RINGO STARR ON BRIAN EPSTEIN

Asked by Parade magazine about their manager, Brian Epstein, Ringo had nothing but supportive things to say. “I had known a lot of gay men,” he told. “It didn’t matter to us. We were lads of the time. Or maybe, OK then, lads ahead of our time.”






Epstein was known for his ability to spot talent and famously declared of the seminal Liverpool band, “They’re going to be bigger than Elvis!” He discovered The Beatles playing at a small club in 1961, and it was thanks to him that they adopted their trademark clean-cut look.




As their manager, The Beatles reliably stood by Epstein.

Epstein passed away in August of 1967 at the age of 32, just one month after the U.K. decriminalized homosexuality.

Ringo has expressed support for the queer community in the past.

ETHAN RUSSELL: "THE CONCEPT OF THE BEATLES JUST DIDN´T SYNC WITH WHO THEY WERE ANY MORE"

50 years ago, the Beatles gathered for a photo shoot, what incidentally also became the last ever shots of all of them together. It was August 22, 1969. Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison joined John Lennon and Yoko Ono at their newly purchased 72-acre estate, Tittenhurst Park in Berkshire.

Linda McCartney, who was heavily pregnant at that time, was also present. It is said, Linda also shot some 16mm footage of the group on Paul's camera—this also turned out to be the last footage of the team.

They were photographed by Ethan Russell and Monte Fresco, in the run-up to the release of the last two albums the group would ever release, Abbey Road (September 1969) and Let it Be (May 1970). The photos, set in the picturesque backdrop of the estate, however, reflected none of that warmth or sunshine. The band was going through a tough time.

Commenting on the band and their state of mind, Russell who has some iconic photographs of the rockstars to his credit, said: “Paul was trying to hold it together. He had his arms crossed like, ‘Come on, lads!’ But the concept of the Beatles just didn’t sync with who they were any more. I could have asked them to smile, but it would have been totally fake and I’m glad I didn’t. This marriage had come to an end – and boy does it show.”

PEOPLE CELEBRATES THE 50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BEATLES' ABBEY ROAD WITH SPECIAL EDITION ISSUE

In a new special edition, PEOPLE marks a half-century since the Beatles’ last days with an intimate photo collection as well as a look at the inspirations and legacies of Abbey Road and a song-by-song look at the album’s 17 tracks.


Finally, the issue includes a reflection on Woodstock on its 50th anniversary. The photo-filled special edition includes a portfolio of memories from the upstate New York festival — when peace, music and mud prevailed. While there were no Beatles, other artists like Jimi Hendrix, the Who, Janis Joplin, and many other artists performed. The Beatles were reportedly invited to headline the festival, but the dates conflicted with the recording of Abbey Road. Still, the historic gathering of half a million people for peace and music appealed to them.

INTERNATIONAL BEATLE WEEK TO CELEBRATE ABBEY ROAD ANNIVERSARY & MATHEW STREET FESTIVAL

Julia Baird, John Lennon's sister, is appearing at this year's International Beatle Week

The world's largest and longest-running Beatles festival returns to Liverpool this month - with special guests including John Lennon's sister Julia Baird and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame drummer Alan White.
International Beatleweek 2019 will feature 70 bands from 20 countries and is worth an estimated £2.8m to the city’s economy.
This year marks 50 years since the release of Abbey Road and 60 years since the Casbah Club was opened by Mona Best – mother of The Beatles’ first drummer Pete Best - in West Derby.
Both landmark anniversaries will be celebrated at events between August 21-27, as will the Mathew Street Festival which ran alongside Beatleweek for 20 years until it was cancelled in 2013.
The festival includes the Annual Beatles Convention at the Adelphi Hotel on Sunday, August 25 which features guest speakers, interviews, film shows, a giant Beatles flea market, and performances from 40 tribute bands.
John Lennon’s sister Julia Baird will be appearing at the event as well as Yes drummer Alan White, who played with both Lennon and George Harrison, and recording studio engineer Jack Douglas who worked with Lennon on both Imagine and Double Fantasy.

LOST FOOTAGE OF THE BEATLES IN 1966 TO BE SHOWN IN LIVERPOOL

The Cunard Building venue will showcase what has been hailed as the ‘Holy Grail’ of lost tapes which contains footage of the only ever live appearance of The Beatles on Top of the Pops on 6 June 1966.

The screening has been made possible thanks to a partnership with the Kaleidoscope Archive which specialises in recovering video and TV shows.It was believed only an 11-second, silent clip existed which was discovered in April this year by a collector in Mexico.However, another collector and music enthusiast, David Chandler, contacted Kaleidoscope, and handed over a series of 8mm film reels.

