Saturday, October 29, 2016

McCartney new album rumors



With all the buzz that the new McCartney song  generated, the word (totally unconfirmed) is already starting to come in about the new album he's recording. We're hearing unconfirmed info that it will be out in March, with a single early in the month. Paul is said to have recorded 17 songs with four different producers, including Giles Martin. We're also hearing that one of the songs will be a tribute to Sir George Martin. We'll see. (Other sources, FYI, are saying more songs.)

Thursday, October 27, 2016

New Paul McCartney song available in UK iTunes store as of tonight!



OK, people ... there's a new McCartney song in the UK iTunes store as of tonight. It's "In the Blink of An Eye" from the forthcoming soundtrack of "Ethel & Ernest." From the preview, it reminds me a lot of "(I Want To) Come Home."

Here's a link to the full album in the UK store for pre-order. And here's a link in the UK store to just the song. But if you are not in the UK, you won't be able to buy it. You can, however, hear the 60 second preview. Here's a link to order the album on Amazon.co.ukon Amazon.co.uk, where it says it'll be out Nov. 11. There is no preview there. Much of the album features music by Carl Davis, who you will remember collaborated with McCartney on "Liverpool Oratorio."

Ringo All-Starr begins autobiography



Steve Lukather (Wikipedia)

Ringo Starr All-Starr Band guitarist Steve Lukather announced today on Twitter he's begun working on his autobiography.
"Officially started my autobiography today w/ co -author Paul Rees. Been planning and outlining for awhile now. Out 2018 worldwide."
He's been with Ringo since 2012 as part of the longest running lineup the band has had. He's also one of the original members of Toto, which formed in 1978. He's currently on tour with Ringo and the All-Starrs. The tour began on the West Coast and includes a series of stops in the Far East before it heads back to Hawaii and the West Coast for the conclusion in November.  Get tickets for Ringo Starr and the All Starr Band here.


Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Ringo's "Photograph" book only $7.49 at Amazon!



The hardcover version of Ringo Starr's mass market version of his "Photograph" book is now only $7.49 at Amazon.com. Please use this link to order.  It is not marked down at Amazon.co.uk, so grab it while you can. It'll make a great holiday gift (or just for yourself). (Thanks to Jessica C.)

And be sure to visit our That's What I Want Beatles Page (U.S) or That's What I Want Beatles Store (UK).


Saturday, October 22, 2016

Cynthia Lennon signed painting of the Beatles being auctioned



The St. Thomas Lupus Trust, which auctioned a one-of-a-kind Paul McCartney guitar string bracelet earlier this week,  has another unique item auction going. It's for this Cynthia Lennon autographed painting of the Beatles from "Magical Mystery Tour. The painting was done by Cynthia herself and the Trust has used the design to sell notelets from. But the auction winner will get the original. 
There's a high bid of £127.00, which is about $155.40 USD. You can bid here. The auction runs through Oct. 31.

Some info: The painting is in the UK. The winner either has to pick it up at Guys Hospital in London or arrange themselves for its transportation by courier. More details are on the auction page.

And be sure to visit our That's What I Want Beatles Page (U.S) or That's What I Want Beatles Store (UK).

Friday, October 21, 2016

Ringo Starr gets some long overdue musical respect – from the Russians



A new two-disc Ringo Starr collection, “Ringo Starr Greatest Hits,” showed up on Amazon recently. Thanks to the design and much of the packaging, complete with logos, it looked it could have been a legitimate issue. But it wasn't. It was really an unauthorized Russian issue composed completely of all previously released material. Besides the tiny Russian type on the back cover that gives it away, the cover also shows the listings on “Dick One” and “Dick Two.”

The funny thing is, though, that if it was a legitimate release it would get a four-star rating. Why? Because the music itself is great. For better or worse, the work of the other three Beatles is almost always mentioned ahead of his. And if you count the Beatles as a group, it's fifth. But after listening to this set, that shouldn't be the case. As we said, there's nothing new or nothing anyone with a complete Ringo Starr CD collection doesn't already have. Why would it be a necessary buy if it was a legitimate release?

