The Beatles Book (also known as Beatles Monthly) was founded in 1963. It was first published in August 1963 and continued for 77 editions until it stopped publication after the December 1969 edition. It was revived in 1976, and ceased publication in 2003.
In early 1963 a publisher, Sean O’Mahony, (who already published a magazine about the music scene called Beat Instrumental) heard Please Please Me and asked Brian Epstein if he could publish a magazine devoted to The Beatles. Epstein and the group agreed and the title launched in August 1963 with a print run of 80,000. By the end of the year circulation had grown to 330,000 copies per month. O’Mahony edited the magazine under the name of Johnny Dean.
The magazine’s photographer, Leslie Bryce, had unrivalled access to the group throughout the 1960s, travelling the world and taking thousands of photographs. In addition, Beatles roadies Neil Aspinall and Mal Evans wrote many of the articles, and artist Bob Gibson created numerous cartoons and caricatures of the fab four on a regular basis. (He eventually did the cartoons for the Beatles’ 1967 Magical Mystery Tour EP-set/US-album booklet.)
In May 1976 O’Mahony revived the publication and republished all 77 original issues surrounded by eight (later sixteen) pages of new Beatles news and articles. The reissue programme was completed in September 1982, coincidentally at a time when interest in the band was high due to the impending twentieth anniversary of “Love Me Do”. Consequently, the decision was taken to continue the magazine with all new content. Publication continued until January 2003 (Issue 321) when it once again ceased.(by wikipedia)
Enjoy this sentimental trip in the early days of the fab four …
Little Charlie & the Nightcats (now billed as Rick Estrin & the Nightcats) is an American four-piece electric blues and swing revival combo, currently consisting of guitarist Kid Andersen, harmonicist and lead vocalist Rick Estrin, bassist Lorenzo Farrell and drummer J. Hansen.
On January 27th, 2016, folk icon Joan Baez celebrated her 75th birthday with a historic performance at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. The special event honored her legendary 50-plus years in music in an intimate, career-spanning live performance. Baez performed alongside fellow artists and friends, including: David Bromberg, Jackson Browne, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Judy Collins, David Crosby, Indigo Girls, Emmylou Harris, Damien Rice, Paul Simon, Mavis Staples, Nano Stern and Richard Thompson.
This extraordinary band take earlier forms of jazz and do radical things to them. It’s not done to mock or parody them in any way, but to coax out hidden delights and add a few of their own. It’s witty and stimulating, and it depends on the superb musicianship of just four players – their pinpoint accuracy of timing and tonal delicacy, not to mention originality and sheer instrumental technique. I know of nothing else quite like it. (The Guardian)
Emerson, Lake & Palmer took an extended break in 1974. They regrouped in 1976 to record Works Volume 1 at Mountain Studios in Montreux, Switzerland and EMI Studios in Paris, France. It is a double album with one side of an LP containing songs by each member and a fourth of group material. Much of the album was recorded with an orchestral accompaniment; Emerson’s side consists of his 18-minute, three-movement “Piano Concerto No. 1”. Lake contributes five songs he co-wrote with Sinfield, and Palmer’s includes two covers of classical pieces by Sergei Prokofiev and Bach. One of the two group tracks, “Fanfare for the Common Man”, is a cover of the same-titled orchestral piece by Aaron Copland, who gave permission to have the band release it. Works Volume 1 was released in March 1977 and peaked at No. 9 in the UK and No. 12 in the US. A single of “Fanfare for the Common Man” was released and reached No. 2 in the UK, the band’s highest charting UK single.
Aram Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto in D minor was completed in 1940 and dedicated to the Russian violinist David Oistrakh, who premièred the concerto in Moscow on September 16, 1940. Oistrakh advised Khachaturian on the composition of the solo part and also wrote his own cadenza that markedly differs from the one originally composed by Khachaturian. The concerto was initially well received and awarded the Stalin Prize for arts in 1941. The work became a staple of the 20th century violin repertoire, and maintains its popularity into the 21st century.
