Friday, 9 December 2011
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
Saturday, 8 October 2011
Paul McCartney diz que os Beatles teriam se reunido
Paul McCartney acredita que os Beatles teriam provavelmente voltado a tocar juntos caso nenhum deles tivesse morrido. Em entrevista ao Daily Express Macca disse: "Se John e George ainda estivessem aqui, é bem provável que nós teríamos uma reunião dos Beatles. Eu acho que a gente iria amolecer a ponto de falar 'vamos lá'". O ex-baixista da banda lembra que quando se juntavam para tocar por mais que eles estivessem discutindo o som resultante era sempre ótimo. McCartney de qualquer forma diz não ser grande fã desse lance do "e se?", mas que é divertido especular. Na entrevista ele também aproveitou para lembrar uma das histórias mais divertidas envolvendo ele e John Lennon. Em 1976 o ainda novo programa Saturday Night Live levou ao ar um esquete onde o produtor do programa Lorne Michaels oferecia a quantia de U$3 mil para que os Beatles se reunissem para tocar três músicas no programa. O que Lorne não podia imaginar é que McCartney estava vendo o programa na casa de Lennon - os dois estavam voltando a se falar após anos afastados - e que eles realmente cogitaram ir até o estúdio se apresentar. Infelizmente eles desistiram da ideia e assim a última chance do mundo ver John e Paul juntos no palco foi abortada. John Lennon foi assassinado em 1980 e George Harrison morreu em 2001 após perder luta contra um câncer.
Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Papel higiênico rejeitado pelos Beatles é leiloado
Segundo o jornal The Sun, o papel higiênico que foi rejeitado pelos Beatles durante a gravação do álbum Abbey Road, em 1969, foi leiloado na Inglaterra. Os integrantes do grupo não quiseram usá-lo por ser duro e brilhante demais. Um fã arrematou o rolo por 85 libras e disse: "não é todo mundo que tem um papel higiênico no banheiro rejeitado por John Lennon".
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
Brian Ray vai se apresentar em São Paulo
Se você vai estar em São Paulo no dia 18 de outubro, eis aí uma boa pedida pra tomar uma birita e ouvir um bom rock: Brian Ray, guitarrista da banda de Paul McCartney, vai fazer uma apresentação. Anote aí!
Data:
18 de outubro de 2011
Local:
Na Mata Cafe
Rua da Mata 70
Itaim Bibi - Sao Paulo/SP
Saturday, 27 August 2011
1964: os Beatles e Bob Dylan se encontram
"Olhando em retrospecto, eu ainda vejo aquela noite como um dos grandes momentos da minha vida. Na verdade, eu tinha a consciência de que estava dando início ao encontro mais frutífero na história da música pop, pelo menos até então. Meu objetivo foi fazer acontecer o que aconteceu, que foi a melhor música de nossa época. Eu fico feliz com a idéia de que eu fui o arquiteto, um participante e o cronista de um momento-chave da história."
Assim o jornalista norte-americano Al Aronowitz se refere ao clássico encontro que, exatamente há 40 anos, mudou a cara da música pop e da cultura popular, quando, no dia 28 de agosto de 1964, os Beatles foram apresentados a Bob Dylan e este os apresentou à maconha. O encontro, ocorrido no Delmonico Hotel, em Nova York, fez com que ambos artistas começassem a se enxergar como partes de um mesmo universo, cedendo atrativos musicais entre si --não havia mais consumismo infanto-juvenil de um lado e cabecismo adulto do outro, tudo era a mesma coisa. Nascia a música pop moderna.
O que a princípio parecia se tornar um breve alô entre jovens ícones se tornou um acelerador para novas certezas que ambas as carreiras vinham desenvolvendo. Fenômeno de mercado, os Beatles eram uma banda elétrica adolescente, cantando baladas de amor e petardos dançantes com maestria inigualável. Já o acústico Dylan nascera na mesma cena folk pacifista que habitava o bairro boêmio do Village e glorificava autores beat e músicos do povo.
Mas logo a seguir as coisas mudariam de figura. Dylan abraçaria a guitarra como um violão de maior alcance, ferindo seus próprios fãs puristas com decibéis de eletricidade distorcida, ao mesmo tempo em que deformava a própria lírica das canções de protesto para um panteão bíblico-pop que buscava a pureza da alma americana ao mesmo tempo em que se perdia em seus próprios pecados. Já os Beatles deixariam de lado o iê-iê-iê para mergulhar fundo em si mesmos, emergindo de seu experimentalismo intuitivo --parte nostálgico, parte ingênuo-- com o melhor legado que o formato canção conheceu.
Aronowitz havia entrevistado John Lennon e descobriu que ele considerava Bob Dylan um "ego igual" e, amigo de Dylan, passou a pensar em como aproximar os dois artistas. Até que, naquele 28 de agosto, Al recebe um telefonema --era Lennon, de passagem com os Beatles por Nova York:
"Cadê ele?".
"Quem?"
"Dylan!"
"Ah, ele está em Woodstock, mas eu posso trazê-lo!"
"Do it!" (Faça!), mandou John do outro lado da linha, e o jornalista percebeu que podia dar ignição na própria história. Aronowitz combinou com Dylan, que veio acompanhado do roadie Victor Maimudes, ao volante. Com Al no carro, foram em direção a Manhattan, chegando logo ao hotel na Park Avenue. Lá, os três alcançaram o andar em que os Beatles estavam, sendo recebidos por um amontoado de artistas, radialistas, policiais e jornalistas, bebendo cerveja e conversando, que esperavam a vez de entrar na suíte para conversar com os Beatles, que estavam na capa da revista "Life" daquela semana.
Dylan entrou rapidamente, e a recepção foi feita pelo empresário do grupo, Brian Epstein, que, ao perguntar, entre champanhe e vinhos franceses, o que Dylan gostaria de beber, ouviu o pedido por "vinho barato" --para despachar o roadie dos Beatles, Mal Evans, em busca da tal garrafa. O encontro vinha frio, e os Beatles ofereceram pílulas para Bob, que sugeriu que eles fumassem maconha. Os ingleses responderam que nunca haviam fumado --consideravam a maconha uma droga pesada como a heroína, restrita a músicos de jazz e escritores malditos.
