John Lennon and Paul McCartney Press Conference at the Americana Hotel, New York City (May 14, 1968)

John Lennon and Paul McCartney held a press conference at the Americana Hotel in New York City on May 14, 1968, to promote Apple Corps in the United States. Derek Taylor managed the questions, and Linda Eastman, who later became Linda McCartney, was present in the audience. McCartney, experiencing personal paranoia likely induced by drugs, allowed Lennon to take the lead in most of the discussion. The press conference revealed the duo's discomfort with handling the media since The Beatles ceased touring. Despite their unease, they announced Apple's launch and its invitation for talent submissions. Reflecting on the event, McCartney expressed feeling nervous and out of his depth during interviews with publications like Fortune magazine, emphasizing that Apple was initially more about fun than business planning.

 

Chris O'Dell on Work at Apple in Savile Row

"I thought Paul was the most organised. He used to come to the office at 9:30 a.m. to make sure everybody was there by ten. He'd stay there all day and he'd go around checking on things, little weird things, like was there toilet paper in the bathroom. At first, the Beatles held regular meetings with all of their staff. They all came to the first one, then only two or three would come and finally, just Paul. He, at least, was competent. When they decided to close the shop, he called everybody into his office to tell him exactly what was happening. John and Yoko also had an office, but they never seemed to do much."

George Harrison on the Hells Angels Visiting Apple, 1968

"Hells Angels will be in London within the next week on the way to straighten out Czechoslovakia. There will be twelve in number, complete with black leather jackets and motorcycles. They will, undoubtedly, arrive at Apple and I have heard they may try to make full use of Apple's facilities. They may look as though they are going to do you in but they are very straight and do good things, so, don't fear them or uptight them. Try to assist them without neglecting your Apple business and without letting them take control of Savile Row."

-Memo to Apple staff, December 4, 1968

Beatle People: Neil Aspinall

Neil Aspinall (13 October 1941 — 24 March 2008) was a British music industry executive. A childhood friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he went on to head The Beatles' company Apple Corps.

The Beatles employed Aspinall as their road manager and personal assistant, which included driving his old Commer van to and from shows, both day and night. After Mal Evans started work for The Beatles, Aspinall was promoted to become their personal assistant, later becoming chief executive of their company, Apple Corps.

On behalf of Apple, Aspinall was involved in notable court cases against Allen Klein, EMI and Apple Computer. He supervised the marketing of music, videos, and merchandising, as well being a director of Standby Films, which was run from his home in Twickenham, Greater London. On 10 April 2007, Aspinall left Apple Corps. Aspinall died of lung cancer in New York City in 2008.

Early life

Aspinall was born in Prestatyn, North Wales, after his mother had been evacuated from the family home in Liverpool (because of the air-raids on Liverpool during World War II) while Aspinall's father was away at sea with the Royal Navy. Aspinall and his mother returned to Liverpool later in 1942 after the bombing had subsided. Aspinall later attended West Derby School, where he passed his 11-plus exams. When he was 12 years old, Aspinall gained a place at the Liverpool Institute in Mount Street, and was in the same class as Paul McCartney for English and Art lessons.

Aspinall later commented about his first meeting with George Harrison, who also attended the Liverpool Institute: "My first encounter with George was behind the school’s air-raid shelters. This great mass of shaggy hair loomed up and an out-of-breath voice requested a quick drag of my Woodbine. It was one of the first cigarettes either of us had smoked. We spluttered our way through it bravely but gleefully. After that the three of us did lots of ridiculous things together... By the time we were ready to take the GCE exams we added John Lennon to our 'Mad Lad' gang. He was doing his first term at Liverpool College of Art which overlooks the Liverpool Institute playground and we all got together in a students coffee bar at lunchtime." Aspinall took nine GCEs at the Institute, and passed eight of them, only failing the French exam. He left school in July 1959, and studied accountancy. Aspinall worked for a Liverpool company for two years, receiving a wage of £2.50 per week as a trainee accountant.

The Beatles

The Beatles played at the opening of The Casbah Coffee Club on 29 August 1959, which was in the cellar of Mona Best's house. Aspinall later rented a room in the house and became very good friends with then-Beatle Pete Best. The Beatles had previously used public transport to get to local gigs, but by February 1961, they were playing two or three concerts per night at different locations and needed someone to drive them. Best asked Aspinall to be a part-time road manager for the band, so Aspinall bought an "old, grey and maroon Commer van" for 80 pounds, and charged each of the group five shillings per concert. The Beatles returned from their second trip to Hamburg in July 1962, and Aspinall left his job to become their permanent road manager, as he was earning more money driving them around than he was earning by being an accountant.

