All You Need Is Ears is the story of George Martin, the man who spotted the Beatles' talent, who recorded and produced them from the start, and who brought their musical ideas to life. In this witty and charming autobiography, he describes exactly what it was like to work in the studio with the Beatles--from the first audition (and his decision to scrap Pete Best on drums) to the wild experimentation of Sgt. Pepper (complete with sound effects, animal noises and full orchestras in evening dress at the direct request of Paul McCartney).
This is a singular look at the most important musical group of all time, and how they made the music that changed the world: No other book can provide George Martin's inside look at their creative process, at the play of genius and practical improvisation that gave them their sound; it is an indispensable read for Beatle lovers and anyone interested in the music world.
Sir George Martin writes as he talks, which is straightforward and with great knowledge of the record industry. So this book is awash with great little stories from his career, together with a lot of interesting information on the many artists he had produced at the time this book was written. Obviously more time is spent on The Beatles, but he combines this discussion of the artists with quite a bit of technical information charting the history of recording techniques as they developed.
As dazzling as the decade they dominated, The Beatles almost single-handedly created pop music as we know it. Today, their songs are cited as seminal influences by stars like Oasis and Blur. Eloquently giving voice to their time, The Beatles quite simply changed the world.
Fully updated to include material from The Beatles Live at theBBC and the Anthology series, this acclaimed book goes back to the heart of The Beatles - their records. Drawing on a unique resource of knowledge and experience to 'read' their 241 tracks - chronologically from their first amateur efforts in 1957 to 'Real Love', their final 'reunion' recording in 1995 - Ian MacDonald has created an engrossing classic of popular criticism in which the extraordinary songs of The Beatles remain a central and continually surprising presence.
A really brilliant and a different take on the 60s, includes great Beatles inside information. Derek Taylor is famous for being the Beatles press agent during Beatlemania and then went off to work for The Byrds, Captain Beefheart among others as a press agent as well as one of the original organizers for the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.
Taylor portrays early Beatlemania as a very scary world - especially in America where he meets the Mayor's wife who insists that The Beatles wake up from their sleep to meet her and her daughter. Also when Derek Taylor takes a ride with someone who not only wants to meet the Beatles with his son but is also a horrible and violent racist. Incredible snapshots of that period of time, and all of it has a tinge of disgust or a real heavy darkness.
The best, almost magical chapter describes a trip (in more than one sense of the word) with McCartney to play with a brass band up north (the track 'thingumybob'), on the way back they stop at a village and treat the people in the pub to a rendition of McCartney's new song 'Hey Jude' on the pub piano.
This much-acclaimed chronicle covers every working day of the Beatles' career, and author Mark Lewisohn, who is recognized as the world's leading authority on the subject, also includes track-by-track details of every Beatles recording session.
Lewisohn first came to attention as Philip Norman's researcher on the acclaimed Beatles' biography Shout!, then went on to become the definitive chronicler of their work in his own right. This chronicle is a must for any serious student of Beatles' history and a mine of information for fans or those with a reasonably strong interest in the group's professional work. It incorporates details of their live work (which Lewisohn previously documented in the groundbreaking and now rare 'The Beatles Live!') plus all the gist on their radio/tv appearances and, most importantly, recording sessions. The memorabilia scattered throughout makes for fascinating reading but what impresses most is the accuracy of detail, gleaned from countless exclusive interviews, memos, obscure clippings and so much else. Even the notes at the rear are a revelation. Who else but Lewisohn would throw in chart positions in every music paper in the UK and US, for instance? Brilliantly annotated and expertly laid out, this must be the ultimate Fab Four reference book and crucially, it's one you can completely trust. Applause!
Updated version (incorporating "Beatles Live" & "Recording Sessions"
Nicknamed The Big Leather Job" or "The Fat Book", Derek Taylor's vibrant autobiography, packed with celebrated reproductions of memorabilia from his early days as a journalist, to his position as Beatles press officer. Written by Derek Taylor and edited and annotated by George Harrison, it is a lasting testament to the genius, wit and insight of two great men. The text was ultimately edited from the 400,000 words to approximately 250,000 words, while the beautiful engraving-type illustrations throughout were mainly created by Roy Williams. The Afterword was written by the late, great Harry Nilsson. The inside fly pages are hand signed by both Derek Taylor and George Harrison. This edition came complete with a handsome slipcase.
2,000 copies were made in brown half-leather and each one was autographed by George Harrison, Derek Taylor and by ex-Bonzo Dog member Larry Smith, who created the end papers.
After years out of print, an updated edition of this hotly sought-after classic is available again. Mark Lewisohn's definitive guide covers every recording session done by the Beatles at EMI's famed Abbey Road recording studio. It includes the number of takes for each song; who contributed what; previously unpublished studio documents and interviews with many of the key recording personnel; and facsimile reproductions of Abbey Road recording sheets, tape boxes, album sleeve roughs, memos, contracts, press releases and more.
Lavishly illustrated with over 350 photographs (rare images by Linda McCartney among them), this must-have volume also features an exclusive introductory interview with Paul McCartney.
2013
1988
In the book, "The John Lennon Letters," edited by Hunter Davis, Lennon recommends "The Man Who Gave The Beatles Away" several times. Lennon's letter to photographer Jurgen Vollmer dated April 1975 states in a postscript: "there's a book coming out -- 'Macmillan Publishers' -- its by Allan Williams (he took us to Hamburg first) -- it's all about 'THEN'-- Liverpool/Hamburg -- pre Brian Epstein -- it's called 'THE MAN WHO GAVE AWAY THE BEATLES.' -- Quite funny -- and sad." In a letter to journalist Robert Weinstein (dated, "june already" 1975) who had written John for confirmation on some facts regarding a record The Beatles cut in Hamburg, Lennon adds this postscript (spelling the author's first name incorrectly, among other typos, which I am including here for authenticity): "Ther's a very good book on those days called 'The Man Who Gave the Beatles Away' (Alun Williams)* I've forgotten which publisher ... it's new, but available. *he was our first 'manager' ... he took us to Hamburg ... tra la la' Excuse typing!"
Sometime later, possibly 1976, Lennon responded to a short survey from a fan named Mark who asked: "Have you read Allan Williams' 'The Man Who Gave The Beatles Away?' Lennon's reply: "Yes". "Is it completely true or has the story been fictionalized somewhat?..." Lennon's reply: "Mostly true."
Fans of the boy-next-door Beatles proceed with caution. You'll find out a bit more about your fab four than you may have bargained for. Williams pulls no punches, painting the boy-next-door Beatles (aka Brian Epstein) as whoring, touring, cussing, drunk and disorderly kids sowing their oats (just like Doris) as they honed their musical chops in the dark, dank, dubious clubs of Hamburg and Liverpool. Williams takes you on a wild ride of the proverbial sex, drugs and rock and roll antics of five red-blooded British lads, belting out American Rock and Roll in Liverpool and German clubs, but you almost don't want the story to end, because we all know how it does end. Bottom line. A great, fast, fun read. Take it from John Lennon himself. And John oughta know.
