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Liverpool
2
00:03:18,345 --> 00:03:20,609
That's better, Johnny
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00:03:21,715 --> 00:03:25,515
The Wild One
Released 1954
You know I missed you.
Ever since the club split up I missed you
4
00:03:26,052 --> 00:03:28,680
We all missed you. Do you miss him?
5
00:03:28,922 --> 00:03:30,890
Yeah! All the Beetles missed you
6
00:03:41,668 --> 00:03:44,466
Let's go back and get 'em, eh?
- I'm game
7
00:03:46,273 --> 00:03:50,835
To the temple. A man's got to do
what he's got to do
8
00:03:51,478 --> 00:03:55,710
Let's go back, back,
back, back, back...
9
00:04:13,567 --> 00:04:17,697
My mother used to say because I was born
the Second World War started
10
00:04:18,071 --> 00:04:23,668
Richard Starkey
Born Liverpool 7th July 1940
11
00:04:23,910 --> 00:04:27,004
I was with mother until about four,
then my father split
12
00:04:27,247 --> 00:04:32,241
He was a merchant seaman.
It was 1940 and the war and all that
13
00:04:34,120 --> 00:04:41,151
John Winston Lennon
Born Liverpool 9th October 1940
14
00:04:43,430 --> 00:04:46,263
My mum was a Catholic,
dad was a Protestant
15
00:04:46,533 --> 00:04:52,494
They got married quite late.
I think they had me when they were 40
16
00:04:54,808 --> 00:05:02,647
James Paul McCartney
Born Liverpool 18th June 1942
17
00:05:03,650 --> 00:05:06,778
At the time I was born
my father's job was driving a bus
18
00:05:07,053 --> 00:05:11,080
I lived in a two-up and two-down,
12 Arnold Grove
19
00:05:11,691 --> 00:05:18,927
George Harrison
Born Liverpool 25th February 1943
20
00:05:35,715 --> 00:05:37,706
My mum was a nurse
21
00:05:37,951 --> 00:05:40,681
She was a midwife as well
22
00:05:41,354 --> 00:05:43,879
My dad was a cotton salesman
23
00:05:44,991 --> 00:05:48,518
My father and my mother split
when I was about four
24
00:05:48,762 --> 00:05:52,755
I was with mother up to then,
then I was brought up by an aunty
25
00:05:53,767 --> 00:05:57,635
Dad was a... he made cakes
26
00:05:57,871 --> 00:06:00,840
so we always had sugar through the war
27
00:06:01,074 --> 00:06:04,441
She ended up doing a lot of jobs
as he left when I was three
28
00:06:04,678 --> 00:06:06,805
He decided that was enough of that
29
00:06:07,047 --> 00:06:12,178
She did any job she could get
to feed and clothe me
30
00:06:13,286 --> 00:06:18,280
My mother was from an Irish family
called French
31
00:06:19,325 --> 00:06:22,783
She had lots of brothers and sisters
32
00:06:23,530 --> 00:06:27,728
My grandmother lived in Albert Grove,
which was next to Arnold Grove
33
00:06:28,635 --> 00:06:34,096
I was terrible at school.
I wasn't there much as I was often sick
34
00:06:34,474 --> 00:06:39,935
I had peritonitis when I was six and a half -
a burst appendix
35
00:06:40,513 --> 00:06:44,313
They told my mother that I'd be dead
three times - but I'm still here
36
00:06:44,951 --> 00:06:51,083
My dad was an amateur musician
who played piano
37
00:06:51,591 --> 00:06:57,791
I've memories of lying on the floor,
hearing him play
38
00:06:59,466 --> 00:07:05,803
When my parents were younger
they listened on an old crystal radio
39
00:07:07,107 --> 00:07:09,507
John really loved his mother.
I loved her too
40
00:07:09,776 --> 00:07:13,542
She played the ukelele.
To this day...
41
00:07:13,813 --> 00:07:17,579
if I meet grown-ups
who play ukeleles, I love them
42
00:07:17,984 --> 00:07:20,680
Everybody has their party piece in Liverpool
43
00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:26,916
My mother's was Little Drummer Boy.
She sang it to me
44
00:07:27,427 --> 00:07:32,057
I'd sing Nobody's Child to her
and she'd always cry
45
00:07:38,905 --> 00:07:42,773
Rock'n'roll meant it was real,
everything else was unreal
46
00:07:43,009 --> 00:07:48,811
It was the only thing to get through to me,
at 15, of all the things happening
47
00:08:10,537 --> 00:08:15,998
You can't imagine a time when rock'n'roll
was only one of the musics
48
00:08:21,414 --> 00:08:24,144
Whatever record was being played,
you'd try and listen to it
49
00:08:24,384 --> 00:08:27,842
You couldn't even get a cup of sugar,
let alone a rock'n'roll record
50
00:08:32,091 --> 00:08:34,286
There was no such thing
as an English record
51
00:08:34,527 --> 00:08:39,328
The first English record that was anything
was Move It by Cliff Richard
52
00:08:39,566 --> 00:08:41,557
Before that there'd been nothing
53
00:08:45,805 --> 00:08:50,572
You'd listen to whatever was on the radio
in those days
54
00:08:57,250 --> 00:09:01,846
I listened to a lot of country and western -
skiffle was coming through
55
00:09:32,252 --> 00:09:37,053
There were lots of people coming up
and one of them was Buddy Holly
56
00:09:37,457 --> 00:09:40,824
We loved his vocal sound
and we loved his guitar playing
57
00:09:41,094 --> 00:09:45,656
But most of all was the fact
that he actually wrote the stuff himself
58
00:09:45,932 --> 00:09:47,923
That's what turned us on
59
00:09:48,401 --> 00:09:52,462
I was at art school for five years
60
00:09:52,705 --> 00:09:58,075
They'd only allow jazz to be played -
no rock'n'roll in those days
61
00:09:58,311 --> 00:10:02,645
We conned them into letting us play
rock'n'roll by calling it blues
62
00:10:03,249 --> 00:10:06,241
As I became a teenager
63
00:10:06,486 --> 00:10:11,890
I was 12 or 13 when I first heard
Fats Domino, I'm in Love Again
64
00:10:12,125 --> 00:10:16,585
That was the first what I would call
rock'n'roll record I ever heard
65
00:10:17,163 --> 00:10:19,825
Even Bill Haley was around then
66
00:10:20,433 --> 00:10:24,164
I remember being in school
when I was a kid
67
00:10:24,404 --> 00:10:29,273
Somebody had a picture in one
of the musical papers... of Elvis
68
00:10:29,509 --> 00:10:32,307
It was an advert for Heartbreak Hote!
69
00:10:33,646 --> 00:10:38,948
I just looked at it and thought,
he's just so good looking, just perfect
70
00:10:39,319 --> 00:10:42,288
When I was 16,
Elvis was what was happening
71
00:10:42,522 --> 00:10:47,789
A guy with long greasy hair wiggling
his ass and singing Hound Dog
72
00:10:48,027 --> 00:10:52,054
That's Alright Mama and those early
Sun Records - his great period
73
00:10:52,465 --> 00:10:56,561
That's him - the guru we've been
waiting for - the messiah has arrived
74
00:11:23,029 --> 00:11:27,125
One of our favourite records
was Searchin'by the Coasters
75
00:11:49,122 --> 00:11:53,354
We heard people like Big Bill Broonzy.
I think he did a tour of England
76
00:12:21,487 --> 00:12:24,422
I was a big fan of his
and Frankie Laine
77
00:12:39,038 --> 00:12:43,873
All those train songs, Rock Island Line
and all that stuff
78
00:12:45,745 --> 00:12:49,841
Lonnie Donegan
79
00:13:03,296 --> 00:13:06,265
Suddenly here was a rock'n'roll hero
who had glasses
80
00:13:07,767 --> 00:13:12,261
Buddy Holly and The Crickets
81
00:13:24,750 --> 00:13:31,349
The first music I can remember
hearing as guitar-oriented music
82
00:13:31,591 --> 00:13:34,424
was Jimmie Rodgers,
"The Singing Brakeman"
83
00:13:56,215 --> 00:14:00,675
I had no idea about doing music
as a way of life...
84
00:14:00,920 --> 00:14:04,720
until rock'n'roll hit me
and that changed my whole life
85
00:14:04,957 --> 00:14:11,419
Drums were the only thing I wanted.