The Beatles were driven down to London by Aspinall on New Year's Eve in 1961, for the now-famous Decca audition, but Aspinall lost his way, and the trip took ten hours. They arrived at 10 o'clock at night, and John Lennon said that they arrived "just in time to see the drunks jumping in the Trafalgar Square fountain." In 1963, he was joined by Mal Evans, who also helped set up The Beatles' equipment (and acted as a bodyguard) which freed Aspinall to concentrate on other duties, like arranging appointments or buying things for them, such as suits, boots, meals, or drinks. When Best was sacked by The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein, Aspinall was waiting downstairs in Epstein's NEMS record shop, and was the first one to talk to the (then) ex-Beatle in The Grapes pub, across from The Cavern. Aspinall was furious and said that he would stop working for the band as well, but Best strongly advised him not to. Aspinall decided to stay, but ended his relationship with Best's mother (an affair that had led to the birth of baby Vincent "Roag" Best). Aspinall asked McCartney and Lennon at the next concert why they had fired Best and was told, "It’s got nothing to do with you. You’re only the driver." Aspinall worked closely with Epstein, who provided weekly notes for Aspinall to give to the group's stage act, their concert appearances, and the fees they would receive. The Beatles had to travel in Aspinall's van along with their equipment, but British roads in the early 1960s were notoriously pot-holed and slow to navigate. Ringo Starr remembered that the traveling never seemed to stop during the early tours of Britain in Aspinall's van, as they would be driven up and down Great Britain with one of the group in the passenger seat, but with the other three on a hard bench seat in the back.

Personal assistant

Aspinall's job as personal assistant consisted of driving to concerts and meetings, but mostly meant just being there whenever someone needed something. Aspinall went on the first trip to America, and when George Harrison became ill with a fever and had a temperature of 102 °F (39 °C), he was ordered to stay in bed, so Aspinall replaced him for the Ed Sullivan Show camera rehearsals. Before the cover of Sgt. Pepper's could be completed by Peter Blake, Aspinall was sent out to find photographs of all of the people that were to be shown on the front cover. Aspinall suggested the idea of Sergeant Pepper being the compere, who would introduce the group, and the reprise of the title song near the end of the album.

After recording sessions, Lennon, Harrison, and Starr would be chauffeured back to their houses in the 'stockbroker belt' of southern England, but Aspinall would often drive McCartney and Evans in an Austin Princess limousine to a late-night club to eat. The Bag O'Nails nightclub was one of their favourites, at 8 Kingly Street in Soho, London, as it also presented live music. They would eat steak, chips, and mushy peas, but Aspinall would always take out a torch from his pocket (in the dimly lit club) to inspect the portions on each of their plates. This was to make sure that the portions were exactly as they had ordered, which McCartney always found amusing.

Musical contributions

Although not a musician, Aspinall made minor contributions to a handful of The Beatles' recordings. He played a tamboura on "Within You Without You," harmonica on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!," some percussion on "Magical Mystery Tour," and was among the many participants singing on the chorus of "Yellow Submarine."

Manager

Following the death of Epstein in August 1967, there was a vacuum in the management of The Beatles' affairs. The Beatles asked Aspinall to take over the management of Apple Corps in 1968, which had been founded in April of the same year. Aspinall later said that he only accepted the position after being asked, but did not want to do it full-time, and would only do it "until they found somebody else." George Martin (The Beatles' record producer) was against the idea, as he thought that Aspinall did not have the necessary social qualifications to be able to speak to the upper-class executives at EMI. Aspinall accompanied McCartney and Lennon to New York on 11 May 1968, to announce the formation of Apple to the American Media. Apple Corps had five divisions: electronics, film, publishing, records, and retailing. Aspinall later spoke of The Beatles' business arrangements:

“We did not have one single piece of paper. No contracts. The lawyer, the accountants and Brian, whoever, had that. The Beatles had been given copies of various contracts, maybe, I don't know. I didn't know what the [recording] contract was with EMI, or with the film people or the publishers or anything at all. So it was a case of building up a filing system, find out what was going on while we were trying to continue doing something.”