Oistrakh received many awards and distinctions. Within the Soviet Union, David Oistrakh was awarded the Stalin Prize in 1943, the title of People’s Artist of the USSR in 1953, and the Lenin Prize in 1960. He also won the 1935 Soviet Union Competition. Several reputable works from the standard violin repertoire are dedicated to Oistrakh, including a concerto by Khachaturian, two concerti by Shostakovich, and several other pieces.
Phantom, Rocker & Slick was an American rock band active in the mid-1980s. The bandmembers were drummer Slim Jim Phantom, bassist Lee Rocker, and guitarist Earl Slick. Phantom and Rocker had previously played together as members of the Stray Cats. They released two albums, Phantom, Rocker & Slick and Cover Girl, on EMI Records before disbanding.
Billboard 200. Its first single was “Men Without Shame” and was written in ten minutes. It did well on the Top Rock Tracks chart peaking at number 7[6] and was played in the active rotation on MTV. The single “My Mistake” also appeared on the Top Rock Tracks chart, peaking at 33,[8] and featured Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones on guitar. Nicky Hopkins also made a guest appearance on the album, playing piano on the track “No Regrets”.
Dr. Feelgood was the ultimate working band. From their formation in 1971 to lead vocalist Lee Brilleaux’s untimely death in 1994, the band never left the road, playing hundreds of gigs every year. Throughout their entire career, Dr. Feelgood never left simple, hard-driving rock & roll behind, and their devotion to the blues and R&B earned them a devoted fan base. That following first emerged in the mid-’70s, when Dr. Feelgood became the leader of the second wave of pub rockers. Unlike Brinsley Schwarz, the laid-back leaders of the pub rock scene, Dr. Feelgood was devoted to edgy, Stonesy rock & roll, and their sweaty live shows — powered by Brilleaux’s intense singing and guitarist Wilko Johnson’s muscular leads — became legendary. While the group’s stripped-down, energetic sound paved the way for English punk rock in the late ’70s, their back-to-basics style was overshadowed by the dominance of punk and new wave, and the group had retreated to cult status by the early ’80s.
According to legend, Down by the Jetty was recorded in mono and consisted almost entirely of first takes. While it was in fact recorded in stereo, the rumor added significantly to Dr. Feelgood’s purist image, and the album became a cult hit. The following year, the group released Malpractice — also their first U.S. release — which climbed into the U.K. Top 20 on the strength of the band’s live performances and positive reviews. In 1976, the band released the live album Stupidity, which became a smash hit in Britain, topping the album charts. Despite its thriving British success, Dr. Feelgood was unable to find an audience in the States. One other American album, Sneakin’ Suspicion, followed in 1977 before the band gave up on the States; they never released another record in the U.S.
Sir George Shearing, OBE (13 August 1919 – 14 February 2011) was a British jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for Discovery Records, MGM Records and Capitol Records. The composer of over 300 titles, including the jazz standard “Lullaby of Birdland”, had multiple albums on the Billboard charts during the 1950s, 1960s, 1980s and 1990s. He died of heart failure in New York City, at the age of 91.
In 1970, he began to “phase out his by-now-predictable quintet” and disbanded the group in 1978. One of his more notable albums during this period was The Reunion, with George Shearing (Verve 1976), made in collaboration with bassist Andy Simpkins and drummer Rusty Jones, and featuring Stéphane Grappelli, the musician with whom he had debuted as a sideman decades before. Later, Shearing played with a trio, as a soloist and increasingly in a duo. Among his collaborations were sets with the Montgomery Brothers, Marian McPartland, Brian Q. Torff, Jim Hall, Hank Jones and Kenny Davern. In 1979, Shearing signed with Concord Records, and recorded for the label with Mel Tormé. This collaboration garnered Shearing and Tormé two Grammys, one in 1983 and another in 1984.
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