Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years: 1970-1980 (Book) (Faq Series) [Paperback]

Robert Rodriguez (Author)

Book Description

Series: Faq Series | Publication Date: March 15, 2010

In the years following the 1960s, Beatle fans around the world were twice-stunned: in 1970, when their beloved group disbanded, and ten years later when the murder of John Lennon ended a decade of hope that somehow the Fab Four would reunite. Between those milestones were astounding highs and unfathomable lows. George Harrison's 1971 benefit for the suffering of Bangladesh showed the world the possibilities of rock's altruism, while Lennon asked the world to "imagine" universal peace before sitting out half the decade to raise his son. Ringo Starr, the most overlooked Beatle, carved himself a surprising niche in film before launching a string of hit singles. And Paul McCartney, widely seen as the instigator of the Fabs' breakup, became one of rock's most beloved performers, racking up record-breaking smashes that climaxed with a triumphant world tour in 1976. Fab Four FAQ 2.0 picks up the story where the acclaimed Fab Four FAQ left off. Loaded with images of rare period ephemera, including periodicals, single sleeves, and movie stills, this is the first comprehensive biography of all four ex-Beatles. This book covers everything from their recording careers in the decade after the band's dissolution to the musicians they played with, the bands they influenced, the manifestations of latter-day Beatlemania, and the constant clamor for reunion expressed by fans and - sometimes - by the four themselves.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Rodriguez is a writer and pop culture historian who has authored and coauthored books on topics ranging from music and film to politics and crime. Some of his works includes Fab Four FAQ (coauthor, along with Stuart Shea) and The 1950's Most Wanted (author). A longtime collector of books, vinyl, and ephemera, he lives just outside Chicago with his wife and children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 510 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books (March 15, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879309687
• ISBN-13: 978-0879309688
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #874,110 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Pop culture historian Robert Rodriguez has written or contributed to nine books. Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years 1970-1980, was published in 2010.

Like its predecessor, Fab Four FAQ, it too has received critical and fan acclaim. Be sure to check out the website www.fabfourfaq2.com.

This was followed by The Beatles - Fifty Fabulous Years, a deluxe gift book in full color, featuring a DVD documentary. (Also available as an app and as an e-book)

Look for Solo In The 70s: Just the FAQs on John, Paul, George and Ringo 1970-1980 (coming in late summer 2011) and Revolver: How The Beatles Re-Imagined Rock 'N' Roll (spring 2012).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Four Long and Winding Roads!, March 27, 2010

By 

Michael OConnor "Wordsmith" (Wausau, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years: 1970-1980 (Book) (Faq Series) (Paperback)

Beatle fans young and old should enjoy FAB FOUR FAQ 2.0, Robert Rodriguez's newly-published guide to John, Paul, George and Ringo's activities during the 1970s. Like his earlier FAB FOUR FAQ book, published in 2007, FAB FOUR FAQ 2.0 is a wide-ranging, critical yet affectionate chronicle of JPG&R along with wives, lovers, friends, fellow musicians, business associates and others going down their separate long and winding roads. For the four men, musically and personally the 1970s were very much a mixed bag, great musical succcess and personal highpoints being interspersed with god-awful duds and assorted 'I-can't-believe-he-did-that' moments. FAB FOUR FAQ 2.0 has it all. And it's a great read to boot; Rodriquez is a gifted writer!

FAB FOUR FAQ 2.0 is arranged chronologically. The section for 1970 takes up 40 pages, 1971, 51 pages and so on. Though the book is sub-titled THE BEATLES' SOLO YEARS, 1970-1980, Rodriguez actually begins by recounting the solo work - WONDERWALL, SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY, INSTANT KARMA, UNFINISHED MUSIC NO. 1 & 2, etc. - done prior to the breakup and the various examples of Beatles helping Beatles throughout the decade. He goes on to describe and critique the various albums produced by JPG&R, the critical and popular response to each along with chart performance, Rodriguez's picks of best albums/worst albums, the various incarnations of Wings, concert and film work, TV appearances, charity work, the evolving relationship between the four, personal developments (marriages, divorces, drug problems, legal problems, etc.), media coverage during the 1970s, legends/rumors/myths and so on. Dozens of photographs, album covers, record jackets and memorabilia complement Rodriguez's well-done and informative text.

