Beatles - Get Back new book

I bought Some Fun Tonight from the author when he first had it a Beatlefest. It is a great book if you're interested in the Beatles' American tours. I suggest you get it while it is still available.

 

i'll keep it in mind, tho the UK book is $84.76 and will take around a month to ship!!

Paul goes on the back burner maybe??

 

Probably my next purchase after bills and expenses.

 

I cancelled my order. The book is not even listed on their website anymore.

 

99, would you believe that I was me the whole time?

 

99, would you believe that I was me the whole time?

 

Fascinating video compilation of the photos and audio from the 16th January session with just Paul - the Oh! Darling and Ob-La-Di were originally slated for inclusion in the LIB 50th set:

 

Some folks like @MaybeI'mMrsVandebilt and @Mike M have remarked on the phenomenon of 'JohnandPaul' - their continued closeness during these sessions, and I wanted to put forth this engrossing podcast called One Sweet Dream which explores the breakup and particularly Lennon and McCartney's relationship - neither romantic nor sexual nor completely platonic - but perhaps something more cosmic and transcendent than words can express.

I think it gives a lot of good context and their hypotheses are not as outlandish as they may seem when they're backed up with primary sources and recollections.

One Sweet Dream

 

Thanks for the heads up. I am familiar with One Sweet Dream. Some of their episodes are very good. But I was puzzled by the latest one. Very clickbaity headline about Paul's 'unhealthy obsession' with 'promoting a simplified' version of the break-up via John's I want a divorce. How he has reduced it to a soundbite or some such. In an interview situation with time constraints, is he supposed to go into a deep analytical dive about that topic? Of course it'll be a soundbite. I think this is an example of how sometimes podcasters/Beatles fans can definitely project. lol. Like, just because podcasters are inclined to go into deep analysis doesn't mean that Paul would, or should.

Another Kind of Mind is also a very good podcast, although the quality is a bit inconsistent. They do an excellent series on John and Paul in the 70s and I think that episode 3 of that series is one of the best discussions on their relationship I've ever heard...however by episode 4 they've gone into projection overdrive. Still worth a listen.

There's a thread of other podcast recommendations here in case you're interested.
Recommended Beatles / Solo Podcasts

Also, have you seen the docuseries on YouTube called Understanding Lennon and McCartney? No commentary; just images, film footage and interviews that speak for themselves. A work of art and a real labour of love for the film maker.

 

I was just listening to the latest two episodes of One Sweet Dream and found them kind of odd for this very reason. Why do so many people seem to blame Paul for the clickbait headlines? First, most of the time the headline is NOT what he actually said. And Paul doesn't write the headlines!

Frankly I didn't get a lot out of this latest series at all. Its series on Ram and its earlier series on the breakup were good. But these last two are not worth the time (they are also way too long).

 

Perhaps controversial opinion here but:

I have enjoyed and gotten far more out of the Get Back book than out of the Let it Be Box Set. A key reason, I suppose, is the price tag of each. The book is a FAR better value for money than the box set. And I have a bit of buyer's remorse about spending $125 on the LIB set. McCartney's new two-volume sort-of-autobiography only cost me $60 and it's an absolutely superb collection, filled with all sorts of new photos, memorabilia, and essays. Terrific quality set, whereas the whole LIB set now seems kind of ... shabby for the $$$.

Anyway I feel like I'll be flipping through Get Back and The Lyrics books for years to come, but not so much the LIB box set.

 

Agree. I have gotten a lot out of the boxset and I'm probably a lot more satisfied with it than you. However, the book is priceless as far as I'm concerned. What a revelation it has been! Maybe if you've heard all the bootlegs it wouldn't be so valuable but I'm not familiar with them, so this book has been incredible to read. And I agree with the value for money - for what you get, it's almost a bargain, really. This, together with Paul's Lyrics book means it's been something of a book bonanza for the Beatles!

 

I haven't listened to the latest One Sweet Dream yet so I can't comment on that, but I get beyond annoyed with the media pulling out one comment out of a long interview and trying to make it sound like Paul is rewriting history. Usually, it's the same thing he has been saying since the 60's. With the "John wants a divorce" thing it was the same thing John said multiple times. That sort of thing drives me crazy. I agree with you on episode 4 of the Pizza and Fairytales thing, they did drift off into a lot of projection/speculation there.

Understanding Lennon and McCartney is wonderful. I was amazed the first time I watched it with all of the footage and interviews they showed that I haven't seen before.