Derek Taylor (Apple's press officer) said that Aspinall hated being stuck in the Apple office (at 3 Savile Row) all through the recording of The White Album and Let It Be album. Although life in the Apple office was improved by having a chef and various assistants at hand: "The liquor bill was £600 per month and the food bill was close to that." This was mostly due to Aspinall's and Peter Brown's four-course lunches with expensive wines in the dining room at Apple. After Allen Klein was brought in to be The Beatles' manager Aspinall was dismissed, but reinstated after complaints from the group, and because Klein realized that Aspinall was no threat to his control of the company. Klein lost a High Court action in 1971 (started by McCartney) but lawsuits between Klein and Apple kept Aspinall busy until 1977.

Apple Corps Executive

In 1978, Aspinall instigated the first of three lawsuits on behalf of Apple Corps against Apple Computer, Inc. (now known as Apple, Inc.) for trademark infringement. The first suit settled in 1981 with an amount of £41,000 being paid to Apple by Apple Computer. As a condition of the settlement, Apple Computer was allowed to use its logo as long as it did not enter the music business. The second suit with Apple Computer arose in 1989, when Apple Corps sued Apple Computer over its Apple IIGS (which included a professional synthesizer chip) claiming violation of the 1981 settlement agreement. In 1991, a settlement of £13.5 million was reached. McCartney praised Aspinall for trademarking the Apple name worldwide, and called Aspinall "Mr. X" in the Apple Corps organization.

In September 2003, Apple Computer, Inc. was again sued by Apple Corps, this time for the introduction of the iTunes Music Store and the iPod, which Aspinall and Apple Corps believed was a violation of the previous agreement for Apple Computer to not distribute music. The trial began on 27 March 2006 in the UK, and ended on 8 May 2006 in a victory for Apple Computer; the judge ruled the company's iTunes Music Store did not infringe on the trademark of Apple Corps. Aspinall was also involved in several court cases in which Apple Corps took action against EMI:

“We have tried to reach a settlement through good faith negotiations and regret that our efforts have been in vain. Despite very clear provisions in our contracts, EMI persist in ignoring their obligations and duty to account fairly and with transparency. The Beatles and Apple are, once again, left with no choice but to sue EMI.”

In the early 1990s, Aspinall became the executive producer for The Beatles Anthology. He continued to advise the surviving Beatles, as well as Lennon's and Harrison's estates, and to supervise the marketing of music, music videos, and merchandising. On 10 April 2007, it was announced by Apple that Aspinall had "decided to move on" and Jeff Jones—a longtime VP at Sony Legacy—was hired as CEO to oversee the back-catalogue. One of Aspinall's final tasks at Apple was to oversee the remastering of The Beatles' back-catalogue for an anticipated 2009 release.

Personal life and death

During 1961-1962, Aspinall had become good friends with Best and subsequently rented a room in the house where Best lived with his parents. During one of the extended business trips of Best's father, the 19-year-old Aspinall became romantically involved with Pete Best's mother, Mona Best, who was 17 years his senior. During this period, Aspinall fathered a child by Mona: Vincent "Roag" Best. Roag Best was born in late July 1962, and just three weeks later, on 16 August 1962, Best was dismissed from the Beatles.

On 30 August 1968, Aspinall married Suzy Ornstein at the Chelsea Register office, London, with "Magic Alex" Mardas as best man. McCartney, Starr and his wife attended, and were also at a surprise party held later in the King's Road, London. Suzy Aspinall is the daughter of Bud Ornstein, the chief executive of United Artists Pictures (UK). Aspinall met her during 1964/1965, when her father was the United Artists representative overseeing the production of the first two Beatles' films: A Hard Day's Night and Help!. They went on to have four children: daughters Gayla, Dhara and Mandy; and son Julian. As well as his work for Apple Corps, Aspinall and his wife were the sole directors of their own Standby Films Ltd. company, which is run from their home in Twickenham, Greater London. In 1999, Standby Films released a film about Jimi Hendrix, called Hendrix: Band of Gypsys.

