You searched for john beat - New Hit Singles

Promising Producer John Beat ‘s Artistic Evolution From “Cycle” To “Dime Que”

18-year-old producer John Beat ‘s journey has been marked by growth, and his latest single “Dime Que,” stands as a testament to his evolving artistry. Reflecting on his previous releases like “Cycle” and “Northern Star,” the up-and-coming musician discusses his artistic development and the exciting new dimension he’s introducing to his sound.

With each song, Beat crafts a unique world, exploring different genres and flavors. “Cycle,” in particular, saw him delving into new musical territories, showcasing his various talents and desire to experiment. He acknowledges that his production skills have strengthened over time, leading to more refined releases that resonate deeply.

Beat ‘s philosophy centers around pushing boundaries and embracing versatility. His curiosity for Latin music has sparked new ideas, hinting at the diverse elements to be expected in his upcoming releases. “Dime Que” unveils merely the initial glimpse of what awaits, boasting an irresistible fusion of captivating melodies and lyrics that strike a chord.

With every chapter of John Beat ’s journey, he continues to carve a niche not through competition, but through a genuine passion for creating music that connects with listeners on a profound level. Full of confidence and a strong sense of purpose, the artist combines familiar emotions with a modern twist, greatly increasing the chances of his songs becoming popular hits.

Continuously venturing into new territories and stretching his boundaries, John Beat is gearing up to unveil a series of exciting releases. A music video is also on the horizon, poised to mesmerize fans and illuminate his extraordinary imagination. With his most recent drop, “Dime Que,” John brings forth an alluring ambiance, giving his listeners a sneak peek into the thrilling journey that lies ahead.

Check out the lyric video below:

Listen to the song on Spotify:

John Lennon and The Beatles memorabilia to be sold as NFTs

John Lennon‘s eldest son Julian is set to sell a range of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring digitised pieces of Lennon and Beatles memorabilia from his person collection.

The online auction will take place on Julien’s Auctions on February 7, with Julian Lennon offering music fans the chance to “own a piece of music history”.

READ MORE: WTF is an NFT? Kings Of Leon’s weird non-fungible token thing – explained!

While Julian will keep the physical items from his collection, bidders will have the chance to buy NFT versions of the memorabilia in the auction. Each item, which will be presented as an audio-visual collectible, will include narration by Lennon’s son and imagery of the item in question.

The NFT collection includes handwritten notes by Paul McCartney from the writing of ‘Hey Jude’, which was originally written for Julian to comfort him during the time of John and Cynthia Lennon’s divorce. The bidding for this NFT starts at $30,000 (£22,258).

Other items include the Afghan coat worn by John Lennon in the Beatles film Magical Mystery Tour, a Gibson Les Paul guitar gifted by the late artist to his son and the black cape worn by Lennon in the film Help!.

A portion of the proceeds from sales of this NFT collection – which you can view here – will benefit Julian Lennon’s White Feather Foundation.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Julian Lennon (@julespicturepalace)

“I’ve been collecting these personal items for about 30 years, and I was getting a bit fed up with them being locked away in a vault, where I’ve had to keep them because I didn’t want them to get damaged,” Lennon told Variety about the venture.

“We did a few exhibitions in Europe with the items, and my intention was to take the collection and tour it, and I still hope to at some point in time, but obviously the last few years have not been helpful.

“I actually felt very bad about keeping all that stuff locked away, and I just felt that this was a unique way to continue dad’s legacy and to show people the collections I have, and with the videos and narration, to give people a little more than they would normally get and hear some stories that they haven’t heard before in a new art form and a different medium.

“This is a slow rollout over the next year or so of quite a few items. I have a lot of projects happening this year, including a new album, and these [items] tie in to a few of them. I can’t really say much more — you’ll understand why when it happens. The first release will be April 8 and that will inform you of the campaign going forward.”

In other Beatles news, the band’s iconic 1969 rooftop concert will be screened in IMAX cinemas in London and the US this weekend.

Paul McCartney says he still wonders if The Beatles would’ve reunited if John Lennon had lived

Paul McCartney has said that he still wonders about whether The Beatles would’ve ever reunited had John Lennon lived.

The 40th anniversary of Lennon’s death fell earlier this month. The musician was shot and killed outside his apartment building in New York on December 8, 1980.

Read more: Every John Lennon solo album ranked in order of greatness

Speaking to CBS’ Sunday Morning programme over the weekend to mark the release of his latest solo album ‘McCartney III’, McCartney reflected on the tragedy of Lennon’s murder (“it was just so senseless”) and gave his view on whether Lennon would still be making music if he were alive today.

“Yeah. He was showing no signs of slowing up. You know, he was still making great music,” McCartney said in regards to Lennon’s successful solo career at the time of his death 40 years ago.

“The question is: would we have ever got back together again?” McCartney continued. Pressed for an answer, the musician replied: “I don’t know. We don’t know.”

McCartney previously spoke about the former possibility of a Beatles reunion in 2012, telling Rolling Stone that there “was talk of reforming the Beatles a couple of times” when all four members of the band were still alive.

“But it didn’t gel – there was not enough passion behind the idea.”

The new video for McCartney’s song ‘Find A Way’ was released last week. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Roman Coppola, the video shows McCartney playing every instrument on the song – including guitar, drums and piano – in a collage of footage taken by 46 cameras.

Aphrodite’s Child 666 The Apocalypse Of St John: 50th Anniversary Boxset

If The Rolling Stones’ notorious free concert at Altamont in December 1969 signalled the end of the ’60s’ hippie ideal, then Aphrodite’s Child’s 666 is the sacrificial ceremony where the hopes and dreams of that decade are finally turned to dust in a beautiful, cacophonous, ridiculous melange of progressive rock, psychedelic folk, Greek myth, Christian scripture, Monty Python surrealism and countercultural conspiracy. The victims at this ceremony? Aphrodite’s Child themselves, whose four members went their separate ways long before this controversial 83-minute double-album based on the Book of Revelations was released in June 1972, two years after the band had delivered it to their label, Mercury.

THE REVIEW OF 2024, NICK CAVE, ALICE COLTRANE, ELVIS COSTELLO, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON, CASSANDRA JENKINS AND MORE STAR IN THE NEW UNCUT – ORDER A COPY HERE!

Stewarded by the Greek maestro Vangelis Papathanassiou – the visionary behind the Blade Runner and Chariots Of Fire scores – and fronted by the singer and bassist Demis Roussos – later, the kaftan king of ’70s kitsch – alongside guitarist Silver Koulouris and drummer Lucas Sideras, Aphrodite’s Child began life as Athens’ answer to The Byrds or The Beatles. Drawing on psych-rock, flower power and the lush balladry of Mikis Theodorakis, they achieved notable success in Europe with their first two albums, End Of The World (1968) and It’s Five O’Clock (1969), and singles “I Want To Live” and “Rain And Tears”.

But Vangelis, the driving musical force, soon tired of that charade and sought new challenges to match his colossal ambition. Based in Paris to escape the right-wing dictatorship in Greece – like the rest of the band – he’d experienced the riots of May ’68 and, though not political, sensed something in the air. An encounter the following year with the writer and filmmaker Costas Ferris, who’d touted a script for a film called Aquarius to an unimpressed Pink Floyd, led to Ferris proposing a theme for an Aphrodite’s Child concept album based on either a modern-day Passion Play or the Revelation of St John (known as Apocalypse in Greece), set in the here and now. The idea of Apocalypse – renamed 666 – appealed to Vangelis, who felt the need to compose music not as a celebration of the Swinging ’60s but rather as an almost violent reaction to it. On jazz freak-out “Altamont”, for example, the gods view the unfolding chaos from a mountain: “We saw a lamb with seven eyes/We saw a beast with seven horns,” intones the album’s English narrator John Forst. He also mentions “the rolling people”, which The Verve would use for Urban Hymns.

To that end, Vangelis composed a Tommy-style rock oratorio based on Ferris’s script in which an audience at a circus watches the animals and performers act out a diabolical ritual while the real Armageddon whips up chaos outside the big top. While the audience thinks this is part of the show, the all-seeing narrator becomes more and more exasperated. When the two scenes collide, all hell breaks loose – realised by Vangelis in the penultimate 20-minute jam “All The Seats Were Occupied”, which weaves excerpts from the whole album into a frenetic finale. Much like Alejandro Jodorowsky’s contemporaneous film The Holy Mountain, which also blends religion and magical realism, the more you think you understand 666, the less sense it makes.

Vangelis and his bandmates spent 10 months in Europa Sonor studios in Paris, burning through $90,000 in the process and forbidding their paymasters to hear the works in progress. If Mercury had come to terms with the fact that Aphrodite’s Child no longer produced chart-topping romantic pop, they struggled with the potentially blasphemous nature of 666 – not helped by the four weatherbeaten musicians who, with their flowing locks and furrowed brows, resembled fallen apostles. Yet there are some sublime songs, such as “The Four Horsemen” and “Loud Loud Loud”. In the end, the one track that most vexed the label was “∞” (Infinity), in which the Greek actress Irene Papas chants, “I was, I am, I am to come” as an improvised, orgasmic a cappella, becoming increasingly hysterical as Vangelis rattles percussion approvingly. Intended to convey the Second Coming of Christ through the pain of birth and the joy of sex, its X-rated content vexed Mercury who, fearing a “Je T’aime”-style backlash, asked Vangelis to cut it from the album. He refused, and so the label sat on the record for two years, only then releasing it via their new leftfield Vertigo imprint. On the one-year anniversary of the album’s completion, a miffed Vangelis threw a party in the studio where it was recorded and played it in full to his guests. One admirer in attendance, Salvador Dali, proposed a lavish stunt in Barcelona to promote it, which didn’t happen.

The original recording of Papas apparently lasts 39 minutes, which Vangelis cut to five, and some fans might feel short-changed that this fabled onanistic odyssey has been omitted from this 50th-anniversary boxset. In addition to the video of a rare 1972 Discorama documentary and a Dolby Atmos revamp, what’s of interest here are the new remasters – overseen by Vangelis before he died in May 2022 – of both the Greek pressing of 666 and the one released in the rest of the world. On the more desirable Greek version, several songs are longer and mixed differently; “Battle Of The Locusts” features extra Hendrix riffing from Koulouris, while the bluesy groove of “Hic Et Nunc” plays on for two further minutes.

Heavier than Led Zeppelin, saucier than Serge and wilder than The White Album – in these secular times, every home should have a copy of (i)666(i).

Yoko Ono was warned John Lennon was “in danger” before his death, new book claims

Yoko Ono has claimed that she was warned that her late husband John Lennon was “in danger” prior to his death.

Lennon was murdered by an obsessed fan named Mark David Chapman on December 8 1980. The ‘Beautiful Boy’ singer was shot while arriving at his apartment at The Dakota in New York City. Late last year, the Beatles guitarist’s final words were revealed by Jay Hastings, the concierge working at the front desk of the building.

Now, in a new book titled We All Shine On: John, Yoko and Me written by Elliot Mintz – the former spokesperson and confidant of Lennon and Ono – Mintz opened up about the aftermath of the musician’s death and how it affected his wife and his two sons, Sean and Julian.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono with cropped hair and matching outfits, 1973. (Photo by Penny Tweedie/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

In an excerpt shared by The Times, Mintz alleged that Ono had become suspicious of those around her and opened up about how they almost got into an argument after he asked her to interview her and her son Sean on the radio to address the rumours going around about the Lennon family. She told him that she would have to check with her “advisers” – who were comprised of tarot readers and numerologists.

“Yoko, let me ask you something. If these advisers are as good as you believe they are, why is it that none of them saw what was going to happen to John? Why was there no warning?” he said.

“Elliot,” she responded, “How do you know I wasn’t warned? Did you ever ask me if there were warnings?” Mintz continued: “Okay, I’ll ask you: Did any of your advisers warn you about John being in danger?”

After leaving Mintz speechless with her answer, Ono explained: “Look, Elliot. You know how John felt about his own safety. We talked about this at our kitchen table when your friend [the actor Sal Mineo] was killed. John said, ‘If they’re going to get you, they’re going to get you.’ It didn’t matter what my advisers told me. He didn’t believe in bodyguards, he wouldn’t put up with them. He wanted to be free.”

Elsewhere, earlier this month, to celebrate what would have been Lennon’s 84th birthday, a box set was shared containing “meditation mixes” of his 1973 song ‘Mind Games’.

In other news, Sean previously opened up about the importance of his father and his music and his parents’ relationship.

“One thing that distinguishes my dad’s solo career is how personal his lyrics became. It is like a diary, and it is my duty to bring attention to my father’s music. Not just my duty to him, but a duty to the world,” he told The Times. “With the world as it is now, people have forgotten so many things that I never imagined could be forgotten. I refuse to let that happen to this music — it means too much to me.”

In a four-star review of One To One: John & Yoko, NME shared: “In short, this is a terrific documentary from start to finish, beautifully structured and by turns bracingly political, informative and inspiring. It’s also profoundly bittersweet, because it’s impossible to watch the film and wonder what kind of figure Lennon would have become in the 21st century. Just imagine.”

John Lithgow went to a wine shop in Italy with Stanley Tucci and the locals freaked out: “Ralph Fiennes and I felt like extras in Gandhi”

John Lithgow has said that Stanley Tucci made some locals particularly starstruck when he went to a wine shop in Italy with him and Ralph Fiennes – but in Italy, Lithgow himself was a “nobody”.

The three all appear in the mystery thriller film Conclave and Tucci had previously worked on a food and travel series called Searching For Italy in the country. During a break from filming, the three went into a wine shop to buy some wine for a party.

“It made you feel like a total nobody to walk down the streets of Rome with Stanley,” remarked Lithgow. “On the way home from work one day, at like 6:30 p.m., we stopped off to buy some wine. We’d all been invited to the same party, so Stanley, Ralph Fiennes, and I went into a wine shop.

“We just had the car stop and let us out, and we went in to buy wine for the hostess. And Stanley, of course, bought about eight bottles of wine. And everybody in that store, customers and service people alike, they [behaved] like a Beatle had walked into their door.”

He added: “Ralph and I felt like extras in Gandhi — absolutely no attention was paid! So you just had to swallow that bitter pill.”

[embedded content]

Tucci, Lithgow and Fiennes all portray Catholic Cardinals in Conclave, a drama directed by Edward Berger based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris. It follows a group of cardinals in Vatican City attempting to elect a new Pope among themselves when the Supreme Pontiff dies, which sees plenty of backstabbing and posturing ensue.

In other news, Tucci has revealed that he struggled to “get a job” after starring in The Devil Wears Prada, telling Vanity Fair in a new interview: “After The Devil Wears Prada, I couldn’t get a job, and I didn’t quite understand that, but that’s just the way it was. So I went and did stuff that I didn’t necessarily want to do, but I did it.”

Although he appeared in films for the next couple of years, it wasn’t until 2009 that he featured in anything high profile such as Julie & Julia and Peter Jackson‘s The Lovely Bones, the latter of which earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Oscars.

Introducing the Ultimate Music Guide: The Beatles, Definitive edition

The Fabber four!

Hello hello!

Close to the Beatles, subject of our latest 172-page Ultimate Music Guide but never so close as to lose objectivity, the late British rock ‘n’ roller Tony Sheridan had a succinct take on the band’s formative two years in Hamburg. “It wasn’t sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll,” he told me some years ago. “It was music, music, music.”

We have become accustomed to the idea that the German language has an accurate way of describing every situation, and so it proves here. What Sheridan recalled about his encounters with the band between 1960 and 1962 he described as an extension of wohngemeinschaft – a kind of shared living.

As Tony explained it, this extended beyond the generally horrible accommodation the Hamburg bands lived in, but also a more philosophical sharing of resources. So enthused were the bands about their pursuit – in a time when musicians were considered a kind of reviled social underclass – that they shared resources, knowledge, even group members, all in the name of their wider mission.

Could this be the first flowering of the musical questing, the inclusiveness and open-mindedness that we think of when we think of the Beatles? If it’s not an idea to rule on, it’s a warm feeling that you’ll be able to trace throughout this new definitive edition of our Ultimate Music Guide to the Beatles.

Access all areas doesn’t really have the same sort of meaning today as it did when NME’s news editor Chris Hutchins spent the afternoon on a boat listening to the new Bob Dylan album with the Rolling Stones, before joining the Beatles backstage at Shea stadium. That’s just a flavour of the refreshing openness which underpins the band’s dealings with the press, which you’ll find in the archive features included here.

Even when the band are in dispute with each other, John Lennon is still receiving callers from the world’s reporters to explain his position on peace, Yoko, and of course the Beatles. Of Paul’s many innovations, his retreat from the spotlight and subsequent ownership of the narrative to announce his first solo record seems particularly striking – it’s one of the few times a Beatle broke new ground in the press without a journalist being present. He did something similar in 2023, busting his own record company embargo by announcing the imminent arrival of “Now And Then”, the “last Beatles song”.

Alongside these archival pieces, Uncut’s writers have made their own insightful trips inside the Beatles’ music, to chart the band’s recorded course from “1-2-3-4!” “…the love you make”. We bring things right up to date with a deep look at the new Giles Martin remixes of Revolver, Sgt Pepper, The White Album, Abbey Road and Let It Be. There’s a review of the Get Back series, in which Peter Jackson has given a deeper insight into the band’s legendary studio sessions of January 1969 beyond that in the Let It Be film.

Very much as they were in their lifetime, over 60 years on from Beatlemania the band are much as they were: finding new ways to help us look afresh at things we thought we already knew very well indeed. Enjoy the magazine, you can get yours here. Fancy a hardback edition? It’s here.

Hear Father John Misty’s epic new track, “Screamland”

Josh Tillman has released a new track, “Screamland“, which is taken from Father John Misty‘s upcoming new album, Mahashmashana, which will be released on November 22 in the UK & Europe via Bella Union and Sub Pop for the rest world.

THE BEATLES, JONI MITCHELL, VAN MORRISON, MICHAEL KIWANUKA AND MORE STAR IN THE NEW UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE!

“Screamland” features Alan Sparhawk from Low on guitar and a striking string arrangement written by Drew Erickson. Watch the official “Screamland” video directed by Estefania Kröl below.

[embedded content]

The tracklisting for Mahashmashana is:

Mahashmashana

She Cleans Up

Josh Tillman and The Accidental Dose

Mental Health

Screamland

Being You

I Guess Time Makes Fools of Us All

Summer’s Gone

The album is available to pre-order here.

Mahashmashana has been produced by Josh Tillman and Drew Erickson and executive produced by Jonathan Wilson.

Introducing Uncut’s exclusive, ultra-collectible John Lennon CD

The August 2024 issue of Uncut is packed full of goodies for the discerning John Lennon fan. As well as our cover story – a deep dive into Lennon’s creative but turbulent 1973/’74 – there’s a stunning Collector’s Cover, a mini Ultimate Music Guide to all Lennon’s solo albums and a unique, ultra-collective CD featuring new mixes, outtakes and more from the upcoming Mind Games deluxe edition box set. Now read on…

THE NEW UNCUT COMES WITH A FREE, ULTRA-COLLECTABLE JOHN LENNON CD – ORDER A COPY HERE

This month’s Uncut CD is rather special. Compiled exclusively for us by the John Lennon estate, it features nine songs taken from the deluxe Mind Games boxset. Why nine, you may ask? Nine was Lennon’s favourite number – present in songs like “One After 909” to “Revolution 9” and “#9 Dream” – and Mind Games was recorded during a period when Lennon and Yoko Ono were re-engaging with their interests in esoteric subjects, exploring everything from palmistry to numerology.

The deluxe Mind Games boxset includes brand new mixes, outtakes and audio documentaries that explore the evolution of each song, from piano demos recorded at Lennon’s home in Surrey through recording sessions at New York’s Record Plant to the final master. Before we reveal the tracklisting for our CD, here’s a few words from Mind Games’ producer and creative director Sean Ono Lennon… “Our Uncut CD shows examples of the types of mixes we’ve included. I think listening to these mixes will give you a sense of the broad scope you can expect from the boxsets. From very polished and what I would consider ‘ultimate’ mixes, to raw elements and outtakes.

“We’ve really tried to include everything we possibly can and we’re really looking forward to hearing people’s feedback. I’m very proud of the work we’ve done on an album that has always meant a lot to me personally.”

THE NEW UNCUT COMES WITH A FREE, ULTRA-COLLECTABLE JOHN LENNON CD – ORDER A COPY HERE

1 MIND GAMES

(Evolution Documentary)

The Evolution Documentary mixes tell the story of a track from demo to completion. “Mind Games” began as a piano-and-voice demo recorded at Lennon’s home in Ascot, Surrey in 1970, before he returned to the unfinished song ahead of the Mind Games sessions in summer 1973. The Evolution Documentary follows the song from this initial demo and into the studio, where Lennon gives instructions to the band, and Yoko Ono offers observations from the control room. Then we hear the final mix, starting with guitar, piano and vocal as the other familiar elements are finally introduced. “Mind Games” was the sole single from the album, reaching No 18 in America.

2 I’M THE GREATEST

(Ultimate Mix)

Originally written in 1970, Lennon took the title of “I’m The Greatest” from a quote by Muhammad Ali – but wasn’t sure he could get away with singing the phrase himself. He felt it made much better sense, however, when it came from the mouth of Ringo Starr, who was looking for songs for his 1973 album, Ringo. “I’m The Greatest” became the opening track. Lennon’s original reading was a little maudlin and sarcastic, but by May 1973 he was in upbeat mood as he recorded it in LA with Ringo, George Harrison and Klaus Voormann. This Ultimate mix features John’s original guide vocal.

3 AISUMASEN I’M SORRY

(Ultimate Mix)

One of the hidden gems on Mind Games, “Aisumasen (I’m Sorry)” was Lennon’s apology to Yoko Ono for some of his recent bad behaviour. It’s a tranquil, hypnotic song, with excellent overdubbed pedal steel by Sneaky Pete Kleinow. This Ultimate mix of “Aisumasen” highlights the craft of the Plastic U.F.Ono Band through Ken Ascher’s subtle piano and a stunning onetake guitar solo from David Spinozza. This underscores Lennon’s pained and plaintive vocal, which is given renewed prominence in the new mix.

4 YOU ARE HERE

(Outtake, Take 5)

The lilting “You Are Here” was another Mind Games song written by Lennon for Yoko Ono. It saw him pursue a theme of two people who are born 3,000 miles apart but defy chance to find each other and fall in love. Possibly one of the finest love songs Lennon ever wrote, this outtake is a stunning 10-minute journey with additional lyrics. It finds the Plastic U.F.Ono Band locked into a slow and steady Latin groove. It feels like a song that never needs to end, something to be played as John and Yoko waltz off together into the sunset.

5 TIGHT A$

(Raw Studio Mix)

One of the two rockers on Mind Games, “Tight A$” is presented in Raw Studio Mix form. This mix provides the chance to hear songs as they were recorded live in the studio, without any effects such as echo and delay. And thus it gives us an idea of what the Plastic U.F.Ono band might have sounded like if they had gone on the road. “Would I have liked to play live?” says bassist Gordon Edwards. “It would have been a smash. Can you imagine how good we would have sounded playing these songs together for a period of weeks? Wow.”

6 BRING ON THE LUCIE FREDA PEEPLE

(Elemental Mix)

The Elemental Mix was conceived by Sean Ono Lennon to provide a more stripped-back, acoustic-style version of the album, with some of the more intense features – notably that of the rhythm section – toned down. These were created at the request of fans, who said they wanted to hear tracks they could listen to when at work without getting too distracted. This funky mix of one of the album’s few political songs puts more focus on the guitar and backing vocals alongside Lennon’s own excellent lead vocal.

7 YOU ARE HERE

(Elements Mix)

This second version of “You Are Here” offers a different way into the song. The Elements Mixes isolate a single musical element from each song – perhaps the bass part from “Intuition”, Ken Ascher’s wild piano on “Out The Blue” or the organ from “Mind Games”. In the case of “You Are Here”, it is Sneaky Pete Kleinow’s pedal steel, which brings much of the exotic vibe to this song about distance and travel. “Sneaky Pete had all these tricks to make strange sounds and John loved Sneaky Pete,” says engineer Dan Barbiero. “He would get all excited when he was coming into the studio.” A mystical, magical ride.

8 OUT THE BLUE

(Elemental Mix)

“Out The Blue” was another song on Mind Games where Lennon expressed wonder and gratitude for finding his wife and soulmate. “Two minds, one destiny”, he sings in a similar line to one from “You Are Here”, before likening Ono to a “UFO” – Lennon would claim to have seen a flying saucer in the sky above New York in 1974. This Elemental Mix cuts to the emotional heart of the song, with Lennon’s raw vocal underwritten by minimal musical backing until Ken Ascher’s piano and David Spinozza’s guitar are introduced for the stellar outro.

9 MEAT CITY

(Evolution Documentary)

At nearly eight minutes long, this Evolution mix of “Meat City” tells a fantastic story. It begins with Lennon’s fumbling home demo, as he hits some fat chords and searches for lyrics, seemingly unaware he is even recording. The mix then drops us into the studio, where the song has already evolved a chunky groove, although the twin drummers – Jim Keltner and Rick Marotta – are still struggling to work out how to play together. Come for the groove, stay for the backing vocalists, who deliver great studio banter before the mix takes us into the finished version of one of the album’s most unrestrained moments.

THE NEW UNCUT COMES WITH A FREE, ULTRA-COLLECTABLE JOHN LENNON CD – ORDER A COPY HERE

Introducing the new Uncut… and our ultra-collectable John Lennon CD!

HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

SO the cat’s finally out of the bag. Welcome to the new issue of Uncut, which I guess you’ll have noticed by now, comes with a very special CD.

Next month sees the release of Mind Games: The Ultimate Edition – a deep dive into John Lennon’s 1973 album overseen by Sean Ono Lennon. We’re honoured to present an exclusive, ultra-collectable nine-track Mind Games CD, curated for us by the John Lennon Estate, full of new mixes that shine fresh light on Lennon’s working practices. We hope you agree, it’s a great way in to the marvellous work done by Sean and his team. “We’ve really tried to include everything we possibly can and we’re really looking forward to hearing people’s feedback,” Sean confides to us. “I’m very proud of the work we’ve done on an album that has always meant a lot to me personally.”

HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

You’ll also find an in-depth exploration of all Lennon’s solo albums in our Ultimate Music Guide sampler, and a terrific cover story from Peter Watts. Of course, there’s more than just ex-Beatles in the mix: Tom Pinnock’s amazing interview with Linda Thompson, Rob Hughes’ piece on the ever-brilliant legacy of Love, Nick Hasted’s catch-up with the feisty Irma Thomas, a celestial trip to Nashville to meet Rich Ruth and Chris Stein on the birth of Blondie. I think if I were flailing around looking for a word to describe this issue it’d be zingy.

Before I go, I hope you’ll all join me in offering congratulations to Tom and Gemma Pinnock on the birth of their son, Nico George Pinnock. Tom’s already showing him how to operate the formidable Album Reviews spreadsheet, so I’m sure you’ll agree that the future of Uncut is in safe hands…

HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

The John Lennon CD and Ultimate Music Guide sampler are only available with print copies of Uncut

Paul Mescal could be playing a Beatle in Sam Mendes’ new biopic

It has been reported that Sam Mendes may be eyeing Paul Mescal to play one of the Fab Four in his upcoming Beatles biopic.

READ MORE: ‘All Of Us Strangers’ review: the saddest film of the year

Mescal first gained attention for his award-winning role as Connell Waldron in the 2020 drama miniseries Normal People. He was also nominated for Best Actor at the 95th Academy Awards for his portrayal of Calum in 2022’s Aftersun.

The actor is set to star as Lucius Verus in Ridley Scott’s upcoming Gladiator II. Verus is the nephew of the original film’s villain Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) but grows up idolising deceased gladiator Maximus (Russell Crowe).

Now, The Hollywood Reporter has released a new feature highlighting 10 young movie stars who are taking Hollywood by storm. They included Mescal in their list and shared that Mendes, the director of the upcoming Beatles biopic, has his eyes on the Irish actor to potentially portray the role of one of the Liverpudlian legends in the film.

Paul Mescal. CREDIT: Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Announced back in February, Mendes will be directing four Beatles biopic projects – one told from the perspective of each band member.

The biopics will be told from each band member’s point-of-view and will intersect to “tell the story of the greatest band in history.”

Watch Joni Mitchell covers Elton John’s ‘I’m Still Standing’ at Gershwin Prize tribute show

Joni Mitchell has covered Elton John‘s hit song ‘I’m Still Standing’ during the Gershwin Prize Tribute concert. Check it out now.

Sir Elton and his songwriting partner Bernie Taupin were the recipients of the Library of Congress 2024 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, with the celebration concert taking place last month at DAR Revolution Hall in Washington D.C. and aired last night (Monday April 8) on PBS.

Mitchell – who was honoured with the award last year – took the stage to perform a rendition of the 1983 song alongside a backing band comprised of Brandi Carlile, Annie Lennox, Blake Mills, and Davey Johnstone.

Congratulations to @eltonofficial for receiving the 2024 Gershwin Prize for most Popular Song, alongside Bernie Taupin!You won’t want to miss the tribute concert, premiering on @PBS stations nationwide tonight at 8 p.m. ET! pic.twitter.com/zxqwTNsAWu

— Joni Mitchell (@jonimitchell) April 8, 2024

[embedded content]

Carlile introduced Mitchell, and told the crowd that ‘I’m Still Standing’ meant a lot to the ‘River’ singer, who survived a brain aneurysm 10 years ago. Mitchell also received the blessing of Sir Elton and Taupin to rework some of the lyrics in her cover. The rendition takes a jazzy route, swapping the song’s classing upbeat pop sound for a slower, bluesy tone.

Elsewhere, Metallica opened the show with a rendition of ‘Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding’ from John’s 1973 double album ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’.

Lennox covered ‘Border song’ John’s 1970 self-titled album and Carlile covered ‘Madman Across The Water’. Gabriels‘ Jacob Lusk took on ‘Bennie And The Jets’ (1973), with Charlie Puth covering ‘Something About The Way You Look Tonight’ from John’s 25th record ‘The Big Picture’ (1997).

John closed the night with a live rendition of his classic track ‘Your Song’ (1970), according to ITV News‘ Washington News Editor Jonathan Wald.

In other news, it was recently reported that John had completed a new album with Brandi Carlile. The update came after he revealed last November that he had finished a record with Taupin.

Elton John said this month that he was working on two musicals and was “open to any great ideas” regarding a third. Sir Elton, who has retired from touring aside from “the odd show”, played his last ever UK concert headlining Glastonbury 2023.

Mitchell, whose work recently returned to Spotify, gave other rare live performances at the Grammys 2024 and with headline gigs in Los Angeles this year.

An Audience With… John Sinclair

It’s almost 60 years since John Sinclair co-founded The Detroit Artists Workshop, hoping to stir up some radical jazz action; a terrific new compilation on Strut is testament to his efforts in that field. But by 1968, Sinclair had achieved greater notoriety as manager of the incendiary rock group MC5, affiliating them with his White Panther Party and proposing a “total assault on the culture by any means necessary, including rock’n’roll, dope, and fucking in the streets”.

DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE

Sinclair spent two years in prison on trumped-up marijuana charges before a freedom rally headlined by John Lennon and Yoko Ono hastened his release. Since then, he’s recorded more than 20 albums of jazzy beat poetry, as well as almost 1,000 shows for Radio Free Amsterdam. But now he’s back in downtown Detroit, feeling glummer than ever about the prospects of cultural revolution.

“They’re bringing in new white people!” he complains. Gentrification? “Call it what you will. Ugliness is what I call it. They aren’t doing anything for the black people who went through years of awfulness. This used to be a dope area, now it’s all white people with big cars. I preferred it when the whores and the dope fiends were here, they had more character!”

What was the first record you heard that made you think that music might be the ideal vehicle for social change?

Phil Lister, via email

No idea. I listened to music to listen to music, I didn’t give a fuck about any of that. I was 14 years old, what did I know about social change? [I liked] Muddy Waters, Howlin Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson. When I was 15, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard came out, rock’n’roll started. I was a kid, I loved it. Everything was changing with the music, you know? It didn’t have any external purpose. Just by virtue of its existence it was changing the world.

As a jazz cat, what first attracted you to the MC5?

Brian Lawson, Dublin

They sounded so good. I saw them on Labor Day Weekend 1966, at the Michigan State Fair. Most shows in those days, the band came on in their matching outfits and their matching hairdos, and they lip-synced to their record. But there was a disc jockey called Jerry Goodwin who brought actual bands into the State Fairgrounds, and that’s when I heard the MC5. I had no intention [of managing them], I just wanted to hear them every time they played – I was a fan.

MC5’s outdoor concert ahead of the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago was meant to “redirect youth culture and music toward political ends”. How successful do you think that was?

Joe Thomas, Penarth

That wasn’t really the idea; the idea was to play some music. I know it sounds radical, but that was what we were about: playing music and moving people with the music. It was several years later when we got involved in the political aspect, and that was because of the police attacking us for being marijuana addicts. Constantly busting in your house, taking your shit. They made life miserable – they put me in prison twice! Was there a political mission at the outset? No, we were a band. The fact that all other bands don’t do anything except get rich doesn’t make [MC5] less of a band. They wanted to do something, they wanted to make things better, simple as that. I liked what they were doing and I wanted to help them.

What did being a White Panther involve?

Julia McFadden, Cornwall

Putting on a button. It had a white panther on it and it was purple. If you wore one of those, you were a White Panther. If you didn’t, you weren’t. We had no organisation, it was an idea. It wasn’t a political party, it was a hippie commune. What was our mission? To get high, fuck, have a good time, write poetry, make some music, dance. We weren’t bothering anybody. What we did, we went and played and people got ecstatic and had a great time. So they came back the next time and told all their friends.

How did you survive in prison?

Mike Fawcus, via email

How did I survive? I went to bed, I got up in the morning, I had breakfast… Why didn’t I blow my brains out, you mean? I didn’t have a gun! Every moment, millions of people throughout the world are surviving their time in prison. You just get up and go through another day until they let you go, the criminals that have you there.

What did you think of Abbie Hoffman coming on-stage at Woodstock during The Who’s set [to protest your imprisonment]?

Paul, Worthing, via email

I appreciated it. He was trying to help me, he was a good friend of mine. But he was on acid – he didn’t have any idea of what was going on around him. Instead of going out in between the sets, he went out during their set and took the mic away and started talking during their song. I would have blown him off the stage too. I would have beat his ass! You don’t do that.

