This is Why Ringo Got Up at 9am (1965)

 

This is Why Ringo Got Up at 9am

By John Edwards

Daily Mirror

December 1, 1965

    What with everyone complaining about the shortage of money and the cold, it's a good job Ringo Starr turned up at the December sales at Newmarket yesterday. For a moment, brief though it was, the atmosphere got a little warmer; the more retiring horse fanciers would probably say it was exciting as it was. Ringo stayed 15 minutes, bought nothing more expensive than a couple of scotches, and disappeared with his wife, Maureen, and two friends in a red Rolls-Royce to have lunch with former Queens jockey, Harry Carr.

    "I don't know anything about horses, and I don't intend to get one," he said. "The only thing that'll make me remember the sales is that I got up at 9am to get here." But Ringo or no, the sales went on almost without interruption. 

Ringo is Guest

No writer listed

Evening News (London)

December 1, 1965

The Beatle Ringo Starr and his wife, Maureen, who paid a surprise visit to Tattersall's sales at Newmarket, dined with former Queen's jockey Mr. Harry Carr. They arrived in a maroon coloured Rolls Royce and, accompanied by Mr. Fred Black, a racehorse trainer from Berkshire, drove to Mr. Carr's home in Wickhambrook.

     Mr. Carr said, "Ringo and his wife said they wanted a break from the big city, and Newmarket seemed like a good idea."

     Ringo's wife seemed more interested in horses than her husband. 

Date Night with Yoko

 

Indian Music Press conference

 

Check out the girls in the left corner of this photo.  Are they excited to be sitting close to George Harrison or what? 

The Newlyweds (1969)

 This interview was published in the July 1981 issue of "With a Little Help From My Friends".  It was taken from a 1969 Brazilian magazine and Cassia Maria do Valle translated it from Portuguese into English for them.  

    On the third day, my photographer and I, along with other journalists, were together, hoping the couple would appear. The direction of the hotel had prohibited the journalists from going in any of their rooms. After spending the whole day in the cold without result, we went out to dinner but left a note with the receptionist, saying, "Dear John and Yoko, we hope you are at peace and calm. We are two Brazilian journalists who would like to take some photos of you, and if possible, get an interview. We hope you can help us. PS. We are looking forward to an answer tomorrow at three o'clock at the reception. OK ." We put the note in an envelope that we designed with a flower, and put their names on it. 

    On the fourth day, at three o'clock, we were at the Plaza waiting for an answer. Of course, there wasn't any message from John. We decided to win by insisting. Finally, after the 10th note, it was 5:30pm and Lennon decided to talk to us, but by using the telephone. 

"Hello, good afternoon."

 "Hello. John. Lennon?"

 "Yes, I am."

 " Did you receive our notes? Can we please take photos and talk a little bit to you? We've been waiting for four days. "

  "Well, I think that okay. It's okay. Please give us 15 minutes, because we've just finished having lunch. You can come ."

    After we rang the bell, the door opened immediately, with Yoko's smile and John's voice coming from inside. 

John:  Come in, hi. Is there enough light to photograph?

     Yoko sat down with her hair almost covering her face. Her sight was tranquil. John remained standing and soon began to speak.

" I don't think it's natural that people worry about our wedding as if it was the most strange event that happened in the world. Lately, there's nothing more natural than two people getting married when they really love each other. Above everything else, it's an act of mutual trust. The wedding only concerns the two persons who are involved in it.

     When I talk about love between Yoko and me, I want to say that it reaches everything we do, everything that surrounds us. Believe me, it's not the fact that we say it exists. In fact, it really exists."

 Yoko: The wedding changes people who are involved in it. It happened to me for the two times I got married previously, and the same happened here when I married John, He is above any obligation with a society so much full of errors. If something superior that only concerns us, paradoxically, if our wedding interests the world, it's not for the simple fact that one of the Beatles got married for the second time, but because a man tries for the second time to find one reason to live, a reason we can get through-- love.

 John:  Some journalists insinuated, as soon as we started living together, Yoko and me, that the misunderstanding between the Beatles increased day by day. That soon we would split up and point out examples of this. Some business is common that is undone. Paul, George, Ringo, and I are as united as we were at the beginning of the Beatles as a musical group. Everybody knows we've changed since then. Everybody must know we are conscious of this. We know the group's influence on the youth all over the world. Yoko has nothing to do with our relationship, which remains the same.

     Don't worry, the Beatles will live on for a long time, still under other forms different from today, perhaps because everything evolves, but they'll never disappear. The most important thing to say is that each one of us, as all men, is different from another. Like this: if Paul is a more agnostic cynic in his way of facing the world, it doesn't mean we won't talk anymore. Life will show who has reason. 

Yoko:  John's activities were multiplied when we decided to live together; now his songs are done with me, too. We made a film where we, both were directors and John started writing the film. We did. There are camera captures, everything, showing our accusers.

 John shows Two Virgins to the reporters. "The record will be released on May 2, but I want to release another one. I'll still work with the Beatles this year on another album. We like to work together. Since we stopped touring, we allow ourselves a series of necessities which for a long time were hidden by manifesting inside us. Paul made short films with Ringo. George studied Oriental music and I wrote two books and acted in a film with Richard Lester, How I Won the War. From each of these experiences, we brought something new to our work in the group. But as the independence in each one of us increases, the necessity of expanding the strength of creation is even stronger, and we feel something like exploding. Each one of us does it the right way, right? The Beatles will always live on as an organization. 

    Do you know why we might do something for the youth, for peace in the world? Tomorrow, we'll take off to Amsterdam, where we'll take part in many public displays for peace in the world. Yoko and I are thinking of continuing to take part in these movements for peace until everyone realizes we've never talked more seriously in our lives. What happened is that people who participate against the system nowadays run the risk of feeling very depressed, but I think this kind of fighting doesn't allow us to be happy. I'd rather always be a lad who arrived in a part and cheers up only with his presence. 

Yoko: John and I know the risks we're running. We know the enemies think we're two lunatics, but at the moment, they realize we really won't fight them. We are really sure they'll try everything, even violent methods. John and I know we run the risk of being shot. 

