Coming up: "Vinylology: The Beatles Solo - The Ultimate Guide to U.K. LP pressing variations 1968-2000

Via Apcor Books:

The Beatles’ U.K. album discography basically covers just seven sweet years (1963-1970, not counting the numerous compilations and archive editions released since), and has been analyzed in many publications. 

A lot of people tend to forget that since the split, the four members have kept making music and releasing records, which are being collected all over the world. Strangely enough, the U.K. album output by John, George, Paul and Ringo has never been documented properly in book form. 

Denis Shabes has compiled the ultimate guide to the solo Beatles U.K. LP pressing variations released since 1968. From John and Yoko’s experimental Two Virgins to George’s excellent Wonderwall Music and from Paul’s The Family Way film soundtrack to Ringo’s Sentimental Journey, each and every LP is discussed in great detail, & spiced up with hundreds of colour photographs.

Every insert, inner sleeve and even hype sticker is included, as is information on matrix numbers, how to date the original inner sleeves, minor (and major!) label and sleeve variations: It’s all in here! Every LP by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison ever released in the U.K. on vinyl is included, including Paul’s more or less experimental outings such as Thrillington and/or The Fireman and his orchestral works, plus the reissues on MFP and assorted labels. Not just the EMI/Apple years, but also their releases on labels such as Polydor, Dark Horse etc.

Apcor is proud to announce the release of this hardcover book which measures 21.5 x 30 cms, 332 glossy pages with more than 1,360 photos (!) and is stacked with detailed info on how to date a first pressing and recognize a reissue. Never before has the solo album discography been discussed in so much detail – the final word on JPGR’s U.K. solo albums.

The book retails at 40 Euros (excluding postage) and is now available from Apcor Books. 

Coming up: "Prisoners of Love: Inside The Dakota With John Lennon" by Peter Doggett

Out in April 2021 by Peter Doggett, author of "You Never Give Me Your Money: The Beatles After the Break-up" and "The Art and Music of John Lennon."

Pre-order from Amazon now.

Details:

John Lennon’s five-year retirement from the world of music, his brief comeback in 1980, and his brutal murder outside his New York home have become the stuff of legend. But the reality of his daily life during that period has been obscured by the mythology Lennon sold to the press in his final interviews, and which his widow Yoko Ono has maintained to this day.

Acknowledged Beatles expert Peter Doggett is a lifelong fan of Lennon, and the author of The Art And Music Of John Lennon, a detailed commentary on his entire artistic output. Several years ago, a mysterious set of circumstances led him to a room where he was able to read several of the ex-Beatle’s private diaries – never revealed to the public or represented accurately in other books about Lennon. What he learned forced him to confront everything he believed he knew about his hero, and also the profound influence that the musician had wielded over his own life – especially in the wake of Lennon’s death on December 8, 1980.

Prisoner Of Love is both a revelatory account of Lennon’s final years, based on the author’s access to the musician’s personal writings; and also a poignant memoir of a diehard fan who depended on Lennon for his sense of sanity during the darkest years of his life. The book brings together the tortured artist and the bereaved fan, in an account that will touch the heart of everyone who has ever fallen under the spell of this most charismatic of rock icons.

Publisher shares details on authorized Beatles "Get Back" book - with preview video

An official anniversary book about the Beatles' "Get Back/Let it Be" project will arrive a year late, just like director Peter Jackson's documentary film, "The Beatles' Get Back," and, we presume, an anniversary "Let it Be" box set.

The book, also titled "The Beatles Get Back," was originally set for Sept. 1 release this year but will now appear on Aug. 31, 2021, to tie in with the release of Jackson's film.

Publisher Nicholas Callaway told Bookseller that he's been a Beatles fan since seeing them live as an audience member for one of the band's "Ed Sullivan Show" appearances.

Callaway Arts and Entertainment put in a bid 20 years ago to publish "The Beatles Anthology" book, but missed out.

