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Beatles News
The Beatles had a couple of distinct eras. A better amateur music historian than I could probably split them up further than “Beatlemania,” “psychedelic,” and “folk rock,” but those three categories make the most sense to me. And the band’s smallest but still notable era has to be the latter. Let’s take a look at what I consider the best and worst songs from the Fab Four’s folky era, shall we?
It’s worth noting that I would also consider both Help!, Beatles For Sale, and Revolver to be “of the folk rock era” for the Fab Four, but I already covered them in the other lists in this series.
Best Song on ‘Rubber Soul’ — “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)”
This was an easy pick. That absolutely beautiful sitar à la George Harrison, that swaying, propelling melody… There’s something about “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” that still entrances listeners after all these years.
Worst Song on ‘Rubber Soul’ — “Run For Your Life”
I was at a crossroads between “Think For Yourself” and “Run For Your Life” as the wors details
Original working lyrics for Paul McCartney's "Hey Jude" song are being offered for $599,415.
The 1968 manuscript shows important notes written by the Beatles songwriter that shaped the iconic finished version.
New Orleans-based gallery M.S. Rau said the lyrics were transcribed by Mal Evans, the band's road manager and studio assistant, before McCartney annotated the sheet by hand.
On the paper, he marked cues for tambourine, as well as for bandmates Ringo Starr and John Lennon.
Most significantly, in the final verse, he revised the closing line to "Remember to let her under your skin, then you'll begin to make it better", the version immortalized in the recording.
The Beatles recorded rehearsals and attempted backing tracks at EMI Studios in July 1968, before moving to Trident Studios, where eight-track equipment allowed them to construct the master recording between July 31 and August 2.
Released later that month, "Hey Jude" remained at number one in the United States for nine weeks.
The lot includes an RIAA Gold Record award for "Hey Jude" and a notarized letter from Craig Inciardi, a founding curator of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, documenting their origin and auth details
Paul McCartney is opening up about his late pal. Following a Los Angeles screening of the Wings documentary, Man on the Run, McCartney sat down for a conversation with director Morgan Neville and moderator Judd Apatow for a wide-ranging conversation.
After the Beatles split, McCartney formed a duo with his then-wife, Linda, and released an album titled Ram. Shortly thereafter, McCartney started his band, Wings. In both post-Beatles projects, McCartney’s one-time bandmate, John Lennon, was publicly critical.
“I think maybe he expected more from me,” McCartney theorized of Lennon, according to Variety.” He expected something different from me, and I wasn’t doing that. I was just doing ‘madcap.’”
McCartney noted that he “wasn’t privy” to Lennon’s inner thoughts at the time. However, he admitted that he was pleased when Lennon lightened up on the subject before his death. Paul McCartney Opens Up About John Lennon.
Despite the public spat, McCartney said that none of it affected how he felt about Lennon.
“I loved John and love him to this day and always will,” he said. “And it wouldn’t matter, details
It was like stepping into a time machine and going back 62 years.
One of the Beatles was singing rock songs, playing two instruments, making jokes and having a grand old time.
The Ringo Starr concert here in Washington got me thinking about the impact that he, John, Paul and George had on the music business, the country and the culture — and how Americans are still fascinated by the Fab Four, and even their grandchildren are listening to their ancient albums.
Ringo is 86 and touring again, bringing more energy to his shows than most of his Boomer-heavy audience.
Paul McCartney, who I’ve seen several times in recent years, is 84, still belting out the hits and, hip guy that he is, sharing short videos on social media.
It’s not about money — the two surviving Beatles became multimillionaires back in the day. They are still releasing new albums; McCartney’s "Dungeon Lane," about growing up in Liverpool, and with him playing most of the instruments, nearly matches some of his best work. Ringo, who played drums and piano at the concert, has been saluted by today’s top drummers as having inspired generations of those behind the kit with his unique, details
The Beatles helped revolutionize music in several incalculable ways, from re-energizing the British music scene to popularizing the concept album, but one of the smaller — but still significant — ways the Fab Four changed the creative landscape was rewriting the rules of what could be a radio hit.
“Hey Jude,” the 1968 standalone single penned by Paul McCartney, clocked in at 7 minutes and 12 seconds, around twice the length of an average pop single the band would be competing alongside for the coveted #1 spot on the charts.
To make matters worse, the second half of the song simply repeats a variation of “Nah, nah nah, nah nah, nah, nah, nah nah/ Hey, Jude” for at least 3 and a half minutes. While this creative decision has since made the anthem a crowd favorite at sports events (most recently, England’s 2026 World Cup stint, as an ode to Jude Bellingham), as well as McCartney’s concerts, there were concerns that this would be cut by radio stations, comprising on McCartney’s “fade-out to end all fade-outs,” as described in a 2018 retrospective on the song by The Guardian.