I never looked at guitars or anything
86
00:14:11,998 --> 00:14:15,832
My dad used to be a trumpet player
and for my birthday
87
00:14:16,068 --> 00:14:22,234
he bought me a trumpet from Rushworth
and Drapers' music store in Liverpool
88
00:14:22,808 --> 00:14:27,040
At 16 I re-established a relationship
with my mother for about 4 years
89
00:14:27,280 --> 00:14:31,683
She taught me music, first the banjo,
then I progressed to guitar
90
00:14:31,918 --> 00:14:35,046
My first song was Ain't That A Shame,
an old rock hit, Fats Domino
91
00:14:35,922 --> 00:14:42,327
When I was 13, 14, I used to be
at the back of the class, drawing
92
00:14:42,562 --> 00:14:48,057
Trying to draw guitars,
big cello cut-away guitars with 'F' holes
93
00:14:48,334 --> 00:14:52,202
Little solid ones with pointy
or rounded cut-aways
94
00:14:52,438 --> 00:14:54,804
I was totally into guitars
95
00:14:55,174 --> 00:14:58,507
I heard about a kid who had a guitar
and it was �3.10s
96
00:14:58,744 --> 00:15:03,408
Just a little acoustic, round hole guitar
97
00:15:03,649 --> 00:15:07,483
I got the �3.10s from my mother,
a lot of money in those days
98
00:15:07,954 --> 00:15:13,358
I suddenly figured out I couldn't sing
with this thing in my mouth
99
00:15:13,726 --> 00:15:18,629
so I went back to the shop
and traded it in for a guitar
100
00:15:18,864 --> 00:15:21,628
That was a Zenith,
the first guitar I ever had
101
00:15:21,867 --> 00:15:24,028
I was about 16
102
00:15:24,270 --> 00:15:28,434
I bought a thirty-bob bass drum -
thirty shillings
103
00:15:28,674 --> 00:15:32,804
Just a huge one-sided bass drum
104
00:15:33,112 --> 00:15:37,606
It's a family joke now - "The guitar's OK
for a hobby but won't earn you any money"
105
00:15:38,184 --> 00:15:44,054
We'd travel the whole of Liverpool
to see someone who knew a new chord
106
00:15:44,290 --> 00:15:48,488
I remember once hearing
about a bloke who knew B7
107
00:15:48,728 --> 00:15:54,223
We knew E and A - those are quite easy -
but we didn't know B7
108
00:15:54,467 --> 00:15:58,494
That was the missing link.
The other chord. The lost chord
109
00:15:58,771 --> 00:16:04,539
We trooped across Liverpool, changed
a couple of buses, found this fella
110
00:16:04,810 --> 00:16:07,540
He showed us dum, dum dum - B7
111
00:16:07,813 --> 00:16:12,273
We learned it from him,
went home to our mates and went...
112
00:16:14,687 --> 00:16:15,745
Got it!
113
00:16:15,988 --> 00:16:19,685
Paul and I used to just kind of get together,
play it a bit
114
00:16:19,925 --> 00:16:24,953
We were just schoolboys.
There were no groups till a bit later
115
00:16:33,239 --> 00:16:38,108
In those days we were desperate
to get anything
116
00:16:38,344 --> 00:16:40,869
Whatever film came, you'd try and see it
117
00:16:42,315 --> 00:16:47,309
The Girl Can't Help it
Released 1956
118
00:16:55,561 --> 00:17:00,123
You went to those movies with Elvis
or somebody in them in Liverpool
119
00:17:00,366 --> 00:17:03,563
Everybody was waiting to see him -
I'd be waiting there too
120
00:17:03,803 --> 00:17:06,704
They'd all scream
when he came on the screen
121
00:17:06,972 --> 00:17:09,270
So we thought, that's a good job!
122
00:17:09,842 --> 00:17:12,504
When The Gir! Can't He!p It came along
123
00:17:12,745 --> 00:17:15,543
Instead of us looking at old
black and white movies and thinking
124
00:17:15,815 --> 00:17:18,443
"There's Clyde McPhatter,
there's Fats Domino"
125
00:17:18,684 --> 00:17:22,085
people we loved, who were
being treated quite shabbily
126
00:17:22,321 --> 00:17:25,882
suddenly this was in colour
and in widescreen
127
00:17:26,125 --> 00:17:30,926
At the start of Girl Can't Help lt,
Tom Ewell comes on and says...
128
00:17:33,866 --> 00:17:35,663
Widescreen
129
00:17:42,241 --> 00:17:43,503
Colour!
130
00:17:47,146 --> 00:17:50,946
Gorgeous, life-like colour by Deluxe
131
00:18:00,226 --> 00:18:04,720
Sometimes you wonder
who's minding the store
132
00:18:05,231 --> 00:18:08,394
You cut to Jayne Mansfield
and that's it - the game's over
133
00:18:24,984 --> 00:18:29,114
I went to see Rock Around The Clock
in the Isle of Man
134
00:18:29,355 --> 00:18:33,519
My grandparents took me
and it was sensational
135
00:18:33,759 --> 00:18:38,526
They ripped up the cinema
and this was good for me to see
136
00:18:39,565 --> 00:18:43,797
Bill Haley and The Comets
137
00:18:58,984 --> 00:19:03,387
I went to grammar school with Paul
138
00:19:03,889 --> 00:19:07,916
We started in the same class,
then we went into different streams
139
00:19:08,160 --> 00:19:13,393
But basically I knew him since
I was about eleven
140
00:19:13,632 --> 00:19:19,264
I didn't really know him like a friend
until a number of years later
141
00:19:19,505 --> 00:19:22,997
I met George at
the Liverpool Institute as well
142
00:19:23,242 --> 00:19:26,837
He was a year younger than Paul and I
143
00:19:27,079 --> 00:19:32,176
Neil Aspinall
Schoolfriend
I met George - we used to smoke
behind the air-raid shelters
144
00:19:32,718 --> 00:19:38,714
George and I lived near each other
in Liverpool, just a bus stop away
145
00:19:39,124 --> 00:19:42,719
I'd get on the bus and then the stop
afterwards George would get on
146
00:19:42,962 --> 00:19:47,023
Being close in age, we'd sit together
and we'd talk about stuff and that
147
00:19:47,466 --> 00:19:53,166
In fact he was, I think, about
one and a half years younger than me
148
00:19:53,405 --> 00:19:57,808
A big age difference at that time
so I suppose I talked down to him a bit
149
00:19:58,043 --> 00:20:01,069
as you do to a kid one and a half years
younger than you
150
00:20:01,313 --> 00:20:04,305
When he's sort of 14 and a half
and I'm sort of 16
151
00:20:04,550 --> 00:20:08,953
Perhaps I talked down to him
because I'd known him as a younger kid
152
00:20:10,389 --> 00:20:14,155
He was always nine months older
153
00:20:14,393 --> 00:20:16,987
Even now, he's still
nine months older
154
00:20:18,430 --> 00:20:23,527
Paul met me the first day
I did Be Bop A Lu La live on stage
155
00:20:23,769 --> 00:20:27,899
A mutual friend brought him to see
my group, The Quarry Men
156
00:20:28,641 --> 00:20:31,735
I had a mate at school
called lvan Vaughan
157
00:20:32,011 --> 00:20:36,345
We were born on the same day
so we were great mates
158
00:20:36,615 --> 00:20:41,575
One day he said do you want to
come to the Woolton Village Fete?
159
00:20:41,854 --> 00:20:47,417
We went along one Saturday afternoon
to the field where they had the fete
160
00:20:47,693 --> 00:20:52,926
There was a wagon,
and on the back of this a little stage
161
00:20:53,165 --> 00:20:55,963
On stage were a few lads
162
00:20:56,201 --> 00:21:00,797
One particular guy I noticed
at the front had a checked shirt
163
00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:05,909
Blondish hair, a bit curly, sideboards,
looking pretty cool
164
00:21:06,145 --> 00:21:11,378
He was playing guitar,
not a very good one
165
00:21:11,650 --> 00:21:15,677
But he was making a good job of it
and I remember being impressed
166
00:21:15,921 --> 00:21:20,187
He was doing a song by the Del Vikings
called Come Go With Me
167
00:21:20,426 --> 00:21:23,486
He obviously didn't know the words
168
00:21:23,729 --> 00:21:27,392
He was pulling in lyrics from blues songs,
so instead of going
169
00:21:27,633 --> 00:21:31,626
"Come, little darling, come go with me"
which is right
170
00:21:31,870 --> 00:21:35,966
he'd got "Down down down
to the Penitentiary"
171
00:21:36,208 --> 00:21:39,644
He'd be doing the sort of stuff
he'd heard on Big Bill Broonzy records
172
00:21:39,878 --> 00:21:44,679
I thought, that's clever, he's pretty good.