“Ever since then I’ve been knocking on their [Apple Corps] door, and we are very honored to be their publisher [for Let It Be]. They chose us over every other major publisher,” Callaway said.

He said the book provides a “fly on the wall view” of the band working on their penultimate album and the "Let it Be" film and features an introduction by Peter Jackson.

According to Bookseller:

The 240-page book’s principal text is from transcripts edited by journalist, writer and critic John Harris, columnist for the Guardian. Included are 200 photos by Linda Eastman, who married Paul McCartney shortly thereafter, and a young photographer, Ethan Russell, who “lucked out", as Callaway says, by being in the right place at the right time. Also between these pages – printed on what Callaway calls “the most beautiful uncoated paper ever made", Mohawk Superfine, are stills of the restored film footage that, he says, exemplifies the press’ commitment to combining advanced technology and book craftsmanship.

...While the complete promotional campaign is still in the works, Callaway has confirmed that in the US the book will be made available to all publishing channels via distributor Ingram, with a window display contest held for US independent bookstores over the Labor Day weekend. In addition, the book will be available in the five authorized Beatles stores worldwide that sell only Beatles’ products.

Here's a promotional video for the book posted on the official Beatles website:

Here are some additional details about the book from Amazon UK:

The most anticipated book in more than a decade by the legendary band, The Beatles: Get Back is the official account of the creation of their final album, Let It Be, told in The Beatles’ own words, illustrated with hundreds of previously unpublished images, including photos by Ethan A. Russell and Linda McCartney. Half a century after the 1970 Let It Be album and film, this milestone book coincides with the global release of Peter Jackson’s documentary feature film, The Beatles: Get Back.

The book opens in January 1969, the beginning of The Beatles’ last year as a band. The BEATLES (The White Album) is at number one in the charts and the foursome gather in London for a new project. Over 21 days, first at Twickenham Film Studios and then at their own brand-new Apple Studios, with cameras and tape recorders documenting every day’s work and conversations, the band rehearse a huge number of songs, culminating in their final concert, which famously takes place on the rooftop of their own office building, bringing central London to a halt.

The Beatles: Get Back tells the story of those sessions through transcripts of the band’s candid conversations. Drawing on over 120 hours of sound recordings, leading music writer John Harris edits the richly captivating text to give us a fly-on-the-wall experience of being there in the studios. These sessions come vividly to life through hundreds of unpublished, extraordinary images by two photographers who had special access to their sessions―Ethan A. Russell and Linda Eastman (who married Paul McCartney two months later). Also included are many unseen high-resolution film-frames, selected from the 55 hours of restored footage from which Peter Jackson’s documentary is also drawn.

Legend has it that these sessions were a grim time for a band falling apart. However, as acclaimed novelist Hanif Kureishi writes in his introduction, “In fact this was a productive time for them, when they created some of their best work. And it is here that we have the privilege of witnessing their early drafts, the mistakes, the drift and digressions, the boredom, the excitement, joyous jamming and sudden breakthroughs that led to the work we now know and admire." Half a century after their final performance, this book completes the story of the creative genius, timeless music, and inspiring legacy of The Beatles.

Coming Up: "Hide Your Love Away: An Intimate Story of Brian Epstein as told by Larry Stanton"

A new book about the Beatles' manager featuring the recollections of a man who reportedly carried out a four-year relationship with him.

Out Dec. 2. Order from Amazon now.

Details:

While Brian Epstein was basking in the attainment of fame with the Beatles and traveling worldwide, he also was struggling with a concealed darker side of life. The artists he managed had no knowledge of the demons Brian hid within, but due to a chance meeting, Larry Stanton became a mutual confidant. Hide Your Love Away takes place during the sixties music revolution with Brian in the forefront of historical changes and both in the midst of Hollywood and British luminaries. Notorious London gangsters and music moguls who played in the demise of the internationally recognized manager are disclosed. "Hide Your Love Away" narrates the details of Brian and Larry's four-year close and personal relationship and the introduction of a young manipulative man who became the toxic lover may be responsible for Brian's early death. "Hide Your Love Away" shares Brian and Larry's quest for true love and supportive companionship when the laws in England and the U.S. kept gay men and women locked in the closet.

