#beatles and the press

[get-back-homeward]

August 31, 1961: Bob Wooler predicts the Beatles’ future in Mersey Beat

A PHENOMENON CALLED THE BEATLES!

by Bob Wooler [x]

Why do you think The Beatles are so popular? Many people many times have asked me this question since that fantastic night (Tuesday, December 27th, 1960) at Litherland Town Hall, when the impact of the act was first felt on this side of the River. I consider myself privileged to have been associated with the launching of the group on that exciting occasion, and grateful for the opportunities of presenting them to fever-pitch audiences at practically all of the group’s subsequent appearances prior to their last Hamburg trip.

Perhaps my close association with the group’s activities, both earlier this year and since their recent reappearance on the Merseyside scene, persuades people to think that I can produce a blueprint of The Beatles Success Story. It figures, I suppose, and if, in attempting to explain the popularity of their act, the following analysis is at variance with other people’s views, well that’s just one of those things. The question is nevertheless thought-provoking.

Well then, how to answer it? First some obvious observations. The Beatles are the biggest thing to have hit the Liverpool rock ’n’ roll setup in years. They were, and still are, the hottest local property any Rock promoter is likely to encounter. To many of these gentlemen’s ears, Beatle-brand noises are cacophonous on stage, but who can ignore the fact that the same sounds translate into the sweetest music this side of heaven at the box office!

I think The Beatles are No. 1 because they resurrected original style rock ’n’ roll music, the origins of which are to be found in American negro singers. They hit the scene when it had been emasculated by figures like Cliff Richard and sounds like those electronic wonders The Shadows and their many imitators. Gone was the drive that inflamed the emotions. This was studio set jungle music purveyed skillfully in a chartwise direction by arrangement with the A & R men.

The Beatles, therefore, exploded on a jaded scene. And to those people on the verge of quitting teendom—those who had experienced during their most impressionable years the impact of rhythm ’n’ blues music (raw rock ’n’ roll)—this was an experience, a process of regaining and reliving a style of sounds and associated feelings identifiable with their era.

Here again, in The Beatles, was the stuff that screams are made of. Here was the excitement—both physical and aural—that symbolized the rebellion of youth in the ennuied mid-1950’s. This was the real thing. Here they were, first five and then four human dynamos generating a beat which was irresistible. Turning back the Rock clock. Pounding out items from Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Carl Perkins, The Coasters and the other great etceteras of the era. Here they were, unmindful of uniformity of dress. Unkempt-like long hair. Rugged yet romantic, appealing to both sexes. With calculated naivete and an ingenious, throw-away approach to their music. Affecting indifference to audience response and yet always saying “Thank-you.” Reviving interest in and commanding enthusiasm for numbers which descended the Charts way back. Popularizing (more than any other group) flipside items—example, “Boys.” Compelling attention and influencing, wittingly or unwittingly, other groups in the style, choice and presentation of songs.

Essentially a vocal act, hardly ever instrumental (at least not in this country), here they were, independently minded, playing what they liked for kicks, kudos and cash. Privileged in having gained prestige and experience from a residency at the Hamburg Top Ten Club during the autumn and winter of last year. Musically authoritative and physically magnetic, example the mean, moody magnificence of drummer Pete Best—a sort of teenage Jeff Chandler. A remarkable variety of talented voices which song-wise sound distinctive, but when speaking, possess the same naivete of tone. Rhythmic revolutionaries. An act which from beginning to end is a succession of climaxes. A personality cult. Seemingly unambitious, yet fluctuating between the self-assured and the vulnerable. Truly a phenomenon—and also a predicament to promoters! Such are the fantastic Beatles. I don’t think anything like them will happen again.

———

Retrospective from Bill Harry, Editor of Mersey Beat [x]

Editor’s note: Cavern disc jockey Bob Wooler, a Mersey Beat columnist, penned this piece in the August 31 1961 issue of Mersey Beat. How prophetic his last sentence proved to be! In recent years I told Bob I intended to revive Mersey Beat and I wanted him back in the fold as a columnist. Sadly, he died early in 2002 while I was still panning the website.

There are one or two things I would like to point out. The main advertisement on this page was for NEMS record store. Apart from the fact that I regularly discussed the Beatles and the Mersey scene with Brian Epstein each time I dropped copies to him, in addition to the fact that he began to review records for me from Issue No. 3, it is obvious from the sort of coverage, such as this article, which the Beatles were receiving every issue, that Epstein was aware of the Beatles from Mersey Beat and not some youngsters asking for a record in his store some months later. Bob also mentions the impact the group made at Litherland Town Hall. It was Bob who persuaded promoter Brian Kelly to book them for their debut appearance there on that date. It's also interesting to note that the only member of the Beatles mentioned by name is drummer Pete Best. Bob nicked the 'mean, moody, magnificent' tag from Howard Hughes' description of Jane Russell in the movie 'The Outlaw.' As this article was published in 1961, Bob did get something wrong: he mentions a residency at the "Hamburg Top Ten Club during the autumn and winter of last year." They only had residencies at the Indra and Kaiserkeller in 1960, although they made a few appearances at the Top Ten (Their Top Ten residency didn't actually commence until 1961).

[mrepstein]

Brian Epstein at a press conference held at the Saville Theatre after the Beatles’ MBE Investiture ceremony, October 26, 1965. Photo by David Magnus.

[certainlyathrill]

it’s them! they’re the dreadful little polycule!