That was John
173
00:21:45,751 --> 00:21:49,744
We met and talked after the show
and I saw he had talent
174
00:21:49,989 --> 00:21:53,982
He was playing backstage, doing
Twenty F! Ight Rock by Eddie Cochran
175
00:22:08,207 --> 00:22:12,541
The thing that impressed him most
was I knew all the words
176
00:22:57,322 --> 00:23:02,555
I was the singer and the leader, I made
the decision to have him in the group
177
00:23:02,795 --> 00:23:09,633
Was it better to have a guy who was better
than the people I had, or not?
178
00:23:09,868 --> 00:23:13,497
That decision was to let Paul in
and make the group stronger
179
00:23:14,006 --> 00:23:17,601
I asked him on our first meeting
"Do you want to join the group?"
180
00:23:17,843 --> 00:23:20,641
I think he said yes the next day
181
00:23:24,249 --> 00:23:26,342
George came through Paul
182
00:23:26,752 --> 00:23:30,347
"I've got this friend who's really good,
you know"
183
00:23:30,589 --> 00:23:36,585
He said well yeah, like what,
and I said he plays Raunchy perfectly
184
00:23:40,165 --> 00:23:43,601
We all loved that song so we
said well, got to try him out
185
00:23:43,836 --> 00:23:50,503
We ended up on the top deck
of an empty late night bus, just us
186
00:23:50,776 --> 00:23:55,543
and we said "Go on, George,
get your guitar out, you show him"
187
00:23:56,548 --> 00:24:00,109
Sure enough - note perfect - Raunchy.
"You're in"
188
00:24:37,089 --> 00:24:41,822
The first thing we ever recorded
was That'!! Be The Day, a Buddy Holly song
189
00:24:41,960 --> 00:24:46,590
and one of Paul's,
called In Spite of A!! The Danger
190
00:24:46,965 --> 00:24:52,961
That record, the first we ever made,
is in Liverpool somewhere
191
00:24:54,306 --> 00:24:58,936
First Recordings
1958
192
00:25:16,495 --> 00:25:22,263
Everybody hung around at
the Jacaranda Club near the art school
193
00:25:22,534 --> 00:25:26,095
and near Paul and George's school
in the centre of Liverpool
194
00:25:26,371 --> 00:25:31,832
This was before we really formed a band,
just me, Paul and George
195
00:25:39,685 --> 00:25:42,882
We used to show up for gigs
with just three guitars
196
00:25:43,121 --> 00:25:47,717
The person booking us would say
"Where's the drums then?"
197
00:25:47,960 --> 00:25:52,056
To cover this eventuality we'd say
"The rhythm's in the guitars"
198
00:25:52,197 --> 00:25:58,602
We once tried to do this audition
for Carol Levis Discoveries
199
00:25:59,471 --> 00:26:03,237
Everybody would go on and audition
200
00:26:03,475 --> 00:26:09,505
Then they'd pick out somebody
and go "OK, you, you and you"
201
00:26:09,748 --> 00:26:13,707
They'd pick out about 20 different acts
202
00:26:13,952 --> 00:26:19,356
They'd have a clapometer
and the winner would go on to the final
203
00:26:19,591 --> 00:26:24,221
It just kept on going.
We went in for one of those
204
00:26:24,830 --> 00:26:29,392
We were on the train to Manchester,
rehearsing our act
205
00:26:29,635 --> 00:26:35,596
Only me and George had our guitars.
John must have sold his or bust it
206
00:26:35,974 --> 00:26:38,943
OK, there's just the two of us with guitars
207
00:26:39,211 --> 00:26:43,011
As it happened it looked good.
Paul was left-handed
208
00:26:43,248 --> 00:26:46,706
I was right-handed - still am -
209
00:26:46,952 --> 00:26:51,480
John was in the middle,
standing with a hand on each shoulder
210
00:26:51,723 --> 00:26:53,714
"Think it over, what you just said"
211
00:26:55,294 --> 00:26:59,663
Me and George - John did the lead
and we were also going to do Rave On
212
00:26:59,932 --> 00:27:04,426
We did it, he put his arms around us
and it was OK. We didn't win, as usual
213
00:27:04,670 --> 00:27:08,868
but I believe that day
some unfortunate person in the theatre
214
00:27:09,107 --> 00:27:12,099
was relieved of his guitar
215
00:27:20,252 --> 00:27:25,212
Stuart Sutcliffe
Stuart was John's friend from art college.
He was a very good painter
216
00:27:25,490 --> 00:27:32,259
We were jealous of John's friendship,
John being a bit older than us
217
00:27:33,565 --> 00:27:36,966
He was a little bit, you know...
218
00:27:37,202 --> 00:27:41,400
You wanted to sit next to him on a bus -
he was the older fella
219
00:27:41,640 --> 00:27:47,272
So when Stuart came in he was taking
a bit of that position away from us
220
00:27:47,512 --> 00:27:50,504
We had to take a little bit of a back seat
221
00:27:50,916 --> 00:27:56,912
The story was that he sold his painting
to a John Moore exhibition
222
00:27:57,589 --> 00:28:00,387
So the question was
what do you do with 75 quid?
223
00:28:00,625 --> 00:28:05,119
We said "That happens to be the exact
amount it takes to buy a Hofner bass"
224
00:28:05,364 --> 00:28:07,764
That would be a great thing
to spend the money on
225
00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:12,596
He said "No, I'm a painter,
I've got to spend it on paints"
226
00:28:12,838 --> 00:28:16,774
We said "No, Stuart, really" and John
and I gave him a persuasive argument
227
00:28:17,009 --> 00:28:21,673
that the best thing to do, obviously,
was to buy this Hofner bass
228
00:28:21,913 --> 00:28:27,112
Which he did. The only trouble was,
he couldn't play it
229
00:28:27,486 --> 00:28:31,889
But it was better to have a bass player
who couldn't play
230
00:28:32,124 --> 00:28:34,388
than to not have a bass player at all
231
00:28:46,371 --> 00:28:50,831
Early Recordings
Made in Liverpool - 1960
232
00:30:34,346 --> 00:30:38,476
Ringo was a professional drummer
who sang and performed
233
00:30:38,717 --> 00:30:43,177
in one of the top groups in Liverpool
before we even had a drummer
234
00:30:43,655 --> 00:30:49,616
Rory and the Hurricanes were the first
who wanted to get into rock'n'roll
235
00:30:50,529 --> 00:30:53,726
We were playing skiffle before that
236
00:30:53,965 --> 00:30:59,267
and he had this rock'n'roll
blonde hair attitude
237
00:30:59,504 --> 00:31:04,271
Johnny Guitar was just, for me,
Liverpool's Jimi Hendrix at the time
238
00:31:04,509 --> 00:31:09,845
The one good story about Rory and the
Hurricanes, of which I was a member...
239
00:31:10,081 --> 00:31:15,644
We were playing the Cavern
and Johnny Guitar had a radio
240
00:31:15,887 --> 00:31:20,324
He plugged his guitar into the radio
so we could be a bit more rock'n'roll
241
00:31:20,559 --> 00:31:26,327
They threw us off for being rock'n'roll.
He plugged in the radio - get OFF!
242
00:31:26,798 --> 00:31:30,427
John thought of the name Beatles
and he'll tell you about it now
243
00:31:31,236 --> 00:31:33,602
I had a vision when I was 12
244
00:31:33,838 --> 00:31:38,639
I saw a man on a flaming pie and he said
"You are Beatles with an A", and we are
245
00:31:39,110 --> 00:31:43,046
John put this thing in Mersey Beat
246
00:31:43,281 --> 00:31:47,650
which was also started by Bill Harry
who went to art college with John
247
00:31:47,886 --> 00:31:52,914
just saying that this little guy
appeared on a flaming pie -
248
00:31:53,158 --> 00:31:57,185
you know, in the sky - and said
"Let there be Beatles - with an A"
249
00:31:57,696 --> 00:32:02,156
John got the name Beatles ages ago
250
00:32:02,400 --> 00:32:06,029
Everybody was thinking of a name
and he thought of Beatles
251
00:32:06,838 --> 00:32:10,433
I was looking for a name like the Crickets,
that meant two things
252
00:32:10,675 --> 00:32:13,200
and from Crickets I got to Beatles
253
00:32:13,445 --> 00:32:17,404
When you said it, it was crawly things;
when you read it, it was beat music
254
00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:24,788
That's better, Johnny
255
00:32:25,624 --> 00:32:29,424
You know I missed you.