Pasmo, Dylan perguntou sobre aquela música que eles compuseram sobre estar chapado. Sem entender o que ele queria dizer, o cantor folk citou uma passagem em que os Beatles cantavam "I get high! I get high! I get high!" ("Eu fico chapado"), e Lennon esclareceu que era "I Want to Hold Your Hand", cuja letra, na verdade, dizia "I can't hide! I can't hide! I can't hide!" ("Eu não posso esconder!"). Desfeito o mal-entendido, Dylan sugeriu que todos fumassem um baseado.
Os Beatles, Dylan, Mal, Victor, Brian, Al e o assessor de imprensa Derek Taylor se dirigiram ao fundo da suíte do hotel, onde se trancaram e fecharam as cortinas. Bob Dylan começou a enrolar o cigarro, mas deixou o fumo cair por duas vezes, deixando que seu roadie terminasse o serviço. Aceso, o cigarro foi passado para Lennon, que passou a vez para o baterista Ringo Starr, que, por desconhecer os rituais canábicos, fumou-o inteiro, sem passá-lo adiante. Isso fez com que Al incentivasse a produção de mais cigarros --e logo cada um tinha o seu.
"Foi muito engraçado!", lembra Paul McCartney em suas memórias, "Many Years from Now", "o negócio dos Beatles eram humor, tínhamos muito humor. Havia um lado do humor que usávamos como proteção e, com aquilo ainda por cima, as coisas ficaram mesmo hilárias".
"Virou uma espécie de festinha", continua Paul, "voltamos todos para a sala, bebemos e coisa e tal, mas não acho que alguém precisasse de mais fumo depois daquilo. Passei a noite toda correndo para lá e para cá, tentando achar papel e caneta porque, quando voltei para o quarto, descobri o sentido da vida. Queria contar ao meu pessoal como era aquilo. Eu era o grande descobridor, naquele mar de maconha, em Nova York".
"Até a vinda do rap, a música pop era largamente derivada daquela noite no Delmonico. Aquele encontro não mudou apenas a música pop, mudou nosso tempo", lembra Al Aronowitz, em sua coluna on-line "The Blacklisted Journalist". Logo depois, Dylan lançaria, em seqüência, os discos "Bringing It All Back Home", "Highway 61 Revisited" e "Blonde on Blonde", enquanto os Beatles trariam "Rubber Soul", "Revolver" e "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". Pura história.
Sunday, 21 February 2010
George Harrison’s son Dhani won’t team up with Beatles’ boys
George Harrison’s son Dhani says he has no plans to team up with the children of the former Beatles and form a band. Although the 31-year old musician is on good terms with Julian and Sean Lennon, James McCartney and Ringo Starr’s son Zak Starkey, he is currently focussing on his own band thenewno2. “We just keep to ourselves. Everyone’s constantly trying to suggest that there might be something there but it’s not what we want to do at all,”.
The Beatles Now Appearing on Your iPhone
Metatron Inc. today announced that its i-Mobilize subsidiary has released five new Video Apps from The Beatles, John Lennon and George Harrison on the iPad, iPhone and iTouch platforms, under a license from Orbital Media Group. The titles are:
1. "The Journey," a look at the remarkable formation and ultimate rise of the world's first supergroup. Utilizing rare, archival footage, news reels and interviews, this program charts the Beatles' success and follows their careers through to the untimely deaths of John Lennon and George Harrison. The Beatles Journey features various conversations and filmed events that follow the group's relentless sweep through the musical boundaries of the world.
2. "Big Beat Box," a documentary about the rise of Beatlemania. The music includes an "imagined" performance of a lost John Lennon song.
3. "The Long and Winding Road," a five-part documentary on the history of the "Fab Four."
4. "John Lennon -- The Messenger" features audio tracks "In Spite of all the Dangers" and "In His Own Words," and rare footage to spotlight Lennon with his life prior to and beyond The Beatles.
5. "George Harrison -- The Quiet One," which looks at the life of the youngest member of the Beatles. The video explores his complex nature and his life journey with interviews with those that were close to him. Using rare film footage, it examines his time with the Beatles, his undoubted musical talent, and his long held spiritual beliefs that were a comfort to him until his untimely death at age 58. The title provides rare insight into the man of music in his own words.
Joe Riehl, CEO of Metatron Inc., said, "Beatles titles are some of the most popular media available and we are thrilled to be able to release these titles in conjunction with our friends at Orbital Media Group. We continue to work with them to broaden our relationship and hope to bring more incredible content like this to iTunes in the coming weeks."
1. "The Journey," a look at the remarkable formation and ultimate rise of the world's first supergroup. Utilizing rare, archival footage, news reels and interviews, this program charts the Beatles' success and follows their careers through to the untimely deaths of John Lennon and George Harrison. The Beatles Journey features various conversations and filmed events that follow the group's relentless sweep through the musical boundaries of the world.
2. "Big Beat Box," a documentary about the rise of Beatlemania. The music includes an "imagined" performance of a lost John Lennon song.
3. "The Long and Winding Road," a five-part documentary on the history of the "Fab Four."
4. "John Lennon -- The Messenger" features audio tracks "In Spite of all the Dangers" and "In His Own Words," and rare footage to spotlight Lennon with his life prior to and beyond The Beatles.
5. "George Harrison -- The Quiet One," which looks at the life of the youngest member of the Beatles. The video explores his complex nature and his life journey with interviews with those that were close to him. Using rare film footage, it examines his time with the Beatles, his undoubted musical talent, and his long held spiritual beliefs that were a comfort to him until his untimely death at age 58. The title provides rare insight into the man of music in his own words.
Joe Riehl, CEO of Metatron Inc., said, "Beatles titles are some of the most popular media available and we are thrilled to be able to release these titles in conjunction with our friends at Orbital Media Group. We continue to work with them to broaden our relationship and hope to bring more incredible content like this to iTunes in the coming weeks."