John: This has happened with all people who spoke of peace in the world, the Kennedys, Martin Luther King, Gandhi. We won't do anything political, but a movement much wider will count with all young people all over the world. Peace is necessary for man's survival in natural conditions. Few people have been truly living in our lives. So much is confused. We've got the responsibility of discovering new ways. This is the right time to assume the direction of the Yellow Submarine.

 John and Yoko don't show any preoccupation with the future. They want to take part in the fight against war, against mankind's enemies.

 John:  The enemies?  There are many. There are powerful, and they are everywhere where more than three men are living. They're in the air. They're in the Spirit. The enemies want to destroy the possibility of men finding peace and tranquility necessary to survive. It is necessary that people believe we want to be against war, but is not war that will solve problems. It's not war that will bring peace to men. It's necessary that men believe in the possibility of peace without war, a permanent peace. Because of this, they can be calm concerning the Beatles' future. We'll keep on together because we know that's the way we've got to show we have a way to follow, an existence to live.

     John stood up and said he and Yoko wanted to go out. Asked if we can go to Amsterdam. If possible, we can meet them at the Hilton Hotel. We go downstairs in the elevator in silence. At the door, they say goodbye, adding "See you soon." They ask the doorman if there is a taxi for them.

     From this moment, John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, are not only interested in composing pop music. As a well-behaved couple, many things have changed in the man's head. 

    Yoko:  John and I stayed in bed without getting up for a week to protest against war all over the world. We liked that all the young people would follow us in our protest. 

    John was on his honeymoon with Yoko at the Hilton in Amsterdam. In the bedroom were fruits, records, tape recorders, boxes of chocolates. In a corner, wearing white dressing gowns, the couple talks to journalist.

     John, who speaks kindly. "You all must understand that our ambition is only to leave an example of living." He lights a cigarette. "When I'm tired. I'd rather smoke than drink whiskey. It's proven that alcohol is harmful to the system, while tobacco, whatever it is, doesn't interfere. Besides, there are no hangovers!"

 John and Yoko separate only when the tea hour comes. The new Mrs. Lennon gets out of bed and goes to a small kitchen in the next room. Commenting, "Yesterday, John and I finished up a series of paintings, one of our new projects we've just begun. Later on, we'll write a book of poetry."

 Soon, in a week, John will be back in London to complete an album with The Beatles. 

John:  Do you think I'm changing ? The young people who are against the old and the structure you represent today will be the old of tomorrow. It's necessary to change every day, and above everything, to get rid of society. And the Beatles?  They will live forever, even in another society, in another system. We are everywhere, even in the air.

 And John, holding Yoko, exhales the smoke of an exotic cigarette.

Ringo in Disguise with Glasses

 

I realize Ringo isn't really in disguise in this photo, but it doesn't exactly look like him in those glasses.  

I spot a Joker Jacket

 

Latest on "The Beatles" (1965)

 Before the Internet, fans had to get Beatles news from newspapers, magazines, and word of mouth. Thankfully, some newspapers, such as this one, reported on the Beatles' news during the height of Beatlemania.   Fans would then make long-distance calls to one another and read the news over the phone to their Beatle friends who didn't get the newspaper, or handwrite articles to Beatle pen pals.   

Here is what was going on in the world of the Beatles news 60 years ago.

Latest on "The Beatles"

By Wayne Harada

Honolulu Star-Advisor

November 28, 1965

Along the Beatles circuit:

•  The Beatles have recorded 16 new tunes in England for a soon-to-be-released album. A new single will also be issued shortly. 
• Paul McCartney and John Lennon have their own music publishing company, MacLen Music. George Harrison recently formed his own Harrison Ltd.
•  That Mary Wells is one of the Beatles' favorite vocalists is common knowledge among Beatles fans. Miss Wells' latest album, Love Songs to the Beatles, is thus a fitting tribute to the foursome. She sings such melodies as "And I Love Him."
•  The Beatles manager, Brian Epstein, recently took over managerial chores for the Moody Blues, a British rhythm and blues vocal instrumental group. 
• "Boys" (with solo by Ringo Starr) was issued as a single by Capitol, but was quickly pulled from the market when legal complications developed. The replacement single now on Cameo finds Pete Best, ex-Beatle, singing.
•  With The Beatles, a successful ABC TV color series, Hanna Barbera Productions, noted for numerous animated cartoons, including The Flintstones, has experimented with other rock and roll singers. The Beau Brummels and Danny Hutton have guested on The Flintstones. Now a new series is planned. The Beach Boys, Herman's Hermits, and Gary Lewis and the Playboys are sought.
•  The Beatles not only wrote the Silkies, "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" hit, but also provided the background guitar work.
•  Don't be surprised if Jane Asher (Paul McCartney's steady) is in the next Beatles film. Paul reportedly wants Jane to star with the group in the next flick, and she would play Ringo's sweetheart.
•  "Yesterday" (with Paul soloing) is the biggest hit in the US this year thus far. It was number one nationally for five weeks. It also is number one in Hong Kong.
•  Matt Monroe's version of "Yesterday" is zooming up the English hit parade. Another rendition by Mary Ann Faithfull is faring well. The Beatles?  It never was issued as a 45 RPM disc. It's in their help LP. 
• The Beach Boys have gone Beatles in their Beach Boys Party LP, they sing two Lennon-McCartney numbers, "I Should Have Known Better", and "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away". 
• The Beatles' film of their Shea Stadium, New York concert last August will probably be shown on English TV this Christmas. Worldwide viewing is uncertain, as of yet.
•  John Lennon is a big fan of the Lovin' Spoonful American folk rock combo. 
• Ringo had to build a fence around his Weybridge home, but that won't stop fans from scaling the walls. 

An Interview with George (1975)

 An Interview with George

The Write Thing

October/November 1975

Q:  The first thing to ask about the album is the title. Where did you get the idea for that?

 George: Er, I was with one of the guys who played bass on some of the tracks. He was just sitting with me as I was overdubbing something, and we were talking about something, I don't know, and he said "texture", and at the same time I said "extra", and that was it. It just became the title. You know, the words "extra texture, read all about it" seemed funny at the time. In fact, it was going to be called, "Oh, not him again", which is actually the subtitle.

Q: Who are the musicians you've worked with on this album?

