After graduating college a few weeks earlier, my friend Bob and I went to Europe for two months, beginning in London. The first stop was 3 Savile Row, Apple’s Headquarters. John & Yoko were there, so we waiting outside for 2 1/2 hours when a truck pulls up and opens its doors to reveal a Fireplace!. A few minutes later John comes out by himself to have a look at it. I said hello and shook his hand. I even offered him my passport as it was just after the Montreal Bed In for Peace and he wasn’t allowed int he U.S. at that time. There were about a dozen fans waiting, including three Apple Scruffs, but I was the only one he spoke to. I asked him if I could take some photos, which I did and also got his autograph on Apple stationery (occasionally show the autograph and photos in the Art Museum at the FESTS, At that moment, I decided I wanted to work for The Beatles. That didn’t happen, but I ended up selling Beatles records at Sam Goody for four years before thinking up the idea of Beatlefest, met with John and 37 years later, still going…It has been a wild and special ride. Thanks for joining.

The image is from the Bob Bonis Archive.

It was June 1, 1967 (June 2nd in the U.S.) that Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band first entered our collective psyches, and forever changed the world. Simply put, it was the most important album ever released, still as fresh and exciting today as it was then!

I can remember when I first heard it. It was just after my 2nd year of college and a friend and I went to the brand new Montreal Expo’67 around Memorial Day. Car radios were AM only and music stations were few and far between in that journey home through upstate New York. I was looking for music, when I heard the scratchy and intermittent sounds of a song I never heard before.  Even though I could hardly hear it, there was no doubt, the long awaited new Beatles Album had come out. The song was Lovely Rita. For all of you Generation iPoders, Cell Phoners, Facebookers, and Twitterers, there were no advance announcements about record releases. They just came out. We fans ‘sensed’ it was about that time. I got home late, after all the record stores had closed, but the next morning (it was a Sunday) I went to the only store open on a Sunday –  Two Guys From Harrison in Hackensack, NJ  before breakfast to purchase my Mono copy. I came rushing home and couldn’t wait to open it up and get in on my record player. My brother (who is not the musical person in the family) listened with me. I was so blown away by it, looking at the cover and reading the lyrics (this was the first time lyrics were ever included on an album) and examining the cutouts all while the songs are leaping off the turntable. After listening to both sides, my brothers said, “Why did they put that last song on after the reprise. It’s just a filler”. That’s when I knew he didn’t ‘get it’. But I sure did. As the Johnny Rivers song says, I spend the entire summer listening to the album. I must admit, Indian music was foreign to me (and to U.S. pop culture) at the time and it took a while to understand and appreciate George’s singular contribution, Within You Without You. Oh, and that closing track, the greatest example of the Lennon and McCartney writing team, working at their highest levels of creativity. John’s gorgeous melody and poetic story simply told with just an acoustic guitar to Paul adding that middle 8 and the idea to leave 24 bars open for ‘something he had in mind’. Then to see and hear a 42 piece classical orchestra being told to just start at the bottom and finish at the top of the register of each instrument. WOW. A Day in The Life, still remains one of the greatest songs ever recorded.

One of the most magical things about The Beatles is that most artists can never top their masterpieces (ie: Sweet Baby James, Tapestry, Blue, Hotel California, Frampton Comes Alive,  Rumours, Thriller to name just a few) but The Beatles kept on topping themselves, right up to their final album two years later! It was a wonderful time. Happy birthday Sgt. P.

John Lennon with Harry Nilsson in Central Park, NY 4/28/74

I, Mark Lapidos, was always a big Beatles fan and thought that somebody should do something to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of The Beatles arrival in America – 1964-1974. It was at the end of 1973, when the idea of BEATLEFEST just popped into my head. After a few months of deliberating I decided to take my personal savings and book the New York Commodore Hotel for the weekend of September 7-8, 1974.

I wasn’t going to do the convention without the Beatles’ permission. I didn’t think that would be right. On April 28th, 1974, I met with John Lennon in his New York City hotel room, told him my whole idea of a Beatles Fans Convention, with Special Guests, Live Concerts, Films, Art Museum and Art Contest, Flea Market, Discussions, Look-Alike and Sound-Alike Contests, Auctions, and a Charity Raffle. John’s exact response was “I’m all for it. I’m a Beatles Fan, too!” It is a moment I will never ever forget. He said he had a guitar in his attic that he would sign and donate for the Charity Raffle, which he did. John chose Phoenix House, (a drug rehab center in NYC) as the charity. All the Beatles contributed signed items to that raffle and to our amazement, we made the cover of Rolling Stone, October 24, 1974! The Beatles world has certainly changed since then, losing John in one of the most nightmarish moments the world has ever experienced, then losing George 21 years later to cancer. But Paul and Ringo keep touring the world, Beatles releases have been coming out at a regular pace and of course, the music has been successfully transferred to the next generations. The Beatles will live forever! We have had the privilege and honor to present almost everyone involved in The Beatles Story over these first 37 years and 114 National FESTS, and we look forward to many more in the future.