Aspinall died of lung cancer in New York City in 2008. His funeral was at the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Twickenham. Stella McCartney, Yoko Ono, Barbara Bach (wife of Starr) George Martin, Pete Best, and Pete Townshend attended the funeral, with Townshend playing Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" as a tribute. The private service was followed by Aspinall's burial at Teddington Cemetery. A documentary on the making of Cirque du Soleil's Love entitled All Together Now was released on 20 October 2008 in memory of Aspinall. Aspinall left a sum of nearly £7m in his will in a trust, with the income going to Suzy, his wife of 40 years. After her death it will then be inherited by his five children: Roag, Gayla, Dhara, Julian and Mandy Aspinall.

Wikipedia

Beatle People: Alistair Taylor

James Alistair Taylor (21 June 1935 in Runcorn – 9 June 2004 in Chesterfield) was the personal assistant of Brian Epstein who accompanied him to the Cavern Club when he first saw The Beatles play on 9 November 1961. Taylor later became General Manager of Apple Corps for a short period.

Biography

Born in Runcorn, Taylor did his National Service in the Royal Air Force and worked in a series of jobs as mover, timber importer and docker in the Liverpool Docks.

The opportunity of his life appears the day he had a job interview with Brian Epstein for a salesman job at NEMS. Brian liked him so much that he decided to offer him a job as his personal assistant in the shop.

At NEMS

Taylor invented the name of Raymond Jones to order Tony Sheridan’s album, because he thought NEMS was losing sales by not stocking the disc:

“The truth is that we were being asked for My Bonnie but no one actually ordered it. Brian would order any record once we had a firm order for it. I thought that we were losing sales and I wrote an order in the book under the name Raymond Jones and, from that moment the legend grew.”
—A. Taylor, The Beatles Book, 1997

The Cavern

Taylor accompanied Epstein to the Cavern Club when he first saw The Beatles play on 9 November 1961. During the show Taylor met The Beatles, and his opinion was "...these four horrible young men on stage, dressed in black leather trousers, black jackets, smoking, drinking and making noise...", but also said "...they were charismatic and exciting" and "I thought they were sensational."

As Brian Epstein’s personal assistant, Taylor witnessed crucial moments in the Beatles career and was present at the signing of the first contract with Brian (which Taylor signed as "In the presence of:").

In 1962, Taylor worked for Pye Records for 15 months, and moved to London (before the Beatles) due to his wife's asthma.

Mr. Fixit

In 1963, Taylor returned to NEMS to work as general manager for £1,000 per annum.

The Beatles named him Mr. Fixit for his ability to find solutions to all the boys' needs. For example:

* Buying cigarettes
* Hiring limousines
* Devising escapes from Beatles' fans after their performances
* Organizing holiday trips
* Acting as consultant to John for the purchase of Dornish Island (Ireland) for £1,550.
* Being the middle-man in the purchase of High Park, the Scottish farm, for Paul, Jane, and Martha
* Renting the Magical Mystery Tour bus
* Resolving the copyright issues around the photographs of famous faces on Peter Blake's cover for Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
* Arrange the money exchange of the unsuccessful buying of the Greek island of Leslo (July 1967).

Inside Apple

In December 1967, shortly after the death of Brian Epstein on 27 August 1967, Lennon asked Taylor to work as General Manager for Apple.

It was during this period that Taylor appeared in the famous advertisement to promote Apple asking for new artists. Designed by Paul, it showed Taylor disguised as a one-man band, and claimed: "This man has talent." The disguise was rented in Soho and Taylor was singing "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" when the shot was made. The publication in the New Musical Express brought an avalanche of applicants.

Taylor can be heard on "Revolution 9" apologizing to George Martin and beseeching forgiveness for not bringing him a bottle of claret.

During the rooftop Get Back concert, on 30 January 1969, Alistair was among the people in the street. When Allen Klein arrived at Apple on 3 February, Alistair was sacked along with 16 staff members during one of the first purges by Klein at Apple (8 May). The Beatles did not tell him why.

After the Beatles

Taylor worked in a tea-room, in a factory and in a hotel before his retirement. He has enjoyed participating in Beatles' fan conventions around the world.

In the mid 1990s, Taylor created Mellor Beach Leisure Ltd. Taylor served as the "business development director," promoting a new musical act called SMOKE which featured Matt McKenzie (drums & backing vocals), Jo Wadeson (bass guitar & lead vocals) and Sam Genders (guitar & backing vocals).

In 1998 he appeared in a documentary at the British Arena (TV series), in the episode: The Brian Epstein Story: The Sun Will Shine Tomorrow : Part 1.

Taylor died in his sleep in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, on 9 June 2004, after a short bronchial illness.

