Something About the Beatles

• 311: Dear Beatle People with Sara Schmidt and Allison Bumsted

  311: Dear Beatle People with Sara Schmidt and Allison Bumsted Most Beatles fans are generally familiar with the story of their UK fan club, managed by Freda Kelly and depicted throughout the 2013 documentary, Good Ol' Freda. But the story of their North American fan clubs is, if anything, even more fascinating: their set-up was treated nearly as an afterthought upon the group's 1964 arrival here, and as they fumbled their way forward, hundreds of unofficial Beatles fan clubs sprang up, many of them doing a far better job of creating community and supporting the band than the official one did. (And then there were the sub-groups set up to police the other fans and protect The Beatles from their out-of-control fervor.)Beatles historian Sara Schmidt has chronicled this heretofore untold history in her book, Dear Beatle People: The Story of The Beatles North American Fan Club. Rich with tons of ephemera, photos and correspondence, Sara brings to life the immediacy of '60s American fandom and the unsuspected drama that went along with it. She spoke with hundreds of 1st-gen fans, collecting and preserving their stories of encounters with The Beatles, as well as the stories around the regional clubs around the country that weren't just limited to "Beatles." (There were, for instance, associated clubs for Beatle wives, actor Victor Spinetti, and a Beatle sister.) Beatles fandom is an area of study only recently starting to get its due as an illuminating aspect of the phenomena. Joining Sara and I for the talk is rock scholar Allison Bumsted (TeenSet, Teen Fan Magazines and Rock Journalism) as we discuss the history of American Beatles fans in their efforts to put their devotion to purpose.Be sure to also check out Sara's Beatle photo blog, https://www.meetthebeatlesforreal.com/   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• 310: The Beatles' Legacy with Sean Murphy

  Why are we still talking about these guys? Does a band that stopped recording together over half a century ago have any relevance in the 21st century? Have we reached the bottom of the barrel yet in terms of exploring every aspect of their story? If you answered yes and no respectively to the last two questions, press on, because in this conversation with author Sean Murphy, we dive into the continued appeal and inspiration that The Beatles gave us, as potent in 2025 as it was in the '60s. Check out Sean's work here: Twitter & Insta = bullmurph FB =   / authorseanmurphy   LinkedIn =   / sean-murphy-4986b41   Substack = seanmurphy.live / https://murphlaw.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• 309: Some Fun Tonight with Chuck Gunderson

  We are now sixty years on from the crest of The Beatles' touring years, if you figure the August 15, 1965 Shea Stadium show that kicked off their second North American tour as "the top of the mountain," as John Lennon once did. Therefore, who better to talk about those three intense years and shows than Chuck Gunderson, author of Some Fun Tonight: The Backstage Story of How The Beatles Rocked America? It was published in 2014 in two slipcased volumes, richly illustrated with many never-before-seen photos of The Fabs onstage, as well as behind the scenes and of period ephemera. Chuck is the expert on those shows, and in this conversation - taped live in front of an audience at the 2025 Rosemont Fest For Beatles Fans - we convened to discuss Shea, Margies Candies, the Chicago mob, segregation, and how Brian handled the demands of sailing into uncharted waters. Check out the book here: https://www.somefuntonight.com/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• SATB Special: Power To WHAT People? - Canceling Lennon in 2025 with Candy Leonard

  This special episode is, in effect, a part two of episode 308 (The Politics of Beatles), again with Candy Leonard, as an examination of the decision made by Universal Music Group (with the tacit approval - if not agreement - of the Lennon estate) to reissue the 1972 John and Yoko album, Some Time In New York City, as a background component of the Power To The People set, showcasing the pair of One To One concerts and removing the lead off track, "Woman is the Nigger of the World" from both the parent album AND the concerts. We discuss the possible reasoning behind this call and whether this is one statue that needed to be torn down or not. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• SATB Special: Ribbons of Rust Book Launch with John Leckie, Sibbie O'Sullivan and Richard Mills

  Ribbons of Rust: The Beatles' Recording History in Context is this first installment of a multi-volume series, building out the history of everything The Beatles did in the recording studio to reveal the influences around them and the world they created in. I (Robert Rodriguez)  am the author of or contributor to over half a dozen Beatles books, while Jerry Hammack is the creator of the five-volume Beatles Recording Reference Manual series. Both of us are award-winners as well. The book comes in standard mono(chrome) edition, richly illustrated in black and white, as well as the deluxe full colour edition. Both volumes are filed with QR codes, linking readers fo British Pathe newsreels, music and other sights and sounds of the era. The Beatles' times are brought to life thusly for a fully immersive experience. To give a proper assessment of this first joint project, we convened:  two 1st-gen fans  two Brits two academics two beatles authors one woman one record producer one person who worked with all four ex-Beatles beginning the year of their break-up.  This all boiled down to three people: producer John Leckie (Radiohead - XTC - Stone Roses - Simple Minds - Dukes of Stratosphear - many more)  Sibbie O'Sullivan (author of My Private Lennon: Explorations for a fan Who Never Screamed) Richard Mills (author of The Beatles and Fandom and the just-published The Beatles and Black Music) We also included some "civilians" who'd read the book as well.  Here's what they had to say. For more info (including a "look inside" and book trailer), visit http://www.ribbonsfrust.net  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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