Ever since the club split up I missed you
256
00:32:29,961 --> 00:32:32,122
We all missed you. Do you miss him?
257
00:32:32,797 --> 00:32:35,960
Yeah! All the Beetles missed you
258
00:32:39,237 --> 00:32:44,004
When we started off we had a manager
in Liverpool called Allan Williams
259
00:32:44,242 --> 00:32:50,238
He was a small bloke, with a high voice,
little Welsh accent
260
00:32:50,815 --> 00:32:54,683
He was a great motivator,
he was very good for us at the time
261
00:32:54,919 --> 00:33:00,585
He eventually got us an audition
at one of his clubs, the Blue Angel
262
00:33:00,825 --> 00:33:03,555
It was for Larry Parnes
263
00:33:03,795 --> 00:33:07,993
who had a big stable, so-called,
of rock stars in London
264
00:33:08,233 --> 00:33:11,669
so this was a big opening
to get this audition
265
00:33:12,103 --> 00:33:14,094
We showed up there
266
00:33:14,372 --> 00:33:18,502
I think half the groups in Liverpool
showed up that day
267
00:33:18,743 --> 00:33:22,474
Photos were taken -
this is us at the audition
268
00:33:22,714 --> 00:33:25,148
Something for Larry to look at
269
00:33:25,383 --> 00:33:30,377
We always had to ask Stuart
to turn away from the camera
270
00:33:30,655 --> 00:33:36,218
As he couldn't play that well.
We might be in A and he might be in A flat
271
00:33:36,494 --> 00:33:41,454
Someone might spot this - we always
noticed where people were on the guitars
272
00:33:41,966 --> 00:33:46,426
So there are a few photos of Stuart
with his back to the camera
273
00:33:46,671 --> 00:33:49,799
That was the reason
274
00:33:50,041 --> 00:33:54,876
We got the audition - Larry picked
up quite a few Liverpool groups
275
00:33:55,113 --> 00:33:59,106
Our only disappointment
was that all the people in his stable
276
00:33:59,351 --> 00:34:02,115
were like... Marty Wilde
277
00:34:02,354 --> 00:34:06,882
They all had very furious names,
Billy Fury, somebody Tempest,
278
00:34:07,125 --> 00:34:11,789
Storm, Hurricane - they were all
tempestuous names, you know
279
00:34:12,530 --> 00:34:17,558
There's Ron Whitcherley, 17,
known to his fans as Billy Fury
280
00:34:17,802 --> 00:34:20,396
Guaranteed �1000 in his first year
281
00:34:20,905 --> 00:34:26,673
Roy Taylor, 18, alias Vince Eager,
�5000 by his fifth year
282
00:34:27,445 --> 00:34:32,644
We thought this would be great,
but we ended up with Johnny Gentle
283
00:34:33,318 --> 00:34:36,253
Slight disappointment
in the name department there
284
00:34:37,088 --> 00:34:42,788
John Askew - or Johnny Gentle -
22, from Merseyside
285
00:34:43,328 --> 00:34:46,820
Duffy Power,
real name Raymond Howard, 17
286
00:34:47,365 --> 00:34:52,302
All - Eager, Power, Gentle, Fury -
in the lucrative business, as someone said
287
00:34:52,570 --> 00:34:55,767
of putting teenage growing pains to music
288
00:34:56,274 --> 00:34:58,299
Do you re-christen all your boys?
289
00:34:58,576 --> 00:35:01,739
Larry Parnes
Oh yes, I think this is terribly important
290
00:35:02,013 --> 00:35:06,074
Otherwise they would go on the stage
with unsuitable names
291
00:35:06,518 --> 00:35:11,979
They wanted a more imaginative
name than The Beatles
292
00:35:12,223 --> 00:35:16,387
They came up with Long John Silver
and the Beetles and we thought no
293
00:35:16,628 --> 00:35:19,153
It ended up as Long John
and the Silver Beetles
294
00:35:19,397 --> 00:35:23,800
We became the Silver Beetles
for this tour of Scotland
295
00:35:24,068 --> 00:35:29,096
So we thought, if the name of the group's
been changed and he's Long John
296
00:35:29,374 --> 00:35:34,869
We all changed our names but people
thought that John didn't - John was cool -
297
00:35:35,113 --> 00:35:40,449
but he was Long John for that tour.
He was quite happy to be Long John too
298
00:35:40,685 --> 00:35:44,587
I thought, if he's changing it
maybe we all should
299
00:35:44,856 --> 00:35:48,758
We all fancied it, our first foray
into professional entertainment
300
00:35:48,993 --> 00:35:52,224
Well, that's what you do, isn't it?
You change your name
301
00:35:52,464 --> 00:35:55,831
I became Paul Ramon, for some reason
302
00:35:56,067 --> 00:35:58,763
I thought it was a very exotic
French-sounding name
303
00:35:59,804 --> 00:36:02,466
And I was Carl Harrison
304
00:36:06,444 --> 00:36:11,347
It doesn't sound like a stage name now,
it's just that I loved Carl Perkins
305
00:36:11,950 --> 00:36:14,885
Stuart became Stuart de Stael
306
00:36:15,119 --> 00:36:19,112
He liked Nicholas de Stael,
an abstract expressionist painter
307
00:36:19,991 --> 00:36:25,224
Anyway, that was a pretty pathetic tour.
By the end of it we were broke
308
00:36:25,497 --> 00:36:31,231
We had no money, we were all cold,
freezing, and just miserable
309
00:36:31,469 --> 00:36:36,873
That was it. We came back to Liverpool
and nothing happened really
310
00:36:37,108 --> 00:36:41,841
I felt really sad -
we were like orphans or something
311
00:36:42,080 --> 00:36:47,518
Our shoes were full of holes,
our trousers were a mess...
312
00:36:47,752 --> 00:36:53,748
Larry Parnes' fella, Johnny Gentle,
had this posh suit and stuff
313
00:36:54,225 --> 00:36:58,389
I remember trying
to play Won't You Wear My Ring
314
00:36:58,630 --> 00:37:02,396
That's what he was doing -
one of those Elvis tunes
315
00:37:02,634 --> 00:37:06,900
And we were crummy,
we were really an embarrassment
316
00:37:07,171 --> 00:37:09,435
We didn't have amplifiers or anything
317
00:37:09,674 --> 00:37:13,610
And so I would say to the others
when we were all depressed
318
00:37:13,845 --> 00:37:18,680
thinking the group was going nowhere
and this is a shitty deal
319
00:37:18,917 --> 00:37:20,908
I'd say "Where are we going, fellas?"
320
00:37:21,152 --> 00:37:24,349
They'd go "To the top, Johnny"
in pseudo American voices
321
00:37:24,589 --> 00:37:28,548
I'd say "Where's that, fellas?"
"To the toppermost of the poppermost"
322
00:37:28,793 --> 00:37:31,887
I'd say "Right", then we'd all cheer up
323
00:37:32,730 --> 00:37:38,566
Derry and the Seniors
got offered a job in London
324
00:37:38,803 --> 00:37:42,762
Give up your jobs and come to London
and you're going with Larry, right?
325
00:37:43,007 --> 00:37:46,807
They gave up their jobs
and then didn't get a gig
326
00:37:47,045 --> 00:37:49,639
so they were a bit pissed off
327
00:37:49,881 --> 00:37:55,376
They said "We're going to London,
we'll get Parnsey and beat him up"
328
00:37:55,653 --> 00:38:01,182
Allan Williams, the club owner
who did the audition...
329
00:38:01,426 --> 00:38:06,864
probably the first big groupie
of Liverpool, drove them to London
330
00:38:07,131 --> 00:38:12,228
He said bring your instruments, lads,
you might get a gig
331
00:38:12,470 --> 00:38:16,270
So he got them a gig
in the Two I's in London
332
00:38:17,208 --> 00:38:24,114
This fella, Bruno Koschmider,
from a club in Hamburg...
