tagged w/ George Harrison
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The Washington Post...
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Bert Weedon, British guitarist whose how-to guide taught rock-and-roll royalty, dies at 91
By Matt Schudel, Saturday, April 21, 4:30 PM
Bert Weedon, a British guitarist whose popular “Play in a Day” instructional manual introduced a generation of rock-and-roll stars to the power of the guitar, died April 20 at his home in Beaconsfield, England. He was 91.
Friends confirmed his death to British news agencies but did not disclose the cause.
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PHOTO:
(Chris Ware/GETTY IMAGES) - From the archives: Popular English guitarist Bert Weedon at his home in Wembley, chilling out on the floor with his guitar lying beside him.
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Long before he gained fame as the author of a top-selling guide to the guitar, Mr. Weedon was known as a versatile performer who could play virtually any style of music at a glance. He performed with such renowned jazz artists as Stephane Grappelli and George Shearing, accompanied singers Frank Sinatra, Rosemary Clooney and Judy Garland, and was a regular on BBC broadcasts in the 1940s and 1950s.
Mr. Weedon was an early rock-and-roll guitar star in Britain in the late 1950s, with a series of instrumental hits that included “Guitar Boogie Shuffle,” “Apache” and “Nashville Boogie.” But when his instructional book was first published in 1957, he became something of a spiritual godfather to a generation of would-be guitar heroes.
Its title — “Play in a Day” — offered the hope of instant musical gratification. The lessons began at the most basic level, with an illustration of how to hold a guitar. Mr. Weedon taught novices how to get through many rock-and-roll tunes with three basic chords and included pointers on how to play a few basic tunes.
His guide, which was updated through the 1980s, sold millions of copies, leading Britain’s Independent newspaper to call Mr. Weedon “the man who taught the world to play the guitar.”
Many top rock stars, including Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Keith Richards, the Who’s Pete Townshend and three of the Beatles — George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney — studied Mr. Weedon’s book.
“I like to think that I’ve helped in some way,” Mr. Weedon said in 1997, “to make the guitar the most popular instrument in the world.”
Herbert Maurice Weedon was born in London on May 10, 1920. His father was a subway driver and amateur singer.
Mr. Weedon was 12 when he bought a secondhand guitar. He wanted to learn to play jazz, but his first teacher — an elderly music-shop owner — refused to teach him anything but classical music.
“He picked up his guitar and played Chopin’s Prelude No. 7,” Mr. Weedon told London’s Daily Mail newspaper in 1995. “I had never heard anything so beautiful in my life. I sat transfixed and he said: ‘That’s what I’m going to teach you.’ And I said: ‘Yes, please.’ ”
By 14, Mr. Weedon was performing in dance bands. He was a featured soloist before World War II.
He volunteered with rescue units during the London bombing blitz of World War II and, after the war, replaced Django Reinhardt in a group led by Grappelli, a prominent jazz violinist.
As a member of a BBC band in the 1950s, he was known for his ability to sight-read any style of music from jazz to classical to flamenco to rock. He was the host of children’s television shows and performed with many acclaimed singers, including Sinatra.
“He asked me if I’d like to go and play guitar in America,” Mr. Weedon recalled in 1995. “He was the greatest pop singer in the world and I was immensely flattered. I thanked him very much, but I told him no. I said I’d rather be a bigger fish in a smaller pond.”
Mr. Weedon recorded well into the 1980s, and one of his albums from the 1970s, “22 Golden Guitar Greats,” reached No. 1 on the British charts, knocking Led Zeppelin out of the top slot.
His first marriage, to Doris Weedon, ended in divorce. Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Maggie Weedon; and two sons.
In 2003, he received a settlement after suing the BBC over a statement that Mr. Weedon had learned to play guitar “while a convict.”
“It may not always be fashionable in the rock music world,” Mr. Weedon’s attorney said at the time, “but my client is rightly proud of his unblemished past and does not want that legacy damaged at this late stage of his private life and professional career.”
.The Washington Post...
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Bert Weedon, British guitarist whose how-to guide... more
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Los Angeles Times...
Barry Feinstein dies at 80; rock music photographer
Barry Feinstein shot more than 500 album covers, including Bob Dylan's 'The Times They Are A-Changin' ' and George Harrison's 'All Things Must Pass.'