[get-back-homeward]

There’s a Zen story that Yoko once told me… A king sent his messenger to an artist to request a painting, he paid the artist money, and the artist said, “Okay, come back.” So a year goes by, and the messenger comes back and tells him, “The king’s waiting for your painting,” and the artist says, “Oh, hold on,” and whips it right off in front of him and says, “Here.” And the messenger says, “What’s this? The king paid you twenty thousand bucks for this shit, and you knock it off in five minutes?” And the painter replies, “Yeah, but I spent ten years thinking about it.” And there’s no way I could have written the Double Fantasy without those five years.

-

Mick’s put out consistently good work for twenty years, and will they give him a break? Will they ever say, “Look at him, he’s Number One, he’s only thirty-six and he’s put out a beautiful song, ‘Emotional Rescue.'”… And God help Bruce Springsteen when they decide he’s no longer God… Right now his fans are happy. He’s told them about being drunk and chasing girls and cars and everything and that’s about the level they enjoy. But when he gets down to facing his own success and growing older and having to produce it again and again, they’ll turn on him, and I hope he survives it. All he has to do is look at me or Mick. So it goes up and down, up and down — of course it does, but what are we, machines?… When they first criticized “From Me to You” as below par Beatles, that’s when I first realized you’ve got to keep it up, there’s some sort of system where you get on the wheel and you’ve got to keep going around.

[presumablystrange]

[ludmilachaibemachado]

July 8th 1968 - Three Beatles attend a press screening of Yellow Submarine🌷🍀🍁

Press preview of the film, "Yellow Submarine," at the Bowater House Cinema. Paul, George and Ringo attend, and pose for photographers with a life-sized cardboard cut-out of their Yellow Submarine cartoon images. John Lennon does not attend🍁🌷🍀

Via Beatles and Cavern Club Photos FB🪴

[elvispresley]

The Beatles - New York press conference (1965)

[get-back-homeward]

"We were good friends, and Ed said, 'Walter, Walter, tell me about those kids, tell me about those kids,'" Cronkite said. "'Those kids you just had on the air. What do you call them? The bugs or the beetles or something?'" [x]

"Do you have any fears that your public eventually will get tired of you and move on to a new favourite?"

The Beatles appearing on CBS News, interviewed by London correspondent Alexander Kendrick, 22nd November 1963. The piece debuted on the "CBS Morning News with Mike Wallace" on Nov. 22, 1963. Slated to run again that night on the "CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite," it was preempted by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Weeks later, on Dec. 10, Cronkite re-aired Kendrick's report. Ed Sullivan called him immediately -- setting in motion the Beatles on CBS again Feb. 9, 1964, with a record audience of 73 million viewers. CBS News reports on The Beatles in 1963

[diamondzart]

Achieved bliss today

[spacestation-l7]

hi!!! is my first time requesting something about yoko so I'm nervous is like coming out of the closet as a yoko fan •́⁠ ⁠ ⁠‿⁠ ⁠,⁠•̀

I wanted to know if you could do some doodles of Yoko and John, all fluffy and stuff? I absolutely LOVE the elegant design you gave her! I honestly thought she would be interspecies, so their marriage would be even more judged by the press (And remarking more of the hypocrite mindset of it), but the fact that the they're still the same species remark how they still matched each other freak, and we need more yoko ono beauty appreciation frfr. Is okay if you don't want to tho, have a good day!<3

HEHE THANK YOUUU I'm happy to hear you like her design!! :D Sorry I can't do much doodles currently cause I'm con-prepping but here's a doodle I've been wanting to do of them hehe

The reason I made Yoko the same species (or at least, a similar species but a different subspecies) is that in Zootles canon, John doesn't really go out of his way to seek out non-lagomorph partners (Cynthia had been a rabbit too). For all the bravado he has against Carnivores and bigger Herbivores, he's all bark and no bite and interspecies relationships Scare him to half death (see: Paul. And yes, it Was a relationship)

Yoko is a Harlequin Rabbit! In Beastars and Beast Complex canon, Harlequin Rabbits were considered royal breeds and often portrayed as snobbish and lowkey unlikeable by the other rabbits in the series. I think it's a funny thing to potray Yoko as this strange rabbit breed.

Press would often label them as "World's Most Hated Herbivore Couple". John, who'd been a symbol for Herbivore empowerment back then, became a sort of stain on the Herbivore community and Yoko took the brunt of it as well when The Zootles finally broke up. Hell, not even the rabbits appreciated them with how John really fueled the "rabbits are unfaithful creatures" stereotype.

Neither of them were really that well liked...

[paulandlindalove]

Paul and Linda McCartney. Álbum 'Press To Play' Photoshoot. 1986.

📸 1, 2, 3, 6, 7: George Hurrell.

📸 5: Mary McCartney.

[v197sstuff]

Ok, WHAT???

[beatleswings]

PAUL and LINDA McCARTNEY at Les Ambassadors Club in London at the wrap party for THE MAGIC CHRISTIAN. May 4, 1969.

[keanakooki]

Was just playing that Can't By Me Love (Beatles) Game on itch.io and my Spotify decided to play Boss Ass Bitch right as Paul answered the door at the very beginning.

I fully thought it was just part of the game-

[bound1996fan]

errkay major autism win

[ludmilachaibemachado]

January 17th 1968 - The Beatles attend Grapefruit press launch🌻🌺🌻

Grapefruit was a London-based band, brought together by Terry Doran of Apple Publishing, the music publishing company started and owned by the Beatles. The band was formed late 1967, was given its name by John Lennon, and to promote the release of their first single, "Dear Delilah" press conference was organized with three Beatles joining🌺

Via Beatles and Cavern Club Photos FB🌹