Golden Dreams

Photographs by Astrid Kirchherr and Max Scheler
Introduction by Astrid Kirchherr

Golden Dreams is a photographic journey which accompanies The Beatles during the filming of A Hard Day's Night in Liverpool in 1964. This limited edition volume features a collection of unpublished photographs of Liverpool and The Beatles. It captures the inspirational effect of the Liverpool music scene's early-60s explosion, and the phenomenon of the Merseybeat.

The Beatles first visited Hamburg in 1960. Then and during subsequent visits to the city, The Beatles learned their craft as musicians and performers and met with Astrid Kirchherr, a budding photographer who quickly became close friends with the band. Later, Astrid became engaged to The Beatles' original bass-player, Stuart Sutcliffe.

It was four years later when Astrid (together with Max Scheler) visited The Beatles on their home turf and took the photographs which appear in Golden Dreams. In the short period between Hamburg and A Hard Day's Night, The Beatles had transformed into an internationally-acclaimed rock band with a huge American following. Astrid's lens focuses on The Beatles in private as well as public moments during filming, and her documentary portraits of Liverpool at this time depict the passion and poverty of its people. Golden Dreams is a moving testament to the inspirational effect of The Beatles success on their hometown as well as a historic account of the band's metamorphic rise to superstardom.