Barry Feinstein
PHOTO: Barry Feinstein is captured in a photograph by singer Bob Dylan. Feinstein was the official photographer of Dylan's European tour in 1966 and shot the cover of the musician's album "The Times They Are A-Changin'." (Barry Feinstein Photography)
By Dennis McLellan, Los Angeles Times
October 21, 2011
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Barry Feinstein, a photographer who gained renown as one of the premier chroniclers of the 1960s and '70s music scene, including shooting iconic album covers for Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin and George Harrison, has died. He was 80.
Feinstein, a longtime resident of Woodstock, N.Y., who had been in failing health the last 10 years, died Thursday at a hospital in Kingston, N.Y., said his wife, Judith Jamison Feinstein.
In an award-winning career that began in the 1950s and included shooting many of Hollywood's biggest stars, Feinstein had photos published in Life, Look, Time, Esquire, Newsweek and other magazines.
He photographed more than 500 album covers, including Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'," Joplin's "Pearl," Harrison's "All Things Must Pass," the Byrds' "Mr. Tambourine Man," Dave Mason's "Alone Together" and Eric Clapton's debut solo album "Eric Clapton."
"I'd put Barry in the top five of all-time rock photographers," said Peter Blachley, owner of the Morrison Hotel Gallery in New York City, which represents Feinstein's photography.
Feinstein's success was due not only to the way he composed his shots and his other skills as a photographer, Blachley said, but "the way he was able to get the access to deliver those shots. And that access is gained by his personality with artists.
"They loved working with Barry, and that makes a great music photographer."
When he shot the cover for George Harrison's 1970 "All Things Must Pass" album, Feinstein recalled in a 2002 interview with the Washington Times, he photographed for days outside the singer's home at Friar Park in Henley-on-Thames, England.
"Then, someone called [Harrison] and told him that the gnomes that were stolen from Friar Park in about 1871 could be bought back. They asked him if he wanted to buy them back. He said, 'Sure.' They brought them back and laid them on the lawn. We went out and looked at them. I said, 'There's the cover.'
"We didn't move a thing. In about two minutes, we had the cover. It was spontaneous."
Harrison later asked Feinstein to document the historic fundraising Concert for Bangladesh at Madison Square Garden in 1971.
Feinstein was best known for his long association with Dylan, for whom he was the official photographer on the European portion of Dylan's 1966 world tour and the 1974 Dylan and The Band tour.
One of Feinstein's famous Dylan photos, taken in London in 1966, shows the singer in the back of a limousine smoking a cigarette and gazing straight ahead through dark sunglasses, seemingly oblivious to the fans' faces pressed against the closed window.
A collection of his Dylan photos appear in Feinstein's 2008 book "Real Moments: Bob Dylan."
"I wanted my pictures to say something," Feinstein wrote. "I don't really like stand-up portraits; there's nothing there, no life, no feeling. I was much more interested in capturing real moments."
"Hollywood Foto-Rhetoric: The Lost Manuscript," a collection of Feinstein's early Hollywood photos and poems Dylan had written in 1964 to accompany them, also was published in 2008.
"If he wasn't a photographer but was a writer, he would have been very much like Paddy Chayefsky," Blachley said. "He had a very interesting way of looking at the world around him."
One of Feinstein's Hollywood photographs, he said, is of a movie studio parking lot "and there's a big sign in front that says 'Talent Lot,' and it's empty; there's nothing in it."
Feinstein was born Feb. 4, 1931, in Philadelphia. He spent a year at the University of Miami and had a stint in the Coast Guard before launching his career in photography. After arriving in Hollywood, he became a studio photographer for Columbia Pictures.
Feinstein, who was a cameraman on the classic 1968 documentary "Monterey Pop," also was the director-cameraman on the 1968 music documentary "You Are What You Eat."
A close friend of actor Steve McQueen, he also shot stills during the production of McQueen's 1968 classic film "Bullitt."
Noting that her husband had a photography and design studio in Los Angeles for many years, Judith Jamison Feinstein said: "Steve McQueen would pick him up every day at 4 o'clock when he was done with business and off they'd go motorcycling through the Hollywood Hills."
Feinstein was previously married and divorced from singer Mary Travers of Peter, Paul and Mary, with whom he had a daughter, Alicia; and to actress Carol Wayne, with whom he had a son, Alex.