Sir Paul McCartney Backs IFAW in Action Campaign to Safeguard Hunting Ban and Urges 'No Return to Cruelty'
Sir Paul McCartney pledged "no return to cruelty" as he backed an IFAW in Action campaign to protect the ban on the cruel sport of hunting with dogs. Five years today since the Hunting Act came into force in England and Wales, Sir Paul speaks out in the new report 'No Return to Cruelty' by IFAW in Action, a part of the global International Fund for Animal Welfare movement.
He said: "When the cruel and unnecessary 'sport' of hunting with dogs was banned, I, along with the majority of the British public, backed this historic victory for wildlife. The scenes described in this report of how animals were hunted down and savaged with dogs for fun before the Hunting Act 2004 was passed are simply barbaric and shocking and should remain a part of Britain's past, not its future."
Conservative Party leader David Cameron has pledged to allow MPs a free vote on whether to repeal the Act if he becomes Prime Minister. This is despite the fact that a return to hunting would be completely out of step with the views of the majority of the British public, including his own party. Polling by Ipsos MORI* in September 2009 found strong cross-party support for maintaining the ban, including almost twice as many intending Conservative supporters backing the Act as those that want it repealed (62% vs 33%). Overall, 75% of the British public do not want fox hunting to be made legal again.
IFAW in Action's new report has been sent to prospective parliamentary candidates, urging them to remember the horrific cruelty inflicted on foxes, deer, hares and mink before the introduction of the Hunting Act and to protect the ban. IFAW in Action has also released a three-minute compilation of video footage showing examples of hunting cruelty before the ban. Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW in Action, said: "The vast majority of the British public have long opposed animal cruelty and do not want the archaic practice of chasing and killing animals for fun to return to our countryside. We urge prospective parliamentary candidates to read our report and view the footage and remember why this vital ban was introduced."
IFAW in Action is also urging members of the public to read the report and view the footage at www.ifaw.org/noreturntocruelty and to ask their local parliamentary candidates where they stand on the issue. When hunting with dogs was banned in 2004 there was already overwhelming evidence to show that hunting with dogs is cruel. Today that evidence is even stronger with the release of a new report this month by Professor Donald Broom of Cambridge University.
Professor Broom describes the evidence of cruelty in hunting with dogs as "compelling", with foxes, deer, hares and mink experiencing considerable fear and distress when being pursued by hounds or when being dug out. Sir Paul McCartney added: "Don't let politicians bring back cruelty. Help IFAW keep cruelty out of the countryside and back the ban on hunting with dogs."
He said: "When the cruel and unnecessary 'sport' of hunting with dogs was banned, I, along with the majority of the British public, backed this historic victory for wildlife. The scenes described in this report of how animals were hunted down and savaged with dogs for fun before the Hunting Act 2004 was passed are simply barbaric and shocking and should remain a part of Britain's past, not its future."
Conservative Party leader David Cameron has pledged to allow MPs a free vote on whether to repeal the Act if he becomes Prime Minister. This is despite the fact that a return to hunting would be completely out of step with the views of the majority of the British public, including his own party. Polling by Ipsos MORI* in September 2009 found strong cross-party support for maintaining the ban, including almost twice as many intending Conservative supporters backing the Act as those that want it repealed (62% vs 33%). Overall, 75% of the British public do not want fox hunting to be made legal again.
IFAW in Action's new report has been sent to prospective parliamentary candidates, urging them to remember the horrific cruelty inflicted on foxes, deer, hares and mink before the introduction of the Hunting Act and to protect the ban. IFAW in Action has also released a three-minute compilation of video footage showing examples of hunting cruelty before the ban. Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW in Action, said: "The vast majority of the British public have long opposed animal cruelty and do not want the archaic practice of chasing and killing animals for fun to return to our countryside. We urge prospective parliamentary candidates to read our report and view the footage and remember why this vital ban was introduced."
IFAW in Action is also urging members of the public to read the report and view the footage at www.ifaw.org/noreturntocruelty and to ask their local parliamentary candidates where they stand on the issue. When hunting with dogs was banned in 2004 there was already overwhelming evidence to show that hunting with dogs is cruel. Today that evidence is even stronger with the release of a new report this month by Professor Donald Broom of Cambridge University.
Professor Broom describes the evidence of cruelty in hunting with dogs as "compelling", with foxes, deer, hares and mink experiencing considerable fear and distress when being pursued by hounds or when being dug out. Sir Paul McCartney added: "Don't let politicians bring back cruelty. Help IFAW keep cruelty out of the countryside and back the ban on hunting with dogs."
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
The Beatles' infamous butcher cover inspires a wine collectible
Beatles artist Shannon has taken the Beatles butcher cover and given it some vintage through the design of a new set of wine bottles. She says that when Liverpool's Hard Day's Night Hotel was created, over 100 rooms were designed to fit a line-up of historical Beatles facts. She was given the task of creating original paintings to fit each room.One such room was "The Butcher Room". Shannon created her own version of the controversial 1966 album cover there, which is now featured on a pair of bottles of red and white wine that can be purchased as a set. Only 50 sets are available. Cost for most of the sets is $59.99 for the set, plus shipping and handling. The bottles numbered #1 and #9 are $199.99 a set and are specially packaged with a “Signed by Shannon” print of the set on each bottle. Bottles numbered #2 through #10 are $99.99 a set and similarly packaged with a “Signed by Shannon” print of the set on each bottle. More information and to order: 310-739-4930.
Beatles' Abbey Road Studios 'could be saved by National Trust'
The Trust said members of the public had been in touch to urge the organisation to take on the property after the issue was discussed on Chris Evans' show on BBC Radio 2 and on BBC Radio Five Live. People have also been discussing whether the National Trust could save the world-famous studios on Facebook and Twitter. EMI's private equity parent Terra Firma is said to be hoping the north London site - made famous by the Beatles album and zebra crossing cover shot - could raise tens of millions of pounds.A spokesman for the National Trust said: ''It's not often that the public spontaneously suggests that we should acquire a famous building. ''However, Abbey Road recording studios appear to be very dear to the nation's heart - to the extent that we will take soundings as to whether a campaign is desirable or even feasible.'' The building in St John's Wood could have a price tag of £10 million to £30 million, and the National Trust is asking the public whether they think the studios should be saved.
