ANALOG vs DIGITAL - Ultra High Fidelity Magazine

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him, to get himself a guitar and an electric
bass and join his group. That group,
briefly called Johnny and the Moondogs,
evolves into the Silver Beetles. The seed
is planted, and it will soon grow into the
most extravagant flower in the history of
popular music.
Phase one
It is in May of 1960 that the Silver
Beetles play for then famed impresario
Larry Parnes. Not much impressed,
Parnes nonetheless engages them to fill
in the breaks during Johnny Gentle’s
tour of Scotland. The seven-concert tour
is a flop, but it scarcely matters. Back in
Liverpool they begin to play the Jaracana
Coffee Bar, whose owner Allen Williams
had written some arrangements for them
and who will soon become their manager.
It is their next step to local fame.
Legend has it that it was in a dream
that a mysterious visitor told John
Lennon to change the spelling of
“Beetles” to the one that would become
so famous…to the despair of English
teachers everywhere.
In August they open a two-month
engagement at the Indra Club in another
tough port town, Hamburg. For just
30 Deutsche Marks a day each, they
play seven hours a night, every day
62 ULTRA HIGH FIDELITY Magazine
of the week, for an audience
of prostitutes and noisy
drunks. It is a hard school,
though a useful one for those
prepared to learn. Without
much of a developed repertoire
they draw on sources
across the Atlantic. Fascinated
by African-American
singers, Gospel, R&B and
rock’n’roll, idolizing Elvis,
they practice during long
hours. Only amphetamines
keep them awake during their
long gigs, after which they
sleep on makeshift beds down
a nauseating corridor next to
the toilets.
By October their growing
popularity has won them an
upgrade to a better club, the
Kaiserkeller, but their stay
ends abruptly in December,
when the police discovers
that George is a minor and
deports him. His bandmates, outraged,
break the place up and get thrown out
of the country too.
But there is no time for melancholy.
Barely skipping a beat, they open at
Liverpool’s Cavern Club in February.
They supplement their meagre pay
with such day jobs as truck driver and
window-dresser.
Finally they return to the Casbah
and then to the Litherland Town Hall,
where crowds respond enthusiastically
to this free-form, slightly wild, brand
of rock that the leather-jacketed Beatles
had developed in Hamburg.
Just two years have gone by, but by
now these are experienced musicians.
They are also quick studies.
A turning point
By April George has finally reached
his majority, and the Beatles are back
in Hamburg with a 13-week contract
at the Top Ten Club, backing a betterknown
musician, Tony Sheridan. In May
the Beatles accompany Sheridan on a
recording of My Bonnie, When the Saints
Go Marching In and Why. John, Paul and
George also do the background vocals.
On the same recording are pieces featuring
the Beatles: Ain’t She Sweet (John),
and an instrumental parody of the group
The Shadows (George and John).
During that period they lose Stu
Sutcliffe, who returns to the visual arts.
Paul takes over on bass guitar. Stu’s lady
friend Astrid Kirchherr had created for
Stu a hair style inspired by a French
fashion, with hair dropping low on the
brow. George is the first to adopt the new
look, and John and Paul follow during a
trip to Paris. The “mop top” Beatles are
born.
Decca blows it
By the Fall of 1961 the Beatles are
emerging as a force to be reckoned with
both in Liverpool and in Hamburg.
They have fashioned a highly individual
style, allowing them to capture the
attention of the noisy clientele of these
working class port cities. It is surprising
that, despite the vulgarity of the venues
they played, they would incorporate
vulgarity neither in their music nor in
their lives.
October 28th is a second major turning
point in their development. One of
Liverpool’s largest record shops, the
North End Music Store, has been receiving
numerous requests for a recording
that could be found in no catalog: My
Bonnie. Worse, the sales manager, who
takes pride in offering the hippest successes,
has never heard of this group
which calls itself “The Beatles.” The
manager’s name is Brian Epstein.
Puzzled, Epstein goes to hear them at
the Cavern Club. Legend has it he fell in
love with John Lennon, but it’s certain
that he is fascinated by these youths with
the far out look, and he doesn’t hesitate
long. He sees they have incredible stage
presence, and they know how to draw
the crowd along. Brian would later say
that he considered that the decibel level
of their playing bordered on dangerous,
but he was con vinced that they were what
the young generation was waiting for.
Epstein has never managed anyone
before, and he has to inquire how it is
done. He finally writes up a contract
tilted heavily in his favor. The Beatles
sign, though Epstein himself offers no
more than a handshake. Still, it should
be said he will spare no expense to take
his adoptees to the Everest of the musical
world.
On New Years’ Day, Epstein gets