Unlike the other Beatles who at times have gotten off in tangents in their solo careers either lyrically or musically, Ringo's music has always, even in its few vanity detours (like “Beaucoups of Blues” and “Sentimental Journey”) been down-to-earth. And that's what this set is all about.

The first disc begins, not surprisingly, with 1973's “Photograph,” the first of his two Billboard No. 1 hits. The other was the follow-up, “You're Sixteen,” from the same year, which is the second track on side one. The first disc, with 24 tracks, includes the A-sides of all his top 100 Billboard hits through 1981 – “Beaucoups of Blues” (his first Billboard charter in 1970); “It Don't Come Easy”; “Back Off Boogaloo”; “Oh My My”; “No No Song”; “(It's All Down to) Goodnight Vienna”; “Only You”; “A Dose of Rock 'n' Roll”; “Hey Baby” and “Wrack My Brain.”

Also on the disc, but certainly not filling it out, are “Drowning in the Sea of Love”; “Wings” (which he recently remade); “Lipstick Traces”; “Heart on My Sleeve”; “Private Property”; “Stop and Take the Time To Smell the Roses”; “In My Car” and “I Keep Forgettin'.”

The second disc features more recent material, starting with “Weight of the World.” Some of the other tracks on the disc are the rockin' “Don't Go Where the Road Don't Go”; “King of Broken Hearts” with George Harrison's tender slide solo; “Never Without You,” his tender tribute to Harrison; another rocker, “Give Me Back the Beat”; “Choose Love”; “Liverpool 8”; “Peace Dream”; “Walk With You,” his duet with Paul McCartney; “Rock Island Line,” his cover of that vintage song; and “Postcards From Paradise,” the title song from his most recent album.

It's only on the second disc that the programming of songs falls off a little. But so much of this disc is absolutely wonderful listening and points up Ringo's talent as a singer. (Yes, we said that.) What connects the songs is the fact that Ringo never appears to be putting on airs. His humanity shines through on this set. The set includes several cover versions and also a surprising number of songs about the Beatles, Liverpool or songs with Beatles references. 

Now, if only he'd do a few more of these in concert. Though the album is no longer on Amazon, it can be found on eBay, at least for now. See the full track list from the back cover below.  The funniest thing about this is that Ringo has long talked about putting out a new career retrospective. It's happened, but he didn't do it. 






Beatles chart news, Lennon 'Imagine' cover

Sir Ivan ad advertising John Lennon cover.

Some Billboard Beatles positions in the Oct. 29 issue just out today: In the Billboard Artist 100, the Beatles are #97. And on the Billboard 200 chart, Beatles "1" is at #180, down from #120 the previous week. And the Beatles' "Abbey Road" has returned to the Billboard 200 chart at #196.

But maybe the most intriguing Beatles-related item is the ad that has appeared for Sir Ivan's cover of John Lennon's "Imagine." The ad uses a similar photo to the one John and Yoko posted for on the cover of Rolling Stone. You can hear Sir Ivan's version below. Sir Ivan has issued a CD with 10 mixes of the song.


Thursday, October 20, 2016

Book news: New book to celebrate 'Sgt. Pepper' 50th anniversary

Wikipedia

Author Gillian Gaar alerted us she's contributing two chapters to a forthcoming book, "Sgt. Pepper at Fifty: The Mood, the Look, the Sound, the Legacy of the Beatles' Great Masterpiece," due to be published next year by SterlingPublishing in the U.S. and Omnibus Press in the UK (Amazon UK link for our British readers). Also listed as authors are Bill DeMain and Mike McInnerney. We'll tell you more as the book gets closer. Gaar is the author of numerous books about music, including "100 Things Beatles Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die."

McCartney guitarist Rusty Anderson contributes to musical anti-Trump protest


Paul McCartney guitarist Rusty Anderson tweeted this earlier this week.