If there is enough momentum, a campaign could be launched to buy the studios on behalf of the nation. Former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, who recorded most of the band's songs at Abbey Road, has told the BBC's Newsnight that he hoped the studios could be saved. He said: ''There are a few people who have been associated with the studio for a long time who were talking about mounting some bid to save it. ''I sympathise with them. I hope they can do something, it'd be great.'' He added: ''I have got so many memories there with the Beatles. ''It still is a great studio. So it would be lovely if somebody could get a thing together to save it.'' The National Trust already owns Mendips and 20 Forthlin Road, the childhood homes of John Lennon and Sir Paul McCartney in Liverpool.
Paul McCartney for Isle of Wight Festival?
The Beatles sang about the Isle of Wight on 'When I'm Sixty Four' and now rumours suggest that Paul McCartney is lined up to headline the festival. The trip may be three years too late (the singer is 67) but according to Daily Star, the showman is set to book a Ticket To Ryde this June to join Jay-Z and The Strokes at the top of the bill.
Kings Of Leon have also been touted for the same slot, but they are more likely to appear at V Festival. Vampire Weekend, Orbital, Daisy Dares You and Shakespears Sister are also confirmed for the Isle of Wight event this year. Click here for the latest Isle of Wight Festival line-up. Tickets for Isle of Wight 2010 are priced at £150 for a weekend adult camping pass, while a child (7-12) camping ticket costs £75. Isle Of Wight Festival 2010 will take place at Seaclose Park, Newport, from 11-13 June 2010. Ferries tickets from Red Funnel are on sale now with festival tickets. Book now to avoid the rush and the disappointment of not being able to get onto the Island.
Kings Of Leon have also been touted for the same slot, but they are more likely to appear at V Festival. Vampire Weekend, Orbital, Daisy Dares You and Shakespears Sister are also confirmed for the Isle of Wight event this year. Click here for the latest Isle of Wight Festival line-up. Tickets for Isle of Wight 2010 are priced at £150 for a weekend adult camping pass, while a child (7-12) camping ticket costs £75. Isle Of Wight Festival 2010 will take place at Seaclose Park, Newport, from 11-13 June 2010. Ferries tickets from Red Funnel are on sale now with festival tickets. Book now to avoid the rush and the disappointment of not being able to get onto the Island.
New book on Beatles’ early Liverpool life
A LIVERPOOL man who had to give up work because of a painful muscular illness grew so tired of reading inaccurate Beatles books he decided to write “the definitive article” himself. David Bedford spent nearly 10 years compiling “Liddypool – Birthplace of the Beatles”, focusing on the Fab Four’s time in the city before fame and fortune beckoned. And Mr Beresford, 44, who suffers from the painful condition fibromyalgia, said his research has proven definitively that the nickname The Fab Four is a misnomer – all in all, 27 Liverpool musicians came and went from the band in its early days as its name changed multiple times before settling on The Beatles.
Beatles historian Hunter Davies declared the book “the best illustrated book on the Beatles I’ve ever seen.” Yesterday at Liverpool’s town hall, former insurance worker Mr Beresford met Lord Mayor of Liverpool Cllr Mike Storey to look at one of the first prints, which has been donated to the city. Mr Beresford – who moved to Dingle from Guildford with his family aged four and attended Ringo’s old primary school St Silas – said the book had been a labour of love over the years, “less a hard day’s night than a hard day’s decade”.
He added: “When I had to give up work I started reading Beatles books and saw other writers – mostly from over the Atlantic – writing things about Liverpool and getting it wrong. “To understand the Beatles, you have to understand Liverpool, so that’s why I wrote it.” Beatles fan Cllr Storey added: “‘Liddypool’ – as John Lennon renamed the city – is a great new work. “Everyone who thought they knew the definitive history of the early Beatles should think again as this new book really sets the record straight – and accurately re-tells a tremendous part of the city’s history.”
Beatles historian Hunter Davies declared the book “the best illustrated book on the Beatles I’ve ever seen.” Yesterday at Liverpool’s town hall, former insurance worker Mr Beresford met Lord Mayor of Liverpool Cllr Mike Storey to look at one of the first prints, which has been donated to the city. Mr Beresford – who moved to Dingle from Guildford with his family aged four and attended Ringo’s old primary school St Silas – said the book had been a labour of love over the years, “less a hard day’s night than a hard day’s decade”.
He added: “When I had to give up work I started reading Beatles books and saw other writers – mostly from over the Atlantic – writing things about Liverpool and getting it wrong. “To understand the Beatles, you have to understand Liverpool, so that’s why I wrote it.” Beatles fan Cllr Storey added: “‘Liddypool’ – as John Lennon renamed the city – is a great new work. “Everyone who thought they knew the definitive history of the early Beatles should think again as this new book really sets the record straight – and accurately re-tells a tremendous part of the city’s history.”
Clapton, Paul Simon Honor Yoko At NYC Gig
Some of rock and roll's biggest names turned up at New York's Brooklyn Academy of Music to pay tribute to Yoko Ono earlier this week. The show, which was billed under the name of Ono's 1970s supergroup, Plastic Ono Band, featured performances by Eric Clapton, Paul Simon, Bette Midler, the Scissor Sisters, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore and Ono's son, Sean Lennon. The group revived several John Lennon classics - including "Give Peace a Chance" and "Yer Blues" - and also performed a number of Ono's solo works.
The recent performance of the late Beatle's work is not the only attention currently finding John Lennon. In an upcoming biopic, Nowhere Boy, filmmaker Sam Taylor-Wood shines a light on the legendary songwriter's early life. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal after the film's recent debut at the Sundance Film Festival, Taylor-Wood explained that it was not easy finding an actor to play one of the biggest celebrities of all time.
"I started afresh, with a new casting director," she explained. "For Lennon, we saw over 300 people, but I spotted Aaron [Johnson] around seven or eight. So in the back of my mind, I knew he was right for the role, but I was just double-checking." "Same for McCartney," she added. "We left no stone unturned. It was a challenge, because we saw a hell of a lot of lookalikes, and people who could sing or play guitar like them, but I had to bat that away and find someone who embodied their spirit."
