Holidays in Swinging London

 

Beatle fans from all around the globe gathered on Abbey Road during the summer of 1969.  Here is a story of some music fans from Germany who saw the Beatles during that amazing summer.  If you want to read the full story, please go to Horst Gassen's webpage.   The web page is in German, and I used the Google Translate feature on Chrome to share the story here with you. 

It happened again at Piccadilly Circus that we received a valuable tip.

 

"You can see the Beatles. They are currently recording a new album at Abbey Road Studios. They always arrive there in the late morning to record the tracks."

 

At first, we couldn't believe it and thought they were pulling our leg. The Beatles were practically gods to us by then; you couldn't just see them like that, we thought. Nevertheless, the next morning we set off there by subway.

When we arrived at EMI Studios, there were only about a dozen people there. Far too few for the Beatles, I thought. Nevertheless, we lingered and waited. Rumors were circulating that the "Fab Four" had already been spotted there several times a few days earlier on their way to the studio. So I got my 10-mark Photo-Porst roll-top camera, with about eight exposures left, ready to shoot.

 

My efforts should be rewarded...

 

After a while, when a Mini Cooper pulled into the small parking lot in front of the studios, the crowd suddenly became restless. I remained calm, because I simply couldn't imagine a Beatle in a little Mini. However, my imagination was abruptly and violently shaken when Paul McCartney stepped out of the car. Unbelievable, incredible... a Beatle standing right in front of me, within arm's reach... not a bodyguard, no security detail in sight... the few people there surrounded Paul to get an autograph... he remained very friendly and signed autographs while I frantically fumbled with my camera to take one or two pictures... unfortunately, I couldn't take more, as I was only allowed eight shots.

The unbelievable news was true after all: the Beatles are in the studio today!

After Paul disappeared into the studio through the main entrance, we waited again outside on the sidewalk, eagerly anticipating the next Beatle to come...

And that was George (Harrison) .

He arrived in a Bentley, also without a chauffeur or security detail. He too signed autographs, though he was somewhat more reserved than Paul.

Next up was the drummer Ringo (Starr) . He drove a Rolls Royce. I don't even remember if he gave autographs; he certainly doesn't look friendly in the photo.

Never mind, I didn't like him anyway...

Finally, John Lennon and Yoko Ono arrived in a long white Mercedes 600. They were very shy, seemed annoyed, didn't give any autographs, and sped right past us into the building.

Yoko Ono is largely blamed for the Beatles' breakup the following year, 1970. And as we know today, tensions were already running high between the Beatles at that time.

Although I was (and still am) a Stones fan, this encounter with the Beatles at Abbey Road left a lasting impression on me. I'd never seen them in concert before; I couldn't afford it. But experiencing the Beatles up close and in a more or less private setting—that will stay with me forever.