Produced by George Martin: DVD Review

This BBC documentary, a profile of George Martin's career, provides an impressive interviewee lineup, including Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Jeff Beck, and Cilla Black. Rather than being interviewed themselves, Paul and Ringo sit down with George Martin and reminisce over photos and studio tapes. There is also some interesting 1960s footage of Abbey Road Studios, including the familiar 1964 session with the Beatles and a less-familiar (to me) studio session with Cilla Black.

I could not help but feel like wanting more from this DVD, as if the DVD were a trailer to a longer feature. There are many stories to tell from George Martin's producing career, and this DVD provides a brief, albeit a somwhat too brief, overview. A nice companion piece to the previous Beatles documentaries that have been issued over the years.

Book Review: Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust by Ken Scott & Bobby Owsinski

Ken Scott, who began his career as tape operator and then engineer for the Beatles at EMI Studios, reveals fascinating insights in Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust into the recording process and the history of what is now known as Abbey Road Studios. My first introduction to Scott was his "take 2" announcement on the slow version of "Helter Skelter" on Anthology 3 - not recognizing the voice (having listened to many outtakes, the voices of George Martin and Norman Smith were more familiar to me) and finding the name in Mark Lewisohn's liner notes for the disc, I thought at the time it would be interesting to learn what Scott saw and heard during the making of these classic recordings. Scott, along with his co-author Bobby Owsinski, in this book successfully presents the Beatles from a different angle than most, having worked on many Beatles and solo sessions, including the White Album, Abbey Road, and All Things Must Pass, among others.

Scott's memoir is a fine blend of the personal as well as the technical aspects of recording. In reading through the chapters there is an attention to detail that shows that stories are not simply relayed as remembered but that there was also research done to match them up with the history (as noted in the introduction, facts were independently verified whenever possible). In addition to the Beatles, also included are his remembrances of his work with many other artists, including Elton John, Pink Floyd, Procol Harum, Jeff Beck, Harry Nilsson, the Rolling Stones, Lou Reed and others. A must read for Beatles fans and those interested in music production.

Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth

Like looking through a scrapbook or time capsule, Yeah Yeah Yeah captures many unseen moments of the Beatles appearances in Bournemouth, England. There are plenty of rare photos, facts, and remembrances contained in this impressive volume. For example, I was not aware the Beatles started their Roy Orbison Tour sets in 1963 with "Some Other Guy," underlining their fondness for the Richie Barrett song (John Lennon would later lift the riff for the intro of his 1970 single, "Instant Karma"). I had previously only seen one alternate shot of the With the Beatles album cover, while page 49 contains two. There are an abundance of Beatles backstage photographs I have not seen before that add life to the recollections of the people that were there interspersed throughout. So many interesting tidbits are to be found, including what happened to the 1963 Beatles audience tape at Gaumont that went up for auction several years ago. There are also some great pictures from later in the Beatles' career as well, including a unique photo of John, Julian, and Aunt Mimi at the Sandbanks ferry in 1967. All in all, a wonderful collection.

An exhibition of rare and previously unseen photos is running at Bournemouth Central Library until January 18. Art prints of many of the photos are now available to order at www.beatlesandbournemouth.com along with copies of the book.

George Harrison: Living in the Material World Part 1 Review

Part 1 of the Martin Scorsese documentary George Harrison: Living in the Material World was broadcast on HBO last night. Overall, I thought the film was excellent and well worth watching. Here are some of the aspects to the film I enjoyed:

- the new interviews with Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, George Martin, Eric Clapton, Pattie Boyd, Astrid Kirchherr, Klaus Voormann and George's family
- the archival footage: lots of unseen and upgraded clips, including the George Harrison/John Lennon interview on David Frost from 1967, the It's the Beatles special from 1963 (in better quality than I've ever seen), home movies and there's even footage of George Harrison watching the Beatles' promo clip of "This Boy" from the mid-1970s.
- many rare and unseen photos, narrated on occasion by Dhani Harrison using George's letters to his parents

Definitely recommended for fans as there is plenty new here to enjoy.

