Misplaced Pages

Mal Evans

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
#993006

140-560: Malcolm Frederick Evans (27 May 1935 – 5 January 1976) was an English road manager and personal assistant employed by the Beatles from 1963 until their break-up in 1970. In the early 1960s Evans was employed as a telephone engineer, and he also worked part-time as a bouncer at the Cavern Club . The Beatles' manager, Brian Epstein , later hired Evans as the group's assistant roadie , in tandem with Neil Aspinall . Over time, Evans became

280-729: A four-year attempt to deport him . Lennon was embroiled in a continuing legal battle with the immigration authorities, and he was denied permanent residency in the US ; the issue would not be resolved until 1976. Some Time in New York City was recorded as a collaboration with Ono and was released in 1972 with backing from the New York band Elephant's Memory . A double LP, it contained songs about women's rights, race relations, Britain's role in Northern Ireland and Lennon's difficulties in obtaining

420-489: A record producer and continued to work with the individual Beatles on their solo projects. As a producer, his biggest hit was with Badfinger 's top 10 hit " No Matter What ". In 1976, at the age of 40, Evans was shot and killed by police at his home in Los Angeles, when he threatened officers with what turned out to be an air rifle. A decade after his death, his collection of diaries, notebooks and other handwritten documents

560-555: A 43-foot sailboat and embarked on a sailing trip to Bermuda. En route, he and the crew encountered a storm, rendering everyone on board seasick, except Lennon, who took control and sailed the boat through the storm. This experience re-invigorated him and his creative muse. He spent three weeks in Bermuda in a home called Fairylands writing and refining the tracks for the upcoming album. The music reflected Lennon's fulfilment in his new-found stable family life. Sufficient additional material

700-457: A December 1970 interview with Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone magazine, he revealed his bitterness towards McCartney, saying, "I was a fool not to do what Paul did, which was use it to sell a record." Lennon also spoke of the hostility he perceived the other members had towards Ono, and of how he, Harrison and Starr "got fed up with being sidemen for Paul ... After Brian Epstein died we collapsed. Paul took over and supposedly led us. But what

840-563: A UK top 10 hit for the Fourmost in 1963. McCartney recommended that his friend George Harrison become the lead guitarist. Lennon thought that Harrison, then 14 years old, was too young. McCartney engineered an audition on the upper deck of a Liverpool bus, where Harrison played " Raunchy " for Lennon and was asked to join. Stuart Sutcliffe , Lennon's friend from art school, later joined as bassist. Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Sutcliffe became "The Beatles" in early 1960. In August that year,

980-700: A bucket of gravel (as part of the rhythm), on " You Know My Name (Look Up The Number) ". He also contributed to the White Album out-take " What's the New Mary Jane ", and hit an anvil on " Maxwell's Silver Hammer ", because Starr could not lift the hammer high enough to get the right sound and keep in time with the song. According to Evans' diaries, he helped to compose songs for the Sgt. Pepper album. He wrote, on 27 January 1967: "Sgt Pepper. Started writing song with Paul [McCartney] upstairs in his room, he on piano" and "Did

1120-582: A business structure". Released amid the Protests of 1968 , the band's debut single for the Apple label included Lennon's B-side " Revolution ", in which he called for a "plan" rather than committing to Maoist revolution. The song's pacifist message led to ridicule from political radicals in the New Left press. Adding to the tensions at the Beatles' recording sessions that year, Lennon insisted on having his new girlfriend,

1260-417: A central dome. Evans and his family were included in the plan, but it was abandoned as being unworkable after McCartney refused to participate. As McCartney had no housekeeper in 1967, Evans moved in with him at 7 Cavendish Avenue , St John's Wood , which is near Abbey Road Studios . It was at Cavendish Avenue that McCartney bought his first Old English sheepdog , Martha, although Evans often complained about

1400-655: A club with a millionaire, unable to pay the bill." The Beatles flew to India in February 1968, to visit the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi 's ashram (after first meeting him on 24 August 1967, at the London Hilton hotel). Evans arrived in India a few days earlier to inspect the ashram, but as soon as Starr got off the plane, he demanded that Evans find a doctor, as his inoculation shots were causing him pain. Evans: "When we arrived at

1540-482: A collection of his own film recordings was later released on DVD. In 1968, Evans had seen the group Badfinger (then known as The Iveys) play live, and suggested that they be signed to Apple. Evans then produced several of their songs in 1969 and 1970, the most notable of which was " No Matter What ", which charted on Billboard 's Top 10 in December 1970. Evans also discovered the group Splinter and brought them to

SECTION 10

#1733084981994

1680-443: A constant companion to the group, being present on all of their tours, and after the Beatles stopped touring in 1966, at nearly all of their recording sessions. As a constant presence, the Beatles occasionally used Evans as an extra musician; he has (often uncredited) contributions on most Beatles albums from Rubber Soul (1965) onwards. During the final years of the group, and continuing after their break-up in 1970, Evans worked as

1820-589: A dairyman at his family's farm, bought him a mouth organ and engaged him in solving crossword puzzles. Julia visited Mendips on a regular basis, and John often visited her at 1 Blomfield Road, Liverpool, where she played him Elvis Presley records, taught him the banjo, and showed him how to play " Ain't That a Shame " by Fats Domino . In September 1980, Lennon commented about his family and his rebellious nature: A part of me would like to be accepted by all facets of society and not be this loudmouthed lunatic poet/musician. But I cannot be what I am not ... I

1960-480: A damper on the spontaneity of the whole affair by walking in with a tray of water-filled glasses, trying to arrange it into some sort of session." The Beatles and Evans flew to Greece in late 1967, with encouragement from Greek-born "Magic Alex" , the director of Apple Electronics , to buy an island or a group of islands. The general idea was that the Beatles would live on the islands in their own separate homes, but would be connected to each other by tunnels leading to

2100-471: A dig by Lennon, who thought Grade was two-faced. Lennon began what would be a five-year hiatus from the music industry, during which time, he later said, he "baked bread" and "looked after the baby". He devoted himself to Sean, rising at 6   am daily to plan and prepare his meals and to spend time with him. He wrote "Cookin' (In the Kitchen of Love)" for Starr's Ringo's Rotogravure (1976), performing on

2240-567: A green card. The album was a commercial failure and was maligned by critics, who found its political sloganeering heavy-handed and relentless. The NME ' s review took the form of an open letter in which Tony Tyler derided Lennon as a "pathetic, ageing revolutionary". In the US, " Woman Is the Nigger of the World " was released as a single from the album and was televised on 11 May, on The Dick Cavett Show . Many radio stations refused to broadcast

2380-408: A living out of it." Lennon's senior school years were marked by a shift in his behaviour. Teachers at Quarry Bank High School described him thus: "He has too many wrong ambitions and his energy is often misplaced", and "His work always lacks effort. He is content to 'drift' instead of using his abilities." Lennon's misbehaviour created a rift in his relationship with his aunt. On 15 July 1958, at