333
00:38:24,549 --> 00:38:29,248
I think it was him, he saw them
and booked them to go to Germany
334
00:38:29,487 --> 00:38:35,016
Later he said he wanted another band -
we were probably cheap
335
00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:41,390
Allan Williams said OK, lads,
you can have this job in Germany
336
00:38:41,633 --> 00:38:46,661
The only problem is
he's asked for a 5-piece band
337
00:38:46,904 --> 00:38:51,500
At that point Paul was the drummer
because all the drummers didn't show up
338
00:38:51,776 --> 00:38:57,043
So that's where I said "OK, I remember
this guy..." and we went up to this club
339
00:38:57,281 --> 00:39:01,115
Pete Best - he had a drum kit for Christmas
340
00:39:01,719 --> 00:39:06,713
He was known on Merseyside as mean,
moody and magnificent
341
00:39:08,192 --> 00:39:11,923
We had all sorts of different drummers
342
00:39:12,163 --> 00:39:15,155
Few people owned drum kits.
They're expensive
343
00:39:15,400 --> 00:39:17,925
And they were usually idiots
344
00:39:18,169 --> 00:39:22,503
We got Pete Best because we needed
a drummer to go to Hamburg
345
00:39:22,807 --> 00:39:27,301
He came down to the Jacaranda Club
346
00:39:27,879 --> 00:39:32,543
We did a quick audition, jumped in the van
and went to Hamburg
347
00:41:09,347 --> 00:41:13,681
We ended up in Hamburg
very late one night
348
00:41:13,918 --> 00:41:17,979
There was no one there to meet us,
but we could find Hamburg off the map
349
00:41:18,256 --> 00:41:23,216
But St Pauli district and the Reeperbahn...
but everyone knew
350
00:41:28,199 --> 00:41:32,568
We found the street and the club
but it was all closed
351
00:41:32,804 --> 00:41:36,467
We had no hotel or anything
and it was now bedtime
352
00:41:36,707 --> 00:41:41,542
We managed to shake up someone
from a neighbouring club
353
00:41:41,813 --> 00:41:45,749
They opened the club and we slept in
the alcoves on the red leather seats
354
00:41:46,751 --> 00:41:52,246
The second night we moved into
the Bambi Kino for 2 or 3 months
355
00:41:52,590 --> 00:41:56,492
I remember Rory Storm and his group
coming with Ringo to see us
356
00:41:56,727 --> 00:42:02,427
They arrived a bit later and came
to see how the groups were living
357
00:42:02,667 --> 00:42:05,898
They were really shocked
358
00:42:06,170 --> 00:42:09,298
One of us had a Union Jack
over us to keep warm
359
00:42:09,574 --> 00:42:15,535
Rory and I were staying in one room
in the German Seamen's Mission
360
00:42:15,947 --> 00:42:19,383
That was luxury - absoloute bloody luxury
361
00:42:19,650 --> 00:42:24,781
Before we got to the club, the Kaiserkeller
362
00:42:25,056 --> 00:42:28,423
Howie Casey, sax player from Liverpool
363
00:42:28,693 --> 00:42:32,595
who also played a lot
with Paul McCartney later on
364
00:42:32,830 --> 00:42:36,231
They were sleeping for a while
in the back of the club
365
00:42:36,467 --> 00:42:39,459
I'll never forget when we arrived they said:
366
00:42:39,604 --> 00:42:41,834
"This is where you live"
367
00:42:41,973 --> 00:42:48,936
Just a couple of old settees
and Union Jacks for sheets
368
00:42:49,213 --> 00:42:52,546
We don't want this, we've got suits,
we're leaving, blah, blah, blah
369
00:42:52,783 --> 00:42:56,913
So we went to this life of luxury
in the German Seamen's Mission
370
00:42:57,555 --> 00:42:59,546
Everything else was such a buzz
371
00:42:59,790 --> 00:43:05,126
In the middle of the naughtiest city
in the world at 17 years old
372
00:43:05,363 --> 00:43:07,831
It was exciting
373
00:43:08,532 --> 00:43:12,969
And learning about the gangsters,
the transvestites
374
00:43:13,204 --> 00:43:16,264
You know, it was like that -
there's the hookers...
375
00:43:16,507 --> 00:43:21,911
We were just kids let off the leash,
straight from Liverpool to Hamburg
376
00:43:22,280 --> 00:43:24,714
We were used to little Liverpool girls
377
00:43:24,949 --> 00:43:29,716
but in Hamburg if you got a girlfriend
she's likely to be a stripper
378
00:43:29,954 --> 00:43:34,755
The only kind of people
who were around late at night there
379
00:43:35,726 --> 00:43:41,062
For someone who'd not really had
much sex before, which we hadn't
380
00:43:41,332 --> 00:43:45,666
to be suddenly involved with
the sort of hard-core striptease artist
381
00:43:45,903 --> 00:43:51,432
who obviously knew a thing or two
about sex, was quite an eye-opener
382
00:43:59,216 --> 00:44:04,984
That was also a point of our lives
where we found Dexedrine
383
00:44:05,256 --> 00:44:07,315
Uppers, you know, pills
384
00:44:07,558 --> 00:44:13,519
The only way we could continue
was to be on Preludin, they were called
385
00:44:13,764 --> 00:44:16,858
We bought them over the counter
so didn't think we were doing anything
386
00:44:17,134 --> 00:44:20,228
But you'd get really wired
and go on for days
387
00:44:20,805 --> 00:44:24,206
So with beer and Preludin,
that's how we survived
388
00:44:24,709 --> 00:44:30,545
We used to just be up there frothing
at the mouth, just stomping away
389
00:44:30,815 --> 00:44:34,114
Those were the days
390
00:44:56,807 --> 00:45:00,072
In Hamburg, 'cos we had to work
6 or 7 hours a night -
391
00:45:02,079 --> 00:45:05,207
on stage, with no rest -
392
00:45:05,449 --> 00:45:08,680
the waiters always had these pills
called Preludin
393
00:45:09,353 --> 00:45:14,347
When they saw the musicians falling over
with tiredness or drink
394
00:45:14,892 --> 00:45:16,018
they'd give you the pill
395
00:45:16,293 --> 00:45:19,785
You'd take the pill and you'd be talking,
you'd sober up
396
00:45:20,031 --> 00:45:24,229
You'd work until the pill wore off,
then you'd have to have another
397
00:45:24,769 --> 00:45:28,364
I think that's where we found our style
398
00:45:28,606 --> 00:45:32,872
We developed our style because
of this fella who used to say:
399
00:45:33,110 --> 00:45:39,049
"You've got to make a show
for the people. Mach Schau"
400
00:45:39,283 --> 00:45:44,846
so we used to Mach Schau
and John used to dance round like a gorilla
401
00:45:45,089 --> 00:45:48,081
We'd all knock our heads together
and things like that
402
00:45:48,959 --> 00:45:53,828
When we met in Germany,
they played one club, we played another
403
00:45:54,065 --> 00:45:56,260
They were just great by then
404
00:45:56,534 --> 00:46:02,200
I used to like... we'd do 12 hours
at a weekend between two bands
405
00:46:02,440 --> 00:46:05,375
when we ended up at the same club
406
00:46:05,609 --> 00:46:11,844
If they had the last set, I'd be semi-drunk,
demanding slow songs
407
00:46:12,216 --> 00:46:17,586
He used to like the sort of blues feel
of the late night sessions
408
00:46:17,855 --> 00:46:22,554
There was hardly anybody there.
I could see what he liked about it
409
00:46:22,793 --> 00:46:26,559
We were playing a bit more for ourselves
by that time of night
410
00:46:26,797 --> 00:46:29,265
because there was no one in
411
00:46:29,533 --> 00:46:33,594
This was all sort of bluesey -
B sides and lesser known tracks
412
00:46:33,838 --> 00:46:39,435
His particular favourite - he always
used to request it - was 3.30 B! Ues
413
00:46:52,756 --> 00:46:56,214
We made friends with a lot of people
414
00:46:56,794 --> 00:47:01,356
Our real friends
were the ones known now...
415
00:47:01,599 --> 00:47:04,762
Klaus Voormann
416
00:47:05,035 --> 00:47:07,026
Jurgen Vollmer
417
00:47:07,271 --> 00:47:11,867
and Astrid, who took all the famous
photographs of us at that period
418
00:47:12,376 --> 00:47:18,337
They liked all the rock'n'roll stuff,
the quiffed back hairdos...