How did it feel to learn that John Lennon had written a song about you?

Raj Sinhara, via email

It felt good. Not his best song! But I have to thank him for getting me out of prison. I was there for two-and-a-half years and then John Lennon came to Ann Arbor and three days later I was released.

What broke your tight connection with MC5? Why didn’t they headline the Michigan rally for your freedom?

Jaime Guerra, Spain

They fired me! They fired me, Jesse [Brother JC] Crawford and Bob Rudnick [MC5 propagandist] at one meeting. Said they didn’t wanna be like this any more and they didn’t need us. A month later, I was in prison, mostly because of my association with them. So you can imagine how I felt. It was a mistake in my book, but it was obviously something they thought was important to do, ’cause they did it. I thought their second album sounded like The Monkees. That was all produced by Jon Landau, who had the new Monkees, Bruce Springsteen, after that. He tried to make them sound like Bruce Springsteen, when they’re the opposite of Bruce Springsteen. So it was a failure. I never reconciled with the MC5 per se. Wayne Kramer and I are very good friends. He went to prison also, then he understood how I felt. Rob Tyner I never became friends with again, or Fred Smith. I can’t stand Dennis Thompson. The MC5 were a great band, but they let people talk them out of their greatness and they became a mediocre band. Then they sold out without getting paid – you got to really be stupid to do that.

MC5 are often described as ‘proto-punk’. What did you make of the actual punk movement?

Mary O’Keefe, via email

I thought it ate shit like a dog. I hated it, still do. It’s not about music, it’s about getting rich without learning how to play. You listen to The Clash, they sound like The Monkees, they don’t sound like no MC5. “Should I Stay Or Should I Go”, what kind of song is that? The Sex Pistols is just a joke. But they got a million, so it wasn’t so funny. I resent the MC5 being identified as punk rock. We had nothing to do with punks. In our day, a punk was a snivelling, cowardly, lying, rat-fucking motherfucker that told the police on what you were doing. So I didn’t see how they glorified this. Never made sense to me.

In 2019, you became the first person to legally buy marijuana in Michigan. Why was that so important to you?

Adrian McMahon, Sefton, Lancs

Which planet is this person from? I did three years from smoking marijuana. What does it mean to me? What are you talking about? Get on the fucking planet. This is what I fought for for 60 years. When you’re high you do all kinds of interesting shit. High up in the air, you know? You look down on things; you see it better.

What is the next revolution that needs to happen, and have you seen any signs?

Lukas, via email

It’s the same one that still needs to happen, and no, it’s not happening. They need to take the shit away from the capitalists and give people everything they need, like education and healthcare, without any cost to them. Democratic socialism, that’s the revolution we need – the Bernie Sanders revolution. It’s not gonna happen. Can music play a role? Well, music and art can be about whatever you want it to be about. That’s up to the artist. The point of today is that the artists don’t give a fuck. They’re happy with the way things are, as long as they can get paid or get a lot of likes or whatever it is they’re after.

Your poetry albums have employed some interesting musical collaborators. Which current musical artist would you most like to work with?

Alex Dunstan, Norwich

Whoever calls me up! I’m open – my mind is wide open.

On your last album, Beatnik Youth, you reveal that your chosen path – “poet, provocateur” – means that you’re still “living from hand to mouth”. Any regrets?

Oliver Frankel, via email

How can you regret living your chosen path? There’s no room for regret, unless you chose the wrong path.

Liam Gallagher John Squire Liam Gallagher John Squire

Imagine the Stone Roses with an immeasurably better singer modelled on Ian Brown, or Oasis with a dazzling lead guitarist. Liam Gallagher and John Squire have, and the resulting album plays to their strengths. Though coming almost out of the blue, it’s the most logical team-up among the remnants of Manchester’s old indie-rock imperium, currently awash with severed alliances searching for completion.

PINK FLOYD ARE ON THE COVER OF THE NEW UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE

Liam and Noel were a more extreme version of Morrissey and Marr’s sundering of stellar charisma and musical genius, with Liam’s songwriting vestigial when Oasis split in 2009, and Noel’s vocals reserved for sensitive, doubting songs Our Kid couldn’t sing. Innately cautious, Noel’s albums have nudged at the edges of Oasis’s formula, finding on last year’s Council Skies a sweet spot between middle-aged reflection on his Burnage past and canny Oasis-esque bangers. Liam also hinted at maturity on 2022’s C’mon You Know, but he’s generally been laser-focused on claiming Oasis’s essence and audience for himself, replaying Knebworth, and Definitely Maybe on June’s upcoming 30^th-anniversary tour.

Squire was more evenly partnered with Ian Brown in The Stone Roses, but has also proved dependent on his combustible singer for a mass audience the Seahorses couldn’t supply. His time since the Roses’ 2010s reunion has been self-sufficiently private, balancing visual art with family life’s quiet satisfactions. Liam’s invitation to guest on “Champagne Supernova” at Knebworth opportunely coincided with Squire’s renewed interest in guitars and songwriting. Liam followed up by specifically requesting guitar-heavy songs with Squire lyrics for this project.

This is therefore a Squire-centred record, demoed by him at his Macclesfield home studio while Liam emailed broad stokes of musical direction – the Pistols, Hendrix, Faces and Bee Gees. LA sessions were produced by Greg Kurstin (Adele, McCartney’s Egypt Station and much of Liam’s solo debut As You Were), who rounded out the band on bass and piano alongside drummer Joey Waronker. Squire wanted imperfections, “something slightly out of time, a bit sloppy”. Happily out of the star game for so long, his influence on a singer who has to be a star is key to their collaboration.

Opener “Raise Your Hands” suggests Liam is getting his Definitely Maybe tour prep in early, with a bouncy Britpop beat brightened by Squire’s gleaming jangle. Anthemic lyrics secrete a sardonic edge more innate to the Roses than today’s soft-spoken Squire lets on: “If revenge is all that really matters…/Raise your hands.” Liam’s vocal starts as he’ll continue, higher and therefore more vulnerable than usual, relaxed and kind, the cracked grain that usually channels punk gravel now aiding genuine warmth. Squire’s guitar counterpoints West Coast vocal harmonies, with a scratchy blues-rock solo meeting Kurstin’s barrelhouse piano on the fade.

Where Liam’s solo albums provide aspects of his Lennon-worshipping yet sunny worldview, while often sounding written and recorded by committee, this duo debut is unmistakably authored. “Jesus Christ, about last night/I can only apologise,” “Mars To Liverpool” starts, before entering Northern psychedelic realms: “If your travel agent’s cool/Can anybody get me/From Mars to Liverpool?” Liam’s elasticating emphasis of “cool” and “pool” is almost worth the admission. The music, meanwhile, splices The La’s’ “There She Goes” and The Beatles’ “Here Comes The Sun”. The Fabs scoreboard elsewhere notches references to Wings’ “Let Me Roll It” and Plastic Ono Band’s heavy primal scream blues on “I’m A Wheel”, “I Feel Fine” on “Love You Forever”, “Getting Better” on “Make It Up As You Go Along”, and the phased guitars, pounding Revolver drums and lysergic effects of “Just Another Rainbow”. The latter’s five-and-a-half minutes has room for windmilling Who clamour too. Its lyric, Squire’s said, deals with “disappointment, and the sentiment that you never get what you really want”, disillusion Liam couldn’t concede on his own.

The Roses helped legitimise looking back in UK rock, rehabilitating The Beatles for Oasis to fully ransack, yet “Fool’s Gold” also offered a tantalising dance-rock way forward. Oasis similarly developed their punk- and rave-inflected Beatlemania into the majesty of “Champagne Supernova”. Squire draws on this old ambition in “One Day At A Time”. “Welcome back to the land of the living,” he has Liam sing, “We’ve got so many people to be.” Suggesting both “I Am The Resurrection”’s skyscraping lift-off from working-class circumstance and Bowie-like possible persona, Squire twists into a vicious kiss-off: “I know you’re happy in your suburban trance/You should have fucked me when you had the chance.”

Though they each had one eye on the past, The Stone Roses put Squire’s guitar in a radical context, while Oasis’ white-noise clamour was a pioneering new sound made from familiar ingredients; by contrast, Liam Gallagher John Squire is an essentially conservative record of relaxed, early-’70s rock. If the tunes and attitude don’t grip as strongly as they did in either man’s era-bending pomp, both still sound better for getting together. With their regular partners perhaps permanently out of creative reach, this unheralded partnership has strong prospects.

Four Beatles biopics to be directed by Sam Mendes

Separate biopics of each of the four Beatles will be the directed by Sam Mendes.

TALKING HEADS ARE ON THE COVER OF THE NEW UNCUT – HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

According to Mendes’ creative vision, the four feature films – one from each band member’s point-of-view – will intersect to tell the Fabs’ story.

“I’m honoured to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time, and excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies,” said Mendes.

This is the first time Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the families of John Lennon and George Harrison – have granted full life story and music rights for a scripted film.

According to a statement, ‘the dating cadence of the films, the details of which will be shared closer to release, will be innovative and groundbreaking.’

Listen to Liam Gallagher and John Squire’s huge collaborative single, ‘Just Another Rainbow’

Liam Gallagher and John Squire have shared their long-awaited debut collaborative single ‘Just Another Rainbow’ – check it out below.

READ MORE: Liam Gallagher & John Squire: Manchester icons collide on ‘Just Another Rainbow’ – but is it any good?

Officially announced last month after months of teasing – with Gallagher hailing their upcoming record as “the best record since [The Beatles’] ‘Revolver’” – the first taster of the project from the former Oasis frontman and Stone Roses guitarist arrives today (January 5) in the form of the psychedelic lead single ‘Just Another Rainbow’.

Opening with a trademark floral but crunching Squires riff before Gallagher growls “I might have known this would be just another rainbow“, the track soon blooms into a ’60s-indebted psych track complete with a wailing and star-gazing guitar solo.

NME‘s review of ‘Just Another Rainbow’ noted that the song’s “willingness to stretch out and groove is at odds with the pop-driven ‘C’Mon You Know’ [Gallagher’s 2022 solo album]” – as well as noting “hints of Cream in Squire’s performance and structures” and “even something of The Rolling Stones in the way Liam drawls: “just another rainbow, hanging over me / just another rainbow, dropping on my tree”.”

‘Just Another Rainbow’ comes ahead of what the duo promise as “more new music to follow as the year unfolds”. The single is available to pre-order on 7” vinyl here.

A video is on the way, but the duo have this week shared the below teaser trailer.

“To me the most obvious take on ‘Just Another Rainbow’ is that it’s about disappointment, and the sentiment is that you never get what you really want,” said Squire in a statement. “But I don’t like to explain songs, I think that’s the privilege of the listener, it’s whatever you want it to be. To me, it’s also one of the most uplifting tracks we’ve made together, which is weird.”

While ‘Just Another Rainbow’ is the first taster of the long-mooted joint album, a press release from the Manchester indie legends has confirmed that “there will be much more new music to come – and there could well be shows, too”. Speaking of their collaboration, Gallagher hailed Squire as “a top songwriter”.

“Everyone always bangs on about him as a guitarist, but he’s a top songwriter too, man, no two ways about it as far as I’m concerned,” he said. “There’s not enough of his music out there, whether it’s with the Roses or himself. It’s good to see him back writing songs and fucking good ones.

“The melodies are mega and then the guitars are a given. But I think even when you take all the fucking guitars off, you can play the songs all on acoustic and they’ll all still blow your mind.”

[embedded content]

The first show that Gallagher ever attended was Stone Roses at the International 2 in Manchester when he was 16-years-old, with the pair meeting four years later Oasis and the Roses were both recording at Monmouth in Wales on what would become ‘Definitely Maybe’ and ‘The Second Coming’. Gallagher and Squire remained friends, later working together to write ‘Love Me and Leave Me’ the latter’s band The Seahorses, who also toured as guests to Oasis.

After the guitarist joined Gallagher onstage at Knebworth in 2022 to play on ‘Champagne Supernova’ – just as he did with Oasis in 1996 – Squire then sent over three songs which Gallagher dubbed “all mega” before they began writing in earnest and working remotely while citing Jimi Hendrix, Sex Pistols, The Faces, Bob Marley and The Bee Gees as influences.

The project then grew as Gallagher attended Squire’s studio in Macclesfield, before completing sessions in Los Angeles for three weeks of sessions with producer Greg Kurstin [Adele, Foo Fighters, Sia]. Kurstin also played bass on the record, while drums were provided by Beck, R.E.M. and Atoms For Peace drummer Joey Waronker.

While admitting that he’s “not involved in any way whatsoever”, former Oasis guitarist Paul ‘Bonehead’ Arthurs – who still plays live with Gallagher – recently revealed that he’s he’s heard the collaborative album in full.

“I’m not going to tell you anything. I’m going to keep you all in suspense,” he said. “I’m not gonna say it’s this, that or whatever, but I’ve heard it from start to finish, and I’ll keep you all going, ‘Go on, tell us, tell us, tell us’.”

Bonehead continued to explain that it wasn’t “for [him] to say” anything more about the record. “I shall leave it to the man himself,” he said, adding: “It’s very good.”

[embedded content]

Gallagher spoke of his long-held love for Stone Roses in his Firsts interview with NME, which you can watch above.

Asked about the first artists he ever fell in love with, Gallagher replied: “Our kid [Noel] was into The Smiths, but they were a little too early for me and a little too student-y, kind of – but the Roses were a bit more laddy. Not as laddy as us, but it felt a bit more right.”

He continued: “The first record I ever bought was The Stone Roses debut album. I know this is all sounding very cool and people won’t believe me, but it is – I’m just cool.”

Gallagher went on to explain how the first band t-shirt and CD he ever owned were by Stone Roses as he was “obsessed with them” after they were also his first gig. “It blew my mind,” he said of that show at Manchester International 2 in 1988, “and that was when I wanted to join a band.”

Liam Gallagher and John Squire Credit: Tom Oxley

Last month, Gallagher led fans into the announcement by hailing his collaborator as “without a doubt the best guitarist of his generation and in the world in my opinion” before Squire returned the favour by calling him “one of the all time great rock and roll voices. I put him in the same class as Dylan, Lennon, Jagger and Rotten.”

Squire has been working as a celebrated visual artist away from his work with Stone Roses, who split once again after their final gig in Glasgow in 2017. The Stone Roses initially reformed in 2011, after their first split in 1996. In 2016, they release two singles with ‘All For One‘ and ‘Beautiful Thing‘.

Gallagher will be hitting the road in 2024 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Oasis’ seminal debut ‘Definitely Maybe‘.

The Beatles top charts with ‘Now And Then’ 60 years after first Number One

The Beatles have topped the charts with their “final” track ‘Now And Then’ – six decades after they secured their first Number One.

Released earlier this month, the track was billed as the last song from the Fab Four and stemmed from an old John Lennon demo tape – completed by Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr with the help of AI.

It also came alongside both a short video documenting their time completing the project and a Peter Jackson-directed music video that included previously unearthed footage of the band.

Now it has been confirmed that the long-awaited track has gone on to top the charts – 60 years since the band claimed their first Number One track.

This feat means that McCartney and co. now boast the longest period between an artist’s first and last Number One single – with their first being ‘From Me to You’ in May 1963 (60 years and six months ago). Previously, Elvis Presley held the record with 47 years and six months between his 1957 hit ‘All Shook Up’ and a reissue of ‘It’s Now or Never’ that was released in 2005.

‘Now And Then’ reaching peak position on the charts also marks the longest gap ever between Number One singles. This comes as the rock veterans last reached Number One 54 years ago with ‘The Ballad of John and Yoko’ (1969.) Prior to the “final” track Kate Bush held the record for 44 years between ‘Wuthering Heights’ (1978) and’ Running Up That Hill’ (2022).

[embedded content]

The band secured the top spot with 78,200 combined UK chart units (including both sales and streaming).

Other accomplishments with the chart-topping single include being the fastest-selling single of the year to date – with 48,000 in the first seven days of release – and the fastest-selling vinyl single of the century so far, selling 19,400 copies.

It has also reached the biggest one-week physical sales in almost a decade (38,000), beating The X Factor 2014 winner Ben Haenow’s ‘Something I Need’.

In terms of streaming, the track now marks the most-streamed Beatles track in one week ever – clocking in 5.03million streams compared to the previous record set by ‘Here Comes the Sun’ (1.05million in seven days in 2021).

Finally, since the release of ‘Now And Then’, The Beatles have become the British act with the most Number One singles ever – securing 18 chart-topping tracks – and the oldest band ever to score a UK Number One single.

“It’s mind boggling. It’s blown my socks off,” said McCartney of the impressive number of accolades captured by the song. “It’s also a very emotional moment for me. I love it!”

Paul McCartney performs at Allianz Stadium on October 27, 2023 in Sydney, Australia. CREDIT: Don Arnold/WireImage/Getty Images

Martin Talbot, Chief Executive Officer of the Official Charts Company recalled the accomplishments set by Macca and Starr too, adding: “Beatlemania has returned this week – and what an amazing few days it has been for The Fab Four.

“The return of John, Paul, George and Ringo with the last ever Beatles single, Now And Then, has cemented their legend by breaking a catalogue of records – and in doing so underlined the extraordinary scope of their enduring appeal, across all the generations, with huge numbers of streams, downloads and vinyl singles.”

He continued: “If there were ever any doubts that The Beatles are the greatest band of all time, they have surely consigned them to history this week.”

In other Beatles news, earlier this week it was reported that Ringo Starr initially had doubts that the band’s success would last.

“None of us thought it would last a week,” he said. “Paul was going to write, I was going to open a hairdresser’s, George would get a garage. But it went on and then it ended. And at the right time, I think. But, you know, that didn’t stop us playing with each other.”

Elsewhere, the surviving members have continued the run of new material this month – releasing new expanded editions of ‘1962-1966 (The Red Album)’ and ‘1967-1970 (The Blue Album)’, mixed in stereo and Dolby, today (November 10).

Mick Jagger says The Beatles were “just a blues cover band when they started out”

Mick Jagger has responded yet again to Paul McCartney‘s comment that The Beatles were a superior band to The Rolling Stones.

McCartney made the comments in an interview with Howard Stern in 2020, when he agreed with the host’s assertion that his band were better.

“[The Stones] are rooted in the blues. When they are writing stuff, it has to do with the blues. We had a little more influences,” McCartney said. “There’s a lot of differences, and I love the Stones, but I’m with you. The Beatles were better.”

When asked for his response at the time to Zane Lowe, Jagger said: “That’s so funny. He’s a sweetheart. There’s obviously no competition.

“The big difference, though, is and sort of slightly seriously, is that The Rolling Stones is a big concert band in other decades and other areas when The Beatles never even did an arena tour, Madison Square Garden with a decent sound system. They broke up before that business started, the touring business for real.”

Now in a new interview with The Times, he has commented again on McCartney’s words.

The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. CREDIT: Getty

“He said the Beatles were better than the Stones because the Stones were really just a blues cover band,” Jagger said.

“Well, the Beatles were also really just a blues cover band when they started out. Every band is a cover band at the beginning, because that’s how it goes.”

Jagger went on to explain that following McCartney’s comments he’d often say when the band were on tour, that “someone is in the audience when they’re actually not, to create a big moment, so I said one time, ‘Paul McCartney is here tonight. He’s going to come up on stage and play some of our blues cover tunes.”

He added: “I texted Paul to say thank you for his comment because it has given me a lot of comic material.”

McCartney features on The Rolling Stones track ‘Bite My Head Off’ from their forthcoming new album ‘Hackney Diamonds‘, which is out on October 20. You can pre-order/pre-save it here.

Speaking about McCartney’s appearance on the track playing bass, Keith Richards recently said: “Paul happened to be in town…And we couldn’t keep him away, bless his heart.

“And hey, if you can get one of the Beatles on your track, you know, you do it.”

He also said that John Lennon and George Harrison would have fitted into The Rolling Stones.

Paul McCartney launches ‘A Life In Lyrics’ podcast by explaining The Beatles’ ‘Eleanor Rigby’

Paul McCartney has launched his ‘A Life In Lyrics‘ podcast today (October 4) with the first episode breaking down the creation of The Beatles‘ ‘Eleanor Rigby’.

READ MORE: The Beatles: every song ranked in order of greatness

The 12-part series which is based on the best-selling book, is hosted by the poet Paul Muldoon, who wrote the foreword to The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, will give listeners an unrivalled opportunity to sit in on conversations between McCartney and Muldoon.

Episode one sees Macca break down the Beatles track ‘Eleanor Rigby’. He explained where the title for the song came from, sharing that the name for the song came from a grave that he and his late bandmate John Lennon saw.

“There is a grave which John and I wandered around endlessly talking about our future,” he recalled in the podcast. “And there is a grave there [with the name Eleanor Rigby]. I don’t remember ever having seeing that gravestone but it’s been suggested to me that psychologically I would have seen it”

He also shared where the famous lyric “Wearing a Face That She Keeps in a Jar by the Door” originated from, attributing the words to his mother and her love and use of Nivea cold cream.

“My mum’s favourite was Nivea and I love it to this day. It kind of scared me a little that women used quite so much cold cream, and it was my dread, when I got older and got married, that I would marry someone who would [wear a lot of cold cream] and put one of those big shower caps on and the curlers and have masses of things… So that played on my mind quite a bit, so she’s wearing a face that she keeps in a jar by the door,” he said.

Macca revealed that he had envisioned the track as a narrative film and said: “What I was seeing was like a film, just in my imagination. I’ve got two protagonists that are lonely, she and then him. You don’t feel so sorry for him, but he’s lonely. So ‘all the lonely people now’, becomes the chorus… She dies and he’s the one who buries her, and he’s wiping his hands as he walks from the grave, ‘no one was saved’ and that’s the wrap up to the story”

Elsewhere in the episode, the legendary musician gave some insight on his love for songwriting “Oh my God, I wanted to become a person who wrote songs,” he said, “And I wanted to be someone whose life was in music.”

The Beatles celebrate the completion of their new album, 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', at a press conference held at the west London home of their manager Brian Epstein. The LP is released on June 1st. (Photo by John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images) — The Beatles celebrate the completion of their new album, ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, at a press conference held at the west London home of their manager Brian Epstein. The LP is released on June 1st. (Photo by John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images)

He also discussed his aversion to classical music training, explaining how the marjoity of musicians from his generation can’t read music. He went on to say that when he is teaching a kid how to play piano, he usually shows them a few chords to get started. “You get C, D Minor, E Minor, F, G, A Minor, right there, that’s like most of the Beatles songs. That’s more than you need to know,” he said.

‘McCartney: A Life In Lyrics’ was co-produced by Pushkin Industries and iHeartPodcasts. Superfans can binge all of the first season immediately with a Pushkin+ subscription. A new episode will come out every week.

Season one will feature 12 episodes and Season 2 will follow with an additional 12 episodes set for release in February of 2024.

In other Beatles news, Ringo Starr has recently said that the “final” Beatles song – which has been made with help from AI – “should have been out already”.

Speaking as part of a new interview with AP News, Starr has shed light on the supposed release date for the long-awaited track – explaining that it was supposed to have been already released by now.

“The rumours were that we just made it up. Like we would do that anyway… This is the last track, ever, that you’ll get the four Beatles on the track. John, Paul, George, and Ringo.”

When asked about when fans can expect to hear the track or find out the title, he responded: “It should’ve been out already.”

Keith Richards says John Lennon and George Harrison would have fitted into The Rolling Stones

Keith Richards has said that John Lennon and George Harrison would have fitted into The Rolling Stones in a new interview.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Richards opened up about The Beatles and the rivalry between the band’s fans in the sixties.

Richards explained: “I don’t think John Lennon would have had much problem fitting into the Stones, or George, if you can imagine that sort of thing happening.”

He continued: “We were the same generation, and we all loved the same music. When we first heard The Beatles, we were relieved that there was some other band in England on the same track that we were on. And within a few months, that track was the main track.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Richards opened up about Paul McCartney appearing on their upcoming new album, ‘Hackney Diamonds’.

Speaking about McCartney’s appearance on album track ‘Bite My Head Off’ playing bass, Richards said: “Paul happened to be in town…And we couldn’t keep him away, bless his heart.

“And hey, if you can get one of the Beatles on your track, you know, you do it.”

He added: “Paul’s a very amiable cat to play with; we’ve been great friends forever.”

[embedded content]

The band recently discussed the upcoming release – which will be their 24th LP – in a new discussion with The Tonight Show host, Jimmy Fallon, and showcased the live premiere of the lead single ‘Angry’.

At that, Jagger said of the album: “I don’t want to be big-headed but we wouldn’t have put this album out if we hadn’t really liked it. We said we had to make a record we really love ourselves. We are quite pleased with it, we are not big-headed about it, but we hope you all like it.”

He also confirmed the new record has 12 tracks with two featuring late drummer Charlie Watts, and the band began working on the new songs at the end of 2022, with the aim of getting the album wrapped up by mid-2023.

“It is fun, it is where a band can come together, playing live is the other Holy Grail, but to record is where the guys can come together and pass around ideas without any interference. It’s a great place for a band to work it all out,” Richards, who fronts the track ‘Tell Me Straight’, added.

‘Hackney Diamonds’ was recorded in various locations including Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, London’s Metropolis Studios, Sanctuary Studios in the Bahamas, Electric Lady Studios and The Hit Factory/Germano Studios, in New York.

The Stones’ last album was a blues covers LP, ‘Blue & Lonesome‘ (2016).

The Beatles Revolver: Special Edition

Since it began in 2017, The Beatles’ lavish remix campaign has dealt with the downers. Paul McCartney might have relished making Sgt Pepper, but a tripping John Lennon was largely losing interest; much of The White Album was made solo by an increasingly disjointed band; Let It Be captures the group’s fatal disintegration and the mess that followed; and Abbey Road’s majesty was largely possible only because it was a last hurrah. To the rest of us, these are stunning, sometimes world-altering listens, but they certainly make being a Fab seem like a chore; it was a time of deadlines, joyless business meetings and sizzling resentment, as old friends grew apart and others fought for recognition.

ORDER NOW: David Bowie is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut

Where was that camaraderie, that warmth, that sense of wonder that we associate with The Beatles? Certainly, Peter Jackson’s Get Back put a more positive spin on a dark time – but to find them truly united, excited and at their creative peak, we have to look to Revolver, the latest staging post on Giles Martin’s journey through the albums made by his old man and the Fabs. Here’s the group expanding the possibilities of recorded music just as they were expanding their minds with drugs, spirituality and avant-garde arts; taking influence from soul, funk, Indian music, the baroque and musique concrète; creating a sound far removed from the more polite Rubber Soul, released nine months earlier.

Revolver hardly needs improving, but Martin has done his best to revamp it for the 21st century. He’s had the assistance of some Terminator-level AI machine-learning developed in New Zealand during the making of the Get Back series. There it was used to separate music and speech on old Nagra tapes, but here it’s been employed to split instruments that have been imprisoned on a single track for decades, so opening the possibility of a remix. In “Taxman”, for example, drums, bass and guitar have been separated, and the results are fantastic, especially on Starr’s drums and McCartney’s bass, which are clearer, punchier and even more nuanced. Ringo is essential across this new Revolver: his inventive fills are foregrounded and endlessly fascinating, whether taut and heavy on “She Said She Said” or subtle and atmospheric on “Here, There And Everywhere”.

As with Martin’s other special-edition remixes, his work is subtle and tasteful. That’s not to say there aren’t noticeable changes, however. On “For No One”, McCartney’s Clavichord and piano are separated across the stereo field, lending the track a new lustrousness.
Starr’s drums were barely there in the original, drowned out by tambourine in the left channel, but that’s been rectified. The overall effect is now more reminiscent of Brian Wilson’s contemporary work, surely McCartney’s intention, and it clearly shows the song to be a stepping stone to the lusher “Penny Lane” the following year.

“Doctor Robert”, not Revolver’s strongest moment, is enhanced by a walloping bass
drum and snare, and fits closer with the super-compressed Revolver aesthetic. “Love
You To” benefits from a tighter, more upfront sound too, the sitars, tabla and fuzz guitars buzzing with a humming, psychedelic energy. “Here, There And Everywhere”, on the other hand, is opened up: the backing vocals are clearer than before, each singer discernible. The horns on “Got To Get You Into My Life” are still spiky, but they’re up close in the verses – reedy, breathy and present.

While there are no real revelations on “Tomorrow Never Knows”, it’s still a sea of sound, one of the most striking three minutes of music ever created. It’s a mongrel – Stockhausen tape loops meets Indian drone meets Tibetan Book Of The Dead – but the result seems entirely new, even 56 years later. Shockingly, of course, it was the first song recorded for Revolver.

As is customary with these special editions, there are also two discs of session highlights. As always, there’s great chat – the band’s argument about Paul’s organ at the start of an early version of “Got To Get You Into My Life”, for instance, or George Martin, Paul and the string octet discussing how to approach “Eleanor Rigby” – and some cuts we’ve heard on the Anthology series, such as the aqueous first take of “Tomorrow Never Knows”. But there are new treasures here too: the second version of “Got To Get You Into My Life” with fuzz guitars taking the place of the horns is meaner and perhaps better than the final version; Take 2 of the first version of “And Your Bird Can Sing” is a Byrds-y delight, all glittering 12-string, with different harmonies and the eventual main riff appearing only as a solo; “Yellow Submarine” arrives as a forlorn Lennon waltz (“In the place where I was born/No-one cared”) like something off Plastic Ono Band a lifetime later.

For the first time, The Beatles had the freedom to entirely arrange songs in the studio. As a result, there are a host of extra harmonies, melodies and overdubs on some of these earlier versions that didn’t make the final cut – “anybody got a bit of money” on “Taxman – Take 11”, say, or the “somehow, some way” on the chorus of “Got To Get You Into My Life – First Version, Take 5”. Perhaps that’s part of Revolver’s charm, as opposed to the woollier, Technicolor Pepper, for instance: in finalising the arrangements, the band and George Martin dramatically thinned them out, leaving only the best elements – often the noisiest electric guitars – in stark monochrome.

Some of these early versions also remind us of the hive-mind of The Beatles, of how ideas and inspirations flowed between them. Each writer, for instance, contributes a song based around a drone, with an occasional hinted chord a tone below: Lennon with “Tomorrow Never Knows”, Harrison with “Love You To” and McCartney with the verses of “Got To Get You Into My Life”. An early demo of “She Said…” is also built around a droning bass note, the chords shifting above that constant, while “Taxman” almost pulls the same trick in its middle-eight.

Listening to this package, it’s clearer than ever just how Revolver set the template for The Beatles’ future: the sound effects of “Yellow Submarine” bubbled up into “Revolution 9”, and “For No One” and “Eleanor Rigby” would blossom into “Penny Lane”, “Fixing A Hole” and “Martha My Dear”, while “She Said She Said” presaged the white-hot fuzz of “Revolution” and “Helter Skelter”, and “Love You To” would find reincarnation as “Within You Without You”.

Darker clouds are forecast here, too. “For No One” was recorded by only McCartney and Starr, a throw-forward to the studio fragmentation of Pepper and The White Album, while Harrison’s third composition was apparently only allowed when Lennon failed to deliver more songs – his lack of engagement, and material, would soon become an issue.

Before all that, though, The Beatles would play their final proper gig, three weeks after Revolver’s release, without ever performing a note of this album’s songs. They were a fully operational group no more. The aftershocks, as documented on the rest of Giles Martin’s remixed albums, are incredible, but the epicentre – their peak, as well as the end of something – can be found here. As McCartney writes in the new liner notes, “all in all, not a bad album.”

Elton John reschedules Liverpool shows due to Eurovision

Elton John has confirmed he’s moving two of his ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ headline shows to avoid preparations for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest.

READ MORE: Elton John: “I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past”

John was set to play at Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena on April 22 and 23 2023 but following the news that the venue will be hosting Eurovision 2023, the shows have been shifted forwards to March 23 and 24. Original tickets remain valid.

In a statement, the venue said: “Following the exciting news that Liverpool will host the 2023 Eurovision Song Concert, Elton John’s ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour show, due to take place on Saturday 22 April 2023 & Sunday 23 April 2023, has been rescheduled.”

The pair of shows in Liverpool will now kick off Elton John’s 2023 European tour. “Given the electric reception that Elton received when he played to a sold-out Anfield Stadium earlier this year, he couldn’t wish for a better place to start the final leg of his ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour,” continued the statement.

“Elton, his management team and everyone involved with the ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour wishes Liverpool the best of luck in delivering the Eurovision Song Contest and are glad that they were able to assist in their own small way by working with us to move their dates to accommodate the show. We are grateful for their hard work and enthusiasm in working with us to help make this special moment happen for our city.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Elton John (@eltonjohn)

Elton John’s ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’ tour was originally announced back in 2018 before it was pushed back to 2021 due to COVID and then rescheduled to 2023 after John needed an operation following a fall. Earlier this month, John added a handful of new dates to the run.

Remaining tickets for the shows are available here while the tour dates are as follows:

MARCH
23 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool
24 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool

APRIL
02 – The O2, London
04 – The O2, London
05 – The O2, London
08 – The O2, London
09 – The O2, London
12 – The O2, London
13 – The O2, London
16 – The O2, London
17 – The O2, London
19 – Resorts World Arena, Birmingham

MAY
30 – The O2, London
31 – AO Arena, Manchester

JUNE
02 – AO Arena, Manchester
03 – AO Arena, Manchester
06 – First Direct Arena, Leeds
08 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
10 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
11 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
13 – P&J Live, Aberdeen
15 – P&J Live, Aberdeen
17 – The SSE Hydro, Glasgow
18 – The SSE Hydro, Glasgow

Earlier this month, Liverpool was announced as the host city for Eurovision 2023, beating Glasgow to stage the contest on behalf of Ukraine, who organisers deemed unable to host the event due to their ongoing war with Russia.

Following the news, accommodation costs in Liverpool for the weekend of the contest (May 13, 2023) skyrocketed, with some reporting fees of up to £20,000 per night. The Mayor of Liverpool, Steve Rotheram, has since criticised those “grossly inflated” accommodation prices.

Both North Macedonia and Montenegro have announced they would be withdrawing from the competition due to increased costs. Bulgaria has also pulled out, though is yet to share a reason for their decision.