George: The basic musicians, the ones who played on most tracks, are Jim Keltner on drums, and Klaus Vormann played bass on a few of the tracks. And this other guy, Paul Stallworth, played bass on some of the other tracks. I played bass and synthesizer on a few, and then this piano player who is quite new around LA In fact, he's from Vancouver, a guy called David Foster, a very young guy. He did the string arrangements, and he is also in another band with Jim Keltner and the bass player Paul called Attitudes. Leon played piano on one old track and one new track. The tracks I have horns, there are two tracks. That's Tommy Scott and Chuck Finley playing two parts each, and Gary Wright plays organ and various keyboard things. 

    There's this old track called "You", and I actually did the basic track around 1971, and that's one with Leon, Carl Radle and Jim Gordon.

Q:  That's the one you've chosen for the single?

 George:  Yes, it just seemed to be the most instant. Most people in California thought it was most obvious. So that's the one. It will be the first one. I originally wrote it when I was working with Phil Spector around the All Things Must Pass period. And we were trying to do an album with Ronnie. I wrote it particularly for her and the Ronette sort of flavor. And suddenly, I remembered I had this track, and it was such a good backing track, so I decided to resurrect it and finish it off. 

    The song was so high.. My voice has been dropping over the years, and I realized I put it up about three tones for Ronnie to sing, and it was really high for me to sing.

Q: The second song is called "The Answers at the End", and it keeps saying, "We hurt the ones we love. We hurt the ones we need."

 George: Yes, it's like the modern version of "You Only Hurt the Ones You Love, the ones you shouldn't hurt at all." It actually came from this Vietonan thing written on the wall of my house. In fact, I get a lot of songs off the wall. It was a poem, the first verse, and it stuck in my mind, and always seemed like a song.

Q:  "This Guitar Can't Keep From Crying" sounds something like, "While My Guitar."

 George:  Yes, it's "the son of..."  I decided to write that song because of the popularity of "While My Guitar."  It was really just a cheap excuse to play a bit of guitar. "Guitar Gently Weeps" was, in fact, more popular than I realized, and so I thought I'd write another one, "the son of..."

Q: It also seems to have more of a dance beat than some of the other songs.

 George:  "Yeah, that's Jim Keltner. He's amazing in what he doesn't do. He's really great at leaving space. And that one, really, all he does is the back beat on the snare and the tom toms at the same time. And he leaves a lot of gaps, but it's a nice dance tune. 

Q: You've done a song called "Ooh Baby", and I'm told this is to Smokey Robinson, who did "Ooh Baby, Baby."

 George: Over 10 years or so, I just realized that one of my favorite singers and songwriters has been Smokey Robinson. He's been, for my taste, one of the most consistent. He's written so many fantastic tunes, and although I'm not anywhere in his league as a singer, the song always reminds me of that Smokey type mood, and so I dedicated it to him. 

Q: The song that finishes the side is called "World of Stone."

George:  Yes, I wrote that a couple of years ago. I only just got around to recording it. There's not much of a story to it. 

Q: There's a line that says, "so far away from home".

 George: Yeah, it's a wise man. "You won't be able to follow the likes of me in this world made of stone." It's really down to saying that everybody has their own opinion and right to be, that's really all. It's a nice melody. 

Q: The second side starts with literally "A Bit More of You." And then we go into what is one of my favorite songs, "Can't Stop Thinking About You."

 George:  I wrote that one at Christmastime two years ago. I was sitting around the log fire. The song I could hear somebody like Joe Cocker singing. It's also very commercial. The middle part kills me. I have this tendency to write dramatic or melodramatic melodies. And this one was like a song on Material World, which always makes you think it should be sung by somebody like Al Jolson or Mario Lanza. It's a funny, interesting melody.

Q:  The vocal on this reminds me a little of some of Bob Dylan's things. 

George: On that track?

Q: At the beginning. 

George:  Oh yes, that's my impersonation of John Lennon. Yeah, it was hard to sing that first chorus. I can tell you.

Q: "Tired of Midnight Blue" comes at a bit of a funny time, because there's just been a hit by Melissa Manchester. 

George: Well, I wrote this song. Sometimes I just think of titles and write them down on a bit of paper, and sometimes you get around to writing a song about it. I thought "Midnight Blue" was a good title, so I wrote the song. About three weeks after we recorded it. Melissa Manchester's came out, and so this is now "Tired of Midnight Blue."

     It's a story of, you know, those nights when you go out and wish you hadn't. This track has got Leon Russell on piano. Incidentally, fantastic.

Q:  I noticed on this part of the LP and on, "Ooh, Baby," there's a mellow feel, yeah, and also, there's a lot of space.

Q: Space says there isn't much going on. In fact, I deliberately just left the spaces because most people can imagine their own guitar parts.

Q: This is a change from "Ding Dong"  as well as your Specter days.

 George:  Yeah. Well, sometimes, some people don't like a lot of things going on. If you do it simple, they'll want to hear the big sound. And if you do a big sound, they'll want it simple. I mean, ideally, sometime I'll get around to doing an album with no backing, just with an acoustic guitar. 

Q: We now get to a song called "Gray Cloudy Lies"

 George:  That's one of those depressing four o'clock in the morning sort of songs. I don't know where these songs come from half the time. That one was a piano song. Sometimes I write on the piano. I can't play the piano, you see, so I'll play certain chords on the piano, which I wouldn't bother with on the guitar, because I knew them too well, but they always sound different on the piano. This one is mainly the rhythm thing about it, which got me, it tends to miss beats every so often. I think it was just one of those songs after talking for a bit, it's nice to be quiet. 

Q:  The last track, I just couldn't understand the lines. 

George: No, even when they're written down, you can't understand them. It's the craziest song, both lyrically and musically. And the story on this. Well, the English people may know more about Legs than Americans; it's actually Legs Larry Smith, who was the drummer with the Bozo Dog Doo Da Band. And he's a very nice person who's very eccentric, and I'm very partial to eccentrics. 

    Anyway, I met him Christmas two years ago. I had this piano by the fire, and I just met Larry.  He kept coming and going, and he just amazed me with all the things he was saying. So I decided to write a song about him. The lyrics are just crazy, just like Larry. Actually, he sings the first part of each bridge.

Q:  Did you deliberately mix this track so that it's hard to understand?

