Goodwin The Beatles - The White Album

1. Auflage 2024
ISBN: 978-1-78952-095-8
Verlag: Sonicbond Publishing
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, 96 Seiten

Reihe: Rock Classics

Arguably the greatest album by the best rock band ever, The Beatles - also known as The White Album - proved to be a watershed recording. This extraordinary double album reflects a remarkable, turbulent time. They were attempting to follow on from the psychedelic masterpiece Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band; manager Brian Epstein had died, long-term relationships were coming to an end, and they had become disillusioned with the Maharishi. The album heralded changes in style and marked the start of the falling apart of the previously tight-knit group. A wildly diverse album, its creation and dynamics are revealed. But as the sixties came to an end, so too did the band.
The album also followed on from their first highly criticised TV flop, Magical Mystery Tour, the success of the first global satellite triumph of 'All You Need Is Love', and the highly ambitious Apple business venture. George Martin ducked out and conflict broke out between band members. But, among all the pressures and stress, they found time to write and record an incredible array of songs that synergised into a spectacularly successful album with a fascinating story. This is the tale of every track and every facet of this remarkable record.

Opher Goodwin is the author of many books on rock music and science fiction and taught the first History of Rock Music classes in the UK. He was fortunate to spend the sixties in London, the epicentre of the underground explosion of rock music and culture, where he was able to see everyone from Pink Floyd, Hendrix and Cream to The Doors, Captain Beefheart and Roy Harper. He was also fortunate to spend time in the Abbey Road Studios, where the Beatles recorded. He never fully recovered but now lives happily in East Yorkshire, UK.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Goodwin, Opher

Leseproben

Chapter 3

Other Events That Had An Impact In 1967/1968

Quite apart from the various film, TV and music ventures, there were a number of events that had a major impact on The Beatles and their lives in the interval between Sgt. Pepper and The Beatles.

The Mansions

As their success grew to staggering proportions, the money started trickling into their bank accounts. They suddenly found themselves very wealthy and began to splurge on cars and huge houses. The impact of purchasing huge mansions and estates was far-reaching.

With guidance from Brian Epstein’s accountant, they settled on estates in the stockbroker belt. First, John and Cynthia bought Kenwood – a luxurious house with extensive grounds – in St George’s Hill (where the infamous Diggers were massacred) in July 1964, then George followed in the same month by purchasing a grand mansion called Kinfauns not far away in Esher. Not to be outdone, in July 1965, Ringo and Maureen moved into a mansion called Sunny Heights on South Road in St George’s Hill. Only Paul – who was staying at the Asher house with his long-term girlfriend Jane – remained in the heart of London.

The band had been together for years, feeding off each other, supporting each other, knowing each other inside out. They’d grown up together. Now, they were suddenly apart and isolated. They were developing greatly different interests and started growing apart. By 1968, this isolation was another factor to slot into the picture.

The Maharishi Mahesh Yogi And Transcendental Meditation LSD had opened up the minds of The Beatles to mystical possibility. But the drug seemed transitory – they were looking for something more permanent. Maybe this Eastern meditation would open up a more fulfilling lifestyle. Perhaps the Maharishi could give meaning to their lives and fill the void that had opened up inside them.

They attended a lecture on transcendental meditation given by the yogi Maharishi at the Hilton Hotel on 24 August. They were so taken with the experience that they accepted an invite to travel down to Bangor, Wales, the next day for a five-day seminar led by the Maharishi. They even did a press conference in which they announced they were renouncing hallucinogenic drugs in favour of transcendental meditation. Accompanied by Mick Jagger, Marianne Faithful, Cilla Black, Pattie Harrison and her sister Jennie Boyd, they set off by train amid a clamour of media attention. Dramatically, Cynthia Lennon failed to get to the train when she was held back by a police officer who mistook her for a fan. She had to join the others later after being driven down to Bangor by Neil Aspinall, their trusted roadie and later the head of Apple.

Unfortunately, the seminar was abruptly curtailed halfway through by the totally unexpected death of Brian Epstein. The stunned Beatles rushed back to London. Devastated by Brian’s untimely death but undeterred from their commitment to transcendental meditation, the boys were keen to join the Maharishi in India. This trip was put on hold for six months due to other commitments.

Finally, in February 1968, the four Beatles flew out separately to India and reconvened at the Maharishi’s ashram in Rishikesh. Their enthusiasm and high-profile media attention had attracted a number of similar-thinking celebrities, including Mike Love of The Beach Boys, Donovan, and the actress Mia Farrow (along with her sister Prudence and brother John). Complete with an entourage of wives and girlfriends, in the midst of a media frenzy, they arrived in India at the Maharishi’s retreat and set about mastering transcendental meditation and receiving guidance directly from the guru himself.