Books

He was the author of:

* Yesterday: The Beatles Remembered with Martin Robers, Pan Macmillan (April 7, 1988)

* Yesterday: My Life With the Beatles (a re-edition of the last) Movie Publisher Services (July, 1991)

* A Secret History: An Inside Account of The Beatles' Rise and Fall, published in 2003. Blake (December, 2001)

* With the Beatles (a re-edition of the last) John Blake Publishing, Limited (1 September 2003)

Taylor collaborated in his official biography:

* Hello Goodbye: The Story of Mr. Fixit by George Gunby, Yesterday Once More (2001)

Theatre

* "From Cavern to Rooftop" in which he spoke about his memories with interludes of Beatles music.

Tapes

He made a series of four audio tapes with the titles of: "From Cavern to Rooftop"; "From Strawberry Fields to Magical Mystery Tour"; "Remembering Brian" and "Inside Apple."

Wikipedia

Beatle People: Anthony Fawcett

Anthony Fawcett is a British writer, art critic, and a former personal assistant to John Lennon and Yoko Ono. He took over the role briefly held by Lennon's boyhood friend Pete Shotton, after Shotton's resignation from Apple Corps, and Fawcett's role was later filled by May Pang.

He had made his entry to the London art world shortly after leaving school, when he became an assistant at the Robert Fraser Gallery.

Fawcett later joined Lennon and Ono in the spring of 1968, as they made their first joint forays into avant garde art during the first flush of their romance (including two acorns planted near Coventry Cathedral, and Lennon's You Are Here, which consisted first of helium balloons with attached cards released into the English sky, then a room of charity collection boxes at the Robert Fraser Gallery surrounding the message "YOU ARE HERE" in Lennon's handwriting), Fawcett served as their personal assistant until their departure for New York at the end of 1971.

Fawcett witnessed firsthand many of the goings-on at Apple's Savile Row headquarters (also chronicled in The Longest Cocktail Party by Richard DiLello), and many of the business and interpersonal breakdowns that marked the end of the Beatles as a group.

He later wrote a biography, John Lennon: One Day at a Time, published by Grove Press in 1976. A 1980 reissue (with updates) of this book inadvertently played a role in Lennon's murder, as Mark David Chapman bought and read a copy, discovering Lennon wasn't living in retirement at Tittenhurst Park as Chapman had thought, and that Lennon had resumed his musical career in New York.

Some years before this, after meeting musician John Foxx in New York and again in California in 1979, Fawcett decided to return to London at the beginning of the 1980s. Through Foxx, he (together with his then partner photographer Christina Birrer) began to reintegrate himself with the London Arts scene, initially through befriending current musicians, artists and filmmakers.

Genesis P. Orridge, Julian Temple, Howard Devoto and Foxx were some of the figures who were early participants in the social hub that Fawcett was so adept at facilitating. Fawcett also picked up his professional relationship with the colorful Robert Fraser. Fraser had taken a sabbatical for some years after the end of 1960s, but still maintained his gallery premises near Bond Street.

Over the next few years (1982-6) Fawcett rapidly expanded his social circle to encompass several major artists including Gilbert and George, (who he later persuaded to participate in a successful major arts and business sponsorship venture, with Becks. Other artists also participated during this period, notably Tracey Emin).

During this same period, Fawcett created Anthony Fawcett Associates with architectural writer and critic Jane Withers. Operating through this company he became involved in organizing events for the Victoria and Albert Museum during the period when it was headed by Roy Strong.

He notably played a role in organizing the lavish Warhol event -the London staging of an international series of events initiated by the Warhol Foundation to mark the artist's death in 1987. At this point, such Victoria and Albert occasions had become one of the artistic and social magnets of 1980s London. He extended his work to the Serpentine Gallery while also participating in organizing major events for the Tate Gallery such as the opening of the new wing containing the Turner Gallery.

Fawcett is mentioned in Shout! The Beatles in their Generation, by journalist Philip Norman, and in Shotton's memoir The Beatles, Lennon and Me. He may also be the "Anthony" heard mentioned in "Radio Play," a track on Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions.

Wikipedia

Beatle People: Pete Shotton

Peter Shotton (born 4 August 1941 in Liverpool) is an English businessman best known for his long friendship with John Lennon of The Beatles. Generally referred to as "Pete," he was a close boyhood friend of Lennon's, and also attended the Dovedale Infants School and Quarry Bank schools.