George Martin, the Beatles’ longtime producer, warned that the details
Paul McCartney is among hundreds of public figures backing a new international campaign calling on the United Nations to abolish trophy hunting. Launched on July 1, 2026, the initiative brings together celebrities, conservationists, former heads of state, Indigenous leaders and religious figures around a declaration calling for an end to trophy hunting. The launch was timed to coincide with the 11th anniversary of the killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe, whose death in 2015 became a major international flashpoint in the debate over trophy hunting. The Wildlife & Conservation Foundation, through its Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting, is coordinating the initiative. Its organisers say more than 500 founding signatories have backed the Declaration on the Abolition of Trophy Hunting, which was developed with the late primatologist and conservationist Jane Goodall.
McCartney is joined by a large group of actors, musicians and other public figures. The campaign's launch announcement names Michael Caine, Emma Thompson, Hugh Laurie, Judi Dench, Joanna Lumley, Hilary Swank, Bryan Adams, Annie Lennox, Liam Gallagher and Gary Lineker among its supporters. Jenson Button, Ricky Gervais, Pierce Brosnan, Alec Baldwin, Mark R details
Even before the infamous Beatles breakup, the Fab Four had to navigate interpersonal dynamics that often bred contempt and competitiveness, particularly between the two principal songwriters, Paul McCartney and John Lennon. The prolific duo had plenty of respect for one another, much of which was established by becoming so close so quickly at such a young age. But they weren’t always forthcoming with their praise of the other—at least Lennon wasn’t.
In a 2018 interview with 60 Minutes, McCartney confirmed that he and Lennon had a competitive relationship when it came to their songwriting. If one musician came up with a particularly good track, the other would take it as motivation to write a better one. They were less interested in doling out compliments to the other, as made clear by McCartney’s memory that Lennon only complimented him once.
The idea of Lennon only openly admiring McCartney’s work once during their tenure as bandmates seems ludicrous in hindsight, given the knowledge we have of McCartney’s tremendous cultural impact. Nevertheless, Lennon played his cards close to the chest—except when it came to “Here, There And Everywhere”. John Lennon details
Over the course of their impressive 10-year run, the Beatles released 12 studio albums (13 if you include 1967's Magical Mystery Tour in the core canon). The Fab Four's catalog improved with each new release, and one particular entry in their discography, considered by some to be their magnum opus, took the world by storm on this day 57 years ago.
'Abbey Road' by the Beatles Was Released on Sept. 26, 1969
The Beatles released Abbey Road on Sept. 26, 1969. The four-piece rock outfit's 11th studio album was actually recorded after their final record, Let It Be, but released before it. On Oct. 6, the band unleashed a double A-side single featuring "Something" and "Come Together" to promote it.
While the atmosphere was less tense than the Let It Be recording sessions, the group still had their fair share of disagreements, clashing over the album's presentation and Yoko Ono's presence in the studio. However, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr looked back on the process with fondness, and John Lennon had positive things to say about Abbey Road as a whole.
Infusing musical styles such as rock, pop, blues, and progressive rock, Abbey Road boasts two of George Harrison's best contributions: "Something" and "Here details
Jane Asher’s love story with Paul McCartney is set to play out on screen in the forthcoming Beatles biopics – however, the actor won’t be queuing up to see it in cinemas.
Asher, 80, has revealed in a new interview that she has no plans to watch Lucy Boynton’s portrayal of her in Sam Mendes’s four films about the Beatles.
The Bafta nominee began dating McCartney in 1963, with the pair’s romance inspiring numerous songs for the group, including “And I Love Her” and “I’m Looking Through You”. They announced their engagement in 1967 but called it off a year later amid rumours of McCartney’s infidelity.
In Mendes’s forthcoming series The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, which is due for release in 2028, McCartney is being played by Hamnet’s Paul Mescal, while Bohemian Rhapsody’s Lucy Boynton is portraying Asher.
In a new interview, Asher said that the filmmakers “approached me about it, of course, but I said my usual”, referring to how she no longer speaks about her relationship with McCartney.
When asked how she felt about Boynton playing her, she told The Telegraph: “Well, details
When John Lennon was asked about the song "Wait" in 1970, he couldn't recall writing it. "That must be one of Paul's," he said then.
Paul McCartney did, however, recall. It was mainly his composition, though it was credited to the usual "Lennon-McCartney." His story was that it was written in early 1965 when the Beatles were in the Bahamas shooting Help! the film. Shortly before that, the band had connected with Brandon deWilde, a child actor whose career had blossomed into big sitcom roles (Jamie) and an Academy nomination (for his role in 1953's Shane) as an adult.
"Brandon De Wilde was an actor, a James Dean type," George Harrison recalled in Anthology. "He liked the Beatles' music and he heard we were going to film in the Bahamas, so he came over from the States with a big bag of reefer. We smoked on the plane, all the way to the Bahamas. It was a charter flight, with all the film people – the actors and the crew – and we thought, 'No, nobody will notice.' We had Mal [Evans, the Beatles' road manager] smoking cigars to drown out the smell." Brandon deWilde, Witness to 'Wait'
It was deWilde that McCartney, apparently, wrote the song "Wait" in front of.