Easy Life share downbeat single ‘Fortune Cookie’ ahead of new album ‘Maybe In Another Life’

Easy Life have shared the final single from their forthcoming album ‘Maybe In Another Life’, which is out later this week.

READ MORE: Easy Life on Kevin Abstract joining them at Glastonbury 2022: “He’s a very inspiring dude”

The downbeat track, ‘Fortune Cookie’, which you can listen to below, follows previous singles ‘Antifreeze’, ‘OTT’ (feat. BENEE), ‘Dear Miss Holloway’ (feat. Kevin Abstract) and ‘BEESWAX’.

“‘FORTUNE COOKIE‘ is the last song on our new album and was written as a message to the band,” they said. “Over the last few years, we’ve had a lot of ups and downs and sometimes we all need reminding of what’s important. The song was inspired by Randy Newman and I remember when we first stumbled across the chords, I’ve been playing them every day since, I’m obsessed. I really hope you dig it, take care xxx.”

Their second album is out this Friday (October 7) via Island and can be pre-ordered/pre-saved here.

Meanwhile, Easy Life are scheduled to embark on a UK/Ireland and European headline tour next February. The run of dates will include the group’s biggest headline show to date, which will take place at Alexandra Palace in London.

Any remaining tickets can be purchased now here.

Easy Life’s 2023 live itinerary is as follows:

FEBRUARY 2023
08 – Newcastle, O2 City Hall
09 – Glasgow, O2 Academy
10 – Manchester, O2 Victoria Warehouse
14 – Leeds, O2 Academy
16 – Norwich, UEA
17 – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena
18 – Cardiff, Great Hall
20 – Dublin, Academy
22 – Plymouth, Pavilions
23 – Bexhill, De La Warr Pavilion
25 – London, Alexandra Palace

MARCH 2023
05 – Hamburg, Uebel & Gefaehrlich
07 – Copenhagen, Vega
08 – Oslo, John Dee
09 – Stockholm, Slaktkyrkan
11 – Berlin, Huxleys
12 – Prague, Roxy
14 – Winterthur, Salzhaus
15 – Milan, Magazzini Generali
17 – Paris, Le Trabendo
18 – Cologne, Kantine
21 – Brussels, Botanique
22 – Amsterdam, Paradiso

Letter John Lennon signed on day of his murder is up for auction

A letter that John Lennon signed on day of his murder in 1980 is going on auction.

READ MORE: From the archives – NME‘s obituary on John Lennon

The late Beatle‘s signature is displayed on a legal document that is up for auction through Gotta Have Rock and Roll tomorrow (October 4). You can view it here.

The typed letter lists three people to whom Lennon gave his proxy to vote at an annual meeting for the Beatles corporations that was happening nine days later in London.

It was signed by Lennon on December 8, 1980, hours before he was shot and killed by Mark Chapman outside his New York City apartment block.

The document is expected to fetch between $30,000 (£26,366) and $50,000 (£43,943).

Incidentally, Lennon also put his signature on another item that same day. He signed a copy of his fifth album with his wife Yoko Ono, ‘Double Fantasy’, which Chapman had asked him to sign hours before killing him. That was auctioned in 2020, and sold for $900,000 (£791,275).

Earlier this year Chapman was denied parole for the 12th time.

Chapman, now aged 67, appeared before a parole board at the end of August, according to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (via Billboard). He is next due to appear before the parole board in February 2024.

Meanwhile, in related news, Ringo Starr has cancelled several shows he had planned in Canada for this week, with the Beatle putting his tour on hold to recuperate after contracting COVID.

After shows in New Buffalo, Michigan and Prior Lake, Minnesota were cancelled over the weekend “due to illness”, an official statement from Starr’s team confirmed the musician had tested positive for COVID. As a result, five shows that were scheduled for this week – in Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Lethbridge, Abbotsford and Penticton – have been axed.

Listen to ‘Take 1′ of The Beatles’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’

The first take of The Beatles’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ has been released – you can listen to the studio outtake below.

The track forms part of a new special deluxe edition of the legendary band’s 1966 album ‘Revolver’, which is set for release on October 28.

READ MORE: 20 things you didn’t know about The Beatles’ ‘Revolver’

Recorded during the first ‘Revolver’ recording session on April 6, 1966 in Studio Three at EMI Studios (now called Abbey Road Studios), The Beatles were joined by their producer George Martin, recording engineer Geoff Emerick and technical engineer Ken Townsend.

“John [Lennon’s] ethereal vocals (fed from his mic through a rotating Leslie speaker), and innovative tape loops – including Paul [McCartney] saying ‘ah, ah, ah, ah’, which when sped up produced a sound similar to a seagull’s screech – converge with Ringo [Starr’s] thunderous drum pattern, George [Harrison]’s tamboura drone, and a backwards guitar solo,” a press release explains of the recording, which you can hear below.

In an interview before ‘Revolver’’s 1966 release, McCartney told NME: “We did it because I, for one, am sick of doing sounds that people can claim to have heard before.”

First confirmed by Giles Martin – the son of the late Beatles producer George – last month, ‘Revolver’ is the latest Beatles album to be re-released as a remixed and expanded deluxe box set following ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ in 2017, ‘White Album’ (2018), ‘Abbey Road’ (2019) and ‘Let It Be’ (2021).

All 14 tracks on the original album have been newly mixed by Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell in stereo and Dolby Atmos, while the album’s original mono mix has been sourced from its 1966 mono master tape.

The Beatles unveil Revolver Special Edition

A special edition of Revolver is set to be released next month.

ORDER NOW: Joni Mitchell is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut

It is the latest Beatles album to be re-released as a remixed and expanded deluxe box set following Sgt. Pepper’s in 2017, the ‘White Album’ in 2018, Abbey Road in 2019 and Let It Be last year.

First released in August 1966, this new configuration includes a range of newly mixed and expanded special edition packages.

All 14 tracks on the original album have been newly mixed by Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell in stereo and Dolby Atmos, while the album’s original mono mix has been sourced from its 1966 mono master tape.

The physical and digital ‘super deluxe’ collections also feature the album’s original mono mix, 28 early takes from the sessions and three home demos. There is also a four-track EP with new stereo mixes and remastered original mono mixes for “Paperback Writer” and “Rain“.

The Revolver special edition will be available in three formats – Super Deluxe, Deluxe and Standard – and will be released on vinyl, CD and digitally. All of the collections will be released on October 28, with pre-order available now.

You can see the full Revolver tracklist, and listen to a new mix of “Taxman“, below.

SUPER DELUXE [5CD + 100-page hardbound book in slipcase | digital audio collection]
CD1: Revolver (New stereo mix)
1: Taxman
2: Eleanor Rigby
3: I’m Only Sleeping
4: Love You To
5: Here, There And Everywhere
6: Yellow Submarine
7: She Said She Said
8: Good Day Sunshine
9: And Your Bird Can Sing
10: For No One
11: Doctor Robert
12: I Want To Tell You
13: Got To Get You Into My Life
14: Tomorrow Never Knows

CD2: Sessions One
1: Tomorrow Never Knows (Take 1)
2: Tomorrow Never Knows (Mono mix RM 11)
3: Got To Get You Into My Life (First version) – Take 5
4: Got To Get You Into My Life (Second version) – Unnumbered mix – mono
5: Got To Get You Into My Life (Second version) – Take 8
6: Love You To (Take 1) – mono
7: Love You To (Unnumbered rehearsal) – mono
8: Love You To (Take 7)
9: Paperback Writer (Takes 1 and 2) – Backing track – mono
10: Rain (Take 5 – Actual speed)
11: Rain (Take 5 – Slowed down for master tape)
12: Doctor Robert (Take 7)
13: And Your Bird Can Sing (First version) – Take 2
14: And Your Bird Can Sing (First version) – Take 2 (giggling)

CD3: Sessions Two
1: And Your Bird Can Sing (Second version) – Take 5
2: Taxman (Take 11)
3: I’m Only Sleeping (Rehearsal fragment) – mono
4: I’m Only Sleeping (Take 2) – mono
5: I’m Only Sleeping (Take 5) – mono
6: I’m Only Sleeping (Mono mix RM1)
7: Eleanor Rigby (Speech before Take 2)
8: Eleanor Rigby (Take 2)
9: For No One (Take 10) – Backing track
10: Yellow Submarine (Songwriting work tape – Part 1) – mono
11: Yellow Submarine (Songwriting work tape – Part 2) – mono
12: Yellow Submarine (Take 4 before sound effects)
13: Yellow Submarine (Highlighted sound effects)
14: I Want To Tell You (Speech and Take 4)
15: Here, There And Everywhere (Take 6)
16: She Said She Said (John’s demo) – mono
17: She Said She Said (Take 15) – Backing track rehearsal

CD4: Revolver (Original mono master)

CD5: Revolver EP
1: Paperback Writer (New stereo mix)
2: Rain (New stereo mix)
3: Paperback Writer (Original mono mix remastered)
4: Rain (Original mono mix remastered)

SUPER DELUXE VINYL [limited edition 4LP+7-inch EP + 100-page hardbound book in slipcase]
LP One: Revolver (New stereo mix)
Side 1
1: Taxman
2: Eleanor Rigby
3: I’m Only Sleeping
4: Love You To
5: Here, There And Everywhere
6: Yellow Submarine
7: She Said She Said

Side 2
1: Good Day Sunshine
2: And Your Bird Can Sing
3: For No One
4: Doctor Robert
5: I Want To Tell You
6: Got To Get You Into My Life
7: Tomorrow Never Knows

LP Two: Sessions One
Side 1
1: Tomorrow Never Knows (Take 1)
2: Tomorrow Never Knows (Mono mix RM 11)
3: Got To Get You Into My Life (First version) – Take 5
4: Got To Get You Into My Life (Second version) – Unnumbered mix – mono
5: Got To Get You Into My Life (Second version) – Take 8
6: Love You To (Take 1) – mono
7: Love You To (Unnumbered rehearsal) – mono

Side 2
1: Love You To (Take 7)
2: Paperback Writer (Takes 1 and 2) – Backing track – mono
3: Rain (Take 5 – Actual speed)
4: Rain (Take 5 – Slowed down for master tape)
5: Doctor Robert (Take 7)
6: And Your Bird Can Sing (First version) – Take 2
7: And Your Bird Can Sing (First version) – Take 2 (giggling)

LP Three: Sessions Two
Side 1
1: And Your Bird Can Sing (Second version) – Take 5
2: Taxman (Take 11)
3: I’m Only Sleeping (Rehearsal fragment) – mono
4: I’m Only Sleeping (Take 2) – mono
5: I’m Only Sleeping (Take 5) – mono
6: I’m Only Sleeping (Mono mix RM1)
7: Eleanor Rigby (Speech before Take 2)
8: Eleanor Rigby (Take 2)

Side 2
1: For No One (Take 10) – Backing track
2: Yellow Submarine (Songwriting work tape – Part 1) – mono
3: Yellow Submarine (Songwriting work tape – Part 2) – mono
4: Yellow Submarine (Take 4 before sound effects)
5: Yellow Submarine (Highlighted sound effects)
6: I Want To Tell You (Speech and Take 4)
7: Here, There And Everywhere (Take 6)
8: She Said She Said (John’s demo) – mono
9: She Said She Said (Take 15) – Backing track rehearsal

LP Four: Revolver (Original mono master)

Revolver EP (7-inch vinyl)
Side 1
1: Paperback Writer (New stereo mix)
2: Rain (New stereo mix)

Side 2
1: Paperback Writer (Original mono mix remastered)
2: Rain (Original mono mix remastered)

DELUXE [2CD in digipak with 40-page booklet]
CD 1: Revolver (New stereo mix)

CD 2: Sessions
1: Paperback Writer (New stereo mix)
2: Rain (New stereo mix)
3: Tomorrow Never Knows (Take 1)
4: Got To Get You Into My Life (Early mix)
5: Love You To (Take 7)
6: Doctor Robert (Take 7)
7: And Your Bird Can Sing (First version) Take 2
8: Taxman (Take 11)
9: I’m Only Sleeping (Take 2) – mono
10: Eleanor Rigby (Take 2)
11: For No One (Take 10) – Backing track
12: Yellow Submarine (Take 4 before sound effects)
13: I Want To Tell You (Speech and Take 4)
14: Here, There And Everywhere (Take 6)
15: She Said She Said (Take 15) – Backing track rehearsal

STANDARD [1CD | digital | 1LP vinyl | limited edition 1LP picture disc vinyl]
Revolver (New stereo mix)

Metallica’s Lars Ulrich and AC/DC’s Brian Johnson join forces at Taylor Hawkins tribute concert

Metallica’s Lars Ulrich and AC/DC’s Brian Johnson joined forces at the Taylor Hawkins tribute concert at Wembley Stadium tonight (September 3).

The special gig honoured the late Foo Fighters drummer with performances from Liam Gallagher, Mark Ronson, Queens Of The Stone Age’s Josh Homme, Supergrass, Queen’s Brian May and Roger Taylor, The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde, Blink-182’s Travis Barker, Kesha, and more.

READ MORE: Taylor Hawkins, 1972 – 2022: Foo Fighters drummer who always stole the show

The surviving members of Foo Fighters introduced Ulrich and Johnson on stage midway through the night. “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage our good buddy Lars and Brian Johnson from AC fucking DC,” Grohl said. The pair hugged the band as they appeared from the wings and joined the group for two songs.

“This is fantastic,” Johnson said as the musicians launched into a cover of AC/DC’s ‘Back In Black’. The Darkness’ Justin Hawkins also joined the proceedings halfway through, taking the microphone from Johnson, before swapping lines with the singer.

“Woo, that was fun!” Johnson exclaimed afterwards. “I enjoyed that, thank you.” The group then tore through a version of AC/DC’s ‘Let There Be Rock’.

“Taylor, I know you’re watching,” Ulrich said as he prepared to leave the stage. “I know you’re hearing this, I know you’re feeling this. We fucking love you. On behalf of everybody in Metallica, nothing but love. Thank you Wembley, we’ll see you soon.” Watch the moment above, from around the -2.46.30 mark.

Grohl and Hawkins’ Foo Fighter bandmates opened the concert with an emotional speech that paid tribute to their late drummer. “For those of you who knew him personally, you know that no one else could make you smile, or laugh, or dance, or sing like he could,” the frontman said.

Comedian Dave Chappelle also recalled spending time with the rock star and his son in New York. “I’ve seen Taylor be a rock star many nights but it was my first time seeing him be a dad, and what a cool fucking dad,” he said. “Taylor Hawkins is a legend of a man, he’s a legend of a musician and he’s a legend of a father.”

Liam Gallagher kicked off the live music today, performing two Oasis songs with the help of the surviving members of Foo Fighters, while Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith shared a heartwarming story about Hawkins in a special video message.

Grohl’s 16-year-old daughter Violet also took to the stage to cover two Jeff Buckley songs at the show, and supergroup Them Crooked Vultures reunited for the first time in 12 years. Supergrass also performed, with the trio recalling touring with Foo Fighters and Hawkins in the ’90s.

Foo Fighters closed out the night with a star-studded set featuring a revolving cast of drummers, including Travis Barker, Nandi Bushell, and Hawkins’ 16-year-old son, Shane. Paul McCartney also joined the group on stage, delivering a performance of two Beatles songs.

Hawkins, who drummed with Foo Fighters from 1997 alongside performing in bands like Chevy Metal and Taylor Hawkins And The Coattail Riders, died in March 2022. He was 50 years old.

Julian Lennon was “shocked” by Paul McCartney’s virtual John Lennon duet

Julian Lennon has discussed how he was initially “shocked” by Paul McCartney‘s recent virtual duet with his late father, John Lennon.

At the start of his North American tour and again at Glastonbury, McCartney performed a virtual duet with his former Beatles bandmate courtesy of technology created by The Lord Of The Rings and Get Back director Peter Jackson.

At the shows, McCartney and Lennon traded verses on the song ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’, with Jackson having isolated Lennon’s vocal for the team-up. “I’ve got a special little thing here,” McCartney said when introducing that track. “One day, Peter Jackson rings me up and says he can take John’s vocals and isolate them so that you can play live with John on tour. He said, ‘Do you fancy that?’

“That’s so special for me man,” McCartney said following the collaboration. “I know it’s virtual, but come on – it’s John. We’re back together.”

In a new interview with the Daily Mail, Julian Lennon has now admitted that he was “shocked” when he first saw the duet, but by the time of the Glastonbury performance he “actually enjoyed it”.

“I watched it on YouTube — and I kind of went: ‘Errrr… I don’t know if I’m comfortable with that,” he said, adding: “It shocked me.”

He went on to add that it was tough seeing his father “brought to life” through the performance, but grew to appreciate the spectacle at Glastonbury.

Earlier this summer, Julian released an official cover of his father’s huge hit ‘Imagine’, with proceeds being donated to Ukraine refugee relief through Lennon’s nonprofit, The White Feather Foundation to Global Citizen.

In April, he performed the track as part of the Stand Up For Ukraine campaign, a global fund-raising effort broadcast from Warsaw, Poland. At the time, he wrote “Today, for the first time ever, I publicly performed my Dad’s song, ‘Imagine’” adding: “The song reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, that we are all hoping for.”

Last year, Julian said that watching the new Beatles documentary Get Back was a “life-changing” experience that “made me love my father again”.

Peter Jackson’s three-part film, which came to Disney+ last November, focuses on the making of the band’s penultimate studio album ‘Let It Be’ and showcases their final concert as a band, on London’s Savile Row rooftop, in its entirety.

Timbaland and Swizz Beatz sue Triller for £23million over ‘VERZUZ’ sale

Timbaland and Swizz Beatz have sued Triller for $28million (£23m) over claims of non-payment after the recent sale of their popular VERZUZ series.

VERZUZ is the popular entertainment series that pits producers, songwriters and artists against each other in a rap battle style format.

READ MORE: Timbaland and Swizz Beatz on VERZUZ battle series: “We want to celebrate the architects of good music”

Kicking off in March 2020 after Timbaland and Swizz Beatz issued challenges to one another, artists that have taken part so far have included T-Pain, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Brandy, Monica, Rick Ross, DMX, Snoop Dogg, D’Angelo and many more.

Last year, the rights for the series were sold to Triller, who livestream the events on their app.

In a new lawsuit seen by Billboard, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz claim that Triller owe them £23m and have been defaulting in previously agreed payments.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Three 6 Mafia on stage during their ‘VERZUZ’ battle. CREDIT: Jerritt Clark/Getty Images

The suit goes on to claim that while the pair received payments as planned in January and April 2021, a payment that was due in January of this year has still not arrived.

A new payment plan was then reportedly agreed, but the money from that has still not come through.

Speaking about VERZUZ previously to NME, Timbaland said: “Well, it’s not really a battle – it’s a celebration of our heroes in music, the ones who make us feel a certain type of way. Given what’s currently going on in the world, it’s a way to give back.

“It’s also an education, it’s educating people on the music, its creators and where this feeling comes from.”

A brutal letter John Lennon wrote to Paul McCartney is up for auction

A heated letter that John Lennon once wrote to his estranged Beatles bandmate, Paul McCartney, has been sent to auction.

READ MORE: Paul McCartney live at Glastonbury 2022: history-making rock’n’Grohl with The Boss

The letter came as a response to McCartney’s interview in the November 20, 1971 issue of Melody Maker, which among other topics, saw him wax lyrical on the relationship between Lennon and his widow, Yoko Ono, and the dissolution of The Beatles’ business partnership. Typewritten and inscribed with notes scrawled in pen, the letter runs for three pages and is addressed to “Paul, Linda, et all the wee McCartneys”.

In it, Lennon riffed on the minutiae of The Beatles’ royalty-sharing arrangement, implying that he disagreed with the way McCartney was compensated directly from royalties that should have belonged to their self-run label, Apple Records.

Lennon also took aim at McCartney’s understanding of his songs, snapping back at McCartney’s opinion that 1971’s ‘Imagine’ wasn’t intended to be political: “It’s ‘working class here’ with sugar on it for conservatives like yourself,” he wrote. “You obviously didn’t dig the words. Imagine!”

Towards the end of the letter, Lennon addressed McCartney’s alleged desire to “put your photo on the label like uncool John and Yoko”, quipping: “If we’re not cool, WHAT DOES THAT MAKE YOU…”

The letter ends on a rather amiable note, though, as Lennon assured McCartney that he had “no hard feelings to you”. He wrote in closing: “I know we basically want the same, and as I said on the phone and in this letter, whenever you want to meet, all you have to do is call.”

Bidding on the letter – which you can read in full (and bid on) here – started at $20,000 (£16,500), and currently sits at $33,000 (£27,300). The auction, hosted by Gotta Have Rock And Roll as one of 90 items in a collection of rare Beatles memorabilia, will be closed on Friday August 19.

Meanwhile, Peter Jackson has announced that he’s working on a “very different” Beatles-related project. In a recent interview, the director revealed that he’s in talks with McCartney and Ringo Starr – who he last worked with on the Emmy-nominated docuseries The Beatles: Get Back – to develop a new film.

“It’s so technically complicated I’m trying to work how exactly I’ll do it,” he said. “It’s a live-action movie, but it needs technology that doesn’t quite exist at the moment, so we’re in the middle of developing the technology to allow it to happen. I’m trying to anticipate what I might be able to do, before it even exists. They’re not fantasy epics, but they’re pretty interesting.”

Listen to Carly Rae Jepsen’s upbeat new song ‘Beach House’

Carly Rae Jepsen has today (August 5) shared a new song – listen to ‘Beach House’ below.

READ MORE: Carly Rae Jepsen: “My relationship with ‘Call Me Maybe’ was a rollercoaster”

It’s the latest offering from Jepsen’s upcoming new album, ‘The Loneliest Time‘, which the musician announced earlier this week.

The album will arrive on October 21 via 604/Schoolboy/Interscope. Collaborators on the new project include include Tavish Crowe, Rostam Batmanglij, Bullion, Captain Cuts, John Hill, Kyle Shearer and Alex Hope.

Announcing the album on social media, Jepsen wrote: “I’m quite fascinated by loneliness. It can be really beautiful when you turn it over and look at it. Just like love, it can cause some extreme human reactions.”

Check out new song ‘Beach House’ below:

Last month, Jepsen teamed up with French singer and musician Lewis OfMan on a new song called ‘Move Me’.

It followed on from Jepsen’s recent single ‘Western Wind’ and comes after the singer wrapped a UK and European tour.

Speaking of the collaboration she said: “In September of 2020 I heard about an artist named Lewis OfMan. A friend sent me a playlist and I kept pausing at the same track of Lewis’ thinking, ‘This is really good.’ The world was upside down so there was extra time to really listen to music and then ask questions like, ‘Who made this and how can we be friends?’

“Lewis has really been the silver lining of my last two years when touring wasn’t possible and travel was just a dream. On top of that, he has one of my favourite male voices. I can’t wait for you to hear our first collaboration after such a long wait.”

In June, Jepsen shared dates and details for an upcoming North American tour. The round of dates mark Jepsen’s first headline tour since 2019.

The ‘So Nice’ tour kicks off September 24 in Montreal and makes stops at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall and LA’s The Greek Theatre. Empress Of supports on select dates.

Tickets are available here – see the full list of dates below.

SEPTEMBER 2022
21 – Cleveland, OH – Jacobs Pavilion w/Bleachers
22 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage w/Bleachers
24 – Montreal, QC – MTELUS
26 – Boston, MA – Roadrunner
28 – New York, NY – Radio City Music Hall
29 – Washington, DC – The Anthem

OCTOBER 2022
01 – Philadelphia, PA – The Met Philadelphia
02 – Norfolk, VA The – NorVa
04 – Knoxville, TN – Tennessee Theatre
05 – Atlanta, GA – The Eastern
07 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits Festival
09 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall
10 – Dallas, TX – South Side Ballroom
12 – Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom
14 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Union Event Center
15 – Las Vegas, NV – The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
17 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Federal Theatre
18 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre
20 – Santa Barbara, CA – Arlington Theatre
21 – Berkeley, CA – Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley
23 – Portland, OR – Roseland Theater
26 – Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo
29 – Vancouver, BC – Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre

NOVEMBER 2022
02 – Madison, WI – The Sylvee
04 – Kansas City, MO – Uptown Theater
05 – Chicago, IL – Aragon Ballroom

Johnny Depp surprise releases new single ‘The Death And Resurrection Show’

Johnny Depp has shared a new single, ‘The Death And Resurrection Show’. Listen below.

Announced via the actor-musician’s Instagram yesterday (July 8), Depp’s new track is a cover of the titular 2003 song by English rock band Killing Joke.

The track sees Depp reunite with longtime collaborator and guitarist Jeff Beck, and is expected to be lifted from the pair’s upcoming album, ‘18’. News of the joint album first circulated in 2021, and was officially confirmed for a July 15 release last month.

In addition to ‘The Death And Resurrection Show’, the tracklist for ‘18’ will include the duo’s covers of The Beach Boys’ ‘Caroline, No’ and The Velvet Underground’s ‘Venus In Furs’, both of which were released late last month.

Depp and Beck’s covers of Marvin Gaye and The Everly Brothers will likewise feature on the album, as well as the Depp original, ‘This Is A Song For Miss Hedy Lamarr’. ‘18’ was recorded over the course of three years, and according to a statement from Beck, owes its title to the pair’s “youthful spirit and creativity”.

“When Johnny and I started playing together, it really ignited our youthful spirit and creativity,” he said. “We would joke about how we felt 18 again, so that just became the album title too.”

While ‘18’ has been in development for some time, the album rollout was kickstarted in May, when Depp appeared as a surprise guest at two of Beck’s concerts, in Sheffield and London respectively. During the latter show, the pair again performed covers ranging from John Lennon’s ‘Isolation’ to The Beatles’ ‘A Day In The Life’.

Depp’s appearance at the shows made headlines, as the shows took place just days before the final verdict of his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard was reached. On June 1, the jury ruled in favour of Depp, and he was awarded $10million (£8million) in compensatory damages as well as $5million (£4million) in punitive damages.

Paul McCartney duets virtually with John Lennon for Glastonbury headline set

Paul McCartney duetted virtually with John Lennon during tonight’s Glastonbury headline set (June 25).

Following the surprise arrival of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and Bruce Springsteen during his set on the Pyramid stage, he linked up with former Beatles bandmate, the late Lennon during ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’.

Speaking to the crowd, McCartney revealed that the idea came from Peter Jackson, the director of the recent extensive documentary Get Back, which was based on the studio sessions for the band’s final album ‘Let It Be’.

Check out previous footage below of the collaboration previously shot in Washington State.

The pair traded verses in the song, with Jackson having isolated Lennon’s vocal for the team-up. McCartney first debuted the collaboration with his former co-songwriter on his recent US tour.

“I’ve got a special little thing here,” he said introducing that track. “One day, Peter Jackson rings me up and says he can take John’s vocals and isolate them so that you can play live with Kohn on tour. He said do you fancy that?”

“That’s so special for me man,” McCartney said following the collaboration. “I know it’s virtual but come on – it’s John. We’re back together.”

Earlier the show, Grohl joined The Beatle having flown all the way especially from the US for the show: the pair played ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and ’Band On The Run’, while Springsteen covered The Boss 1984’s single ‘Glory Days’ and an early Beatles single, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man.’

Check back to NME for the full review of Paul McCartney’s headline set imminently.

Stay tuned to NME all weekend for the latest news, reviews, interviews, photos and more from Glastonbury 2022.

Beabadoobee tells us about her new album ‘Beatopia’ at Glastonbury 2022

Beabadoobee has told NME about her upcoming second album ‘Beatopia’ during a backstage interview at Glastonbury 2022.

The returning Dirty Hit-signed artist made her debut appearance at the Worthy Farm festival earlier today (June 25), playing on the John Peel Stage.

READ MORE: The story of Glastonbury 2022 in glorious photos

“It was much more of a physical thing when I was seven,” she explained of the “dream world” behind ‘Beatopia’, which she invented in 2007. “I thought I could literally be in this world – I think it was just a way of escaping everything that was happening in life at that time, and then I forgot about it because shit happened. Then I just realised that I could finally accept it now and I could make a whole album about it and find myself within it.”

The record, which will be released on July 15, is less about escapism, however, and more about “tackling things that you pushed under the rug for ages”.

“It’s very liberating,” the musician commented on being able to process those life events in her songs. “When you write songs [about them] it’s a positive outcome, especially when you’re writing about something that wasn’t necessarily positive.”

Among the tracklist – which includes the previously released ‘Talk’, ‘Lovesong’, ‘10:36’ and ‘See You Soon’ – is a collaboration with PinkPantheress called ‘Tinkerbell Is Overrated’. “She’s just my mate,” Beabadoobee explained of the team-up. “We’re in the same scene and around the same age. It just kind of happened, we were just in the studio together – I had the song already and she just jumped on it.”

Yesterday saw the first main day of music at Glastonbury 2022, with a Pyramid Stage headline set from Billie Eilish, Foals closing out The Other Stage, an opening set from The Libertines, and performances from the likes of Phoebe Bridgers, Little Simz, Sugababes, Wet Leg, St Vincent, IDLES, Sam Fender, Yard Act, Sleaford Mods and many more.

After an intimate warm-up gig in Frome, Paul McCartney will close the Pyramid Stage tonight after a day that will see performances from Noel Gallagher, HAIM, Megan Thee Stallion, Jamie T, Yungblud, The Avalanches, Burna Boy, Jessie Ware and many more. Find the full line-up and set times here.

Check back at NME here for the latest news, reviews, interviews, photos and more from Glastonbury 2022.

John Williams to retire from scoring films after ‘Indiana Jones 5’

John Williams, famed composer behind the film scores for Jurassic Park, Star Wars, Harry Potter and more is set to retire scoring films after completing his work on the upcoming Indiana Jones 5 film.

READ MORE: 10 Elvis songs for people who think they don’t like Elvis

In an interview with Associated Press, Williams, 90, revealed, “At the moment I’m working on Indiana Jones 5, which Harrison Ford – who’s quite a bit younger than I am – I think has announced will be his last film,”

“So, I thought: If Harrison can do it, then perhaps I can, also.”

AP notes that Ford has yet to make such a public statement. Williams did leave himself room for a return, however, telling the outlet he didn’t want to be seen as “categorically eliminating any activity” from his future plans.

While Williams is moving away from scoring film, the five-time Oscar winner has stated that he will still be involved in music. He is reportedly currently writing a piano concerto for Emanuel Ax following his release of the album ‘A Gathering of Friends’ with cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Released on May 20, the album consisted of cello concertos and new arrangements from the scores of Schindler’s List, Lincoln and Munich.

Williams concluded the interview with an upbeat note, marvelling at the possibilities of a future he will most likely miss: “I’d love to be around in 100 years to see what people are doing with film and sound and spatial, aural and visual effects. It has a tremendous future, I think.”

“I can sense great possibility and great future in the atmospherics of the whole experience. I’d love to come back and see and hear it all.”

The first image from Indiana Jones 5 was recently revealed by Ford at the Star Wars Celebration on May 26, adding that he is “very proud of the movie that we made”. The actor also paid tribute to Williams at the event, adding, “It’s a special honour for me to be able to congratulate John on his 90th birthday. I told John on another occasion that we had the chance to be together, and that music follows me everywhere I go. And you know what, I’m happy about it.”

Boris Johnson thinks Eurovision 2023 should be held in Ukraine: “I hope they get it”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said Ukraine should be given the chance to host Eurovision 2023 after it was confirmed that talks were underway to potentially bring next year’s contest to the UK.

Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra won this year’s song competition with a huge 631 points, and it was therefore set to be staged in the country in 2023.

READ MORE: Eurovision 2022: Ukraine beats Sam Ryder into second at hope-filled pop bash

However, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) announced “with deep regret” yesterday (June 17) that it will not be possible to do so amid the threat of the ongoing Russian invasion.

In a statement, the EBU also revealed that it “will now begin discussions with the BBC, as this year’s runner-up, to potentially host the 2023 Eurovision song contest in the United Kingdom”.

“It is our full intention that Ukraine’s win will be reflected in next year’s shows,” the update continued. “This will be a priority for us in our discussions with the eventual hosts.”

The competition was last held in the UK in 1998 after the UK won with Katrina And The Waves’ ‘Love Shine A Light’ the previous year. Last month, the 2022 entrant Sam Ryder gave the nation its best result since ’98 – coming in at second place with 466 points overall.

The @EBU_HQ has issued the statement below regarding the hosting of next year’s #Eurovision Song Contest.

Find it online here ➡️ https://t.co/mAxSdReBj3 pic.twitter.com/JYqy58eHqV

— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) June 17, 2022

Upon his return from his trip to Kyiv, PM Johnson said today (June 18) that he wants Ukraine to host Eurovision 2023.

“The Ukrainians won it fair and square, even though we had a brilliant entry, and they should be given the chance to host it,” Johnson said (via the BBC).

“It’s a year away. It’s going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes around and I hope they get it.”

Various cities in the UK – including Glasgow, Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool – have already expressed an interest in hosting next year’s Eurovision, should the competition return to these shores for the ninth time.

Elsewhere, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan took to Twitter to say that the capital “would welcome Eurovision with open arms”.

“We’re ready to step up and support Ukraine by hosting a contest that pays tribute to and honours the Ukrainian people, and also celebrates the very best of Britain too,” he added.

In yesterday’s statement, the EPU wrote: “Given the ongoing war since the Russian invasion of this year’s winning country, the EBU has taken the time to conduct a full assessment and feasibility study with both UA:PBC and third-party specialists including on safety and security issues.”

The EPU went on to acknowledge that the coverage of the Eurovision Song Contest was “one of the most complex TV productions in the world with thousands working on, and attending, the event and 12 months of preparation time needed”.

It continued: “Following objective analysis, the Reference Group, the ESC’s governing board, has with deep regret concluded that, given the current circumstances, the security and operational guarantees required for a broadcaster to host, organise and produce the Eurovision Song Contest under the ESC Rules cannot be fulfilled by [Ukraine’s public broadcaster] UA:PBC.”

Oleksandr Tkachenko, the Ukrainian Culture Minister, has since responded by saying “we will be demanding to change the decision”.

“Hosting Eurovision 2023 in Ukraine is a powerful signal to all the world, which is supporting Ukraine now,” he said.

Watch Florence + The Machine cover John Lennon’s ‘Jealous Guy’

Florence + The Machine has covered John Lennon‘s ‘Jealous Guy’ in the studio – check out the performance below.