In addition to his wife and two children, he is survived by three stepchildren, Erica Marshall and Jasper and Jake Jamison; and three grandchildren.
.Los Angeles Times...
Barry Feinstein dies at 80; rock music photographer
Barry... more
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Epic new film illuminates the inner life of the most enigmatic Beatle
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With nostaligia in the air, I found myself in the front row filming the aging Beatles Paul Mccartney and Ringo Starr promoting their Radio City Music Hall concert. It was an awesome, successful fundraising event for the David Lynch's Foundation that is working on gifting one million school children in American to learn TM. The two "living" Beatles recalled their time "when the US and British media headlined that their popularity as greater than Jesus Christ ..." The time was the mid-60s when they traveled with their Maharishi guru and took a trip to the Ganges in India, learning TM (trans meditation) to ease their superhuman popularity, while a more sincere George Harrison started playing the "sitar" under Ravi Shanker as his tutor, singing "My Sweet Lord ..."With nostaligia in the air, I found myself in the front row filming the aging Beatles... more
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Actually it's Bruce with BeatleTracks! New England's Fab Beatles Tribute Band.
Filmed at the also fab Field of Dreams in Salem New Hampshire USA.
Find out more at www.BeatleTracksband.comActually it's Bruce with BeatleTracks! New England's Fab Beatles Tribute... more
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And in honor of George Harrison's birthday yesterday, here is a live concert featuring George in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1974. Play loud.And in honor of George Harrison's birthday yesterday, here is a live concert... more
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And in honor of what would have been the big Six-Eight for George Harrison, the Roundtable is featuring The Inner Light from 1968.And in honor of what would have been the big Six-Eight for George Harrison, the... more
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The Beatles have a long history of music. The band started with John Lennon and Paul McCartney playing together in the Quarrymen in the late 50's. Then they picked up George Harrison and Pete Best to try to get a good group dynamic going. They also picked up a bassist by the name of Stuart Sutcliffe for a short time until they worked out their final band setup. They replaced Best with Ringo Starr and the band was completed.
Read More @ Link!!!The Beatles have a long history of music. The band started with John Lennon and Paul... more
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The New York Times
November 15, 2010
Apple Strikes Deal to Sell Beatles Catalog Online
By BEN SISARIO and MIGUEL HELFT
For the next generation of Beatles fans, the wait could soon be over.
Apple is expected on Tuesday to announce that it has finally struck a deal with the Beatles, the best-selling music group of all time, and the band’s record company, EMI, to sell the band’s music on iTunes, according to a person with knowledge of the private deal who requested anonymity because the agreement was still confidential.
Depending on the terms of the deal, customers for the first time will be able to buy “Please Please Me,” “Hey Jude” or “A Day in the Life” online rather than on a CD and perhaps even as individual tracks. While the move to digital does not quite rival the band’s first trip across the Atlantic to appear on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in 1964, it is an acknowledgment that online purchases dominate the music industry’s sales strategy.
Apple and EMI declined to comment, and representatives of the Beatles and Apple Corps, the band’s company (not to be confused with the technology company), could not be reached.
One of the last major holdouts against selling its music digitally, the Beatles are the ultimate prize for any music company, a group that has held on to blockbuster sales four decades after breaking up — it has sold more than 177 million albums in the United States alone, according to the Recording Industry Association of America — and held on to untouchable cultural prestige.
Since opening its iTunes music store seven years ago, Apple has reshaped the music industry and become the largest music retailer in the United States. But the Beatles catalog had always eluded the company and Steven P. Jobs, its tenacious chief executive.
Still, while getting access to the Beatles catalog has plenty of symbolic significance, it is unlikely to bolster the company’s bottom line.
“It is very symbolic because Steve Jobs is a huge fan of the Beatles,” said Tim Bajarin, an analyst with Creative Strategies, who has been following Apple for more than two decades.
But for all the success of Apple in becoming the largest distributor of music on the Internet, the iTunes store is not a major source of profits for the company. Apple executives have said that iTunes is roughly a “breakeven” operation.
“The music itself is a vehicle to allow them to sell more iPods and iPhones, which is where they make real money,” Mr. Bajarin said.
And despite the deal’s symbolism, its financial value for the Beatles is uncertain. About three-quarters of all albums sold in the United States are still CDs, and physical albums remain far more profitable for record companies than downloads.