April 20, 1970 – 41 years ago, Paul McCartney released his first solo album, McCartney. It included the masterpiece Maybe I’m Amazed and sold millions. It also signaled the end of The Beatles as a group and ushered in the beginning of 4 amazing solo careers. This album, and McCartney II, (Paul plays all the instruments on both albums), will be released in late June as a multidisc package with lots of bonus tracks from Concord Music. Watch for special pre sales.

ABBEY ROAD VOTED FAVORITE BEATLES ALBUM

IN MY LIFE VOTED FAVORITE BEATLES SONG

The results of our first comprehensive survey in eight years to find out fans FAVORITE BEATLES ALBUMS AND SONGS are now in and revealed here and on our facebook page. Nearly 4,000 Beatles fans let us know their favorites.

It is a feat that will never again be accomplished in music. On this day in 1964 The Beatles had the Top 5 Songs on the Billboard Top 100 Singles of the week. The closest any other artist ever got was 3 songs in the Top 10. But there they were- Can’t Buy Me Love, Twist and Shout,  She Loves You, I Want To Hold Your Hand, Please Please Me, sitting at the top, along with 7 other Beatles songs in the Top 100 the same week. Beatlemania kept growing in the months following their first Ed Sullivan appearances. Some critics predicted they would be forgotten by the summer. Boy were they wrong! When summer arrived, so did A Hard Day’s Night Film. The critics LOVED it. Roger Ebert called it one of the greatest movies ever! That was some year.

The “B.U.I. (Beatles Under The Influence)” musicians forum on Sunday
afternoon at 3:45PM is to be joined by a very special, previously-unannounced guest. Annie Haslam – co-founder/vocalist of the legendary British fusion band Renaissance – has just been added to the lineup and will
join musicians Gary Wright, Mark Hudson, Joey Molland, Mark Rivera and
forum creator/moderator Martin Lewis in an informal conversation and
jam session celebrating the myriad musical influences that shaped the
Beatles.

Annie’s brother, the late Michael Haslam, was a ballad singer managed
by Beatles manager Brian Epstein in the early 1960s – who performed at
the Beatles Christmas shows 1964-1965. Annie is currently recording
and touring with Renaissance. See: www.AnnieHaslam.com and www.RenaissanceTouring.com
Photo: Ebet Roberts

Also coming down are Larry Kane on Sunday, Sid Bernstein on both Saturday and Sunday, and Billy J. Kramer is dropping by to say hello to his old friend Freda Kelly. See you in just a few more days.

We are very excited to announce, by special arrangement with Cirque du Soleil, we are offering a Free Beatles Getaway to Las Vegas, including 2 VIP Tickets to The Beatles Love, Air Fare, 2 Nights at the Mirage and a VIP Gift Bag. This is one show  all Beatles fans should try to get to. It celebrates its 5th anniversary this year and it keeps getting better and better! This giveaway is very easy to enter. Go to our facebook page and click enter.  Since this is only being offered for 9 days, chances of winning is pretty good. Winner is picked at random. It also asks you for your favorite Beatles Song and Album. We will publish the results of our first full scale survey in eight years in a couple of weeks.

The FEST is next weekend (3/25-27) at the NJ Crowne Plaza Meadowlands and the winner is going to be picked live on stage on Sunday at 8:00PM.

Imagine being one of the earliest Beatles fans, back in Liverpool in 1962 and becoming friends with the band. Then imagine  becoming their fan club secretary and starting to work closely with them, being invited to their houses, go to family functions, etc. Imagine that continuing for 10 YEARS – through Apple! Well that is exactly what happened to our special guest FREDA KELLY. Freda is flying in from Liverpool to make her very first FEST appearance and first US public appearance talking about her days and years with the four most popular and recognizable men on the planet – John, Paul, George & Ringo.

Remember, today is the First Advance Ticket Deadline and chance to purchase tickets at their lowest prices. Tomorrow they go up a little. FEST is only two weeks away – the weekend of March 25-27 at the NJ Crowne Plaza Meadowlands. Fans from over 20 states are already signed up. Hope you can join us.

The first Advance price ticket deadline is this Friday, March 11th. If you are planning to join us, you definitely want to order your tickets before midnight on Friday. With our 37th Annual FEST only two weeks away, the excitement is building with each passing day. The Special Guests are coming in from as far away as the UK and California to make the weekend an amazing and unforgettable one for all. The tickets are being mailed tomorrow and Friday as promised. We will post the Schedule of Events on our site by next weekend to help you plan your FEST time in advance. Join us on facebook to follow us on the path to the FEST. We have a big announcement coming in a couple of days (no it is not Paul or Ringo joining us), but we guarantee it will get all Beatles fans very excited!! Stay tuned.