READ MORE: Florence + The Machine – ‘Dance Fever’ review: the triumphant sound of a singer reborn

Florence Welch and co. performed the cover while appearing on SiriusXM, performing a number of tracks from new album ‘Dance Fever’ as well as the version of Lennon’s famous track, first released on 1971 album ‘Imagine’.

‘Dance Fever’ was released last month and beat Kendrick Lamar‘s Mr Morale & The Big Steppers’ to top spot in the UK charts, marking the band’s fourth UK Number One album following 2009 debut ‘Lungs’, follow up ‘Ceremonials’ and 2015’s ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’.

Check out Florence + The Machine’s acoustic cover of John Lennon’s ‘Jealous Guy’ for SiriusXM below.

In a four-star review, NME said that ‘Dance Fever’ boasts “gorgeously expressive songs”, adding: “This 14-track collection reflects a new sense of resolve, packing an invigorated spirit into powerful, sneakily thrilling pop.”

Florence + The Machine will showcase the album on a UK and Ireland headline tour in November. You can see the band’s upcoming dates below and buy any remaining tickets here.

It’ll follow an expansive tour throughout North America, where the band will play shows with Arlo Parks, Sam Fender, King Princess, Yves Tumor, Japanese Breakfast and Wet Leg on select dates – tickets are available here for those shows.

See the full list of dates below.

SEPTEMBER 2022
2 – Montreal, QC – Place Bell
3 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage
7 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
8 – St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
10 – Clarkson, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
12 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena
14 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
16 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
20 – Ascend Amphitheater – Nashville, TN
21 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheater
23 – Orlando, FL – Amway Center
24 – Miami, FL – FTX Arena
27 – Austin, TX – Moody Center
28 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory

OCTOBER 2022
1 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena
4 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
6 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
7 – Portland, OR – Theater of the Clouds
9 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
12 – Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre – San Diego, CA
14 – Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl

NOVEMBER 2022
14 – Accor Arena, Paris
16 – Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff
18 – The O2, London
19 – The O2, London
21 – BIC, Bournemouth
22 – AO Arena, Manchester
24 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
25 – First Direct Arena, Leeds
27 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow
28 – Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
30 – Arena, Dublin

Johnny Depp once gave Marilyn Manson a pill “so that he would stop talking so much”

Johnny Depp has opened up about his drug use during his defamation suit against ex-wife Amber Heard, mentioning his interactions with Marilyn Manson.

The actor has been permitted by a Virginia judge to pursue his case against his ex-wife, suing her for defamation over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which she wrote about surviving domestic violence.

Heard did not mention Depp by name in the article, but Depp’s lawyers have argued that it falsely implies she was sexually and physically abused by Depp during their marriage. Heard has also filed a counterclaim against Depp, arguing he has created a smear campaign against her.

During his cross-examination in the ongoing trial this week, Depp was asked by Heard’s lawyer about his drug use with Manson, with the intention of further delving into the actor’s history with substance abuse.

“We drank together, we’ve had cocaine together maybe a couple of times,” Depp said. Heard’s lawyer then asked if pills were involved, and Depp replied with a chuckle: “I once gave Marilyn Manson a pill so that he would stop talking so much.”

Later, the lawyer showed the court a photo of a Keith Richards demo CD next to four apparent lines of cocaine and glasses of beer. There was also a box in the photo with Depp’s initials and a skull and crossbones. When Heard’s lawyer asked if the box contained cocaine, Depp said: “I can’t say that I carried cocaine in it … but it looks like it would fit some cocaine.”

The trial continues, with James Franco and Elon Musk among the names set to testify. According to Deadline, Franco and Musk are being brought in to testify on behalf of Heard after Depp accused them both of having an affair with his ex-wife.

Amber Heard and Johnny Depp (Picture: Getty Images)

In 2020 Depp lost a libel lawsuit against The Sun, which concerned the newspaper publishing an article in April 2018 referring to him as a “wife beater”. Judge Mr Justice Nicol said in a ruling that he found the words to be “substantially true”.

Depp said last year that he believes he is being boycotted by Hollywood, suggesting that the industry is taking note of his “unpleasant and messy situation”.

Watch Nandi Bushell’s impressive cover of John Coltrane’s ‘Mr. P.C.’

Nandi Bushell has shared a cover of the John Coltrane classic, ‘Mr. P.C.’.

READ MORE: 11-year-old drummer Nandi Bushell’s greatest cover songs

The 11-year-old child prodigy’s latest reworking follows her recent covers of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Little Wing’, Rush’s ‘Tom Sawyer’, Billie Eilish‘s ‘Happier Than Ever’, Tool’s ‘Forty Six & 2’, ‘Gimme Shelter’ by The Rolling Stones, and a rollicking cover of Ed Sheeran and Bring Me The Horizon‘s new collaboration, ‘Bad Habits.

After mastering many of rock’s biggest hits, Bushell is now trying her hand at jazz, picking up a guitar, bass, drums and saxophone for the classic Coltrane composition.

“Next stop on my Musical Quest! #Jazz,” Bushell wrote on Twitter, sharing a clip of her cover. “This is my interpretation of ‘Mr P.C.’ by @John Coltrane – I am going out of my comfort zone learning a new grip, traditional grip, on drums.”

She continued: “I have to retrain my brain. It’s #HARD! I really tried to push my #saxophone playing too trying to get a jazzy feeling in the notes. I have now been playing #sax for 11 months. Who are your favourite jazz musicians and songs? Let me know!”

You can check out Bushell’s cover of ‘Mr. P.C.’ below:

Next stop on my Musical Quest! #Jazz This is my interpretation of Mr P.C. By @JohnColtrane – I am going out of my comfort zone learning traditional grip. It’s #HARD I really tried to push my #saxophone playing too trying to get a jazzy feeling in the notes. Who is your fav jazz? pic.twitter.com/meYTDhf5eC

— Nandi Bushell (@Nandi_Bushell) March 29, 2022

Last year, Bushell – who turns 12 later this month – released an original song titled ‘The Children Will Rise Up!’, which Bushell recorded with Tom Morello’s son Roman. She, Roman and the iconic Rage Against The Machine guitarist had jammed together a month earlier.

Other collaborations that Bushell’s been a part of include with Queen’s Roger Taylor, Beatles icon Ringo Starr and the Arctic Monkeys’ Matt Helders (who she also interviewed), as well as a live performance in LA with Foo Fighters.

She said the latter experience made for “the best night of [her] entire life”, while Dave Grohl said that watching her play the drums was “the true meaning of rock ’n’ roll”.

Meanwhile, Bushell is among those who have paid tribute to late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins.

Hawkins died last month (March 25) at the age of 50. The band announced the news in a statement on social media; no cause of death was given.

“Our love, thoughts and support are with all who knew Taylor,” Bushell said on Twitter. “Thank you for looking after me, thank you for being so kind and loving, thank you for being the most awesome drummer ever, thank you for bringing so much joy to the world, thank you for being you! With love, Nandi x”

Members of Rammstein, Faith No More cover The Beatles’ ‘Come Together’ for Ukraine fundraiser

In a bid to aid Ukrainian refugees, Californian industrial/electronica label COP International have formed a supergroup featuring current and former members of Rammstein, Faith No More, Ministry and Filter, to cover The Beatles’ 1969 classic ‘Come Together’.

READ MORE: Ukrainian artists on the Russian crisis: “Now is the time to push for change”

In stark contrast to the ‘Abbey Road’ original’s chill, groove-inflected pop feel, the star-studded cover turns ‘Come Together’ into a bourbon-soaked swag-rock anthem, replete with a searing, overdriven riff, stomp-and-clap percussion and smoky vocal harmonies. To that end, it interpolates elements of Queen’s 1977 hit ‘We Will Rock You’, with the lyric changed to “we will stop you”.

The project was steered by COP International founder Christian Petke, alongside legendary producer John Fryer (Depeche Mode, Cocteau Twins, Nine Inch Nails). Among those involved in the track are Bill Gourd of Faith No More, Richard Kruspe of Rammstein, ex-Ministry vocalist Chris Connelly, ex-Filter drummer Matt Walker and Roger Miret of Agnostic Front. Listen to it below:

Come Together by Lifeline International

100 per cent of the proceeds earned from digital sales and streams of the cover – which is available now on Bandcamp, and will hit streaming platforms imminently – will be donated to UNICEF.

Per the charity’s website, “UNICEF is working with partners to reach vulnerable children and families [in Ukraine] with essential services – including health, education, protection, water and sanitation – as well as life-saving supplies”.

“This song is a simple and direct message to the millions of people who are currently suffering in Ukraine and beyond. You are not alone. We see you,” Petke said in a statement.

Echoing his sentiment, Fryer added: “I’m shocked, stunned, dismayed, angry, horrified and saddened by the situation in Ukraine. I don’t how one man’s insane ego can cause this much death and destruction.”

As a key influence on the project, Petke and Fryer cited a string of charity singles coordinated by Bob Geldof, who in the ‘80s led supergroups in releasing tracks like ‘We Are The World’ and ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas’, which in turn led to the legendary Live Aid initiative.

“While we are obviously excited about this new song’s immediate ability to raise awareness and money,” Petke said, “We’d like to think that ‘Come Together’ is only the first step of many. The simple act of supporting one song can help spread a message of hope and compassion around the entire world.”

Other artists who have launched charity efforts to help Ukrainians include Devo, Queen, Belle And Sebastian, The Cure and Massive Attack.

Additionally, the likes of Nile Rodgers and Chic, Manic Street Preachers, Camila Cabello, Ed Sheeran and Snow Patrol will perform at the Concert For Ukraine in Birmingham next Tuesday (March 29), while Arcade Fire recently held a slew of their own benefit gigs in New Orleans and New York City.

Rammstein’s Till Lindemann also helped a stranded Ukrainian refugee find shelter in Berlin, while Tom Odell performed for a group of refugees at Bucharest Train Station.

The Beatles’ ‘1’ compilation album remastered by Giles Martin for spatial audio

The Beatles‘ ‘1’ compilation album has been remastered for spatial audio by Giles Martin, the son of the band’s late producer George Martin.

READ MORE: Mark, My Words: Macca’s right – The Beatles were better than The Stones

Giles said in an interview last year that he was a fan of the immersive 360-degree sound technology launched in 2021 by Apple Music, as well as the Dolby Atmos that it is built on, but said that it doesn’t always “sound quite right”.

He revealed that he intended to remaster The Beatles’ 1967 album ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ but has since worked on the band’s greatest Number Ones compilation album, which was released in 2000.

Speaking to Apple Music’s Zane Lowe about reworking ‘1’ in spatial audio, and how his father laid the foundations for his interest in pursuing modern audio tech.

Giles Martin in Abbey Road Studios. Credit: Press

“My dad was a futurist and loved technology. When I was a kid, he built studios. He built some of the best studios in the world. (He opened AIR Montserrat.) It was one of the most successful recording places in the 1980s. Elton John, Police, Dire Strait…Earth, Wind & Fire to Paul McCartney…everyone went to that studio. He was always looking for ways to have great sounds,” he said.

“There’s something I remember… when CDs came he got one of the first CD players and we were going around to his friend’s house for Sunday lunch. He had three CDs, one was a Billy Joel record, there was a classical one, and a Japanese artiste. He went, ‘This is the future of sound. The future is happening.’ He brought the CD player and the CDs with him and he said these things are indestructible. He banged it against the table, and it broke in his hand!

“The point is: going back to looking for new ways is key. The key thing with The Beatles is that when he first served Abbey Road, the golden orb was to search for ways to create a perfect facsimile of the recording. When you record, you sound like you are in a room. What happened was with The Beatles and my dad and other people around the world…is that how do we create worlds that don’t exist. Hence ‘Sgt. Peppers’. These aren’t live records. These are things you can only imagine. That’s the evolution of sound. It’s not just technology; it’s imagination as well, that’s key.”

George Martin and The Beatles — The Beatles pose for a portrait in the studio with their producer George Martin, circa 1964. CREDIT: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

He added that reimagining tracks in spatial audio is not easy, especially considering how the tracks were recorded, which were at the pinnacle of technology at the time.

“When I walk into a room in Abbey Road, I can get a four track. I can press play and I can hear it. How lucky I am and how many people would want to do this; how many people would want to be in that position. If you listen to ‘Ticket To Ride’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Day Tripper’, ‘Paperback Writer’…they rock, they really rock.

“That’s the thing you have to bear in mind the most; you have to make sure it doesn’t sound too dissipated. You know you still need that sound stage in front of you, but with head tracking, you feel like: ‘There’s Ringo and he’s playing there.’ That’s kind of cool.”

He added: “Records don’t get old, we get old. We get older, records stay the same age as it was on the day of recording.” Spatial audio works to make music more engaging and accessible on the latest tech platforms. “You could be with the band with Dolby Atmos.”

Meanwhile, former Beatle Paul McCartney has announced his plans for a tour of North America this spring, click full information dates can be found here.

Watch John Mulaney and LCD Soundsystem in ‘Saturday Night Live’ promo

LCD Soundsystem will be the musical guests on this weekend’s episode of Saturday Night Live.

READ MORE: From The NME Archive – Celebrate 15 years of LCD Soundsystem’s debut with this classic interview: “Most live bands today are horrible”

Set to air tomorrow night (February 26), the episode will be hosted by John Mulaney, marking his fifth time presenting the late night sketch show.

It’s the second time James Murphy and co. have played SNL, the first time being back in 2017 when they were promoting their last album, ‘American Dream’.

With each episode of the show, the hosts and musical guests get together to shoot a promo for the forthcoming episode. For this week’s, Mulaney goes back and forth with Cecily Strong about what’s changed about the SNL set since the last time he hosted.

Things that changed include: the location of the snacks, the quality of the coffee, and there are no wolves in the building. This final change prompts Mulaney to storm off, and Murphy asks: “Is he OK?” To which Strong replies: “No, he loved those wolves.”

Watch the Saturday Night Live promo below:

Because of LCD Soundsystem’s appearance on SNL, fans are now speculating as to whether or not this might also mean the release of new material.

The band are also set to tour this summer, with a European headline date confirmed at Spain’s Bilbao BBK Festival in July.

Back in December, the band treated fans to a live rendition of their festive single, ‘Christmas Will Break Your Heart’.

The slow-burning ballad closed out the concert portion of The LCD Soundsystem Holiday Special, which premiered on Amazon Music on December 23. They played the track with a new added string section.

LCD Soundsystem performed a nine-track set for the special, with the bulk of the setlist pulled from their 2017 album ‘American Dream’. They played five songs from the record, including single ‘Tonite’, as well as two cuts from their eponymous 2005 debut, and ‘I Can Change’ from 2010’s ‘This Is Happening’.

“I’ve already conquered film [and] James has conquered music,” Wareheim said in a statement shared with the trailer for All My Friends, “but we have yet to conquer the sitcom – the HIGHEST form of art.

“We’ve been working on this project for 15 years, and for this show we’re unveiling a uniquely emotional perspective of the sitcom universe for the holidays – provided by one of the greatest bands of all time and my dear friends, LCD Soundsystem. I can’t believe Amazon Music is letting us do this.”

“I am similarly stunned that someone let us do this,” Murphy added. “At least we finally get to use our Korey puppet.”

In October, LCD Soundsystem announced their live return with a month-long residency at New York’s Brooklyn Steel. Their first gig since 2018 took place November 23 and saw the band cover Joy Division’s ‘No Love Lost’ alongside tracks from across their back catalogue. At other gigs, the band have played rarities like 2004’s ‘Beat Connection’ and given tracks like 2017’s ‘Other Voices’ their live debut.

Though the band were initially staunch on seeing the run through to its end, despite a surge in COVID-19 cases thanks to the bourgeoning Omicron variant, the band were forced to cancel with three shows left.

Jeris Johnson Wants Both Blood And Love

By Ashley Oken

On a recent Friday afternoon, musician Jeris Johnson, 25, ran his fingers through his blond hair while settling into a nondescript hotel room in Nashville after a frenzied few days of traveling on his first tour. Wearing a hat emblazoned with the message “Make Rock Great Again,” Johnson shared his thoughts on the state of the genre of which his Instagram bio claims he is “the future.” “Rock has been stuck in the mud for a long time,” he told MTV News over Zoom. “It’s sounded the same for a long time. It’s the same old ‘man with drums and [a] guitar’ and whatever else.”

“Now I feel like we’re at a crisis point in rock music,” he continues, “where it actually will die if it keeps going down the path that it’s going down, because it’s not keeping up. It’s not capturing anybody that’s young. It’s not doing any of those things.” The former metalhead turned TikToker, whose debut album I Want Blood/I Want Love, is out today (February 4), aims to be rock’s fountain of youth. “It needs to be brought into the future.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cmgKMcYPt4

Born in Eugene, Oregon to rocker parents — his dad was a drummer and his mom was a singer; they met while playing in bands — Johnson grew up surrounded by music. Now, he is known for his covers of 2000s-era rock songs like “Never Too Late” by Three Days Grace and “How You Remind Me” by Nickelback, which he first posted to TikTok in 2021. These allowed him a platform to enact his mission. He believes that TikTok is a method to bring the genre up to speed with the modern era, citing Tumblr, Myspace, and other sites that saw their rise linked with music over the past two decades. “TikTok has been poppin’ off for two to three years now, and there are still tons of artists and bands who are too cool for it, but they’re just behind,” he said. “If you’re not riding the fucking TikTok wave, you’re falling behind because it’s the only reason that my numbers are in the millions.” Johnson sees the platform as a stage, one where he can wild out as he wishes and embrace his confident and larger-than-life persona.

Given that 2000s radio rock was “all he listened to growing up,” his covers helped him pick up traction on TikTok and eventually hop onto remixed tracks like “Last Resort (Reloaded)” with Papa Roach frontman Jacoby Shaddix. Johnson affectionately calls the singer Uncle Jacoby and thinks of him as a mentor. Fast friendships have helped Johnson land other collaborations, such as “Damn” with Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger and a remix of Bring Me the Horizon’s single “Can You Feel My Heart” with Oli Sykes. Johnson unveiled his debut EP My Sword at the top of 2021, which showed off another key influence: the angst of SoundCloud rap. He also points to XXXTentacion and Ski Mask the Slump God as influences.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwthxLtzYsI

Though Johnson’s latest releases, the sobering “27 Club” and the Trippie Redd collab “Friday,” showcase an upbeat, partying side, I Want Blood/I Want Love displays two distinct sides of Johnson — a compelling one ready to take charge of the rock scene and a sentimental one looking to express itself meaningfully. The duality may surprise his fans and followers.

“When they go to check out the album, they’re gonna be like, ‘What the fuck is this kid smoking?’” he said. “And that’s what it should be. Every time you put out music that’s different from what people are used to, you’re always gonna make somebody mad. If I’m not doing that, I’m not making art.”

His parents’ unwavering support of that art “has been the number one thing” and laid the foundation for the life that waits ahead of him. Unlike those who use their parents’ dismissal of their artistic ambitions as fuel for their creativity, Johnson considers himself lucky. “They didn’t care if I didn’t go to college. We didn’t have the money for me to go to college anyway.”

Johnson began playing piano and drums at the age of 2 and went to rock band camps at 13, where he was able to hone his skills as a vocalist and percussionist. Here, he met his future bandmates and decided music was going to be his lifelong focus. The musician spent his high school years in a metal band named Audiophobia. When they split up, he taught himself how to produce and set up shop as his own maestro.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dV2rY0Y6RtA

“I realized bands were lame and being in one wasn’t going to work for me because they don’t make any money. The computer is an instrument in and of itself at this point,” he said. “[Rock has] traditionally been done with ‘real instruments.’ It’s a fun and cool challenge to figure out, how can I make rock without live drums and guitar? How can I distort my computer? How can I break the rules, fuck everything up, and still have that rock energy to everything?”

He honed this experimentation further on journeys to Los Angeles that he took at 21, trying to network and lock in writing recording sessions after 13-hour drives. Through this process, he learned that crafting a sound and getting to where you want to be takes time and patience. “I was always confused during that time period, like, why the fuck aren’t I making it yet and why aren’t people signing me yet? I knew I had all this raw talent,” he said. “I look back now and think, ‘You were just clueless.’” Since then, his skill level has caught up with his ambition, and now he’s making the art he’s always wanted to make.

Johnson feels lucky that his first tour is “so dope,” on the road with Falling in Reverse, Waging War, and Hawthorne Heights on a three-week sprint around the country. As ever, it’s all part of his plan: “I think it’s destiny colliding and the universe matching it up where it feels like this is something I just have to do.”

Paul McCartney still gets emotional listening to the John Lennon inspired ‘Dear Friend’

Paul McCartney has admitted he gets “very emotional” listening to ‘Dear Friend’ because he wrote it about John Lennon.

READ MORE: ‘The Beatles: Get Back’ review: Peter Jackson’s long and winding but utterly unmissable epic

The song was released in 1971 as part of McCartney’s post-The Beatles project Wings. To celebrate the 50th anniversary reissue of their debut album ‘Wild Life’, a Q&A about the record from 2018 has been shared on PaulMcCartney.com.

Speaking about ‘Wild Life and the track ‘Dear Friend’, McCartney revealed that he finds it “very emotional when I listen to it now. I have to sort of choke it back.”

He went on to explain how the track is “me talking to John after we’d had all the disputes about The Beatles break up.

“That lyric: ‘Really truly, young and newly wed’. Listening to that was like, ‘Oh my God, it’s true!’ I’m trying to say to John, ‘Look, you know, it’s all cool. Have a glass of wine. Let’s be cool.’ And luckily we did get it back together, which was like a great source of joy because it would have been terrible if he’d been killed as things were at that point and I’d never got to straighten it out with him.”

He goes on to say that ‘Dear Friend’ was “me reaching out. So, I think it’s very powerful in some very simple way. But it was certainly heartfelt.”

Elsewhere in the interview, McCartney says that Wings was his attempt to “relearn what it is to be in a band.”

“We followed what the early Beatles did which was form a band of people who couldn’t play very well, couldn’t write very well, and just do it a lot until it gets good,” he added.

In other news, McCartney has admitted that Peter Jackson’s The Beatles: Get Back documentary changed his perception of The Beatles’ split.

“I’ll tell you what is really fabulous about it, it shows the four of us having a ball,” McCartney told The Sunday Times after watching the film. “It was so reaffirming for me. That was one of the important things about The Beatles, we could make each other laugh.”

He went on to add: “I definitely bought into the dark side of The Beatles breaking up and thought, ‘God, I’m to blame.’ But at the back of my mind there was this idea that it wasn’t like that. I just needed to see proof.”

Listen to The Beatles’ Get Back rooftop concert in full

The Beatles’ legendary 1969 rooftop has arrived on streaming services – you can listen to it below.

ORDER NOW: Johnny Marr is on the cover in the latest issue of Uncut
READ MORE: The Beatles – Let It Be Special Deluxe Edition review

The unannounced gig took place on top of Apple Corps’ headquarters on Savile Row in London, marking the Fab Four’s final public performance of their career.

Peter Jackson’s recent documentary The Beatles: Get Back includes footage of the concert, with limited IMAX screenings of the show having taken place last Sunday (January 30).

On January 27 it was announced that The Beatles: Get Back – The Rooftop Performance would land on Spotify, Apple Music and other major streaming platforms Friday (January 28) at 5am GMT via Apple Corps Ltd/Capitol/UMe.

Tune in here:

Per a press release, the complete audio for The Beatles’ rooftop performance has been mixed in stereo and Dolby Atmos for the very first time by Giles Martin and Sam Okel.

You can see the official teaser clip and and artwork below.

‘The Beatles: Get Back - The Rooftop Performance’ – official artwork — “The Beatles: Get Back – The Rooftop Performance” – official artwork. Image: Press

Yesterday (January 30) marked the 53rd anniversary of the iconic show. Peter Jackson took part in a special Q&A session which was broadcast simultaneously to all participating IMAX cinemas.

“I’m thrilled that the rooftop concert from The Beatles: Get Back is going to be experienced in IMAX, on that huge screen,” Jackson said in a statement.

“It’s The Beatles’ last concert, and it’s the absolute perfect way to see and hear it.”

The Beatles: Get Back – The Rooftop Concert will get a global theatrical release from February 11-13. Get Back will also be released on Blu-ray and DVD in the United States on February 8.

Beatles film producer Denis O’Dell has died, aged 98

Denis O’Dell, an acclaimed producer best known for his work on films starring The Beatles, has died at age 98.

READ MORE: A Long Rewinding Road – 10 Highlights From The Beatles: Get Back Documentary

O’Dell’s passing was confirmed by his son Arran, who told The Associated Press on January 1 that he died of natural causes at his home in Almería, Spain on Thursday December 30.

Breaking out into the world of film in the 1940s, O’Dell racked up an impressive catalogue that sported such hits as It’s A Wonderful World (1956), Tread Softly Stranger (1958) and The Playboy Of The Western World (1962). He first linked up with The Beatles in 1964, mounting their production of A Hard Day’s Night as an associate producer.

His partnership with the group would continue for years to come. Per Variety, O’Dell is at least partly to thank for John Lennon’s involvement in 1967’s How I Won The War, a black-comedy film set during World War II that Lennon co-starred in (as his only non-musical acting role). Lennon famously wrote the bulk of “Strawberry Fields Forever” during the film’s production.

That same year, O’Dell and The Beatles collaborated on their made-for-TV film Magical Mystery Tour. He worked closely with the group as the film’s producer, and after its release in December of 1967, was poached by Apple Corps as one of its four leaders outside of The Beatles.

Spearheading the Apple Films division proved unwieldy, however, as O’Dell noted in his 2003 memoir, At The Apple’s Core: The Beatles From The Inside, that future films co-helmed by the band – such as adaptations of The Lord Of The Rings and The Three Musketeers, as well as a peculiar script by playwright Joe Orton that would’ve had The Beatles play drag-wearing murderers – were doomed before they ever entered production.

Nevertheless, O’Dell was a dear friend to The Beatles, earning a shoutout on their 1970 track “You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)” – one of the last songs the band ever minted – wherein Lennon jokingly introduces Paul McCartney as a lounge singer named Denis O’Bell. Unswayed by the altered spelling, fans of the band took the song’s title literally, tracking down O’Dell’s personal number and calling him at all hours of the day.

As he explained to author Steve Turner, “There were so many of them my wife started going out of her mind. Neither of us knew why this was suddenly happening. Then I happened to be in one Sunday and picked up the phone myself. It was someone on LSD calling from a candle-making factory in Philadelphia and they just kept saying, ‘We know your name and now we’ve got your number.’”

O’Dell’s penultimate film credit came in 1980, when he served as an executive producer on Michael Cimino’s controversial Western epic Heaven’s Gate. His next and final credit came 41 years later, when last November, he was named as a supervising producer on the Disney+ docuseries The Beatles: Get Back.

O’Dell is survived by his wife Donna, daughters Laragh and Denise – the latter of whom followed in his footsteps as a film producer – and sons Arran and Shaun. He has 13 grandchildren, including Black Mirror and The Paramedic producer Denis Pedregosa. A private service and memorial will be held in the UK at an unspecified date.

Bop Shop: Songs From Ed Sheeran and Elton John, Best Coast, Nnena, And More

The search for the ever-elusive "bop" is difficult. Playlists and streaming-service recommendations can only do so much. They often leave a lingering question: Are these songs really good, or are they just new?

Enter Bop Shop, a hand-picked selection of songs from the MTV News team. This weekly collection doesn't discriminate by genre and can include anything — it's a snapshot of what's on our minds and what sounds good. We'll keep it fresh with the latest music, but expect a few oldies (but goodies) every once in a while, too. Get ready: The Bop Shop is now open for business.

Ed Sheeran & Elton John: “Merry Christmas”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_yuO8UNGmY

Ed Sheeran needed some convincing from his friend and fellow Englishman Elton John to make his first Christmas song. But he wisely realized you don’t say no to a living legend. What resulted is a new Yuletide classic destined to appear on holiday playlists and music charts for years to come. The catchy tune comes with a festive video that is jam-packed with references to iconic videos of years past from Wham!, Mariah Carey, and more. —Farah Zermane
Nnena ft. Westside Boogie: "Come Again"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APH1sXgXOV4

This unsteady cut from Cleveland's Nnena has two important distinctions. The first is that its entire orbit is wobbly, seemingly unsteady on its feet, and completely unpredictable. That special musicality makes for otherworldly R&B that permeates her entire new EP ...Just Cause, on which the vibe is mellow but gripping. The second distinction comes from guest Westside Boogie, whose breakneck verse adds to the atmosphere of controlled chaos. "Come Again" checks pretty much every box while still sounding completely novel. —Patrick Hosken
Payday: “Big Boy”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH4X6y7MejY

Payday packs a ton of words, and punches, into the two-minute runtime of sardonic banger “Big Boy,” which appeared on her 2021 mixtape House Of P.U.K.E. She uses sexism in the industry as the fodder for a wildly original and funky track about double standards (“Boys rule, girls drool, that’s just the facts / And if you think any different then you’re gonna get smacked”) and staying true to herself (“I’m a girl, I know / But I got a big mouth and a big boy flow / Yeah, they only wanna listen when the bitches being hoes”). Though she spits her bars fast, she never loses her point of view, dropping each lyric like a truth bomb with a winking smile. —Carson Mlnarik
Broadside: “Silent Night”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mu9DfmRzd80&t=5s

Last year, as hopelessness and uncertainty loomed over the holiday season, pop-punk band Broadside gifted the scene with their spin on a centuries-old Christmas classic “Silent Night.” Oliver Baxxter’s vocals strike a peaceful, poignant tone that subtly modernizes one of the world’s most well-known carols. “Listen to our rendition while lying on [the] floor, gazing up at the ceiling fan, wondering ‘will things get better?’” the band wrote on Twitter, “and accepting that they will — with time.” —Farah Zermane
Best Coast ft. The Linda Lindas: "Leading"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLtBKqrrqzw

After contributing some songs to Amy Poehler's film Moxie and going viral thanks to a fueled-up performance in a Los Angeles library, the great young punk band The Linda Lindas signed to Epitaph and have continued to rack up the collaborative opportunities. Their latest comes via Best Coast's "Leading," on which the group sing background harmonies. In the foreground, as ever, is Bethany Cosentino; here, she explores how "nostalgia's overrated, or maybe it's just complicated" over chugging power chords and a sugar-rush chorus — her specialty. The end result — looking forward, not backward — is a nice note to leave 2021 on. —Patrick Hosken
Kelly Rowland & Nova Wav: “Wonderful Time”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCxHyZ6kmP4

Have yourself a very Kelly Rowland Christmas! The holidays will feel a little brighter with Nova Wav’s update to the 1963 caroling tune. Wav and Rowland’s version of this classic transports us from Andy William’s original track on a grocery store playlist to what you want to hear pouring the egg nog with your bestie at those “gay happy meetings.” —Zach O’Connor
Hiss Golden Messenger: “O Come All Ye Faithful”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jX8C-TlpUc

When all the old standbys and overplayed holidays ditties have grown stale, reach for something cozy and new. The carol “O Come All Ye Faithful” likely dates back to the 18th century, making it older than a lot of the so-called classics you hear in stores around this time of year. But North Carolina folk mainstays Hiss Golden Messenger have managed to make it new by scaling back and dialing in on what matters: a twinkling piano, fire-warm sax fills, and a generally sleepy disposition of endless good cheer. —Patrick Hosken
Ive: “Eleven”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--FmExEAsM8

Attention, reader! Meet your newest girl-group obsession, Ive. The sextet recently exploded on the scene this month with one of the best debut tracks from a rookie K-pop group we've heard in a while. Their earworm single, "Eleven," is filled with joy, electricity, and a touch of mystery. The pre-chorus slows down just a bit before bursting into the refrain with all the rapturous feels of a new crush. “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. You make me feel like eleven!” We haven’t stopped counting since. —Daniel Head
Shygirl: “Cleo (At Abbey Road)”

https://youtu.be/zW-G1FRK8fs

With its cinematic orchestral introduction, the dance-pop track "Cleo," since it first dropped in October, always seemed primed for something grander than the nightclub. On this live version, backed by an 18-piece ensemble at London's hallowed Abbey Road Studios, the spitfire emcee Shygirl delivers an update fitting of the Egyptian queen after whom the song is named. Instead of a drop, there's a sonorous cello solo. Rather than calculated house beats, there are somber, whinnying strings. —Coco Romack
Kelly Clarkson: “Christmas Isn’t Canceled (Just You)”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nLU5i5Ec7g

Kelly Clarkson is coming for the holly crown with the release of her second holiday album When Christmas Comes Around…. Although the record boasts a variety of covers and originals, including a particularly inspired new jam featuring Ariana Grande, no track better sums up her resolve to make the yuletide gay than “Christmas Isn’t Canceled (Just You).” It’s no secret that the holidays can be a lonely time for the relationship-challenged, but Kelly is determined to enjoy every last snowflake, shopping trip, and Christmas tune, solitude be damned. “I’m gonna shout too much and dance in the snow / Drink just enough to let us go / Christmas isn’t canceled, just you,” she sings in the buoyant chorus before plotting a decadent New Year’s Eve to herself. Perhaps what we’ve all been missing is a certified holiday breakup bop. —Carson Mlnarik

Listen to LadBaby’s new Christmas song featuring Elton John and Ed Sheeran

LadBaby’s Christmas single featuring Elton John and Ed Sheeran is out today – listen to ‘Sausage Rolls For Everyone’ below.

READ MORE: The best (and worst) new Christmas songs of 2021 – ranked!

The novelty duo – comprised of YouTuber Mark Hoyle and his wife Roxanne – have topped the festive charts on three consecutive years with ‘We Built This City’ (2018), ‘I Love Sausage Rolls’ (2019) and ‘Don’t Stop Me Eatin’’ (2020).

All profits from this year’s song will go towards the Trussell Trust’s mission to support those in poverty and hunger.

Speaking about the song’s new video, the husband and wife duo said: “Trying to keep this video under wraps was so hard, so when you see us bundling Ed and Elton into the studio dressed as sausage rolls, that was a genuine ploy to try and keep everything secret! We had so much fun making this video, Ed and Elton were great sports.”

“But behind the hilarity, the reason for making the track is to raise as much money as we possibly can for the Trussell Trust. Please do not assume that just because we’ve convinced some big music industry names to help sing on the track that we will hit #1 without your help.

“We need everyone to download the track and help us try and make history! We have to do whatever it takes to build a future where all of us can afford to go to sleep with a full stomach.”

