The Beatles (159 page)

NOTES

O
ne of the drawbacks in preparing a definitive biography of the Beatles is the stunning lack of reliable source material. Most of the nearly 500 volumes that make up their canon lack proper citations, and even in those remarkable cases where sources are offered, the accuracy remains suspect. Either memories were vague, tales were recycled, facts went unchecked, or circumstances were fabricated or obscured—sometimes by prejudiced eyewitnesses, other times to protect the innocent. For better or worse, misinformation has always been a key element of the Beatles’ legend.

The extent of the misinformation owes much to Napoleon’s claim that “history is a set of lies agreed upon.” That became clear to me when beginning the research for this book. During an interview with Paul McCartney, he explained how nearly forty years ago the Beatles agreed on a “version of the facts” that would serve as their story, and they stuck to—and embroidered upon—it ever since. Paul told me “about 65 percent” of their “official biography,
The Beatles
—written in 1967, by journalist Hunter Davies—is accurate. (Referring to the book in a lengthy 1970 interview with Jann Wenner, John Lennon said: “It was bullshit… my auntie [Mimi] knocked all the truth bits from my childhood and my mother out…. I wanted a real book to come out, but we all had wives and didn’t want to hurt their feelings.”) What’s more, all of it has been told and retold so many times that even McCartney is no longer certain where the truth begins and ends—one of the reasons, no doubt, that the wonderful
Anthology
is often referred to as
Mythology.
In any case, the “official Beatles biography” is not only loaded with misstatements and lovely little fairy tales, but inaccuracies: misspelled names, incorrect dates, confused locations—and wide, gaping holes.

Even so, I have relied upon the Davies book to support some of my own research. The oral histories provided in it by the four Beatles—their offhand remarks, as well as their quirky versions of long-forgotten events—
are nevertheless poignant and provide the only vivid (and fascinating) accounts of certain escapades. To the extent that I have incorporated quotes from that book into this biography, be assured that they were scrutinized for accuracy or chosen because they contain a personal reflection that was unassailable for its honesty. Lastly, let it be said that for many of the book’s participants—George Harrison’s parents; John’s aunt Mimi and his father, Freddie; Ringo’s mother; Millie Best; and other secondary, supporting characters—the Davies book stands as their only testimony to this remarkable story.

Among other books mentioned in the notes are examples that are either hagiographic or downright silly but nevertheless contain an important interview or anecdote that could not be ignored. For instance, Gareth Pawlowski’s
How They Became the Beatles
is one fan’s moon-eyed excursion to his idols’ birthplace, but it contains an agreement detailing the specific terms of a Larry Parnes engagement, as well as conspicuously revealing photographs. Cynthia Lennon’s autobiography,
A Twist of Lennon,
mangles facts as well as dates (she even gets the year of her marriage to John wrong!) while offering personal, affecting reflections that are historically valuable. Still other books are infuriating for their damnable oversight. Keith Badman’s
The Beatles: Off the Record
contains one of the most comprehensive compendiums of the band’s interviews—with nary a citation. The same goes for
The Beatles: An Oral History,
by David Pritchard and Alan Lysaght, which contains a wealth of revealing interviews.
Where did they come from?
In every case in which information from these books has been used, I relied on seven years of my own durable research, as well as the biographer’s intuition—and ear—in determining a source’s authenticity.

I was fortunate to work from an amazing archive of magazine and newspaper articles collected and collated by Allan Kozinn, the eminent
New York Times
music columnist and Beatles authority. These papers include most of the
Times’
files, even articles from the morgue that had been “killed” for space considerations, as well as other essential journals from around the world. Among them were most of the articles from
Melody Maker
and
New Musical Express,
both of which reported weekly and extensively on the Beatles’ adventures. In the course of my research, however, it was disclosed that many of the Beatles’ quotes in those articles—later incorporated into
Anthology
—came via telephone interviews in which Neil Aspinall or Mal Evans masqueraded as John or Paul and, thus, should be taken with a grain of salt. Whenever possible, the quotes in this book
came from articles containing eyewitness accounts or those in which it was clear that one of the Beatles was actually in a room with the journalist.