Coming up: Memoir from cop who busted the Beatles - Norman Pilcher

This should be interesting...

Norman Pilcher is the British police detective who busted John Lennon, George Harrison, members of the Rolling Stones and Donovan for drugs possession during the late 1960s. 

It was alleged that Pilcher planted drugs on some of his busts. In 1972 he was convicted for perjury in connection with a drug-smuggling case and served four years in prison

Pilcher's upcoming memoir - "Bent Coppers, " out Sept. 29 - aims to "set the record straight."

Here's a description:

London, England, 1967. An explosion of recreational drugs has resulted in the emergence of an anti-establiment hippy culture, worsening crime rates and an increasingly paranoid tabloid press. A young and ambitious police officer joins the Metropolitan Police Drug Squad determined to right these emerging cultural wrongs.

His method? To tackle head on the most high-profile examples of wanton drug abuse. His targets? The celebrities, musicians and dilettantes all exploiting Britain’s burgeoning drugs trade, glamourising illegal activity and promoting their untouchable wealth and fame to an impressionable generation.

Bent Coppers is the electrifying true story of Norman Pilcher, the most infamous police officer in British law enforcement history. Truth and justice were the tenets of Pilcher’s war against crime in the capital, but they soon collapsed in a landslide of scandal, perjury and blazing newspaper headlines.

The man who arrested The Beatles and The Rolling Stones would pay the ultimate price for his service. Finally he sets the record straight.

Artifact: John Lennon: "The Lennon Play" book

National Health Service benefit book includes Paul McCartney contribution

A new book thanking England's National Health Service for its response to the COVID-19 crisis includes a contribution from Paul McCartney, whose mother, Mary, was a midwife.

Details:

"Dear NHS" features 100 household names telling their personal stories of the health service. Contributors include: Paul McCartney, Emilia Clarke, Peter Kay, Stephen Fry, Dawn French, Sir Trevor McDonald, Graham Norton, Sir Michael Palin, Naomie Harris, Ricky Gervais, Sir David Jason, Dame Emma Thompson, Joanna Lumley and many, many more. 

All profits from this book will go to NHS Charities Together to fund vital research and projects, and The Lullaby Trust which supports parents bereaved of babies and young children. 

Other writers include Chris O'Dowd, Johnny Vegas, Jack Whitehall, Chris Evans, Lorraine Kelly, Lee Mack, Jonathan Ross, Konnie Huq, Greg James, Frank Skinner, Louis Theroux, KT Tunstall, Sandi Toksvig and Kevin Bridges. 

Coming up: "In My Life" children's picture book

Out Feb. 23, 2021. Listed on Amazon now.

Description:

With three generations of one family we share moments that are meant to be savored in this special book that beautifully illustrates the words John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s world-renowned song “In My Life.” 

There are places I’ll remember, in my life, though some have changed... 

One gift with a bright bow starts a young girl on a path…one her mother follows with her as she explores, grows, and rides off on her own, only to return again with her own daughter in tow. This hauntingly beautiful book shares the small moments of that journey that are meant to be remembered and savored in the lyrics of this classic song.

Coming Up: "The Search for John Lennon: The Life, Loves, and Death of a Rock Star"

Out Oct. 6. Order from Amazon now.

Details:

Pulling back the many hidden layers of John Lennon’s life, Lesley-Ann Jones closely tracks the events and personality traits that led to the rock star living in self-imposed exile in New York—where he was shot dead outside his apartment on that fateful autumn day forty years ago. 

Late on December 8th, 1980, the world abruptly stopped turning for millions, as news broke that the world's most beloved musician had been gunned down in cold blood in New York City. The most iconic Beatle left behind an unrivaled body of music and legions of faithful disciples—yet his profound legacy has brought with it as many questions and contradictions as his music has provided truths and certainties. 

