Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Stars wish Ringo Starr a happy birthday at 80 Ringo Starr turning 80 today is a big deal. Many fellow legends took to their social media accounts to wish the Beatles drummer a happy birthday, including Paul McCartney, Stella McCartney, Yoko Ono, Pattie Boyd, Peter Frampton, and original Beatles drummer Pete Best, who said, "Thought about it and thought why not. Happy Birthday Ringo." Source: Best Classic Bands

Monday, July 6, 2020

A John Lennon tree grows in Manhattan Carmen Paulino, who calls herself a community artist, has wrapped a tree on 79th Street in New York City with a crocheted artwork she calls the John Lennon Tree. The elaborate installation went up in June and is the handiwork of Paulino, herself a local from Spanish Harlem, with the assistance of several others. Source: Best Classic Bands

Ringo Starr says The Beatles turned down crazy reunion gig in 1976 Ringo Starr, who is 80 on Tuesday, said the iconic band was offered £50 million to reunite five years after their breakup. All four bandmates, including Paul McCartney and John Lennon, discussed the offer. But a wrestling match between a man and a shark was to be the warm-up act, which put off the Fab Four. Source: The Daily Mail, UK

Yoko Ono, 87, is slowing down and needs 24-hour care Since 2017 the 87-year-old Yoko Ono has often been seen outside in wheelchairs and she now rarely leaves her nine-room apartment in The Dakota and needs 24-hour care. But Elliot Mintz told The New York Post Ono's mind is still crystal clear and she invites her son Sean for dinner up to three times a week. Source: The Daily Mail, UK

Friday, July 3, 2020

Ringo says there's a lot more joy in Beatles Get Back Documentary Ringo Starr has been sharing his thoughts and early impressions of the much-anticipated The Beatles: Get Back documentary. The film, directed by Peter Jackson, had been due for release this summer by Apple Corps Ltd and WingNut Films, distributed by Disney. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, it's now scheduled for August 21, 2021. Source: U Discover Music

Brian Epstein to get the Hollywood treatment in new biopic The life of The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein is being brought to the big screen. Billed as the "true and truly extraordinary story" of the man dubbed the Fifth Beatle, it will be directed by Jonas Akerlund, best known for his music videos with Beyonce, Madonna and Lady Gaga as well as Paul McCartney. Source: ITV, UK

New Beatles Lego art set comes with a soundtrack Lego has unveiled a new Beatles-themed set that will allow fans to create portraits of the music icons using their favorite interchangeable plastic blocks. Available starting in September, each set depicts a different iconic image from pop culture. The Beatles' version is the only music-related one to be announced so far. Source: iHeart Radio

Cirque du Soleil bankruptcy also involves the Beatles Cirque du Soleil puts on the amazing Beatles show, "Love," at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas; the Michael Jackson show called "One" at Mandalay Bay in Vegas, and Blue Man Group everywhere including its home, New York, on Lafayette Street. They have all been closed since March 15th and may never return. Related Articles  Source: Showbiz 411

Thursday, July 2, 2020

The #1 singles of 1971 include former Beatles In 1971, only 3 songs stayed at the top for four weeks or more. No less than 31 singles reached #1 that year, including a nifty feat by the members of the Beatles. Singles that year included George Harrison's My Sweet Lord, John Lennon's Imagine, Paul McCartney's Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey and Ringo Starr's It Don't Come Easy. Source: Best Classic Bands

Ringo Starr's 80th birthday event to include Paul McCartney performance Ringo Starr will celebrate his 80th birthday with a special show that will air on AXS TV and on Starr's YouTube channel. The legend will be joined, most prominently, by Paul McCartney. Others announced for the July 7 event include Starr's brother-in-law Joe Walsh, plus Sheryl Crow, Gary Clark, Jr., Sheila E and Ben Harper. Source: Best Classic Bands

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Publishing in the time of pandemic: Bruce Spizer's new Beatles book Nothing is "normal" anymore, even the publishing of Bruce Spizer's long-anticipated work on The Beatles' Let It Be. Spizer, who was coordinating his efforts with the 2020 release of the Peter Jackson Get Back film, discovered that Disney had been postponed the project until 2021. Now, Spizer has engineered "a surprise package" for his readers. Source: Beatles News

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Paul McCartney wants mandatory meat taken out of school meals Paul McCartney has spoken out against the serving of meat in schools, arguing that the practise shouldn't be mandatory. Co-signed by daughters Stella and Mary, as part of a PETA-backed campaign, the letter coincides with a consultation process for a review of Britain's food system called the National Food Strategy. More Information  Source: Metro, UK

Liverpool music venues sign heartbreaking open letter to government A number of Liverpool's most popular music venues have signed a heartbreaking open letter begging the Government for help to survive. The letter was written by the Music Venue's Trust, which represents music sites across the country including The Cavern Club, saying, "Without our Grassroots Music Venues, there would be no Beatles." Source: Liverpool Echo

