DAVE GROHL PAID TRIBUTE TO THE BEATLES (GEORGE HARRISON)

Dave Grohl, the iconic frontman of the Foo Fighters was a guest DJ on the BBC Sounds program: “Radio 2 Beatles”. Where he paid tribute to the fab four as only he could.

Here, Grohl discusses how he wrote a song note only in honor and tribute for late The Beatles member George Harrison, a track that would appear off of The Foo Fighters debut record called “Oh, George” but mainly written so that Grohl could have a track that had a George Harrison-like sounding guitar solo. Foo Fighters dropped this Dave Grohl quitting bombshell recently. Also, Grohl tells a heart-warming story about how “Something”, The Beatles’ classic 1969 hit was the first solo he ever learned.

Dave Grohl: "Hi everybody this is Dave Grohl and I’m playing some of my favorite songs by The Beatles of all time. I would like the play by the favorite song by George Harrison, called Something. I think that of all The Beatles, of course, each of them is so entirely different. This is in terms of melodically, their songwriting, lyrically but George Harrison, there was almost something about him that I preferred the most. I loved every single one of them but I connected to George’s sense of melody more than anyone. So much that on the first Foo Fighters record there is a song entitled: “Oh, George”. Because I basically wanted the guitar solo to sound like something he would do. However, the guitar solo in the song “Something” is the first guitar solo that I ever learned. It’s such a beautiful solo. Melodically, it’s safe to say that it’s one of the most classic guitar solos of all time. Such a beautiful song.  So this is something from the Abbey Road album by The Beatles."

THE CAMPAIGN TO FIND PAUL MCCARTNEY'S LOST BASS

One of the most important musical instruments in the world vanished, it’s widely presumed to have been stolen at sometime after early 1969, and has never been seen since. What happened to it? Does it still exist? Where is it? The instrument is Paul McCartney's first bass guitar, a Höfner 500/1 model that he purchased in 1961.

Here is a short history of this bass and what happened:
In the spring of 1961, Paul McCartney, of the little known Liverpool r'n'r band The Beatles, became their full time bass player. Being left-handed, he custom ordered his first bass, a Hofner 500/1, through the Steinway shop in Hamburg, Germany during a two month residency at the Top Ten Club. Back in England,  he played all their Cavern Club gigs with his new bass, as seen on the BBC’s first Beatle's footage. Hence its nickname, the Cavern Bass.
This instrument was solidly used by McCartney until October 1963 when he received a new Hofner bass from Selmer, the UK importer.
It was played on some iconic Beatles recordings including their very first studio outing in June 1961 in Hamburg, their first single Love Me Do in 1962 and their first two albums, Please Please Me and With The Beatles in 1963. It's the one you hear on "She Loves You, "Twist and Shout", it was played in Hamburg, at The Cavern Club, at Abbey Road, isn't that enough alone to get this bass back! I know, because I talked with him about it, that Paul would be so happy, thrilled if this bass could get back to him.McCartney kept his first violin bass until it went missing, using it as a back-up during the Beatles' world tours and playing it again in the Revolution promo video and during the filming of Let It Be.

He cherished his first bass as stated in 1966 Beat Instrumental interview: "I have had a Hofner ever since I started. I've got 3 models but the ancient one is still my favorite. It has seen so much work that some of it is held with sellotape!".The bass was in need of repairs and so it was sent to a firm in London, early in 1964, who carried these out. They resprayed the bass a darker 3 part sunburst and fitted new knobs. Most significantly they custom made an unusual single pickup frame to hold both pickups. It was very distinctive, no other 500/1 bass looks like this.
Exact McCartney '61 bass specs are as follow:
    Solid spruce top
    Maple back and sides
    1-piece flat back
    3-piece neck (maple-beech-maple)
    Two Diamond logo pickups with no poles
    Van Gent 'rugby balls' tuners
    Long tailpiece with arched thin bar

A 1961 Hofner 500/1 bass is regarded by most players and collectors alike as the best sounding and rarest violin bass of all. It is the only 500/1 that features a carved solid spruce top and powerful humbucking pick-ups, making its tone rich and distinctive. It was in production for less than 4 months and is therefore highly sought after.
What happened? The problem is nobody knows. It seems very likely that someone stole the bass. To this day it has remained a mystery. There have been rumours over the years, but this is all they amount to: rumours.
Someone, somewhere, knows what happened to this bass and someone knows if it still exists and where it is now. This information is out there if only someone would provide it.
We strongly believe that it is time for this bass to return to its owner, Paul McCartney if it still exists. It is such an important instrument, we all Höfner GmbH & Co KG.
deserve to see it again.
If you have definite information (and can provide some proof of this) contact here:
              Nick Wass/Marketing Manager at Höfner GmbH & Co KG.

POLICE POSING FOR THE BEATLES’ ABBEY ROAD PICTURE

Four officers Metropolitan Police were caught walking like John, Paul, Ringo and George at 2.30am on Saturday. Another officer was seen in the middle of the road with their camera in hand.

A man in Montreal, Canada, happened to be watching the live EarthCam feed at 9.30pm local time. The man, who wanted to stay anonymous, told Metro.co.uk that he often watches the Abbey Road stream as a fox comes out at the same time every night, and it helps him get to sleep. He said he saw two or three police vans arrive and park out of view of the camera. Minutes later he claims he watched as around five officers in hi-vis jackets assemble their feet into the iconic position.

A Met Police spokesperson suggested the officers could have been off duty at the time: ‘We expect our officers to behave professionally at all times.Since we can’t identify the officers from the image, it’s possible they may have been on a break or off duty at the time.’