 George: Well, Larry, when I got him to sing the bridge, I've never seen him since then, incidentally, so I told him I got this song. It was only the basic track at that time, and I wanted him to sing these lines, so I gave him the words, and he only did two takes of each bit, and then in the solo, and at the end, he just talks and says all these silly jokes. Listening to this dialogue over and over, it just gets a bit boring once you've heard the jokes all of time. So I decided to put them both in at one time and have them down so that people will have to strain with headphones to hear what it is,

Christie's

 French fashion designer and businesswoman Paloma Picasso with English musician George Harrison at a Tiffany event for Paloma Picasso's jewellery, Christie's, London, 28 November 1990. (Photo by Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Thanks to spinalcrackerbox on the Beatles and Solo Photos Forum for sharing this gem and for not removing the original caption.  We can all use a chuckle.  

Cornflakes with John Lennon: a Book Review

Robert Hilburn and John Lennon in 1980
Photo by Bob Gruen 

 A few weeks ago, someone in the comments asked me whether Robert Hiburn was in a photo of John Lennon posted on this site.  My answer was that I was very familiar with the reviews and interviews from the L.A. Time journalist, I had no idea what Robert Hilburn looked like.  That led me to Google his name and discover that he had written a memoir of his life as a journalist titled  Cornflakes With John Lennon.  I bought the Kindle ebook version and read it this past week.  

First of all, if you buy this book thinking it is going to be all about John Lennon due to the title, you will be disappointed.   Fortunately, I read the Amazon reviews and knew what I was getting myself into.   

Bob Hilburn lived an interesting life as a young person growing up in the South in the 1950s.  He was greatly influenced by country music and rock 'n' roll (particularly Elvis). He used his knowledge and passion for music to build relationships with the rockers he interviewed for the L.A. Times. 

The stories he told about spending time with John both in LA during the Lost Weekend era and in 1980 during the making of Double Fantasy are great.   He obviously has a lot of love for John and has a John bias.  I loved his story about how, during the making of Double Fantasy, he kept seeing John sneaking over to a cupboard and doing something.  Bob assumed it was drugs of some sort until John asked him if he wanted any, and he said that John was sneaking a chocolate bar!  He didn't want Yoko to know about it.  

Bob was at the Dakota in the aftermath of John's murder and spoke with Yoko and the words that Yoko said to him brought tears to my eyes.  

Bob obviously disliked Paul McCartney and George Harrison didn't want anything to do with the guy.  He doesn't even mention Ringo.  

The rest of the book is full of stories of his time with Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis, Bono, Michael Jackson, Kurt Cobain, and others. I am not a Springsteen fan, so I found those chapters to drag on and bore me.  Obviously, he is a good writer and all of his stories were interesting, just some were artists I wasn't too familiar with or don't care much about.   

It was an interesting enough book and now I know much more about the man so that if someone asks me again on this site about him, I will have more knowledge, but it isn't a book I will ever want to read again.  

If this book interests you, however, and you want to purchase it for yourself.  Please consider using the Amazon affiliate link below.  I receive a very small percentage of anything purchased through this link, which I, in turn, use to pay for the yearly fee to keep this site ad-free and online.   Thank you for your support. 

https://amzn.to/4ifr5vL

Jean Jacket

 

Drummed Out Beatle Suing Old Chaps for $50 Million (1965)

 

Drummed Out Beatle Suing Old Chaps for $50 Million

By Gary Blonston

The Miami Herald

November 28, 1965

    Just imagine, a bare stage in a hard red spotlight. Two clusters of drums and two mop top silhouettes. Drumsticks at 20 paces. The musical confrontation of the age.

     In this corner, Ringo Starr, the champion. And then the other, Peter Best, 24, the first man in history to try to regain the fame and fortune that go along with the title, Beatle drummer. 

    It hasn't happened yet, but Pete is ready anytime. Ringo hasn't responded to the challenge.

     Meanwhile, Peter Best, who slammed and kicked and pounded the Beatles to British fame in the early 60s, is seeking satisfaction in court-- $50 million worth. 

    Pete sat in a Miami radio studio Saturday and vowed convincingly that he doesn't dislike Ringo or the Beatles at all. He'd just like to sit in again. 

    There was a time five years ago when a scruffy Liverpool guitarist named Paul McCartney got Pete on the phone and said his group needed a drummer for a musical tour of Germany.

     Yeah, yeah, yeah, said Pete, thereby becoming the Beatles' drummer for two years. It was a good life. Pete was making about £65 a week, about $150, "a lot of money in England", he said.

     Then Beatle manager, Brian Epstein, lowered the boom. "It happened so fast. There never was one specific reason," Pete said. "Epstein said, I was not good as a drummer." Pete recalled. And Ringo picked up the sticks. 

    "Later, I learned of other reasons. There were personality clashes," he said, looking down at his cuffless houndstooth pants. "As far as I was concerned, we were one big, happy family."

     But others said the Beatles' establishment didn't like the attention Pete was getting from the fans; they shrieked at him quite a bit, tore at his clothes, and made other affectionate gestures.

     When Pete was booted, Liverpool aficionados demonstrated against Epstein and the Beatles. One sign said, "Pete forever. Ringo never." Epstein got a black eye and hired a bodyguard.

     But Pete contended that he got worse. Besides the considerable loss of revenue, Pete said he got a black eye in a national magazine that interviewed Ringo. He said he also received lots of bad mouthing from other beaties.

     More than a dozen suits are in progress in England and in New York. Pete's manager, David Rolnick, said they could make Pete a wealthy young Liverpudlian. And even if they don't, they'll clear the air about a lot of things.

     Pete said he has a considerable interest in his reputation, for he has put together a hairy five-man combo now awaiting immigration clearance to perform in the States. He is visiting Miami disc jockey Tom Campbell while the clearance is completed. Then he'll take his gang on a tour on national television. "I'm not trying to cash in on the Beatles' popularity or money", said Pete, "if I could be 1/20 as popular, I would be happy."

Walking in Central Park

 November 26, 1980 

I really love that silver coat that John wore during this time.  

Ringo is Full of Praise (1980)

I think little things like this that were said about Double Fantasy before John's death have gotten lost in the tragedy, and so I wanted to share what kind things Ringo said in late November 1980 about the album. 

