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A BONA fide jazz legend who formed a close friendship with The Beatles and has had his music played at Anfield is bringing an evening of world class jazz to Crawley.

The Big Chris Barber Band, described as Europe’s finest traditional jazz and blues band, are coming to The Hawth in January.

The band turned professional in 1953 and played the world famous Cavern Club in Liverpool, which will forever be associated with The Beatles, soon after it opened in 1957.

Before Beatlemania gripped the world The Big Chris Barber Band were headlining concerts in Liverpool and meeting the famous four for drinks afterwards.

Band leader Chris Barber said:

“The Cavern started as a popular jazz club and we were performing there and at the top of other concerts.

“The Beatles were an interval band in bars at this time that we would go to after our shows.

“Both being involved in music I would buy them drinks and got to know them very well.

“Paul McCartney was always straight talking and easy to get on with, whereas I found John Lennon to be too intense.

“It was George Harrison I got to know very well, though. He was an incredible man.”

Great recognition on myriads of deeds, ideas, concept or a work of art that is posted online surely have a lot to learn from how the greatest rock band of all time, The Beatles, managed to spur undying support from millions of fans around the world with their 292 shows in a span of two years; where marketing strategies mainly depends on live performances.

Advancement in several technologies in this generation makes content marketing of products and services much easier and faster. Yet, not all does leave a lasting impression to every person, which most generational brands were able to grasp for some time. People might be able to upload and share their video on various Social Media, however, the fact that it was posted online the question still remains if it is worthy of everyone's time.

Making a video content that is highly sharable would probably lift any business ventures, leading new prospects back to the site and increasing conversion. It was like winning a virtual lottery where the prizes are the people who got 'infected' by the viral video which leads to increase in the bottom line.

But to reap such hefty benefits from viral video contents, some things in regards to effective content marketing should be done The Beatles' way, such as;

Generating Numerous Content Feeds: Before The Beatles was discovered by Brian Epstein, a record store manager in Liverpool, the rock band were just a group of teenagers living and performing at a Hamburg night club for 6 hours per night, everyday. Since they were resident musicians, they managed to create and experiment a lot of sample materials with the time in hand. Therefore, in a business context, producing a lot of sample materials or content related to the business franchise would make a great difference. Hiring a digital marketer to design those content would greatly improve the sales.

On December 15, 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono launched their global WAR IS OVER! campaign, protesting the Vietnam War.

On that day, they performed with the Plastic Ono Band at UNICEF’s “Peace for Christmas” concert in London.

Apparently, UNICEF arranged the performance without telling the performers. John and Yoko were surprised to hear the show announced in November, but they agreed to it because UNICEF’s mission was in line with their own peace campaign.

Other acts included the Young Rascals, Desmond Dekker and the Aces, Blue Mink and Black Velvet, and Emperor Rosko, but the highlight was the Plastic Ono Band – Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann, Alan White, Billy Preston, and of course, John and Yoko – and their special guests, Keith Moon, Bobby Keyes, Jim Gordon, and George Harrison.

This marked the first time that Lennon and Harrison performed together in a scheduled concert since The Beatles‘ last show in 1966.

And even that wasn’t planned. The Plastic Ono band was booked, but the day of the show, Eric Clapton showed up with most of the members of The Delaney and Bonnie Band, which included George Harrison.

Ringo Starr first learned he was receiving the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Award for Musical Excellence when Paul McCartney called him up about two weeks ago. "He said, 'Would you accept the award?'" Starr says. "I said, 'Sure, man.' He said he'd been talking to Dave Grohl and other people and they were stunned that I wasn't in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and he needed something to do that night and he's going to give me the award." Rolling Stone spoke to the affable drummer about his reaction and why he'll still be drumming.

Congratulations on the big news.
Yeah, the big news! My goodness! I'm so excited.

What was your first reaction?
I think it's good. I didn't know that George and John were in it. I'm not keeping up with it all the time. We'll have a very nice evening and it'll be my pleasure to receive the award.

So this isn't something you thought about much?
No. I didn't think about it much or expect it. This year has been quite busy. I've been touring a lot. I got the humanitarian award from GQ. I became a male model for John Varvatos, so my life is busy anyway. This came out of the blue. I didn't expect it. I got the call from Paul two weeks ago. He said, "This could happen. Do you want to do it?" I said, "Sure."

Two famous meetings that The King of Rock and Roll had, first with The Beatles, and later with President Richard Nixon, are featured in the new London exhibit, "Elvis at the O2, The Exhibition of His Life," which opened on Friday.

