Casting new light on the bands history, here are revealing accounts of the rocking early days in Liverpool and Hamburg; the pivotal recording of Please Please Me; the touring triumphs and burnouts; the secrets behind Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band; and much more.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Last year's Beatles Anthology television specials that told the tale of the Fab Four's world-conquering career were elegantly executed but lacked objectivity. This is not the case with Canadian radio producers Pritchard's and Lysaght's The Beatles: An Oral History. Compiled from decades of interviews (many of which have provided the basis for a series of radio programs) with a cast of more than a hundred friends, family members, colleagues and the band members themselves, this collection should provide even the most obsessive of Beatles fans with new angles and anecdotes: who knew, for example, that Paul McCartney hated his vocal performance on "Eleanor Rigby," or that on the exquisite "For No One" the Moptops were not even in tune? The Fab Four's struggle to reconcile astronomical ambitions with earth-bound relationships provides the narrative's main thrust; the most intriguing relationship of all can be found in the writing credit for the vast majority of Beatles' songs: "Lennon-McCartney." The two emerge as complicated personalities, neither as cuddly and compassionate as their public relations staff would have us believe, nor as egomaniacal as their detractors have claimed. Because of the multiplicity of voices, and Pritchard's and Lysaght's unbiased approach in weaving them together, this may be the first book ever on the Beatles that manages to avoid falling into one obvious and reductive perspective. This seems fitting for a band that changed the world.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
The story of the Beatles has become an industry in and of itself, and why not? Out of the chaos of twentieth-century history, it is a miracle that those four young men found one another at all, but then, maybe not. Pritchard and Lysaght lay out, once again, the story of the very human events, turns, and twists that led the talented four into history. Reading this delightful book, presented in Ken Burns^-like documentary style, for which principal players in the development of the Beatles were extensively interviewed, each adding just the right amount of additional information about who John, Paul, George, and Ringo were at any given time--not to mention valuable insight into the forgotten other Beatles of early days, Pete Best and Stewart Sutcliffe--should conjure no small degree of joy and excitement. Once opened, this book will induce something close to the feeling of waiting for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band to get on with the show. Raul Nino
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Second-Tier Reference,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Beatles: An Oral History (Hardcover)
If you are searching for a good biography on the Beatles, I'd steer you toward Davies, "The Beatles." This book, however, is excellent supplement to primary reference biographies such as Davies and contains some outstanding insights from George Martin and others who played critical roles in the development of the band.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Amusing gems,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Beatles: An Oral History (Hardcover)
This is not a definitive story of the Beatles, but rather a collection of insightful quotes from primary sources about every phase of their careers. My only historian's regret is that we do not find out when or where most of these quotes were taken from. Good stuff nonetheless. An alphabetical table of participants is helpful.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
For Beatle Scholars,
By
This review is from: The Beatles: An Oral History (Paperback)
This book is sure to delight those who have extensive knowledge about the Beatles. This book has fresh, new information and provides sources for quotes. Nothing is left as vague "hearsay." This author has done his homework!
In addition to citing all sources, this author clearly knows his Beatle history and follows it thoroughly. The choice of photographs are startlingly apt; the photo on the back of the book showing the locked gate to Strawberry Fields (kind of makes you think of George's song, "Behind That Locked Door") signifies the end of the Beatle Era; a bittersweet note. This very compelling book is worth adding to your Beatles' literary collection.
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