9/11 – 6:00AM EDT: Because of the overwhelming response to our special offer of signed copies of Mark Lewisohn’s forthcoming book, Tune In, we have ended the offer. Mark can only sign so many copies in the time he will have while in NYC around the time of publication (10/29/13). We thank all of you for your response to what is going to be the biggest Beatles Book event since The Beatles Anthology Book was published 13 years ago. You may still pre-order the book but don’t expect it to arrive signed. We, and Mark thank you for such a positive response to his book. We also personally thank Mark for agreeing to sign such a large amount of books for our customers.
Month: September 2013
39 Years Ago Today (9/7/1974) – First FEST
39 years ago today, Saturday, September 7, 1974, we opened the doors to our first Beatles Celebration – then called Beatlefest. It took place at the Commodore Hotel on 42nd Street in New York City. I didn’t know what to expect. My brain was overloading with details. Did I forget anything? Was everybody going to show up? Was John going to surprise everyone and show up to pick the winner of the signed guitar he donated for charity? An amazing calm came over me the moment I came down to the main ballroom and saw the entire ballroom completely filled with fans, and then I realized that all these fans were here because of my idea of a 10th Anniversary Celebration of The Beatles Arrival in America. 8,000 people showed up over that weekend. I was interviewed by the NY Times (it appeared in the 9/8/74 edition, plus we made the covers of both Rolling Stone and UK’s Meloday Maker. I had no idea I would put on another FEST the next year, but thanks to all the calls and letters we received, I did and it has been an annual event ever since. Soon after, we started holding them in other cities, too! Now 119 FESTS and all these years later, we find ourselves gearing up for our 40th Anniversary Celebration at the same site, now called the Grand Hyatt and on the EXACT 50th Anniversary of the days The Beatles Arrived in America and appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, February 7-9, 2014. It has been quite a journey for the Lapidos Family, and the best part has been meeting so many other fans over the years and to have been able to present and meet guests who have been an integral part of The Beatles Story. Thank you for a wonderful 39 years, so far…
John Lennon Live in NYC to get a Reworking
In our email yesterday, we made mention of John’s NYC Concert may be coming out in DVD and CD. We neglected to give credit to the source of the information. So with apologies, here it is:
EXCLUSIVE: Beatlefan contributing editor Howie Edelson reports that during a chat with Jack Douglas the producer revealed that plans are in the early stages for him to overhaul John Lennon’s 1972 Madison Square Garden performances for an upcoming CD and DVD release, with a 5.1 mix likely as well. The still-untitled collection is still in the planning stages with Yoko Ono. The new set will be an entirely new project apart from the 1986 “Live in New York City” collection, with Douglas examining all existing audio and film sources for the set.
This iconic photo of John was taken at the concert by Bob Gruen.