In August 1965, The Beatles finally got to meet their idol, Elvis Presley, at his home in Los Angeles. It's no secret that Elvis was a huge influence on The Beatles to play rock and roll starting in their teenage years. "Nothing affected me until I heard Elvis. Without Elvis, there would be no Beatles," John Lennon said.

During the meeting, Elvis pulled out a white Fender bass guitar to play, much to Paul McCartney's delight. Meanwhile, Ringo Starr took up a game of pool with members of Elvis' entourage at Elvis' pool table, now referred to as the world's most valuable pool table.

They may have caught the same flight but Sir Paul McCartney, 72, and his 53-year-old wife Nancy were strides apart when they touched down at JFK International Airport, New York on Sunday.

After a long haul flight in from London, the married duo walked separately as they were escorted through arrivals, former Beatles singer Paul keeping a low profile a few paces behind in tinted shades. 

The hipster, after 44 years in the industry, was taking a new direction with his musical offering having accepted an offer to pen a track for new video game Destiny. Hope For the Future.

Paul cut a smart image with youthful touches including a padded jacket and black plimsolls, while his wife kept her ensemble hidden beneath a camel overcoat.

Even most non-sports fans know what a baseball card looks like. There's a color photo on the front, along with a player's name, team and position. Many have a copy of the player's autograph as well as the team logo. On the back is printed the player's stats along with his height, weight and maybe a fact or two.

It's been that way since 1952, when a Topps salesman named Seymour P. “Sy” Berger redesigned baseball cards for his company, coming up with the new format at his kitchen table in Brooklyn with artist Woody Gelman.

"We wanted to make something attractive that would catch the eye," Berger told The Associated Press in 2002. "And we gave you six cards and a slice of gum for a nickel."

Berger died of natural causes on Sunday at his Long Island home at the age of 91, more than 60 years after reinventing what would become almost as much of an American pastime as the sport itself.

Happy Xmas (War is Over) is the new single from the RTÉ Radio 1 charity album, A Murray Christmas 2.

Damien Dempsey collaborated with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra for their cover version of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Christmas classic.

All of the proceeds from the single will be donated to Aware, a charity which supports people with mental health issues. 

Speaking about the song, John Murray, presenter of The John Murray Show on Radio 1, said: “Dempsey's take on the Lennon/Ono classic is very refreshing, moving gently and tender at the start but ending with the passion and strength that listeners have come to expect from him. 

"Paired with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and his own band, it is a very uniquely Irish version of Happy Xmas (War is Over).”

Happy Xmas (War is Over) is available from iTunes, RTE.ie/shop or your usual download store. 

The second charity album by The John Murray Show, A Murray Christmas 2 is also available to purchase. It's the perfect Christmas soundtrack with contributions from artists such as Lisa Hannigan, The Riptide Movement, Mick Flannery, Cathy Davey, Walking on Cars, Declan O’Rourke, Eimear Quinn, Donal Lunny and of course Damien Dempsey.

A Murray Christmas Concert will take place this Wednesday December 17 in Christ Church Cathedral.

Drew Harrison plans to sing “Imagine” on Dec. 31, just as he has done each New Year’s Eve for the past 38 years. In many ways, he feels it to be the perfect song for fresh starts. It is, as he says, “about possibilities, and it means as much to me now as it ever has.”

Harrison is the John Lennon of the Sun Kings, one of many Beatles tribute bands out there, but one he says is different from the others. Rain, for instance, looks back at the history of the band. The Sun Kings, in its own way, looks forward.

“We try to answer the question, ‘What would it have been like if they had not broken up in 1971?’” he says. “We create the experience you would have had, and we make the music as authentic as we can.”

Calling from a pub in the Czech Republic, Harrison and his bandmates are set to play Harrah’s Tahoe on Saturday (7:30 p.m.; $22; Ticketmaster).

Harrison first heard the Beatles when he was a youth at a recreation camp. His counselor put on “The White Album” and he fell in love with it, especially with his favorite Beatles song, “Dear Prudence.” He went on to earn a degree from UC Berkeley in peace and conflict studies. Then he started singing Beatles songs professionally, and the Sun Kings resulted 15 years ago.

“The Beatles are a genre, a genre to themselves,” he says. “There are so many people out there who love them. The songs are so much about the power and effect they have had on us.

“In live concert, it was not so much that they were talking to you. It was as if they were talking with you. The fourth wall came down and that is what we offer. A Sun Kings concert is an interactive experience.”

The band also includes James Funk, who handles the Paul McCartney vocals; Bruce Coe (George Harrison); Steve Scarpelli (Ringo Starr); and Ruben Salis, who accompanies with all sorts of instruments, sort of in the role of Billy Preston. The full name of the concert is “The Sun Kings, A Beatles Tribute as Nature Intended.”