One Two Three Four The Beatles In Time

SHORTLISTED for the Baillie Gifford Prize’s 25th Anniversary Winner of Winners award WINNER OF THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE 2020 A Spectator Book of the Year • A Times Book of the Year • A Telegraph Book of the Year • A Sunday Times Book of the Year

Winner of the 2020 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction A distinctive portrait of the Fab Four by one of the sharpest and wittiest writers of our time "If you want to know what it was like to live those extraordinary Beatles years in real time, read this book.” —Alan Johnson, The Spectator Though fifty years have passed since the breakup of the Beatles, the Fab Four continue to occupy an utterly unique place in popular culture. Their influence extends far beyond music and into realms as diverse as fashion and fine art, sexual politics and religion. When they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, fresh off the plane from England, they provoked an epidemic of hoarse-throated fandom that continues to this day. Who better, then, to capture the Beatles phenomenon than Craig Brown—the inimitable author of Ninety-Nine Glimpses of Princess Margaret and master chronicler of the foibles and foppishness of British high society? This wide-ranging portrait of the four lads from Liverpool rivals the unique spectacle of the band itself by delving into a vast catalog of heretofore unexamined lore. When actress Eleanor Bron touched down at Heathrow with the Beatles, she thought that a flock of starlings had alighted on the roof of the terminal—only to discover that the birds were in fact young women screaming at the top of their lungs. One journalist, mistaken for Paul McCartney as he trailed the band in his car, found himself nearly crushed to death as fans climbed atop the vehicle and pressed their bodies against the windshield. Or what about the Baptist preacher who claimed that the Beatles synchronized their songs with the rhythm of an infant’s heartbeat so as to induce a hypnotic state in listeners? And just how many people have employed the services of a Canadian dentist who bought John Lennon’s tooth at auction, extracted its DNA, and now offers paternity tests to those hoping to sue his estate? 150 Glimpses of the Beatles is, above all, a distinctively kaleidoscopic examination of the Beatles’ effect on the world around them and the world they helped bring into being. Part anthropology and part memoir, and enriched by the recollections of everyone from Tom Hanks to Bruce Springsteen, this book is a humorous, elegiac, and at times madcap take on the Beatles’ role in the making of the sixties and of music as we know it.

Hunter Davies, the only ever authorised biographer of the group, has produced the essential Beatles guide. Divided into four sections – People, Songs, Places and Broadcast and Cinema – it covers all elements of the band’s history and vividly brings to live every influence that shaped them. Illustrated with material from Hunter's remarkable private collection of artefacts and memorabilia, this is the definitive Beatles treasure.

At lunchtime on a bitterly cold January day in 1969, the strains of guitar chords could be heard in the streets surrounding London’s Savile Row. Crowds gathered – At ground level and above. People climbed onto roofs and postboxes, skipped lunch to gather and listen: For the first time in more than two years, The Beatles were playing live. Ringing from the rooftops, disturbing the well-to-do ears of the tailors below, they upset the establishment and bewildered the police. It was filmed by director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who hoped the footage would act as the finale to a celebratory TV special. When it finally surfaced, it was in the bleak, tumultuous documentary Let It Be. And The Beatles would never play live again. Tony Barrell examines the concert within the context of its time. He speaks to those who were there: the fans, film-makers, roadies, Apple Corps staff and police. He explores the politics of 1968, when peace gave way to protest, and how music promotion began to collide with cinéma vérité and reality TV. The Beatles on the Roof makes essential reading for anyone interested in the band’s reinventions and relationships, revealing why the rooftop concert happened at all, why it happened the way that it did, and why it would never happen again.

Updated to include Paul McCartney’s knighting and the deaths of John Lennon and George Harrison. Philip Norman’s biography of the Beatles is the definitive work on the world's most influential band—a beautifully written account of their lives, their music, and their times. Now brought completely up to date, this epic tale charts the rise of four scruffy Liverpool lads from their wild, often comical early days to the astonishing heights of Beatlemania, from the chaos of Apple and the collapse of hippy idealism to the band's acrimonious split. It also describes their struggle to escape the smothering Beatles’ legacy and the tragic deaths of John Lennon and George Harrison. Witty, insightful, and moving, Shout! is essential reading not just for Beatles fans but for anyone with an interest in pop music.

(Guitar Collection). 25 classic songs from the Fab Four are presented in lyrics, chord symbols and guitar chord diagrams, making Beatles' music accessible to beginning guitarists just learning their craft. Songs include: Beautiful Dreamer * Come Together * Don't Let Me Down * Eleanor Rigby * Helter Skelter * I Saw Her Standing There * Let It Be * Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da * Paperback Writer * Twist and Shout * You've Got to Hide Your Love Away * and more.

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY CRAIG BROWN, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF ONE TWO THREE FOUR Everybody knows the Beatles: John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Brian. The Fab Four's meteoric rise is one of the most famous rags-to-riches stories ever told. And behind it all was Brian Epstein, the 'fifth Beatle' and legendary manager, who transformed the group from a small-time club band into global superstars. What was his secret? How did one man lead these scruffy Liverpool lads to change the world of popular music forever? A Cellarful of Noise is Brian Epstein's original 1964 memoir of a life spent making music history. It includes thirty contemporary photographs which offer a glimpse of Brian and the Beatles on their way to phenomenal success. Eye-opening, moving and constantly entertaining, this is essential reading for every Beatles fan.

'The sharpest memoir written by one of the Beatles' inner circle.' ObserverDerek Taylor's iconic memoir is a rare opportunity to be immersed in one of the most whirlwind music sensations in history: Beatlemania. As Time Goes By tells the remarkable story of Taylor's trajectory from humble provincial journalist to loved confidant right at the centre of the Beatles' magic circle. In charming, conversational prose, Taylor shares anecdotes and reminiscences so vivid and immediate that you find yourself plunged into the beating heart of 1960s counterculture. Whether watching the debut performance of 'Hey Jude' in a country pub or hearing first-hand gossip about a star-studded cast of characters, Taylor's unique narrative voice forges an autobiography like no other. Reissued here in a brand new edition with a foreword by celebrated writer Jon Savage, this long-admired memoir is a cult classic of the genre awaiting a new readership.