Beatles FAQ

Four years after his recording debut, David Bowie had still made little progress. Despite a name change and several changes of musical style he remained a fringe figure. Convinced that Deram (Decca) was mismanaging his career, Bowie was looking for a new label. In the spring of  1968 The Beatles returned from India and and announced the formation of Apple Records, a new label for ‘creatives’. Bowie immediately instructed his then manager, Kenneth Pitt, to submit an audition tape. As a signed artist with a major label, he might have expected his offering to advance to the top of the pile. Unfortunately, however Apple's offer had backfired. The new label was besieged by aspiring musicians, managers, agents, artists, and hucksters. All were clamouring for an audition.    A further complication was that the new label would only recruit new talent with the agreement of all four (endlessly squabbling) Beatles. The office filled with a  mountain of demo tapes. From an early stage

Bowie's first album (1967) In 1964 a young Beatles fan makes his first TV appearance. With astounding chutzpah, the 17-year-old is taking part in a publicity stunt, promoting the (fictitious) Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Long-haired Men. Always a Beatles fan, David Bowie tried to sign for Apple in 1968. In the 1970s he became a friend and musical collaborator with John Lennon.  The roots of this affinity went deep  as Pete Doggett has pointed out: I was struck ... by the influence the Beatles had on Bowie's work in the 70s. Some of that influence is obvious - the McCartney-inspired piano styling of 'Oh! You Pretty Things', for example. As early as 1965, in an obscure song entitled 'That's Where My Heart Is', Bowie sounded as if he was learning how to write songs by listening to With The Beatles.  source Bowie later covered George Harrison's 'Try Some, Buy Some', claiming that he hadn't realised that George had written the s