Beatles FAQ
Post: 7967 of 7970 Xref: theporch rec.music.beatles:7967 Newsgroups: rec.music.beatles From: planders@shadow.scs.unr.edu (Preston Landers) Subject: rec.music.beatles FAQ Date: Thu, 11 Nov 1993 19:02:29 GMT Nntp-Posting-Host: shadow.scs.unr.edu Organization: University of Nevada, Reno Lines: 252 The Most Frequently Asked Questions in Rec.music.beatles Written and researched by saki (dmac@math.ucla.edu) with contributors as noted. Copyright 1993---no unauthorized use permitted ------------------------------------------------------------------- Last Update: 28 October 1993 1. Are the Beatles really getting back together? The remaining three ex-Beatles---Paul, George and Ringo---will be contributing to a multi-part television documentary being assembled in England, which is due for release sometime in the next year or two. This documentary draws upon many sources, so it's only sensible to suggest that these fellows participate. But this does not constitute a Beatles reunion. Although Paul has hinted that the three "may" play music in the course of the taping, the others have not publically commented, and it remains to be seen. The documentary, to be released by Apple, promises to be a thorough and well researched piece of work, and should be worth the wait. Tentative release has been set for Fall 1994. 2. I heard that rare "lost" Beatles songs were found in EMI/Abbey Road Studios and will soon be released. The project remains a "potential" one, according to David Hughes, President of Communications for EMI, and will be up to the Beatles, who are in charge of the project. These songs are not, however, actually "lost", having been carefully documented both by EMI tape librarians and by Mark Lewisohn, whose book "The Beatles Recording History" talks in detail about them. EMI hopes to release a CD of songs to accompany the Apple video documentary (see #1 above), but the Beatles will decide whether the audio package will include unreleased vault treasures never before officially released, or instead selections from BBC recordings (live radio performances which the Beatles also control). Or perhaps none of the above. :-) Many of these songs have been unofficially distributed since 1983 through underground channels on bootleg recordings, but these have been produced without permission of the Beatles or their estates, and certainly without EMI's knowledge. 3. Where can I buy the Red and Blue Albums? Any local record store. :-) These LPs were out of print for years and have just been reissued in CD format. 4. How about the video of "Let It Be"? Where can I get it? Another one of those legal tangles, alas---"Let It Be" has not been licensed for video distribution for some time and although rumors suggest it will be out soon, there are no apparent plans for its rerelease by any certain date. "Yellow Submarine" is also temporarily unavailable. 5. Is Paul really dead? (Alternate: Did the Beatles have anything to do with the "Paul is dead" scheme?) Paul is alive and well, and has been since 18 June 1942. He did not die in a car crash and was not replaced by a surrogate called William Campbell. The "Paul is dead" controversy began in mid-1969, and can be traced to origins in the American midwest, possibly a college prank. The Beatles have always denied having anything to do with it. The "clues" are either coincidence or not supportable under intense investigation. 6. Is it true that Ringo didn't play the drums on most Beatles records? Ringo did indeed play the drums; EMI studio documentation proves he was present and was paid for sessions in the group. The only exceptions: he played tambourine to Andy White's drums on one take of "Love Me Do" in 1962 (producer George Martin wasn't sure Ringo was good enough---he'd just joined the Beatles at that time), and for a week in August 1968 Ringo took off during the White Album sessions, distressed at the group's animosity. Paul and John filled in for him till he returned. 7. How did the Beatles get their name and what does it mean? John Lennon and his friend Stuart Sutcliffe came up with the name "Beatles", a pun on Buddy Holly's "Crickets", in 1960. 8. What's the chord that begins the song "A Hard Day's Night"? D7sus4/A is the suggestion most frequently cited. See Question 19 in the Nems II Note for further discussion. 9. What was the last Beatles song? The last Beatles *release* of new material was the LP, Let It Be, Friday, May 8, 1970. The last *mixing* was I Me Mine, Thursday, April 2, 1970. The last *recording* was with Ringo: Across The Universe, The Long & Winding Road, and I Me Mine, Wednesday, April 1, 1970. The other Beatles were not present on this date. The last *single release* was Let It Be b/w You Know My Name, Friday, March 6, 1970. The last time *George or Paul were in the studio recording* was Jan. 4, 1970. Everyone but John was there for this. Paul and George did vocals, George did the guitar solo heard on the LP version, Ringo played drums, and Paul shook maracas. The last time *John was in the studio* coincided with two other events. The four Beatles were together in the studio recording for the last time, *and* the cover for Abbey Road was shot, on Friday, August 8, 1969. The songs recorded were: Ending (working title for The End) [ironically appropriate], I Want You, and Oh! Darling. John wasn't recording anything with the others for nearly 8 months before the last recordings were made. 10. What is the most-covered Beatles song? "Yesterday". 