Beatles FAQ

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. 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 Read More Taken from  The Beatles Teaching Pack   (£3.99) 

David Bowie was heavily influenced by The Beatles  In 1968 David Bowie left the Deram label (a subsidiary of Decca) where his recording career had got off to an undistinguished start. He was keen to sign with Apple, a new record label set up by The Beatles to encourage new talent.

Nearly sixty years on and there is still no settled answer to this question. We are now so familiar with the name— and its odd spelling — that it is often forgotten how exotic it seemed in the early 1960s.

One of the most enduring legends surrounding The Beatles is that the Fab Four became the Fab Three in November 1966.

When asked about key early influences The Beatles usually cited individual names: Elvis, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly. All but one followed the tried and tested formula of a star with an essentially nameless backing band. The exception was Buddy Holly. His group, The Crickets, created a template for what became known as the ‘guitar group’. This which would be adopted by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and countless other British bands. In January 1962, The Beatles failed an audition for Decca Records. Company boss, Dick Rowe, famously told Brian Epstein that ‘guitar groups were on their way out’. In fact they were about to conquer the world. Read More The Beatles Teaching Pack   (£3.99) 

The European leg of the The Beatles 1966 world tour was designed to create a favourable impression on the band and its public. First there were a few dates in Germany, culminating in a triumphant return to Hamburg. Then on to Japan, a market where they had achieved unprec.edented penetration for a western act. Finally The Beatles would visit The Philippines. This was the most Americanised of all Asian states, with a famously friendly population.. A warm welcome was confidently expected. Nothing went according to plan. In Hamburg there was embarrassment on the now cleaned-up  Beatles in front of their old fans. At one concert Lennon told the audience, "Don't listen to our music. We're terrible these days." He would later explain: "We'd outlived the Hamburg stage and wanted to pack that up. We hated going back... We'd had that scene. Brian [Epstein] made us go back to fulfill the contract..." After this uneasy revisiting of their past, The Beat

Brian Epstein famously became aware of The Beatles when a young customer asked for a song recorded in Germay,"My Bonnie", by  Tony Sheridan and The Beatles.   This disc would prove to be unique on two counts.  It was the first non-bootlegged recording.  It was also the only time they conceded  top billing to another artist.  In their subsequent recording career over a hundred people performed on official Beatles releases.  These included major contributions to specific recordings - like Andy White's on the "Love Me Do" (single) to various wives, girlfriends and pals providing background harmonies. Even biographer Hunter Davies gets a walk-on vocal, deep in the chorus of  All You Need Is Love " [42] The house rule was that only band members were credited. This even applied to star names - Eric Clapton on The White Album , for example. Only two exceptions were made in the entire 1962 -1970 discography.  Billy Preston  Billy Preston came close to jo