Shotton was Lennon's bandmate in The Quarrymen, playing percussion (specifically, a washboard), until Paul McCartney joined. He was "fired" from the band when, after confiding in John that he really did not enjoy playing, Lennon smashed the washboard over his head at a party. However, he remained a friend and confidant—as he became with all of the Beatles as the group formed.

After they became stars, Lennon and George Harrison bought a supermarket on Hayling Island, and gave it to Shotton to manage. Later, he served as manager of the Apple Boutique, then as the first managing director of Apple Corps.

Shotton regularly visited Lennon's house (Kenwood) on weekends, leaving his wife and young son at home to keep Lennon company, or escort Cynthia Lennon for a night out when her husband was busy with band matters or songwriting.

Shotton had a minor, but uncredited, role in the Beatles' music. He was occasionally invited to observe them recording at Abbey Road Studios, and played percussion (maracas, tambourine) on a few records. Shotton also helped Lennon with the lyrics to "I Am the Walrus" (remembering a nonsense rhyme they had loved as boys) and McCartney with the storyline of "Eleanor Rigby" (he suggested that the two lonely people in the song meet, but too late).

After Lennon began a relationship with Yoko Ono, and Apple started to founder as the group grew apart, Shotton parted company with Lennon and the Beatles, resuming management of the Hayling Island supermarket, which he continued to run until the late 1970s. He then began the Fatty Arbuckle's chain of restaurants, which were later sold for an undisclosed sum. He later moved to Dublin, Ireland, living as a tax exile.

Upon hearing the news that Lennon had been murdered in December 1980, Shotton visited Harrison at Friar Park, Harrison's home.

Shotton is the co-author of John Lennon: In My Life (1983, republished later as The Beatles, Lennon and Me), which told the (unexpurgated) story of their friendship, from the age of six until Lennon's death in 1980.

Wikipedia

Beatle People: Allen Klein

Allen Klein (born December 18, 1931) is a controversial American businessman and record label executive. His career highlights included celebrated clients such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Many of his famous clients eventually turned against him, however, and he became involved in acrimonious legal battles against them.

The accountant

Allen Klein was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Budapest, Hungary. His father was a butcher, and his mother died before he reached the age of one. As a teenager, he worked several jobs while attending evening classes. He excelled at mental arithmetic, and graduated from Upsala College, East Orange, New Jersey, in 1956. He did bookkeeping for several show-business people, and audited record companies. In 1957 he began his own business, a partnership with his wife Betty. A couple of years later, while attending a wedding, he met singer Bobby Darin. He asked Darin "How would you like to make $100,000?" A stunned Darin asked what he had to do. "Nothing," was Klein's reply. He then pursued Darin's record company for what he regarded as monies owed to the singer. Darin let Klein audit his accounts and received the check, exactly as promised. This 'no win, no fee' approach became his trademark. Record industry insiders began to fear his blunt-speaking tenacity, and celebrities began to recommend him. Klein regarded himself as a shrewd and tenacious businessman, exampled by him having a modified bible quote on his desk, reading: "Though I walk in the shadow of the valley of evil, I have no fear, as I am the biggest bastard in the valley."

Sam Cooke

Following the death of his son in 1963, Sam Cooke started to take control of all aspects of his career. He demanded his own record company. Klein became his business manager (a role which never previously existed), someone who would take the artist's side in negotiations with the recording industry. He secured an unprecedented agreement, with Cooke starting a new label (Tracey Records) that would own the rights to all of his future recordings (it would be distributed, at first, by RCA), site fees, gate revenues for concerts, 10 percent of all records sold, and back royalties.

When Cooke died in 1964, his wife Barbara became the owner of Tracey Records. She later sold these rights to Klein.

Cameo Parkway

Cameo Records was formed in 1956 and Parkway, a subsidiary, was formed in 1958. They were based in Philadelphia and specialized in pop music for the teen market. They had run out of hits by 1964, but struggled on until 1967, when Klein bought them, together with rights to music by The Animals, Herman's Hermits, Bobby Rydell, ? and the Mysterians, Chubby Checker and recordings produced by Mickie Most.