Watch it here:

Speaking about the collaboration, John said: ”LadBaby are just the nicest people in the world, and they raise so much money each and every year for The Trussell Trust. It’s really important that people download and stream this record so that people who need the support can have a meal this Christmas.”

“We’re coming together to make a difference this Christmas,” John explained, “and raise as much money as possible for people in the United Kingdom that need it most.”

Sheeran added: “I’m proud to be supporting and featuring on LadBaby’s very fun rework of Merry Christmas. All profits will be donated to The Trussell Trust which is a very wonderful and important charity, so make sure you stream it, buy it and play it on repeat”.

Emma Revie, Chief Executive Officer at the Trussell Trust said: “Everyone in the UK should be able to afford the essentials – to buy their own food and heat their homes. Yet food banks in our network continue to see more and people being pushed deeper into poverty as they face giving out 7,000 food parcels a day this December.

“This is not right. But we know if we come together to push for change, we can ensure that nobody needs to turn to charity to feed their family. That’s why we are so grateful to LadBaby for their incredible support for a fourth year running.”

Elton John joked about going head-to-head with LadBaby for Christmas Number 1 during an interview with NME in October.

“We’ve got the sausage roll man to deal with, haven’t we? We’ve got LadBaby to deal with!” he said of his and Sheeran’s plans to release a festive collaboration.

“Once we bump him off, we might have a clear path to a hit record. He seems to have the monopoly on Christmas records. And good for him!”

The Kunts return with ‘Boris Johnson Is STILL A Fucking C**t’ and tell us about their Tory-toppling bid for Christmas Number One

The Kunts have returned with another shot at the Prime Minister and an attempt to score a Christmas Number One with ‘Boris Johnson Is STILL A Fucking C**t’. Check it out below, along with our interview with frontman ‘Kunt’.

READ MORE Here’s why I want to see The Kunts’ Boris-bashing anthem vying for Christmas Number One

Having landed at Number Five in last year’s race for Christmas Number One with their visceral ‘Boris Johnson Is A Fucking Cunt’, the UK punks recently made their intentions clear to enter the battle once again with a new number clocking in at just over a minute for maximum streams, as well as sampling Depeche Mode and the theme from The Addams Family. It’s also already had the remix treatment from viral sensation Cassetteboy.

Speaking of their success last year, frontman Kunt this week told NME: “As someone who has spent most of the last 25 years peddling his sweary wares around 100-200 capacity pub venues believe me, it was overwhelming. I found the camaraderie and everyone getting behind the song fired me up even more – and fighting for the cause strengthened the bond between us all. And it made a few people angry, but you can’t please all the people all the time.

“In all honesty, the fact that we got to Number Five last year and then a year later Johnson was still in charge and nothing seemed to have changed left me feeling a bit depressed and that doing anything else would just be pissing into the wind. But mid-November I went for a pint with my fellow Essex music stalwart, Jon Morter who did the Rage Against The Machine campaign in 2009, and he mentioned the analogy of when trying to fell a big tree you don’t just do it with once chop of the axe, you have to keep chipping away. I came out the pub that night doubly determined to give it another shot.”

Check out the new single below, as Kunt tells us about his inspiration, his thoughts on Tories’ COVID response, and what he makes of competition from the likes of LadBaby, Elton John and Ed Sheeran.

Hello Kunt. What can you tell us about your thoughts on Boris Johnson and the Tories’ recent conduct and controversies – and how they’ve been behaving and handling themselves over the last year?

Kunt: “It’s not just the last year. The appalling way people who are struggling to make ends meet in this country [and] are treated goes back to way before Boris’s time – but previous Prime Ministers and governments weren’t quite so overtly blatant about the contempt they feel for the poorer sections of society as the current administration. The last year of lies, corruption, sleaze, cover-ups, attempts to take away our democratic rights to protest while also trying to make themselves less accountable. Then as a bonus, Matt Hancock nobbing his assistant and the Tories all partying and having quiz nights in Number 10 at the same time that we couldn’t hug our nans and 500 people a day were dying just shows the complete disregard they have for fairness and integrity. I can’t believe that after all that, anyone is still supporting them. You only have to see the front page of The Sun most days to see the contrasting narrative people are being sold.”

Do you have a message for Boris Johnson and the Tories?

“We see you. We know what you’re doing. You can change the laws and take away our rights but we will never give up fighting against it. The more draconian the laws become the brighter the fire burns inside us. Fuck you and everything you stand for, you horrible, heartless, corrupt, duplicitous bunch of c**s. And to the backbenchers who toe the party line and vote along with everything, you are the concentration camp guards who look the other way. The blood is on your hands.”

Have you had any feedback from Tory MPs or members on the tracks?

“Not as yet, but I’m always open to feedback so it would be great to hear some.”

The Kunts return with 'Boris Johnson Is STILL A Fucking Cunt'. Credit: Mike Fordham — The Kunts return with ‘Boris Johnson Is STILL A Fucking Cunt’. Credit: Mike Fordham

What can you tell us about the songs you’ve sampled on this single?

“Since my teens I have been a massive fan of The KLF, not just the music but the way they conducted their business and their legacy. Before I started this year, I re-read their book, The Manual (How To Have A Number One The Easy Way), in which there are a set of Golden Rules about songwriting. One was to lift familiar riffs from other people’s songs as it gives you a head-start when people hear the track for the first time. So I took that literally and used one of the riffs they themselves used in their Number One ‘Doctorin’ The Tardis’, plus that glam rock beat which is ingrained into people from the ’70s and ’80s discos you’d go to as a kid.

“A happy accident meant it was the same tempo and rhythm as Depeche Mode‘s ‘Personal Jesus’, which coming from Basildon, felt like a good opportunity to give them a nod. And I stuck The Addams Family theme on the end because it’s a song you hear a lot without realising it, on piers and in arcades, and there isn’t a more irritating ear-worm. I figured if we get a hit this time round, in years to come whenever anyone hears that Addams Family theme it will remind them what a fucking c**t Boris Johnson was.”

What do you make of your chances of hitting Number One this Christmas?

“There’s definitely a bigger buzz already than at this point next year, but we are a few troublemakers chivvying people along on social media, compared to the massive major label publicity machine behind Sheeran, Elton and LadBaby – so whether we get there will be purely down to whether enough people find out about it in time, and also whether people really believe that together we can all make a difference.

What are your thoughts on the songs by Elton, Sheeran and LadBaby?

“Shit, obviously, but not just that. I think the line, ‘I know there’s been pain this year, but it’s time to let it go‘ [from Sheeran and Sir Elton’s ‘Merry Christmas‘] is badly misjudged and deeply offensive to anyone who has lost a friend or loved one in the pandemic. People have lost their homes and livelihoods. We have suffered loneliness, despair and mental health problems from the lockdowns – and here’s some c**t in a Christmas jumper with some other dusty, washed-up old c**t telling us to let it go. Fuck off, mate. That’s what Johnson wants, for us to all move on and let it go. We’ll decide when we’re ready to let it go, you patronising prick. That said, all the best to them.”

What would it mean if you did hit Number One?

“It would mean everything. Not just personally but the idea of it being written into the history books that at Christmas 2021 collectively we all stood up and said, ‘We deserve better than this’.”

‘Boris Johnson Is STILL A Fucking C**t’ by The Kunts is out now.

Archives of The Beatles’ road manager to be published starting in 2023

The family of Mal Evans – The Beatles’ longtime roadie, manager and general acquaintance, who featured prominently in Peter Jackson’s docuseries The Beatles: Get Back – have announced the publication of an authorised biography set to cover his storied life and career.

READ MORE: Who’s who in ‘The Beatles: Get Back’? A guide to the non-Fabs

HarperCollins’ Dey Street Books imprint will publish it in 2023, with Evans’ estate working closely with author Kenneth Womack – himself an accredited Beatles scholar and, per his own website, “one of the world’s leading authorities on The Beatles and their enduring cultural influence” – to tell his story in resounding detail.

The biography, as yet untitled, will be followed in 2024 with a sprawling compendium of Evans’ personal archives, which Rolling Stone reports will feature diaries, manuscripts and more. Having obtained The Beatles’ blessing, Evans planned to published those manuscripts himself before his death at age 40 in January 1976.

“My dad meant the world to me,” Evans’ son Gary said in a statement. “He was my hero. Before Ken [Womack] joined the project, I thought I knew the story of my dad. But what I knew was in monochrome; 15 months later it is like The Wizard Of Oz (dad’s favourite film) because Ken has added so much color, so much light to his story.

“Ken has shown me that dad was The Beatles’ greatest friend. He was lucky to meet them, but they had more good fortune with dad walking down the Cavern steps for the first time.”

Evans remained on the Fab Four’s payroll until his untimely passing; he was hired as a roadie in 1963, and quickly grew close with the band. He continued to work with them in various other capacities, including as their manager, for years after they stopped touring in 1966.

The Beatles: Get Back debuted on Disney+ last month. It’s split between three episodes, totalling almost eight hours (a runtime that director Peter Jackson has staunchly defended). It chronicles the making of The Beatles’ 1970 album Let It Be, and incorporates a staggering 123 of the 400-odd songs the band recorded during the sessions on display.

NME gave the series a glowing five-star review, with writer Alex Flood praising its in-depth exploration of The Beatles’ recording processes. “It is precisely because of Get Back‘s lax editorial policy that it succeeds,” he wrote. “You might not be able to say anything new about The Beatles in 2021, but Jackson hasn’t tried. He’s shown us instead.”

Discussing what he expects fans to glean from the docuseries, Jackson said: “Now, they are our grandparents or great-grandparents. But here, John and Ringo are 28, Paul is 26 and George is 25, and you never once feel this footage is 52 years old. I’ve always thought their music transcends generations, but this will make them seem young again.”

Listen to Elton John and Ed Sheeran’s charity Christmas single, ‘Merry Christmas’

Elton John and Ed Sheeran have released their new charity Christmas single, ‘Merry Christmas’ today (December 3). Listen to the song and watch its accompanying video below.

READ MORE: Elton John: “I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past”

Written by both Sheeran and John and produced by Steve Mac, the collaboration is the first time the two have worked together on a song together, despite being friends for the last decade.

The pair’s global record and publishing royalties from the track, as well as its sales, will be donated equally between the Ed Sheeran Suffolk Music Foundation and The Elton John AIDS Foundation.

You can watch the Jason Koenig-directed accompanying official video below, which features Mr Blobby, Jonathan Ross, Big Narstie, Michael McIntyre and The Darkness, as the cast recreate scenes from classic Christmas videos including Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’; Shakin’ Stevens’ ‘Merry Christmas’; The Snowman’s ‘Walking in the Air’; East 17’s ‘Stay Another Day’ and more.

The single was initially announced by Sheeran in an interview with Dutch radio station NPO Radio 2.

“Elton rang me on Christmas Day to say Merry Christmas. Elton rings me almost every single day,” Sheeran said. “He said, ‘’Step Into Christmas’ is Number 6 in the charts! I want to do another Christmas song – will you do it with me?’”

Of what to expect from the song, Sheeran added: “It’s just me and him. It’s great.”

In a video inspired by Love Actually, Sheeran added on social media: “Last Christmas I received a call from my mate Elton John and he told me we should do a Christmas song, and I replied ‘Yeah maybe in 2022’, but I actually wrote the chorus that day and here we are.

“Our Christmas song Merry Christmas is out this Friday (December 3). It has sleigh bells… a lot of them.”

The 2021 Official Christmas Number One race kicks off at 12.01am on December 17, until 11.59pm December 23. Other contenders for the title include Adele, ABBA and George Ezra.

Speaking to NME about new music in a recent Big Read feature, John said: “I just think: I know all the old stuff; I love the new stuff. It’s the future I’m interested in. I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past.

“I know I have to sing what I do onstage but I very, very rarely go back and listen to my own records. I’m more interested in hearing something new.”

The Beatles Let It Be Special Deluxe Edition

When the album and film that shared the title Let It Be appeared in the spring of 1970, they were not greeted with the usual warmth. As the arrival of a new decade consigned the ’60s to history, they seemed an unwanted reminder that an era responsible for so much pleasure had ended badly. It felt like these final Beatle documents had been sanctioned by people who no longer recalled nor cared what had been on their minds when they got together in the film studios at Twickenham at the beginning of the previous year, even then unsure whether they were rehearsing for a stage show or putting together the material for a new album.

ORDER NOW: Bruce Springsteen and the review of 2021 feature in the latest issue of Uncut

The legend tells us that by the time the sessions for Let It Be began, the Fab Four could no longer stand the sight of each other. It’s certainly true that the claustrophobia of Beatlemania had taken the gloss off the camaraderie forged in Hamburg. But for once a special deluxe edition, with the outtakes and offcuts, does function as a corrective to the historical record.

The premiere of the Let It Be film on May 20, 1970 and the appearance of the accompanying album were shrouded in the acrid smokescreen that by that time enveloped the quartet’s disintegration. Released after the polished Abbey Road, which had been recorded subsequently, these randomly assembled, ill-assorted and largely unloved jottings formed a sour postscript to the most joyous of stories.

A reminder of that original sense of joy came in last Christmas’s five-minute teaser for Peter Jackson’s forthcoming three-part, six-hour Disney+ TV series, based on 56 hours of unused footage shot for the Let It Be movie by the director Michael Lindsay-Hogg at Twickenham and Apple studios. The advance clip shows them seemingly at ease in each other’s company, even relishing it, for all the row that led George Harrison to absent himself for a couple of weeks, the decision to work without George Martin and the tensions created by disputes over how to handle their business and financial affairs after Brian Epstein’s death.

The audio releases preceding Jackson’s film include a remix in stereo, 5.1 surround DTS and Dolby Atmos of the original album by Giles Martin and Sam Okell, who performed the same function in recent years for Sgt Pepper, the White Album and Abbey Road. This is not the Let It Be Naked sanctioned by Paul McCartney that appeared in 2003, but a modern mix that leaves Phil Spector’s influence largely intact, except for a de-emphasis on the classical harp on “The Long And Winding Road” specially requested by the song’s composer.

The package also includes the version of the album submitted in 1969 by Glyn Johns, who engineered the sessions, for potential release under the title “Get Back”, plus 27 tracks from the recording and rehearsal sessions at Twickenham and Savile Row and from the final concert on the Apple roof on January 30, 1969 (the entirety of which, also shot by Lindsay-Hogg, will be featured in one of Jackson’s episodes). There’s a four-track disc recreating The Beatles’ first release in the Soviet Union: “Let It Be”, “Across The Universe” and “I Me Mine”, plus “Don’t Let Me Down”. A 12×12 hardback includes a scene-setting piece by John Harris and a satisfyingly detailed track-by-track analysis by Kevin Howlett.

Available separately from the package of discs is a much chunkier 40-quid coffee-table hardback, The Beatles: Get Back, in which many stills from the sessions and the rooftop concert are accompanied by transcripts, edited by Harris, of the conversations between the members of the group and others as they went about their work. These are culled from 150 hours of the original quarter-inch mono audio tape recorded on a Nagra machine and then stolen, to be recovered by police in the Netherlands about 15 years ago.

Martin and Okell have revitalised the basic album without disturbing its essence, to the extent that Johns’ version – which also includes an oldies medley and “Teddy Boy”, later re-recorded by McCartney for his first solo album – becomes a mere historical curiosity. The new sound is brighter, more alive, more fully dimensional. You probably won’t want to hear Let It Be any other way after this. And you may even conclude that Spector did not, after all, do such a discreditable job on the two songs, “Let It Be” and “The Long And Winding Road”, for which he was been most savagely attacked. It’s interesting to discover from the transcripts of the studio conversations that McCartney had always thought of adding brass and strings to the latter.

As for “Let It Be”, a song with a very complicated recording history, the transcripts reveal that during the fifth day of work at Twickenham on January 8, 1969, it was Harrison who suggested it would be a good song for Aretha Franklin. McCartney’s enthusiastic response led to an acetate being sent to the Queen of Soul, who created a small masterpiece that came out just ahead of The Beatles’ own version.

Listening to the remixes, rehearsals and jams (including a fabulously raw version of “Oh! Darling”, one of several Abbey Road songs which, as Harris points out, took shape during these sessions), it seems clear that the focus was less on the actual music than on negotiating some sort of collective dynamic that might sustain their future. Paul is clearly trying to prod the group into the direction that “Wings” would take, in which “getting back” means piling themselves and the gear into a Transit and driving up to Primrose Hill to play an impromptu gig of basic rock’n’roll. He is encouraged by Lindsay-Hogg, who can see how it might work as a film, but the others have their own opinions, not always coherently expressed.

In addition to “Teddy Boy”, we get glimpses of “All Things Must Pass” and “Gimme Some Truth”, neither of which will have a future on a Beatles record. The inclusion of Billy Preston’s brief rendering of “Without A Song” provides a bracing lift to a different level of musicianship. “I feel much better since Billy came,” Harrison remarks in the January 21 transcript after Lennon has pointedly introduced a passing George Martin to the American pianist as “our A&R man”.

The intimacy of these documents persuades us we’re finding new truths in them. Perhaps we are. But Let It Be – the album, that is, in whatever form – remains a scrapbook of something falling apart, its participants impatient for something new to begin. Even the spontaneous jokes and japes included in Jackson’s teaser are actually being performed by four men familiar since A Hard Day’s Night with the techniques of cinéma vérité and now so used to cameras that they know what to show and what not to show.

“The things that have worked out best ever for us haven’t really been planned any more than this has,” Harrison remarks to Lennon before McCartney arrives at one of the sessions, in a fragment of dialogue included among the outtakes. “You just go for something and it does it itself, whatever it becomes.” How wrong could he have been? It’s as if they needed to misunderstand the past in order to break with it and begin their own future.

Peter Jackson speaks about The Beatles’ failed attempt to make ‘The Lord Of The Rings’ movie

Peter Jackson has spoken out about how The Beatles once tried to make their own The Lord Of The Rings movie in the 1960s.

READ MORE: ‘The Beatles: Get Back’ review: Peter Jackson’s long and winding but utterly unmissable epic

The director who’s The Beatles: Get Back documentary debuted on Disney+ today (November 25), previously spoke about the failed project back in 2002, during the making of his trilogy.

“It was something John [Lennon] was driving and J.R.R. Tolkien still had the film rights at that stage, but he didn’t like the idea of the Beatles doing it. So he killed it,” Jackson said at the time via People, adding: “There probably would’ve been some good songs coming off the [soundtrack] album.”

Now, after spending time with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, Jackson has shed more light on the failed project.

Jackson told BBC News: “I’ve been scraping together little pieces of information. I’ve been interrogating Paul about it. Ringo doesn’t remember much. What I understand is that Denis O’Dell, who was their Apple film producer, who produced The Magic Christian, had the idea of doing Lord of The Rings.

Peter Jackson’s version of ‘The Lord Of The Rings’ Credit: Press

“Ultimately, they couldn’t get the rights from Tolkien, because he didn’t like the idea of a pop group doing his story. So it got nixed by him. They tried to do it. There’s no doubt about it. For a moment in time they were seriously contemplating doing that at the beginning of 1968.”

He continued: “Paul said, ‘Well I’m glad we didn’t do it, because you got to do yours and I liked your film.’ But I said to him, ‘Well, it’s a shame you didn’t do it, because it would have been a musical.’

“What would The Beatles have done with a Lord of The Rings soundtrack album? That would have been 14 or 15 Beatles songs that would have been pretty incredible to listen to.

“So I’ve got two minds about it. I would have loved to hear that album, but I’m also glad I got the chance to do the films. But those songs would have been fascinating.”

His own documentary on the Fab Four is spread across three episodes on Disney+, with each part landing on November 25, 26 and 27 respectively. Each episode is approximately two hours in length.

Discussing what he expects fans to take from Get Back, Jackson said: “Now, they are our grandparents or great-grandparents,” he said of the band members. “But here, John and Ringo are 28, Paul is 26 and George is 25, and you never once feel this footage is 52 years old.

“I’ve always thought their music transcends generations, but this will make them seem young again.”

The documentary received five stars in an NME review and was described as a “long and winding but utterly unmissable epic”.

The Beatles: Get Back

Peter Jackson is a transformative film director. He’s turned New Zealand into Tolkien’s Middle Earth, and (in his exceptional documentary They Shall Not Grow Old), remade the jerky, unrelatable figures in murky newsreel footage into the very real human combatants in the First World War.

ORDER NOW: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE REVIEW OF 2021 FEATURE IN THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT

If we were to have believed the teaser trailer for his Beatles documentary, which arrived to cheer the world in high pandemic times, his latest project had done something similar: turned notoriously fraught Beatles sessions into a feelgood movie, their rapport undimmed, the band still essentially – save the long moustaches and the new girlfriends – the same loveable moptops they were in 1964.

The director is very good, but he’s not a miracle-worker, and that early bit of misdirection ultimately cues up a three-part series which is a great deal deeper than anyone might have hoped. Just as the technical mastery of his war films restoration allowed a greater empathy with the subject, here the restoration brings us closer to the band – John Lennon’s fresh, newly-shaven face; George Harrison’s exceptional clothes – but ultimately shows us a pin-sharp picture of a project which still eludes definition.

Rehearsals for a TV special? Recording new songs for an album? Maybe some combination of the above? While the project grew and changed to find itself, Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s cameras rolled throughout January 1969 following the band from Twickenham to the Apple Studios on Savile Row, to the rooftop and down again. His film, Let It Be (released after the band’s split), succinctly captured some of the not-great atmosphere in the Beatles at that time. These new films – edited from his 150 hours of audio and 60 hours of film – are pitched as a long-overdue corrective to that impression.

Jackson can’t keep the Beatles together, but he does provide revelation. The famous George/Paul exchange at Twickenham (“Whatever you want me to play, I’ll play it…”) is shown here at full length, and proves to be the emotional and conceptual heart of the film; part of a much wider debate about how to move the Beatles forwards as a group, while asserting the personalities of the individuals. Lennon is glassy-eyed and recessive. George, self-evidently feels undervalued. Ringo is generally smoking, or asleep.

ORDER NOW: “WE ONLY THINK WE KNOW THE BEATLES”: CLICK HERE TO READ UNCUT’S INTERVIEW WITH PETER JACKSON

Paul, meanwhile, is simply on fire. He’s dynamic and resourceful at solving musical problems. He’s arbiter and vibes controller, and full of ideas for the bigger picture. Incredible music is literally coursing through him – in one among the film’s many unbelievable moments, we watch the arrival of “Get Back”, in real time. On the same day, he has a fun idea for the concert (that they “trespass” somewhere), and with Michael Lindsay-Hogg, comes within a footstep of conceptualising Live Aid. Without him, clearly nothing at all would get done around here. During the film’s most excruciating sequence McCartney tells the unproductive, opiated, Lennon: “To wander aimlessly is very unswinging. It’s unhip. What you need is a schedule.”

Pulling back from the 1969 headlines like this has allowed Jackson to reveal that it’s not Lennon or even McCartney at the heart of this story, but George Harrison. In the flashcard summary of Beatlemania which begins the series, he’s portrayed as a sly wit who also has his head screwed on (“It can’t go on” is his prescient 1964 summary of the band’s future). Come 1969, he’s hungry for change, sick of being condescended to (Lennon: “Is this a Harrisong?”), and on the brink of a singer-songwriterly paradigm shift which the others have failed to yet properly embrace: a sincere, and very 1970s, creative life outside the band.

Meanwhile, The Beatles work. There is jamming, and japes as the band attempt to reconnect with each other from remote camps in their private lives, but each day they interrogate the songs and try to push forward, while Mal Evans (road manager and secret amanuensis) writes down the words. When organist Billy Preston, a former Hamburg buddy, arrives on January 22 to visit, and stays to work, he helps them recapture a love of playing which is utterly innocent and joyful, even while their lives outside the studio remain horribly complex.

Even amid all this fantastic music, Paul has concerns. Just as it seems like the songs are coming together, the rooftop concert (the spectacular, multi-camera big finish to the film) decided on, and their mad plan to write and rehearse an album in a month near completion, he bemoans that the ethos has been diluted – they are just making “another fucking album”. He wants the project to climax in a rather more spectacular fashion. What that climax might be precisely is never quite decided on, and nor is one artificially imposed here. Instead, Get Back tells a more subtle story: how the last year of The Beatles was productive for the band, but was also about the birth of four individuals – each with mixed feelings about the idea, each hoping that they might pass the audition.

Peter Jackson says ‘Get Back’ documentary will make The Beatles “seem young again”

Peter Jackson has teased his imminent new film on The Beatles, Get Back, saying it will make the legendary band “seem young again”.

The three part film, which is coming to Disney+ this week (November 25), focuses on the making of the band’s penultimate studio album ‘Let It Be’ and showcases their final concert as a band, on London’s Savile Row rooftop, in its entirety.

The film has been cut from 55 hours of unseen footage, filmed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg in 1969, and 140 hours of mostly unheard audio from the recording sessions.
“I just can’t believe it exists,” Jackson told the Guardian of the bountiful footage that emerged after 50 years locked away, and will be used in the series.

“But then I can’t believe any of it – that the Beatles let Michael shoot all that footage, that it sat in a vault all this time…”

He added: “What other band in the 60s or 70s allowed themselves to be shot in such an intimate way? There isn’t another. And then I got to edit it. The whole thing boggles my mind.”

Discussing what he expects fans to take from Get Back, Jackson added: “Now, they are our grandparents or great-grandparents,” he said of the band members. “But here, John and Ringo are 28, Paul is 26 and George is 25, and you never once feel this footage is 52 years old.

“I’ve always thought their music transcends generations, but this will make them seem young again.”

Elsewhere, Paul McCartney has admitted that Jackson’s new documentary has changed his perception of The Beatles’ split.

Asked if it had changed his perception of the band’s eventual split, he said: “Really yes. And there is proof in the footage. Because I definitely bought into the dark side of The Beatles breaking up and thought, ‘God, I’m to blame.’”

Listen to Spoon get festive with cover of The Beatles’ ‘Christmas Time (Is Here Again)’

Spoon have shared a cover of The Beatles’ ‘Christmas Time (Is Here Again)’ – you can listen to the track below.

READ MORE: Spoon on new album ‘Lucifer On The Sofa’: “It’s just fun – a record for some good times”

The Austin band are among the latest artists to share a festive cover for Spotify’s new holiday singles playlist, sharing a rendition of the Fab Four’s 1967 track.

“Recording ‘Christmas Time Is Here Again’ was a group effort that pulled us away from rehearsals and quickly sent us down a turbulent path of what you might call the Christmas spirit,” frontman Britt Daniel said in a statement. “And it’s our song with the most band members doing vocals ever – pretty sure I’m counting four.”

He added: “THE WAR ON CHRISTMAS IS OVER.”

‘Christmas Time (Is Here Again)’ was originally recorded for The Beatles’ fifth fan club Christmas record, ‘Christmas Time Is Here Again!’ It’s one of the few Beatles songs that credits all four members of the band.

You can listen to Spoon’s cover of the song below:

Earlier this year, Spoon shared their covers of two Tom Petty classics on digital streaming platforms for the first time.

The band initially covered the 1976 song ‘Breakdown’ for the late rock star’s 70th Birthday Bash concert last year. The original track was the first single to be taken from Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers’ self-titled debut album.

Meanwhile, Paul McCartney has admitted that Peter Jackson’s The Beatles: Get Back documentary has changed his perception of their split.

The three part film, which is coming to Disney+ later this month, focuses on the making of the band’s penultimate studio album ‘Let It Be’ and showcases their final concert as a band, on London’s Savile Row rooftop, in its entirety.

He added: “John and I are in this footage doing ‘Two Of Us’ and, for some reason, we’ve decided to do it like ventriloquists. It’s hilarious. It just proves to me that my main memory of the Beatles was the joy and the skill.”

Peter Jackson: “We only think we know The Beatles…”

The Beatles, then, as you’ve only partially seen them before. For four years, Lord Of The Rings director Peter Jackson has been given sole access to 60 hours of previously unseen footage and 150 hours of audio of the band writing, rehearsing and performing Let It Be, captured for Michael Lindsey-Hogg’s 1970 film. In The Beatles: Get Back, his seven-plus hour, three-episode digital reconstruction of the turbulent events of January 1969, he throws light on areas that Lindsey-Hogg’s documentary wasn’t allowed to go: George’s departure, candid conversations, early takes on future Abbey Road tracks and solo songs, the rooftop swansong in full and enough larks and antics to make being in The Beatles in ‘69 almost look like it was still fun.

ORDER NOW: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE REVIEW OF 2021 FEATURE IN THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT

Why were you the right man for this epic job?
PETER JACKSON: I’m a certainly a Beatles fan. I think whoever did this film, they needed to be a Beatles fan because you’re dealing with so much material, 130, 140, 150 hours of audio… the sound tapes we’re just rolling virtually all the time. Over the last four years when I’ve been working on this, I do feel like I’m eavesdropping in some sort of CIA-type way on conversations of 52 years ago. And because I’m a Beatles fan, I understand the nuances and the relevance of a lot of little things that they talk about.

What surprised you about the footage?
The fact that Michael Lindsay-Hogg shot this footage 52 years ago and a vast majority of it has been in a vault for 52 years. As a Beatles fan, my mind is still blown at the fact that this actually exists.

There’s an interesting duality at play: you can see them putting their foot down about certain decisions, but no one says “Twickenham, this is just the worst place to possibly be creating…”
They have this wonderful running battle with Michael Lindsay-Hogg, the director. Michael is determined to try to capture as much candid material as he can. There’s this on-going battle between Michael and The Beatles, ’cause they’re aware that he’s doing this. Michael employs some techniques to try to get them on film in much more of a candid way. He would get the cameraman to set up the tripod, set up a shot, press the button and then walk away as if they’re off to have a cup of tea. And the camera would have a 10-minute roll of film in it, and it would just be quietly rolling. He used to put some tape over the red light. And Michael would also hide microphones everywhere to try to capture candid conversations. What John and George used to do is if they were in a conversation, they would turn their amps up loud and they’d strum the guitar. So all Michael’s microphones were recording was this loud guitar. What we’ve been able to do with artificial intelligence-based technology is strip the guitars off now and expose the private conversations that they had. Some key parts of our movie feature private conversations that they tried to disguise or tried to cover up at the time that he was recording them.

What was revealed to you about them?
We only think we know The Beatles. We’ve seen A Hard Day’s Night and Help!. We’ve seen them perform on stage in The Cavern and Shea Stadium. We’ve seen interviews or press conferences. When you think about it, those are all performance situations. When they don’t know they’re being filmed you are getting a 100 percent pure look at the real guys, which doesn’t really exist on film, particularly, anywhere else. We think of The Beatles being a unit. There’s this commercialization of The Beatles in the ’60s, the four mop tops, one’s the witty one, one’s the charming one, one’s the quiet one, they had their little labels. But they were kind of a unit. And here we see that they’re not a unit; they’re just four guys, four separate human beings, just like any four people are. They have their own opinions. They deal with things in a different way. I came away respecting them more…thinking they’re actually pretty decent, sensible guys. There’s no ego. There’s no prima donna. They have disagreements. They have different ambitions. They’re different people. But they’re four decent Liverpool lads.

What did Paul and Ringo think about it coming together?
Obviously, they famously didn’t like the result of [Lindsay-Hogg’s original] film. They just didn’t like being seen behind the camera… So I was thinking ‘how much of this am I gonna get?’ because The Beatles are famously in control of their image, in control of how they come across. [But] I get the feeling that history has arrived…and there’s no concern about their image anymore. One of them said that they watched it and found it one of the most stressful experiences of their entire life, ‘But I’m not gonna give you any notes.’ They’re a little nervous… there’s a degree of courage on their part. They’re pulling the curtain away…now they haven’t got Let It Be at 80 minutes long, they’ve got a supercharged version of it with a lot more controversial stuff in it. We show you George leaving. One of the best comments that I had was from Paul, when he saw it. He said to me, “That is a very accurate portrait of how we were then.” That’s what Ringo said too, he says it’s truthful. The truthfulness of it is important to them. They don’t want a whitewash. They don’t want it to be sanitized. So I think history has overtaken their concern about their image. It’s minted in history and culture. I think they feel that they can now afford to let the world see a little bit more truthfulness than what they’ve ever seen before.

The Beatles: Get Back launches on Disney+ on November 25

Noel Gallagher on how “embarrassing” it was for Oasis to be compared to The Beatles

Noel Gallagher has recalled how “embarrassing” it was for Oasis to be compared to The Beatles.

READ MORE: The NME Big Read: Liam Gallagher: “An Oasis reunion’s gonna happen very fucking soon”

The iconic Manchester band made no secret of the Fab Four’s influence on their music and fashion sense. After releasing their hugely-successful first two albums – ‘Definitely Maybe’ (1994) and ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’ (1995) – Noel claimed the group was “bigger” than The Beatles. (He said years later that he was “high” when he made the comment).

In 2016, Liam Gallagher said “what [Oasis] did in three [years] took the Beatles eight”. Oasis also incorporated a sample of John Lennon‘s voice into the ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ track ‘I’m Outta Time’, which NME said “floats along on psychedelic Beatles waves”.

During a recent preview screening of The Beatles: Get Back, Noel Gallagher said: “When Oasis started, we were so big we were compared to [The Beatles] size-wise and musically, embarrassingly, compared to them as well (via Music-News.com).

“[It’s embarrassing] because we weren’t as good as them.”

Elsewhere in the conversation, Noel said that The Beatles “mean everything to me”. “They’ve definitely got the best tunes, hands down,” he added. “In my record collection, they’ve got the greatest tunes by far.”

He continued: “They influenced everybody who influenced everybody else, who influenced everybody that came and went. Their influence is absolute. I don’t know a single guy playing the guitar or writing songs that wouldn’t cite the Beatles as an influence.”

Directed by Peter Jackson, The Beatles: Get Back will premiere on Disney+ in three parts on November 25, 26 and 27.

Meanwhile, footage has been released of Oasis performing ‘Wonderwall’ during their landmark Knebworth shows in 1996. It comes from the recent 25th anniversary concert film Oasis Knebworth 1996.

Liam Gallagher is set to return to Knebworth for two headline gigs next June in support of his forthcoming third solo album, ‘C’MON YOU KNOW’. The record is set to arrive on May 27, 2022.

Paul McCartney says he’s “only just got over” dealing with the “misconception that he split up The Beatles”

Paul McCartney has spoken of how he’s “only just got over” dealing with the “misconception” that he was the one who split up The Beatles.

