowed it.

As Paul Shaffer, who led the band that night, said, "Prince kept a little something in reserve for the actual performance itself. He really did show what a great guitarist he was. He just killed it that night." 

That he did. 

 

Thatst killed it that night." That he did.

Photos from Los Angeles and Beatlefest in 1996

From top to bottom: The John Lennon star next to the Capitol Tower in L.A., the two parts of a Beatles mural in the Capitol Records parking lot, Joey Molland and Denny Laine, Denny Laine.

 

The Pete Best Band Live -- a review

 7/23/03 at the King's Head, Campbell, CA.

From left, Phil Melia, Dave Deevey, Chris Cavanaugh and Mark Hay. Right, Pete Best on drums. (Photos by Steve Marinucci.)

By Steve Marinucci

Pete Best was there at the beginning. And those early Beatle days must have good memories for him because he's reliving them through the Pete Best Band, which played the San Jose, CA., suburb of Campbell July 23 in a British-themed pub called the King's Head. It was an appropriate place to play and the Best Band made the most of it in two shows that night.

Roag Best, Pete's brother, is the band's second drummer.

We saw the second show, which was opened by a neat local surf band, the Submersians. They played a half-hour set of some great surf tunes, highlighted by a surf version of "The Munsters" theme. Very clever.

After a short break, the Pete Best Band came to the stage. Best was introduced by show producer Keith Putney as "the man who put the 'beat' in the Beatles." The crowd was enthusiastic and loud as the band broke into "Slow Down." The tempo was a shade under where it should have been, but the band rocked through it quite hard, giving a taste of what was to come -- an evening of the Beatles, even though it wasn't the Beatles.

Pete signs autographs after the show.

It's unfair to call the Pete Best Band a Beatle tribute, even though they play songs done by the Beatles and one of the members is a former member. The Pete Best Band is a throwback to the Fabs' Hamburg days.

And the Pete Best Band is a joy to hear. While various members of the group take vocals during the show, animated singer Chris Cavanagh is an enthusiastic front man. The rhythm section -- Mark Hay, Dave Deevey and Phil Melia, playing Rickenbacker, Epiphone and Hofner bass guitars, and drummers Roag and Pete Best are a solid combination providing the backbeat and kept the crowd going.

A couple of the songs deserve special mention. "My Bonnie" included both the slow intro and the faster version and it was fun to hear both again, as we've all heard so many times on record. On the other hand, "Sweet Georgia Brown" included the Beatle lyrics version. To be really authentic and avoid Beatle tribute labels, guys, drop the Beatle lyrics and do the original ones. "Some Other Guy," always one of our favorite songs, sounded crisp and sharp, as did "One After 909."

The biggest surprise of the set, however, was "Besame Mucho." Unlike the Beatles' Decca version, the Best Band's version emphasized the lead guitar that was pretty much buried in the Decca audition version. The result was a much more rocking version than we've heard before. Did the Beatles ever do it that way live? It's a question we'd like to know.

We strongly suggest you don't miss the Pete Best Band if you have a chance to see them. Few of us got to hear the Beatles before Beatlemania, but the Pete Best Band gives fans an idea of what those days were like. It's a nice reflection on the Beatles that the Best Band's set reveals that maybe more of the Beatles' talents were evident in those days than had been previously believed.

And it's a nice compliment that the Pete Best Band manages to evoke both the Beatles' spirit while adding a bit of their own -- and the audience comes out the winner. They're the Best of both worlds.

(An end note: The Pete Best Band would have played an encore, but didn't because local police were called to the venue because of noise complaints. That tells you they were really rockin' the house!)

Here's the show's set list:

• Slow Down
• What I'd Say
• One After 909
• Please Mr. Postman
• P.S. I Love You
• My Bonnie (with both slow and fast versions)
• Besame Mucho
• Sweet Georgia Brown
• Long Tall Sally
• Some Other Guy
• I Saw Her Standing There
• Twist & Shout