"He was a nice guy details
This year marked what would have been the 100th birthday of George Martin.
Martin, who died in 2016 aged 90, was the man who signed The Beatles and also the producer for the vast majority of their music during their remarkable eight years together. Who is the Fifth Beatle? George Martin, Brian Epstein, Pete Best and more
In the wake of the wave of Beatlemania, Martin also helmed a number of orchestral covers albums featuring Beatles hits.
These have long remained out of print, never being available on CD or streaming, but three of these records are finally being released next month on new formats and vinyl too.
All of them have been recut from the original tapes by Giles Martin, George's son who has inherited his role when it comes to the remastering and remixing of Beatles releases in recent years.
The albums are Off the Beatle Track (1964) and Help! (1965), in addition to ..and I Love Her (1966), which includes Beatles numbers alongside hits by The Rolling Stones, Petula Clark and other stars of the moment.
The albums will be released on November 6, and are trailed by 'Can't By Me Love' from Off the Beatle Track.
"These records came at a time when orchestral music h details
Boston photographer Roger Farrington was flown to New York to document Lennon and Ono’s return to the recording studio in 1980. Now, he’s sharing the images in a new book. An unusual call sent a Boston photographer to New York to photograph John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Forty-six years later, he’s sharing the photos.
In August 1980, after a five-year hiatus from recording and releasing music, Lennon and Ono returned to the recording studio in New York to begin work on what would become Double Fantasy, Lennon’s final album.
On the day of their return, Boston photographer Roger Farrington received a call asking him to photograph the couple’s first recording session in five years. He was soon on a flight to New York.
Farrington spent the day photographing Lennon and Ono. The resulting images capture a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the couple months before Lennon’s death in December 1980.
Now, 46 years later, Farrington has published never-before-seen images from that day in a new book together with Beatles historian Kenneth Womack, giving fans a closer look at Lennon and Ono’s return to the studio.
Farrington will share his stories behind th details
The Beatles not only wrote wonderful songs, but they also constantly innovated in terms of how they recorded them. Listening back to their catalog now, however, it’s fascinating to hear instruments that have long since fallen out of fashion adorning certain tracks of theirs.
These four songs are among the most beloved in the Fab Four catalog. And they all contain a key part from an instrument that’s a bit on the old-fashioned side, at least from our perspective today.
“We Can Work It Out”
Paul McCartney wrote the verses of “We Can Work It Out”. It’s one of several songs that he penned about his relationship with Jane Asher, his girlfriend throughout much of the 60s. John Lennon added the middle eight, his somewhat pessimistic outlook contradicting McCartney’s hopefulness. In terms of the music, it whooshes about behind McCartney’s main melody without calling too much attention to itself. But in the middle eight, which takes on a different rhythm from the rest of the track, you can hear a wheezing, accordion-like sound. That’s a harmonium, an organ-like keyboard with a pumping element that you don’t hear all that often today.
“Straw
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The Beatles weren't exactly a cult band as 1965 ended. Their albums and singles dominated the pop charts. They played in front of more than 55,000 fans at Shea Stadium. They even conquered the big screen. Twice.
But Dec. 3, 1965, proved to be a seminal moment for the Fab Four – the release of Rubber Soul, the album where "the Beatles became the Beatles."
Widely considered one of the most influential albums ever made, it's hard to believe Rubber Soul was something of a rush job. The Beatles went into the studio in October 1965 to crank out an album in time for the holiday season. Despite the tight deadline, however, The Beatles decided to make their most audacious record yet.
"By the time of Rubber Soul, they were ready for new musical directions," said George Martin, The Beatles' long-time producer. "In the early days, they were very influenced by American rhythm and blues … and then, as time went on, other influences became apparent: classical influences and modern music."
Said drummer Ringo Starr: "We were all open to anything. You could walk in with an elephant, as long as it was going to make a musical note." While filming the movie Help! in April of 1965, g details
Then he describes that, as the meditator “reduces the thoughts below mental-thinking level,” he will eventually arrive “at a very subtle level which is beyond all relative experience” (there, at the quiet bottom of the ocean he’s sketched).
“This,” he writes, “we will call Transcendental Consciousness.
“As most of us haven’t experienced this state before,” he writes, “the first few times, you don’t even know that you have reached this state, because it isn’t a relative experience, and there’s nothing to compare it to, but from the very beginning—you will start to feel very relaxed, and start to get more energy—happiness and intelligence because the ‘pure state of consciousness’ is the reservoir of energy, happiness, and intelligence—and it is the place where we have got it all from in the past, but then it was unconsciously, and the meditation is a way of tapping this great natural source of energy, and consciously arriving at this level.”
Around the time George passed away, in 2001, I was making my first inroads into meditation, discovering all the wonders therein, and I found in details