Speaking at an event on Friday night (November 5) to launch his new book The Lyrics at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, Sir Paul was posed an audience question by host and journalist Samira Ahmed about what biggest misconception was about “being Paul McCartney”.

“I think the biggest misconception at the end of The Beatles was that I broke The Beatles up, and I lived with that for quite a while,” he replied. “Once a headline’s out there, it sticks. That was a big one – and I’ve only finally just gotten over it.”

Heightening in tensions in the final years of The Beatles rendered their split seemingly inevitable. John Lennon privately informed his bandmates that he was leaving the Beatles in September 1969, before the following year saw McCartney famously announce his self-titled debut solo album with a press release that stated he was no longer working with the group – breaking their split to the world.

Despite all the stories and half-truths, McCartney told the audience last week that ”you kind of have to let it go” when it comes to existing within a mythology.

‘The Lyrics: Paul McCartney in Conversation’ event at the Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall (credit Mark Allan). — ‘The Lyrics: Paul McCartney in Conversation’ event at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall (credit Mark Allan)

Another point in the evening saw the icon asked “what it had cost to be Paul McCartney”, to which he replied: “Your privacy, that’s what you have to give up – but I made that decision early on when I could see what was coming for The Beatles”.

“We had gone on holiday to Greece, and nobody there knew who we were and we’d only just started to get famous in England,” he revealed. “I used to listen to the hotel band and they were really good. I used to hang out with them everywhere like a groupie. I was talking to them one night and I said, ‘I’m in a group in England and we’re getting quite big, you know’, they were like, ‘Oh, OK…’”

McCartney continued: “I couldn’t really persuade them, so I thought, ‘Oh, I’ve got anonymity here, so I can always come to Greece and be fine’. That didn’t work, because they year after, they knew!

“To me, I then had to make a decision: Are you getting out of music, or are you going to live with this thing called fame? I decided I was going to live with it, I had to learn to cope. That’s what I’m still doing: coping.”

The evening also saw McCartney speak of how he “never got round” to telling his late friend John Lennon that he loved him, as well as responding to Rishi Sunak’s controversial £2million bid for Liverpool to look into getting yet another Beatles museum.

The Lyrics is a career-spanning book that tells the story of McCartney’s life through 154 songs from his back catalogue and archive photos. It is out now.

Meanwhile, Peter Jackson’s new The Beatles: Get Back documentary about the making of the band’s last two albums will be presented as three separate episodes on Disney+ on November 25, 26 and 27.

Paul McCartney: “I never got round to telling John Lennon that I loved him”

Paul McCartney has spoken about how he “never told John Lennon that he loved him”, but that he now finds it “great” to realise just how much his former Beatle bandmate meant to him.

Speaking at an event on Friday night (November 5) to launch his new book The Lyrics at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, the poet Paul Muldoon noted that one thing that came across strongly in the new book was Macca’s “love” for his late friend.

“It’s true. You say that I loved him, but as 16-year-old and 17-year-old Liverpool kids, you couldn’t say that – it just wasn’t done,” said McCartney. “So I never did. I never really said, ‘You know, I love you man’. I never really got round to it. So now, it is great to just realise how much I love this man.”

Lennon was shot dead in New York in December, 1980.

the beatles — Paul McCartney and John Lennon. CREDIT: Getty Images

Earlier in the evening, journalist Samira Ahmed asked McCartney what it was like to form such a close creative bond with Lennon. McCartney described their songwriting process as “like looking in a mirror” due to Lennon being right-handed while Macca played and wrote songs on his bass with his left.

“It was always great to work with John, from the very first thing where he said, ‘Yeah, I write songs too’. We just developed a way of working with each other and trusting each other that grew and grew,” said McCartney.

“We both grew up together. [Life] was like walking up a staircase, and we both went side by side up that staircase. It was very exciting. Now that The Beatles’ recording career has finished, I’m like a fan. I just remember how great it was to work with him and how great he was. You’re not messing around here, you’re not just singing with Joe Bloggs – you’re singing with John Lennon.”

The evening also saw McCartney respond to Rishi Sunak’s controversial £2million bid for Liverpool to look into getting yet another Beatles museum – as well as speaking of the political policies that helped the band thrive and how his home city shaped their politics.

Check back at NME soon for more from the Lyrics event with McCartney.

The Lyrics is a career-spanning book that tells the story of McCartney’s life through 154 songs from his back catalogue and archive photos. It is out now.

Last week saw McCartney induct Foo Fighters into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, before performing a cover of ‘Get Back’ with the band.

Paul McCartney responds to Rishi Sunak’s plan for another Beatles museum in Liverpool

Paul McCartney has responded to chancellor Rishi Sunak’s plan invest to £2million in looking at the potential of giving Liverpool yet another museum dedicated to hometown heroes The Beatles – arguing that he’s “happy that they’re recognising that it’s a tourist attraction” but he “thinks they could also spend the money on something else.”

READ MORE: Opinion – Rishi Sunak’s Beatles museum will merely be a monument to Tory cluelessness

Last week, Sunak announced the proposals on Liverpool’s Waterfront in his Budget as part of an £850million investment to protect museums, galleries, libraries and local culture across the UK – which included “securing up to £2million to start work on a new Beatles attraction“.

Critics branded this plan as “pointless nonsense“, given that the £2million is only going towards allowing the Liverpool City Region to “develop a business case” for the museum and not actually building it, as well as the fact that the city already has two museums dedicated to The Fab Four, plus their legendary old haunt and venue The Cavern, each band member’s old house, a Beatles Week festival and numerous Beatles city tours.

It has been suggested that the money would be better spent on securing the future grassroots music venues, reopening youth centres, investing in arts education and helping to solve the Brexit touring crisis so that The Beatles of the future might be allowed to exist.

Speaking at an event last night (November 5) to launch his new book The Lyrics, journalist Samira Ahmed asked the former Beatle about his thoughts on the potential attraction – as as as the idea that “some might say that there are people who might try and co-opt The Beatles into some kind of nationalistic, patriotic ideal of what it is to be British”.

McCartney replied: “I don’t mind because I know that people from Japan, America, South America, all know The Beatles. If they come to Liverpool, that’s a lot of what they come to see. I think it’s fine. In fact, in the early days of our fame the Liverpool Council filled in The Cavern – really like the Joni Mitchell song, to make a parking lot.

“So I’m quite happy that they’re recognising that it’s a tourist attraction, but I think they could also spend the money on something else…”

Paul McCartney and John Lennon of The Beatles perform in 1966. CREDIT: Jeff Hochberg/Getty Images

In discussing the unique circumstances that helped The Beatles to exist – along with the cultural revolution of the ’60s in general – McCartney also hailed Labour’s 1947 Transport Act which helped them to meet on buses (and inspired a great number of his songs) but the Education Act of 1944 which made schooling much open and fairer for his generation and others to follow.

Speaking of public transport when he was growing up, McCartney said: “It was this amazing system, and I didn’t realise that we were kind of the first generation to benefit from that.

“Also, there was an education act that meant that kids like me from not very well-off homes could go to very posh schools. This gave everyone over Britain this opportunity to be more mobile and better educated – and that was a big factor in the cultural revolution.”

Paul McCartney performing with The Beatles in 1966 CREDIT: Mark and Colleen Hayward/Redferns

McCartney was also asked about the origins of The Beatles’ social attitudes against racism and segregation.

“I think it was Liverpool,” he replied. “Liverpool was the first Caribbean community [in the UK], so it was just a given. Nobody thought anything of it. A lot of the guys in the groups were black, so we didn’t think much of it. We just thought they were mates, we just thought they were equal – because they were.

“When we went to America, there was this time when we were going to play Jacksonville or somewhere and the promoter said, ‘OK, get ready because tomorrow night you’re going to be playing, the black people will sit over there and the white people will sit over there’. We said, ‘Excuse me?’, he said, ‘Yeah, that’s how we do it down here’, so we said, ‘Oh no no no no! You can’t do that’.”

Check back at NME soon for more from the Lyrics event with McCartney.

The Lyrics is a career-spanning book that tells the story of McCartney’s life through 154 songs from his back catalogue and archive photos. It is out now.

Last week saw McCartney induct Foo Fighters into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, before performing a cover of ‘Get Back’ with the band,

Paul McCartney says his parents were “the original inspiration” for his Beatles and solo music

Paul McCartney has said his parents were “the original inspiration” for his songs with The Beatles and his solo career.

READ MORE: McCartney 3, 2, 1 review: a gimmick-free deep dive into The Beatles’ oeuvre

He said that although there had been “so many” influences on his songwriting, his parents had the largest impact.

Speaking at an exhibition of memorabilia from his own collection at the British Library in London via BBC News, in connection with his career-spanning biography, The Lyrics, he said: “Thinking about songs that I’ve written at every stage of my career, I came to realise that my parents, Jim and Mary McCartney, were the original inspiration for so much that I’ve written.

“My mum was very reassuring and, like so many women often are, she was also the one who kept our family going. She kept our spirits up.”

? Paul McCartney: The Lyrics opens today! Our display of lyrics and photographs behind the most famous songs of all time is free for everyone to visit in our Entrance Hall, no need to book: https://t.co/6ybEI7Mv3P

(c) Mary McCartney [1/2] pic.twitter.com/odZgmv4xGA

— The British Library (@britishlibrary) November 5, 2021

His father in particular inspired his 1990 solo single ‘Put It There’, the original drawing for the single’s artwork of which is included in the exhibition, alongside a collection of photographs taken by his family, including one of him writing the song ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ with John Lennon at his home on Forthlin Road in Liverpool.

“He loved to play with words, juggle them in his head, and he had loads of little sayings that were sometimes nonsensical, sometimes functional, but always rather lyrical,” McCartney said.

“When he was shaking your hand, he would say, ‘Put it there if it weighs a ton’.”

The free exhibition, which was launched today (November 5) and runs until March 2022, includes 35 previously unseen items from the singer’s personal collection and his own quotes about them.

The Lyrics, which came out earlier this week, was recently shortlisted for this year’s Waterstones Book Of The Year award.

The winner will be announced on December 21.

Meanwhile, McCartney recently played The Beatles’ ‘Get Back’ with Foo Fighters at the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony earlier this week.

Dave Grohl and co. were among a number of acts being inducted into the legendary list of names in the Hall Of Fame this year at the Cleveland, Ohio ceremony.

John Coltrane A Love Supreme (Live in Seattle)

He was large and gentle, Melody Maker reported, most unlike his music. Rather than busy and animated, the John Coltrane who played host to the musician and writer Mike Hennessey in a French hotel room was placid, devotional and calm. He unselfconsciously rehearsed his music for an hour. He ate a meal of egg yolks, soup, peaches and water, and spoke of “rediscovering” God.

ORDER NOW: David Bowie is on the cover of the December 2021 issue of Uncut

His still waters hid strong currents. A month before, Coltrane and a cast of 10 additional players had recorded the freeform Ascension album, a fierce unison blowout based on a simple bluesy reveille. The previous night, meanwhile, Coltrane and his quartet had baffled the audience at the Antibes Jazz Festival by playing his piece A Love Supreme in its entirety, pushing at its boundaries and busting them with 15 further exploratory minutes. The audience and organisers, expecting polished sophistications, instead found themselves witness to an ongoing search.

A Love Supreme was recorded on December 9, 1964. In another corner of the music world, Ringo Starr was in hospital recovering from tonsilitis, while Coltrane and his quartet – Elvin Jones (drums), McCoy Tyner (piano), Jimmy Garrison (bass) – in one session created a jazz suite that hoped to acknowledge and give thanks to God for guidance. The piece is built on a recurring four-note theme murmured by the group, then departs on a journey that feels spiritual but also seasonal. Something substantial is planted on Side One (Acknowledgement/Resolution) and this then bursts into flower on the freer and more far-reaching group playing on the second side (Pursuance/Psalm).

It was a composed piece, serious from the opening gong to the ecclesiastical titling. Everything from the solemn overdubbed Coltranes of Acknowledgement, to the enquiring expression of the leader on the sleeve fix it in our minds as that complete entity: a classic album. Coltrane’s actions, however, suggested the music was a beginning, not an end. In the studio he experimented: trying a version of Pursuance with Archie Shepp and bassist Art Davis expanding the band.

That version didn’t make it, but in his sleevenotes Coltrane said he hoped he “would be able to further the work that was started here”. There were no repeated performances of the music or A Love Supreme theatre residencies where the band doubled down to maximise sales. Instead, Coltrane was led much more by his own intuition, what he felt was right for the audience.

Indeed, on his second night in Antibes, Coltrane responded to the mood and played a set more rooted in crowd-pleasing tunes, reverting to My Favourite Things and Impressions. For a long time, the first night Antibes set was thought to be the only live recording of A Love Supreme. It now transpires that a couple of months later, September 30, 1965 – in the same session as the recording of the posthumous 1971 release Live In Seattle – Coltrane played A Love Supreme again.

The performance, convened at the Seattle Penthouse club in front of a small audience for Jim Wilke’s regular Thursday-night jazz show on local radio, sounds more like music from the later part of the 1960s: performed by musicians in dashikis, not suits. The band is expanded (the quartet are joined by bassist/flautist Donald Garrett, and by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders), but then so is the music, as if additional windows have been fitted to an already spacious and serene building. Four interludes, mainly featuring duelling basses plus occasional prayer bell, provide additional vantage on the spiritual view.

Elvin Jones supplies a classic and resourceful swing throughout, but a newer sense of carpet-level informality pervades the music. Percussion is rattled through the 20-minute Acknowledgement. McCoy Tyner’s chords float into view. Coltrane’s playing responds to the mood with relatively beatific contributions, allowing Pharoah Sanders room to speak in more forceful tongues. Come the 15-minute treatment of Pursuance, Tyner’s solo clarifies the similarities and differences. This is still music with a lot of virtuosity, and a great many notes, but it and its players are living its adaptability, as the evidence reveals all we have previously believed this composition to be, a confluence of free improvisation and what later became “spiritual jazz”. At the very end of the end of the session, a snippet of conversation can be heard. “I think that’s it…” “…It’d better be.”

Perhaps inevitably, though, it wasn’t the end of Coltrane’s quest, even for this week. The day after this show, he took his players from the previous night (adding Joe Brazil, who had taped the show) to the studio of Seattle C&W drummer Jan “Kurtis” Skugstad. They recorded a session released after Coltrane’s death, the album Om, featuring a chant from the Bhagavad Gita.

‘Together In Electric Dreams’ cover by Lola Young soundtracks new John Lewis Christmas advert

Lola Young has covered Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder‘s 1984 hit ‘Together In Electric Dreams’ for this year’s John Lewis Christmas advert.

READ MORE: Watch Lola Young perform ‘Ruin My Make Up’, ‘Bad Tattoo’ and ‘Same Bed’ for NME Home Sessions

The up-and-coming singer has performed a downbeat cover of the electro classic for the annual festive video, which you can view below.

The clip shows a young boy meeting an alien in the woods who he brings home to meet his family for Christmas.

“I feel super honoured to be a part of this, growing up I always watched the John Lewis Christmas adverts, they’re iconic and so it kinda feels surreal getting asked to be in one,” said Young.

“It also means a lot as an up and coming artist to be a part of something this special. Together In Electric Dreams is a very beautiful song. I love that era of music and I think Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder are incredible.

“The lyric and soul within the song is something inspirational, fitting to the story within the ad. I feel so excited to be covering it and working with John Lewis.”

The original song was recorded as part of a soundtrack to the film Electric Dreams in 1984. It reached Number Three in the UK singles chart at the time.

The John Lewis Christmas advert has become a staple of the festive period in recent years. Back in 2018, Elton John revealed he was paid £5million to star in the advert, while viewers in 2017, unimpressed with Elbow’s cover of The Beatles’ ‘Golden Slumbers’, complained that they weren’t brought to tears by the advert, as had become customary with past editions.

Last year’s advert was soundtracked by Celeste‘s single ‘A Little Love’, which featured on her 2021 debut album ‘Not Your Muse‘.

A version of the child’s jumper in this year’s advert will be available in John Lewis shops, with 10 per cent of the profits for each jumper sold equally to the Give A Little Love charities FareShare and Home-Start UK.

Meanwhile, Young recently performed a special three-song acoustic set, for NME‘s Home Sessions during the summer.

Rishi Sunak announces new Beatles attraction in Liverpool

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced plans for a new Beatles attraction in Liverpool as part of today’s (October 27) Budget.

Details are unclear as to what the project will be and how it will differ from the current museum dedicated to the Fab Four in the city.

The development is part of an £850million investment to protect museums, galleries, libraries and local culture across the UK.

Speaking in the House Of Commons, Sunak said: “Thanks to the Culture Secretary [Nadine Dorries], over 800 regional museums and libraries will be renovated, restored, and revived.

“And she’s secured up to £2million to start work on a new Beatles attraction on the Liverpool waterfront.”

pic.twitter.com/G09PhXmsUD

— BBC North West (@BBCNWT) October 27, 2021

Reacting to the budget plans for culture, AIF CEO Paul Reed said: “We look forward to hearing more detail about some of the measures announced by the Chancellor today, in particular the allocation of further COVID-19 recovery funding for the cultural sector.

“On the surface, however, it doesn’t go far enough in supporting our truly world-leading festival industry. It is clear that the most effective way for the Government to support the industry’s recovery into 2022 and beyond would be to extend the VAT reduction on tickets, look closely at a permanent cultural VAT rate, and completely remove festivals based on agricultural land from the business rates system. Unfortunately, none of this was forthcoming today.”

Sunak’s announcement comes months after a cinema George Harrison and John Lennon spent their teenage years attending was saved from demolition in Liverpool.

The Abbey Cinema in Wavertree, Liverpool featured in The Beatles‘ personal writings and the original lyrics of their 1965 song ‘In My Life’, officially closed in 1979.

Meanwhile, yesterday Wilco shared two covers by The Beatles as part of a celebration of the band’s final album ‘Let It Be’ and Katy Perry also shared a cover of ‘All You Need Is Love’ for a new Gap advert.

The Beatles. CREDIT: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

In other Beatles news, Peter Jackson’s forthcoming documentary series The Beatles: Get Back will premiere on Disney+ from November 25-27.

The Beatles: Get Back will tell “the story of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr as they plan their first live show in over two years, capturing the writing and rehearsing of 14 new songs, originally intended for release on an accompanying live album.”

Sunak, meanwhile, is the subject of IDLES track ‘The New Sensation’, which will feature on their forthcoming album ‘CRAWLER’.

“If he were in front of me, I wouldn’t have a lot to say to Rishi; I’d have a lot of questions,” Talbot recently said.

“The point of turmoil in this country is political and I’m not a politician. It’s not Rishi Sunak I’m here to talk to. He’s smarter than I am. He’d win. It’s not me versus him; it’s us versus them.”

Elton John confirms Christmas duet with Ed Sheeran and jokes about LadBaby battle

Elton John has confirmed to NME that he and Ed Sheeran are working on a Christmas song together, and joked about a battle for Number One with LadBaby.

Sheeran revealed the news this month in an interview with Dutch radio station NPO Radio 2, saying that John reached out to him for the collaboration last year after he discovered that his own Christmas song ‘Step Into Christmas’ had hit the UK Top 10 for the first time ever.

READ MORE: Elton John: “I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past”

Speaking to NME for this week’s Big Read cover feature, John says he was surprised that Sheeran revealed the news, as he himself was sworn to secrecy over the track.

“Yeah, he let the cat out of the bag didn’t he?” John told NME. “I was sworn to secrecy and then big mouth fucking Sheeran goes to the Netherlands! It’s supposed to come out – we haven’t finished it yet, so there’s still work to be done.”

Teasing the track, John added: “I can’t say any more than that because it’s in his hands,” before discussing a potential battle for UK Number One with LadBaby, who has picked up the last three Christmas Number Ones with his novelty songs.

“We’ve got the sausage roll man to deal with, haven’t we? We’ve got LadBaby to deal with!” John laughed. “Once we bump him off, we might have a clear path to a hit record. He seems to have the monopoly on Christmas records. And good for him!”

NME Cover 2021 Elton John

John is on the cover of NME to celebrate his new collaborative album ‘The Lockdown Sessions’, out today.

Discussing the album in the interview, he said: “Everything’s been a bonus with this record. Whether it sells one copy or a million copies, it doesn’t matter to me. I had so much fun and I learnt so much from doing it.”

Elsewhere, last week Sheeran asked for people in the UK to help Elton John knock him off the top of the singles chart.

Sheeran occupied the top spot in the UK for the past 15 weeks, firstly with his comeback single ‘Bad Habits’ and more recently with his latest track ‘Shivers’, but, as was his wish, John’s ‘Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)’ featuring Dua Lipa went and topped the charts.

The Beatles and India

As spiritual and musical reawakenings go, it has to be said that The Beatles’ Indian love affair got off to a shaky start. In Richard Lester’s 1965 film Help!, we see the Fabs become embroiled with a sinister Eastern cult who set out to sacrifice a female Beatles fan to their goddess. While hindsight hasn’t been kind to Help!, it also allows us to get the full measure of the chain of events it would trigger on the musicians at the centre of the enterprise.

ORDER NOW: The Rolling Stones are on the cover of the November 2021 issue of Uncut

As with his 2005 book The Beatles In India, Ajoy Bose’s directorial debut [co-director Peter Compton] suspends current censoriousness to catapult us to a world where it wasn’t unforgivable to get things wrong about other cultures as long as you were trying to get it right. Early on, it’s the blossoming friendship between George Harrison and Ravi Shankar that provides the main source of warmth. What started with George picking up an unattended sitar on the Help! set fast-forwards to a momentous encounter when Asian Music Circle Founders Ayana and Patricia Angani invited The Beatles for dinner with Shankar at their Hampstead home. Decades later, their son Shankara recalls it was Paul McCartney who seemed out of his depth in comparison to George – who, Pattie Boyd noted, must have known Shankar “in a past life”.

Perhaps for George, Indian music offered a space well away from what must have sometimes felt like John and Paul’s musical fiefdom. Certainly, it massively increased his cultural stock, both within and without The Beatles. Had George not spearheaded The Beatles’ rebirth as spiritual seekers, it’s impossible to conceive of the White Album, most of which was written at the Rishikesh retreat where the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi taught transcendental meditation. Bose manages to locate fellow disciples for vivid recollections set amid the ruins of the once-thriving Ashram, among them teacher Nick Nugent, who excitably recalls a rooftop concert on the Ashram bungalow that predated the more famous one on the Apple building a year later.

Elsewhere, there’s a welcome corrective to pernicious inaccuracies that permeate most accounts of The Beatles’ sudden departure from Rishikesh, with eminent Fabologists Mark Lewisohn and Steve Turner both emphasising the Machiavellian machinations of hanger-on Magic Alex Mardas, who persuaded Lennon that the Maharishi was guilty of sexual impropriety towards a young woman in the Ashram. And even though Lennon wrote Sexy Sadie as they waited for their taxis, subsequent interviews with McCartney and Harrison revealed that both were regretful of the manner in which their retreat ended – Harrison even seeking the Maharishi’s forgiveness.

But perhaps the most pleasing harmonic balance established by The Beatles And India only truly reveals itself near the end, as an array of Indian musicians try to express just how the group’s music impacted upon them. What begins problematically doesn’t have to end that way. Over 50 years later, what survives is gratitude on all sides that The Beatles and the Indian musicians, teachers and fans they met got to be part of each other’s story. Others may put it in more florid terms, but none manage to do so quite as resonantly as musician Neil Mukherjee, who attempts to explain the effect that The Beatles had on him thus: “The world would have been, like, so shit without them.”

The Beatles reportedly almost sacked George Harrison and replaced him with Eric Clapton

The Beatles almost sacked George Harrison and were reportedly thinking about replacing him with Eric Clapton, according to a newly unearthed interview with John Lennon.

READ MORE: Why George Harrison is the coolest Beatle

The tape hears Lennon threaten to replace Harrison with Clapton after the guitarist temporarily quit the band in January 1969, during the recording sessions for the band’s final album, ‘Let It Be’, reports The Daily Mail.

The sudden departure of Harrison – who felt that his songs weren’t getting as much attention as those of Lennon and Paul McCartney – worried McCartney and Ringo Starr. Lennon, however, while sympathetic, was also practical about the situation.

Lennon said that Harrison’s attitude had been “a festering wound and we allowed it to go deeper and we didn’t even give him any bandages.”

The ‘Imagine’ hitmaker then suggested that his place in The Beatles be taken by fellow guitarist Clapton. “I think if George doesn’t come back by (next week) we ask Eric Clapton to play,” Lennon said.

Harrison, who had been to see his mother in Liverpool, returned to the studio with the band six days later.

The revelation comes from more than 120 hours of unheard audio and 50 hours of unseen footage made while a fly-on-the wall film was shot by director Michael Lindsay-Hogg during the rehearsing and recording of ‘Let It Be.’

The recordings will feature as part of Peter Jackson’s upcoming new Disney+ documentary, The Beatles: Get Back. The film will focus on the making of ‘Let It Be’ and will showcase their final concert as a band, on London’s Savile Row rooftop, in its entirety.

Disney+ has confirmed the documentary will arrive in three separate parts on November 25, 26 and 27. Each episode is approximately two hours in length.

“In many respects, Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s remarkable footage captured multiple storylines,” Jackson said of The Beatles: Get Back.

“The story of friends and of individuals. It is the story of human frailties and of a divine partnership. It is a detailed account of the creative process, with the crafting of iconic songs under pressure, set amid the social climate of early 1969. But it’s not nostalgia – it’s raw, honest, and human. Over six hours, you’ll get to know The Beatles with an intimacy that you never thought possible.”

He added: “I’m very grateful to The Beatles, Apple Corps and Disney for allowing me to present this story in exactly the way it should be told. I’ve been immersed in this project for nearly three years, and I’m very excited that audiences around the world will finally be able to see it.”

Ahead of the documentary’s release a The Beatles: Get Back book will come out on October 12, featuring transcriptions of the band’s recorded conversations and hundreds of exclusive, never before published photos from the three weeks of sessions.

Bob Harris says Richard Nixon asked Elvis Presley to spy on John Lennon

Elvis Presley was once tasked with spying on John Lennon by then-US president Richard Nixon, according to legendary music presenter and DJ ‘Whispering’ Bob Harris.

In a new interview on the Rockonteurs podcast, Harris spoke of how Nixon “loathed” the Beatles star due to his public and vicious criticism of the Vietnam War.

During the interview with hosts Gary Kemp and Guy Pratt, Harris claimed that Nixon recruited Presley, who was a “great friend” of the late President, to spy on Lennon, adding that if Lennon ever left the United States during Nixon’s tenure, he wouldn’t be allowed back in.

“It sounded like it was almost a figment of [Lennon’s] imagination when he was saying, ‘My phone was tapped, I get followed everywhere’ — but it was true; he really did,” Harris said.

“Nixon was out to get him and that’s why John was stuck in New York, or stuck in the States: he knew, were he to come back to the UK, he’d never get back into America again. Not while Nixon was in the White House.”

Harris added: “Nixon was a great friend of Elvis and vice versa. Nixon had [instructed] Elvis to gather as much information about John Lennon as he possibly could.”

Nixon regarded Lennon as a “counter-culture enemy” and, during his time as President between 1969-1974, tried to have Lennon deported from the United States.

Harris added that “it was hate at first sight” when Lennon and Presley met in the mid-1960s, and that they then struck up a “resentful” rivalry.

“For John it was a very disillusioning moment because he loved Elvis’s records, so… to discover he was a right-wing southern bigot was a big shock,” Harris told the podcast hosts.

“Equally, Elvis saw Lennon as being this upstart Liverpudlian know-it-all who’d taken his crown. He usurped Elvis and he was resentful as hell.”

In other news, an Elvis Presley biographer recently claimed that the rock’n’roll legend died not because he was a drug abuser, but because he had bad genes.

According to author Sally Hoedel’s new book, Elvis: Destined To Die Young, the singer’s long-documented health problems – which were often written off as the consequences of addiction – could have been caused by Presley’s maternal grandparents, who were first cousins.

Elsewhere, John Lennon is set to be celebrated in a forthcoming tribute show called ‘Dear John’, which is set to be livestreamed next month (October 9).

The online event will follow on from the release earlier this year of the ‘Dear John’ tribute album, which featured Lennon covers by a range of artists and raised money for War Child.

Johnny Marr gives his verdict on Blossoms and Rick Astley’s Smiths covers band

Johnny Marr has given his verdict on Blossoms and Rick Astley joining forces to cover The Smiths.

Blossoms and Astley teamed up earlier this week at the former’s gig in London to cover ‘Panic’ and ‘This Charming Man’ by The Smiths songs, with the artists subsequently announcing two Smiths covers shows in Manchester and London next month.

READ MORE: Blossoms talk ’70s-inspired new single ‘Care For’ and tease their next album

Footage from Monday night’s gig (September 13) of Blossoms and Astley covering The Smiths’ ‘This Charming Man’ has gone viral this week, with Marr delivering his verdict on the collaboration on Twitter this afternoon (September 17).

“This is both funny and horrible at the same time,” he tweeted in response to the footage, which you can see below.

This is both funny and horrible at the same time. https://t.co/GgEEECHpBJ

— Johnny Marr (@Johnny_Marr) September 17, 2021

Didn’t mention when we were hanging out a few weeks ago. Must’ve slipped their minds.

— Johnny Marr (@Johnny_Marr) September 17, 2021

Marr has subsequently been responding to questions from his followers, with one fan asking the guitarist whether Blossoms and Astley sought approval before proceeding with their Smiths covers shows.

“Well, I met The Blossoms a few weeks ago and they elected to not mention it,” he said. “Nice.”

Replying to another fan on Twitter about the same subject, Marr added: “[Blossoms] didn’t mention [the shows] when we were hanging out a few weeks ago. Must’ve slipped their minds.”

Rick Astley and Blossoms, Kentish Town Forum, 13.9.21 (Picture: Peter Neill / Press)

Speaking about working with Astley on the Smiths tribute shows, Blossoms frontman Tom Ogden recently said: “The Smiths have always meant so much to Blossoms, with even their rainiest songs complete with wry humour and soul-reaching musicianship and melody. Their poppier moments are pure, joyful, danceable poetry.

“Imagine backing Rick Astley to play the songs of The Smiths? We’ve had wilder dreams, but not many. We’ll barely be able to believe it until it happens, but the dates are set, we’re studying every note, line and beat to say ‘thank you’ to The Smiths alongside Rick and do both of them proud.”

Earlier this week Blossoms also shared a clip of them rehearsing The Smiths’ ‘Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now’ with Astley.

Marr meanwhile is about to embark on a run of UK headline shows in support of new single ‘Spirit, Power And Soul’ and his upcoming EP and double album – as well as performing with Blossoms as support for Courteeners at their huge Manchester Old Trafford show next month.

Dear John: John Lennon tribute show set to be livestreamed next month

Details of a new John Lennon tribute event, Dear John, have been announced.

ORDER NOW: The Rolling Stones are on the cover of Uncut’s November 2021 issue
READ MORE: Hear three tracks from The Beatles’ new Let It Be special editions

The online event will follow on from the release earlier this year of the Dear John tribute album, which featured Lennon covers by a range of artists and raised money for War Child.

A livestream tribute concert will now take place on October 9 to mark what would have been Lennon‘s 81st birthday, with the event benefitting War Child once again.

Organised by Blurred Vision frontman Sepp Osley with his partner/singer-songwriter Mollie Marriott, Dear John will be hosted by BBC presenter Bob Harris and feature a host of special guests who perform Lennon and Beatles covers, as well as providing “personal messages of peace and love throughout the night”.

Martin Freeman, Peter Frampton, Matt Lucas, Jack Savoretti, Fearne Cotton, Yola, Matt Sorum (Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver), Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting), fashion designer Pam Hogg, Mark Williams (Harry Potter, Red Dwarf), Joe Brown, Sam Brown, Judie Tzuke, Scott Matthews, Chloe Foy, Baby Sol, Luke Friend, Minh, Jo Harman, Elles Bailey, Jasmine Rodgers, Scott McKeon, Gavin Conder, Laura Evans and more will all take part.

Speaking about the 2021 Dear John concert, Osley – whose band Blurred Vision will provide backing on the night as the ‘house band’ – said: “Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined the success that this humble event conjured in 2020 during the height of the pandemic. It all began with a simple concept of celebrating the legacy that John Lennon left behind.

“A legacy of peace and unity and love on a global scale, and now to be able to perform these timeless songs with so many heroes and contemporaries of the music world, while raising money for this incredible charity at such a crucial time, is something I could never have conceived or believed when I began my tumultuous journey on this planet.”

A one-off ticketed event, all donations and net proceeds raised from the show will go directly to the War Child charity. You can find tickets for Dear John here.

Noel Gallagher recently revealed that he intends to release his cover of John Lennon‘s “Mind Games”, which he recorded to mark the late Beatle‘s 80th birthday last year.

“Something to really lift your spirits” John Grant’s End Of The Road picks

“End Of The Road is one of the most beautiful festivals ever,” says John Grant, looking forward to his imminent return visit to Larmer Tree Gardens. “The crowd is really just heavy-duty music fans, and the setting is so special. I’m a tree freak, you know? I really love to be in amongst the trees. I know that might sound extremely basic but it’s an amazing thing.”

ORDER NOW: Nick Cave is on the cover of the October 2021 issue of Uncut

Like everyone else, Grant is excited to be out in the wild again. He recently debuted his new live show at Terry Hall’s Home Sessions in Coventry, which involves him getting more hands-on with the technology. “I can rearrange songs on the fly if I want to and remix them live. I’ve been working on a redo of ‘Queen Of Denmark’ which is really fun and nasty and gigantic.” But when his own set is over, who else at End Of The Road is he hoping to catch?

LONELADY

“I became familiar with her through working with Stephen Mallinder from Cabaret Voltaire. It’s choppy, full-on electropop – lots of really beautiful synth sounds and heavy beats. In a live setting, you probably feel it in your balls! The way she sings reminds me of Jane Wiedlin from The Go-Go’s. I imagine a show by her being something to really lift your spirits.”

GWENNO

“She’s got a really strong presence. I don’t wanna say the accursed word ‘folktronica’, so I’m not going to. But she’s got songs with structure and there’s beautiful, dancey electro vibes going on there as well. If you like Beth Orton, especially her later stuff where she went really electronic, then I might put Gwenno in that category.”