Apple did its best to tease the industry — and Beatles fans — with a mysterious message on its Web site on Monday, saying that an “exciting announcement from iTunes” — one “that you’ll never forget,” no less — was coming on Tuesday at 10 a.m. Eastern time. As sharp-eyed bloggers read the tea leaves on Apple’s site and news reports began circulating — a possible reference to a Paul McCartney song, another to the semaphore symbols on the cover of the Beatles’ album “Help!” — calls began to ricochet around the music industry that the deal might be for the digital holy grail.
Mr. Jobs has tried to make a deal with EMI and the Beatles many times before, but negotiations have always broken down, usually accompanied by a flurry of online rumors, accusations and conspiracy theories. Further complicating the relationship between the parties, Apple Corps, the Beatles’ company, and Apple, the computer company, had been embroiled for decades over trademark disputes.
In the past, Paul McCartney has said that a deal for the Beatles’ digital music would have to be approved by all the band members or their heirs.
Like AC/DC, Bob Seger and a few other major acts that sell old albums in large numbers, the Beatles stand to earn far more money from sales of CDs than downloads. But with each new compilation or reissue, like the remastered versions of Beatles albums that went on sale last year, Beatles fans have shown their willingness to buy their favorite music again and again; in the 2000s, only Eminem sold more albums in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Terms of the deal, including the pricing of the songs, could not be learned. For years, Apple insisted on selling all songs for 99 cents. But in 2009, after intense pressure from the music industry and sometimes rancorous negotiations, Mr. Jobs agreed to terms that the industry called “variable pricing.” Apple now sells songs for 69 cents, 99 cents or $1.29.
As news of the deal spread throughout the music industry on Monday, many wondered if the Beatles would get s a special pricing deal.
The publicity bonanza of a major iTunes announcement could be just the thing to get fans excited. Millions of fans can already listen to their favorite Beatles albums on their iPods, iPhones and other digital music players, since they have been able to transfer tracks from their CDs to the digital devices.
“Anybody that hasn’t managed to come up with a digitized version of the Beatles’ song by now never liked the Beatles,” said John Perry Barlow, a former lyricist for the Grateful Dead and the co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an online civil liberties organization.
But Mr. Barlow said that having the Beatles catalog on iTunes could help introduce younger listeners to songs that have become part of our collective cultural heritage.
“That music is timeless,” Mr. Barlow said. “It’s probably some of the most remarkable songwriting created by humans and there are new generations coming along that don’t already know these songs.”
Mr. Barlow the deal also represents a personal victory for Mr. Jobs.
“Steve Jobs has finally become the dominant Apple,” he said.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2010/11/16/business/16beatles_337-span/16beatles_337-395-articleInline.jpgThe New York Times
November 15, 2010
Apple Strikes Deal to Sell Beatles Catalog... more
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;jif=21880287104703;dcove=r;
Exclusive: Rock 'N Roll Treasure Revealed
By TARA WALLIS-FINESTONE
Updated 8:12 AM PDT, Mon, Sep 13, 2010
The British invasion. The Beatles and the Rolling Stones: Their music, their fashion and their swagger. Rock 'n roll's first super groups took America by storm in the 1960s, changing the cultural landscape of American youth.
Now almost 50 years later, like a mirage emerging from a desert oasis, a Southern California woman has answers to questions that rock 'n roll's fans asked for decades.
"I was just in awe of all these beautiful people," said Patti Daley, 64. "They were just our friends, it was amazing."
The answers lie within boxes that Daley has stored for decades underneath her bed, in her home two hours east of Los Angeles.
Inside the boxes are a treasure trove of old photo albums full of rare Polaroids of icons in rock, plus John Lennon lyrics, and letters and cards from members of the Beatles. These are items the public has never seen, until now.
Perhaps the rarest set of photos she owns are two Polaroids of Paul McCartney playing piano inside Lennon's beach house in 1974. It was their first meeting since the Beatles breakup in 1970.
"It's incredible, incredible, a lot of these things are things we've only read about," said Chris Carter, host of the nationally syndicated radio program "Breakfast with The Beatles."
"I saw a picture of Mickey Dolenz climbing up a hill, a picture of Keith Moon on a shag carpet," added Carter. "You know these are rock icons and these pictures no one has ever seen. And they are not published in 25 Beatles books. These are really first time viewings for these pictures."