In this compelling exploration, acclaimed music biographer Lesley-Ann Jones unravels the enigma that was John Lennon to present a complete portrait of the man, his life, his loves, his music, his untimely death, and, ultimately, his legacy. 

Using fresh first-hand research, unseen material and exclusive interviews with the people who knew Lennon best, Jones's search for answers offers a spellbinding, 360-degree view of one of the world's most iconic music legends. The Search for John Lennon delves deep into psyche of the world's most storied musician—the good, the bad and the genius—forty years on from his tragic death.

Lesley-Ann Jones is a bestselling biographer, novelist, and broadcaster. She honed her craft on Fleet Street as a newspaper journalist. She is the author of Bohemian Rhapsody: The Definitive Biography of Freddie Mercury and Hero: David Bowie. A childhood friend of David Bowie, Lesley-Ann has interviewed many of the world's most-loved artists, including Paul McCartney, Madonna, and Prince, often forming lifelong friendships with her subjects. Lesley-Ann lives in England.

Coming Up: "A Women’s History of the Beatles"

Out Feb. 25, 2021. Order from Amazon now.

Details:

A Women's History of the Beatles is the first book to offer a detailed presentation of the band's social and cultural impact as understood through the experiences and lives of women. Drawing on a mix of interviews and ethnography (including autoethnography), textual analysis, and archival research, this work depicts the myriad ways that the Beatles have profoundly shaped and enriched the lives of women from the band's 1960s heyday onward.

Organized topically based on key themes important to Beatles the book uncovers all the varied and multifaceted relationships women have had with the band, whether face-to-face and intimately or parasocially through mediated, popular culture. The book takes into account the fact that the Beatles have influenced not just the baby boom generation, but those in Generation X and the millennials. It goes beyond coverage of the ecstatic screams of Beatlemania and Yoko Ono's supposed role in the band's demise, and offers a cultural history that spans from the 1960s to the present.

Out now: "Ringo's Abbey Road"

Order now from Amazon.

Details:

From the authors of Ringo Starr And The Beatles Beat and Ringo’s White Album, Ringo’s Abbey Road explores Ringo’s contribution to the Beatles’ 1969 masterpiece. At ease with his new Ludwig Hollywood drums, discover how Ringo utilised this expanded drum kit to leave his mark on Abbey Road, from the ‘swampy’ tom fills and rhythms of Come Together, to the time-shifting meter of Here Comes The Sun, Abbey Road displays just why Ringo Starr was the perfect drummer for the Beatles. Arguably reaching his creative peak, Ringo’s drumming is creative and expressive, characteristically ‘loose’ yet precise, playing with tenderness and angst [Something], playfulness [Maxwell’s Silver Hammer], abandon [I Want You (She’s So Heavy)], and power [The End]. Ringo’s Abbey Road contains the complete drum and percussion scores from Abbey Road, plus the Ballad Of John And Yoko/Old Brown Shoe single, released prior to the LP.

Coming up: "John Lennon, Yoko Ono and the Year Canada Was Cool"

Out Sept. 1, 2020. Order now from Amazon.

Details:

John Lennon was the world's biggest rock star in the late Sixties. With his new wife Yoko Ono, the duo were icons of the peace movement denouncing the Vietnam War. In 1969, at the height of their popularity, they headed to Canada.
Canada was already a politically charged place. In 1968, Pierre Elliott Trudeau rode a wave of popularity dubbed Trudeaumania for its similarities to the Beatlemania of the era. The sexual revolution, hippie culture, the New Left and the peace movement were challenging norms, frightening the authorities and provoking backlash. Quebec nationalism was putting the power of the English-speaking minority running the province on the defensive, and threatening the breakup of the country. 

John Lennon and Yoko Ono staged a "bed-in for peace" at an upscale downtown Montreal hotel. The couple, aided by the CBC, saw a steady stream of journalists, musicians and activists arriving for interviews, political discussions, singing and art-making. The classic "Give Peace A Chance" was recorded there with the help of local Quebecois musicians. 