Paul McCartney mourns original Beatles bassist who passed away at 21 Paul McCartney, shared a picture from the very first times the band was playing on Instagram to celebrate their late bassist Stuart Sutcliffe's birthday. The Scottish musician and painter Stuart Sutcliffe was the original bassist of The Beatles until the time he left the band to pursue his painting career. Source: Metalhead Zone

Monday, June 22, 2020

Video: Paul McCartney plays trumpet with Elvis Costello and Dave Grohl On a fundraising broadcast, Paul McCartney played trumpet on "When the Saints Go Marching In." He was joined by Elvis Costello, Dave Grohl, Dave Matthews, Jim James, Irma Thomas and Nathaniel Rateliff during the benefit for the New Orleans Preservation Hall Foundation. Paul originally recorded the song with the Beatles in 1961. Source: Ultimate Classic Rock

Update: Penny Lane namesake wasn't a slave merchant Beatles fans can take a large sigh of relief, it turns out the street "Penny Lane" was named after doesn't have ties to slavery. An International Slavery Museum statement read, "We have concluded that the comprehensive research available to us now demonstrates that there is no historical evidence linking Penny Lane to James Penny." Source: iHeart Radio

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Ringo offering chance for 15-minute Zoom chat with him on his 80th birthday Ringo Starr turns 80 on July 7, and he's offering the opportunity to win a 15-minute Zoom chat with him that day for one person and a friend while raising money for charity. The contest will be hosted by the Omaze fundraising website. The sweepstakes winner also will receive a unique piece of artwork created by Ringo. Source: KFLN, Wilmar, MN

Amazing pictures capture the night Beatles played in Doncaster On February 5, 1963, The Beatles played in Doncaster, England. Mick Longworth worked at The Regent hotel where the band was staying the night before. He said, "When I heard The Beatles were staying at our hotel, I couldn't believe it." He cancelled his paper round for the following morning so he could provide room service. Source: Doncaster Free Press, UK

The Beatles song that Paul McCartney wrote for Frank Sinatra There was one song that McCartney had written specifically with Frank Sinatra in mind, one of his previously constructed music hall ditties. "When I wrote 'When I'm Sixty Four' I thought I was writing a song for Sinatra," he said. Eight years later, McCartney picked the song back out of the pile and recorded it for thier upcoming Beatles album. Source: Far Out Magazine, UK

From the Archives, 1964: Stadium birthday party for Beatle Paul From The Sydney Morning Herald on June 19, 1964: Birthday presents rained on Paul McCartney throughout the Beatles' two Sydney Stadium concerts last night. About 20, 000 wildly ecstatic fans made it Paul's night, yesterday was his 22nd birthday, and turned the performances into a deafening celebration. Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Monday, June 15, 2020

Battle over early Beatles demo valued at $6 million goes to court A battle over ownership of an early Beatles demo recording is set to go to court this week. Geoff Emerick taped the band's first-ever session at Abbey Road Studios on Jun. 6, 1962, before Ringo Starr was a member. The EMI label ordered Emerick to destroy it, but instead he kept it until his death in 2018. Source: Ultimate Classic Rock

Liverpool/Beatles landmark Penny Lane in danger of being renamed Penny Lane in Liverpool, that became a landmark once The Beatles used the street name in a 1967 single, has found itself the subject of some speculation the past week. Apparently, rumors are swirling that the road was named after James Penny, an 18th century slave merchant who defended the slave trade in front of British Parliament. Source: Rock Cellar Magazine

Online Fab Four Master Class coming June 25th "Fab Four Master Class" will be a new online experience for music fans who crave an in-depth look at legendary recordings. World-renowned Beatles historian and author Kenneth Womack and producer, composer and "Deconstructing the Beatles" series creator Scott Freiman are joining forces to deliver this unique series of classes. Source: Broadway World

John Lennon Plastic Ono Band 50th anniversary book due The 50th anniversary of John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album will be commemorated this fall with the release of a new book. The album, which Lennon once described as "the best thing I've ever done," was released on Dec. 11, 1970. The book is tentatively scheduled to be published on Oct. 6 in the U.S. and Oct. 8. in the U.K. Source: Best Classic Bands

Friday, June 12, 2020

Beatles Get Back documentary from Peter Jackson moved to 2021 The Walt Disney Studios has moved the release of the Beatles documentary, The Beatles: Get Back, by nearly one year, to 2021, due to the ongoing pandemic. The studio announced on March 10 that it had acquired the worldwide distribution rights to the film, and was planned for a Sept. 4, 2020 release in the U.S. and Canada. Related Articles  Source: Best Classic Bands

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