ARLO PARKS

“She’s somebody that I would seek out and go listen to her set. I thought her album was really sexy and smooth. She’s got a beautiful voice but she uses it in a very simple manner with great rhymes and great lyrics. I know people want to hear more about the sun, but for me it’s getting too fuckin’ hot all over the place, so her music gave me a real sexy, cosy, rainy-day vibe.”

ANNA MEREDITH

“She’s my pal, though we’ve never met; she did a lovely remix for me. I think she’s really great but I don’t know how the fuck you would describe her music. I would think of her as more of a classical composer, but with synthesisers – and I’m a synth freak, obviously. It’s very bright and shiny, like jewels sparkling. It’s kitchen-sinky in a positive way, there’s a lot going on, and you never really know what you’re going to get. I saw a guy playing a tuba on the video I was watching just now, and who doesn’t love a tuba? Maybe there’s a hurdy-gurdy and a giant Moog modular, or there’s just kitchen implements and a computer. These are all possibilities!”

MELIN MELYN

“There’s a whole mess of them, about six or seven. Their music is really poppy and surfy with electronics going on, and it has a nice edge to it. They remind me of my friend Cate Le Bon, and Gruff Rhys – all that delicious Welsh music.”

If you’re heading to End Of The Road, check out the Uncut Q&As at 3.45pm each day on the Talking Heads stage, where our very own Tom Pinnock will be chatting to Jason Williamson of Sleaford Mods (Sat), Richard Dawson (Sun) and more. You can read our daily coverage of the festival on this site throughout the weekend.

Watch Elton John surprise restaurant with performance of Dua Lipa collab “Cold Heart”

Elton John surprised a crowd at a restaurant on Saturday (August 14) with an impromptu performance of his new collaboration with Dua Lipa.

ORDER NOW: The Beatles are on the cover of the September 2021 issue of Uncut

The pop icon released his new single “Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)” in collaboration with Lipa on Friday (August 13).

Celebrating the release, John got behind the decks at La Guérite Beach restaurant in Cannes, where a DJ cued up the track and let the star sing along. “During lockdown I made this single and it came out yesterday with Dua Lipa,” he told diners. “I want you all to dance on the table and wave your hands.”

“Cold Heart LIVE performance,” John wrote on Instagram according to Metro, although the clip is no longer visible on his Story. “Thought I’d surprise the people at La Guérite beach restaurant with a performance of the new track.” Watch footage of the performance below now.

The original track seamlessly blends together some of John’s past releases, including “Sacrifice“, “Kiss The Bride” and “Rocket Man”. It is the singer and PNAU’s second collaboration following the 2012 album Good Morning To The Night, which also sampled some of the icon’s older tracks.

Legendary house DJ Paul Johnson dies at 50 from Covid-19

Paul Johnson, the influential US house producer best known for his hit ‘Get Get Down’, has died from coronavirus at the age of 50.

A statement on his Facebook page said: “Our greatness passed away this morning at 9am the house music legend we all know as PJ aka Paul Johnson.”

Johnson was initially hospitalised and placed in intensive care after contracting the virus last month.

The Chicago-based DJ scored his biggest hit in 1999 when ‘Get Get Down’ reached No 5 in the UK charts and established itself as a dancefloor staple.

Paying tribute, Chicago producer RP Boo said: “Today we have lost a great legend of our world house community. Thank you God for his work that you installed in him.”

DJ Mike Servito said: “Paul Johnson taught us how to bounce to the beat. A groove like no other, honestly. This is so depressing. But the records, the music will remain timeless and uplifting. We will always have that Chicago groove.”

Defected Records added: “Paul Johnson… Rest in peace, thank you for the music.”

Paul Johnson… Rest in peace, thank you for the music. ?

Get, get down forever. pic.twitter.com/ZgoTWvdSMz

— Defected Records (@DefectedRecords) August 4, 2021

Johnson started his career as a breakdancer and became a fan of house music in the 1980s after listening to influential Chicago figures such as Ron Hardy.

He was shot in 1987, seriously injuring his leg and forcing him to use a wheelchair for the rest of life.

His injured leg was subsequently amputated in 2003, and a car accident in later years resulted in the amputation of his other leg in 2010.

Condolences to the family and friends of Kelli Hand & Paul Johnson. We lost true Detroit and Chicago pioneers, essentials in the foundation of House and Techno. Rest In Power. pic.twitter.com/a374HODdEA

— Mike Servito (@mikeservito) August 4, 2021

Today We Have Lost An Great Legend Of Our World House Community• Thank You God For His Work That You Installed In Him• Mr. Paul Johnson. ??? pic.twitter.com/nd8Pn8b3VO

— RP BOO Rolling Stone (@RP_BOO_) August 4, 2021

He became a major figure in the scene’s continued popularity in the 1990s, and went on to release a wide array of albums 12-inches and EP over his career.

Daft Punk also hailed Johnson as an influence on 1997’s ‘Teachers’, a track which sees the Parisian duo listing the names of their heroes.

Rising Star Dewé Drops Major Alternative Afrobeat Debut Album – Colors

NYC-based singer-songwriter Adedewe Adesola Victor, better known as Dewé, has just released his debut album titled Colors, via Alfeade records. Colors is home to a powerful collection of 10 songs exposing the rising star’s unique ability at merging Afrobeats to Afropop, R&b, Neo-Soul and World.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, he rose to fame when he reached the finals of “The Voice: Nigeria.”

Influenced by Mali Music, John Legend, Fela, Sam Smith and Erykah Badu, Dewé ‘s artistic vision is to combine African influence to American-based genres of music.

Talking about his music, the NYC-based artist explains:

”I was able to put that fame into use by creating afro-alternative music, but at that time, I was still in the process of discovering my sound. I left my country because I felt I had so much in me to share with the world, but my environment was the limiting factor, so when I got the opportunity to move, I took it instantly. I was also lucky enough to move with my younger brother, who is the current CEO of Alfeade records. I believe the reason I didn’t stop making music is because music has always been Therapy to me, its impact in my life had always been greater than just pleasure, and when I realized I had the same power to share that gift with the world, I realized quickly It wasn’t an option for me, it is just timing.”

Dewé: Instagram - Spotify - YouTube

John Francis Flynn I Would Not Live Always

The first song that John Francis Flynn learnt to sing was Come, Me Little Son, from a version by The Dubliners’ Luke Kelly. Based around a Scottish air, it was initially written and recorded by Ewan MacColl for the BBC’s celebrated radio ballads series in the late ’50s. It’s tempting to speculate what the notoriously dogmatic MacColl would make of Flynn’s experimental approach to traditional music, but he’d surely struggle to deny its power.

ORDER NOW: The Beatles are on the cover of the September 2021 issue of Uncut

The 31-year-old is the latest addition to River Lea, the folk imprint set up by Rough Trade to promote “beautiful and strange traditional music from Britain, Ireland and beyond”. Flynn has been a vital presence in Dublin’s young folk scene this past decade, both as frontman with Skipper’s Alley and as collaborator with the likes of Ye Vagabonds and Lankum. A well-received support slot on the latter’s 2019 UK tour brought him wider attention, though the idea of being what he calls “this professional musician” didn’t fully take hold until River Lea offered a deal.

I Would Not Live Always is an extraordinary debut by any standard. Rooted in traditional song, Flynn uses the source material to fool around with form, framing his rich, sonorous voice in abstract drones, loops and electronic patter. Crucially too, he’s chosen to balance out his studio band with some non-trad musicians, chiefly producer Brendan Jenkinson on synths/electric guitar and drummer/synth player Ross Chaney, who also creates distinctive loops from a Tascam portastudio.

The effect is ravishingly eerie, particularly on Bring Me Home, a porous three-part suite that gradually darkens into an urgent storm and on into an oppressive form of hovering static. Part one is an anguished version of The Dear Irish Boy, a study in loss as much as belonging. Murky clouds descend on I Would Not Live Always, a repeated verse from an old Lutheran hymn, Flynn’s voice keeping faith against a cantering groove and a wriggly synth. The final segment is An Buachaillin Ban, a Gaelic translation of The Dear Irish Boy, beautifully recited by Saileog Ní Ceannabháin.

The most moving moment is the eight-minute Shallow Brown, a West Indian sea shanty and slave song dating back to the 19th century. Flynn plumbs a pit of despair from the vantage point of a man bidding farewell to his lover as his ship pulls from port. “Master’s going to sell me/Sell me to a Yankee/Sell me for a dollar”, he sings, deep and mournful over picked guitar. As he slowly recedes from view, pipes build into a disquieting buzz, with Flynn’s words cut and looped into inscrutable fragments on the wind.

Comparable in length is Flynn’s take on Come, Me Little Son, in which a fretful child – bemoaning the prolonged absence of his father, forced to provide for his family by working on motorways in England – is soothed by his mother. It’s one of two Ewan MacColl songs, the other being the tender Cannily, Cannily. This time, the predominant feature is a droning fiddle, courtesy of Flynn’s Skipper’s Alley bandmate Ultan O’Brien.

The work of Shirley and Dolly Collins is a key influence on the album too. Flynn’s adaptation of Lovely Joan, originally collected by Ralph Vaughan Williams more than a century ago, is styled on the sisters’ 1968 recording. Essentially the tale of a lusty blowhard outwitted by the female object of his desire, its inventive arrangement – ripples of electronica, pastoral guitar and shape-shifting synthetics – is a tribute to Dolly’s daring on portative organ. The effect is exquisite, softening the song’s archaic folk vernacular into something more hallucinatory and accessible.

Flynn is also a consummate guitar player, flautist and dab hand on tin whistle. A dazzling version of Tralee Gaol finds him negotiating two whistles at a time, coaxing a feverish polka from one while maintaining a low drone from the other, his close intakes of breath falling into the rhythm. The tune finds both a contrast and companion in the album’s other instrumental, Chaney’s Tape Dream. Here, he extemporises over Ross Chaney’s low textural hum, looped and processed from another of Flynn’s piping sorties.

In keeping with River Lea’s foraging spirit – shared with cohorts Lisa O’Neill, Ye Vagabonds and Brighde Chaimbeul, all of whom offer distinct variants on habitual folk practice – I Would Not Live Always offers a singular and striking clarity of vision. Flynn might just be the label’s most significant find thus far.

Tape loops, drones and The Tibetan Book Of The Dead: Inside The Beatles’ Revolver sessions at EMI Studios

As they approached the making of Revolver, The Beatles couldn’t have known that they’d just enjoyed their last carefree year. In 1965, they had made Help!, played Shea Stadium and visited Elvis and the Queen. Just before Christmas, as was now their habit, their second album of the year had been released. Rubber Soul still sounds like the perfectly balanced expression of a pop band with artistic ambitions, expanding their creative range without jeopardising the relationship with their vast and adoring public.

ORDER NOW: Read the full story in the September 2021 issue of Uncut

The following year would be different.

They started 1966 still shining still like a four-headed Sun King, dispensing rays of unsullied happiness. But in February, during an interview with the Evening Standard, John Lennon compared their popularity with the statistical decline in Christian worship. He was trying to say how ludicrous it seemed, but the subtlety of his point was ignored in America’s Bible Belt, where Beatles records were promptly piled up into bonfires.

In July, the group released an album in America titled Yesterday And Today, its cover showing the four of them smiling as widely as usual while holding the bloodied body parts of dolls. Another uproar forced its withdrawal. They were starting to tread on dangerous ground.

Revolver arrived in August, on schedule, but it was the result of a very different creative process. Their debut album, Please Please Me, had been recorded in a single day. Rubber Soul had taken 80 hours of studio time. Revolver took 220 hours, the result of a band suddenly liberated from constant live performances and from an aborted third feature-film project. Now so successful that they were free from the imposition of studio budgets, they were able to use Abbey Road as a laboratory.

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW IN UNCUT SEPTEMBER 2021

Johnny Depp is reportedly working on new music with Jeff Beck

Johnny Depp is working on some new music with Jeff Beck, it is being reported.

According to the Daily Mail, the actor and Hollywood Vampires musician is teaming up with Beck to record material for the ‘Hi Ho Silver Lining’ guitarist’s upcoming new album.

“They’ve been collaborating on material for Jeff’s next album,” a source told the outlet. “It’s been great for Johnny to get back to his first true love, which is music.”

The source added: “Jeff has been a great friend to Johnny during a very difficult time, and being away from Hollywood has been exactly what Johnny needed.”

It comes after Depp lost his libel case against The Sun last year. The actor had been suing News Group Newspapers (NGN) and The Sun’s executive editor Dan Wootton over an April 2018 article which referred to him as a “wife beater” in relation to allegations from ex-wife Amber Heard, claims that Depp has strongly denied.

The trial originally took place over 16 days in July 2020 at the Royal Courts of Justice, and concerned an article titled “Gone Potty: How can JK Rowling be ‘genuinely happy’ casting wife beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?”

Hollywood Vampires: (L-R) Alice Cooper, Johnny Depp and Joe Perry. CREDIT: Getty Images

In a ruling on November 2, 2020, Judge Mr Justice Nicol said that he found the words to be “substantially true”.

Following the verdict, the actor was last month denied permission to appeal his libel case against NGN, with Depp’s lawyers saying he is “looking forward to presenting the complete, irrefutable evidence of the truth” in another libel case in the US.

The Daily Mail insider said that Depp, who in 2015 formed the supergroup, Hollywood Vampires, with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry, now wants to “take a step back from everything and focus on a comeback through music”.

“Johnny hopes to return to films eventually. But it’s music first,” they added.

Meanwhile, Hollywood Vampires have been forced to cancel their upcoming UK and European tour due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

The group had previously rearranged the dates to this coming August and September, however due to safety concerns surrounding the pandemic, the tour has now been cancelled.

John Murry The Stars Are God’s Bullet Holes

“Bought fertiliser and brake fluid/Who in the hell am I supposed to trust?” John Murry’s new album opens with a song about a man building a bomb that somehow introduces Oscar Wilde into a narrative about American unrest. Domestic terrorism, the Oklahoma bombing, gas chambers, low-flying police helicopters, natty Oscar playing bridge. Longstanding fans will take these uneasy juxtapositions in their stride. Nearly everything Murry’s released to date has sounded like a dispatch from one war zone or another – both his previous solo albums tackle the issue of trauma.

ORDER NOW: The Beatles are on the cover of the September 2021 issue of Uncut

There was more to 2013’s The Graceless Age than a plainly autobiographical song about flatlining after a heroin overdose. But the album was eventually dominated by the nine pain-wracked minutes of Little Coloured Balloons. It’s still the song everyone wants to hear him play when they see him live, a man who came back from the dead singing about his own resurrection.

A Short History Of Decay (2017) was written in the aftermath of a nasty divorce, Murry simultaneously rocked by the death of former American Music Club drummer Tim Mooney, who produced and, over the four years of its making, helped shape the songs on The Graceless Age. Mooney gave the album a dense, textured sound: layers of keyboards, strings, crackling radio broadcasts; synthesisers and sundry electronics. Cowboy Junkies’ Michael Timmins produced the follow-up, the whole thing taped and mixed in just five days. It sounded like it had been recorded in a lost, lonely place. A holding cell or isolation ward, perhaps.

At first listen, The Stars Are God’s Bullet Holes comes from a similarly dour location at the end of the line, ill-lit and funky. Its mood is generally heavy but a frailty prevails, something vaguely tranquilised about a lot of the record. There seems initially to be not much body at all to bits of it. At one point or another, most of the album sounds in fact like it should be on life-support. Even the handclaps sound worn out. The songs mostly are reduced to sinew and gristle, as if the meat has been chewed off them by passing coyotes.

Play it again, however, and it’s neither listless nor inert. Murry and producer John Parish know a thing or two about creating compelling atmospheres out of meagre resources. The album is built from vocal and instrumental tics and spasms. Guitars that crackle like burning wallpaper. Glitchy electronics that course through the tracks like syntax errors in a
computer code, Nadine Khouri’s timelapse harmonies. Scraps of pedal steel, piano, cello.

Oscar Wilde (Came Here To Make Fun Of You) casts individual turmoil alongside wider public derangement. Ones + Zeros starts as a frayed ballad about dashed hopes that decides it’s time to reject oppression. “Spit on your hands, raise the black flag/ Cut each throat, drown the old hag…” An unexpected version of Duran Duran’s Ordinary World that turns it into an insidious stalking blues with pustulant guitar also pits singular distress against a broader disintegration.

Mostly, though, Murry is concerned with personal emotional plight, the scorched earth of his own life. Perfume & Decay is a song about an imploding relationship that sounds like a drugged message on an answerphone. The title track essays similar territory, carried by the fuzz-box malignancy of Murry’s writhing electric guitar. Murry carries grudges like an old-school Mafia boss with a hundred recipes for dishes best served cold. Revenge runs through these songs like a virus, infecting track after unvaccinated track.

“God may forgive them for what I can’t forget”, Murry sings grimly on Time & A Rifle, over a messy, slithering guitar riff. The otherwise beautiful Di Kreutser Sonata turns a fierce gaze on his adoptive family (“They didn’t adopt me, they bought me,” Murry recently wrote on his website), the track ending with whistling and a dreamy instrumental coda that sounds like the closing theme to a film that’s left everyone dead in a Mexican desert. I Refuse To Believe (You Could Love Me) is a desiccated glam stomp, Murry baffled by his romantic predicament over a Moe Tucker backbeat.

1(1)1 is two minutes of ugly noise as superfluous as a ‘hidden’ bonus track, possibly called You Don’t Miss Me, a thrashing thing. The album as advertised properly ends, however, with the reptilian loop of Yer Little Black Book, Murry sitting in his car, singing along to a radio playing Joy Division’s She’s Lost Control, thinking about his own worthlessness as the last light fades on another day in paradise.

Welcome to the new Uncut: The Beatles, Lindsey Buckingham, Curtis Mayfield and more

Walking round town about a month ago with my family, we came across a band busking in the street. Half way through their set – programmed with the casual shopper in mind, so heavy on classic rock anthems like “All Along The Watchtower”, “Have You Ever Seen The Rain?” and “Come Together” – I suddenly realised that this was the first live music I’d seen for 14 months. Jolt over, it made me realise how much I’ve missed the profound pleasure of seeing four people play amplified music together. Long may it continue.

ORDER NOW: The September 2021 issue of Uncut

We continue to celebrate the return of live gigs in this month’s Uncut where we carry reports of shows by Eliza and Martin Carthy and Black Country, New Road – both, coincidentally, reviewed in Brighton. Meanwhile, in just a few months’ time, the Uncut team will be heading en masse to Wiltshire for the End Of The Road festival. More on that nearer the time – but suffice to say for all of us, End Of The Road will be an unmissable highlight after being deprived of live music for so long. Incidentally, you can find further updates and lineup information at here and on uncut.co.uk.

Elsewhere in the issue, we also have our first face-to-face interview for many long months – with Leon Bridges, who Stephen Deusner meets in his hometown of Forth Worth, Texas. It’s a welcome change from the Zoom chats that have constituted our interviews lately. Ah, I can almost smell the coffee brewing in Leon’s local, the Cherry Coffee Shop.

What else? Exclusives with Lindsey Buckingham – he brought up the subject of Fleetwood Mac first, I’m reliably informed – and also Big Red Machine, the collaborative project created by The National’s Aaron Dessner and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon. For this, their second album, they’ve recruited Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold among other notable guests. His presence finally unites on record three contemporaries whose eclectic, progressive and ambitious music has been a critical part of Uncut’s aesthetic for the past 15 years or so. Laura Barton corrals Dessner, Vernon and Pecknold for her excellent piece – and I’m pleasantly surprised to learn that Vernon and Pecknold have only ever met once so far, in a lift in Phoenix, Arizona.

There’s more, of course. For our Revolver cover, we’ve asked 14 Beatle heads to each talk about their favourite song from their 1966 masterpiece. Our panel consists of fellow ‘60s luminaries including Brian Wilson, Roger McGuinn and Steve Cropper, card-carrying fans like Johnny Marr, Norman Blake, Margo Price and Wayne Coyne and also two Beatles’ scions – Sean Ono Lennon and Dhani Harrison, both of whom make plausible cases for Revolver as the band’s greatest album (it is).

Beyond that, there’s Curtis Mayfield, Curtis Mayfield, Steve Gunn, Ripley Johnson, Mercury Rev, the Sugarcubes, Lovin’ Spoonful (it is summer, after all), Martha Wainwright, Springsteen, Bowie and much more.

Before I go, I should also pay tribute to Alan Lewis – IPC Magazines’ former editor-in-chief, who helped launch Uncut back in 1997. Alan had a brilliant, intuitive understanding of magazines, as evidenced by the many successes he was involved in – from Melody Maker, NME and Sounds to Loaded, Kerrang! and many, many more. He was a lovely, self-deprecating person, too – full of wisdom and advice and always great company in Uncut’s old local, The Stamford Arms.

As ever, let us know what you think by writing to us at [email protected].

Follow me on Twitter @MichaelBonner

The Go-Go’s announce 40th anniversary reissue of ‘Beauty And The Beat’

The Go-Go’s have announced plans to be release a 40th anniversary reissue of their debut album, ‘Beauty And The Beat’.

Released on July 8, 1981, the California new-wave band’s debut album sat on top of the US album chart for six consecutive weeks and spawned the hits ‘Our Lips Are Sealed’ and ‘We Got The Beat’.

Now, The Go-Go’s are celebrating the landmark album with a special anniversary edition pressed on pink vinyl, with a brand-new cover boasting a never-before-seen photo of the band.

Each copy of ‘Beauty And The Beat – 40th Anniversary Limited Edition’ is numbered, and will only be available through uDiscover, The Sound Of Vinyl, and the band’s official online store.

Set to be released on September 10, you can pre-order your copy here.

To follow up with the 40th Anniversary of BATB… we’re launching an Exclusive LP! ?? Pre-order yours now!! ?https://t.co/EzKgfKg91D pic.twitter.com/D2OuJaV2XT

— The Go-Go's (@officialgogos) July 8, 2021

Earlier this year, it was announced that The Go-Go’s will be among the acts set to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this October.

Foo Fighters, JAY-Z and Tina Turner are all included in the 2021 cohort of inductees alongside The Go-Go’s, Carole King and Todd Rundgren in the ‘Performers’ category.

LL Cool J, Billy Preston and Randy Rhoads will each receive the Musical Excellence Award, while Kraftwerk, Gil Scott-Heron and Charley Patton will each be awarded with the Early Influence Award.

This year’s induction ceremony is set to be held at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse arena in Cleveland, Ohio on October 30.

Chairman of the awards John Sykes said: “This is our most diverse class in the history of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

“It really represents the Hall’s ongoing commitment to honour the artists that have created not only rock and roll, but the sound of youth culture.”

“It’s very difficult to get inducted twice and we have three this year,” Sykes said of the fact that Dave Grohl, Tina Turner and Carole King have all been inducted before.

“It’s also a rare year where three of the six inductees are women: Tina, Carole and the Go-Gos,” he continued. “It just shows the continued power and relevance and recognition of women in music.”

Brexit negotiator hits back at Elton John before being accused of “hanging music industry out to dry”

Brexit negotiator Lord Frost used a government committee hearing today (Tuesday June 29) to hit back at Elton John over his claims around the European touring fiasco, before coming under fire himself for his “inaction” over the situation.

READ MORE: “It’s going to be devastating” – here’s how Brexit will screw over British touring artists

Sir Elton has been very vocal over the government jeopardising the future of touring for the UK artists, after the Brexit deal secured with the EU failed to negotiate visa-free travel and Europe-wide work permits for musicians and crew. Just this weekend, he called the government “philistines” and accused them of “crucifying” the careers of young artists.

Having previously met with Lord Frost to discuss the looming “catastrophe” for a potentially “lost” generation of musicians, today the politician took issue with the musician’s comments.

Completely ignoring the simple facts that the rules facing travelling musicians are completely different to what they were 40 years ago and that new restrictions are robbing artists of the freedoms they previously enjoyed, Frost told the hearing: “I can’t help noticing that he had his first hits before the UK even became a member of the European Union, so I think there’s probably more at play here than pure rules applying within the then European Community.”

This comes amid fears and predictions that the new rules and red tape will lead to musicians and crew facing huge costs to future live music tours of the continent – which could create a glass ceiling that prevents rising and developing talent from being able to afford to do so.

Today, MPs questioned Cabinet Office Minister and lead Brexit negotiator Lord Frost on the government’s failure to reach an agreement with the EU on creative workers, “leaving them facing practical and financial barriers to working in Europe”.

“I feel sorry that they have to face this situation,” said Frost. “The country took a decision to leave the European Union and to end freedom of movement, but that brings with it big change. There’s no point in pretending that change hasn’t happened.”

Continuing to blame the EU for their part in the negotiations, Frost and the Government were accused of “sacrificing a £6billion sector and its workers for Brexit and anti-free movement zealotry” – as well as being criticised for a continued lack of solutions of clarity now six months after the creative industries were “essentially left with a ‘No Deal'”.

Kevin Brennan MP also put it to Frost that no voters were asking the question “What are you going to do about all of these violinists coming over here from Poland?”, and the government should consider this more of a trade issue than one for immigration.

READ MORE: Government criticised for inaction and told “words won’t save careers” in “critical” Brexit touring fiasco

The point that freedom of movement was “essential” to the creative industries was repeated, but Frost and Culture Minister Caroline Dinenage said that they had now been speaking with individual EU member states about the rules and that overall it was “much more straightforward for touring than we first thought”. They said that visa-free touring would likely still be possible in 17 of the nations, and that bilateral talks were ongoing with Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Malta, Slovakia, Romania and Spain. However, Frost also admitted that there were still limits on touring in those 17 countries compared to the period when the UK was an EU member.

Spain remains the country with the toughest requirements and costs for British touring artists, with Dinenage claiming that this was being negotiated presently. Cabotage rules (which prevents UK touring trucks from making more than three stops in Europe in a seven day period before needing to return) also remain an “acute” issue, but Frost said that proposals were soon to be released by the Department For Transport to allow for “relaxations”.

“There are at least 17 countries of the 27 where pretty normal or indeed entirely normal travel is possible for the purposes of carrying out performances in normal circumstances,” said Lord Frost. “In practice, there would remain difficulties – I’m not denying that. But it is nevertheless the case that in big countries, like France and Germany, it is possible to travel without visas or work permits.”

“Our plan is to work with the countries in priority who do not have particularly liberal rules on this subject and get them to improve them,” said Frost, before Dinenage added that there were conversations with European countries for “visa-free travel embraced and understood” and to “increase the amount of cultural exchange” between the UK and the continent.

Wolf Alice, IDLES, Poppy Ajudha and Radiohead are among the 200 artists who have come together for #LetTheMusicMove Brexit touring campaign. Credit: Getty/NME

Frost and Dinenage’s responses did not land well with many in the music industry. Last week saw the launch of the #LetTheMusicMove campaign, with the likes of Wolf Alice, IDLES, Poppy Ajudha, Radiohead among the 200 artists calling upon the UK government to urgently take action to resolve the ‘No Deal’ that has landed upon the British music. They argued that “today’s Select Committee session will do little to soothe the growing concerns of the UK’s artists, musicians and live music businesses”.

“While we continue to suffer the catastrophic impacts of COVID, many are now in open despair at the Government’s disturbing lack of urgency to address a range of Brexit-related bureaucracy and costs that will make EU touring almost prohibitively expensive and burdensome,” a spokesperson said.

“Despite being told by the Prime Minister in March that Lord Frost was dealing with these issues and would ‘fix it’, we’re still left with only crumbs of additional information and absolutely no update on the kind of transitional support package that will be vital for music businesses to operate in the short-term.

“To put this in context, the UK’s £1billion fishing industry has received £23million to adjust to new red tape. As it stands, our £6billion world-beating music industry is being hung out to dry. It feels like a complete abdication of responsibility.”

Recently, Welsh electro pioneer Kelly Lee Owens scrapped her entire European tour as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Brexit and the “anxiety” they had created – warning NME that the current situation is “doing serious damage to individuals“.

This comes after last week saw a new poll show that the majority of UK voters want the government to be doing more to solve the post-Brexit touring fiasco for musicians and crew, while campaigners have vowed that their “anger is not going away until they find a solution”.

The government has often been accused of treating the sector like “an afterthought” in Brexit negotiations compared to the £1.2billion fishing industry.

Responding to the criticisms at the time, a government spokesperson from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport claimed that they “had always been clear that the end of freedom of movement would have implications for professional mobility”.

A controversial issue throughout the continent, European festival promoters have said that they could be likely to book fewer UK acts as a result of Brexit, while figures from the UK music industry have expressed concern that the impact of the deal on musicians who might not be able to tour Europe could also potentially prevent them from acquiring a visa to play in the United States.

Bookers in Europe have told NME that “the effort should come from the UK” to overcome this.

Elton John says UK will lose “generation of talent” due to post-Brexit touring rules

Elton John has warned that the UK is in danger of losing “a generation of talent” after the government failed to secure a touring breakthrough with the EU.

The government’s failure to negotiate visa-free travel and Europe-wide work permits for musicians and crew in Lord Frost’s Brexit deal has long been a topic of discussion.

It has sparked fears that artists will face huge costs to take part in live music tours off the continent which could create a glass ceiling that prevents rising and developing artists from being able to afford to do so.

John shared the post to his Instagram, revealing that he – alongside his partner and Rocket Entertainment CEO David Furnish, promoter Craig Stanley and Lord Paul Strasberger – met with Lord Frost “to spell out the damage the trade agreement he negotiated with Europe is doing to the UK’s music industry”.

“Despite this looming catastrophe, the government seems unable or unwilling to fix this gaping hole in their trade deal and defaults to blaming the EU rather than finding ways out of this mess,” he said.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Elton John (@eltonjohn)

John described touring as “an essential part” of education for artists, but said it risked becoming prohibitive for artists under the current arrangement.

“The situation is already critical and touring musicians, crews and support staff are already losing their livelihood,” he said.

John went on to explain that he was not concerned with the risk for artists on a similar level to himself, who frequent arenas and stadiums.

“We are lucky enough to have the support staff, finance and infrastructure to cut through the red tape that Lord Frost’s no deal has created,” he said.

Elton added: “During our meeting Lord Frost said trying to solve this issue is a long process.”

“Unfortunately, our industry doesn’t have time. It is dying now. The government have broken the promise they outlined in 2020 to protect musicians and other creative industries from the impact of Brexit on tours to Europe.”

Concluding his statement, Elton said the government risked ruining a “window of opportunity” that had been presented by the way in which the pandemic has halted touring.

“I call on the government to sort this mess out or we risk losing future generations of world-beating talent,” he said.

“This is about whether one of the UK’s most successful industries, worth £111bn a year, is allowed to prosper and contribute hugely to both our cultural and economic wealth, or crash and burn.”

Last weekend, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden was also criticised when he boasted that trade deals with Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein would allow seamless touring – with musicians pointing out that all three countries make up a small proportion of the continent.

Elsewhere, European festival promoters have said that they could be likely to book fewer UK acts as a result of Brexit, while figures from the UK music industry have expressed concern that the impact of the deal on musicians who might not be able to tour Europe could also potentially prevent them from acquiring a visa to play in the United States.

The government was also previously accused of treating the sector like “an afterthought” in Brexit negotiations compared to the £1.2billion fishing industry.

Swizz Beatz on DMX’s posthumous album: “I had to pull this through for him”

Swizz Beatz has opened up DMX’s posthumous album, which was released yesterday (May 28).

READ MORE: 10 big talking points from the posthumous new DMX album ‘Exodus’

DMX, whose real name was Earl Simmons, was hospitalised following a heart attack as a result of reported overdose on April 3, where he remained in intensive care until his passing on April 9.

Speaking to Rolling Stone, Swizz reminisced about the last year the two spent together in the studio working on the album, ‘Exodus’, recalling that DMX was “ready” to make the album but that he appeared “tired” at times.

“We’d been talking about this record for a long time, but after we did Verzuz [in July 2020], he was ready,” Beatz told Rolling Stone. “He saw that the people were showing him love and the fans were ready.”

He added: “X was tired. The whole time we were doing the album, he was excited, but he was like, ‘I think this is going to be my last album.’ I was just like, ‘Let’s get through this and then let’s see; let’s judge it later, let’s not judge it now.’

“I just tried keeping him in the now spirit, instead of thinking about what he’s not gonna do. But obviously he knew something we didn’t.”

Posthumous DMX song Been To War with Swizz Beatz and French Montana released — Swizz Beatz and DMX in 2015. Credit: Johnny Nunez/WireImage

Speaking about compiling the project after his death, Beatz said: “It was like curating an art show: editing, taking things off, adding things, even up till the last minute. I had to step away from the project for a few and let other people make their orders of the playlists. I just had to let it go, then came back to it.

“I can at least listen to a song now without breaking down. I’m making it look strong, but I’m crushed, I’m destroyed, I’m hurt. But I had to pull this through for him and his family and for his legacy.”

Beatz also opened up about some of the many collaborations on the album, saying DMX was “delighted” about them.

“When Usher came in, he was blown away,” Beatz said. “My wife came and played the piano, and he was making requests for his favourite old songs. You just see him become a kid and a fan and appreciate it. Snoop would pop up on him and cook food for us.

“He went to Griselda’s studio space and did the verse there with them. Bono drew him some artwork and wrote him this letter talking about how it’s amazing having his voice next to another legend’s voice.”

In a review of ‘Exodus’, NME said: “’Walking In The Rain’ is the album’s crowning moment. Produced by DJ Premier and Denaun (who also sings the hook), it’s warm, poignant and full of space. It’s DMX at his best. And even though it features one of rap’s most celebrated lyricists, Nas, not even God’s Son can outshine X on the retrospective redemption song.

“…[It’s] a wonderful tribute record loaded with stellar individual moments, and serves as a beautiful reminder of why the world fell in love with DMX in the first place.”

John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band The Ultimate Collection

For John Lennon’s 30th birthday, Yoko Ono presented him with a sensory box. Fingers could be inserted into holes containing different materials: liquid, say, or a spike. It was a hit, though you’d be forgiven for thinking the birthday boy might’ve preferred something less surprising.

ORDER NOW: The July 2021 issue of Uncut

After all, it’d been a turbulent old year. The Beatles were over. Lennon and Ono had embarked on primal scream therapy, during which Lennon had examined his feelings of abandonment and his grief over his mother’s death. To top it all, he had been unexpectedly reunited with his estranged father Alfred; they celebrated his 30th at Tittenhurst Park, an event that ended with Lennon Jr threatening to kill Lennon Sr.