419
00:47:18,816 --> 00:47:22,650
the leather outfits, the shades
420
00:47:22,887 --> 00:47:27,950
They weren't really rockers or mods,
they were something in the middle
421
00:47:28,192 --> 00:47:32,492
They called themselves 'exies' -
existentialists
422
00:47:33,197 --> 00:47:35,256
They were art students really
423
00:48:42,866 --> 00:48:45,198
Our best work was never recorded
424
00:48:45,436 --> 00:48:49,372
We were performers in Liverpool,
Hamburg and round the dance halls
425
00:48:49,607 --> 00:48:52,474
What we generated was fantastic
426
00:48:55,246 --> 00:48:59,307
I was 17 when we first went out there
and went to the Indra Club
427
00:48:59,550 --> 00:49:02,849
and then got moved
to the Kaiserkeller
428
00:49:03,087 --> 00:49:07,183
That ended up with us getting
the gig to go to the Top Ten Club
429
00:49:07,424 --> 00:49:11,417
Right before that happened,
I got busted for being under age
430
00:49:11,695 --> 00:49:17,156
They had this situation in Germany
I'd never come across before
431
00:49:17,401 --> 00:49:19,392
which was a curfew
432
00:49:19,637 --> 00:49:24,870
After 10 o'clock at night
anybody under 18 had to get out
433
00:49:25,109 --> 00:49:30,342
I was only 17, I was in the band
and I started getting worried
434
00:49:30,614 --> 00:49:36,109
Eventually somebody found out
we didn't have any work permits or visas
435
00:49:36,353 --> 00:49:38,844
so they started closing in on us
436
00:49:39,089 --> 00:49:43,116
The Police came one day
and they just booted me out
437
00:49:43,360 --> 00:49:47,729
That was at a critical time
because we'd decided -
438
00:49:47,965 --> 00:49:50,331
we'd been offered a job
to go to this other club
439
00:49:52,403 --> 00:49:55,804
The Top Ten was the club
we were ambitious to play at
440
00:49:56,307 --> 00:50:02,303
It was a slightly better club,
it was on the main Reeperbahn
441
00:50:02,946 --> 00:50:09,146
As we were leaving, me and Pete Best
were packing up - the last to leave
442
00:50:09,386 --> 00:50:13,413
He found a condom in his luggage
443
00:50:13,691 --> 00:50:18,788
What we did, just for a laugh,
outside in the corrider -
444
00:50:19,029 --> 00:50:21,998
concrete, nothing could
have caught fire at all -
445
00:50:22,232 --> 00:50:25,827
we pinned it up on the wall
and for a boyish prank we set fire to it
446
00:50:26,070 --> 00:50:30,097
So it left a little sort of black
rubber stain on the wall
447
00:50:30,374 --> 00:50:35,107
That was like "Right, we're going,
hey hey, on to better things"
448
00:50:35,346 --> 00:50:40,443
The fella wasn't pleased we were going
to the new club anyway
449
00:50:40,684 --> 00:50:44,677
because we were taking
all our business, all his business
450
00:50:44,922 --> 00:50:48,915
So he rang the police and we were
just walking down the Reeperbahn
451
00:50:51,995 --> 00:50:56,728
We were put in jail for about 3 hours -
first time in our lives
452
00:50:56,967 --> 00:50:58,958
Bloody hell, a German jail!
453
00:51:02,806 --> 00:51:06,537
The new club owners
where we were going to
454
00:51:06,810 --> 00:51:10,211
gave them a bottle of scotch
or something and got us out
455
00:51:10,647 --> 00:51:15,084
Well, Paul and Pete got deported
456
00:51:15,319 --> 00:51:18,846
for burning the condom on the wall
457
00:51:19,089 --> 00:51:23,617
So they were back before me,
and John got back about two days later
458
00:51:23,894 --> 00:51:29,992
I was really happy, thinking, oh great!
That's the supportive nature you see
459
00:51:30,234 --> 00:51:36,662
Stuart stayed there 'cos he decided
to get verheiratet with Astrid
460
00:51:37,808 --> 00:51:42,472
We went back when I was 18,
we were backing up Tony Sheridan
461
00:51:42,713 --> 00:51:46,740
At that point this fella came into the club
462
00:51:46,984 --> 00:51:52,786
They said he's a famous producer
and musician, Bert Kaempfert
463
00:51:53,290 --> 00:51:57,784
His claim to fame was he had
a number 1 hit in America
464
00:51:58,028 --> 00:52:00,019
Not only was he a record producer
465
00:52:00,264 --> 00:52:04,030
but he had a hit in America
called Wonder! And by Night
466
00:52:04,268 --> 00:52:06,896
It turned out to be a trumpet solo
467
00:52:07,171 --> 00:52:11,972
He came in and this buzz went around
"We've got to be really good
468
00:52:12,209 --> 00:52:15,201
"We may get a chance to record" -
which we did
469
00:52:15,446 --> 00:52:21,112
He came back and asked us to come in
the studio with Sheridan and record
470
00:52:21,351 --> 00:52:23,842
We were all pleased with ourselves
471
00:52:24,087 --> 00:52:28,285
But he just wanted us
to back up Sheridan
472
00:52:28,525 --> 00:52:32,427
I remember feeling depressed
but we did get to do My Bonnie
473
00:52:57,154 --> 00:53:00,555
While we were out there,
we started to see other groups
474
00:53:00,791 --> 00:53:06,525
and started to get a little bit
dissatisfied with Pete
475
00:53:06,830 --> 00:53:12,996
I remember him not turning up for gigs
and we kept getting Ringo in
476
00:53:13,370 --> 00:53:17,397
Ringo Starr, who changed his name
before all of us
477
00:53:17,641 --> 00:53:22,738
He had a beard and was grown up
and had a Zephyr Zodiac
478
00:53:23,013 --> 00:53:26,471
which was a very big car in those days
479
00:53:26,717 --> 00:53:29,515
Nobody had this,
it was a knock-off probably
480
00:53:29,753 --> 00:53:32,847
Fell off the back of a showroom
481
00:53:34,958 --> 00:53:39,918
Ringo kept sitting in with the band
and it seemed like this was it
482
00:53:40,230 --> 00:53:44,223
This happened 3 or 4 times and then
that was the end, we were just pals
483
00:53:44,468 --> 00:53:48,461
We'd have a drink after it
and then I'd be back with Rory
484
00:53:48,705 --> 00:53:51,902
Around this time Stuart and I
got a little bit fraught too
485
00:53:52,175 --> 00:53:57,408
I claim that I was trying to make sure
we were musically very good
486
00:53:57,648 --> 00:54:00,446
but this did create a couple of rifts
487
00:54:00,684 --> 00:54:05,144
I could have been more sensitive
but who's sensitive at that age
488
00:54:05,889 --> 00:54:11,418
When we first met him he couldn't
play at all - when he first got a bass
489
00:54:11,695 --> 00:54:16,428
He learned a few tunes -
occasionally it was a bit embarrassing
490
00:54:16,667 --> 00:54:21,263
If it had a lot of changes to it
he was... but he knew that too
491
00:54:21,505 --> 00:54:25,566
That's why he was never really
at ease being in the band
492
00:54:25,809 --> 00:54:30,712
That's why he left after the gig in Hamburg -
to go back to art college
493
00:54:30,948 --> 00:54:34,509
At that point Paul was still playing guitar
494
00:54:34,751 --> 00:54:38,482
I remember saying "One of us
is going to be the bass player"
495
00:54:38,722 --> 00:54:42,749
I said I'm not doing it
and John wasn't doing it either
496
00:54:42,993 --> 00:54:44,984
He went for it
497
00:54:53,270 --> 00:54:57,206
He became the bass player
so then we were a four-piece band
498
00:55:05,916 --> 00:55:10,649
In Liverpool we got quite a few bookings -
they thought we were German
499
00:55:10,887 --> 00:55:15,290
They billed us from Hamburg
and said "You speak good English"
500
00:55:15,525 --> 00:55:19,586
We went back to Germany. We had a bit
more money so bought leather pants
501
00:55:19,830 --> 00:55:24,028
We looked like 4 Gene Vincents,
only a bit younger, I think
502
00:55:24,267 --> 00:55:30,831
Back in Liverpool, all the groups
were doing this Shadows stuff
503
00:55:32,309 --> 00:55:36,245
The Shadows
504
00:55:37,748 --> 00:55:41,445
That's why we became popular
because they couldn't believe it
505
00:55:41,685 --> 00:55:43,482
There were all
these dum de dum de dum...