2520-505: A local store and buy pairs of cotton socks for him. In 1967, Evans wrote in his diaries that he "bought Ringo [Starr] some undies for his visit to the doctor". Although Beatles' memorabilia are in continuous demand, a full set of autographs by all four could be forgeries : Evans and Aspinall used to sign many of them when Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr were too busy. The Beatles started their first European tour in January 1964, and Evans

2660-447: A lot more of "where the rain comes in" [a lyric from " Fixing a Hole "]. Hope people like it. Started Sergeant Pepper". On 1 February: "Sergeant Pepper sounds good. Paul tells me that I will get royalties on the song—great news, now perhaps a new home." On 2 February: "Recording voices on Captain [ sic ] Pepper. All six of us doing the chorus in the middle, worked until about midnight." Keith Badman—author of The Beatles off

2800-449: A member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994). John Winston Lennon was born on 9 October 1940 at Liverpool Maternity Hospital , the only child of Julia (née Stanley) and Alfred Lennon . Alfred was a merchant seaman of Irish descent who was away at the time of his son's birth. His parents named him John Winston Lennon after his paternal grandfather, John "Jack" Lennon, and Prime Minister Winston Churchill . His father

2940-407: A much greater degree of authority in tour operations. John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon ; 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and political activist. He gained worldwide fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles . His songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney remains

SECTION 20

#1733084981994

3080-598: A passport. McCartney got past customs by saying "You know who I am", but he and Evans were not allowed into a hotel restaurant in Nice because they "didn't look the part", and had to eat dinner in Evans' room. Because the money they had with them had been spent on clothes (NEMS was supposed to send them more), they arranged for credit over two nights in a nightclub. Evans: "We took advantage of our credit standing, as money had still not arrived from England. News about Paul's [McCartney] visit to

3220-515: A pebble and glazed over; Evans had to break a large hole in it to see the road ahead. This was in winter, so the group had to lie one on top of the other in the back with a bottle of whisky and try to stay warm in the freezing temperatures, something Paul McCartney later referred to as a "Beatle sandwich". Evans had many other duties as well as acting as a bodyguard; he was sent to buy anything they needed, such as clothing, meals, or drinks. If John Lennon said "Socks, Mal", Evans would have to rush to

3360-422: A post-election wake held in the New York home of activist Jerry Rubin . Lennon was depressed and got intoxicated; he left Ono embarrassed after he had sex with a female guest. Ono's song " Death of Samantha " was inspired by the incident. As Lennon was about to record Mind Games in 1973, he and Ono decided to separate. The ensuing 18-month period apart, which he later called his "lost weekend" in reference to

3500-525: A professional appearance, but eventually complied, saying "I'll wear a bloody balloon if somebody's going to pay me." McCartney took over on bass after Sutcliffe decided to stay in Hamburg, and Best was replaced with drummer Ringo Starr ; this completed the four-piece line-up that would remain until the group's break-up in 1970. The band's first single, " Love Me Do ", was released in October 1962 and reached No. 17 on

3640-503: A recording session at the Record Plant . After the session, Lennon and Ono returned to the Dakota in a limousine at around 10:50   p.m. (EST). They left the vehicle and walked through the archway of the building. Chapman then shot Lennon twice in the back and twice in the shoulder at close range. Lennon was rushed in a police cruiser to the emergency room of Roosevelt Hospital , where he

3780-484: A result, until three months later, when Lennon apologised and asked to reunite. She took him back and later noted that he was never again physically abusive towards her, although he could still be "verbally cutting and unkind". Lennon later said that until he met Ono, he had never questioned his chauvinistic attitude towards women. He said that the Beatles song " Getting Better " told his (or his peers') own story. "I used to be cruel to my woman, and physically – any woman. I

3920-425: A rise. Not really true don't want to ask for a rise, fellows are having a pretty tough time as it is." Evans was the only member of the Apple entourage to be invited to attend (and be a witness) when McCartney and Linda Eastman were married at Marylebone Registry Office on 12 March 1969. Evans wrote in his diary that he was due to be there at 9.45 am, but McCartney's brother, Michael 's train from Birmingham

4060-446: A series of 14 lithographs called "Bag One" depicting scenes from their honeymoon, eight of which were deemed indecent and most of which were banned and confiscated. Lennon's creative focus continued to move beyond the Beatles, and between 1968 and 1969 he and Ono recorded three albums of experimental music together: Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins (known more for its cover than for its music), Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with

4200-491: A solo artist to top the US Billboard Hot 100 chart during his lifetime. A second single from the album, " #9 Dream ", followed before the end of the year. Starr's Goodnight Vienna (1974) again saw assistance from Lennon, who wrote the title track and played piano. On 28 November, Lennon made a surprise guest appearance at Elton John's Thanksgiving concert at Madison Square Garden, in fulfilment of his promise to join

4340-446: A sound. And the words were almost irrelevant". In a 1987 interview, McCartney said that the other Beatles idolised Lennon: "He was like our own little Elvis   ... We all looked up to John. He was older and he was very much the leader; he was the quickest wit and the smartest." The Beatles achieved mainstream success in the UK early in 1963. Lennon was on tour when his first son, Julian ,

Mal Evans - Misplaced Pages Continue

4480-469: A suitcase full of baked beans with him. After leaving India, Harrison and Evans flew to New York, visiting Bob Dylan and The Band , who were rehearsing at their Big Pink house/studio, in Woodstock. When Apple was formed in 1968, Evans was promoted from road manager to personal assistant , although his weekly £38 salary remained the same. After Evans and Peter Asher (A&R head of Apple Records) saw

4620-598: A well-stocked bar." When they were back in LA, they were invited to visit the house of Michelle and John Phillips, from the Mamas & the Papas . Brian Wilson was also there, as he was working on the Beach Boys ' Smile album. Evans wrote about singing " On Top of Old Smokey " with McCartney and Wilson, but was not impressed by Wilson's avant-garde attitude to music: "Brian [Wilson] then put

4760-535: A wooden oar he had found backstage. The Beatles were always assisted by Evans on their American tours, and when they played two shows at the Hollywood Bowl in the summer of 1965 Epstein arranged for them all to have a four-day rest in a luxurious horseshoe-shaped house on stilts in Benedict Canyon off Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles. They spent their time there smoking cannabis joints. Evans and Lennon swam in

4900-536: Is credited on Harrison's All Things Must Pass and the John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album as providing "tea and sympathy". Evans cowrote " You and Me (Babe) " with Harrison. The track appeared on Starr's 1973 solo album Ringo . He also cowrote the Splinter song "Lonely Man", the musical centrepiece of Little Malcolm , an Apple feature film produced by Harrison. A rare interview appearance by Evans