By that point he was halfway through the recording of his first solo album: a visceral monument to his pain, it marks the peak of the confessional songwriting style he’d dabbled with since 1964’s I’m A Loser, and which had now become his sole métier. At points it feels closer to modern art than music. That’s not just down to the presence of Yoko Ono on “wind”: this is a record you delve into occasionally, when you need to feel something. It wouldn’t be seen dead hanging around with McCartney.

Fifty-one years after its release, it’s now reincarnated as an eight-disc super deluxe boxset comprising 11 hours of material, all newly mixed and a huge tranche of it previously unreleased. The ultimate mix CD presents the original in all its tenebrous beauty, leavened at times by a soulful feel, like deconstructed gospel on God and Mother. Then there’s the following set of themed CDs, all with the standard album tracklisting plus previous singles Give Peace A Chance, Cold Turkey and Instant Karma!: outtakes, elements (new mixes highlighting a key part or two), demos, raw studio mixes and, finally, collages showing the evolution of the songs.

Fascinating changes can be charted: Hold On begins as just guitar and vocals, before Take 2 introduces a double-time beat from Ringo Starr and some nifty fills, and bass chords from Klaus Voormann. “OK, that’ll do,” says Lennon, “we don’t want to get… berserk.” Mother seems to have been the most difficult song to perfect – Take 61 features the familiar piano and wracked vocals, but by Take 91 Lennon is back strumming guitar before eventually returning to piano. “It’s hard to believe [the lyrics] all the way through without being on junk,” laments Lennon to Starr after one aborted take.

READ MORE: Klaus Voormann on George Harrison: “The Quiet One? He wasn’t quiet at all…”

From its acoustic-blues demo, more Southern porch than Tittenhurst terrace, “Well Well Well” is consistently thrilling – “Fucking hell!” says Lennon as the wild Take 4 dissolves into avant-garde racket, while the “elements” mix is as cacophonous and exciting as Revolution. Look At Me is also tried in a variety of ways, solo and strummed, as a full band version, and then finally in the familiar picked White Album style à la Julia.

Instant Karma! appears in a few iterations with its blanket of slapback echo absent; most enlightening is the rootsy, Stax-like studio demo with George Harrison on nimble lead guitar. The elements mix of Cold Turkey, meanwhile, foregrounds a stunning feedback drone throughout the taut funk. Such is the volume of material here, one can forgive the low points, such as the seven practically indistinguishable versions of My Mummy’s Dead.

Despite its dark subject matter, sessions seem to have been relaxed, with rapport beautifully portrayed in the evolution documentary mixes: “You’re talking to folk-blues from the north of Liverpool, you know,” Lennon jokes when he’s asked to count in a track, “you’re not talking to fackin’ Mantovani…” Later, to Phil Spector, “They’re all very slow, except for the fast ones”; and during work on “Isolation”, “We’ll go and hear what we’re doing shall we, gang, before we turn into Edmundo Ros and his jazz quartet.” Particularly touching is Lennon’s scream of “George!” when Harrison enters the studio on his birthday.

The rarest jewels, though, lie in the two outlying discs. The “jams” disc presents, in chronological order, between-take improvisations from Lennon, Starr and Voorman, from a hilarious parody of three Elvis Presley songs to snippets of Get Back and I’ve Got A Feeling.

Of course, Yoko Ono also made her own Plastic Ono Band record – Lennon told Rolling Stone it was “20 years ahead of its time”, but it’s even further out than that – and the final disc, a packed Blu-ray, presents the epic October 10 sessions in full. Eighteen minutes long, Why is electrifyingly modern, predicting Funkadelic and Neu!, while the 16-minute Touch Me and 21-minute Why Not find Lennon showing off what he called his “cinéma vérité” slide guitar style and Ono conjuring up the most otherworldly sounds to whip on Lennon, Starr and Voormann. Unreleased jams Life, Omae No Okaa Wa and the freeform I Lost Myself Somewhere In The Sky are also prescient, the former eerily Can-like in its cyclical beat, high bass guitar and echoed, abstract wails. Unlike Lennon’s anguished record, Ono’s work here is life-affirming, her pain reborn as transcendence.

Honesty would, for better or worse, remain Lennon’s policy for the rest of his career, but he would never make anything quite like John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. As much of a sensory box as a pop record, it remains as arresting and difficult as it was 51 years ago. And, as the man said, that’s reality.

Beatles collaborator Klaus Voormann says 17-year-old George Harrison was “a cocky little boy”

German musician, producer and Beatles collaborator Klaus Voormann has remembered the first time he saw the band’s George Harrison.

READ MORE: The best Beatles biopics… ranked!

Describing an encounter with an early incarnation of The Beatles at Hamburg’s Kaiserkeller in 1960, Voormann said: “The first time I saw George he was only 17 years of age. He was very different to how he was later. He was a cocky little boy! This band he was with was completely unknown.”

Speaking to Uncut magazine he continued: “George was singing all those funny songs, which he did later on a little bit, when he sat around and played ukulele. He was into songs like ‘I’m Henry The Eighth, I Am’, singing it all cockney. He would sing all those Eddie Cochran numbers too, like ‘Twenty Flight Rock’.”

Later in the 1960s, Voormann would move to London and spend time living with Harrison and Ringo Starr. He went on to design the cover for the band’s 1965 album ‘Revolver‘, for which he won a Grammy.

He also played on Harrison’s 1970 album ‘All Things Must Pass’, three of Starr’s solo records and four of John Lennon‘s. He was for a time rumoured to be replacing Paul McCartney in a reformed Beatles project.

Last month, meanwhile, a letter handwritten by Sir Paul McCartney jovially settling a long-standing ‘debt’ over a blanket went up for auction.

The letter was written in September 1989 in response to Irene Brierley, whose farmhouse in Harlech, north Wales McCartney and Harrison stayed in during two occasions in 1958 and 1959 when they went on a pair of hitchhiking holidays.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono documentary ’24 Hours…’ is now available to stream

The mini-documentary about John Lennon and Yoko Ono, titled 24 Hours: The World of John and Yoko, is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video US.

The 30-minute film is available to watch in full for the first time since its initial release on the BBC back in 1969 through Amazon’s Coda Collection.

READ MORE: The NME Big Read – Yoko Ono: Imagine The Future

“Last seen more than 50 years ago, and having aired just once on TV, this intimate documentary – captured over a five-day period – shows a day in the life of John and Yoko while Lennon was still a member of The Beatles, controversies raged and activism became a central concern in the couple’s everyday reality,” an official description reads.

24 Hours… was directed by Paul Morrison and delves into Lennon and Ono’s creative process, with filming having taken place at London’s Abbey Road Studios, Lennon’s Tittenhurst Park estate and the HQ of Apple Records.

You can watch the full film here (a subscription or free trial is required).

Journalist Alan Light provided a new editorial to accompany the new release of 24 Hours: The World of John and Yoko, in which he describes the documentary as “a fascinating snapshot of a hugely transitional moment for John and Yoko” (via Rolling Stone).

“[It is] a portrait of two energized and inspired artist-activists, with a strong sense of purpose and a fearless attitude, even in the face of resistance and ridicule.”

Meanwhile, John Lennon’s debut solo album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ was reissued for a new ‘Ultimate Collection’ box set last month. A special edition of Tim’s Twitter Listening Party also looked back on the 1970 record, with Yoko Ono, Sean Ono Lennon and original Plastic Ono Band member Klaus Voormann among participating guests.

Kanye West’s DMX tribute was “genuine act of love”, says Swizz Beatz

Kanye West and Sunday Service Choir’s tribute to DMX has been hailed as a “genuine act of love” by Swizz Beatz.

READ MORE: DMX, 1970 – 2021: hip-hop giant who shone brightest in the darkness

West performed alongside his gospel choir at DMX’s memorial at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in New York last month, opening the service with a rendition of Soul II Soul’s ‘Keep On Movin’ as well as the hymn ‘Jesus Loves Me’.

During a recent interview with New York radio station Hot 97, Beatz said: “It was a very genuine act of love and support from Ye. You know, it wasn’t too much talking, it wasn’t no negotiating.

“X showed up to his Sunday Service and was a big fan of it so I knew that this was something X would want to do, and Kanye was more than happy to facilitate his expertise and his choir. Shout out to the entire Sunday Service.”

Explaining that West’s appearance at ‘DMX: A Celebration of Life’ was put together at the “last minute”, Beatz said “people didn’t know what we were dealing with behind the scenes”.

“It wasn’t televised but when people got in there, the stage was still being built because everything was so last minute, but we didn’t wanna stop and said, ‘You know what, keep it going’.

“And shout out to the Barclays Center for having super patience with us.”

You can watch the full interview with Swizz Beatz above.

Other notable guests to have attended the memorial for DMX were Nas, Eve, Jadakiss, Styles P and Drag-On. Ahead of the service, the late rapper’s red casket was driven to the Barclays Center on top of a Ruff Ryders monster truck that read “Long Live DMX” on the side.

West also commissioned a line of DMX tribute shirts through his Yeezy fashion label. Designed by Balenciaga, the items raised more than $1million for X’s family after going up for sale at last month’s memorial. The shirts sold out in 24 hours.

DMX died on April 9 from after suffering a heart attack. He was 50 years old.

Ringo Starr remembers John Lennon as “one of the greats” at Plastic Ono Band listening party

Ringo Starr paid tribute to his former Beatles bandmate John Lennon as “a brilliant artist and a brilliant man” during a worldwide listening party.

READ MORE: In a year of lockdown, Tim’s Twitter Listening Parties have been a source of joy

As Tim Burgess‘ latest Twitter Listening Party turned its attention to the upcoming ‘Ultimate Collection’ box set reissue of the Beatles icon’s 1970 debut solo album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ (celebrating its 50th anniversary), the drummer wrote: “It’s so incredible, the emotion on this record, just mind blowing. The sparseness of the band, the force of John Lennon. That’s why he’s one of the greats.”

Addressing suggestions that Lennon frequently worried about the quality of his singing voice, Starr wrote: “John always wanted a lot of echo on his voice. He had a great voice and when he was singing, he gave all of that. I don’t feel personally he was insecure about his voice. Everybody wants to be someone else, to be different.”

Peace & Love everyone! Great to join #TimsTwitterListeningParty. It's so incredible, the emotion on this record, just mind blowing. The sparseness of the band, the force of @JohnLennon. That's why he's one of the greats. This record proves it more than most ?✌️?❤️ Peace & Love pic.twitter.com/bHqICStpsH

— #RingoStarr (@ringostarrmusic) April 24, 2021

John always wanted a lot of echo on his voice. He had a great voice and when he was singing, he gave all of that. I don't feel personally he was insecure about his voice. Everybody wants to be someone else, to be different. ✌️?️ Peace and Love pic.twitter.com/7IYRpscUks

— #RingoStarr (@ringostarrmusic) April 24, 2021

In his final tweet about the experience, Starr added: “It is an incredibly cool record. It’s a beautiful record and he was a beautiful man and I’m privileged to feel he was my friend. Great to be a part of Plastic Ono Band.”

It is an incredibly cool record. It's a beautiful record and he was a beautiful man and I'm privileged to feel he was my friend. Great to be a part of #PlasticOnoBand #TimsTwitterListeningParty ?✌️?❤️ Peace and Love! pic.twitter.com/2GOFbl3fzs

— #RingoStarr (@ringostarrmusic) April 24, 2021

Earlier this week (April 20), a new video was shared for John Lennon‘s classic ‘Isolation’, filled with Easter egg glimpses into his life with Yoko Ono.

READ MORE: Check out previously unseen photos of John Lennon and Yoko Ono from new book ‘John & Yoko / Plastic Ono Band’

Taken from the upcoming ‘Ultimate Collection’ box set reissue of the Beatles icon’s 1970 debut solo album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’, the video for the ‘Raw Studio Mix’ of the track was filmed upstairs at John and Yoko’s home at Tittenhurst Park in Berkshire on July 16, 1971.

It follows the recent release of a never-seen-before performance of ‘Give Peace A Chance’, and newly-unearthed footage of John and Yoko in a video for ‘Look At Me’.

Cinema visited by George Harrison and John Lennon saved from demolition

A cinema George Harrison and John Lennon spent their teenage years attending has been saved from demolition.

The Abbey Cinema in Wavertree, Liverpool which featured in The Beatles‘ personal writings and the original lyrics of their 1966 song ‘In My Life’, officially closed in 1979.

The cinema, which was designed by renowned architect and Liverpool City Council leader Sir Alfred Ernest Shennan, first opened in 1939.

It has since been used as a bingo hall, snooker club and, most recently a Co-op supermarket, which closed its doors last year.

Save the Abbey Cinema building! – Sign the Petition! https://t.co/YLJRrogumf via @UKChange

— Andi (@ArmitageAndi) April 8, 2021

Supermarket chain Lidl has called for the building to be knocked down to make way for a new store.

But following a campaign to preserve the building by Save Britain’s Heritage, Historic England has now given it a Grade II listed status.

HE listings advisor Sarah Charlesworth told BBC News that she hoped “a sustainable new use” could now be found for the building.

“We hope that the owner and the local community will now come together to find a sustainable new use for this remarkable building,” she added.

Meanwhile, Peter Jackson’s forthcoming The Beatles: Get Back documentary is due for release on August 27, after the original release date was moved due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking about the film recently, Ringo Starr said he was delighted that the Lord of the Rings director took over 56 hours of footage from that era and made it into the forthcoming documentary.

He also criticised the original 1970 Beatles documentary Let It Be for being “too miserable”.

“I didn’t feel any joy in the original documentary, it was all focused on one moment which went down between two of the lads [Paul McCartney and Harrison],” said Starr. “The rooftop concert [unannounced Beatles gig from the Apple Corps rooftop in 1969] was also only about seven to eight minutes long. With Peter’s [documentary] it’s 43 minutes long. It’s about the music and a lot of joy.”

Dave Grohl writes foreword for first-ever John Bonham biography

Dave Grohl has written the foreword for the first-ever John Bonham biography, Beast: John Bonham And The Rise Of Led Zeppelin.

READ MORE: Led Zeppelin – rank the albums

The Foo Fighters frontman and former Nirvana drummer has contributed to journalist C.M. Kushins’ forthcoming book on the legendary Led Zeppelin drummer (out September 7).

No details nor excerpts from Grohl’s entry have been released, although he’s been vocal in the past about his adoration for the late star.

He once told Rolling Stone [sourced via FooArchive]: “John Bonham played the drums like someone who didn’t know what was going to happen next – like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff. No one has come close to that since, and I don’t think anybody ever will. I think he will forever be the greatest drummer of all time.

“You have no idea how much he influenced me. I spent years in my bedroom – literally fucking years – listening to Bonham’s drums and trying to emulate his swing or his behind-the-beat swagger or his speed or power. Not just memorising what he did on those albums but getting myself into a place where I would have the same instinctual direction as he had.”

John Bonham performs with Led Zeppelin at LA’s The Forum in 1973. CREDIT: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Beast: John Bonham And The Rise Of Led Zeppelin is set to tell the story of Bonham’s rise from being a self-taught drummer at the age of five to being in one of the most successful rock bands all of all time. He died in 1980 at the age of 32.

To this day, Bonham is posthumously described as one of the most important and influential drummers in rock – often topping best-of lists. Adam Budofsky, managing editor of Modern Drummer, once wrote [via Blabbermouth]: “If the king of rock ‘n’ roll was Elvis Presley, then the king of rock drumming was certainly John Bonham.”

In other news, Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has joined calls for fairer payments to artists from streaming services.

John Lennon’s ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ to be featured on ‘Tim’s Twitter Listening Party’

John Lennon‘s debut solo studio album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ is to be the focus of a forthcoming Tim’s Twitter Listening Party, with the first-ever performance of ‘Give Peace A Chance’ also being shared online.

It comes after it was announced that the 1970 record is being reissued for a new ‘Ultimate Collection’ box set, which is due for release this coming Friday (April 16).

READ MORE: Check out previously unseen photos of John Lennon and Yoko Ono from new book ‘John & Yoko / Plastic Ono Band’

This afternoon (April 13), Tim Burgess confirmed plans for an online listen-through of the album on Saturday, April 24. Fans will be able to press play and get involved from 6pm BST that evening, with special guests Yoko Ono, Sean Ono Lennon and original Plastic Ono Band member Klaus Voormann among those set to participate.

Ono’s friend, personal assistant and ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ cover photographer Dan Richter, mixer/engineer Paul Hicks and the audio team behind the new ‘Ultimate Collection’ will also appear during the online event.

Taking to Twitter Spaces following the listening party, Burgess and guests will discuss the LP with BBC Radio 6 Music’s Chris Hawkins. Check out the announcement tweet below, and visit here for further details.

Saturday April 24th
6pm BST / 1pm EDT / 10am PDT@johnlennon / Plastic Ono Band will be our featured @LlSTENlNG_PARTY album with special guests @yokoono Klaus Voormann @seanonolennon + sleeve photographer Dan Richter, mixer Paul Hicks & the entire Ultimate Collection audio team pic.twitter.com/9xuGig9FMK

— Tim Burgess (@Tim_Burgess) April 13, 2021

The first-ever performance of John and Yoko’s ‘Give Peace A Chance’ has also been shared today in the form of a never-before-seen video for the song’s demo version, which will appear on the new ‘Ultimate Collection’.

Shot in 1969 in Montreal, the restored 5K footage captures the pair at their Bed-In for Peace stunt at the city’s Queen Elizabeth Hotel. We see Lennon play acoustic guitar, with Ono joining in on vocals in the clip.

You can watch the new video below.

‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’, co-produced by Phil Spector and once described by Lennon as “the best thing I’ve ever done”, featured Ringo Starr on drums and Klaus Voormann on bass. It includes the songs ‘Working Class Hero’, ‘Isolation’, ‘God’, ‘Look At Me’ and ‘God’.

In the preface of the new box set’s accompanying book, Ono wrote: “With the Plastic Ono Band albums, John and I liked the idea of this really raw, basic, truthful reality that we were going to be giving to the world.

“We were influencing other artists, giving them courage, giving dignity to a certain style of vulnerability and strength that was not accepted in society at the time. It was a revolution for a Beatle to say, ‘Listen: I’m human, I’m real.’ It took a lot of courage for him to do it.”

You can find out more about and pre-order the ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band – The Ultimate Collection’ here. A special unboxing video for the box set can be viewed here.

Letters from The Beatles’ Hamburg years to go up for auction

Letters and memorabilia from The Beatles’ time in Hamburg are set to go up for auction in London next month.

The iconic band played over 250 shows in the German city between August 1960 and December 1962, with their time gigging and some of the relationships they formed there helping to propel them to fame in the UK and beyond.

READ MORE: The best Beatles biopics… ranked!

The new auction lot will include previously unseen letters, work permits, photos, drawings, poems and more. Some of the items were sent by the band to photographer Astrid Kirchherr, who was engaged to former Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe after meeting them in Hamburg.

The group were close with Kirchherr and wrote to her when they were back in the UK. In one letter that is going up for auction, George Harrison invited her to visit him and Ringo Starr in their new flat and instructed her not to put his name on the envelope when she wrote back.

Astrid Kirchherr and John Lennon during the filming of The Beatles’ ‘A Hard Day’s Night’. Credit: Max Scheler/Redferns

In another, John Lennon told her: “I’m really sorry you are so sad and uncertain about yourself. You must know that Cyn [Lennon’s first wife Cynthia], I and the other Beatles will always feel the same about you. You will always be Stuart’s Astrid to us.”

In that letter, he also shared the news that Cynthia was pregnant with “this little John inside her” – aka his first son Julian.

The items will go under the hammer at Bonhams auction house in London on May 5. “The Beatles’ time in Hamburg was absolutely crucial to them,” Bonham’s head of entertainment memorabilia Katherine Schofield told the Guardian. “It’s fair to say that they came to Germany as boys and left as men.”

Kirchherr died last May, a few days before her 82nd birthday. She had taken The Beatles’ first-ever known photograph when they were still a five-piece. She also was the person who first suggested the band cut their hair into their iconic mop-top style.

Paul McCartney paid tribute to her when news of her death broke, saying: “Astrid was a dear friend from my Hamburg days with The Beatles […] Astrid took beautiful photographs of us. She used black and white film and achieved a stunning mood in her pictures that we all loved.

“So sad for all of us who were her friends to lose such a lovely lady from our lives. I will miss her but will always remember her and her cheeky grin with great fondness.”

Watch unearthed footage of John Lennon and Yoko Ono in ‘Look At Me’ video

A new video for John Lennon‘s 1970 song ‘Look At Me’ has been released – you can watch it below.

READ MORE: Every John Lennon solo album ranked in order of greatness

Shared by The John Lennon Estate, the black and white and colour video, shot on 8 mm film, features never-before-seen footage of Lennon and wife Yoko Ono Lennon from 1968, captured in their home in Weybridge, Surrey.

The song’s ultimate mix appears on John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’s ‘The Ultimate Collection’ box set, which arrives on April 23 via Capitol/UMe. The eight-disc release will commemorate 50 years since Lennon’s debut solo album.

Originally released in December 1970, ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ was recorded shortly after the demise of The Beatles. The record, which was co-produced by Phil Spector and once described by Lennon as “the best thing I’ve ever done”, featured Ringo Starr on drums and Klaus Voormann on bass and included the songs ‘Working Class Hero’, ‘Isolation’ and ‘God’.

Watch the video for ‘Look At Me’ below:

Ono personally oversaw the production and creative direction of the new reissue, which includes rare demos, rehearsals, outtakes, jams and studio conversations as well as 87 never-before-heard recordings. The full live recording session of Ono’s companion LP, ‘Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band’, is also included, presenting the songs in their full, unedited lengths and speed for the first time.

In the preface of the box set’s accompanying book, Ono wrote: “With the Plastic Ono Band albums, John and I liked the idea of this really raw, basic, truthful reality that we were going to be giving to the world.

You can find out more about and pre-order the ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band – The Ultimate Collection’ here. A special unboxing video for the box set can be viewed here.

Meanwhile, Paul McCartney has opened up about his friendship with Lennon in a new interview.

Alabama Shakes drummer Steven William Johnson arrested on child abuse charges

Steven William Johnson, the drummer of rock band Alabama Shakes, has been arrested on child abuse charges.

As local news outlet WHNT reports, Johnson was arrested last Wednesday (March 24) after a grand jury indicted him on charges of wilful torture, wilful abuse, and cruelly beating or otherwise wilfully maltreating a child under the age of 18.

The drummer was taken to Limestone County Jail and had his bond set at £15,600 ($21,500). His arraignment is currently scheduled for April 7.

NME has contacted representatives for Alabama Shakes for comment.

Alabama Shakes’ last album was ‘Sound and Color’, released in 2015. Over the course of their career, the Athens, Alabama group have earned nine Grammy nominations and won four. Johnson was a founding member of the band, performing on both ‘Sound and Color’ and their 2012 debut, ‘Boys and Girls’.

The band went on hiatus in 2018 as lead vocalist Brittany Howard went on to pursue a solo career. Her debut album ‘Jaime’ was released in 2019.

Back in 2019, Johnson was arrested for violating a protection from abuse order, which he pled guilty to in March 2020. The protection order was issued after Johnson’s ex-wife accused him of threatening and harassing her. She also accused Johnson of choking, injuring and stalking her, according to AL.com.

Listen to Saxon’s roaring cover of The Beatles’ ‘Paperback Writer’

Saxon have shared a roaring cover of The Beatles‘ ‘Paperback Writer’ – listen to it below.

Read more: The Beatles’ split 50 years on: the best songs from the solo careers

The British heavy metal legends are gearing up to release a covers album called ‘Inspirations’, due out on March 19 via Silver Lining Music.

Recorded at Brockfield Hall, near York, the album will hear Saxon cover songs by Jimi Hendrix, Motörhead, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Toto and more.

Speaking on the band’s decision to cover ‘Paperback Writer’, frontman Biff Byford said: “I saw The Beatles on TV for the first time in 1963. It was a very inspirational moment for me to think maybe I could be in a band.”

Listen to Saxon’s take on the classic Beatles record below:

Byford said of the ‘Inspirations’: “We didn’t want to change any of the songs too much, just play them more like Saxon and we also think it’s very important to have – and share with the fans – some fun in these dark times.”

See the ‘Inspirations’ tracklist below:

01. ‘Paint It Black’
02. ‘Immigrant Song’
03. ‘Paperback Writer’
04. ‘Evil Woman’
05. ‘Stone Free’
06. ‘Bomber’
07. ‘Speed King’
08. ‘The Rocker’
09. ‘Hold The Line’
10. ‘Problem Child’
11. ‘See My Friends’

Last month, Paul McCartney announced a career-spanning book about his life through 154 songs from his back catalogue.

‘The Lyrics’, which is due for release on November 2, will recount the musician’s life through his earliest boyhood compositions, songs by The Beatles, Wings and from his lengthy solo career.

Meanwhile, John Lennon‘s debut solo studio album ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ is set to be reissued next month for a new ‘Ultimate Collection’ box set.

Watch Athletic Bilbao players cover AC/DC’s ‘Highway To Hell’ to celebrate beating Barcelona

A group of Athletic Bilbao footballers celebrated their triumphant cup-winning victory over Barcelona last weekend by covering AC/DC‘s ‘Highway To Hell’ – check out the clip of them performing below.

Bilbao upset the odds on Sunday (January 17) as they beat Barcelona 3-2 after extra time to win the Spanish Super Cup, or Supercopa de España.

Read more: AC/DC on their explosive comeback record ‘Power Up’: “This album is for Malcolm”

Six Bilbao players – Dani García, Óscar de Marcos, Mikel Vesga, Mikel Balenziaga, Iñigo Lekue and Asier Villalibre – teamed up as the club celebrated in a Seville hotel following the game to perform AC/DC’s classic 1979 track.

You can watch the Bilbao players’ cover of ‘Highway To Hell’ below.

Athletic Bilbao's Supercopa celebrations are getting out of hand – they've formed an AC/DC tribute band.

That's Dani García on drums, Óscar de Marcos, Mikel Vesga and Mikel Balenziaga on guitar, Iñigo Lekue on bass and Asier Villalibre on vocals.pic.twitter.com/Le2QgEGbYm

— The Blizzard (@blzzrd) January 19, 2021

In other AC/DC news, the veteran band shared the innovative new video for their song ‘Realize’ last week.

Taken from their recent comeback album ‘Power Up’, ‘Realize’ is the latest track to be given the AC/DC visual treatment – although the band evidently had to navigate the coronavirus pandemic in order to film the video.

Directors Clemens Habicht and Josh Cheuse (who serves as the band’s creative director) were able to present the impression of the five members of AC/DC performing ‘Realize’ in the same room together despite the fact that each member filmed their part individually in five separate locations, presumably due to the pandemic.

Angus Young also confirmed recently that AC/DC didn’t write any music with Axl Rose while the Guns N’ Roses frontman stood in for Brian Johnson on their ‘Rock Or Bust’ tour in 2016.

David Bowie was “terrified” of meeting John Lennon for the first time

David Bowie was “terrified” when he met John Lennon for the first time, according to his longtime collaborator and producer Tony Visconti.

Visconti recounted the significant meeting while speaking on the new radio special Bowie: Dancing Out in Space, which will air on BBC Radio 6 Music and BBC Radio 4 on Sunday evening (January 10).

Read more: An oral history of David Bowie’s ‘Blackstar’ – five years on from his death

The show is part of a series of Bowie programmes which are airing on the BBC this weekend to mark five years since the late star’s death.

Visconti has detailed how Bowie and Lennon first met in a New York hotel room before they collaborated on Bowie’s classic 1975 song ‘Fame’, saying that he was asked to accompany Bowie to the hotel room in order to “buffer the situation”.

“About one in the morning I knocked on the door and for about the next two hours, John Lennon and David weren’t speaking to each other. Instead, David was sitting on the floor with an art pad and a charcoal and he was sketching things and he was completely ignoring Lennon,” Visconti recalled.

David Bowie in 1976 (Picture: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

“So, after about two hours of that, he [John] finally said to David, ‘Rip that pad in half and give me a few sheets. I want to draw you.’ So David said, ‘Oh, that’s a good idea’, and he finally opened up.

“So John started making caricatures of David and David started doing the same of John, and they kept swapping them and then they started laughing and that broke the ice,” Visconti said, adding that the pair’s “great friendship” was formed from there.

Bowie invited Lennon to work with him a week later on his cover of the Lennon-written Beatles song ‘Across the Universe’, which, along with ‘Fame’, ended up featuring on Bowie’s 1975 album ‘Young Americans’.

Bowie’s previously unreleased covers of John Lennon‘s ‘Mother’ and Bob Dylan‘s ‘Tryin’ to Get to Heaven’ have been shared for the first time today (January 8) to mark what would have been the late artist’s 74th birthday.

Viagra Boys drop upbeat album cut ‘Girls & Boys’

Viagra Boys have released another satirical cut from their brand new album ‘Welfare Jazz’, a rhetoric track entitled ‘Girls & Boys’.

Read more: Viagra Boys – ‘Welfare Jazz’ review: satirical post-punk bangers with a ‘yeehaw!’ spirit

Dropping today (January 8) to coincide with the release of the Swedish band’s sophomore album, ‘Girls & Boys’ was produced by Matt Sweeney (Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Run The Jewels), Justin and Jeremiah Raisen (Sky Ferreira, Kim Gordon), and past collaborators Pelle Gunnerfeldt and Daniel “Fagge” Fagerström (The Hives, The Knife).

The song has been released alongside a live performance, filmed as part of Viagra Boys’ YouTube Shrimp Sessions 2 series.

Watch the live performance of ‘Girls & Boys’ below:

Videos for previously released album cuts also dropped in the run-up to the release of ‘Welfare Jazz’.

Along with Amy Taylor of Amyl and The Sniffers, Viagra Boys released a cover of the late John Prine‘s ‘In Spite Of Ourselves’ last month. Before that, tracks ‘Creatures’ and ‘Ain’t Nice’ were also released.

In their four-star review of ‘Welfare Jazz’, NME said Viagra Boys were “leaning into the madness of the modern era”, adding that “satire’s the word here”.

Recently, the band confirmed they’ve already recorded the follow-up to ‘Welfare Jazz’, an album that seems to have been largely self-produced, according to bassist Henrik ‘Benke’ Höckert.

In an interview with the 101 Part Time Jobs podacast, Höckert said, “[We recorded it with] just a studio technician…. we wanted to try out to just do it ourselves. We rehearsed a lot before we recorded that one, so it’s gonna sound a little bit more live.

“I think we’re pretty good at the live show thing, so we’d like to bring that forward.”

Whodini’s John “Ecstasy” Fletcher has died, aged 56

John Fletcher – aka Ecstasy, a founding member of Whodini – has reportedly died at the age of 56.

Questlove broke the news of the rapper’s death on Instagram earlier today (December 23). The cause of death has been made public at the time of writing.

“One Love to Ecstasy of the Legendary #Whodini,” he wrote. “This man was legendary and a pivotal member of one of the most legendary groups in hip hop. This is sad man.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Questlove (@questlove)

Fletcher formed the rap trio with Jalil Hutchins in Brooklyn in 1982, filling out the line-up with J Grandmaster Dee (aka Drew Carter) in 1986. Together, they released six albums, including their self-titled 1983 debut and 1987’s ‘Open Sesame’.

Whodini were credited with leading the way for new jack swing and scored their biggest hits with the tracks ‘Friends’, ‘Five Minutes Of Funk’, ‘One Love’ and ‘Funky Beat’. Their single ‘Magic’s Wand’ was also the first rap single to be accompanied by a video.

The group were recognised for their contribution to hip-hop with numerous awards during their career, including at the VH1 Hip-Hop Honours and, most recently in 2018, at the Third Black Music Honours.

Tributes have begun to be paid for Ecstasy online. “RIP to Ecstasy from Whodini,” wrote Q-Tip. “One of the most under appreciated voices in hip hop. Too many hits! Condolences to his fam.”

“My God, this one hurts me so bad, I can’t even believe I’m posting this,” Jermaine Dupri said. “Ex you know I love you. Thank you for every word, every conversation, every good time. May your soul Rest In Power.”

LL Cool J added that Ecstasy was “one of the most important people in this culture to me”. “I can’t believe you’re gone,” he wrote on Instagram. “My friend. Exstasy rest in power.”

See those and more tributes below.

My God, this one hurts me so bad,I can’t even believe I’m posting this,Ex you know I love you ???? thank you for every word,every conversation every good time,may your soul Rest In Power ??? #whodini q pic.twitter.com/6RGuOankWl

— Jermaine Dupri (@jermainedupri) December 23, 2020

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by LL COOL J (@llcoolj)

1987 I entered the @Defjam tour w PE. I tended to be nervous looking at 15000 fans in front of me every night. There were 2 MCS that directly mentored my calm that summer. 1 was @RealDougEFresh the other was Ecstacy of Whodini. Always there to reassure w advice tips #RestInBeats pic.twitter.com/UzCj5RN4ve

— Chuck D (@MrChuckD) December 23, 2020

Just got the sad news, Ecstasy of #Whodini passed away today.. Thank you for the music of my youth.. I always loved the Zorro hat!!! Condolences to his family. pic.twitter.com/6zdSQTdAI4

— Loni Love (@LoniLove) December 23, 2020

Rip Ecstasy of Whodini. A good brotha gone too soon! ???? pic.twitter.com/eO6ooFRtCA

— DJ POOH (@DJPooh) December 23, 2020

Today we lost a member of our Hip-Hop family whose vocals were unmistakable and whose presence is irreplaceable. Our thoughts & prayers are with friends & family of John “Ecstasy” Fletcher of Whodini. #RIP ?? pic.twitter.com/pBblWmgMKV

— Rock The Bells (@RockTheBells) December 23, 2020

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 »

Search results for john beat

Recommended

Recommended

Recommended

Recommended

Hello Kunt. What can you tell us about your thoughts on Boris Johnson and the Tories’ recent conduct and controversies – and how they’ve been behaving and handling themselves over the last year?

Do you have a message for Boris Johnson and the Tories?

Have you had any feedback from Tory MPs or members on the tracks?

What can you tell us about the songs you’ve sampled on this single?

What do you make of your chances of hitting Number One this Christmas?

What are your thoughts on the songs by Elton, Sheeran and LadBaby?

What would it mean if you did hit Number One?