Beatle People: Barry Miles

Barry Miles (or "Miles") (born 1943) is a British author. In the 1960s, he was co-owner of the Indica Gallery and helped start the International Times.

Life and work

Barry Miles was born in Cirencester, England.

In the 1960s, Miles was co-owner of the Indica Gallery, allowing him to meet many of the stars of the Swinging London social scene. Miles brought Paul McCartney into contact with people who wanted to start the International Times, which McCartney helped to fund. Miles would later become de facto manager of the Apple's short-lived Zapple Records label, and wrote McCartney's official biography, Many Years from Now (1998).

In 1965, Miles lived at 15 Hanson Street, London, and he and his wife introduced McCartney to Hash Brownies by using a recipe for Hash fudge which they had found in the Alice B. Toklas Cookbook.

With John Hopkins, Miles organized The 14 Hour Technicolor Dream, a concert on 29 April 1967 Alexandra Palace to raise funds for the International Times. It was a multi-artist event, featuring poets, artists and musicians. Pink Floyd headlined the event; other artists included: Yoko Ono and John Lennon, Arthur Brown, Soft Machine, Tomorrow and The Pretty Things.

Miles published a book named Hippie, telling the story of the hippie movement from the sixties to the early seventies with interviews, quotes, and images. He co-wrote I Want to Take You Higher (documenting the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum exhibit by the same name) with Charles Perry and James Henke.

Miles has criticized musicians who speak out in support of Libertarian and or pro-Capitalist views. Artists he has clashed with include Neil Peart of the Canadian band Rush. An article about Rush written by Barry Miles in the March 4th 1978 edition of the UK's New Musical Express contained vehement attacks. Miles' book about Frank Zappa also sharply criticized Zappa's views toward business and labor unions. The views of such musicians contrast sharply with Miles' Socialist ideology.

Miles has written biographies of Paul McCartney, The Beatles, William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac, Frank Zappa, Charles Bukowski and Allen Ginsberg, as well as books about John Lennon, the Beatles, and The Clash. His book on Pink Floyd came out in September, 2007.

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