5040-657: Is leading us when we went round in circles?" When it gets down to having to use violence, then you are playing the system's game. The establishment will irritate you – pull your beard, flick your face – to make you fight. Because once they've got you violent, then they know how to handle you. The only thing they don't know how to handle is non-violence and humor. Between 1 April and 15 September 1970, Lennon and Ono went through primal therapy with Arthur Janov at Tittenhurst, in London and at Janov's clinic in Los Angeles, California. Designed to release emotional pain from early childhood,

5180-409: Is really cutting down on the Apple staff members. I was elevated to office boy [Evans was made Managing Director of Apple, but very briefly] and I feel very hurt and sad inside—only big boys don't cry. Why I should feel hurt and reason for writing this is ego. ... I thought I was different from other people in my relationship with the Beatles and being loved by them and treated so nice, I felt like one of

5320-588: The Our World satellite broadcast, before an international audience estimated at up to 400 million. Intentionally simplistic in its message, the song formalised his pacifist stance and provided an anthem for the Summer of Love . After the Beatles were introduced to the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , the group attended an August weekend of personal instruction at his Transcendental Meditation seminar in Bangor , Wales. During

5460-579: The Grosse Horloge church (on the corner of cours Victor Hugo and rue St. James). At exactly the pre-arranged time of one o'clock, Evans was standing under the church clock when McCartney arrived. They then drove to Madrid together but, after feeling bored, McCartney phoned Epstein's office in London and asked to be booked on a safari holiday in Kenya. When they arrived they visited the Amboseli Reserve at

5600-687: The Nigerian Civil War ), its support of America in the Vietnam War and (perhaps jokingly) against "Cold Turkey" slipping down the charts, Lennon returned his MBE medal to the Queen. This gesture had no effect on his MBE status, which could be renounced but ultimately only the Sovereign has the power to annul the original award. The medal, together with Lennon's letter, is held at the Central Chancery of

5740-461: The Savile Row rooftop when they came to stop the performance. Before the concert, Evans placed a camera and a microphone in a corner of Apple's reception area, so that when the police came in to complain about the noise—which was expected—they could be filmed and recorded. McCartney then saved Evans from police arrest. The Beatles were often filmed by Evans during his time with them (without sound), and

Mal Evans - Misplaced Pages Continue

5880-486: The Toronto Rock and Roll Revival concert. He later wrote: "I was really enjoying myself. It was the first show I had roadied for three years and I was really loving every minute of plugging the amps in and setting them up on stage, making sure that everything was right. Everyone wanted the show to go particularly well because Allen Klein, who had flown over, had organised for the whole of John's performance to be filmed. This

6020-594: The anti-war movement and the counterculture of the 1960s . In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, multimedia artist Yoko Ono , held the two-week-long anti-war demonstration bed-in for peace, and left the Beatles to embark on a solo career. Lennon and Ono collaborated on many works, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums and several more films. After the Beatles disbanded , Lennon released his solo debut John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and

6160-554: The film of the same name , was spent in Los Angeles and New York City in the company of May Pang . Mind Games , credited to the "Plastic U.F.Ono Band", was released in November 1973. Lennon also contributed " I'm the Greatest " to Starr's album Ringo (1973), released the same month. With Harrison joining Starr and Lennon at the recording session for the song, it marked the only occasion when three former Beatles recorded together between

6300-619: The 1981 Grammy Award for Album of the Year . That year, he won the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music . In 2002, Lennon was voted eighth in a BBC history poll of the 100 Greatest Britons . Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth-greatest singer and 38th greatest artist of all time . He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as

6440-605: The Apple label, although they would subsequently move to George Harrison's Dark Horse Records . Evans' other production credits include Jackie Lomax 's 1969 single "New Day" (on Apple) and some of the tracks on Keith Moon 's only solo album Two Sides of the Moon (1975). Evans separated from his wife in 1973 and moved to Los Angeles where Lennon had moved to live with May Pang after his own separation from Yoko Ono . Evans performed chimes , handclaps, and backing vocals on John Lennon's first post-Beatles single, " Instant Karma! ". Evans

6580-522: The Ashram called me half way through, but as soon as an Indian reporter told me "No bloody foreigner is going to stop me in my own country", I cooled it." Evans' diary says that he enjoyed his time in India: "It's hard to believe that a week has already passed. I suppose the peace of mind and the serenity one achieves through meditation makes the time fly," and that he also enjoyed the food, unlike Starr, who had brought

6720-405: The Beatles in the combined role of roadie/bodyguard. Evans and Aspinall's duties were to drive the van while on tour, and to set up and test the equipment . Evans' telephone engineering experience was valuable in setting up and maintaining the electrical equipment. The Beatles were being driven back to Liverpool from London by Evans through heavy fog on 21 January 1963, when the windscreen was hit by

6860-522: The Beatles were engaged for a 48-night residency in Hamburg , in West Germany, and were desperately in need of a drummer. They asked Pete Best to join them. Lennon's aunt, horrified when he told her about the trip, pleaded with Lennon to continue his art studies instead. After the first Hamburg residency, the band accepted another in April 1961, and a third in April 1962. As with the other band members, Lennon

7000-635: The British charts. They recorded their debut album, Please Please Me , in under 10 hours on 11 February 1963, a day when Lennon was suffering the effects of a cold, which is evident in the vocal on the last song to be recorded that day, " Twist and Shout ". The Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership yielded eight of its fourteen tracks. With a few exceptions, one being the album title itself, Lennon had yet to bring his love of wordplay to bear on his song lyrics, saying: "We were just writing songs   ... pop songs with no more thought of them than that – to create

7140-492: The Dirty Mac , a supergroup composed of Lennon, Eric Clapton , Keith Richards and Mitch Mitchell . The group also backed a vocal performance by Ono. A film version was released in 1996. By late 1968, Lennon's increased drug use and growing preoccupation with Ono, combined with the Beatles' inability to agree on how the company should be run, left Apple in need of professional management. Lennon asked Lord Beeching to take on

SECTION 50

#1733084981994

7280-536: The Japanese artist Yoko Ono , beside him, thereby contravening the band's policy regarding wives and girlfriends in the studio. He was especially pleased with his songwriting contributions to the double album and identified it as a superior work to Sgt. Pepper . At the end of 1968, Lennon participated in The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus , a television special that was not broadcast. Lennon performed with

7420-458: The Life ", Evans controlled an alarm clock; counting the measures in the original 24-bar pause, and was one of the five piano players simultaneously hitting the last chord of the song. He played tambourine on " Dear Prudence ", and trumpet on " Helter Skelter ", where he played a double solo with Lennon, even though neither was proficient on the instrument. Evans contributed background vocals, and stirred