The Lost Beatles Photographs: The Bob Bonis Archive, 1964-1966

Recently released by HarperCollins, The Lost Beatles Photographs compiles the photos taken by U.S. tour manager Bob Bonis on the Beatles' three major American tours from 1964 to 1966. The complete set comprises a mixture of black and white and color pictures that cover many facets of their tours: the behind-the-scenes relaxing at their hotels, the press conferences, the airplane trips, and the on-stage performances. It's also interesting to see photos of the Beatles' opening acts, who are often left out of similar histories.

The concert photos are wonderful and are mostly taken from close range from Bonis' vantage point, either on or directly in front of the stage. Of particular interest are rare pictures taken at Portland, Oregon in 1965, where the Beatles don their "Shea" outfits, behind-the-scenes rehearsals shot in Detroit, Michigan in 1966, where the Beatles play to a Revolver drawing backdrop. and color close-ups from the infamous Memphis, Tennessee concert where a cherry bomb was thrown onstage.

Providing a memorable look back at the people, places, and performances of the Beatles' U.S. tours, The Lost Beatles Photographs would make a welcome addition to any Beatles library and is a must for Beatles photo collectors.

Paul Goes It Alone

April 28, 1970

By ROGERT LAMBERT
Lantern Special Writer

Beatle music is with us again, only this time it's music from the heads of individual members Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney.

Ringo's record, Sentimental Journey, is full of wry, amusing interpretations of old pop tunes, any one of which may have qualified as "our song" for your aging parents (bless 'em). It would be a nice piece of camp if it weren't for one thing -- Ringo's serious.

So serious, in fact, that Elmer Bernstein and Quincy Jones were persuaded to join Beatle producer George Martin and chum Paul McCartney as musical arrangers for the album. Who knows? Like the Columbus movie projectionist said last week, we just put it in here and it comes out there.

A Musical Notebook

Instead of a glimpse of the past, Paul McCartney has given us a kind of diary, an up-to-date shorthand notebook of his musical musings (McCartney, Apple STAO 3363).

The album opens with a short, candid take of Paul singing quite informally about his wife, "The Lovely Linda." He fights back the giggles for about a minute, then the song dissolves into an exchange of twittering, laughter between Linda and Paul.

The seven cuts which follow "Linda" on side one continue the light and casual mood set by the opening number. They are not really songs, but constructions of charming phrases and pretty, captivating half-melodies defined in transit.

Side two features six selections, one or two of which are substantial songs. "Maybe I'm Amazed" is a perfectly disciplined contemporary song. Although Paul plays all the instruments (through the mechanical magic of the recording studio), the final take sounds as if it were the Fab Four themselves.

Which brings us around to the musical abilities of McCartney. He is simply a marvelous drummer, a wizard electric bassist, an evocative pianist and not a bad guitarist. The most obvious McCartney genius is his acute sense of timing. It is said that Paul has regularly directed Ringo's drumming, an observation easily upheld by his outstanding percussion work here.

It is his timing that carries him through as a guitarist. The rightest, tightest guitar phrase or strum seems always to be there when it's needed. Only occasionally is it evident that McCartney was produced by a one man band.

An Impressive Voice

Perhaps Paul's most impressive musical instrument is his own voice. In an early book about the Beatles, the late Brian Epstein (their manager) said that Paul had the only natural voice in the group. The full range of McCartney's vocal expression is displayed among these 14 tracks; from the bluesy "Oo You" to the folk sound of "Every Night" or the humor-esque "That Would Be Something," McCartney never fails to impress and satisfy.

One regrettable aspect of the appearance of a solo album by Paul (or Ringo) is the indication that the Beatles may never again record as a group. Though Paul's solo trip is a fine album, one wonders how much better it could have been if John were present to add a spot of freaky, raw-edged tension, or if George had contributed a bit of his musical eclecticism.

Review: Revolution take... your knickers off!

