Everybody's got something to hide, even the Beatle

Everybody's got something to hide, even the Beatles

Posted 12/12/05

By Alex Kingsbury
U.S.News & World Report

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/a...212/12spitz.htm

Lots of little anecdotes were bogus. The story goes that Brian Epstein (the group's manager) first heard about the Beatles inadvertently from folk hero Raymond James. Legend had it that James met Epstein in a record store and asked for a copy of "My Bonnie," one of the early Beatle records. In fact, Epstein had known about the group for months from reading the Mersey Beat, a popular newsletter about Liverpool bands. But the mythological version made nicer copy.

Were you a Beatles fan growing up?

I was a folkie. After I saw the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show, I went to the school bus stop the next morning and said, very pompously, that they'd be gone in a week. At recess, some bullies came and kicked my butt from one side of the playground to the other. By the time Rubber Soul came out, I was sold.

Is that a true story or part of the Bob Spitz mythology?

That's a true story, and I'll name those guys too. In fact, I'm eager. Those bastards.

What surprised you in your research?

Not just that these four guys lived through Beatlemania but that it happened at all. It was a very organic phenomenon that just happened. It wasn't the creation of the record companies or even the Beatles themselves. The fans created it. In the early days, the group never thought they'd ever have fans, and then the whole world wanted to comb their hair down over their eyes and into their ears.

Was it difficult to get some tongues to wag?

I actually found a lot of people who were relieved to finally be talking about the past. Some had been carrying these stories around for 40 years. Bob Wooler, for example, was the emcee at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, where the Beatles played. But he was more than that. He took the group over to Brian Epstein's office and was like their guardian when they signed their contract. He gave them advice everyday and worked with Brian in the early days. Bob had these stories about how they performed and what they were like off stage in those early days.

Another fascinating story came from Dot Rhone, Paul McCartney's first girlfriend. She was two weeks away from marrying Paul when she became pregnant with his child. Paul's aunt Gin actually gave Dot lessons in how to cook, buy groceries, make beds, and take care of her man. They eventually broke up after she lost the pregnancy to a miscarriage. She had essentially gone missing for 40 years and is now living under her married name in Canada. Dot is very private, very shy, and very reticent about discussing these things. But she had an amazing story to tell.

After listening to all the studio recordings, were there any gems that you feel should be released?

No. I think we've heard the best of their stuff. There are no songs in the archives that they haven't released. The Beatles music, in its entirety, is only 10 hours and 28 minutes. That's all we have of them. There is other stuff, alternate takes and home demos, which is of interest to fanatical collectors. But I'm happy to live with what they gave us.

Is there an aspect of the Beatles that is overrated?

I don't think so. People sometimes view the Beatles as soft or mainstream. But if you listen to albums like Rubber Soul and Revolver, you can see the evolution of the rock genre. Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band may have looked like a gimmick�it certainly did to George and John�but it was bold and different and had a profound impact on everything that came afterward.

What do you make of the Beatle fans who have, for lack of a better term, fetishized the group and their music?

Someone once gave me a tape and said, "You have to listen to this." It turned out to be a recording of a phone call of George ordering some food. The guy said that the tape was "in circulation" among collectors. I understand collecting autographs, but ...

Any fan criticism?

I had some problems with a Beatles blogger, when the book was published, who was incensed that I had corrected some of the dates in the Beatle lore. But in the end, I can't be bothered by them. This is my view of the story�all 800 pages of it�and I stand by every word.