11. Where can I buy bootleg records? Bootleg recordings of Beatles material, which have proliferated recently, are illegal material. Buying them seems to be illegal, and selling them certainly is. Thus your local record store is unlikely to carry them, but you can always ask for them by title, or take your chances at swap meets or via mailorder. Don't ask publicly on r.m.b. where specifically you can buy such material--it's considered impolite, not to mention dangerous, to require people to reveal sources. 12. What does "J'ai guru deva om" mean? Various interpretations. Depends upon how well you read Sanskrit. The traditional translations are "Glory to the teacher", "The heavenly teacher is divine", or "Lift up your spiritual master", followed by the meditative one-word chant "ommmm", refering to the sound of the universe. It was a mantra of John's that he decided to incorporate into "Across The Universe." 13. What does John Lennon really say at the end of "Strawberry Fields Forever"---"cranberry sauce", "I'm very bored", "I buried Paul"...or something else? John Lennon himself claimed he said "cranberry sauce." On outtakes of SFF, you can quite clearly hear the words. But if that's not enough, listen to his writing partner, the inimitable Macca: (From "The Beatles In Their Own Words"): Paul: That wasn't "I buried Paul" at all, that was John saying "cranberry sauce". It was the end of 'Strawberry Fields'. That's John's humour. John would say something totally out of synch, like 'cranberry sauce'. If you don't realise that John's apt to say 'cranberry sauce' when he feels like it, then you start to hear a funny little word there, and you think "Aha!" 14. Why do people refer to Paul McCartney as "Macca"? It was apparently a habit among the Quarrymen, the first appellation of the Beatles, to call each other by a nickname. Paul was Macca, George was Hazza, and John was Lennie. Since Ringo wasn't with the group at this time, he missed out (though of course he was self- named "Ringo", feeling that it sounded more western and cowboyesque than Richard, his given name.) 15. I have an old Beatles record. How much is it worth? Check "The Beatles Price Guide for American Records", by Cox & Lindsay. If you don't have access to this, you can post your request, but keep in mind the fact that most original Beatles albums and singles are judged very strictly in terms of quality. If your LP has had the normal amount of use, it's probably worth more to you as a sentimental token than it is to collectors. 16. Is it true that the first letters in the title "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" refer to LSD? John Lennon maintained that this was an accidental reference, and swore that he was inspired to name this song from a painting his then-5 year old son Julian brought home from school, which upon questioning Julian described as "Lucy in the sky with diamonds." Lucy was Julian's preschool-mate, Lucy O'Donnell, daughter of a London physician. This story was corroborated by John's close friend Pete Shotton, who claimed to have witnessed the incident. 17. Which came first, the Byrds' 12-string Rickenbacker or the Beatles' (George Harrison's)? George received his 12-string from the makers of Rickenbacker guitars in early 1964 and began playing it in sessions from 25 February 1964 onward, most notably on the album "A Hard Day's Night". The Byrds didn't release their first record till 1965. Undeniably, however, once both groups were using 12-string guitars, they influenced each other, as Harrison and Byrds guitarist Roger McGuinn have attested. 18. Who yells "I've got blisters on my fingers" at the end of "Helter Skelter"? It's Ringo, according to Mark Lewisohn's "The Beatles Recording History". Many think it sounds like John, but it's not; it's Ringo compaining about his drumsticks. 19. I've heard that Paul owns the rights to "Happy Birthday" and requires royalties from anyone who sings it in public! Not true at all; strictly an urban legend. Paul has never owned "Happy Birthday", and has no plans to buy it, according to his New York offices at MPL. Currently a firm called Birch Tree owns the song. 20. Does Paul require all his tour roadies to become vegetarian? He does not. He provides food for roadies and crew in keeping with his own current philosophical predilection for vegetarianism (i.e. no meat products served), and will gently proselytize to crew members who insist they need to eat meat; but he has no objection to his crew spending their own money to supplement official road- crew fare. 21. Is Linda Eastman McCartney related to Eastman Kodak? No relationship at all. Her family name was originally Epstein and was changed when her grandfather emigrated from Russia in the early 20th century. The Eastmans were involved in law and entertainment representation in and around Scarsdale, NY, where Linda grew up; Linda's mother's family had an interest in a clothing store chain in Queens for some years, and in that sense one might say that Linda is partial heir to a department store concern. Linda's professional dabblings have been in photography, but this is as close as she gets to Eastman-Kodak. ------ Don't see your question here? There's a "graduate level" FAQ list called "Nems II"...ask for that if you're still confused or intrigued. Otherwise, do post your query and one of the many r.m.b regulars is certain to help out. ------ saki (dmac@math.ucla.edu)
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