by Larry Kane
The early Beatles in a Liverpool studio in March 1962, five months before drummer Pete Best (second from left) faces the unthinkable.
The “boys,” now with Ringo Starr as drummer, on a Liverpool street in February 1963.
John Lennon with mother Julia outside of Mendips—the home of Julia’s sister, Mimi—a residence he called home until early adulthood.
Mary McCartney with sons Paul (left) and Michael. Along with father James, the McCartneys rose from humble roots to join the middle class.
Richard Starkey (a.k.a. Ringo Starr) with mother Elsie, at home in the late 1940s. Elsie worked long hours to support her sickly son.
Twelve-year-old George Harrison with his favorite companion, the guitar, at home in Liverpool in 1955.
Proud parents Harry and Louise Harrison help George pack for the Beatles’ first trip to America in February 1964.
John Lennon’s first band, the Quarrymen, in the St. Peter’s Church Rose Queen procession, July 6, 1957, the day of the historic first meeting between John and Paul.
Later that day, John leads the Quarrymen onstage at the Rose Queen festival. (L-R) Eric Griffiths, Colin Hanton, Rod Davis, John Lennon, Pete Shotton, Len Garry.
Paul McCartney (second from left) is photographed for the first time with the Quarrymen, performing at the New Clubmoor Hall in Liverpool, November 1957.
Paul (left) and John perform with the Quarrymen at Mona Best’s Casbah Club on August 19, 1959. The young lady to the right is Cynthia Powell, who would marry John in 1962.
The Beatles at the Indra Club on August 17, 1960, their first night in Hamburg. (L-R) John, George, Pete, Paul, Stu Sutcliffe.
Stu (left) and John onstage with the Beatles at Hamburg’s Top Ten Club in 1961.
The glow of love surrounds Stu Sutcliffe and Astrid Kirchherr in April 1961, photographed in Hamburg by another influential Beatles friend, Jürgen Vollmer.
Mersey Beat publisher Bill Harry (right) presents the boys with their very first award, the Mersey Beat Popularity Poll Shield.
Lovebirds Bill and Virginia Harry. She gave him the loan to start Mersey Beat; he gave her the ring.
Mona Best, a powerful force in the Beatles early years, is photographed with her son Pete in December 1961, the day the Beatles signed a contract with Brian Epstein.
The Mersey Beat edition featuring the controversial poll results declaring the Beatles the Number One band in Merseyside.
Flashing his signature smile, early Beatles promoter Sam Leach reunites with Paul McCartney and wife Linda in Liverpool, 1984.
Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein in his London office, 1965. The handsome chief executive propelled the Beatles to success while hiding a complex personal life.
A personal hero to each of the Beatles, Lonnie Donegan, “The King of Skiffle,” was a superstar in Great Britain whose impact was felt for decades.
Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas. John Lennon was so fond of Billy that he urged Kramer to record several Lennon and McCartney compositions. (Clockwise from top left) Mike Maxfield, Billy J. (center), Robin MacDonald, Ray Jones, Tony Mansfield.
Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, with Ringo Starr on drums, at the Tower Ballroom in 1961. Storm’s gyrating, athletic, and magnetic stage presence greatly influenced the Beatles and brought him praise in Merseyside and Hamburg. (L-R) Johnny “Guitar” Byrne, Rory, Ringo, Lou Walters, Ty O’Brien.
Gerry Marsden has been loved in Northern England for decades. (L-R) Gerry, Les Chadwick, Les Maguire, Fred Marsden.
Unheralded in most accounts of the era, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates were emulated by the Beatles. (L-R) Johnny Spence, Frank Farley, Johnny Kidd, Mick Green.
The Merseybeats, pictured here in 1963, often shared a stage with the Beatles and were among the boys’ biggest supporters. (L-R) Aaron Williams, Tony Crane, John Banks, Billy Kinsley.
Stylish and filled with drama and excitement, writer and promoter Derek Taylor (left) was a critical force in the Beatles’ takeover of the world’s music in 1963–1964.
Paul McCartney and Mal Evans in Boston, 1964. Evans spent most of his early adult life serving the Beatles in various ways. His death in 1976 was shocking, and his true impact on the Beatles’ success was never fully recognized.
