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[Keri]

What are those Beatle books that have made a big impression on you and helped you to understand the Beatles?

Here are mine:

Ian MacDonald - Revolution in the Head this is a really powerful analysis of the recorded works of the Beatles probably the best sustained musical and cultural exploration of the Beatles works.

Love Me Do! The Beatles Progress - An early clear eyed portrait of the Beatles - I need to read this again

John - Cynthia Lennon - A good personal portrait by someone who was there, very human.

A Cellar Full of Noise - Brian Epstein - A major Beatles player telling his own story of the Beatles, Brian was really important to the Beatles they would most likely have broken up but for his massive efforts that were entirely succesful.

Summer of Love - George Martin. There fantastic producer telling the story of the making of my favourite beatles album. Way cool. Needf to re read this too.

All These years: Tune In - Mark Lewisohn just the short 900 page version. The level of detail and research works in seeing the Beatles in their setting. Hopefully we'll live to see the other two volumes finished.

In His Own Write / Spaniard in the Works - John Lennon gives an additional artistic dimension to the Beatles with these crazy little books

Julia Baird - Imagine This - A personal portrait from John's half sister

The Letters of John Lennon - John Lennon/Hunter Davies Quite a big volume though the letters are quite short, but an interesting look into the playfulness of John's Mind.

Many years from Now - Barry Miles / Paul McCartney Nice to have a book with Paul presenting himself how he wants to, I found it an enjoyable read. It's now a while since I read it.

Here Comes the Sun - Joshua M Greene - Don't know if it's a great book but it's the only Biography of George I have read.

So what are yours and why?
 

[Mervap]

My collection is a bit smaller than yours, Keri...

1) The Beatles Forever- Nicholas Schaffner : When this book was published in around 1977, there weren't many as comprehensive as this. Granted, there are no direct interviews and some of the facts have been subsequently proven to be wrong, but this was an entryway into the Beatles minutia for me.

2) The Beatles Illustrated Record- Roy Carr & Tony Taylor : Checked out from a library, then bought. Album by album reviews by guys who were around at the time of issue. Full of album details....published right after Lennon's death, it is full of praise for John at Paul's great expense. Caused me many years of ignoring Paul's solo work. Still the Beatle album reviews are great.

3) The Beatles' Recording Sessions- Mark Lewisohn : NOW we're talking! This one treats the Beatles' work more from a historian's perspective, so it was aimed right at me! :-)     Every Beatles recording session in fine detail, who played what on every Beatles recording session, taken right from EMI's recording sheets that were written at the time.

4) A Cellar Full of Noise- Brian Epstein : Agree with your review of this one, Keri. Maybe a bit sanitized, but he was pushing the Beatles to the world.

5) The Beatles- Hunter Davies : Nice book with some details one couldn't get anywhere else at the time.

6) Many Years From Now- Barry Miles : If one wants details from McCartney's point of view, this is the book for that. Extensive...

7) All These Years- Mark Lewisohn : Totally agree with Keri about this unbelievably detailed book.

In His Own Write/ A Spaniard In the Works- John Lennon : I must re-read these, as I read them as a teenager and didn't get much out of them.

9) Here, There & Everywhere- Geoff Emerick : Loved this book despite its inaccuaracies about actual dates and some facts. Geoff's insight into the recording process is fascinating.

10) All You Need Is Ears- George Martin : I've heard some say it's not cool for the Beatles' fellow travelers to "cash in" on their experiences. I disagree....I leard a number of things about the Lads from this book, but I was glad that wasn't the only chapter in this guy's life. His knowledge of the recording process spans from the earliest days of tracks on wax thru to the dawn of the digital age.

I'll dig a bit deeper and see if I've missed anything... :-)

[Keri]

Oh I should get that Geoff Emerick book, I think it's worth while getting books by the original players. The George Martin one aounds good too.

I do have the Beatles Recording Sessions and reading that made a big impression upon me, but somehow I'm not drawn back to it. I feel like I should get a good Beatles reference book showing their timeline, to help me better appreciate how the story fits together.

I do worry that Lewisohn may have gone off the rails a bit researching unnecessary detail and expanding the focus to include a portrait of the times, his timeframes have seriously slipped, from original projections of publishing this year to 2023 at the earliest. Although I have been listening to a lot of long form interviews with him lately and he does seem to be pretty disciplined. I think if Lewisohn has a weakness it is that he thinks that marshalling a lot of facts will make for a great book, insight is always needed to get inside a character or find the heart of art. Yet, I will enjoy reading volume 2 if/when it finally arrives.