Amazingly, Patti's treasure includes more than just photos. She also has handwritten cards from George Harrison and John Lennon, plus personal notes from now legendary recording sessions, all signed by the musicians who were there. But the potential motherload are several song lyrics from Lennon's "Walls and Bridges" recording sessions, including what is believed to be his hand-written lyrics to his only number one song "Whatever Gets You Through the Night."
"I came to acquire those after sessions," Daley remembered. "John would come in and put the lyrics on a podium. And he would just leave them there for me to pick up."
Daley also has a copy of a letter John Lennon sent to record executives in 1976. Although it might not be worth a lot of money to collectors, it's significant historically.
In the letter, Lennon was angry with Capitol Records about the cover art selected for the Beatles' first greatest hits album "Rock 'N Roll Beatles." Among other things, an animated Lennon accuses the record executives of trying to ruin the image of the Beatles.
Daley was the ultimate rock 'n roll insider. She said the love of her life was a well-known session guitarist named Jesse Ed Davis, a man many consider one of the greatest unsung guitar heroes in rock 'n roll.
"He was the most subtle, tasty guitar player when rock and roll was really happening," said Daley. "Everyone loved his playing and sought after him to play on their records."
Legends like all the Beatles, members of the Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart and the Faces, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and more all enlisted Davis' skills on his trademark Fender Telecaster.
Daley said, "I still hear him on the radio, I listen to the old stations, it makes my heart smile."
For more than a decade, she toured the world with Jesse and her young son Billy, not only baring witness to, but also documenting, what is now a legendary time in pop culture.
A mother armed with a Polaroid camera, Patti took candid, one-of-a-kind pictures of icons in rock.
"I just kept my Polaroid camera on me all the time in my purse, and when I'd see a good shot, I'd take them candidly," said Daley.
The photos are incredible: From a young Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts in the early 1970s, to several shots of a care free Ronnie Woods before he joined the Stones, to a series of Beatles photos after the breakup -- many taken during John Lennon's "Lost Weekend."
In 1973, Lennon separated from his wife Yoko Ono and began an 18-month relationship with his secretary May Pang. It was a relationship that Yoko reportedly initiated. And the couple spent quite a bit of time at a rented beach house in Santa Monica. Lennon later referred to this time as his "Lost Weekend."
"It's always desirable to have material from somebody who was part of an inner circle, somebody who was really a witness to history," said Dr. Catherine Williamson, director of Books and Manuscripts at Bonhams & Butterfields auction house in Los Angeles.
Williamson said, if authenticated, Daley's treasure could be highly desirable not only to collectors, but also potentially to museums.
As for Daley, she is not sure what she will do with her treasure. She admits, though, that it was an incredible time in her life, and now she wants to share it with the world.
She said, "I feel very privileged to have met the people I have met and heard the music I have heard."
Editor's Note: NBCLA will have a series of reports this week on this "Rock-N-Roll Treasure." On Monday, we bring you more never-before-seen photos from John Lennon's Lost Weekend. Plus, what Patti Daley remembers about that day in 1974 when Paul McCartney and John Lennon first got together again to play music.
First Published: Sep 12, 2010 5:26 PM PDT;jif=21880287104703;dcove=r;
Exclusive: Rock 'N Roll Treasure Revealed
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George Harrison's son, Ben Harper form a band
By Austin Scaggs, Rolling Stone
August 27, 2010 4:35 p.m. EDT
Rolling Stone
Dhani Harrison teams up with Ben Harper and Joseph Arthur to form the band Fistful of Mercy.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
* They call themselves Fistful of Mercy, after the track of the same name
* The trio had recorded the nine acoustic tracks that make up "As I Call You Down"
* The band will hit the road together in October
(Rolling Stone) -- In February, when Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison arrived at the Carriage House studio in Los Angeles' Silverlake neighborhood, they had three days booked and zero songs to record.
"I thought I was going there to add some guitars or harmonies on Joseph's album," says Harrison, who was invited to the session by Harper, whom he befriended at a skate park in Santa Monica. "When I got to the studio, I saw Joe and asked, 'What songs are we going to do?' He said we hadn't written them yet."
After three long days, the trio had recorded the nine acoustic tracks that make up "As I Call You Down" -- and called themselves Fistful of Mercy, after the track of the same name. "I never thought we'd pull off an entire album, [I thought] maybe we'd get an EP," says Harper, who credits Arthur as the catalyst who pushed for three songs a day. "The three of us were able to create something we never could have done on our own."