 Ringo is Full of Praise

No writer listed

The Daily Record

November 27, 1980

    Former Beatle Ringo Starr and his girlfriend head for home in America, full of praise for former partner John Lennon. 

    Lennon recently made a comeback with the album Double Fantasy and hit single "Starting Over Again". [sic]

    Ringo, who has been in Britain visiting his daughter, Leigh [sic] said he was very impressed as he boarded his Concord flight with Barbara Bach.

     He said, "John has never let me down in the past, and he is always a force to be reckoned with. I've only heard his new album once, but was very impressed, particularly by the current single."

Maybe I'm Amazed (1976)

 

With the Got Back Tour 2025 coming to an end, I have enjoyed seeing everyone who has attended concerts review on YouTube and Social Media.   It has been fun to see fans experience the show in different cities.    

I thought it would be just as fun to go back almost 50 years and see how one fan experienced seeing Paul with Wings at various U.S. cities on the Wings Across America Tour.    I notice a LOT of similar things in her accounts and today with one big exception. 

Maybe I'm Amazed

By  Kathy Meyer

With a Little Help From My Friends

Issue #15 --  July 1976

    Trying to write down a coherent account of what happened to me in the last couple of months is bordering on the impossible, because as I sit here at the typewriter and attempt to put everything into perspective, I can't help stopping repeatedly to convince myself that it all really happened. 

    Upon hearing the schedule for Paul's tour, I quickly made arrangements to see him all three times that he was to be in New York, only to find out that the tour was postponed. When the new schedule was released, I tried unsuccessfully to get some answers from the ticket office at the Garden (for the last time. Miss. We don't have any word on the Paul McCartney tour! Nothing! Click.) "Lovely", I thought.

     And then suddenly they were all sold out. "Lovely", I thought again, with tears of anger in my eyes. I felt frustrated and cheated. I decided to just forget about all the hassles I was going to run into by trying to scalp for the New York shows and concentrated on the Philly shows. 

    This was the beginning of my incredible luck in getting tickets. Two very nice girls who didn't know me from Adam were kind enough to get me a ticket each for both nights. While further south, my great friend Pauline secured me a ticket for the second DC show. (At this point, I was going to say yes to anyone who offered me any tickets.  Alaska?  I'll take it! How much?)  After a minor trauma in Philly with a hotel room (I figured $20 tops per night, and brought $40 to cover it, expecting to bring home some change, $34 for one lousy night!)  I was all set. I ran up to my room and ordered three rum and Cokes.

     After being told by every nice person in Philly which (wrong) bus to take to the Spectrum, I was finally there. I met a lot of really nice people outside, and soon sold the mezzanine ticket I had for a 12th row center one. 

    When Paul came out, I didn't move, I didn't blink an eye. I just sat there, and then it all hit me at once. I jumped, I screamed, I cried, I laughed, I cried and cried and laughed some more. I couldn't believe the feeling that came over me. Here was the last Beatle. The only one I never have seen in concert. Here was Paul McCartney.

     As the show continued, I thought of how ridiculous it would be to see him only a few times. I suddenly vaguely minded even the idea of Paul doing a show without me there. So right then and there, I decided to follow him as far as any money would take me, which wasn't far, but who cares I was going!

     The second show was even better, the one in DC, better yet, although for the DC show, Paul rushed through it a bit. Because it was general admission, there was no way for the guards to control the audience, and there were tons of frantic people trying to get to Paul, discounting the 10 or so odd people under them.  Well, oblivion does strange things to normal, sane people.

     Back home again, and I found it fairly easy to find tickets for the New York shows, provided one had a rather large bank account. Several of the offers I got for tickets came from people I met in Philly and it turned out that I did get my tickets from a guy from New Jersey that I met there.  Two 12th  row seats for the last night at the garden. $75 for the show, doubled the night of the concert. I got to Jersey faster than hell and got the tickets.  The Garden 12th row !!

    Philly was the first time that I'd ever seen Paul close up as he drove in the second night. And it was amazing that I was so thrilled to see him. I knew that I would go crazy, but I really had a hard time containing myself. It was just so exciting for me, and I was fortunate enough to see him in New York as well. Although it was only a fleeting glimpse as he went by, it was, for me, a great, great thrill.

     I had to miss the show in Uniondale because I'd spent too much money on the Garden Show, and this was also the case for the first New York show. But I didn't mind. I went and stayed outside and just waited for the finale. From the minute Paul stepped out onto the stage, the place was wild. It actually shook from so much emotion. When a New York audience loves you, they want you to know it. And Paul knew it and loved it. What a ham. 

    Then it was back home again to tell my parents that I was, you know, leaving for a little while. I was kind of going to follow Paul for a little bit. And very surprisingly, they were really cool about it. The only question they had about it was, how was I going to, you know, fund this sort of thing? Well, I told them I'd figure it out.

     On Friday, June 4, I was off to Denver for the show on the seventh at the McNichols Sports Arena. My cousin and I set out early in the morning, and it was one big party for us the whole time, except for the flat tire we got on the first day. We got to Denver via the Worlds of Fun in Missouri, which is kind of like Disneyland. We spent all day Sunday riding roller coasters. 

    There was quite a difference in the show on Monday night; they were jamming more. Paul was a lot looser and seemed thoroughly relaxed. The audience loved this. I'd heard about the "mellow mountain people", and if this is the case, then most of the people in the place were imports, like us. The whistling never ceased, and the place was rocking. And needless to say, Paul didn't mind it all one bit, dancing around, jumping, making noise. He was like a little kid. It was too much.

     It's important to note that through all the concerts I saw, Paul's voice never faltered. He was always in top form, smooth and beautiful. It was incredible to listen to him go from a rocker like "Magneto" into "My Love." There was no cracking whatsoever. One of my very favorite songs every concert was "Maybe I'm Amazed." That song, without fail, makes me cry every night. I just love the way he sings it. He was so into it. His voice is just so perfect. 

    The next shows were in San Francisco, and were some of the best that we saw. They were very thrilling and a lot of fun. The weather was really nice, and this was in direct contrast from DC, where it was rainy and generally lousy and I had to sit out in the rain. Because DC and San Francisco both were general admission, and then went into the hall, smashed, wet, and anxious. Well, many people got sick in DC. San Francisco was great, though. Everyone was very together and friendly. I was really enjoying myself. 