506
00:55:46,056 --> 00:55:49,890
and then suddenly we come on -
wild men in leather suits
507
00:55:52,963 --> 00:55:56,023
I think Pete Best said to them
508
00:55:56,266 --> 00:56:01,260
that I'd drive them to the gigs and stuff
509
00:56:01,505 --> 00:56:05,498
I think I got a pound a night,
or a pound a gig
510
00:56:05,776 --> 00:56:07,835
Five bob off each of them
511
00:56:08,078 --> 00:56:12,674
They needed transport to get
to the Cavern and wherever
512
00:56:13,550 --> 00:56:17,281
We played the Cavern before
we ever went to Hamburg, I believe,
513
00:56:17,521 --> 00:56:21,787
in the days when it was
a jazz and folk club
514
00:56:23,293 --> 00:56:28,560
I remember playing there
and them handing us notes saying:
515
00:56:29,132 --> 00:56:33,296
"Stop playing this music,
this is a jazz club"
516
00:56:34,404 --> 00:56:40,309
We were saying "We'd like to do
this tune by Leadbelly
517
00:56:40,544 --> 00:56:43,342
"It's called Long Ta!! Sa!!y"
518
00:56:43,613 --> 00:56:46,946
We'd do it...
and finally they kicked us off
519
00:57:04,534 --> 00:57:07,196
The Cavern is their home
520
00:57:07,437 --> 00:57:12,033
Cathy - A Fan
from the Cavern Club
It's where they first started
and where they've played most
521
00:57:13,043 --> 00:57:17,639
I've had a couple of requests
to do Kansas City so we'd like to do it
522
00:57:22,953 --> 00:57:27,322
We did well at the Cavern
and attracted some big audiences
523
00:57:28,091 --> 00:57:30,184
And the word got around
524
00:57:30,727 --> 00:57:34,959
A kid had gone into Brian's record store
and had asked for My Bonnie
525
00:57:35,465 --> 00:57:39,663
He found out that the Beatles
were supposed to be a Liverpool band
526
00:57:40,203 --> 00:57:43,366
and were playing the Cavern
so he came down to check us out
527
00:57:43,874 --> 00:57:47,640
I remember Bob Wooler,
the disc jockey, saying:
528
00:57:48,645 --> 00:57:52,240
"We have a Mr Epstein
who owns NEMS Enterprises in here"
529
00:57:52,482 --> 00:57:56,748
Everybody was going
"Ooh, wow, big, big deal"
530
00:58:02,392 --> 00:58:05,691
This was quite a new world for me
531
00:58:05,929 --> 00:58:09,865
I was amazed
by this sort of dark, smoky...
532
00:58:10,367 --> 00:58:15,464
dank atmosphere
with this beat music playing away
533
00:58:16,473 --> 00:58:22,901
Brian Epstein
The Beatles were then just four lads
on that rather dimly lit stage
534
00:58:23,713 --> 00:58:25,704
somewhat ill-clad
535
00:58:25,949 --> 00:58:30,511
Their presentation left a little
to be desired as far as I was concerned
536
00:58:30,754 --> 00:58:34,952
I'd been interested in the theatre
and acting for a long time
537
00:58:35,192 --> 00:58:40,562
but amongst all that,
something tremendous came over
538
00:58:40,797 --> 00:58:43,960
I was immediately struck by their music
539
00:58:44,201 --> 00:58:47,295
their beat and sense of humour on stage
540
00:58:47,571 --> 00:58:52,008
Even when I met them I was struck
again by their personal charm
541
00:58:52,242 --> 00:58:55,871
It was there that really it all started
542
00:58:56,847 --> 00:59:01,648
Brian had this shop. And it was good -
we used to pick up records
543
00:59:01,885 --> 00:59:07,881
He wanted to manage us and we weren't
going anywhere anyway
544
00:59:08,291 --> 00:59:13,456
We said you might as well. He got us jobs,
he got us a bit more money
545
00:59:13,730 --> 00:59:18,861
then started getting us radio shows
and things like that
546
00:59:19,135 --> 00:59:24,971
Then we got into our suits -
he talked us out of the leather suits
547
00:59:25,475 --> 00:59:29,468
It was a bit old hat anyway,
all wearing leather gear
548
00:59:29,713 --> 00:59:34,343
and we decided
we didn't want to look ridiculous
549
00:59:34,584 --> 00:59:37,576
Often people would laugh
550
00:59:37,854 --> 00:59:41,312
and we didn't want to appear
as a gang of idiots
551
00:59:41,558 --> 00:59:45,119
Brian suggested that
we just wore ordinary suits
552
00:59:46,229 --> 00:59:51,223
It was later put around that I'd betrayed
our heavy leather image
553
00:59:51,468 --> 00:59:54,232
and I wanted us to get suits
554
00:59:54,471 --> 00:59:57,998
but I seem to recall
that we all went quite happily
555
00:59:58,241 --> 01:00:02,701
I didn't drag anyone to the tailors,
they all went quite happily
556
01:00:03,613 --> 01:00:07,379
We gladly switched into suits
557
01:00:07,651 --> 01:00:11,314
if we were going to get more money,
get some more gigs
558
01:00:11,554 --> 01:00:14,546
Brian was a beautiful guy - Brian Epstein
559
01:00:14,791 --> 01:00:17,385
An intuitive, theatrical guy
560
01:00:17,627 --> 01:00:20,562
He knew we had something
and he presented us well
561
01:00:21,731 --> 01:00:26,862
I remember we had to drive to London
on New Year's Eve
562
01:00:27,103 --> 01:00:32,769
and we did a session for Decca,
an audition for Decca
563
01:00:34,277 --> 01:00:39,044
Decca Audition Tape
Recorded New Year's Day 1962
564
01:01:18,588 --> 01:01:20,886
When you hear the tape, it's pretty good
565
01:01:21,124 --> 01:01:24,355
It's not great
but it's certainly good for then
566
01:01:24,894 --> 01:01:28,796
Dick Rowe, the man who didn't sign us -
the head of Decca -
567
01:01:29,032 --> 01:01:33,264
said "Guitar groups
are on the way out, Mr Epstein"
568
01:01:50,086 --> 01:01:53,886
So Brian then had this tape
which he hawked around
569
01:01:54,124 --> 01:01:59,289
I think somebody in the HMV shop
on Oxford Street
570
01:02:00,096 --> 01:02:04,362
knew George Martin and told Brian
to go and play the tape to him
571
01:02:04,601 --> 01:02:08,264
and he gave us the audition at Abbey Road
572
01:02:08,605 --> 01:02:13,736
George hadn't done rock'n'roll
and we'd never been in a studio
573
01:02:13,877 --> 01:02:16,345
So we learnt a lot together
574
01:02:16,479 --> 01:02:20,882
He had a great musical knowledge
and background
575
01:02:21,718 --> 01:02:27,714
They were fairly irreverent,
even in those days, which I loved
576
01:02:27,957 --> 01:02:32,758
I like a bit of rebel in people
and I liked their sense of humour
577
01:02:32,996 --> 01:02:36,056
After all, that was my main
stock-in-trade too
578
01:02:36,332 --> 01:02:41,235
They liked what I'd been doing
with Peter Sellers and the Goons
579
01:02:41,471 --> 01:02:44,838
George Martin
Record Producer
I thought they had tremendous charisma
580
01:02:45,075 --> 01:02:48,238
I knew that that alone would sell them
581
01:02:48,711 --> 01:02:53,580
We did a reasonable audition
but he didn't like our drummer
582
01:02:54,117 --> 01:02:57,678
I said to Brian Epstein if...
when we do the next session
583
01:02:57,921 --> 01:03:02,415
I won't interfere with you and the Beatles
but I'll provide the drummer
584
01:03:03,159 --> 01:03:08,756
We really started to think we needed
"the great drummer" in Liverpool
585
01:03:09,532 --> 01:03:13,662
Historically it may look like
we did something nasty to Pete
586
01:03:13,903 --> 01:03:18,101
It may have been we could have
done it better but the thing was -
587
01:03:18,374 --> 01:03:22,504
as history also shows -
Ringo was the member of the band
588
01:03:22,745 --> 01:03:28,980
It's just that he didn't enter the film
until that particular scene
589
01:03:30,687 --> 01:03:33,884
It was a Wednesday and Brian called
590
01:03:34,124 --> 01:03:38,686
I don't remember John calling,
although it's in somebody's book
591
01:03:39,095 --> 01:03:42,258
"Would you join the band?"