7560-608: The Lions and Wedding Album . In 1969, they formed the Plastic Ono Band , releasing Live Peace in Toronto 1969 . Between 1969 and 1970, Lennon released the singles "Give Peace a Chance", which was widely adopted as an anti- Vietnam War anthem, " Cold Turkey ", which documented his withdrawal symptoms after he became addicted to heroin , and " Instant Karma! ". In protest at Britain's involvement in "the Nigeria-Biafra thing" (namely,

7700-562: The Night ") and David Bowie (" Fame "). Following a five-year hiatus, Lennon returned to music in 1980 with the Ono collaboration Double Fantasy . He was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman , three weeks after the album's release. As a performer, writer or co-writer, Lennon had 25 number-one singles in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Double Fantasy , his second-best-selling non-Beatles album, won

7840-479: The Orders of Knighthood . Lennon left the Beatles on 20 September 1969, but agreed not to inform the media while the group renegotiated their recording contract. He was outraged that McCartney publicised his own departure on releasing his debut solo album in April 1970. Lennon's reaction was, "Jesus Christ! He gets all the credit for it!" He later wrote, "I started the band. I disbanded it. It's as simple as that." In

7980-518: The People ". In his lyrics to the song, Lennon reversed the non-confrontational approach he had espoused in "Revolution", although he later disowned "Power to the People", saying that it was borne out of guilt and a desire for approval from radicals such as Ali. Lennon became involved in a protest against the prosecution of Oz magazine for alleged obscenity. Lennon denounced the proceedings as "disgusting fascism", and he and Ono (as Elastic Oz Band) released

8120-615: The Quarrymen. Named after Quarry Bank High School, the group was established by Lennon in September 1956. By the summer of 1957, the Quarrymen played a "spirited set of songs" made up of half skiffle and half rock and roll . Lennon first met Paul McCartney at the Quarrymen's second performance, which was held in Woolton on 6 July at the St Peter's Church garden fête. Lennon then asked McCartney to join

8260-619: The Record —referred to a tape recording of Evans speaking shortly before his death, on which Evans reiterated some of the statements made in the diary. According to Badman, Evans was asked at the time if it would be a problem that he was not credited as a writer, because the Lennon–McCartney writing name was "a really hot item". For reasons unclear, Evans did not receive any royalties and stayed at his £38-a-week pay (£871 in modern currency). Evans appeared in four (out of five) Beatles' films. During

8400-531: The Sky with Diamonds ", featuring Lennon on guitar and backing vocals - Lennon is credited on the single under the moniker of "Dr. Winston O'Boogie". As January became February, Lennon and Ono reunited as Lennon and Bowie completed recording of their co-composition " Fame ", which became David Bowie 's first US number one, featuring guitar and backing vocals by Lennon. In February, Lennon released Rock 'n' Roll (1975), an album of cover songs. " Stand by Me ", taken from

8540-494: The Soup)" which was, for contractual reasons, to remain unreleased for more than 30 years. Pang supplied the recording for its eventual inclusion on The Very Best of Mick Jagger (2007). Lennon had settled back in New York when he recorded the album Walls and Bridges . Released in October 1974, it included " Whatever Gets You thru the Night ", which featured Elton John on backing vocals and piano, and became Lennon's only single as

SECTION 60

#1733084981994

8680-643: The US when quoted by a magazine there five months later. The furore that followed, which included the burning of Beatles records, Ku Klux Klan activity and threats against Lennon, contributed to the band's decision to stop touring. After the band's final concert on 29 August 1966, Lennon filmed the anti-war black comedy How I Won the War – his only appearance in a non-Beatles feature film – before rejoining his bandmates for an extended period of recording, beginning in November. Lennon had increased his use of LSD and, according to author Ian MacDonald , his continuous use of

8820-624: The Works . The Beatles received recognition from the British establishment when they were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours . Lennon grew concerned that fans who attended Beatles concerts were unable to hear the music above the screaming of fans, and that the band's musicianship was beginning to suffer as a result. Lennon's " Help! " expressed his own feelings in 1965: "I meant it   ... It

8960-667: The actors that were needed to perform in the Magical Mystery Tour film, and to hire an old 60-seater coach , on which they were told to paint the Magical Mystery Tour logo , which McCartney had designed. Evans later appeared in the film as one of the magicians , who cast mysterious spells on the passengers of the bus. In the Let It Be film, Evans can be seen playing the anvil during early versions of " Maxwell's Silver Hammer ", and can be seen talking to police officers on

9100-505: The age of 44, Julia Lennon was struck and killed by a car while she was walking home after visiting the Smiths' house. His mother's death traumatised the teenage Lennon, who, for the next two years, drank heavily and frequently got into fights, consumed by a "blind rage". Julia's memory would later serve as a major creative inspiration for Lennon, inspiring songs such as the 1968 Beatles song " Julia ". Lennon failed his O-level examinations, and

9240-562: The album and a US and UK hit, became his last single for five years. He made what would be his final stage appearance in the ATV special A Salute to Lew Grade , recorded on 18 April and televised in June. Playing acoustic guitar and backed by an eight-piece band, Lennon performed two songs from Rock 'n' Roll ("Stand by Me", which was not broadcast, and "Slippin' and Slidin ' ") followed by "Imagine". The band, known as Etc., wore masks behind their heads,

9380-416: The band members' mixed experience with Transcendental Meditation signalled a sharp divergence in the group's camaraderie. On their return to London, they became increasingly involved in business activities with the formation of Apple Corps , a multimedia corporation composed of Apple Records and several other subsidiary companies. Lennon described the venture as an attempt to achieve "artistic freedom within

9520-427: The band's break-up and Lennon's death. In early 1974, Lennon was drinking heavily and his alcohol-fuelled antics with Harry Nilsson made headlines. In March, two widely publicised incidents occurred at The Troubadour club. In the first incident, Lennon stuck an unused menstrual pad on his forehead and scuffled with a waitress. The second incident occurred two weeks later, when Lennon and Nilsson were ejected from

9660-513: The band's early years, then later incorporating experimental elements into his compositions in the latter half of the Beatles' career as his songs became known for their increasing innovation. Lennon soon expanded his work into other media by participating in numerous films, including How I Won the War , and authoring In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works , both collections of nonsense writings and line drawings. Starting with " All You Need Is Love ", his songs were adopted as anthems by

9800-564: The band. McCartney said that Aunt Mimi "was very aware that John's friends were lower class", and would often patronise him when he arrived to visit Lennon. According to McCartney's brother Mike , their father similarly disapproved of Lennon, declaring that Lennon would get his son "into trouble". McCartney's father nevertheless allowed the fledgling band to rehearse in the family's front room at 20   Forthlin Road . During this time Lennon wrote his first song, " Hello Little Girl ", which became

