Apart from the lovely selection of brand new gifts received for Christmas, we also checked out a couple of second-hand outlets while on holiday at Port Stephens on the New South Wales mid-north coast.
The first was a community-run recycling centre that turns people’s trash into income for the local community. In a couple of huge sheds they have a wide range of donated used goods for sale, including records, CDs and books. Just near the shelves full of LPs we found a box containing a large collection of old theatre and music performance programs and souvenir booklets – all in really good condition. Hunting through these we discovered this:
This is quite a thick tour magazine that was given away free at concert venues for the Paul McCartneyNew World Tour, which ran pretty much through the whole of 1993. It took in places like Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Spain, the USA, UK, Japan, parts of South America, and Australia – hence this magazine/program being re-discovered in a shed in a little place called Soldiers Point! You can see one of the Sydney New World Tour set lists here.
Inside the tour magazine there are some great articles and photos, including this shot below of the band at work in their rehearsal room – one which I’d not seen before. It also lists the range of instruments each person plays:
(click images to see larger versions)
There are also short bios for each band member, articles on key members of the backstage crew, plus the content goes much wider with sections dedicated to raising awareness about causes close to the McCartneys’ hearts, including saving a local hospital, the environment, and animal cruelty:In between are some interesting articles on previous projects, like this one on the Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) album from 1991: All the content in the The New World Tour magazine is edited by Paul Du Noyer, who also featured in our Christmas list of books – and, coincidently, in another nice holiday find.
Every month the local church at Anna Bay just near Port Stephens holds a market where different traders can offer their goods for sale. One of them was a guy specialising in secondhand music books and CDs, where we found this book, also by Paul Du Noyer:
It’s a great reference book to have in the collection with the details and stories behind every song John Lennon released as a solo artist:
First published in 1997, this revised and updated edition was released in 2010. Each song entry is accompanied by some interesting photos, and it is a really handy book to have when researching the work of John Lennon. I believe there’s an even more recent update called We All Shine On.
We here at beatlesblogger received some nice gifts over the holiday season.
First up is Ringo Starr’s new book Photograph. It is a beautiful hardback book, in a larger format, coffee-table style:Initially released by Genesis Books in a lavish, strictly limited edition, the book has now been released as a more attainable “open edition” for us mere mortals.
That photo you can see of a young Ringo on the cover image above is actually him looking out of a neat cut-out hole around the camera lens on the book’s dust cover. It is a nice little extra production touch:
Inside are some fantastic photos taken by Ringo himself over many years:
When you see images of the early Beatles you sometimes see them carrying their own cameras – and there are lots of pictures out there of the band taking photographs of each other and documenting for themselves what was happening around them. Each Beatle therefore would have hundreds of their own great informal shots tucked away – just like we all do – in albums, in storage boxes, or in closets.
Ringo’s personal photos were thought to be lost forever – until one day he re-discovered them. “We finally found them in a basement in storage” he told Rolling Stone magazine. “I was shocked…..we even found two books of negatives.” So now he’s compiled them in this book, along with over 15,000 words of commentary on where and why each photo was taken. Many of the images have never before been published:
It is fantastic to flip through. Each page has a new surprise.
Miles is a frequent Beatle biographer and author, and he’s something of an insider – having been the manager of Zapple Records when it was first (and only very briefly) established back in 1969. Zapple was one of the many subsidiaries of the original Beatles’ Apple Corps Ltd. It was a label responsible for releasing the more avant-garde and experimental bands, poets and performers that the Beatles hoped to champion. As label manager, Miles had a ringside seat observing the ructions of the company, and the Beatles themselves in the process of self-destructing. We read of the big plans he had for the label, and how they were bitterly thwarted.
The book is richly illustrated. It tells the story from the perspective of someone very close to the action:
This is probably more one for aficionados of the Apple Records label, its establishment, aims and objectives, and some of the more obscure of its releases, but I’m looking forward to reading this book, cover-to-cover:
Lastly, a great new book of interviews with Paul McCartney by journalist, author and long-time Beatle expert, Paul Du Noyer:
As the title suggests, this is a new collection of Conversations withMcCartney, over the period 1979 to the present. Du Noyer has spoken with him numerous times over that period – mostly for independently commissioned pieces for some of the best UK music magazines. It should be said however that Du Noyer has also been employed by McCartney’s MPL Communications company to produce content for them (tour magazines, album sleevenotes, etc.), and the book was done with the company’s assistance. Nevertheless, this looks to be a unique insight into what it means to be Paul McCartney and a very interesting work.
Cleaning up a closet today we rediscovered a large collection of vintage Rolling Stone and other music magazines. Flipping through them casually revealed three artefact print advertisements. The first is from Rolling Stone magazine. This is an Australian 1983 Yearbook edition. The advertisement is topical, with the 2015 re-issue of Pipes of Peacecurrently on music store shelves:
The next also comes from Rolling Stone, again one of their Yearbooks, this time from 1985. Again, this is an Australian edition and it’s an advertisement for sales of an original poster from The Beatles’Let It Be movie originally released in 1970. The ad copy says “We have a limited number of these full colour original movie posters for sale at $19.95 each plus $3.50 for postage. This is an opportunity to own an item of pop memorabilia that is guaranteed to appreciate in value over the years…..”:
Just where the company located their Let It Be original movie posters isn’t clear, but if these were indeed genuine Let It Be posters then $19.95 was probably a good investment even back in 1985.
