Tag: Beatles

The angel and devil on John Lennon’s shoulders….

By Donovan Day John Lennon had a reputation as being arrogant and not suffering fools gladly. More than one associate over the years has said he could intimidate those around him with a sharp word from his legendary wit. And yet.... I just finished reading a number of books about John's last decade on earth … Continue reading The angel and devil on John Lennon’s shoulders…. →

On John Lennon’s 76th birthday, meet the woman writing 9 books on John’s life….

By Donovan Day For those Beatles fans who think Marc Lewisohn is a being a bit presumptuous with three giant tomes on the Beatles lives and career, I'd like to introduce you to Jude Southerland Kessler who is planning to write 9 books on John's life. Scoff if you will but Ms. Kessler is now … Continue reading On John Lennon’s 76th birthday, meet the woman writing 9 books on John’s life…. →

New book full of insight about John Lennon…

By Donovan Day A soon-to-be released book by John Lennon's immigration lawyer back in the mid-70s contains a small pleasure chest of John anecdotes by a first-hand observer. Lawyer Leon Wildes was John and Yoko's lawyer as they fought deportation charges. Wildes' new book "John Lennon vs. the USA" details the legal battles Wildes fought … Continue reading New book full of insight about John Lennon… →

The earliest of fans remembers The Beatles…

By Donovan Day "Yesterday, Memories of a Beatles Fan" is one of those books suggested by Amazon's genius bots, no doubt because I buy and read a lot of Beatles books. I had never heard of it but it sounded intriguing--the recollections of an early fan's memories of the boys. I downloaded a sample and … Continue reading The earliest of fans remembers The Beatles… →

Q & A with a Beatles memorabilia seller…

By Donovan Day From time to time, I imagine myself in a dusty auction house or garage sale or used bookstore somewhere coming across a priceless piece of Beatles memorabilia. An inscribed book or one of John Lennon's old doodles. Hasn't happened yet but we can all dream. Some people don't have to dream. They … Continue reading Q & A with a Beatles memorabilia seller… →

Brian Epstein was NOT the 5th Beatle…George Martin was!

By Donovan Day [Note: I wrote this blog post a few weeks ago and made my case for why I thought producer George Martin could lay claim to the title 5th Beatle. It always bothered me to read the 1997 quote from Paul McCartney that claimed Brian Epstein as the 5th Beatle. Overnight, Martin passed … Continue reading Brian Epstein was NOT the 5th Beatle…George Martin was! →

Best product placement ever? Ringo’s drum kit on Ed Sullivan…

I always knew that Ringo's famous drum head that he played on the Ed Sullivan show had that famous Beatles drop-T logo and, above it, the name of the company that manufactured the entire black oyster kit that Ringo loved so much. How did the logo come about? Turns out that, when Ringo joined the band, Brian Epstein took him shopping to a place called "Drum City"....