9940-424: The banjo. What is known about him starts in 1961, when Evans married a Liverpool girl, Lily, after meeting her at a funfair in New Brighton opposite Liverpool on the Wirral . Their first child, Gary, was born in the same year. Their daughter, Julie, was born five years later in 1966. The Beatles were the resident group at Liverpool 's Cavern Club when Evans first heard them perform during his lunch break. He

10080-489: The basement of a New York publisher, and then sent to his family in London. In 1992, Lennon's original pages of lyrics to " A Day in the Life " were sold by the Evans estate for £56,600 at Sotheby's in London. In 2010, a double-sided sheet of paper containing the hand-written lyrics and notes to "A Day in the Life" were sold at auction at Sotheby's in New York to an anonymous American buyer for $ 1.2m (£810,000). Other lyrics collected by Evans have been subject to legal action over

10220-413: The club the previous night had spread, and the place was jammed. Now Paul, being a generous sort of person, had built up quite a bar bill, when the manager of the club arrived demanding that we pay immediately. On explaining who Paul was and what had happened, he answered, 'You either pay the bill, or I call the police.' It certainly looked like we were going to get thrown in jail. It was ironical, sitting in

10360-585: The concerts, however, which resulted in the couple having a heated argument and Lennon pulling out of the event. Lennon and Ono moved to New York in August 1971 and immediately embraced US radical left politics . The couple released their " Happy Xmas (War Is Over) " single in December. During the new year, the Nixon administration took what it called a "strategic counter-measure" against Lennon's anti-war and anti-Nixon propaganda. The administration embarked on what would be

10500-595: The documentary, and subsequently used for the 2022 release of Revolver and " Now and Then ", was named MAL (machine-assisted learning) after Evans, and as an homage to HAL 9000 . Road manager In the music industry , a road manager is a person who works with small to mid-size tours (in terms of personnel involved, based on the size of the production). Job responsibilities include (but are not limited to): Road managers can be confused with tour managers . Generally speaking, though, tour managers work with upper-mid to large scale tours and are often granted

10640-507: The dog fouling the beds. Evans later bought a house in Sunbury-on-Thames , which was situated between McCartney's, Lennon's, Harrison's and Starr's houses. While working on the Magical Mystery Tour film, Evans wrote about his work duties: "I would get requests from the four of them to do six different things at one time, and it was always a case of relying on instinct and experience in awarding priorities. They used to be right sods for

10780-421: The doors would open as they (literally) had to "dive into the car" to escape their fans. The Beatles, and Evans, were introduced to cannabis by Bob Dylan in New York City in 1964. McCartney and Evans, both high for the first time, frantically searched until they found a pencil and paper so McCartney could write down his cannabis-influenced thoughts about life. He entrusted the writing to Evans, only to discover

10920-448: The dramatic portrayal of a young John Lennon being forced to make a decision between his parents is inaccurate. Lennon had no further contact with Alf for close to 20 years. Throughout the rest of his childhood and adolescence, Lennon lived at Mendips, 251   Menlove Avenue , Woolton, with Mimi and her husband George Toogood Smith , who had no children of their own. His aunt purchased volumes of short stories for him, and his uncle,

11060-482: The drug in 1967 brought him "close to erasing his identity ". The year 1967 saw the release of " Strawberry Fields Forever ", hailed by Time magazine for its "astonishing inventiveness", and the group's landmark album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band , which revealed lyrics by Lennon that contrasted strongly with the simple love songs of the group's early years. In late June, the Beatles performed Lennon's " All You Need Is Love " as Britain's contribution to

11200-407: The family. Seems I fetch and carry. I find it difficult to live on the £38 I take home each week and would love to be like their other friends who buy fantastic homes and have all the alterations done by them, and are still going to ask for a rise. I always tell myself—look, everybody wants to take from, be satisfied, try to give and you will receive. After all this time I have about £70 to my name, but

11340-521: The family." During his career break he created several series of drawings, and drafted a book containing a mix of autobiographical material and what he termed "mad stuff", all of which would be published posthumously. Lennon emerged from his hiatus in October 1980, when he released the single " (Just Like) Starting Over ". In November, he and Ono released the album Double Fantasy , which included songs Lennon had written in Bermuda . In June, Lennon chartered

11480-513: The filming of the Beatles' first feature film, A Hard Day's Night , Evans appeared in a cameo role, carrying an upright bass in between John Lennon and Millie in the backstage scene in which Millie mistakes Lennon for someone else. In Help! , Evans played a confused channel swimmer who pops up through an ice-hole in Austria, and on a beach in the Bahamas. Evans and Aspinall were asked to find and hire

11620-509: The first few days, until they realised that everything was going to go smoothly and they could get into the routine of recording. ... Then I would find time between numerous cups of tea and salad sandwiches and baked beans on toast to listen to the recording in the control room." After the Magical Mystery Tour recordings, Evans flew to Nice with McCartney to shoot " The Fool on the Hill " promotional film, although McCartney set off without luggage or

11760-486: The foot of Mount Kilimanjaro , and also stayed at the exclusive Treetops Hotel , where the rooms are built on the branches of trees. They spent their final night in Nairobi at a YMCA , before they returned to London. The Beatles—according to McCartney—needed a new name, so on the flight back to England, Evans and McCartney played with words to see if they could come up with something new. Evans innocently asked McCartney what

11900-680: The front cover. In the spring of 1967—after the album was completed—Evans flew with McCartney to Los Angeles to see McCartney's then-girlfriend, Jane Asher , who was acting there with the Old Vic theatre company. The three of them went on a trip to the Rockies , returning to LA in Frank Sinatra 's jet. Evans: "We left Denver in Frank Sinatra's Lear Jet , which he very kindly loaned us. A beautiful job with dark black leather upholstery and, to our delight,

12040-576: The house because of the likely effects. Later, in a lift at a nightclub, they all believed it was on fire; Lennon recalled: "We were all screaming   ... hot and hysterical." In March 1966, during an interview with Evening Standard reporter Maureen Cleave , Lennon remarked, "Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink   ... We're more popular than Jesus now – I don't know which will go first, rock and roll or Christianity." The comment went virtually unnoticed in England but caused great offence in

12180-467: The international top-10 singles " Give Peace a Chance ", " Instant Karma! ", " Imagine ", and " Happy Xmas (War Is Over) ". Moving to New York City in 1971, his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a three-year deportation attempt by the Nixon administration . Lennon and Ono separated from 1973 to 1975, during which time he produced Harry Nilsson 's album Pussy Cats . He also had chart-topping collaborations with Elton John (" Whatever Gets You thru

12320-399: The large outdoor swimming pool with cigarettes in their mouths, to see who could keep them alight the longest. After recording sessions in London, Lennon, Harrison, and Starr would be chauffeured back to their houses in the "stockbroker belt" of southern England, but Evans, Aspinall, and McCartney would drive to a late-night club to eat steak, chips, and mushy peas . The Bag O'Nails nightclub