The recent performance of the late Beatle's work is not the only attention currently finding John Lennon. In an upcoming biopic, Nowhere Boy, filmmaker Sam Taylor-Wood shines a light on the legendary songwriter's early life. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal after the film's recent debut at the Sundance Film Festival, Taylor-Wood explained that it was not easy finding an actor to play one of the biggest celebrities of all time.
"I started afresh, with a new casting director," she explained. "For Lennon, we saw over 300 people, but I spotted Aaron [Johnson] around seven or eight. So in the back of my mind, I knew he was right for the role, but I was just double-checking." "Same for McCartney," she added. "We left no stone unturned. It was a challenge, because we saw a hell of a lot of lookalikes, and people who could sing or play guitar like them, but I had to bat that away and find someone who embodied their spirit."
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Heather Mills reveals she's spent her £24million divorce settlement in 22 months
Heather Mills claims she has spent the bulk of her £24.3million divorce settlement… just 22 months after she collected the bumper pay-out from ex-Beatle Sir Paul McCartney. In an hour-long TV special she tells psychologist Dr Pamela Connolly – wife of comic Billy – that she gave a large chunk of the cash away. “Most of it’s been given to charity, gone into ethical businesses or paid for a couple of - properties for my daughter’s future security,” says Heather, who had six-year-old Beatrice with Macca.And in a thinly-veiled swipe at Macca, worth an estimated £400million, she adds: “I could never sit with millions of pounds in the bank that could make matters change.” Dancing On Ice star Heather, 42, also compares Macca, 25 years her senior, to her dad saying: “In some of my relationships I have attracted a similar type of person to my father.” Pamela then asks: “Controlling?” Heather says: “Yeah”. “Powerful?” “Yeah”. “A little scary?” “Yeah”.
Talking of her relationship with Sir Paul she adds: “It was one of the best 10 years of my life and one of the worst. I didn’t have any control. It took me years to realise that. In the end I had to walk away.” Heather also talks about coming to terms with the loss of her leg in 1993. She says: “This counsellor came in and said, ‘How are you feeling?’ I went into survival mode and said, ‘I’m fine’. But she said, ‘You realise you won’t be as attractive to men’. I said, ‘Listen my dear. Even if both my arms and my legs were missing. I’d still be more attractive than you’."
Thursday, 17 December 2009
Saturday, 1 August 2009
Paul McCartney says goodbye with tour
Sir Paul McCartney plans to embark on an ''unusual'' farewell world tour next year before retiring from the music industry. Sir Paul McCartney wants to retire with a huge farewell world tour next year. The 67-year-old Beatles legend is planning to play at a host of "unusual" locations before walking away from performing large scale shows.
A source said: "Paul wants to go out with a bang. He's played countless stadiums over his 50-year career and is on the hunt for the most unusual locations he can find. "He realises the older he gets, the less his body will be able to cope with the demands of extended periods on the road. He might play the odd benefit concert - but other than that he'll be putting his feet up and enjoying retirement."
Discussions about which cities Paul will play at are already underway and a host of landmark locations have already been earmarked. The 'Hello Goodbye' hitmaker is keen to perform at China's Tiananmen Square and Checkpoint Charlie - the name given to the best known crossing point at the Berlin Wall, which was torn down in 1989 - while several dates in Brazil have been pencilled in for next April.
The source added to Britain's The Sun newspaper: "The tour in 2010 is likely to last well over a year, by which time Paul will be getting close to 70. He's making enquiries about a number of special locations and he's keen to play in China and Checkpoint Charlie."
A source said: "Paul wants to go out with a bang. He's played countless stadiums over his 50-year career and is on the hunt for the most unusual locations he can find. "He realises the older he gets, the less his body will be able to cope with the demands of extended periods on the road. He might play the odd benefit concert - but other than that he'll be putting his feet up and enjoying retirement."
Discussions about which cities Paul will play at are already underway and a host of landmark locations have already been earmarked. The 'Hello Goodbye' hitmaker is keen to perform at China's Tiananmen Square and Checkpoint Charlie - the name given to the best known crossing point at the Berlin Wall, which was torn down in 1989 - while several dates in Brazil have been pencilled in for next April.
The source added to Britain's The Sun newspaper: "The tour in 2010 is likely to last well over a year, by which time Paul will be getting close to 70. He's making enquiries about a number of special locations and he's keen to play in China and Checkpoint Charlie."
Live and Let Live: Sir Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney likes to get out of the Beatle bubble he's lived in since he was 21 and just be a regular bloke. So he does. No disguises, no bodyguards. Just Paul.
Sometimes he goes bowling. Or does the grocery shopping. Or goes to movies with his girlfriend and gets shushed by strangers for talking too much. A couple of years ago, he recalls, he found himself on a New York City bus ("Luckily, I had the right change"). Or rather, New Yorkers found him on the bus.
Everyone stared as the famous passenger took his seat, but no one said a word. Finally, someone -- "it was the African American lady" -- spoke up. " 'Hey!' " McCartney imitates, his voice rising, his delight at the memory evident. " 'Is you Paul McCartney?' "
" 'Yeah, I am!' " Sir Paul answered. "I'm in their face. I don't shrink away. No point. I'm from Liverpool, you've just got to get with it.
"So I said, 'Look, honey. Don't shout across the bus. Come and sit here!' "
The woman accepted the offer and the unlikely couple had a merry chat for several more blocks. And then the world's most celebrated songwriter reached his stop and melted into midtown Manhattan.
McCartney will play in front of 60,000-plus people at FedEx Field on Saturday, the third stop on his summer mini-tour and a milestone of sorts (the concert comes 45 years after The Beatles made their American concert debut in Washington, at the long-gone Coliseum). He'll be surrounded by the usual rock-god trappings and airtight security. But he says he savors encounters like the one on the bus because they remind him of who he was and where he came from before he and a few of his friends got together and revolutionized popular music.
"It grounds you, you know," McCartney says. "It's a balance thing. I'm just one of the people on the bus. I'm the famous one, but I'm behaving normally. . . . Really, it's important."