Three months later they were back in Canada with Eric Clapton and other friends to play a concert festival in Toronto arranged by local promoters. American acts like Little Richard, The Doors, Bo Diddley and Alice Cooper, along with many Canadian pop musicians of the time, played at the festival. 

At year's end, the duo met with Prime Minister Trudeau in Ottawa. By this time Trudeau was cracking down on dissent, mainly in Quebec, and falling out of favour with the counterculture crowd, John and Yoko included. 

Recounting the story of these events, historian Greg Marquis offers a unique portrayal of Canadian society in the late Sixties, recounting how politicians, activists, police, artists, musicians and businesses across Canada reacted to John and Yoko's presence and message. 

John Lennon, Yoko Ono and the Year Canada Was Cool is an illuminating and entertaining read for anyone interested in this fascinating moment in Canadian history.

Coming Up: John Lennon, 1980: The Final Days

Out Oct. 29, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

For Lennon, 1980 had begun as a ceaseless shopping spree in which he and wife Yoko Ono fell into the doldrums of purchasing blue-chip real estate and indulging their every whim. But for John, that pivotal year would climax in several moments of creative triumph as he rediscovered his artistic self in dramatic fashion, only to be cut down by an assassin’s bullets on Monday, December 8th, 1980, in the prime of a new life that was only just beginning to blossom.

Coming Up: Hold On World: The Lasting Impact of John Lennon & Yoko Ono's Plastic Ono Band - 50 Years On

Out Nov. 15, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

Hold On World revisits Lennon and Ono's love affair and startling collaborations. John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band was arguably the most emotionally honest album ever made. It wasn't merely another record but more like a sonic exorcism, a spiritual, public bloodletting. Lennon's album drove a stake through the heart of the Beatles' myth while confronting everything else in John's life, from Dylan to God to his glorified status as a "Working Class Hero."

Determined to rid himself of childhood traumas—abandoned by his father, John, at age nine, watched helplessly as his mother was killed by a car—Lennon wrote the most powerful song cycle of his career, confronting fear, disappointment, and illusion, all the while espousing his love for Yoko Ono. Released simultaneously, Ono's album Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band is emotionally raw and challenging. It inspired bands like the B-52s and Yo La Tengo to employ pure sound, whether shrieking vocals or guitar feedback, to express their deepest feelings.

Coming Up: George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters

Out July 7, 2020. Pre-order from Amazon now.

Details:

Although he was known as "the Quiet Beatle," Harrison was arguably the most thoughtful and certainly the most outspoken of the famous four. This compendium of his words and ideas proves that point repeatedly, revealing his passion for music, his focus on spirituality, and his responsibility as a celebrity, with a sense of deep commitment and humor as well.

Coming Up: In Lennon's Garden: An Intimate Portrait of John's Final Years

Out May 12, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

Nearly a half-century after his sudden, untimely death, John Lennon’s gentle spirit and otherworldly talent live on in the hearts and minds of countless fans across the globe. The Beatles, which he cofounded with Paul McCartney in 1960, is the bestselling band in history, with more than 600 million records sold worldwide to date. And the witty, mercurial John―frequently cited among the best songwriters in history―was credited with writing many of the band’s most beloved hits. From his ingenious musical compositions, to his political activism, to his quirky relationship with Yoko Ono, the indefinable cultural icon that is John Lennon never ceases to amaze and confound, and his influence has reached across generations. 

Now, four decades after his murder shocked the world, yet another side of John is revealed: one witnessed by Michael Medeiros, a gardener he and Yoko hired in 1977 to tend to their indoor garden. It was Michael who observed John’s parenting skills first-hand, who sailed with John in Bermuda, and who, on December 8, 1980, exchanged kind words with John before unwittingly shaking hands with his killer. A heartfelt tribute to Lennon, this book also ponders the artist’s evolution and insecurities, while uncovering new details of his unusual partnership with the ever-ambitious Yoko. Candidly recounting intimate conversations and encounters with Lennon in the last four years of his life, Michael’s story is a fresh, stirring perspective on a complex and brilliant man.

