But Oh, That Magic Feeling

Nowhere to go...
"Soon we'll be away from here/Step on the gas and wipe that tear away/One sweet dream came true today."

"You Never Give Me Your Money" is some of Paul's finest writing, summing up his personal view of the acrimony between the Beatles, the freedom he was about to attain with their break up, and the solace he found within his new marriage. It's a magic feeling to have the rug pulled out beneath you, the tether severed, and one is forced to either soar or to fall flat. It's all or nothing--fear and possibility, no regrets. Linda granted Paul the freedom to be indulgent, to fail, to shed a bit of his famous perfectionism, which proved personally healthy for him whether all of his subsequent solo/Wings albums lived up to their potential or not (which is up for debate).

In tribute to the Abbey Road album, celebrating a 40th anniversary next month, I present various perspectives--some from the past and some from the present. The Rolling Stone reviews--one effusive with praise, the other rife with criticism--are quite interesting, as well as the vintage NME piece, which also includes information on John and Yoko's Plastic Ono Band and George's Krishna Consciousness. I've also included a couple of ads promoting the album. The lengthy retrospective published in the October 2000 issue of Mojo includes reminiscences by Paul, George and Ringo.

I received this interesting bit of information via email; sounds like a wonderful trip:

Did you know that the Beatles wrote 48 songs in 7 weeks on their 1968 trip to India?

This was the most creative musical period for the group, according to Beatles expert and author, Paul Saltzman.

Beatles fans can relive the Beatles memorable visit to India on the first “Beatles in India Tour," Feb. 11-28, 2010. Travelers will visit the Rishikesh, India ashram where the Beatles wrote music and meditated, do yoga, and meet renowned Indian musicians Ravi Shankar and Ajit Singh that performed with the group. They will visit Jaipur, Agra, Bombay, New Delhi and other cities, whitewater raft and enjoy a spa treatment. Emmy Award-winning film director Paul Saltzman, who met and photographed the Beatles in India in 1968, will escort the tour. Saltzman’s pictures of the group have been shown in galleries worldwide and have been published in two books. The tour costs US$7980 (EUR5582) (per person based on double occupancy).

Learn more at www.bestway.com or call toll-free 1-800-663-0844. Outside the US and Canada, call 604-264-7378 (Canadian number).

From the Pages of the NME

I'm sorry that I have been unable to update lately. Please check out the comments section of the June 29th entry if you would like to see the entire Let It Be book. I will not be doing any more scans since it is readily available for all who would like to view it.

Today, I present scans from the vault of the New Musical Express, the UK music weekly that has been in publication since March 1952. This was the first UK magazine to develop a music chart, inspired by Billboard in the US. From the beginning, NME were champions of the British music scene, particularly that of the Beatles.

In recent years, Uncut magazine has been publishing classic articles and photos from the archives of NME, including three Beatles-related issues. The pictures and articles here were taken from Vol. 1, Issue 1. The articles offer great insight into the Beatles' world and a unique perspective as well. It is also interesting to see the vintage yellowed piece of paper that have been torn from an issue.