592
01:03:42,532 --> 01:03:46,559
I said "What do you mean?"
And he said "Really join the band"
593
01:03:46,803 --> 01:03:50,830
I said "Sure, yeah, when?"
And he said now
594
01:03:51,074 --> 01:03:55,101
I said "No, I can't do that -
we've got these other four guys here
595
01:03:55,345 --> 01:03:59,406
"We'd got a gig for months
and I can't just pull out now"
596
01:03:59,649 --> 01:04:02,584
So I said "I'll join you Saturday"
597
01:04:02,852 --> 01:04:07,016
We used to have Saturday off.
That's when they changed the campers
598
01:04:07,290 --> 01:04:10,987
So I gave Rory until Saturday
to bring someone in for Sunday
599
01:04:11,227 --> 01:04:16,722
which I thought was giving him
a hell of a lot of time, and that was it
600
01:04:27,143 --> 01:04:31,011
We played the Cavern -
there was a lot of fighting and shouting
601
01:04:31,247 --> 01:04:33,909
Half of them hated me,
half of them loved me
602
01:04:34,551 --> 01:04:39,318
A few people shouted
"Ringo never, Pete Best for ever"
603
01:04:39,556 --> 01:04:45,586
After about half an hour I said
"Oh, bugger off", and stepped out...
604
01:04:45,828 --> 01:04:49,264
The Cavern had three tunnels
605
01:04:49,532 --> 01:04:53,366
We stepped out of what was
the dressing room into this dark tunnel
606
01:04:53,603 --> 01:04:56,595
and some guy butted me right in the eye
607
01:04:57,574 --> 01:05:02,534
That was a bad day -
and then I got hit by a bus
608
01:05:03,046 --> 01:05:05,037
George fought for me
609
01:05:05,415 --> 01:05:10,375
At this midday session at the Cavern
we proudly present the Beatles
610
01:05:10,687 --> 01:05:15,488
The Cavern Club
22nd August 1962
611
01:07:08,438 --> 01:07:10,429
We want Pete!
612
01:07:12,642 --> 01:07:16,203
When Ringo came to the session
for the first time
613
01:07:16,446 --> 01:07:19,244
nobody told me he was coming
614
01:07:19,482 --> 01:07:23,248
I'd booked Andy White
and told Brian Epstein I was doing this
615
01:07:23,486 --> 01:07:25,579
I said I just want the three others
616
01:07:25,855 --> 01:07:30,986
Ringo expected to play and I said,
"No, I've been bitten once
617
01:07:31,227 --> 01:07:34,219
"I don't even know who you are.
We're having Andy White"
618
01:07:37,133 --> 01:07:41,502
I was devastated.
I came down ready to roll
619
01:07:41,771 --> 01:07:44,763
and..."We've got Andy White,
the professional drummer"
620
01:07:45,842 --> 01:07:50,506
But he's apologised several times since,
has old George Martin
621
01:07:50,747 --> 01:07:55,684
But it was devastating and then we
did that, which Andy plays on
622
01:07:55,918 --> 01:08:00,446
Then we did the album, which I play on
623
01:08:00,690 --> 01:08:04,683
So Andy wasn't doing anything so great
624
01:08:04,927 --> 01:08:08,055
Well, nothing I couldn't copy
when we did the album
625
01:08:08,798 --> 01:08:11,562
Ringo bears those scars to this day
626
01:08:11,801 --> 01:08:13,826
He says "You didn't
let me play, did you?"
627
01:10:35,244 --> 01:10:39,340
Their first record, Love Me Do
sold 100000 copies
628
01:10:39,882 --> 01:10:44,876
It came to the charts in two days
and everybody thought it was a fiddle
629
01:10:45,121 --> 01:10:50,582
because our Manager's stores
send in these record returns
630
01:10:50,826 --> 01:10:55,320
Everybody down south
thought he was buying them himself
631
01:10:55,565 --> 01:10:59,126
or fiddling the charts - but he wasn't
632
01:10:59,635 --> 01:11:03,002
It was bought by the kids.
We had a big following
633
01:11:03,239 --> 01:11:07,938
Who'd had a record? Arthur Askey
was the last, I think, from Liverpool
634
01:11:08,678 --> 01:11:11,670
It got to 17 within the following weeks
635
01:11:11,914 --> 01:11:16,112
I don't recall what happened to it then,
it probably just died off
636
01:11:16,352 --> 01:11:20,880
but the next time we went to EMI
they were really more friendly
637
01:11:21,123 --> 01:11:24,615
"Oh, hello lads, come in"
638
01:11:27,663 --> 01:11:32,066
It was quite normal in those days
to find material for artists
639
01:11:32,335 --> 01:11:36,396
by going to Tin Pan Alley
and listening to all the publishers' wares
640
01:11:36,639 --> 01:11:40,700
That was a regular part of my life.
I'd spend ages looking for songs
641
01:11:40,943 --> 01:11:44,401
And for the Beatles
I was really looking for a hit song
642
01:11:44,647 --> 01:11:47,707
It didn't matter
so long as it suited the group
643
01:11:47,950 --> 01:11:51,852
Love Me Do was the best one
they were able to offer
644
01:11:52,088 --> 01:11:56,821
I found the kind of song I was looking for -
one by Mitch Murray
645
01:11:57,093 --> 01:12:00,620
called How Do You Do lt?
And I was convinced this was a hit song
646
01:12:07,370 --> 01:12:12,239
It wasn't the most marvellous song
I'd ever heard in my life
647
01:12:12,475 --> 01:12:17,071
but it had that essential element
to appeal to a lot of people
648
01:12:17,313 --> 01:12:20,077
and we did record it - John took the lead
649
01:12:31,560 --> 01:12:35,656
George said "If you want
a number 1 song, this is it"
650
01:12:35,931 --> 01:12:40,391
We said "Yeah, but we can't go back
to Liverpool singing that
651
01:12:40,636 --> 01:12:42,763
"We cannot be seen with that song"
652
01:12:43,506 --> 01:12:45,770
So we never issued it
653
01:12:46,008 --> 01:12:50,104
I gave it to Gerry and the Pacemakers
and it did become number 1
654
01:13:01,590 --> 01:13:05,219
George Martin asked if we'd anything
we'd like to do
655
01:13:05,494 --> 01:13:07,018
We'd got a song
called P!ease P!ease Me
656
01:13:07,296 --> 01:13:12,632
John had just written it,
a slow Roy Orbison kind of thing
657
01:13:12,868 --> 01:13:18,773
"Come on, please please me."
Big note at the end, just like Orbison
658
01:13:19,575 --> 01:13:24,478
I'd heard him doing Only The Lonely
and I was trying to..."Please Me"
659
01:13:24,714 --> 01:13:28,912
and I was always intrigued
by the words of...
660
01:13:29,151 --> 01:13:33,679
"Please lend your little ears to my pleas,"
a Bing Crosby song
661
01:13:33,923 --> 01:13:37,916
I was always intrigued by the
double use of the word 'please'
662
01:13:38,494 --> 01:13:42,396
And I said, OK. Let's try your song,
let's see if it works
663
01:13:42,631 --> 01:13:46,226
At the end of the session
I was able to say to them:
664
01:13:46,469 --> 01:13:49,063
"You've got your first number 1. Great!"
665
01:15:39,682 --> 01:15:45,382
Bob Wooler got on the stage,
telegram in hand: "I've got news for you"
666
01:15:45,654 --> 01:15:49,420
He looked terrible, we thought
something disastrous had happened
667
01:15:49,692 --> 01:15:56,029
"Please Please Me has reached number 1
in the national charts"
668
01:15:56,265 --> 01:15:59,666
The lads themselves
just stopped and looked at him
669
01:15:59,935 --> 01:16:04,702
They thought he was joking -
he must have been
670
01:16:04,974 --> 01:16:10,105
Lots of people who didn't know the Beatles
started cheering and clapping
671
01:16:10,346 --> 01:16:13,338
Three rows of girls at the front
all started crying
672
01:16:13,616 --> 01:16:16,278
It was a terrible night
673
01:16:16,518 --> 01:16:19,510
We knew then,
they'll get famous and go away
674
01:16:19,755 --> 01:16:22,349
They won't belong to us no more
675
01:18:33,522 --> 01:18:36,116
Subtitles: Screentext
63202
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