Coming Up: Derek Taylor: For Your Radioactive Children: Days In The Life of the Beatles' Spin Doctor

Out Oct. 1, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

There are a million stories that take place within the arc of Derek Taylor's life. He lived a charmed life, which started on Saturday, 7 May 1932, in the Liverpool 17 suburb of Toxteth Park South, and saw him becoming a writer best known as the press agent for the Beatles. He became the band's friend and intimate across thirty years. Indeed, there are no shortage of claimants to the 'honorary' or 'fifth Beatle' status, but Derek's claim is more valid than most. 

His urbane charm, his easy intelligence, and the value of his contribution to the Beatles' collective story are beyond dispute. He put spin on stories decades before the term 'spin doctor' was concocted, with his droll, idiosyncratic way of speaking. 

It all began in 1964, when he co-wrote A Cellarful Of Noise, the best-selling autobiography of Brian Epstein. Soon after, he became Epstein's personal assistant and The Beatles' press agent. 

In 1965 he moved to Los Angeles, where he started his own public relations company, managing PR for bands like Paul Revere And The Raiders, The Byrds, and The Beach Boys. Brian Wilson called him a 'PR whiz' and 'a colourful, slick-talking Brit'. But he could also be a 'theatrical, slightly conspiratorial man' according to Ray Coleman. 

Derek was co-creator and producer of the historic Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. He's there in song when John rhymes 'Derek Taylor' with 'Norman Mailer' in 'Give Peace A Chance'. 

He returned to England to work for the Beatles again as the press officer for the newly created Apple Corps. This is the definitive biography of a man that was at the heart of the music world of the 1960s and 1970s. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the Beatles of course, but also to anyone yearning for a deep dive into the colourful world of a man who helped define a era.

Coming Up: John Lennon (Little People, BIG DREAMS)

Out Nov. 24, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

When John Lennon formed a band while still in school, he couldn’t have known they were about to change music forever. With their exciting new sounds, rebel attitudes and gift for songwriting, everyone went crazy for The Beatles. Today, John is remembered not just as a musical icon, but as a champion of world peace. This inspiring book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the legendary Beatle’s life.

Little People, BIG DREAMS is a best-selling series of books and educational games that explore the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.

Coming Up: The Beatles: Sweden and Denmark 1963-1970

Out. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

It is rare to find new Beatles material, but the "Unseen Nordic Archives" series has uncovered a treasure trove of unknown or rarely used photos from their Nordic tours and coupled them with new interviews from the people involved and newspaper articles from local Danish and Swedish papers at the time. It is fascinating to see the development of the band: they could walk the streets in '63, but by '64 the crowds were making that impossible. To this amazing historical record we have added the images and memories of the band members various visits to Scandinavia, George Harrison's concert with Delaney and Bonnie (and Eric Clapton) in Copenhagen in 1969, insights into John Lennon’s one month stay in Jutland in 1969-70, and Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr’s later tours through the region.

Coming Up: The Beatles: Fab Four Cities: Liverpool, London, Hamburg, New York - The Definitive Guide

Out Aug. 31, 2020. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

Four cities. Four stars. The Fab Four - the Beatles - are revered the world over, but it is in these urban centres that their legacy shines brightest. Liverpool: where the band graduated from church halls, leaving their initial line-up as 'The Quarrymen' far behind. Hamburg: where their raucous stage act was honed; where arrests earned them a more notorious celebrity reputation, but they became a true emblem of rock 'n' roll. London: where The Beatles produced Sgt Pepper, and home to the iconic album cover for Abbey Road. And New York: the city that became John Lennon's home, where their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show announced them to 73 million Americans.

The Beatles: Fab Four Cities invites the reader on a cosmopolitan trek across continents, tracing the Beatles' rise to fame from one metropolis to the next. Flush with timelines, stories, trivia, the numerous links and connections between the cities and both pop cultural and local history, this is a travel guide like no other.