McCartney is telling this story a few hours before taking the stage for a sold-out show at Citi Field, the gleaming new home of the New York Mets. He's in his sound-check casual duds this afternoon -- basic white shirt with tiny dots tucked beltless into dad jeans, set off by some comfy black sneakers. He's ensconced in the ballpark's visitor's clubhouse, which has been retrofitted for its royal guest. McCartney's inner sanctum is all drapey curtains and plush couches, with low lighting and some kind of incense burning on the coffee table. "All right if I chomp?" asks McCartney, a vegetarian since the 1970s, as he stuffs a snack of grapes and almonds in his mouth.
For an official senior citizen -- impossibly, he's now 67 -- McCartney looks remarkably youthful. He's slim, almost slight, and truth be told, could even stand a few more pounds. The famously cherubic face is fleshier and lined just enough to remind you that McCartney isn't 21 anymore. The tousled hair is a flat brown. This is reassuring; who wants a Beatle, particularly the doe-eyed, ever-boyish Paul, to seem old or even to age at all?
The even better news is that McCartney's voice remains as strong and supple as it was in his youth, even in this, his 50th year of performing. Critics generally applauded the vocals and writing on his last album, "Electric Arguments," released last year under his Fireman alter ego. But McCartney is a revelation in concert. He plays straight through for about 2 1/2 hours each night, offering more than 30 tunes from his vast catalog. The set list ranges from such sweetly sung classics as "Blackbird" and the inevitable "Yesterday" to the frantic, voice-shredding chestnut "I'm Down." (On this day, even his sound check is a mini-concert, featuring a dozen or more songs, including a lovely version of "Midnight Special.")
McCartney's show also has several nods to souls departed; "My Love" is dedicated to his late wife Linda, "Give Peace a Chance" goes out to John Lennon, and "Something" is sung in honor of its creator, George Harrison. A nice touch: McCartney plays the latter song on a ukulele that Harrison gave him.
McCartney says the emphasis on vintage McCartney (and McCartney-Lennon) is calculated to please. "It's always difficult to do new songs," he says. "You know, I look at myself and think, 'Okay, I'm coming to see this show, I'm just an ordinary audience member, what do I want to hear him do?' And you know, a lot of it is hits. If I went to see Prince, I know the songs I want. I want 'Purple Rain,' please. You know if he doesn't do it, someone says how was it and you have to answer, 'Well, he didn't do 'Purple Rain.' . . . I don't want [fans] to go home thinking 'Oh, I would have liked to have heard 'Hey Jude.' "
He doesn't mind the nostalgia; McCartney sees it as something akin to giving back to people the things that made them love him in the first place. "Oh, I want to do them," he says. "We made hits so people would like them. And so it's gratifying that people do. You can't be annoyed that people got to like these songs."
As genial as McCartney is, interviewing him can be a slightly disconcerting experience. He's answered all the important questions dozens, even hundreds of times, but his career has been so varied and rich and storied that the potential questions are endless. What's more, each time you look up, you're conscious of a little out-of-body voice reminding you of just whom you're sitting next to (every media encounter with McCartney is, of course, stalked by Chris Farley's hilarious mock interview with him on "Saturday Night Live" in 1993; Farley to McCartney: "You . . . you . . . remember when you were in the Beatles and you did that album 'Abbey Road' . . . ?")
McCartney himself doesn't seem all that impressed by his own legend. "The whole point about it, the Beatles, Wings and me now, is that I'm too busy living it to think about it or reminisce." His friends like to look back -- "They'll say, 'What was your favorite Beatles show?' " -- but McCartney isn't quite as keen.
Well, perhaps he can clear up at least one tiny mystery of several decades standing: What exactly is McCartney's maddening lyric in "Live and Let Die"? Is it, "In this ever-changing world in which we live in"? Or "in which we're living"?
McCartney considers and seems genuinely puzzled. "Yeah, good question," he says. "It's kind of ambivalent, isn't it? . . . Um . . . I think it's 'in which we're living.'"
He starts to sing to himself: "In this ever changing world. . . . ' It's funny. There's too many 'ins.' I'm not sure. I'd have to have actually look. I don't think about the lyric when I sing it. I think it's 'in which we're living.' 'In which we're living.' Or it could be 'in which we live in.' And that's kind of, sort of, wronger but cuter. That's kind of interesting. 'In which we live in.' In which we live in! I think it's 'In which we're living.' "
Ah, thanks, mate. Clears things right up.
The larger mystery about McCartney may be this: Why, after all these years, is he still showing up at all? What could he possibly want after so much -- the frenzied adulation of the Beatles years, the Olympian collaboration and bitter split with Lennon, the money and fame and personal tragedies, the tabloid divorce -- and why is he still after it?
McCartney brightens at this line of discussion. "I like what I do," he answers instantly. "It's pretty simple really. Also, I'm very darn lucky to get this job. I've had others that weren't as good as this. Second man on a lorry -- it was not the greatest job.
"And then you get the relationship with your audience, which sort of grows as you do shows. There's great warmth there [and] it's sort of healing . . . .I find it's just a great pleasure just being able to plug an electric guitar in. It's what I wanted to do since I was a kid. Only now the amps are bigger."
McCartney notes that the hours are pretty good, too. His current tour is almost ad hoc, with a date added here, another there. Including a well-received performance at the Coachella Music Festival in April and a memorable appearance atop the Ed Sullivan Theater's marquee on the David Letterman show earlier this month, McCartney and his band will play in only eight cities; the current tour winds up in three weeks.
The former Fab Four moptop says he's "energized" by the performances, but the limited touring is a lifestyle choice. "My personal situation at the moment with my little 5-year-old daughter [Beatrice, with ex-wife Heather Mills] gives me certain periods of time when I can do what I want. Which is the strange thing about divorce. On the one hand, you become a single parent suddenly. But the upside of that is that it's changed the way I tour now. So this, we call it Summer Live, is a little series of dates that are fitted in the gaps when I'm not being a dad. I love the balance. It's really nice. The other few days, I go home and I'm dad, and when that period is over, I come back."