With three acoustic guitars and three microphones, the team worked out musical arrangements, and then retreated to different corners of the studio to write. "We were each others' lyric police," says Arthur. ("It was very 'Wilbury' style," says Harrison, whose late father George was a member of the Travelin' Wilburys.)
Many times, Harrison threw out lyrical themes for inspiration. "Things Go 'Round" is a throwback to John Lennon's "Instant Karma," imagining a world where people are immediately accountable for their actions. When Harrison called for a blues number, the trio quickly drafted "My Father's Son." Says Arthur: "It's really about the three of our voices, and the harmonies. We're basically singing together the whole time."
With nine acoustic and vocal tracks completed, Harrison was determined to ratchet the music up to another level. He instinctively called the legendary session drummer Jim Keltner, an old family friend. "I'd never done anything that I thought was worthy of calling Jim," says Harrison. "We had an emotional conversation on the phone, and he heard some of the stuff we'd done, and he said he'd do it." Keltner overdubbed percussion, Arthur added bass, and Harper (who calls Keltner the "Dalai Lama of the drums") added some slide guitar.
"These guys are so talented," says Harrison of his bandmates, who will all hit the road together in October. "I can't believe I get to call them my musical brothers."George Harrison's son, Ben Harper form a band
By Austin Scaggs, Rolling Stone... more
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Unpublished Beatles Photos Go On Display
By MICHAEL PRESTON
Updated 5:31 AM PDT, Wed, Aug 25, 2010
The Beatles are leading a new British Invasion.
Getty Images
Like a prize found at the end of a magical mystery tour, a set of never-before-seen Beatles photographs discovered in the proverbial attic by a documentary photographer are about to see the light of day.
38 black-and-white images of the Fab 4 were unearthed by Paul Berriff, who in 1963, was a 16-year-old editorial assistant for the Yorkshire Evening Post, reports the U.K. Daily Mail. He took the up close and personal shots of Paul, John, Ringo and George before they got big, giving them a certain innocence.
"When I took those pictures, the Beatles were at the bottom of the bill," Berriff said. "But I knew they were going to be successful because they had an aura, and months later they were world famous."
The photos are on display in Liverpool and show the band when they were touring in cities such as Leeds and Manchester. Several of the pictures show the band in relaxed moments - Ringo enjoying a glass of wine and a smoke or George snacking from a bag of popcorn.
Of finding the pictures, Berriff said that he was surprised by the number of Beatles pictures he turned up.
"I started to root around in the attic, because I knew I had taken some pictures of pop groups, but I thought there were only be about five or six of the Beatles," he said. "It was like finding hidden treasure."
Selected Reading: Daily Mail, The Beatles Hidden Gallery, Examiner
First Published: Aug 25, 2010 3:41 AM PDT on NBC Bay AreaUnpublished Beatles Photos Go On Display
By MICHAEL PRESTON
Updated 5:31 AM PDT,... more
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Current Music interns cover for Peter this Friday with a roundup of their favorite cover versions. Stop doing work already, and let us cover for you.
