It is crazy to me that we still talk about the Star Club Tapes (aka the Hamburg Tapes) and want to hear them re-released and cleaned up. This has been an ongoing discussion for literally 50 years! And what is this craziness about Volkswagen? You don't cut up Beatles master tapes. My goodness! I am glad that we did get to hear them, but they really could use some work. And to think -- they cleaned them up from the original tapes.
Recipe for a Beatle-Burger
No writer listed
Evening News (London)
April 23, 1976
As the Beatles continue to dominate the charts, the long-running battle over their mysterious Hamburg album has flared up again. The album was taped 15 years ago when the Beatles were playing for a few pounds a night at the notorious Star Club in Hamburg.
On it, they sing songs like "Falling in Love Again", "Red Sails in the Sunset", and "Twist and Shout." There are also classic Lennonisms like (to an entirely German audience) "This number is a cha cha cha, and is dedicated to Adolf Hitler --"Till There Was You."
The tape is held by Paul Murphy, Managing Director of Buc Records, who has spent £4000 improving its quality and changing it from mono to simulated stereo.
Though he claims George Harrison and Ringo Starr have given permission for him to release the album, Lennon and McCartney have both refused, because "They say its quality isn't good enough."
"The record is a piece of history which millions of people would like to hear, and we would be prepared to pay the ex-Beatles substantial royalties for their permission to release it", says Murphy.
Meanwhile, he claims that Volkswagen have expressed interest in buying the master tape to cut into little pieces and seal in key rings as a sales stunt for their Beetle cars. Zer vicked svines!
I dont believe the guy. George wasnt ok with it, he appeared in court on this (“one drunken person recording another bunch of drunks does not constitute a business deal.”). And I have a hard time seeing any auto manufacturer seriously believing that making snippets of really, really bad quality Beatles stuff to its customers is a solid business move. Dude is full of it. He wanted to slice and dice the master tape?! What??!!
ReplyDeleteIt is craziness -- cutting up master tapes? I hope that didn't happen! And yeah -- saying that George and Ringo were okay with releasing the tapes is such a bold-face lie. I always find it interesting though to read what the public was being told at the time.
DeleteYeah, we were also told at the time of its' release that the songs were from the Pete Best era, when in fact Ringo is on them (late '62)...interesting that Peter Jackson claims to be working on the Star Club tapes using the same audio enhancing technology he used on Let It Be.
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