In the meantime I have just picked up Steve Turner - Beatles '66 The Revolutionary Year. I took issue with his opening sentence "Nineteen sixty-six was without question the pivotal year in the life of the Beatles as performers and recording artists" On first view this seemed to be unequivocal with it's "without question" but the recording artists bit at the end adds at least a measure of qualification. As a band there are lots of key years and events 1957 when John and Paul met, 1958 when George joined the band, 1960 their first trip to Hamburg, 1961 when they become no 1 group in Lioverpool and Brian Epstein becomes their manager, 1962 they get a recording deal, Ringo joins the band and they have their first single which is a success hitting the top 20. 1963 the year they took the UK by storm, 1964 the year they took the US by storm, 1965 maybe not but Rubber Soul feels like the first of the mature Beatles albums also took LSD, 66 Revolver and the end of touring. 67 Sgt Pepper, the death of Brian Epstein, Magical Mystery Tour, meet the Maharishi. In fact I'd put 1967 as the pivotal year they were constantly going upwards till then, they were disintegrating from then on if still making great music. Having had that long rant, now I'm in the body of the book I am enjoying it, great idea to focus on a single year, plenty of interesting material.

I have been recommended Philip Norman's Shout! and got a copy of that, haven't started on that yet.

[Mervap]

Oh yeah, "Shout" is one I read a long while back...I thought it was a bit too hard on Paul being bossy, which he was, but in the interest of keeping the band rolling. It was quite an enjoyable read anyway.....lots of details I hadn't seen till I read it.

[Greg]

I loved reading these posts!
I only have a sec here but...


That Here Comes the Sun book?  I need to get that.  Never heard of it, and I have close to 400 books on them.


My #1 is The Day John Met Paul.  It's just magical to me.


Lewisohn hates Shout!  I find that interesting esp since he used to work for Norman.


Waiting For The Beatles I like.  It's just an Apple Scruff's account of things back then.


I wish I had Tune In in the deluxe edition.  I may get that soon.

[Keri]

400 Beatle books Greg? That's impressive.

I know Lewisohn said he didn't like the way Norman wrote of Brian Epstein and did he also say he was down on Paul? Haven't read it yet.

I just saw Here Comes the Sun in a bookshop and as I hadn't read and was interested in George I got it, I liked it at the time, I should read some of these books again.

I haven't read either The Day John met Paul or Waiting for the Beatles they both sound great. I have also wondered about getting the deluxe edition of Tune In, but I think the regular one is a decent length, I might get the deluxe version of volume 2 if it is ever published.

I just finished reading the Beatles '66  The Revolutionary Year. It was good, I liked the focus on one year, I still think that every Beatle year was revolutionary and he tries to cast the earlier years as safer and less vital than they were. But the main body of the book is fascinating, the telling of the Beatles a more popular than Jesus story was really well done, also the Phillipines and Japan visit were fascinating and it's sent me back to listen to Revolver in a new light. Then there was the Beatles painting and George's trip to India with Ravi. I also was interested in the movie soundtrack Paul and George did, I had alwasy thought that's amazing that Paul worked on a score what a serious piece of work, but as told here, Paul just came up with a couple of tunes and George M had to stand over him to get the second one and GM did pretty much all the orchestration Paul gave him a few general idea, but he did variations on the tunes and made it a thing.

[Greg]

Kenneth Womack wrote a George Martin 2-volume biography.  Fantastic.
I read Dark Horse.  A George Biography.  Can't remember if I liked it.
I love that analysis of Lewisohn Keri.  So so true in the things you said.  Things I really hadn't thought about.
That Turner book sounds interesting.
I just bought this:  https://www.mercari.com/us/item/m42867010225/?gclsrc=aw.ds&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9970574286&utm_content=t0&adgroup=98940294165&network=g&device=c&merchant_id=126358573&product_id=m42867010225&product_id=527918100133&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIh9r_ktfe6QIVUr7ACh3nsgMPEAQYBCABEgIb7vD_BwE

[Greg]

Alo
Kenneth Womack's book called Solid State about the making of Abbey Road is great great great.