12460-451: The letters "S" and "P" stood for on the pots on their meal trays, and McCartney explained that it was for salt and pepper, which led to the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band name. They arrived back in London on 19 November 1966. Before the cover of Sgt. Pepper could be completed by Peter Blake , Evans and Aspinall were sent out to find photographs of all of the people that were to be shown on

12600-460: The local hospital, I tried to get immediate treatment for him [Starr], to be told curtly by the Indian doctor, 'He is not a special case and will have to wait his turn.' So off we go to pay a private doctor ten rupees for the privilege of hearing him say 'It will be all right'." Evans wrote in his diary on 17 February 1968: "The press really tried kicking down the gates into the Ashram, the Indian people on

12740-596: The lyrics for " Hey Jude " was sold in 1998, for £111,500. The notebook also contains lyrics for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and " All You Need Is Love ". It also contained lyrics, notes, drawings and poems by Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, and Starr, as well as by Evans. In July 2012, a solo play about Mal by actor Nik Wood-Jones premiered at the Cavern in Liverpool before a run at the Edinburgh fringe. In December 2021, it

12880-493: The most successful in history. Born in Liverpool , Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1956, he formed the Quarrymen , which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Lennon initially was the group's de facto leader, a role he gradually seemed to cede to McCartney. Through his songwriting in the Beatles, he embraced myriad musical influences, initially writing and co-writing rock and pop-orientated hit songs in

13020-496: The nation's first lady, Imelda Marcos . After the supposed snub was broadcast on Philippine television and radio, all of the Beatles' police protection disappeared. The group and their entourage had to make their way to Manila airport on their own. At the airport, Evans was beaten and kicked, and the group members were pushed and jostled about by a hostile crowd. Once the group boarded the plane, Tony Barrow and Evans were ordered off, and Evans said, "Tell Lil I love her", thinking he

13160-522: The next morning that he'd only written, with no further explanation, "There are seven levels!" He later guessed it was rooted in a general concept shared by some world religions although he admitted he would not have known anything about them at that point. The Beatles attended "The Night of 100 Stars" at the London Palladium on 23 July 1964, and during the show Evans constantly supplied them with whisky and Coca-Cola, which he delivered to them balanced on

13300-501: The rock band the Iveys perform at London's Marquee Club, Evans constantly suggested that the Beatles sign the band to the Apple label. This eventually happened in July 1968, when the Iveys became the first band to be signed to the label. Some of the first Apple recording sessions were produced by Evans and the band eventually changed their name to Badfinger. Evans: January 13, 1969: Paul [McCartney]

13440-522: The role but he declined, advising Lennon to go back to making records. Lennon was approached by Allen Klein , who had managed the Rolling Stones and other bands during the British Invasion . In early 1969, Klein was appointed as Apple's chief executive by Lennon, Harrison and Starr, but McCartney never signed the management contract. Lennon and Ono were married on 20 March 1969 and soon released

13580-512: The same club after heckling the Smothers Brothers . Lennon decided to produce Nilsson's album Pussy Cats , and Pang rented a Los Angeles beach house for all the musicians. After a month of further debauchery, the recording sessions were in chaos, and Lennon returned to New York with Pang to finish work on the album. In April, Lennon had produced the Mick Jagger song "Too Many Cooks (Spoil

13720-480: The school holidays Parkes often visited Lennon with Leila Harvey, another cousin, and the three often travelled to Blackpool two or three times a week to watch shows. They would visit the Blackpool Tower Circus and see artists such as Dickie Valentine , Arthur Askey , Max Bygraves and Joe Loss , with Parkes recalling that Lennon particularly liked George Formby . After Parkes's family moved to Scotland,

13860-403: The seminar, they were informed of Epstein's death. "I knew we were in trouble then", Lennon said later. "I didn't have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music. I was scared – I thought, 'We've fucking had it now. ' " McCartney organised the group's first post-Epstein project, the self-written, -produced and -directed television film Magical Mystery Tour , which

14000-455: The singer in a live show if "Whatever Gets You thru the Night", a song whose commercial potential Lennon had doubted, reached number one. Lennon performed the song along with " Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds " and " I Saw Her Standing There ", which he introduced as "a song by an old estranged fiancé of mine called Paul". In the first two weeks of January 1975, Elton John topped the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with his cover of " Lucy in

14140-507: The single "God Save Us/Do the Oz" and joined marches in support of the magazine. Eager for a major commercial success, Lennon adopted a more accessible sound for his next album, Imagine (1971). Rolling Stone reported that "it contains a substantial portion of good music" but warned of the possibility that "his posturings will soon seem not merely dull but irrelevant". The album's title track later became an anthem for anti-war movements, while

14280-535: The song " How Do You Sleep? " was a musical attack on McCartney in response to lyrics on Ram that Lennon felt, and McCartney later confirmed, were directed at him and Ono. In " Jealous Guy ", Lennon addressed his demeaning treatment of women, acknowledging that his past behaviour was a result of long-held insecurity. In gratitude for his guitar contributions to Imagine , Lennon initially agreed to perform at Harrison's Concert for Bangladesh benefit shows in New York. Harrison refused to allow Ono to participate at

14420-470: The song " Mother ", in which Lennon confronted his feelings of childhood rejection, and the Dylanesque " Working Class Hero ", a bitter attack against the bourgeois social system which, due to the lyric "you're still fucking peasants", fell foul of broadcasters. In January 1971, Tariq Ali expressed his revolutionary political views when he interviewed Lennon, who immediately responded by writing " Power to

14560-475: The song because of the word " nigger ". Lennon and Ono gave two benefit concerts with Elephant's Memory and guests in New York in aid of patients at the Willowbrook State School mental facility. Staged at Madison Square Garden on 30 August 1972, they were his last full-length concert appearances. After George McGovern lost the 1972 presidential election to Richard Nixon, Lennon and Ono attended

14700-400: The therapy entailed two half-days a week with Janov for six months; he had wanted to treat the couple for longer, but their American visa ran out and they had to return to the UK. Lennon's debut solo album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970), was received with praise by many music critics, but its highly personal lyrics and stark sound limited its commercial performance. The album featured

14840-597: The three cousins often spent their school holidays together there. Parkes recalled, "John, cousin Leila and I were very close. From Edinburgh we would drive up to the family croft at Durness , which was from about the time John was nine years old until he was about 16." Lennon's uncle George died of a liver haemorrhage on 5 June 1955, aged 52. Lennon was raised as an Anglican and attended Dovedale Primary School . After passing his eleven-plus exam, he attended Quarry Bank High School in Liverpool from September 1952 to 1957, and