The final is a full-page ad which appeared in Billboard magazine in June, 1991. It’s for Paul McCartney’sUnplugged – The Official Bootleg album, released that year:
Paul McCartney was onstage live with Bruce Springsteen, the E Street Band and the cast and crew of Saturday Night Live this past weekend for a rousing rendition of “Santa Claus is Coming To Town”:
A little earlier this year we found a New Zealand pressing of Paul McCartney and Wingscontroversial ‘Give Ireland Back to the Irish’ dating from 1972. As was the case in most of the rest of the world this was on a custom Apple label.
The other day at one of our local second-hand vinyl favourites (Audiomania) we found an original UK pressing, complete with its bright yellow custom Wings paper sleeve:
The single itself, also on custom Apple labels, is in near mint condition:
As part of the launch campaign for the Archive Collection editions of Pipes of Peace, Paul McCartney has today uploaded to Facebook a new ‘Say Say Say [2015 Remix]’ video:
The track (which is included as part of the Bonus Audio for Pipes of Peace) features previously unheard vocals by Paul and Michael Jackson, with the parts they sing on the original swapped in position in a remix by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent. The original (remastered) version is still included on the main album CD and vinyl.
The press release says: “32 years after the original release, fans….have….a completely new mix of the track, prominently featuring alternative vocals from Paul and the late Michael which have never before seen the light of day.
This version came about as Paul worked on the next stage of his extensive reissue collection – the Grammy Award-winning Paul McCartney Archive Series – earlier this year. While working on the remasters for 1983’s Pipes Of Peace album and accompanying bonus material at Abbey Road Studios in January 2015, Paul was listening to an instrumental remix of ‘Say Say Say’ by DJ John ‘Jellybean’ Benitez when he recalled there were unused vocals.
The original multi-track masters were located and Paul’s Chief Engineer at his studio in Sussex, Steve Orchard, along with Paul fused the unheard recordings to the Jellybean mix.
Directed by the choreographer and performance artist Ryan Heffington – recently noted for his choreography work on Sia’s ‘Chandelier’ promo – and filmed in LA, the video follows a teenage boy on a journey through his neighbourhood. The boy’s sense of optimism is infectious as he brings joy and stunning dance sequences to those he encounters on his travels.”
For more on the story behind how the ‘Say Say Say [2015 Remix]’ came about visit paulmccartney.com
The Hollywood Vampires album, which contains a guest appearance from Paul McCartney, has been officially released:Here’s the press release:
In 1972, on the Sunset Strip at a club called the Rainbow Bar & Grill, the Hollywood Vampires were born in the upstairs bar. It was a gathering place for the rock stars living in or passing through L.A. “To join the club, one simply had to out drink all of the members,” says Alice Cooper, a founding member of the Vampires. “I would walk in on a typical night” Alice says, “and John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon—who would usually be in a costume like a maid or a chauffeur—Bernie Taupin, Jim Morrison and Mickey Dolenz would be there. The next week might be Bernie Taupin, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Mickey Dolenz.”
Three years ago, Alice and good friend Johnny Depp got together and decided the spirit of the Hollywood Vampires should live again (minus the drinking). An environment for great artists to hang, laugh and play together. The Hollywood Vampires live again with the release of the Hollywood Vampires new album. Alice and Johnny were joined by Joe Perry, who is an old friend of both of them, and the recording began: a tribute to the original Hollywood Vampires.
For the next two years, Alice, Joe and Johnny, joined by producer Bob Ezrin and an amazing group of modern day vampires, including Perry Farrell, Dave Grohl, Sir Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Slash, Robbie Krieger, Zak Starkey, Brian Johnson and Kip Winger, recorded tracks by their dead friends and heroes. Also included are two original songs that tell the story of the Vampires, one of which, “Raise The Dead,” has an intro by Sir Christopher Lee, recorded just prior to his death.
The album package, an antique book, was created by noted men’s fashion designer (and rock fan) John Varvatos in his signature vintage style. Alice and Varvatos, both Detroit natives, have been partners in fashion for several years with Alice lending his classic rock style as a brand ambassador.
A sneak peek at the liner notes, penned by original Hollywood Vampire Bernie Taupin, “I’m not here to defend their vices. Over-indulgence of any sort does not ultimately constitute for a healthy mind and body. And while on the periphery of those involved, wives may have come and gone, career choices may have been deemed dubious, and heartbreak in some cases stalked a dark corridor, but in the lair of the Hollywood Vampires only joy and laughter reigned.”
“I’m not completely sure what constituted bad behavior back then, but in this lair it existed in a bubble, a hermetically sealed dome of fun. It may not have been the round table at the Algonquin, but these were witty, intelligent guys who often got raucous and loud, but rest assured there were no bystanders or animals hurt in the making of the Hollywood Vampires.”
All artist proceeds will be donated to MusiCares.
And here’s the track listing:
1. The Last Vampire (Hollywood Vampires)
2. Raise The Dead (Hollywood Vampires)
3. My Generation (The Who)
4. Whole Lotta Love (Led Zeppelin)
5. I Got A Line (Spirit)
6. Five to One/Break On Through (The Doors)
7. One/Jump Into The Fire (Harry Nilsson)
8. Come And Get It (Badfinger)
9. Jeepster (T.Rex)
10. Cold Turkey (John Lennon)
11. Manic Depression (Jimi Hendrix)
12. Itchycoo Park (Small Faces)
13. School’s Out / Another Brick In The Wall pt.2 (Alice Cooper / Pink Floyd)
14. Dead Drunk Friends (Hollywood Vampires)
As you can see, the band tackle a version of John Lennon’s ‘Cold Turkey’. The main McCartney performance is Badfinger’s ‘Come And Get It‘, which of course he wrote and produced for that Apple band – way back in 1969!
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