The footage, which includes a 92-second performance by The Beatles playing Paperback Writer, lasts nine minutes in total and also shows Dusty Springfield singing Goin' Back, Tom Jones singing Green, Green Grass of Home, The Hollies performing Bus Stop, and other performances by The Spencer Davis Group, Ike and Tina Turner, and Cliff Richard and the Shadows

IMAGES OF ABBEY ROAD 50th ANNIVERSARY EDITIONS

Images of Abbey Road 50th anniversary editions

Listings appearing on Amazon sites:

HERE  ,   HERE    HERE  AND  HERE.

BOX Super Deluxe 3CD + Blu-ray (Dolby 5.1)CD, double CD and single 3 vinyl versions of The Beatles Abbey Road 50th anniversary editions. We expect an official announcement.(possible announcement this Thursday).

 

Listings appearing on Amazon sites:

HERE  ,   HERE    HERE  AND  HERE.


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RINGO STARR PERFORMS WITH THE BEACH BOYS

Ringo Starr -and his band- and The Beach Boys were booked as headliners for the Ravinia Festival, one of oldest outdoor music festival in the United States.

For his final act though, Ringo had something very special planned to close the show: He invited Mike Love and the band back to the stage for a performance of 1967 Beatles classic ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’.

    

Video.. HERE.

WOODSTOCK 50 MUSIC FESTIVAL WAS OFFICIALLY CANCELED, IT WILL INTEAD HOST SEPARATE SHOWS BY RINGO STARR, SANTANA & THE DOOBIE BROTHERS

The troubled Woodstock 50 anniversary music festival planned for August was officially canceled, with organizers blaming a series of “unforeseen setbacks.”
The three-day festival, meant to mark the 50th anniversary of the famed 1969 celebration of peace and music, was planned for Aug. 16-18.

“Woodstock 50 today announced that the three-day festival to celebrate its 50th anniversary has been canceled,” the organizers said in a statement."We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the festival we imagined with the great lineup we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating,” said Michael Lang, one of the original producers of the 1969 event.

The cancellation was widely expected after a troubled five months in which organizers were turned down at two proposed sites in upstate New York, lost funding and headliners including rapper Jay-Z and pop star Miley Cyrus pulled out.Tickets never went on sale for the festival.Organizers last week made a last ditch attempt to put on a free, scaled down event at an amphitheater in Maryland, but several of the 80 or so acts began pulling out despite having already been paid.Lang said in his statement that the smaller event in Maryland would have been aimed at raising funds for non profits fighting climate change and organizations encouraging Americans to vote in the 2020 U.S. general elections. 

Woodstock 50 was first planned for the Watkins Glen motor racing venue in upstate New York, but the site pulled out in June. Organizers then attempted in vain to seek permits in Vernon, New York.The nonprofit Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the current owner of the field where the 1969 Woodstock festival took place, also scaled back plans earlier this year for a three-day anniversary event. It will instead host separate concerts by Ringo Starr, Santana and the Doobie Brothers.
“My thoughts turn to Bethel and its celebration of our 50th Anniversary to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by Woodstock,” Lang said in his statement.

PAUL MCCARTNEY CONTRIBUTES TO HENRY McCULLOUGH TRIBUTE SINGLE

Paul McCartney has contributed to a new Henry McCullough tribute single (conceived with Don Mescall before Henry's death in 2016.)The highly experienced Irish musician passed away in 2016, following a lengthy career that included a vital contribution to Wings. A tribute single has been arranged to salute his memory, and it features an all-star cast of musicians.

Written by Henry and Don Mescall, 'Live Long Rock 'n' Roll' is a moving tribute to the talents of Henry McCullough, and was recorded by super group "McCullough's Fusiliers", which is made up of: Procul Harum singer Gary Brooker (Vocals), Beatles legend Paul McCartney (Bass), Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason (Drums), legendary English musician Chris Stainton (Keyboards), internationally acclaimed Irish songwriter Don Mescall (Acoustic Guitars), renowned guitarist Albert Lee (Electric Guitars), diverse English musician Paul Carrack & Irish legend Paul Brady (Backing Vocals), and The London Community Gospel Choir (Additional backing vocals).

Henry was the only Irish man to play Woodstock, and I'd just started working with the protest singer Richie Havens - who opened Woodstock. So that opened the door for us becoming friends.

'Live Long Rock 'n' Roll' will be released on 16th August along with the 15 track album of Henry's solo tracks 'Ballywonderland' on the Proper Record Label.