As far as an accurate chronology goes, newspapers served to document the comings and goings of the Beatles; otherwise, I depended on Mark Lewisohn’s various listings, including
The Beatles Live!, The Beatles: 25 Years in the Life, Recording Sessions,
and
The Complete Beatles Chronicle.

A note about a particular resource deserves further explanation. In the notes that follow, I often credit the Albert Goldman Archives (AGA), which are quite an extensive series of taped interviews for Goldman’s controversial—and discredited—biography,
The Lives of John Lennon.
For all his foibles as a writer (and they were many, and legendary), Albert was a dear and trusted friend, who I remained close to until his untimely death. Even so, I found his biography of John unreadable, as well as irresponsible, and told him so. When I decided to write this book, however, I sought out his executors and purchased copies of the taped interviews he conducted for
Lives.
That acquisition turned out to be shocking, revealing, and incredibly rewarding. As far as anyone can determine, Albert never bothered to transcribe the tapes, taking only what he blithely referred to as “the good parts”—those pull quotes that would prove sensational—for his manuscript. Much of the information he chose to ignore, however, was extraordinary in detail, not at all like anything in his book or that we had heard before. Interviews with John’s cousins Stanley Parkes and Leila Harvey provided intimate information about the Stanleys, the Smiths, and a boy they described as lovable and gregarious. Barbara Baker’s lurid account of their sexual exploits upstaged the poignant recollections about John’s and Paul’s early songwriting sessions that were left out of the Goldman book.
The Lives of John Lennon
speaks for itself; I hope the material I used from Albert’s research adds substance to my account and brings honor to his efforts as a scholar—and to the Beatles’ amazing story.

The most important resource for this book was the hundreds of interviews I conducted with the Beatles’ family members, friends, fellow performers, and colleagues who provided new, firsthand information and colored in essential details of all the old anecdotes that had become part of the Beatles’ myth. Of course, some sources have told their stories so often—and at Beatles conventions, where they are paid a fee for appearing—that they have become rote and are generally unreliable. But scores of these people had never been interviewed before, and the information they provided has helped form a portrait of the Beatles that is both fascinating and substantially different from all previous accounts. Each of their
contributions is cited in the notes by name and date, with additional information included where necessary.

here
Description of Litherland: Author interviews with Tony Kenny, 2/8/98; Johnny Byrne, 10/8/97; and Tony and Mary Kenny, 4/21/98.

The four boys, riding… like astronauts
: Author interview with Chas Newby, 5/21/98.

“
We thought we were the best
”: Sheff,
Playboy Interviews,
p. 62.

The word around town
: “There was [no band] worse than the Beatles.” Author interview with Ray Ennis, 10/1/97. “Although the Beatles had charisma, you couldn’t say they were good.” Author interview with Sam Leach, 10/6/97.

“
We sure didn’t know them
”: Author interview with Howie Casey, 10/27/97.

“
They were so bad
”: Ted “Kingsize” Taylor, 9/2/85, AGA.

Paul McCartney had squandered
: Alan Durband, quoted in Salewicz,
McCartney,
p. 69.

George Harrison, who regarded school
: “George did go back and sit, but he failed everything.” Author interview with Arthur Kelly, 1/10/98.

Thrilled by performing, Pete Best
: Best & Doncaster,
Beatle!,
p. 13.

“
a gang of scruffs
”: “We looked like a gang.” Paul McCartney in Shepherd,
True Story of the Beatles,
p. 52.

“
They’re fantastic
”: Author interview with Bob Wooler, 10/30/97.

Litherland had a great many shops
: Author interview with Don Andrew, 10/4/97.

But before he got their name out
: “I remember Wooler telling us to begin as soon as the curtains opened, but Paul started singing ‘Long Tall Sally’ before…” Author interview with Chas Newby, 5/21/98.