THE YEARS 1970 -19 8 0 John Lennon From ‘Imagine’ to martyrdom Paul McCartney Wings – band on the run George Harrison All things must pass Ringo Starr The boogaloo Beatle The genuine article VOLUME 2 ISSUE 3 UK £5.99 Packed with classic interviews, reviews and photos from the archives of NME and Melody Maker www.jackdaniels.com ©2005 Jack Daniel’s. All Rights Reserved. JACK DANIEL’S and OLD NO. 7 are registered trademarks. A fine sippin’ whiskey is best enjoyed responsibly. by Billy Preston t’s hard to believe it’s been over sent word for me to come by, we got to – all I remember was we had a groove going and 40 years since I fi rst met The jamming and one thing led to another and someone said “take a solo”, then when the album Beatles in Hamburg in 1962. I ended up recording in the studio with came out my name was there on the song. Plenty I arrived to do a two-week them. The press called me the Fifth Beatle of other musicians worked with them at that time, residency at the Star Club with but I was just really happy to be there. people like Eric Clapton, but they chose to give me Little Richard. He was a hero of theirs Things were hard for them then, Brian a credit for which I’m very grateful. so they were in awe and I think they had died and there was a lot of politics I ended up signing to Apple and making were impressed with me too because and money hassles with Apple, but we a couple of albums with them and in turn had I was only 16 and holding down a job got on personality-wise and they grew to the opportunity to work on their solo albums. In in his band. We weren’t so far apart in trust me – I was a kind of sounding board the years after the split it wasn’t easy for them to age, particularly George, so we hit it off become anything other than The Beatles, from the start. but they were always very creative. People What was instantly obvious to me was The press called me the are forever asking me why they remain that they weren’t like the other bands so revered after all this time and it’s the around then. Their harmonies, the way Fifth Beatle, but I was just big question. I guess they just wrote from they dressed and their personalities set the heart, they experienced a lot of things them apart from the others. They were really happy to be there and wrote about them in a way everybody also unique at the time in the way a could relate to. bunch of white guys handled black music and were and another set of ears. As far as I was concerned able to add to it. they treated me like a member of the band. I’d stay We went our separate ways for a few of years, then with George at Henley, we’d eat lunch in the offi ce, I came to London with Ray Charles and George jam and record. It was a fun time for me. To get a came to see the gig and spotted me in the band. They credit on ‘Get Back’ was an honour and a privilege Let it BP: the Fifth Beatle in 1972 GETTY IMAGES/REX FEATURES GETTY IMAGES/REX NME ORIGINALS 3 INTRODUCTION THE TEN YEARS AFTER THE BEATLES The Beatles’ split was a long and drawn out divorce, but the aftermath proved just as messy. Chris Ingham explains how The Beatles survived the ’70s 18 John by David Stubbs 22 George by Adrian Thrills 20 Paul by Paolo Hewitt 24 Ringo by Paul Moody McCartney announces Beatles split ‘McCartney’ ‘Sentimental Journey’ ‘All Things Must Pass’ ‘Plastic Ono Band’ ‘My Sweet Lord’ ‘Another Day’ ‘Power To The People’ ‘It Don’t Come Easy’ ‘Ram’ ‘Beaucoups Of Blues’ Concert For Bangla Desh ‘Imagine’ ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ Forming Wings ‘Wild Life’ 28 40 36 33 Wings live debut ‘Mary Had A Little Lamb’ Save Our Lennons campaign Lennon at Madison Square Garden ‘Some Time In New York City’ ‘Hi Hi Hi’ Ringo and Marc Bolan ‘Back Off Boogaloo’ ‘My Love’ ‘Live And Let Die’ ‘Red Rose Speedway’ ‘Living In The Material World’ ‘Mind Games’ ‘Ringo’ 61 58 68 4 NME ORIGINALS ‘Band On The Run’ ‘You’re Sixteen’ ‘Jet’ Lennon Vs Todd Rundgren John’s “lost weekend” ‘Goodnight Vienna’ Lennon and Elton John live ‘Walls And Bridges’ ‘Junior’s Farm’ George’s US tour ‘Dark Horse’ Lennon Vs the US ‘Rock’N’Roll’ ‘Extra Texture’ Wings’ UK tour ‘Listen To What The Man Said’ 90 88 95 104 Lennon gets his “green card” ‘Wings At The Speed Of Sound’ ‘Thirty Three & 1/3’ ‘Ringo’s Rotogravure’ ‘Mull Of Kintyre’ ‘London Town’ Rockestra ‘Blow Away’ ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ ‘George Harrison’ ‘Back To The Egg’ Concert For Kampuchea Paul’s Japanese drugs bust ‘Waterfalls’ ‘McCartney II’ ‘(Just Like) Starting Over’ ‘Double Fantasy’ The death of John Lennon 116 114 112 128 THE BEATLES COMPLETED 1981-2005 Mike Pattenden assesses how The Beatles confronted the last 25 years WELCOME TO NME ORIGINALS So much was written about John, Paul, By re-publishing many interviews To all of this we’ve added a selection George and Ringo in the decade after and reviews for the fi rst time since of newly commissioned writings to The Beatles split up, but the glories of their initial publication in the pages place the archive material into context, the ’60s have perpetually overshadowed of the leading British weekly rock and not forgetting some truly fantastic the best of their ’70s solo work. Against magazine NME and its now defunct photographic images. a backdrop of reunion rumours, the four sister publication Melody Maker, this individual Beatles each attempted to magazine provides a fascinating insight craft a body of solo work that could rival into a decade where all four tried so hard their collective output. Although with to shake off the mantle of “ex-Beatle”. fl ashes of brilliance they occasionally In doing so, we have been able to once succeeded, they would be forever judged again bring you some of the best British Chris Hunt by the standards of The Beatles. music journalism of the period. Editor NME ORIGINALS 5 INTRODUCTION When John Lennon announced he wanted a “divorce” from The Beatles it was obvious that the split would be a messy affair. But for John, Paul, George and Ringo, the shockwaves were to last a decade. By Chris Ingham LANDMARK MEDIA LANDMARK Ten Years After or many for whom Beatle music had formed the As John Lennon saw it, he had formed the band and soundtrack of their lives, witnessing the break-up he wanted to be seen to end it. And the truth was of the group was traumatic. To watch the beloved McCartney was actually the last Beatle to get around band that had represented such artistic, social to leaving the band. F and spiritual possibilities in the 1960s enter the The end had been some time coming; the rot at 1970s as bitter, feuding businessmen seemed to suggest that the core of The Beatles had started nearly two years all the good feeling and optimism of the previous decade was previously. The band had a grinding time in the summer an illusion – like the rosy glow of childhood – to be somehow of ’68 trying to record what became the ‘White Album’. grown out of. The experience of seeing The Beatles dissolve Paul, George and Ringo were unnerved by the constant was akin to that of children who helplessly look on as their presence in the studio of John’s new love, avant-garde adored parents bicker, grow apart and separate. Deep down, artist Yoko Ono, and Lennon’s preoccupation with we may know it’s nothing to do with us, yet somehow, it his new artistically and emotionally stimulated state affects us at a fundamental level; we are little less light, a little manifested itself in a truculent disregard for any music less hopeful. that wasn’t his own. The pervading positivism, joyful As the 1970s wore on, and the world went about its invention and creative rivalry of their earlier years was growing up, it kept an eye on the separate doings of John, being replaced by paranoia, apathy and an ill-spirited Paul, George and Ringo. Not just because they continued power struggle. Ringo left the group during those to be fascinating people who, sporadically, did interesting sessions, feeling “unloved”. He was wooed back to his work, but because, of course, they were still The Beatles. As their marvelously erudite and whimsical press offi cer Derek Taylor once said of them, “It was the only dream I ever had that came true.” And The end had been some time in the 1970s, you never knew. The dream could come true again. For the watching world, the shocking news came out of the blue on coming; the rot at the core of The the morning of 10 April, 1970. The body of the Daily Mirror’s story largely quoted from Paul McCartney’s self-composed question-and- Beatles had started back in 1968 answer promotional interview accompanying advance copies of his solo debut album, ‘McCartney’, in which he referred to “business drum-stool after a few days, but the interminably grim sessions took and musical differences”, having a “better time with my family”, not their toll on the spirit of the band.