Yesterday and Today

It’s December, 1969, and The Beatles find themselves with a #1 album on both sides of the Atlantic, a #1 single with Something/Come Together, an album and film in the works for release in the new year, and...all but finished as a functioning group. What remained of the dream was in the process of being sorted out by Allen Klein and his people at Apple, while the band members focused on individual pursuits. Perhaps most notable amongst those pursuits being George Harrison going back out on tour as a support musician for Delaney & Bonnie throughout England that month. The Beatle who pushed so hard to petition his bandmates to cease touring back in the summer of 1966 found himself to be the first Beatle to join a tour since that time. But George wasn’t the only Beatle emerging onto the concert stage in December, John and Yoko were back again to promote a message of peace with the aid of Unicef for a special Peace at Christmas concert event. Accompanying the performance was a worldwide billboard campaign from the couple proclaiming “WAR IS OVER! If You Want It.” - a message of peace in time for the holiday season. The holiday season also brought with it not one but two releases from The Beatles, first in the form of the sixth and final installment of the Beatles Christmas Message for the fan club. The second release at last brought to the public the group’s 1968 performance of Across the Universe, appearing on a World Wildlife Fund charity LP. Ringo’s co-starring film role in the Peter Sellers smash The Magic Christian brought with it an accompanying soundtrack featuring songs by Badfinger and contributions from Paul McCartney to round out a very busy month and bring us, at last, to the end of 1969. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1969 was undoubtedly one of the most difficult, trying years that The Beatles ever faced - but with Abbey Road dominating charts around the world, the group caught a rare ray of sunshine in the form of yet another stellar hit record. But instead of popping the champagne, the band couldn’t help but continue to scratch their heads at the pervasive “Paul Is Dead” rumor, gaining more and more traction by the day. While Paul McCartney was certainly far from death, The Beatles as a unified entity were nearing their own end times and solo projects populated the later half of the fall. Ringo Starr became the first Beatle to undertake a full length solo studio album, beginning sessions of newly arranged crooner standards that would evolve into the Sentimental Journey LP. John Lennon also branched out in bold new solo directions, becoming the first Beatle to release a commercial single as a solo act - the withdrawal-drenched Cold Turkey. While solo releases were hardly a first for Lennon, Cold Turkey marks a notable departure in that it was mostly straightforward rock song, as opposed to his experimental and anthem forays of the past year. The end of 1969 was around the corner, and with it would come new departures, new beginnings and an end to an era... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since episode one of the podcast, we’ve seen the Beatles evolve from a raucous pop quartet into the undisputed masters of modern musical craft - and more importantly, we’ve seen four boys transform into four men. This week on the show we take a moment to reflect on the four short years that were so transformative for John, Paul, George and Ringo, with an eye toward their future solo trajectories. From Beatles For Sale to Abbey Road, the evolution of songwriting, attitude and technique is staggering - indeed time seems to pass very differently for The Beatles. In this special bonus episode we cover it all and offer some insight into the most pivotal moments in Beatle history while we prepare to enter into the “break-up era” full-force. Also this episode, we present to you the complete initial radio airing of the “Paul Is Dead” rumor from October 21st 1969. This bizarre chapter in Beatle history foreshadows the unfortunate and sometimes violent misinterpretation of Beatles lyrics by certain individuals over the past 50+ years, and hearing this complete WABC broadcast gives you a real sense of what that misinterpretation sounds like in real time. Thank you for everyone who has followed the show so far, we’re proud and excited that so many of you have joined us on this gear journey through the lives of the Fab Four. And the story is far from over... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Beatles’ Abbey Road was an instant worldwide hit and would go on to become a template for modern popular music...but which side the listener prefers is a musical inkblot test, sharply dividing listeners even amongst the Beatles themselves. Side A’s straightforward compilation of tracks features benchmarks for each member of the band and their respective songwriting abilities, but what George Martin and Paul McCartney cooked up for side B was truly groundbreaking in its innovation and execution. Like Brian Wilson’s fabled (and at the time unreleased) Smile LP from a few years prior, Martin and McCartney attempted a long suite of songs which, like a classical symphony, would include various movements, recurring themes and integrated melodies. George Harrison’s optimistic Here Comes The Sun opens the side, followed by the three-part harmony dripping off of Lennon’s beautiful Because. From there we launch into You Never Give Me Your Money (a snarky little swipe at Apple business woes) into Sun King, which by the nature of its lyric loosely connects to Harrison’s opening track. Mean Mr. Mustard/Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window are next, proving John Lennon offered quite a hefty contribution to the album side he would later pass off as “junk” in interviews following the band’s split. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End bring the side to its dramatic culmination, somewhat echoing the musical climax that ended Sgt. Pepper. And the comparison’s to Sgt. Pepper don’t stop there - Abbey Road could easily be considered Pepper’s follow-up, as the prominence of George Martin and its slick, purposeful production link those two LPs together far more than the erratic (but masterful in its own way) self-titled double album the year prior. No matter which side you prefer, Abbey Road was yet another triumph by the Beatles, who inched closer and closer to disintegration with each passing day... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On September 26th, 1969, the final studio album to be recorded by The Beatles was released: Abbey Road. With the tumultuous Get Back sessions still tucked away (more or less) on the shelf, John, Paul, George and Ringo got together one final time to create what would become an innovative, groundbreaking album that many argue sounds as fresh and modern today as it did upon its release. Newer studio techniques and instrumentation were used giving the record this timeless quality, including the moog synthesizer which adorned several of the tracks and would become a prog rock and top 40 staples over the next decade. Also unlike its predecessors, Abbey Road finds itself split in intent between sides A and B - with side A offering more of a traditional collection of songs, and side B expanding outward into a conceptual suite of smaller tracks. The album kicks in the door with the raucous Lennon rocker Come Together, which takes the stripped down lessons of Get Back and places them in a slick, proper recording with enough snap to send chills up the spine. George Harrison’s Something is close behind, proving the the world (and his bandmates) that he was every bit the mast songwriter that Lennon and McCartney were by this point in time. McCartney’s contributions to side A include Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (introduced during the Get Back sessions and famously hated by the rest of the band) and the throwback soul ballad Oh! Darling. Ringo’s second song, Octopus’s Garden, also adorns side A with its playful childlike melody that hints at special things to come for Starr’s songwriting in the future. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) closes the side and takes the blistering straightforward rock of Yer Blues to an entirely new level. Next, we move on to side B... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Like a supernova, the summer of ‘69 was a burst of unprecedented prolific energy from the world’s brightest band. But the end was near. Following another fruitful bed-in for peace, this time in Montreal Canada, John and Yoko record and release a new anthem for the peace movement: Give Peace A Chance. The song carried the Lennon/McCartney writing credit, a rare peace-offering from John to Paul in one of the most trying periods of their lives. As The Beatles put the final touches on their forthcoming album, known for a time as “Everest”, their commercial successes continued to mount. The #1 hit single Get Back was barely out for a few months before it was quickly followed by another #1 hit single: The Ballad of John and Yoko. Like just about everything else John Lennon did in 1969, the tune’s lyrical reference to crucifixion carried with it some controversy and some radio stations opted not to play it for that very reason. George, meanwhile, championed another Apple group called The Radha Krishna Temple, producing for them a song called Hare Krishna Mantra and fulfilling his promise to bring world music to the pop world. Paul and Linda welcomed daughter Mary to the world, traveling to Scotland where the ever-growing family would find respite from Apple’s ever-worsening business troubles. Come September, John and Yoko found themselves performing live on stage with Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann and Alan White as the Plastic Ono Band for a rock and roll revival concert in Toronto. Aboard the plane, and to the rest of his bandmates later on the eve of their new album’s release, John Lennon announced he would be quitting The Beatles... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s the spring of 1969 and the Beatles are back in the studio working on a new album...but a storm cloud looms overhead. Business disagreements and personal differences continue to ebb away at the once united foursome at every turn, and things went from bad to worse when John, George and Ringo signed with Allan Klein to become the Beatles manager and fill the long-vacant seat left by the late Brian Epstein. Paul’s serious and justified reservations about letting Klein into the organization are ultimately undercut by his desire to include his new inlaws, the Eastmans, into the band’s financial affairs, and with no other alternatives to put forward, the group signs with Klein without Paul. But amidst these trying issues, or perhaps in spite of them, music continues to be made and released - first in the form of a single from the defunct Get Back project, the eponymous track backed with John’s Don’t Let Me Down. Next, John and Paul venture into the studio together without George and Ringo to record John’s The Ballad of John and Yoko - it’s a boogie-woogie tribute to the newlyweds’ journey to marriage and marks the last time John and Paul would collaborate together as a pair in the studio. Also in the spring, following an intense argument with his bandmates, Paul contributes drums and vocals to the Steve Miller track My Dark Hour. George also used music to escape the tension, penning the beautiful Here Comes the Sun in Eric Clapton’s garden whilst playing hooky from his Beatle commitments. The end of May saw John and Yoko once again staging an elaborate bed-in for peace, this time in Montreal, which stood in stark contrast to the peace that alluded the Beatles back home... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the arduous Get Back sessions behind them, and with no interest in ever revisiting the recordings, The Beatles faced an uncertain future. Against the protests of Paul McCartney, John, George and Ringo appoint businessman Allan Klein to manage the affairs of the fledgling Apple Corps, driving a further wedge into the group’s dynamic. Producer George Martin was convinced that the band was over, while friends and business partners wondered where to go from here. The answer came in the same form it had after the similarly difficult double album sessions months before: each Beatle branched out in seperate directions. George, bursting with songs and ideas, lent his talents to a band which had also found itself saying “Goodbye”, the “late, great” Cream, before being busted for drug possession by the same cop that had arrested John and Yoko the year prior. Ringo began filming a new feature alongside superstar Peter Sellers called The Magic Christian, the latest in a string of successful solo movie roles for the Beatle. Paul McCartney, who had recently overseen the massively successful Mary Hopkin LP release “Postcard”, married New York photographer Linda Eastman and became the last of his bandmates to tie the knot. John and Yoko were also married that spring and began a series of avant garde “happenings” to promote world peace, a notion which many close to the Beatle may have rolled their collective eyes at considering his recent behavior. And then, against all odds, The Beatles re-enter the studio to work on a new album... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was a quiet Thursday morning on January, 30th 1969 as the garment district of London went about their work week. The cold winter air suddenly crackled with a sound from the rooftop of 3 Saville Row - the biggest band in the world were performing their brand new album. This rooftop performance marked the ending of the Get Back project, providing the live finale to what had evolved into a concert film. It was an iconic moment, but one born of frustration by a band that was nearing the end of their capabilities to creatively fulfill one another - four people who had been so close but whom had drifted so far apart in a relatively short period of time. As Paul fought to preserve the group in the form that had brought them to unsurpassed heights of success, John and Yoko’s battle with heroin addiction left a void in the band’s leadership, and George’s battle for musical independence and recognition was simply lost in the shuffle, falling on the deaf ears of bandmates. The songs from the era say it all: John sang to Yoko “all I want is you” in Dig A Pony and pleaded “don’t let me down”, George gave his eulogy for the past with All Things Must Pass and Paul grieved with denial (Two of Us), bargaining (Get Back), depression (The Long and Winding Road) and finally acceptance (Let it Be). Paul’s Get Back project was meant to redefine the Beatles’ purpose and align their sights toward the future as a unified group, but despite his best efforts all the project did was show the band just how far they had fallen -- it was shelved indefinitely. Where do the Beatles go from here? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A week after walking out on the Twickenham sessions, George Harrison agreed to rejoin his bandmates to finish what would soon be referred to as the “Get Back” project...with a couple of caveats. The first being to abandon the cold, barren Twickenham for a cozier studio atmosphere which presented itself in the form of 3 Savile Row, London. The new Apple Studios was set-up by John’s friend Magic Alex, who promptly transformed the space into an incomprehensible jumble of needless technological decoration. The Beatles, however, liked the actual room itself that Alex had found, and after a redesign were back in the business of making an album together. George’s second and perhaps most fruitful caveat, was asking longtime friend and keyboard virtuoso Billy Preston to join the sessions. Billy’s abundance of talent and enthusiasm gave the project an entirely new life, and once again a tiny spark of that Beatles magic began to ignite. But just as the band rediscovered its musical footing, a new looming danger rose on the horizon in the form of Allan Klein, whom had contacted John upon hearing of Apple’s financial difficulties. A former manager of the Rolling Stones, Klein vowed to refocus the group’s direction and, with the support of John, George and Ringo, positioned himself to fill the long-vacant spot of Beatles manager. Only one man stood in Klein’s way: Paul McCartney. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.