He acknowledges that he has thought about retirement, but not seriously and certainly not soon. "It's what everyone else does, and that thought has to occur to you," he says. "Even 15-year-olds will be looking at the year 65 and think that's probably when I'll retire," he says. "But strange things happen in music. You look at people like Tony Bennett, B.B. King -- people who are as good if not better than they were. And you sort of think, oh! And you look at that as your beacon kind of thing. Plus, the thing is, I always said when people don't want to come and I'm struggling, then I have to look at it more seriously . . . I certainly couldn't just give it up like that. I like it too much."
Which suggests that the once unimaginable is now not just possible but highly likely: a Beatle, rocking out at 70, even 75 years old. Paul McCartney is almost there, and it doesn't seem odd at all. In this ever-changing world in which we live in, it even seems kind of normal, like riding the bus.
Sometimes he goes bowling. Or does the grocery shopping. Or goes to movies with his girlfriend and gets shushed by strangers for talking too much. A couple of years ago, he recalls, he found himself on a New York City bus ("Luckily, I had the right change"). Or rather, New Yorkers found him on the bus.
Everyone stared as the famous passenger took his seat, but no one said a word. Finally, someone -- "it was the African American lady" -- spoke up. " 'Hey!' " McCartney imitates, his voice rising, his delight at the memory evident. " 'Is you Paul McCartney?' "
" 'Yeah, I am!' " Sir Paul answered. "I'm in their face. I don't shrink away. No point. I'm from Liverpool, you've just got to get with it.
"So I said, 'Look, honey. Don't shout across the bus. Come and sit here!' "
The woman accepted the offer and the unlikely couple had a merry chat for several more blocks. And then the world's most celebrated songwriter reached his stop and melted into midtown Manhattan.
McCartney will play in front of 60,000-plus people at FedEx Field on Saturday, the third stop on his summer mini-tour and a milestone of sorts (the concert comes 45 years after The Beatles made their American concert debut in Washington, at the long-gone Coliseum). He'll be surrounded by the usual rock-god trappings and airtight security. But he says he savors encounters like the one on the bus because they remind him of who he was and where he came from before he and a few of his friends got together and revolutionized popular music.
"It grounds you, you know," McCartney says. "It's a balance thing. I'm just one of the people on the bus. I'm the famous one, but I'm behaving normally. . . . Really, it's important."
McCartney is telling this story a few hours before taking the stage for a sold-out show at Citi Field, the gleaming new home of the New York Mets. He's in his sound-check casual duds this afternoon -- basic white shirt with tiny dots tucked beltless into dad jeans, set off by some comfy black sneakers. He's ensconced in the ballpark's visitor's clubhouse, which has been retrofitted for its royal guest. McCartney's inner sanctum is all drapey curtains and plush couches, with low lighting and some kind of incense burning on the coffee table. "All right if I chomp?" asks McCartney, a vegetarian since the 1970s, as he stuffs a snack of grapes and almonds in his mouth.
For an official senior citizen -- impossibly, he's now 67 -- McCartney looks remarkably youthful. He's slim, almost slight, and truth be told, could even stand a few more pounds. The famously cherubic face is fleshier and lined just enough to remind you that McCartney isn't 21 anymore. The tousled hair is a flat brown. This is reassuring; who wants a Beatle, particularly the doe-eyed, ever-boyish Paul, to seem old or even to age at all?
The even better news is that McCartney's voice remains as strong and supple as it was in his youth, even in this, his 50th year of performing. Critics generally applauded the vocals and writing on his last album, "Electric Arguments," released last year under his Fireman alter ego. But McCartney is a revelation in concert. He plays straight through for about 2 1/2 hours each night, offering more than 30 tunes from his vast catalog. The set list ranges from such sweetly sung classics as "Blackbird" and the inevitable "Yesterday" to the frantic, voice-shredding chestnut "I'm Down." (On this day, even his sound check is a mini-concert, featuring a dozen or more songs, including a lovely version of "Midnight Special.")
McCartney's show also has several nods to souls departed; "My Love" is dedicated to his late wife Linda, "Give Peace a Chance" goes out to John Lennon, and "Something" is sung in honor of its creator, George Harrison. A nice touch: McCartney plays the latter song on a ukulele that Harrison gave him.
McCartney says the emphasis on vintage McCartney (and McCartney-Lennon) is calculated to please. "It's always difficult to do new songs," he says. "You know, I look at myself and think, 'Okay, I'm coming to see this show, I'm just an ordinary audience member, what do I want to hear him do?' And you know, a lot of it is hits. If I went to see Prince, I know the songs I want. I want 'Purple Rain,' please. You know if he doesn't do it, someone says how was it and you have to answer, 'Well, he didn't do 'Purple Rain.' . . . I don't want [fans] to go home thinking 'Oh, I would have liked to have heard 'Hey Jude.' "
He doesn't mind the nostalgia; McCartney sees it as something akin to giving back to people the things that made them love him in the first place. "Oh, I want to do them," he says. "We made hits so people would like them. And so it's gratifying that people do. You can't be annoyed that people got to like these songs."
As genial as McCartney is, interviewing him can be a slightly disconcerting experience. He's answered all the important questions dozens, even hundreds of times, but his career has been so varied and rich and storied that the potential questions are endless. What's more, each time you look up, you're conscious of a little out-of-body voice reminding you of just whom you're sitting next to (every media encounter with McCartney is, of course, stalked by Chris Farley's hilarious mock interview with him on "Saturday Night Live" in 1993; Farley to McCartney: "You . . . you . . . remember when you were in the Beatles and you did that album 'Abbey Road' . . . ?")
McCartney himself doesn't seem all that impressed by his own legend. "The whole point about it, the Beatles, Wings and me now, is that I'm too busy living it to think about it or reminisce." His friends like to look back -- "They'll say, 'What was your favorite Beatles show?' " -- but McCartney isn't quite as keen.
Well, perhaps he can clear up at least one tiny mystery of several decades standing: What exactly is McCartney's maddening lyric in "Live and Let Die"? Is it, "In this ever-changing world in which we live in"? Or "in which we're living"?