Despite being a long-time Beatles fan, I was pleased and surprised by the new information and insights I found in Rodriguez's book. Younger fans of JPG&R should find FAB FOUR FAQ 2.0 especially useful about "just what were those four up to in the 1970s?" All in all, an interesting and informative book Beatle fans of all ages will enjoy. Recommended.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Long & Winding Road becomes a 4-way street ..., April 7, 2010

By 

Tom E. DeShovelle - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years: 1970-1980 (Book) (Faq Series) (Paperback)

Having thoroughly enjoyed Rob Rodriguez' previous "Fab Four FAQ" (written with Stuart Shea), I was delighted to hear of "2.0" examining the glorious first decade of the solo Beatle years.

Like the first volume, the book is broken up into diverse chapters (not a straight timeline) making what is a very enjoyable read, a good reference source as well. In this format, topics such as stage appearances, studio cameos, TV appearances, films, etc are neatly grouped. As with the first volume, the fact checking and depth of research are commendable.

Beyond covering the core story, Rodriguez expands into territory such as fandom, with some interesting reading on things such as the Beatlefest phenomenon. It is indeed refreshing to see an author "in touch" with his target audience in a way many writers ignore.

Highly recommended.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars When One Became Four: The Beatles in the 70's, April 1, 2010

By 

D. Breaux (Elk Grove Village, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years: 1970-1980 (Book) (Faq Series) (Paperback)

Having been born in 1963, I came of age in the 1970's not with The Beatles as a functioning unit, but with the four separate entities of John, Paul, George and Ringo. While I was very aware of the Fab's pre-ex endeavors, it was their 1970's solo recordings, television appearances and other miscellaneous happenings that my adolescent years are most intertwined with.

Focusing on the decade immediately following their break-up, Fab Four FAQ 2.0 by Robert Rodriguez is an engaging, in-depth, and reflective account of what 1970's-era Beatles fans would have been watching, wondering, listening to or talking about. The book's chapter topics are presented in the same "start anywhere" approach as the previous Beatles FAQ book. As such, this makes for a very conversational and informal read, offered in non-sequential multi-course servings that Beatlefans will love to chew on and dissect with relish.

Having read a lot of Beatles books over the years, I'm aware of two traps that authors often fell into: judgemental arm-chair quarterbacking or fawning revisionism (of which the "my-fave-fab-can-do-no-wrong" altar worshipping could be considered a subset). Happily, this is not the case here.

Robert attentively presents the topics of choice within the context of the times, providing a framework in which he explains - not defends or rationalizes - the ex-Fabs actions or artistic states-of-mind. Interwoven with his own reflections that come with the inevitable 20/20 hindsight of a decade nearly two-score removed, it's a compositional equilibrium rarely experienced in Beatles books: the passion of a life-long fan whose eyes (and ears) opened wide to each well-known, re-discovered or recently unearthed nugget of Beatle-ness, and the diligence of a historical researcher who won't repeat what's erroneously been re-told, sensationalized, or diluted through the years.

Then there are the recordings. The number ones, the bottom rungs, the artistic Everests and the slaughtered lambs; each with a story, setting or frame of reference to enlighten what we Beatles fans thought we already knew; a quadro-dimensional overlay of efforts that often revealed when one was ebbing, another was likely flowing. At one point Robert tallies up their combined quantitative output as solo artists during the decade; the sum is nothing short of astounding, to the extent of cosmically contemplating the alternate universe that could have existed, if only they had...(read chapter 32 to see just how close they often came).

For many of us who grew up with John, Paul, George and Ringo as solo artists, the dream is not over; for as long as we have a shuffle setting on our musical apparatus of choice, we'll always be able to mix our own lost, great Beatles album from the decade when one become four.