14980-415: The time, Bobby Dykins – and after a heated argument, his father forced the five-year-old to choose between them. In one account of this incident, Lennon twice chose his father, but as his mother walked away, he began to cry and followed her. According to author Mark Lewisohn , however, Lennon's parents agreed that Julia should take him and give him a home. Billy Hall, who witnessed the incident, has said that

15120-469: The top of the UK chart by " Woman ", the second single from Double Fantasy . Later that year, Roxy Music 's cover version of " Jealous Guy ", recorded as a tribute to Lennon, was also a UK number-one. Lennon met Cynthia Powell (1939–2015) in 1957, when they were fellow students at the Liverpool College of Art . Although Powell was intimidated by Lennon's attitude and appearance, she heard that he

15260-533: The track in June in what would be his last recording session until 1980. Sean Lennon , Lennon's only child with Ono, was born on 9 October 1975 (Lennon's thirty-fifth birthday), after which Lennon took on the role of househusband. He formally announced his break from music in Tokyo in 1977, saying, "we have basically decided, without any great decision, to be with our baby as much as we can until we feel we can take time off to indulge ourselves in creating things outside of

15400-482: The weapon but Evans refused. The police fired six shots, four hitting Evans and killing him. Evans previously had been awarded the badge of "Honorary Sheriff of Los Angeles County ", but in the Los Angeles Times he was referred to as a "jobless former road manager for the Beatles". Evans' biographer Kenneth Womack argued that the death was a suicide by cop , as Evans' had written a will the night before. Evans

15540-403: The weapon. Hughes then phoned the police and told them that Evans was confused, had a rifle, and was on Valium . Four police officers arrived and three of them, David D. Krempa, Robert E. Brannon and Lieutenant Charles Higbie, went up to the bedroom. They later reported that as soon as Evans saw the three police officers he pointed the rifle at them. The officers repeatedly told Evans to put down

15680-518: The years: In 1996, McCartney went to the High Court in England and prevented the sale of the original lyrics to " With a Little Help from My Friends " that Evans' ex-wife had tried to sell, by claiming that the lyrics were collected by Evans as a part of his duties, and therefore belonged to the Beatles, collectively. A 2004 report of the discovery of a further collection of Evans' Beatles' memorabilia proved to be false. A notebook in which McCartney wrote

15820-525: Was about to be jailed or killed. Epstein was forced to give back all the money that the group had earned while they were there before being allowed on the plane. The Beatles' last concert was at Candlestick Park , San Francisco, on 29 August 1966, but Evans continued to work for them in the studio, and to run errands. After returning to London following their last American tour, McCartney went by himself on holiday to France, but asked to meet Evans in Bordeaux , at

15960-400: Was accepted into the Liverpool College of Art after his aunt and headmaster intervened. At the college he began to wear Teddy Boy clothes and was threatened with expulsion for his behaviour. In the description of Cynthia Powell , Lennon's fellow student and subsequently his wife, he was "thrown out of the college before his final year". At the age of 15, Lennon formed a skiffle group ,

16100-513: Was allowed to take his wife and son with him, but was involved in a "big punch-up" with photographers in Paris while protecting them. Epstein's associate, Alistair Taylor , once asked him why he was driving an Austin Princess limousine, rather than a Daimler , a Bentley , or a Rolls-Royce . Evans explained that the Beatles were forced to choose an Austin, because they had tested every car to see how wide

16240-510: Was an asset when holding back unruly fans at the Cavern's door. He was later nicknamed the "Gentle Giant" and "Big Mal". In 1962, Evans wrote that it was "a wonderful year", as he had Lily (his wife), his son Gary, a house, a car, and he was working at the Cavern Club, which he wrote into a 1963 Post Office Engineering Union diary, which also had information concerning Ohm's law and Post Office pay rates. On 11 August 1963, Evans began working for

16380-459: Was an inexpensive Gallotone Champion acoustic for which she lent her son five pounds and ten shillings on the condition that the guitar be delivered to her own house and not Mimi's, knowing well that her sister was not supportive of her son's musical aspirations. Mimi was sceptical of his claim that he would be famous one day, and she hoped that he would grow bored with music, often telling him, "The guitar's all very well, John, but you'll never make

16520-727: Was born in April. During their Royal Variety Show performance, which was attended by the Queen Mother and other British royalty, Lennon poked fun at the audience: "For our next song, I'd like to ask for your help. For the people in the cheaper seats, clap your hands   ... and the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewellery." After a year of Beatlemania in the UK , the group's historic February 1964 US debut appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show marked their breakthrough to international stardom. A two-year period of constant touring, filmmaking, and songwriting followed, during which Lennon wrote two books, In His Own Write and A Spaniard in

16660-418: Was content and happy. Loving them as I do, nothing is too much trouble, because I want to serve them. Feel a bit better now—EGO? Evans' financial problems started to become such a problem that he had to ask Harrison for money: "April 24: "Had to tell George [Harrison]—'I'm broke'. Really miserable and down because I'm in the red, and the bills are coming in, poor old Lil [his wife] suffers as I don't want to get

16800-405: Was cremated on 7 January 1976, in Los Angeles. None of the former Beatles attended his funeral, but Harry Nilsson , George Martin , Neil Aspinall and other friends did. George Harrison arranged for Evans' family to receive £5,000, as Evans had not maintained his life insurance premiums, and was not entitled to a pension. In 1986, a trunk containing Evans' diaries and other effects was found in

16940-463: Was described by Harvey at the time as a "happy-go-lucky, good-humoured, easy going, lively lad". However, he was also known to frequently engage in fights, bully and disrupt classes. Despite this, he quickly built a reputation as the class clown and often drew comical cartoons that appeared in his self-made school magazine, the Daily Howl . In 1956, Julia bought John his first guitar. The instrument

17080-483: Was discovered, many of which provided key insights into Beatles recording sessions and internal band dynamics, though the disposition of these writings has been a source of some legal controversy in the intervening decades. Malcolm Frederick Evans was born in Liverpool to Frederick and Joan Evans and grew up in Waldgrave Road, Wavertree , Liverpool, along with his three sisters Pam, June and Barbara. He could also play

17220-417: Was included in the 1975 ABC television special David Frost Salutes the Beatles . Evans was asked to produce the group Natural Gas, and was working on a book of memoirs called Living the Beatles' Legend which he was due to deliver to his publishers, Grosset & Dunlap , on 12 January 1976. Evans was depressed about the separation from his wife (who had asked for a divorce before Christmas) even though he

17360-407: Was introduced to Preludin while in Hamburg, and regularly took the drug as a stimulant during their long, overnight performances. Brian Epstein managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967. He had no previous experience managing artists, but he had a strong influence on the group's dress code and attitude on stage. Lennon initially resisted his attempts to encourage the band to present