McCartney considers and seems genuinely puzzled. "Yeah, good question," he says. "It's kind of ambivalent, isn't it? . . . Um . . . I think it's 'in which we're living.'"
He starts to sing to himself: "In this ever changing world. . . . ' It's funny. There's too many 'ins.' I'm not sure. I'd have to have actually look. I don't think about the lyric when I sing it. I think it's 'in which we're living.' 'In which we're living.' Or it could be 'in which we live in.' And that's kind of, sort of, wronger but cuter. That's kind of interesting. 'In which we live in.' In which we live in! I think it's 'In which we're living.' "
Ah, thanks, mate. Clears things right up.
The larger mystery about McCartney may be this: Why, after all these years, is he still showing up at all? What could he possibly want after so much -- the frenzied adulation of the Beatles years, the Olympian collaboration and bitter split with Lennon, the money and fame and personal tragedies, the tabloid divorce -- and why is he still after it?
McCartney brightens at this line of discussion. "I like what I do," he answers instantly. "It's pretty simple really. Also, I'm very darn lucky to get this job. I've had others that weren't as good as this. Second man on a lorry -- it was not the greatest job.
"And then you get the relationship with your audience, which sort of grows as you do shows. There's great warmth there [and] it's sort of healing . . . .I find it's just a great pleasure just being able to plug an electric guitar in. It's what I wanted to do since I was a kid. Only now the amps are bigger."
McCartney notes that the hours are pretty good, too. His current tour is almost ad hoc, with a date added here, another there. Including a well-received performance at the Coachella Music Festival in April and a memorable appearance atop the Ed Sullivan Theater's marquee on the David Letterman show earlier this month, McCartney and his band will play in only eight cities; the current tour winds up in three weeks.
The former Fab Four moptop says he's "energized" by the performances, but the limited touring is a lifestyle choice. "My personal situation at the moment with my little 5-year-old daughter [Beatrice, with ex-wife Heather Mills] gives me certain periods of time when I can do what I want. Which is the strange thing about divorce. On the one hand, you become a single parent suddenly. But the upside of that is that it's changed the way I tour now. So this, we call it Summer Live, is a little series of dates that are fitted in the gaps when I'm not being a dad. I love the balance. It's really nice. The other few days, I go home and I'm dad, and when that period is over, I come back."
He acknowledges that he has thought about retirement, but not seriously and certainly not soon. "It's what everyone else does, and that thought has to occur to you," he says. "Even 15-year-olds will be looking at the year 65 and think that's probably when I'll retire," he says. "But strange things happen in music. You look at people like Tony Bennett, B.B. King -- people who are as good if not better than they were. And you sort of think, oh! And you look at that as your beacon kind of thing. Plus, the thing is, I always said when people don't want to come and I'm struggling, then I have to look at it more seriously . . . I certainly couldn't just give it up like that. I like it too much."
Which suggests that the once unimaginable is now not just possible but highly likely: a Beatle, rocking out at 70, even 75 years old. Paul McCartney is almost there, and it doesn't seem odd at all. In this ever-changing world in which we live in, it even seems kind of normal, like riding the bus.
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Gordon Waller: a word from Peter
We are deeply saddened to report that some time after 8:00 p.m. last night east coast time, Gordon Waller went into cardiac arrest and was taken to the emergency room. Despite intensive efforts on his behalf by hospital personnel, Gordon passed away early this morning. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
His partner of nearly five decades, Peter Asher, will be issuing a statement shortly. We hope you will join us sending love and condolences to his family.
A WORD FROM PETER:
Gordon played such a significant role in my life that losing him is hard to comprehend – let alone to tolerate. He was my best friend at school almost half a century ago. He was not only my musical partner but played a key role in my conversion from only a snooty jazz fan to a true rock and roll believer as well.
Without Gordon I would never have begun my career in the music business in the first place. Our professional years together in the sixties constitute a major part of my life and I have always treasured them.
We remained good friends (unusual for a duo!) even while we were pursuing entirely separate professional paths and I was so delighted that after a hiatus of almost forty years we ended up singing and performing together again more recently for the sheer exhilarating fun of it. We had a terrific time doing so. Gordon remains one of my very favourite singers of all time and I am still so proud of the work that we did together. I am just a harmony guy and Gordon was the heart and soul of our duo.
I shall miss him in so many different ways. The idea that I shall never get to sing those songs with him again, that I shall never again be able to get annoyed when he interrupts me on stage or to laugh at his unpredictable sense of humour or even to admire his newest model train or his latest gardening effort is an unthinkable change in my life with which I have not even begun to come to terms.
His partner of nearly five decades, Peter Asher, will be issuing a statement shortly. We hope you will join us sending love and condolences to his family.
A WORD FROM PETER:
Gordon played such a significant role in my life that losing him is hard to comprehend – let alone to tolerate. He was my best friend at school almost half a century ago. He was not only my musical partner but played a key role in my conversion from only a snooty jazz fan to a true rock and roll believer as well.
Without Gordon I would never have begun my career in the music business in the first place. Our professional years together in the sixties constitute a major part of my life and I have always treasured them.
We remained good friends (unusual for a duo!) even while we were pursuing entirely separate professional paths and I was so delighted that after a hiatus of almost forty years we ended up singing and performing together again more recently for the sheer exhilarating fun of it. We had a terrific time doing so. Gordon remains one of my very favourite singers of all time and I am still so proud of the work that we did together. I am just a harmony guy and Gordon was the heart and soul of our duo.
I shall miss him in so many different ways. The idea that I shall never get to sing those songs with him again, that I shall never again be able to get annoyed when he interrupts me on stage or to laugh at his unpredictable sense of humour or even to admire his newest model train or his latest gardening effort is an unthinkable change in my life with which I have not even begun to come to terms.
Friday, 24 April 2009
DVD Alert: John Lennon Live in Toronto '69
The only known recorded performance of John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band is finally coming to DVD. The historic concert was filmed on Sept. 13, 1969, at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival festival. The new DVD, titled John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band Live in Toronto '69, will be released by Shout! Factory on June 23, 2009.
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