You can hear the song in the video below. More information about "30 Days, 30 Songs," which is releasing one song over the 30 days prior to the election to help get the vote out against Donald Trump, is on their website.


Sunday, October 16, 2016

Paul McCartney - Desert Trip 2 official set list - One on One tour's final stop



The set list from Oct. 15, as received from Paul McCartney's press reps:
A Hard Day’s Night
Jet
Got To Get You Into My Life
Letting Go
Day Tripper
Let Me Roll It
I’ve Got A Feeling
My Valentine
1985
Maybe I’m Amazed
We Can Work It Out
In Spite Of All The Danger
I’ve Just Seen A Face
Love Me Do
And I Love Her
Blackbird
Here Today
Queenie Eye
Lady Madonna
FourFive Seconds (with Rhianna)
Eleanor Rigby
Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite!
A Day In The Life/Give Peace A Chance (with Neil Young)
Why Don’t We Do It In The Road (with Neil Young)
Something
Ob La Di Ob La Da
Band On The Run
Back In The USSR
Let It Be
Live and Let Die
Hey Jude

Encore: Birthday
Helter Skelter
Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End
And a few videos ...

"Back in the USSR"



"Band on the Run"



"Lady Madonna"



Thursday, October 13, 2016

George Harrison Twitter account congratulates Dylan on Nobel Prize


The George Harrison Twitter account today sent out this message: 


Many congratulations to on the Nobel Prize for Literature!

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

New Beatles LEGO 'Yellow Submarine' announced

Photos by LEGO.


LEGO revealed the first pictures and information Oct. 12 of its new set based on the Beatles' movie “Yellow Submarine.” The company said the set, to be available Nov. 1, will feature over 550 LEGO bricks and figures that represent the four Beatles in “Yellow Submarine” costumes.

According to the description, you can “take a surreal trip under the seas in the LEGO® version of the Yellow Submarine from the iconic 1968 animated musical fantasy film inspired by The Beatles. Ideal for display or role-play fun, the Yellow Submarine features loads of cool, authentic details including a cockpit for the included mini figures of John, Paul, George and Ringo.”

Creator Kevin Szeto said the set is his tribute to the Beatles. “The creation of the Yellow Submarine model was really my way of showing my affection for The Beatles, as well as trying to pay a small tribute to The Beatles phenomenon. " Designer Justin Ramsden said he was also a big Beatles fan and called the LEGO model “a dream come true.” The U.S. list price is $59.99, though some dealers will certainly have them cheaper.






Sunday, October 9, 2016

Paul McCartney - official Desert Trip #1 setlist and rare songs with Neil Young

Photo courtesy M.J. Kim/MPL Productions
Here's the official set list, as we received it from McCartney's press rep. Look below for the songs with Neil:
  1. A Hard Day’s Night
  2. Jet
  3. Can’t Buy Me Love
  4. Letting Go
  5. Day Tripper
  6. Let Me Roll It
  7. I’ve Got A Feeling
  8. My Valentine
  9. 1985
  10. Maybe I’m Amazed
  11. We Can Work It Out
  12. In Spite Of All The Danger
  13. I’ve Just Seen A Face
  14. Love Me Do
  15. And I Love Her
  16. Blackbird
  17. Here Today
  18. Queenie Eye
  19. Lady Madonna
  20. FourFive Seconds
  21. Eleanor Rigby
  22. Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite!
  23. A Day In The Life/Give Peace A Chance (with Neil Young)
  24. Why Don’t We Do It In The Road (with Neil Young)
  25. Something
  26. Ob La Di Ob La Da
  27. Band On The Run
  28. Back In The USSR
  29. Let It Be
  30. Live and Let Die
  31. Hey Jude
  32. ENCORE:  I Wanna Be Your Man
  33. Helter Skelter
  34. Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End

And the songs with Neil ...






Thursday, October 6, 2016

New HMC Lennon-McCartney, Beatles titles

Just out or coming soon, according to various sources. We understand the Intertels set has at least one new video not out before. The Lennon-McCartney is "A Toot and a Snore" with more material.