Yim Yames, Behind That Locked Door
Yim Yames is actually Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and on Tuesday he released his digital EP "Tribute To.," an album of George Harrison covers, on his website. "Behind That Locked Door" is from Harrison's 1970 gem "All Things Must Pass." —James Risolo
Son of Dave, "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger"
Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” has gotten a lot of attention in the past couple years thanks to Kanye West sampling it and the infamous YouTube video “Daft Hands” (and all of its subpar clones). However, as the rest of music listeners were buzzing about those things, I just kept thinking to myself: man, this would really be perfect if that one dude from Crash Test Dummies decided to folk up this synth beat a la their bafflingly infectious 90s single “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm.” Luckily, somebody with influence over Benjamin Darvill loves me. He performs as solo act Son of Dave now, and here he takes apart Daft Punk’s electronic hit, and then rebuilds it with acoustic sounds, looped perfectly just to prove to everybody that, yeah, he’s still got it. —Chanelle Johnson
The Kooks, “Kids”
The Kooks sat in the studio and listened to MGMT's original track as it played over the airwaves and then came up with this acoustic cover. I was skeptical about this track’s sound with only two acoustic guitars, but the stripped down feel seems to bring out the gloomy feel. The upbeat, more blissful tones are gone, resulting in a smooth and thoughtful cover. Luke Pritchard’s voice works really well. It might not sound too much different than the original, but the raw sound and emotion fit in with the darker feel of this acoustic version. These U.K. boys understand pop music, and this impromptu jam shows it. —Josh Middleton
The Vines, “Ms. Jackson”
This works surprisingly well as a rock number, but I wish the Hives would have sped things up a bit more. Having said that, their choice to take it slow highlights some redeeming qualities of the track. The chorus becomes a heartfelt cry for forgiveness, something I didn’t quite pick up on from Big Boi and Andre 3000. The Hives have some other Outkast covers out there that aren’t too shabby either, go find some good ones. —JM
Jason Mraz, "Three Little Birds"
I've had this tune stuck in my head thanks to a recent Panic at the Disco cover I heard; I won’t deny it. While that version is sweet, it also reminded me of Jason Mraz’s own tendency to play the Bob Marley hit live. Mraz has always had a strong voice and great stage presence. He demonstrates both for this number, but what’s really impressive is how much of the audience he gets to participate, up to and including their sloppy but enthusiastic whistling. This version tends to inspire me to do a little call and response of my own when it plays, but unlike Jason’s fans, the people I'm around in public tend to drown in haterade and shush joy music coming their way. Their loss. —CJ
Norah Jones, "Jesus, Etc."
You might not take Norah Jones fans for indie/alt-country types, but the crowd obviously got the reference when Jones performed her pared-down cover of Wilco's "Jesus, Etc." Despite the recent death of ex-member Jay Bennett, Wilco are still going strong. Their seventh album "Wilco (The Album)" debuted June 30th at #4 to strong reviews. —James Risolo The album will be available in stores on August 4th. —JRCurrent Music interns cover for Peter this Friday with a roundup of their favorite... more
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The Beatles are one of the forerunners of Rock N' Roll and are considered the most successful English band to ever bring their rock formula to the US and the world. While some of the members of the group have passed on from this life, their legacy continues today with their music and franchise endevours like The Beatles: Rock Band. The band has an interesting history attached to them.
If you would like to read more about the Beatles, please read the article linked above.The Beatles are one of the forerunners of Rock N' Roll and are considered the... more
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Dhani Harrison was on track to become a race-car designer before his father's death in 2001. But when he stepped in to help finish his dad's posthumous album Brainwashed, the life of a musician seemed like the way to go.
Dhani is, of course, the son of The Beatles' George Harrison. He looks exactly like his father around 1967: the hollow cheeks, wisps of facial hair, deep brown eyes. But his sound is something completely different — and he also took a less orthodox route to making and distributing his music.
He quietly built a solid and loyal following online, and started releasing his music through iTunes and the video game Rock Band. But he didn't do it under the name Dhani Harrison — this was with his band thenewno2, whose debut album is called You Are Here.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120421864Dhani Harrison was on track to become a race-car designer before his father's... more
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When listening to the writings of George Harrison and others inspired to ask why; we should ask when. When will we stop, listen and learn.
Thanks to all the great musicians who put their hearts and souls into this song and tribute to a man pure of heart who has gone but will never be forgotten.When listening to the writings of George Harrison and others inspired to ask why; we... more
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Here's the basic details,
Browsing iTunes,
See this Ad for The Beatles Catalogue
Grabbed the screenshot while I could
Clicked on it (But nothing happened)
Posted link to picture of Current.com
My guess is somebody tasked with designing a banner for a potential upcoming release hit the wrong button. I leave the judgement to Current.com users.
Enjoy.Here's the basic details,
Browsing iTunes,
See this Ad for The Beatles... more
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Recorded right after George Harrison's death in 2001, My Morning Jacket's Jim James' Harrison tribute album finally sees a proper release. Here James phonetically spells his name as if he were French. The result is vintage "hard J" James all the way though.Recorded right after George Harrison's death in 2001, My Morning Jacket's... more
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Current Music's awesome interns gathered their favorite cover songs by Yim Yames, Son of Dave, Jason Mraz, Norah Jones and The Vines of original tunes by George Harrison, Bob Marley, Outkast, Wilco and more in this week's roundup.Current Music's awesome interns gathered their favorite cover songs by Yim Yames,... more
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shana
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added this
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2 years ago
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