Come Together Bruce Spizer: Taxman, Paperback Writer By E. Phelps Gay 322 February / March 2011 hen The Beatles arrived Gershwin, Harold Arlen, Cole Porter and at John F. Kennedy Inter- Johnny Mercer, to name a few. When all national Airport in New the stories of their Liverpool childhoods, York City on Feb. 7, 1964, their happy or unhappy marriages, and Wthey were asked: “What do you think of their internal jealousies and dramas have Beethoven?” slipped from view, the music will be there, “Great,” Ringo responded. “Especially and it will live on. Their gift for melding his poems.” lyrics and melody, and their singular tal- And they were off. At the time, if you ents as singers and players, will bring joy were 11 years old (as I was) or 8 (as Bruce and pleasure to music lovers everywhere Spizer was), your world had already been and forever. rocked. Before the end of the year, no What does all this have to do with the fewer than six Beatles’ songs would climb Louisiana Bar Journal? Only that we to #1 on the Billboard charts: I Want to have among our ranks one lawyer who, Hold Your Hand, She Loves You, Can’t when not practicing in the field of tax Buy Me Love, Love Me Do, A Hard Day’s and estate planning, writes books about Night and I Feel Fine. With due respect to The Beatles and knows more about them Elvis, whom The Beatles adored, he had than possibly anyone on the planet. So been completely eclipsed by the four lads minutely knowledgeable is this Beatles David (Bruce) Spizer from Liverpool. They were everywhere scholar-historian that he was asked to and, not only were they hugely popular, compose all of the questions contained Records on Vee-Jay (1998); The Beatles’ their music was good. in The Beatles’ Trivial Pursuit game. I Story on Capitol Records — Part One: How good? I’m not sure anyone really thought I knew a little bit about the Fab The Singles (2000); The Beatles’ Story knew at the time. It is one thing to take Four until my daughter started asking me on Capitol Records — Part Two: The the pop world by storm with a few big questions from this game, particularly Albums (2000); The Beatles on Apple hits; many have done it and promptly in the category, The Beatles in America. Records (2003); The Beatles Are Com- faded into oblivion. It is quite another Questions like: ing! (2003); The Beatles’ Solo on Apple to keep that storm brewing and roiling, Records (2005); and The Beatles Swan year after year, album after album, with What type of vehicle did The Beatles Song: “She Loves You” & Other Records increasingly innovative music and lyrics, take to their Philadelphia concert on their (2007). The New York Times has described to the astonishment of listeners around the final U.S. tour to avoid detection?1 his books as containing “a wealth of detail globe. After the first wave of hits, which about the Beatles American recordings caused American teenage girls virtually Who in the world knows this stuff? The and their first visit to the United States, to scream their lungs out, The Beatles in answer is David “Bruce” Spizer. touching on everything from contracts their Abbey Road studio proceeded to In his lawyer life, Bruce Spizer prac- and lawsuits to promotional materials, produce If I Fell and Norwegian Wood, tices tax law and estate planning and ad- all richly illustrated.” Yesterday and In My Life, Eleanor Rigby ministration from his office in downtown In addition, Bruce has served as con- and Taxman, You’ve Got to Hide Your Love New Orleans. By all accounts, he has sultant to EMI for its CD releases of The Away and Here Comes the Sun, A Day in enjoyed considerable professional suc- Beatles’ catalog. A frequent speaker at the Life and Dear Prudence, Blackbird and cess, not only satisfying clients but also Beatles conventions, he has given presen- Julia, Strawberry Fields and Hey Jude, serving as president of the New Orleans tations on Beatles history, accompanied by to (let’s face it) not even begin to scratch Estate Planning Council and offering music and video, at the Lincoln Center, the the surface of their musical mother lode. frequent lectures on retirement plans and New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Who could have predicted it? other topics. Board-certified in tax law and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He Time, they say (and they are right), and in estate planning and administration, is currently working on a new book about brings perspective. With the passage of Bruce is also a non-practicing certified Beatles’ records produced on their