Paul with Freda Kelly, secretary to the Beatles and Brian Epstein. Freda’s stories of the boys are filled with admiration and respect.
Described by the author as the most talented press officer he ever met, Tony Barrow (right) shares a moment with Brian Epstein in 1966.
The manager of the Beatles’ empire through five decades, Neil Aspinall leads the boys out of the London Palladium in October 1963, with hundreds of teenagers in pursuit.
Photographer Albert Marrion’s famous studio photo of the Beatles, with Pete Best on drums and the boys all in leather, taken on December 17, 1961.
The makeover by Brian Epstein begins. This photo from early 1962 shows the initial style changes ordered by Epstein.
The makeover continues. The contrast in the band’s look from just a year earlier is striking at this October 1963 Palladium concert.
Collarless and coiffed, “Mod” style takes over as the former leather-and-denim boys startle the fashion world, 1963.
Poised to embark on their first American invasion, the Beatles pose for a close-up in this October 14, 1963, photo.
The boys perform on February 19, 1963, at the famous Cavern Club in Liverpool, where they would make nearly three hundred appearances.
For the Beatles, Rory Storm was a model for success. They were addicted to success, and not shy about learning. The sometimes inhibited boys learned so much about stage presence from Storm. After all, they played on the same programs from Liverpool to Germany over a period of three and a half years.
Was Rory Storm bitter over his mentoring of Johnny’s boys? “You never saw bitterness,” says Jim Turner.
Bill Harry says that Storm was touched that the Beatles, wanting to return the favor, convinced Brian Epstein to produce Rory’s rendering of the song “America” from Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. The record was released with little success.
The Beatles felt close spiritually and professionally to Rory. They watched his stage antics, helping them emerge as more raw, taking more risks. They enjoyed his camaraderie, his daring, his loyalty. They played so much with Rory Storm and the Hurricanes that John and Paul became friends with and admired the band’s drummer, Ringo Starr, the erstwhile Richie Starkey. Even Pete Best enjoyed Ringo’s company, to a point.
For the man, the performer, the blessings of his earlier career were in marked contrast to his later pursuits. As the Beatles soared, Storm, whose earlier band was called the Raging Texans, began a decline. After the death of a band member, the Hurricanes were disbanded in 1967. Storm took on deejay work, and eventually taught and hosted dance parties in Jersey and Amsterdam.
Then Storm’s father died, prompting a return to his mother.
September 1972 was not a good month, as Storm was experiencing a severe chest infection. On most nights, to get through the night, he would take sleeping medication, and a touch of scotch. One morning his mother found him dead. The bodies of both Storm and his mother were found on September 28. Police ruled his death an accident. But speculation remained that his mother took her own life after finding him, although that has never been proven.
The funeral cortege occurred on October 19, the two caskets side by side, the ex–band members playing as his friends sang his favorite song, “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
Ringo Starr did not attend, later saying, in the sardonic Liverpool style of dark humor, “I wasn’t there when he was born, either.”
Ringo’s quote should be taken with a grain of salt. He did everything possible to arrange recording work, and sessions, for Storm, but Storm declined. Too proud? No. Content in his early success? No doubt.
Going through notes of my earliest contact with Ringo Starr, I had asked in 1965 who his greatest influences were. He said, �
��There were some—Hank Williams, and of course, Buddy Holly. And there was a guy named Rory. He’s still around.”
But, as it turned out, not for long.
His closest friends in this era tell me that today, when he tells the sad story of Rory Storm, Ringo’s eyes turn moist.
And it was indeed Storm’s decision to play all summer at Butlin’s summer camp in 1960 that convinced Allan Williams it was time to take the young Beatles to Germany. It didn’t change the course for Storm; he later played on to success in Hamburg. But it began an uncertain journey for the boys, including the chance to watch the young star, up close and personal, and learn his almost magical command of the stage and the audience.
PHOTO INSERT
The early Beatles in a Liverpool studio in March 1962, five months before drummer Pete Best (second from left) faces the unthinkable.
The “boys,” now with Ringo Starr as drummer, on a Liverpool street in February 1963.