The retreat was supposed to provide basic accommodation, natural, unprocessed food, personal instruction from the Maharishi himself, and plenty of time to meditate in order to transcend their mundane state of mind. It didn’t quite work out that way. The intense meditation soon began to pale for most of them. Ringo was the first to bail, claiming that he and Maureen couldn’t cope with the food. He was more of an egg-and-chips kind of guy. Ringo left. John and Paul soon found themselves becoming disillusioned too, and when rumours (later found to be untrue) circulated about the Maharishi coming on sexually to Mia Farrow and other young women in the entourage, it burst the bubble. Only George – who’d thoroughly immersed himself in Indian music and philosophy – remained loyal to the lifestyle. John later wrote a number of disparaging songs about the Maharishi and his time in Rishikesh, including ‘Sexy Sadie’.

While the retreat might’ve been unsuccessful in providing them with spiritual enlightenment, it did produce some good songs. By the time they were through, they’d written 40 new songs. Back in England, they gathered at George’s house – which was now equipped with a 4-track studio – to record 28 demos. The songs were destined to become the basis of The White Album.

Brian Epstein – Took up management of The Beatles in January 1962; Died 27 August 1967

Much has been written about Brian’s role as manager, but not all of it is good. His inexperience certainly showed at times. The Beatles certainly could’ve made more of the merchandising side, and they didn’t always achieve the best deals possible. Then there was the size of his cut. Putting all that aside, it’s doubtful if anybody else could’ve guided them to the heights they achieved. He was responsible for tidying up their image at the start and getting them signed. He took them through Beatlemania, films, TV appearances and tours and helped make them into the superstars they became. There were times when they resented his interference in what they did, how they presented themselves and the amount he took for himself, but they respected his view and were grateful for the burden he took off their shoulders. Brian was more like a father than a manager. It was no surprise when everything started to unravel and flaws started to appear following his death.

As for Brian, he was immensely proud and protective of the boys and watched their antics from afar. When the group decided to stop touring, Brian felt his role had been substantially diminished. He had time on his hands and had trouble coming to terms with his reduced role. But there was still plenty to deal with – singles, TV appearances, films, merchandise and recordings.

On 27 August 1967, at the age of just 32, Brian was found dead in his bed from a drug overdose involving barbiturates and alcohol. It was a shock straight out of a cloudless sky. Nobody had seen it coming. The media were all over it with speculation and conspiracy. The Beatles hurried back to London from Bangor, where they’d been attending the Maharishi’s seminar. A shell-shocked Lennon – visibly distressed, almost incoherent in disbelief and grief – expressed the band’s feelings. They were shocked and devastated. All The Beatles gathered to share their bewilderment and sorrow. They were not only stunned but were realising the impact of Brian’s death. He managed the enormity of The Beatles empire. Now, they were rudderless. John knew the impact this would have. He said, ‘You can come to terms with your parents dying because you’ll know that they’ll probably die before you. But when Brian passed, it was like one of us dying’. Not only that, but the group were about to embark on two major projects: the Apple business project and the TV special Magical Mystery Tour. They were going to have to do it without Brian. That would take its toll. Neither venture worked as envisaged.

Lennon spoke of it in a Rolling Stone interview:

I was stunned. I don’t know whether you’ve had it, but I’ve had a lot of people die around me, and the other feeling is, ‘What can I do?’ ... I knew that we were in trouble then. I didn’t really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music ... I was scared.

Marriages And Relationship Splits

It wasn’t just management that was in turmoil; their relationships were suffering, too. During the mid-1960s, all four Beatles had what seemed to be stable relationships. John married Cynthia back in Liverpool in August 1962 when she’d become pregnant. By 1968, Julian was five years old, and the marriage had suffered many strains from fans, groupies and John’s casual dalliances.

The same was true for Maureen who’d married Ringo in February 1965 when she too became pregnant. Maureen and Cynthia were good friends, keeping themselves in the background, avoiding the limelight, and keeping each other company during the boys’ often lengthy absences. Pattie Boyd joined the girl’s club when she teamed up with George in 1965. George had met Pattie on the set of A Hard Day’s Night in 1964. She was a stunning model and actress whom he quickly married in January 1966. Paul had a long-term relationship with attractive actress Jane Asher. He stayed at the Asher family house in Wimpole Street for three years. They were betrothed before everything changed, with Jane being a little more distant than the other three wives.

Up until 1968, everything had been ticking along fairly smoothly. But all that harmony was about to change dramatically. In May 1968, Cynthia was on holiday in Greece. John had become intrigued...