British time, it is clear that the Lennon-McCa- public accountant. label, Parlophone. rtney songbook withstands comparison But his role as Beatles aficionado is Recently, I spoke with Bruce about with those of the great American song- what caught my attention. To date, Bruce his obsession. writers of the 1930s and 1940s — George has written seven books: The Beatles Continued next page Louisiana Bar Journal Vol. 58, No. 5 323 Journal: Tell us a little bit about your Journal: When did the Fab Four first Spizer: Feb. 9, 1964. That Sunday background. come to your attention? evening was the largest television audi- Spizer: I’m from New Orleans. I went Spizer: I was 8 years old, riding on the ence ever. Seventy-three million people to Newman School for 13 years. After that, Newman school bus. Our driver, Hawkins, watched — a record not beaten until, if you I went down the street a couple of blocks to used to play the Top 40 station, WTIX. adjust for population, the final episode of Tulane University, where I got a joint BA I heard this song, I Want to Hold Your M*A*S*H in 1983. And that record was (in economics) and MBA (concentrating Hand. It grabbed me and, at the end, the not beaten until the Saints beat the Colts in finance). I graduated from Tulane Law disc jockey mentioned it was by a British in Super Bowl XLIV, a game watched School in 1980. I practiced law at Stone group called The Beatles. I kept hearing by the largest television audience ever Pigman for about three years, spent a year their music and persuaded my mother in America.2 working with a solo tax practitioner, and to take me to Studio A, a record store in then went out on my own. Lakeview, to buy my very first album, Journal: So The Beatles made three Meet the Beatles. I still have that. appearances? Journal: Did you find firm practice Spizer: Yes. The following week, they not particularly to your liking? Journal: Was this pre- or post-Ed played from the Deauville Hotel in Mi- Spizer: I think it was in my blood Sullivan show? ami Beach. We’ll get to that in a minute. to be on my own. My grandfather, J.D. Spizer: Right before Ed Sullivan. A And the next week Ed Sullivan played Dresner, and his nephew, Meyer Dresner, lot of people think they didn’t hear about a couple of songs which had been taped were solo practitioners. Over the years, The Beatles until Ed Sullivan, which is while they were in New York. Sullivan I’ve seen their names when reviewing not true. The Beatles were dominating tried to create the illusion the show was titles and successions. It’s worked out well radio for weeks leading up to the Ed live, but Beatles’ fans knew the group had because, if I was with a major downtown Sullivan show. already left America. firm, I don’t think they would approve of me spending so much time working on Journal: When were they on Ed Journal: What do you think of the Beatles’ projects. Sullivan? theory that The Beatles helped America 324 February / March 2011 recover from the Kennedy assassina- asked, “Walter, what can you tell me there moved out and I spent Super Bowl tion? about those bugs or whatever they call weekend in room 1219. Spizer: It bothers me when I read themselves?” books that say The Beatles were popular I told Mr. Cronkite, “I don’t doubt that Journal: Great story, plus the Saints in the U.S. because young people were conversation took place, but Ed Sullivan won the Super Bowl. despondent over the death of President booked The Beatles on Nov. 12, at a time Spizer: Yes, and I got to see the space Kennedy. I was 8 years old and, as much when they were unknown in America. He shuttle lift off the next morning at 4 a.m. as it affected me, I wasn’t going to be was taking a chance. A month later, he from the balcony of my room at the depressed for several months. Did The was watching you end the CBS Evening Deauville. It was an orange dot heading Beatles lift our spirits? Of course, but it News with a story on The Beatles. He up and away over the Atlantic. To cap it wasn’t cause-and-effect. If that were true, was excited and wanted to know what off, two guys from BBC Radio came to how do you explain The Beatles’ popular- you could tell him about the group he see the hotel manager about The Beatles’ ity in Germany, Japan, Sweden and other had already booked.” stay at the hotel in 1964. The manager countries? Interestingly, CBS ran a five- called me and said come down to the minute story about The Beatles on the Journal: Did Ed Sullivan really call lobby to talk to these guys; you know more morning Kennedy was assassinated.