17500-474: Was late. Peter Brown and Evans passed the register office at 9.15, and saw that there were only a few photographers and ardent fans standing in the rain, but when they left, after the wedding at 11.30 am, they were mobbed by a crowd of about 1,000 people. When the Beatles played on the roof of Apple's offices in Savile Row, Evans was told to delay the policemen (who had arrived to stop the concert), as long as

17640-415: Was later created. Chapman avoided going to trial when he ignored his lawyer's advice and pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 20-years-to-life. In the weeks following the murder, "(Just Like) Starting Over" and Double Fantasy topped the charts in the UK and the US. "Imagine" hit number one in the UK in January 1981 and "Happy Xmas" peaked at number two. "Imagine" was succeeded at

17780-464: Was me singing 'help ' ". He had put on weight (he would later refer to this as his "Fat Elvis" period), and felt he was subconsciously seeking change. In March that year he and Harrison were unknowingly introduced to LSD when a dentist, hosting a dinner party attended by the two musicians and their partners, spiked the guests' coffee with the drug. When they wanted to leave, their host revealed what they had taken, and strongly advised them not to leave

17920-654: Was obsessed with the French actress Brigitte Bardot , so she dyed her hair blonde. Lennon asked her out, but when she said that she was engaged, he shouted, "I didn't ask you to fuckin' marry me, did I?" She often accompanied him to Quarrymen gigs and travelled to Hamburg with McCartney's girlfriend to visit him. Lennon was jealous by nature and eventually grew possessive, often terrifying Powell with his anger. In her 2005 memoir John , Powell recalled that, when they were dating, Lennon once struck her after he observed her dancing with Stuart Sutcliffe. She ended their relationship as

18060-648: Was often away from home but sent regular pay cheques to 9   Newcastle Road, Liverpool, where Lennon lived with his mother; the cheques stopped when he went absent without leave in February 1944. When he eventually came home six months later, he offered to look after the family, but Julia, by then pregnant with another man's child, rejected the idea. After her sister Mimi complained to Liverpool's Social Services twice, Julia gave her custody of Lennon. In July 1946, Lennon's father visited her and took his son to Blackpool , secretly intending to emigrate to New Zealand with him. Julia followed them – with her partner at

18200-560: Was on top of it being video-taped by Dan Richter ." Evans contributed to many recordings, including singing in the chorus of " Yellow Submarine ". He played single organ notes on " You Won't See Me " and harmonica on " Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! " Regarding Evans' organ contribution on " You Won't See Me ", McCartney explained that he showed Evans where the notes were on the organ, and then nodded his head when he wanted Evans to play, and shook it when he wanted him to stop. On " A Day in

18340-561: Was one of their favourites, at 8 Kingly Street in Soho , London, as it also presented live music. In his memoirs Evans wrote: 19 January and 20: "Ended up smashed in Bag O'Nails with Paul [McCartney] and Neil [Aspinall]. Quite a number of people attached themselves, oh that it would happen to me... freak out time baby for Mal." In July 1966, the Beatles toured the Philippines, and unintentionally snubbed

18480-513: Was possible. Evans enjoyed an executive position at Apple until 1969, when Allen Klein was hired as a manager to reorganise the whole company. Evans was fired by Klein the next year, because Klein complained to Lennon that Aspinall and Evans were "living like kings; like fucking emperors". Evans was later reinstated after McCartney, Harrison and Starr complained. On 13 September 1969, Evans accompanied Lennon, Yoko Ono , Klaus Voormann , Alan White and Eric Clapton to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for

18620-515: Was pronounced dead on arrival at 11:15   p.m. (EST). Ono issued a statement the next day, saying "There is no funeral for John", ending it with the words, "John loved and prayed for the human race. Please do the same for him." His remains were cremated at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York . Ono scattered his ashes in New York's Central Park , where the Strawberry Fields memorial

18760-427: Was recorded for a planned follow-up album Milk and Honey , which was issued posthumously, in 1984. Double Fantasy was not well received initially and drew comments such as Melody Maker ' s "indulgent sterility   ... a godawful yawn". In New York, at approximately 5:00 p.m. on 8 December 1980, Lennon autographed a copy of Double Fantasy for Mark David Chapman before leaving The Dakota with Ono for

18900-536: Was released in December that year. While the film itself proved to be their first critical flop, its soundtrack release , featuring Lennon's Lewis Carroll –inspired " I Am the Walrus ", was a success. Led by Harrison and Lennon's interest, the Beatles travelled to the Maharishi's ashram in India in February 1968 for further guidance. While there, they composed most of the songs for their double album The Beatles , but

19040-670: Was reported that a biography of Evans, written by Beatles scholar Kenneth Womack, was to be published by HarperCollins 's Dey Street Books in 2023, to be followed the next year by material from Evans's diary and archives. Womack's biography, entitled Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans , was published on 14 November 2023. Evans appears in the 2021 documentary series The Beatles: Get Back . The machine learning software and models developed by WingNut Films that were used to clean and isolate instruments and vocal tracks from single-track recordings for

19180-566: Was the one who all the other boys' parents – including Paul's father – would say, "Keep away from him" ... The parents instinctively recognised I was a troublemaker, meaning I did not conform and I would influence their children, which I did. I did my best to disrupt every friend's home ... Partly out of envy that I didn't have this so-called home ... but I did ... There were five women that were my family. Five strong , intelligent , beautiful women, five sisters. One happened to be my mother. [She] just couldn't deal with life. She

19320-607: Was the youngest and she had a husband who ran away to sea and the war was on and she couldn't cope with me, and I ended up living with her elder sister. Now those women were fantastic ... And that was my first feminist education ... I would infiltrate the other boys' minds. I could say, "Parents are not gods because I don't live with mine and, therefore, I know." He regularly visited his cousin Stanley Parkes, who lived in Fleetwood and took him on trips to local cinemas. During

19460-599: Was then living in Hillside Road, Allerton and working as a telephone engineer for the Post Office . He became a committed fan, even though his musical hero at the time was Elvis Presley . He first befriended George Harrison , who put forward Evans' name to the Cavern Club's manager, Ray McFall , when he needed a doorman . The 27-year-old Evans was accepted, even though he wore thick-framed glasses, but mainly because of his burly 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) frame, which

19600-578: Was then living with his new girlfriend, Fran Hughes, in a rented motel apartment at 8122 West 4th Street in Los Angeles. On 5 January 1976, Evans was so despondent that Hughes phoned John Hoernie, Evans' co-writer for his biography, and asked him to visit them. Hoernie saw Evans "really doped-up and groggy" but Evans told Hoernie to make sure he finished Living the Beatles' Legend . Hoernie helped Evans up to an upstairs bedroom, but during an incoherent conversation, Evans picked up an air rifle. Hoernie struggled with Evans, but Evans, being much stronger, held onto

#993006