John Lennon with mother Julia outside of Mendips—the home of Julia’s sister, Mimi—a residence he called home until early adulthood.
Mary McCartney with sons Paul (left) and Michael. Along with father James, the McCartneys rose from humble roots to join the middle class.
Richard Starkey (a.k.a. Ringo Starr) with mother Elsie, at home in the late 1940s. Elsie worked long hours to support her sickly son.
Twelve-year-old George Harrison with his favorite companion, the guitar, at home in Liverpool in 1955.
Proud parents Harry and Louise Harrison help George pack for the Beatles’ first trip to America in February 1964.
John Lennon’s first band, the Quarrymen, in the St. Peter’s Church Rose Queen procession, July 6, 1957, the day of the historic first meeting between John and Paul.
Later that day, John leads the Quarrymen onstage at the Rose Queen festival. (L-R) Eric Griffiths, Colin Hanton, Rod Davis, John Lennon, Pete Shotton, Len Garry.
Paul McCartney (second from left) is photographed for the first time with the Quarrymen, performing at the New Clubmoor Hall in Liverpool, November 1957.
Paul (left) and John perform with the Quarrymen at Mona Best’s Casbah Club on August 19, 1959. The young lady to the right is Cynthia Powell, who would marry John in 1962.
The Beatles at the Indra Club on August 17, 1960, their first night in Hamburg. (L-R) John, George, Pete, Paul, Stu Sutcliffe.
Stu (left) and John onstage with the Beatles at Hamburg’s Top Ten Club in 1961.
The glow of love surrounds Stu Sutcliffe and Astrid Kirchherr in April 1961, photographed in Hamburg by another influential Beatles friend, Jürgen Vollmer.
Mersey Beat publisher Bill Harry (right) presents the boys with their very first award, the Mersey Beat Popularity Poll Shield.
Lovebirds Bill and Virginia Harry. She gave him the loan to start Mersey Beat; he gave her the ring.
Mona Best, a powerful force in the Beatles early years, is photographed with her son Pete in December 1961, the day the Beatles signed a contract with Brian Epstein.
The Mersey Beat edition featuring the controversial poll results declaring the Beatles the Number One band in Merseyside.
Flashing his signature smile, early Beatles promoter Sam Leach reunites with Paul McCartney and wife Linda in Liverpool, 1984.
Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein in his London office, 1965. The handsome chief executive propelled the Beatles to success while hiding a complex personal life.
A personal hero to each of the Beatles, Lonnie Donegan, “The King of Skiffle,” was a superstar in Great Britain whose impact was felt for decades.
Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas. John Lennon was so fond of Billy that he urged Kramer to record several Lennon and McCartney compositions. (Clockwise from top left) Mike Maxfield, Billy J. (center), Robin MacDonald, Ray Jones, Tony Mansfield.
Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, with Ringo Starr on drums, at the Tower Ballroom in 1961. Storm’s gyrating, athletic, and magnetic stage presence greatly influenced the Beatles and brought him praise in Merseyside and Hamburg. (L-R) Johnny “Guitar” Byrne, Rory, Ringo, Lou Walters, Ty O’Brien.
Gerry Marsden has been loved in Northern England for decades. (L-R) Gerry, Les Chadwick, Les Maguire, Fred Marsden.
Unheralded in most accounts of the era, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates were emulated by the Beatles. (L-R) Johnny Spence, Frank Farley, Johnny Kidd, Mick Green.
The Merseybeats, pictured here in 1963, often shared a stage with the Beatles and were among the boys’ biggest supporters. (L-R) Aaron Williams, Tony Crane, John Banks, Billy Kinsley.
Stylish and filled with drama and excitement, writer and promoter Derek Taylor (left) was a critical force in the Beatles’ takeover of the world’s music in 1963–1964.
Paul McCartney and Mal Evans in Boston, 1964. Evans spent most of his early adult life serving the Beatles in various ways. His death in 1976 was shocking, and his true impact on the Beatles’ success was never fully recognized.
Paul with Freda Kelly, secretary to the Beatles and Brian Epstein. Freda’s stories of the boys are filled with admiration and respect.
Described by the author as the most talented press officer he ever met, Tony Barrow (right) shares a moment with Brian Epstein in 1966.