The Rolling Stones

In 1965, Klein replaced Andrew Loog Oldham as business manager of The Rolling Stones. Mick Jagger had studied at the London School of Economics and was initially impressed enough with Klein's business skills to recommend him to Paul McCartney. Not long after, however, Jagger started to doubt Klein's trustworthiness. By the late 1960s the Stones decided to fire Klein, and set up their own business structure in 1970; however, a legal settlement meant giving Klein the rights to most of their songs recorded before 1971. Klein's ABKCO label released the rarest of all Stones albums, Metamorphosis (1975). By the late 1990s, some of the 1960s albums were becoming hard to acquire on CD. Finally, in 2002, Klein's son Jody oversaw a remastering of the 1960s albums, to much acclaim. Outside the Americas, they are licensed to Universal, now owner of their original home, Decca.

The Beatles

During the filming of Rock and Roll Circus, Klein and John Lennon met casually, but did not discuss business. Following the death of Brian Epstein in 1967, The Beatles had been without a manager per se, although NEMS, headed by Epstein's brother Clive, had been taking care of day-to-day business, with Peter Brown acting as liaison to both the Beatles and the Epsteins, and Paul McCartney steering the band artistically. Without a performing schedule, and with recording and filming dates in their own hands, the Beatles had not needed a traditional kind of manager. They had, however, gradually lost many of the people Epstein had made business deals with early in their career, such as music publisher Dick James and financial adviser Dr. Walter Strach, which had secured the band financially. They were used to asking for something to be done, without thinking of the price; much of Apple Corps had been set up in this way. Epstein had been the one to put the brakes on spending, talk over practicalities, and say "no". This had been all but forgotten. Without a damper, the band had overspent, and over-trusted, and problems arose.

By 1969, Apple Corps was in a financial mess, and it was becoming obvious that a business brain was needed to sort things out. Several names were considered, including Lord Beeching. Paul McCartney favoured Lee Eastman (father of McCartney's wife, Linda) as the man for the job, a suggestion that did not sit well with the other three Beatles, as they felt that Eastman would be batting for McCartney's interests ahead of those of the rest of the group. Klein contacted Lennon after reading his press comment that the Beatles would be "broke in six months" if things continued as they were. Klein was willing to break precedent, and only take a commission on increased business; if Apple continued to lose money, he would be paid nothing.

After a meeting at Klein's suite in the Dorchester Hotel (opposite London's Hyde Park), where Klein impressed Lennon with both his in-depth knowledge of Lennon's work (he could quote lyrics from all of his songs) and his "streetwise" attitude and language, Lennon convinced George Harrison and Ringo Starr that Klein should take over instead. McCartney agreed to pose for photographs with Klein as a show of unity, pretending to sign a new contract, but he never put his signature on the paper. This fundamental disagreement about who should manage them, fueled by a decade-long build up of resentments and insecurity about other matters such as power and influence within the group, was one of the key factors in the eventual break-up of the Beatles.

In 1969, Klein re-negotiated their contract with EMI, granting them the highest royalties ever paid to an artist at that time; 69 cents per $6-7 album. In exchange, EMI was allowed to repackage earlier Beatles material as compilations, which Brian Epstein had not permitted. Klein oversaw the issuing of the single "Something"/"Come Together", at a crucial point when Apple needed income. He helped rescue the abandoned Get Back project (released as Let It Be), by bringing Phil Spector to England to work with the band. He also transformed office habits at Apple, installing a time clock for the staff and insisting meals be pre-ordered from the building's kitchen (instead of cooked on demand). Klein slashed expenditures at Apple, canceling payouts and charge accounts for many Beatles associates, and friends of friends, who had worked or consulted for the company.

On the other hand, Klein also managed to alienate many of the people who had previously been part of the Beatles's business and personal circle, with his abrasive style of management and negotiation. His cost-cutting measures at Apple included what was considered by some as "cold-blooded" firing of many of the employees that had flocked to the band's experiment in "western Communism" (including the erratic Magic Alex, and Epstein's old friend Alistair Taylor). Klein also closed the Zapple Records imprint. He spoke occasionally at Apple and Beatles press conferences; a reporter for the London Evening Standard remarked later that Klein "must have set some kind of record for unprintable language" at one such conference. He was also unable to save Northern Songs from a buyout by ATV, which took away ownership of nearly all the band's song copyrights.