    The Cow Palace had a stampede that first night and then again on the second night. In particular, after "Yesterday", everyone started to stamp their feet, and the sound was deafening. They put in bleachers for the sides, and no one sat in them. Everyone was up for the entire show. It was fabulous. Everyone had so much energy. 

    It got so wild that Paul didn't come out for an encore the second night. Just as he was turning in to the mic to introduce the horn section, some girl who was trying to get up on stage to give him a gift, knocked the mic right into Paul's mouth. It quite obviously upset him. He was taken completely by surprise. He was shaken there for a bit. His mouth was bleeding. He had to grab a towel for that. But true to form, he turned right back to the audience and gave us a giant grin, and went into the intros and then "Letting Go", which he did so seductively that, you know...

    I miss "Soily", though, what a song! That baseline in that one is incredible! Paul is the most underrated bassist in the whole world. Let's hope this tour has put him in his proper place as the best bassist in the world, a title he richly deserves. It has been said that Paul's face has, to an extent, been to his detriment because he has been overlooked as far as his musical capabilities go. And this is tragic, since he is so great at what he does.

     Tucson was the strangest concert I've ever been to in my whole life. To this day, I still cannot understand what the hell happened in there. First of all, I hated the concert hall. There are bright lights blazing on us for the whole show. Since the outside walk around (where you go to the bathroom, get food, and find your gate) was not separated by a wall from the actual rotunda, it was a drag for anyone who was not on the floor. This made everything seem pretty impersonal, and it really bothered me.

     When Paul came on, though all seemed to change. Everything was all right, and we were all set for the show. I've been wondering what would happen here, because it was his birthday, and Paul put an end to all my anxieties. As soon as he finished "Jet", he stepped up to the mic, said "hello and welcome", and then said "and happy birthday too". I collapsed. What a typical McCartney statement, not making really much sense, but everybody knew what he meant. And a big cheer went up. Denny stepped up then and said a big happy birthday to him, and started to sing it, at which point we all joined in. The song never got finished, though.  Paul was too excited, and he started right on to "Let Me Roll It". He was so cute. 

    Later on, Denny declared "Time to Hide" as Paul's birthday song, and another huge cheer went up in the crowd. It was so much fun, I felt like I was sharing his party with him, and what a feeling to spend his birthday with him.

     Now comes the strange part. After "Band On the Run", quite a few people got up to leave. I was just staring at them in total bewilderment. And by a few people, I mean several 100. I couldn't believe it. I heard one guy say that he really thought the show was great. "Oh boy, what a show!"  Didn't he know? I thought. And then when they all came back, there was a crush of people running to get back in to hear the encore. It was just too much. Then after "Hi Hi Hi" many more started to leave. Really, a lot of people started leaving. Several 1000, I would say, they just didn't think there was any chance of him coming back. It was so weird at this point, and no offense intended to the people of Tucson, I started thinking, "Well, no wonder JoJo left this place. Where the hell are these people going?"  And then they came back, and everyone started to scream and run back again. What a comedy! It was too funny to believe, but it really happened, and I was stunned.

     It was a great show, though, and it was so special because it was Paul's birthday, and there was just a really good feeling in the air.

     LA was next, and the Englewood Forum really outdid themselves. When we got there, the news teams were already there, interviewing people. The tickets were going for unbelievable prices, and the newsmen were freaking out about it. I was going to tell the guy that I came all the way from New York to see Paul, but I knew that would get me on TV, and I'd had experience with that at the first New York Beatlefest, and it scared the hell right out of me. You don't realize your true idiotic potential until something like that happens. (Why did you come here today? Uhhhhh?) It was awful, and I stayed as far away from cameras as possible. 

    They had a giant balloon on top of the Forum to welcome Wings, and they had marching bands there who circled the arena many times for each show. They even had huge spotlights that, when it got dark, were positioned so that they made a W. It was really very nice. 

    There were tons of famous people there, too. They had a big star entrance and everything. It got rather sickening, though, the cops put up a blockade so that we, the fans, couldn't get by. And they made us go through a couple of side entrances where the lines stretched and stretched. Several people missed the first songs because the lines were so long that they couldn't get everyone in on time, and they were already going to be starting well after showtime. And this even includes the half hour that Paul provides for his typical lateness. 

    Also, most of these stars, most of whom no one recognized, were rather rude and crass and turned me right off. Then there were the real recognizables, Sally Struthers, Michael Douglas, Rod Stewart, David Jansen, Leslie Uggams, Jack Nicholson, to name but a few. The real treat came inside. The first night, Kim and I, and don't ask me about my luck, managed to get David Bowie's seat right next to where Paul was. What luck! It seems that David Bowie either had to leave town or never got back, and so he never picked up his tickets. And some guy from the Forum came by and asked us if we needed tickets. And it was as simple as that. He took us by the star entrance, and we laughed at the drunk women and their minks trying to stumble out of rented limos. We paid him cost, and then we were led right in. So we got past the mobs.

      When we got in, Kim went to get us a beer, and as I looked around, there were several 1000 people starting to descend upon one little area. After a few seconds, this little man comes bounding out. It was Ringo!!  I don't know what happened. I started to scream, but it didn't matter. Everyone else was too. It was fantastic. He sat right across from us. I was just standing there, stunned, and no one was there for me to grab. Poor Kim, when she came back, I stood up for the longest time. Everyone else had already settled down a bit. I just kept waving to him. And finally, the girl he was with saw me and nudged him. He looked over to me, smiled, and gave me a great big wave. That was it. For me, I was totally satisfied. I had really gotten just about everything, and couldn't have been happier. 

    Next, right next to us, came Elton John, looking disgusting. He was shorter than you would imagine, fat, and very pale-looking. And guess who was with him? It was Cher! We just laughed and laughed. What a scene. The whole place was jumping around at the sight of someone. Paul must have heard it. He came dashing out. No one was going to steal his show. I really think he might have felt that way. He's so insecure sometimes, even after his fabulous reception.