 

I'm pretty critical of Beatle books. There's been so many horribly written, factually wrong books that perpetuate the same old myths. - But I really really enjoyed Some Fun Tonight. I too bought it directly from the author at a Beatlefest here in Chicago. - I'd say it's worth getting, if you care about such things. And I'm always happy with a book that can provide some good insight to something so specific related to The Beatles history.

 

I'm not sure where I saw it, but perhaps on the Hey Dullblog website, but someone had comparison pics of this photo of John/Paul (or at least from those sessions) and later John/Yoko photos where it seems that maybe John had recreated the photo. Same for photos of Stu and Astrid. The Starting Over cover is strikingly similar to a photo of Stu/Astrid.

 

Understanding Lennon and McCartney is like going into a dreamscape isn't it? You sort of feel like you've entered another world and you're sad to see it end and return to reality. It's just incredible film making. I don't know why it hasn't been picked up by Netflix or Amazon. They ought to snap it up! Yeah, I get so tired of the Paul rewriting history thing. As some have said here, memories are not exactly a science. They're unreliable. And you can easily conflate two separate things, or misremember. Or in Paul's case just get fed up of saying the same thing over and over for 50 years! lol

 

When I read that section, I was reminded of a comment someone made on a John focused website I used to visit years ago. They made the comment that John and Paul had married women that were similar to their musical partner. Lots of people disagreed, but I think there is some truth in it. Paul and Yoko don't seem so far apart in there thinking here. I think they were always the "idea" people, and probably both inspired John or spurred on his creativity.

 

I keep mentioning (and I'm not doing it to brag, because it's nothing to brag about... but I figure most people are like me and don't see every post everyone writes) that I've listened to all the available Nagra tapes in order, more than once. (not to mention the thousands of times I've listened to pieces of them).
I've also read the great Doug Suply/@RayS books many times over.
I should also say, I have the original UK book that came with the LP. My dad got it back in 1970, so I've always had it.
Therefore everything written in this new book is "old news" to me.
But having said that, reading a lot of these things (like the things mentioned above) in print somehow gives them a different perspective. - In fact there were quite a few moments where because the chat is quiet or because of someone's accent or talking over/between someone, I didn't quite grasp the exact words the first time I heard them, even if I understood the meaning of the conversation. - Doug & Ray's book was really great at helping me through some of the conversations I didn't get the first time around...

Because this book puts things in context by date, it is a HUGE improvement. In fact, the old book mashes conversations together that don't even really go together.

I think this book is done wonderfully and the highlights are great at giving insight to those who haven't wasted so much of their lives listening to the tapes!

I think it's a great job and a good look into the sessions, from a "book" sort of view.

I don't feel that way about the box set unfortunately. Especially the chosen pieces of the Nagra tapes, a good portion of which were already used on the Fly On The Wall disc. And I don't mean the musical snips, I mean the conversation. - I find it a little ironic that Giles Martin wouldn't use performances because they don't warrant more than one listen, but somehow the "I don't know why I'm moaning" discussion does. - Not that it's not interesting, but without the context of everything leading up to that, it's not only not that interesting, but it doesn't even capture the attitudes of the month, it's the attitude of that particular day, which is hard to understand why it's interesting if you haven't heard the rest...

 

I love GB and very much enjoy LIB 50, and am licking my chops over The Lyrics, so I'm like a pig in mud I suppose!

 

It's truly a great time to be a Beatles fan. We might be overwhelmed by the time the Disney channel documentary arrives!

 

I know! I can't keep up with it all at the moment with my work and family commitments - I'm finding it hard to find the time! But it's a nice problem to have. Darn my job. Why can't someone pay me to sit around reading/listening to all things Beatles related? lol.

 

Paul was a guest today (Wednesday November 3) on National Public Radio's "Fresh Air" program...
Talks about "The Lyrics" and the new "Get Back" film...
Not much in-depth, but worth a listen...

 

What's everyone think is cooler, the prints in the Costco version or the lobby cards in the Target version?

I'm debating whether to just get the Target version or have a friend with a Costco membership pick up the book there for me.

 

I love "SFT" so I vote for it.

The Macca book ain't going anywhere!

 

I agree, but it might be a nightmare of licensing with all of the various footage shown. I know the creator of it has had to edit it a few times based on objections to parts of songs, etc. I still think someone should hire this person to produce a documentary for them. It's brilliant.