Label: His Master's Choice, HMC 006

Review

After years of a dwindling Beatles outtakes supply comes this release, featuring one of the most interesting takes to surface perhaps ever. The full 11-minute "Revolution 1" has the familiar recording we all know (minus additional orchestration) plus several minutes of jamming, which eventually went on to form the basis for "Revolution 9." The title of the bootleg comes from John's talk at the start; the engineer announces "Revolution take..." and John replies "Take your knickers off and let's go!" The recording apparently runs off-speed and some enterprising folks have gone through the trouble of speed correcting it (it now runs 10:46). Disc 1 continues with more outtakes from 1968, less exciting than "Revolution 1," but still nice to have. Their variations are described below. The remainder of the two discs are filled with Beatles-related session tapes. The "Step Inside Love" Cilla Black session features Paul McCartney on guitar and disc 2 has Badfinger sessions for "Come And Get It" and "No Escaping Your Love," with Paul on piano and vocals. Definitely one to seek out; listen to some audio samples below:









Footage from the Cilla Black session (January 28, 1968):



DISC ONE

1. Revolution #1 (RM 1) (11:32)
…Here for the first time in its full 10 minute+ glory…
2. Revolution (Single version, no piano) (3:26)
…from the initial session that the recording heard on this disc is taken, complete with cunt-in and no fade out…
3. Across the universe (Alternate mix take 8) (3:49)
…This version presented here, an alternate mix from take 8, contains various overdubs – some backwards – that were not used in the released version., together with pre-song banter and a full ending…
4. Dear Prudence (4:10)
…an alternate mono mix, complete with a post-song comment from John Lennon and other extraneous noises from the original master tape…
5. Julia (instrumental take 1+2) (4:38)
…a collection of John Lennon home recordings of his song Julia, in far better sound quality and from a longer tape source than has ever appeared before.
6. Julia (SI onto take 2) (3:03)
…a vocal track and a second guitar… The quality of this source tape is incredible…
7. Julia (SI onto take 2 2nd try) (4:13)
…a second try at overdubbing…
8. Step Inside Love (2:53)
9. Step Inside Love (4:37)
10. Step Inside Love (2:56)
11. Step Inside Love (4:16)
12. Step Inside Love (take 1) (3:23)
13. Step Inside Love (take 2) (3:04)
14. Step Inside Love (takes 3 & 4) (3:09)
15. Step Inside Love (chat) (2:28)

Total time: 61:56

DISC TWO

1. Come And Get It (take 1) (2:29)
2. Come And Get It (takes 2 & 3) (1:11)
3. Come And Get It (take 4) (0:59)
4. Come And Get It (take 5) (2:15)
5. Come And Get It (take 6) (2:43)
6. Come And Get It (take 7) (0:47)
7. Come And Get It (take 8) (0:47)
8. Come And Get It (take 9) (1:10)
9. Come And Get It (take 10) (2:41)
10. Come And Get It (take 11) (0:27)
11. Come And Get It (take 12) (0:48)
12. Come And Get It (take 13) (2:42)
13. Come And Get It (take 14) (2:30)
14. Come And Get It (take 15) (2:23)
15. Come And Get It (take 16) (0:35)
16. Come And Get It (take 17) (0:51)
17. Come And Get It (take 18) (2:29)
18. Come And Get It (takes 19 & 20) (2:41)
19. Come And Get It (take 21) (2:32)
20. Come And Get It (takes 22-25) (2:37)
21. Come And Get It (take 26) (2:24)
22. No Escaping Your Love (take 1) (2:20)
23. No Escaping Your Love (takes 2 & 3) (2:23)
24. No Escaping Your Love (take 4) (2:25)
25. No Escaping Your Love (take 5) (1:22)
26. No Escaping Your Love (take 6) (2:16)
27. No Escaping Your Love (take 7) (2:19)
28. No Escaping Your Love (take 8) (2:18)
29. No Escaping Your Love (take 9) (1:22)
30. No Escaping Your Love (take 10) (2:19)
31. No Escaping Your Love (take 11) (2:18)

Total time: 59:22