     I should say here that at the San Francisco show, no one sat behind the stage because it was general admission, and so everyone was crowded down on the floor. Paul, when he went to the piano and sang "Maybe I'm Amazed," looked up and seemed a little sad for a minute because he saw no one there, like there was a mass exodus or something. But then a big smile came across his face, like he knew where they all were. It was so sweet. It's one of the cutest moments of the whole tour. I kept wanting to tell him he'd sold out the place. What are you worrying about? Everyone is here anyway.

     So many memories are getting in the way of the story here. At the end of the first show, Rich got up on stage, to Paul's surprise, and gave him a giant bunch of flowers. They hugged and then walked out arm in arm. It was a high point for me.

     Strangely enough, that was to be the last show for us. The tickets were just too expensive, and we still had to get home. I was very, very sad that I didn't get into the finale, extremely sad. Then I thought about all the good luck I had and how selfish I was becoming.

     We hung out both nights, got smashed out of our brains trying to rationalize it all. It's okay. We saw the best shows anyway, and then we left. We were on our way back home. It was the best trip of my whole life, and I won't forget one single minute of it, not ever. Paul's supposed to be putting out a live album of this tour by Christmas. But knowing Paul, I have to ask him, which Christmas is it going to be? 

Writing Session?

 

In the sea of faces

 

I'm Looking Through You

 

The Long and Winding Road (1995)

 

Geoff Wonfor with George 

Geoff working on the Beatles Anthology 

The Long and Winding Road

By Ian Wylie

Manchester Evening News

November 23, 1995

    Beatlemania is back with a vengeance with the release of a new Beatles album and a single likely to challenge for the Christmas number one spot on the charts. This Sunday, the six-part Beatles Anthology starts its run on ITV. The man who was chosen by the Beatles themselves to direct the program, Geoff Wonfor, talks about how he came to be involved. 

    Geordie Geoff Wonfor is in fine fettle. He even wore his Newcastle United away strip for a night out in Soho's exclusive Groucho Club. "Strolling along singing a song, walking in a Keegan wonderland." Kevin Keegan's Toon Army are top of the league, and Geoff is about to paint the world black and white.

     Granada paid £5 million for the right to screen the Beatles Anthology on ITV. A lady asked TV director Geoff. "Why all the fuss?"  "The hype," he replied in straight Tyne-side, "is because they're the greatest man that's ever been seen." So there pet.

     There are places he remembers all his life, though some have changed. Newcastle, City Hall, 1964, is a good place to start. sipping a Becks at Bafta. Geoff recalls, "I queued for 56 hours to get a ticket to go and see the Beatles. I still got the stub."  Just over a quarter of a century later, the phone rang at his dad's house. Paul McCartney was on the other end of the line. "He said they'd been looking for somebody for 20 years to direct the Beatles, and I was the man for the job. My eyes filled up. He said, 'Look, compose yourself and ring me back in 15 minutes.' I couldn't believe it."

     You probably never heard of 46-year-old Geoff.  At most, he's just a credit-flashing by as millions reach for the remote control. Our man worked on The Tube, left when Tyne Tees tried to make cuts, and won a Golden Rose of Montreux for a film of Nigel Kennedy's Four Seasons.

     Fans who saw McCartney's first comeback World Tour have Geoff and his cameras to thank for the emotional Abbey Road medley finale. "McCartney was unsure about including it. He tells a story about this man filming at rehearsal. As they went through it, McCartney looked up and saw this guy crying and said, 'It's got to stay in the act.' It was me crying." 

     A pal of Linda McCartney from one of her photo exhibitions, he teamed up again with Paul for his Liverpool Oratorio, and then got the gig for the big one. Geoff has now spent four years and two months working on what ITV described as "the television event of the decade." They're not far wrong. From the opening shots of Liverpool to black and white "In My Life" flashbacks, it's hair on back of neck time for Beatles fans in over 100 countries. 

    "I remember McCartney once saying that he wasn't interested in the date they played Shea Stadium because any journalist could tell him that. What he wanted to know was what happened in the limo, going there and coming back."

     Granada were perhaps the obvious winners in the bidding to buy up the six-part Apple production, which lets the Liverpool lads tell their own story. The company's association with the Fab Four dates back to the early days. The back of their London office looks straight down Carnaby Street. And Geoff's wife Andrea just happens to be Granada's joint managing director. It turned into a happy coincidence for the couple who live in Northumberland village and commute to London and Manchester. 

    Andrea, who developed The Tube and moved to Granada from Channel Four in 1993, was determined to get the Beatles documentaries. But Geoff claims having a well-connected wife won't make him rich. "She's my biggest critic. If I was to survive on her commissions, I'd have been bankrupt 10 years ago. This job has been all-consuming, and my missus has been amazing. I've only missed four weekends in Newcastle. As soon as I can pop my backside on the inner city, I'm happy," he adds. 

    Andrea's dad always said he wanted two things of her. He wanted her to be the first woman prime minister, and he wanted her to marry Paul McCartney. Her father, George, died in June. They played "Yesterday" at the start of the funeral in Kent and "The Long and Winding Road" at the end. "He was an absolute Beatles freak, and could play every chord on an acoustic guitar. He'd take the kids to Canterbury Cathedral and do Beatles medleys."

     Beatlemania 1995 was officially launched this week with ITV's British Premier of "Free As A Bird." Unless you've been rolling stones in Azerbaijan, you know, it's the first new Beatles single for 25 years, and features the voice of John Lennon. 

    Tonight, the three surviving Beatles can be seen together again in ITVS's premiere of the "Real Love" video; their other new single release. Volume One of the three Beatles Anthology CDs, is now on sale. Albums and singles are set to top the Christmas charts. Global supplies of shrink wrap are all but exhausted. They don't paint the fourth rail bridge anymore. They just make Beatles anthologies out of stacks of unseen home movies and long-forgotten film. 

    Mr. Wonfor is part of a mini Geordie mafia who were given the job of putting together the TV story of The Beatles from birth to final split in 1970. 50-somethings Paul, George, and Ringo were interviewed up to eight times a piece for the six hours which British TV viewers will see up to Christmas. Murdered Lennon is heard through his many radio and TV interviews. 