The manager of the Beatles’ empire through five decades, Neil Aspinall leads the boys out of the London Palladium in October 1963, with hundreds of teenagers in pursuit.
Photographer Albert Marrion’s famous studio photo of the Beatles, with Pete Best on drums and the boys all in leather, taken on December 17, 1961.
The makeover by Brian Epstein begins. This photo from early 1962 shows the initial style changes ordered by Epstein.
The makeover continues. The contrast in the band’s look from just a year earlier is striking at this October 1963 Palladium concert.
Collarless and coiffed, “Mod” style takes over as the former leather-and-denim boys startle the fashion world, 1963.
Poised to embark on their first American invasion, the Beatles pose for a close-up in this October 14, 1963, photo.
The boys perform on February 19, 1963, at the famous Cavern Club in Liverpool, where they would make nearly three hundred appearances.
WHEN
THEY
WERE
BOYS
PART FOUR: WHERE WERE YOU IN ’61?
Still lonely, still desolate, but rescuers await. The Prince makes an entrance with the Tower of Power. Climb down the steps to the filthy grit and choking smoke where the Cavern waits, and so does deejay Bob with a bag of tricks. Later, pulverized, the trick’s on him. He says, “Can you dig it?” Bill Harry’s magic survey is out. Billy Kinsley sees energy through the haze of chaos. Merseyside is alive with everything from Flamingoes and Undertakers to a Terry and a Jay, a Jerry and a Derry, plus Pete, John, George, Paul, and sometimes Stu. As the leaves fell, so did Brian, aka “Eppy,” the man with those silky-soft whispers. He traveled to his “Cellarful of Noise.” He walked in as a skeptic, climbed out in love. And as ’61 approached ’62, he took the risk of a lifetime—and mind you, his own lifetime was not an ordinary one.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
NINETEEN STEPS TO HEAVEN
“It was not the Hollywood Bowl.”
—John Lennon, on the Cavern
“It was hot . . . a horrible odor . . . sweaty . . . I was breathless.”
—Joe Ankrah of the Chants, on his first visit to the Cavern
“It was wild, very much alive!”
—Billy Kinsley of the Merseybeats, on the Cavern
IT WAS LUNCH HOUR ON FEBRUARY 9, 1961, WHEN THE FIVE BEATLES descended the steps for the first time as “the Beatles,” the first of what would be hundreds of lunchtime and other concerts at the Cavern—the storied and gritty home of the Beatles’ early exploits.
It almost didn’t happen. The Cavern’s owner, Ray McFall, had forbidden jeans (or, as they would say in the States at the time, “dungarees”) from the club. McFall had even been opposed to rock ’n’ roll i
n the beginning, but Sam Leach’s success with the boys at a nearby club had changed all of that. The Prince of Mathew Street’s opening of the Iron Door club nearby forced McFall to rethink his format. Once again, Leach paved the way. But the Cavern was still off-limits to jeans of any kind. McFall was just following tradition, a precedent set by the Cavern’s original owner. Bill Harry says the Cavern was always concerned about propriety, and image. The truth is that propriety and image always vanish when father time and his powerful force sets the pace. Harry says,
ALAN SYTNER WAS THE MAN WHO CONCEIVED THE CAVERN IN MATHEW STREET, AFTER VISITING A FRENCH JAZZ CLUB CALLED LE CAVEAU FRANCAIS. HE WAS STRICTLY A JAZZ MAN AND WOULDN’T ALLOW ROCK ’N’ ROLL TO BE PLAYED AT THE CLUB. HE BOOKED SKIFFLE GROUPS TO SUPPORT THE JAZZ BAND BILL TOPPERS. THE QUARRYMEN WERE AWARE THEY WEREN’T ALLOWED TO PLAY ROCK MUSIC, BUT WHEN THEY APPEARED THERE AS THE QUARRYMEN ON 7 AUGUST 1957, JOHN LENNON COULDN’T RESIST AND BURST INTO THE ELVIS NUMBERS “HOUND DOG” AND “BLUE SUEDE SHOES”; ALAN SENT A MESSAGE UP TO THE STAGE, “CUT THE BLOODY ROCK!”
