Beatles News

All you need is cash: I am told that Neil Young’s high end music player and library, Pono, has scored a coup. They’ve secured the Beatles catalog for download in what’s known as loss-less digital.

Paul McCartney himself is said to be supervising the transfer of the Beatles’ crown in the jewel recordings so they can be added to the Pono catalog which can then be purchased and downloaded into the $399 Pono player.

This could be huge for Pono, which is already offering a wide selection of music on its site at 192 khz. But the Beatles will kick it over the top. Even last night when I ran into the Black Eyes Peas’ will.i.am the first thing he said to me about Pono was “Wait til you hear Sgt. Pepper on Pono. It’s going to blow your mind.” The Pono people have already played the classic 1967 album for him on their device. One thing he did tell me was that you don’t need very expensive head phones to enjoy it. “Just regular good headphones.” (Me, I have Grado and Sennheiser.)

Sony has no plans to sell the music publishing business that controls rights to songs from the Beatles and Taylor Swift, as was suggested by leaked e-mails, Sony Entertainment chief executive officer Michael Lynton said.

Sony's music-publishing business, the largest in the world, has a catalogue of more than 2 million songs. Music publishers collect songwriting royalties from album sales, use on TV and other performances.

E-mails and documents released in the cyber-attack on Sony mentioned a 'top secret' plan to sell the music publishing business because it had few growth prospects, it has been reported last month. Top management at Tokyo-based Sony was concerned about the complex ownership and governance of the business.
In a January 8 interview, Lynton said a sale isn't under consideration.

Music publishing accounts for 14 per cent of Sony's music revenue, with recorded music generating the larger part. The business includes Sony/ATV Music Publishing, a joint venture with the estate of Michael Jackson, and EMI Music Publishing, in which Sony has a 30 per cent stake.

Sony/ATV chief executive officer Martin Bandier said in a memo to staff on January 9 that he's been advised by Sony that the venture isn't for sale, the New York Post reported. Sony/ATV was established in 1995 in partnership with Jackson, who had acquired rights to the Beatles songs a decade earlier.
Sony's partners

Beatle Ringo Starr has completed his 18th studio record, ahead of his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April.

The drummer and singer-songwriter informed his fans in a video update. “I’ve finished my record, mixed the record and, next year, it will be out on Universal Records,” he says.

He also suggests that the All-Starr Band may tour in February and March. The Liverpudlian's most recent album, Ringo 2012, was released in January 2012.

Some weeks ago, Ringo was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the last of the Beatles to be elected for their solo careers.

 “I think it’s good,” he said. “I didn’t know that George and John were in it. I’m not keeping up with it all the time. It means recognition.

"And it means, finally, the four of us are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, even though we were the biggest pop group in the land, though now it all looks funny in black and white.” The induction ceremony will take place on April 18.Stevie Ray Vaughan, Joan Jett and Lou Reed were also elected.

LAS VEGAS — A performer was hurt during a Monday evening performance of Cirque du Soleil's Beatles LOVE at the Mirage.

According to a spokeswoman for the company, Cirque said it followed protocol and "had the artist transported to a local hospital where they (the performer) have since been released in good condition."

While the show would not confirm what happened, a show attendee said the performer fell.

It's not the first time a performer has been hurt during a Cirque show. Sadly, one performer also died in 2013 after falling 50 feet.

• Nov. 13, 2007 -- During the “Zumanity” show at New York-New York, two performers reportedly fell 15 to 35 feet from a white drape. One unnamed performer suffered serious injuries while the other performer, Alan Jose Silva, was treated for minor injuries.
• June 26, 2013 -- An acrobat slipped from a slack rope and fell head first to the stage during a preview performance of “Michael Jackson One” at Mandalay Bay, reportedly suffering a mild concussion.

David Roberts establishes himself as a long time Beatles fan in the introduction to this e-book and offers up his list of list of trivia apparently hoping there are still people interested enough in these facts ( or fictions ) who haven't already heard them or some version of them. The Internet is littered with such lists and many of the entries are, in this reviewers opinion, irrelevant or in some cases second hand gossip that has been circulating for years. There is a disclaimer from the publisher at the beginning stating that no responsibility is taken for the accuracy of the information presented and since there are no citations for resources, we must proceed with caution.

There are, however, some fun facts and interesting stories included. One of my highlights would be the number 7 entry which tells the tale of the missing cardboard cut-outs used for the Sgt. Pepper album cover. It is not a new bit of information for me but every time I come across this I am astonished that none of these props have turned up to be auctioned, pawned, or sold on e-bay. Of course, if I personally was in possession of any of them, I would not part with them for the world, so I guess it's understandable that whoever has them is keeping it hush-hush.

 A boy looks at the book "The Beatles on the Road" in Mexico City, where fans of the legendary band can view all kinds of memorabilia at the 20th Beatles Festival. EFE/File

Mexico City, Dec 22 (EFE).- The Beatles never had a concert in Mexico, but "Beatlemania" cast a spell on the country that lives on at the 2014 Beatles Festival.

Fans of the "Fab Four" from Liverpool will be able to enjoy concerts, movies, conferences and an exhibition at the Futurama Cultural Center in Mexico City until next Sunday.

The 20th edition of the festival features special guest Freda Kelly, who was The Beatles' secretary and will attend the daily screenings of "Good ol' Freda," a 2013 documentary about her work with the band.

Kelly will hold Q&A sessions with the audience.

"The best part is to be with her, to talk with her and share her feelings as a Beatles fan that shine in her eyes," Ricardo Calderon, president of the All Together Now fan club, told Efe.

Singer Joe Cocker after losing his battle with lung cancer. Sheffield-born musician Joe Cocker has died at aged 70.

His agent Barrie Marshall confirmed the news and said, "It is with the heaviest hearts we heard that our beloved Joe Cocker passed away last night."

"He was without doubt the greatest rock/soul voice ever to come out of Britain - and remained the same man throughout his life."

"We loved him and it will be impossible to fill the space he leaves in our hearts."

The Sheffield-born star reached number one back in 1968 when he covered The Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends".

The singer then shot to fame as a blues and rock singer in 1964 before he covered the Fab Four's hit single.

In a statement to the ECHOs sister paper the Mirror, Paul McCartney said, " "It’s really sad to hear about Joe’s passing. He was a lovely northern lad who I loved a lot and like many people I loved his singing.

"I was especially pleased when he decided to cover With A Little Help From My Friends and I remember him and Denny Cordell coming round to the studio in Saville Row and playing me what they’d recorded and it was just mind blowing.

"He totally turned the song into a soul anthem and I was forever grateful for him for doing that.

"I knew him through the years as a good mate and I was so sad to hear that he had been ill and really sad to hear today that he had passed away. He was a great guy, a lovely guy who brought so much to the world and we’ll all miss him."

Prague's colorful wall dedicated to the memory of John Lennon has been painted over, leaving just a single message: "Wall is over!"

The wall, located at the heart of the Czech capital in the picturesque Little Quarter neighborhood, began to be painted with Lennon's images and related graffiti after the Beatle's assassination in 1980.

Under the communist regime, it became a symbol of freedom and opposition to communism and young people used to meet there to light candles and lay flowers.

After the 1989 anti-communist Velvet Revolution, it turned into a tourist attraction.

Recently, messages in support of democracy protests in Hong Kong appeared on the wall, while another Lennon wall sprang up in Hong Kong itself.

A group of art students claimed responsibility for painting the wall white on Monday and leaving the message, an apparent play on the words of the Lennon hit "Happy Xmas (War is Over)."