    Geoff confesses that the euphoria of getting the call from McCartney soon turned into sleepless nights over the scale of the terrifying task ahead. "I can't tell you how many miles of footage we had to go through, but if you think that the outtakes of Let It Be is 2000 cans alone..."

     Youngest daughter Sam, 20, helped preserve his sanity, especially before robust twist-and-shout phone calls with McCartney. "She'd say: 'Dad, obviously don't shout at him, but if he shouts at you, try and get what you want.'" People think he might be a soft touch, but if a little arse needs kicking, he's your boy. "Yes, we've had some heavy phone calls. But the good thing is, he is a very strong man. Even the barneys we've had. He's been very constructive. He lets you at least have a shout, and then you get on and go and have a drink."

     The nation will judge the final results on Sunday night. Some may even shed a few tears as The Beatles get back to where they once belong. Geoff admits, "I'd love to see it, but I don't think they'll ever get back together. I don't think necessarily that would be a good idea. If you watch the Anthology, you actually realize that no one person was responsible for them breaking up. They couldn't stand the pressure. It had to self-destruct. There's no way four people could have withstood it any longer. I thought that going back in time, reliving it, was going to be disappointing, but when you listen to the tracks, there's still fantastic melodies and lyrics, beautiful to hear which can stand anywhere."

     If anybody's expecting to see World in Action, forget it. This is a celebration of the biggest band in the world. So roll up. Roll up for the Beatles magical history tour. Step right this way, because in our lives, we've loved them all.

Mummy and Daddy's night out

November 24, 1965 
 

Quartet of musicians

 

Abbey Road in 1969

 

Badfinger Boogie

 

Paul is Still Seeking (1968)

 Paul is Still Seeking, but George Has Found Great Faith

By Norrie Drummond

New Musical Express

1968

    As most people must have noticed, the Beatles have undergone a major change in the past year. The mop tops have gone and been replaced by four highly individual, creative personalities, the "yeah yeahs" and the "oohs" have given way to sitars and melotrons.

     The Beatle boots and round-collared jackets have been discarded and replaced by kaftans and beads. No longer is it news when they are seen at clubs or theaters. At last, the screams are fading away.

     To find out more about the great Beatles transformation, I visited Paul McCartney at his St John's Wood home recently. I told my taxi driver the address. "Oh, you mean where that Beatle lives?" he said. No more than half a dozen fans were waiting patiently at the massive iron gates of his house. 

    The gates were opened by his housekeeper, Mrs. Mills. ("She still hasn't given me a tune yet", says Paul), who led me into the lounge. 

    Paul's huge Old English sheepdog, Martha, bounded forward, leaped up, put both paws on my shoulder, and started chewing my tie. His three cats, Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, were crawling over each other underneath the television set.

     Paul, dressed in a green floral-pattern shirt and green slacks, sat cross-legged in a large, green velvet armchair. Mike McGear, Paul's brother, was just leaving with several kaftans over his arm. A large Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band poster was pinned to one wall. His book collection includes many works on yoga and meditation.

     At the moment, all four Beatles are on holiday, although they have been recording. "When I used to tell you we didn't know what our plans were, it was simply that we hadn't been told what we were going to be doing. Now we simply just don't know. "

    Mrs. Mills reappeared bearing cups of tea and a large cream sponge. "The only thing lined up for us is the TV show," said Paul, stirring his tea. "But we're still trying to work out the format. We've also been recording the past few nights, and our next album will probably come from the TV show."

     Anything that The Beatles now indulge in, they obviously do for love, not for money. "We can now sit back and pick and choose what we want to do. We're not going to turn out records or films just for the sake of it. We don't want to talk unless we've got something to say.

     "When you don't have to make a living, a job has a different meaning. Most people have to earn a wage to live. If you don't, you take a job to relieve the boredom, but you do something which gives you pleasure. We enjoy recording, but we want to go even farther. I would like to come up with a completely new form of music. Invent new sounds. I want to do something, but I don't really know what.

     "At the moment, I'm thinking things out. There seems to be a pause in my life right now, a time for reassessment."

    I ask Paul if he ever regarded himself as being rather like a retired man of 65, who was now only pottering around, dabbling in his favorite hobby. To a certain extent, he was inclined to agree. "I don't regard myself as having retired, but what do most people do when they retire? As you say, they become wrapped up in a hobby, either that or they find another job. I would like to do something else, but what that will be, I don't know."

     Despite the fact that three of the Beatles are married, and they are, all four of them, very different individuals, they still have that same bond of loyalty to each other that they have always had. They're still each other's best friends.

     If they are asked to do something as a group and any one of them doesn't want to take part, then the scheme is dropped. "If three of us wanted to make a film, for instance, and the fourth didn't think it was a good idea,  we'd forget about it, because the fourth person would have a very good reason for not wanting to do it."

     In the past year, Paul has become a much more introspective person. He is constantly striving to discover more about himself and about other people. What is Depression? Why do people become bored? What is the ultimate goal? These are questions to which Paul has tried to find the answers in books on meditation and lectures by men who know more about it than he does. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is playing a big part in developing the Beatles' minds. He is the man who gave them strength when they heard of Brian Epstein's tragic death.

     "I'm more tolerant now than I was, and I feel more at ease myself, but I am now less certain about many things," said Paul. "In some ways, I envy George, because he now has great faith. He seems to have found what he's been searching for. 

    "When we went to India, we were amazed. So many people living in terrible poverty-but everyone was so happy. They were always laughing and smiling, even though most of them were starving. For people in the Western world to understand why these people can be so happy is a very difficult thing.

     With John. George,and Ringo, Paul will be flying to India again shortly to study transcendental meditation with Maharishi. 

    To a certain extent, Paul's music is his greatest emotional outlet. "Ravi Shankar discovered himself through his music, and I suppose in many ways we are too."

     This is apparent in their latest albums, which feature many tracks based on personal experiences. But how far can one go with any new art form, be it music, film, or theater? Will the great general public accept it? 

    "We've never set out with the sole intention of trying to please people. It's been wonderful that so many have appreciated what we've done. We don't want to come to a point where we wave cheerio to anyone. We want to take them along with us. "

    Paul McCartney certainly is more at ease now and much more tolerant and understanding, but he's still searching for something. Whether or not he'll ever find it, I just don't know, but he is determined to somehow.