McCartney continued to distrust Klein, though admitting to him at one point "If you are screwing us, I don't see how." Following their informal agreement to split in late 1969, he eventually sued the other three Beatles for what he called 'a divorce', and the Beatles as a business unit came to an end. McCartney has stated he chose to legally dissolve the Beatles rather than allow Klein to milk and diminish their artistic legacy, which (of all the Beatles) McCartney was most passionate and protective.

Solo Beatles

Klein helped Lennon and Ono with their film Imagine, and helped Harrison to organise the Concert for Bangladesh. It was here that his reputation started to unravel. Rather than prearrange matters with UNICEF, Klein waited until after the concert to approach them, leading to questions about the proceeds, and finally a US tax investigation. While a check was cut at the time, additional proceeds meant for UNICEF were frozen in an escrow account until the 1980s. Also, Klein had sided with Harrison in believing Yoko Ono should not perform at the concert, wanting Lennon to appear without her, causing Lennon to cool on Klein. (He later took out his feelings toward Klein in "Steel And Glass", which appeared on his 1974 album Walls and Bridges.) After several suits and countersuits, Klein settled for a final payment of £3.5 million in 1977. In 1978, he was parodied by John Belushi as "Ron Decline" in the TV film All You Need Is Cash (which spoofed the Beatles' story).

It turned out Klein and Harrison were not completely finished with each other. While Klein had supported and advised Harrison during the first phase of his "My Sweet Lord" lawsuit, Klein later bought Bright Tunes, the music publishing company that sued Harrison, thus becoming his legal opponent. A judge ruled later that Klein had unfairly switched sides in the lawsuit, and it counted against Klein in court. (Harrison ultimately became the owner of "He's So Fine", the song at the heart of the case.)

Phil Spector

Klein bought the rights to music produced by Phil Spector, such as the Philles Records and Phil Spector International catalogs, in the 1980s.

The Stranger films

Klein produced a trilogy of spaghetti westerns starring and written by Tony Anthony copying Clint Eastwood's The Man With No Name. A Stranger In Town and The Stranger Returns were released in the USA by MGM. A dispute with MGM over the last one, The Silent Stranger, led to it not being released for seven years after production. Klein and Anthony also collaborated on the film Blindman featuring Ringo Starr as a Mexican bandito. Klein also appeared briefly on camera, in a similar role.

Alejandro Jodorowsky films

Lennon, after seeing and being impressed with Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky's El Topo, persuaded Klein to buy the rights and bankroll Jodorowsky's next film, The Holy Mountain (1973). The Jodorowsky-Klein collaboration was an artistic success, but plans for a follow-up never materialized. Witnessing the commercial success of hard-core pornographic films, such as Deep Throat and The Devil In Miss Jones, which broke through to the mainstream, Klein saw similar potential in Pauline Réage's bestseller The Story Of O, but Jodorowsky walked out on the deal. In retribution, Klein withdrew every print of El Topo and The Holy Mountain, and turned down all subsequent requests by film festivals from around the world to show them.

Both films were withdrawn from circulation for more than 30 years, with sporadic, bootleg appearances on video - usually of poor quality. Jodorowsky publicly endorsed these pirated copies of his work, since he was unable to show or distribute it legally. The dispute over the films ended in 2004, when Jody Klein contacted Jodorowsky and offered a reconciliation. In response to the films' re-appearance, both the Cannes and London Film Festivals currently organise gala screenings. Both films are also available in DVD format.

The Verve

On their song "Bittersweet Symphony", the British rock group The Verve sampled an orchestration from The Rolling Stones' "The Last Time", the rights to which are owned by Klein's ABKCO Industries. Before the release of the album, The Verve negotiated a licensing agreement with Klein, who administers The Stones' catalog, to use the sample (at least the composition rights to the sample). In 1997, The Verve's album Urban Hymns peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard charts. A bitter legal battle ensued, resulting in The Verve turning over 100% of the royalties to ABKCO. Klein argued that The Verve had violated the previous licensing agreement by using too much of the sample in their song. Capitalizing off the success of the song, Klein licensed The Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" to Nike, who proceeded to run a multimillion dollar television campaign using The Verve's song over shots of its sneakers. Klein also allowed the song to be used in advertisements for Vauxhall automobiles. (Additionally, though the song was authored by The Rolling Stones, the Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra performed the sampled recording, and also filed suit upon the success of the song. When "Bittersweet Symphony" was nominated for a Grammy Award, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones were named as the nominees, and not The Verve).

Wikipedia