Abbey Road for the first time

Hello there Blogolions,
This has become primarily a the beatles blog for now and I felt that it was only right to talk about my pilgrimage to Abbey Road. My friend and I like to go to London and sometimes we have to find things to fill the space before the things we've planned to go for. This is the first time I have managed to successfully convince her to come with me to see Abbey Road.

We found out the location and the tube station of course and hopped on the Jubilee Line and suddenly we were there and it's a very mind-blowing thing. I felt like I recognised the architecture because I am so familiar with abbey road and photos so it was a strange feeling. Everything felt so normal and it was incredibly amazing to see and witness how things just go on.

We didn't know exactly where to find it but we found the right way perfectly. I didn't expect for it to be so close to the St John's Wood Tube Station but there it was and seeing the opposite direction was very weird. There's a monument in the middle of the road for goodness sake which I went and stood in the centre of at first. Approaching it was really surreal and I had to kind of edge around it that way to see it at the angle most used to.

It was extremely mind-blowing to be there. As anticipated it was a little difficult to cross with time to walk that slow but it felt like it. Everything blanked out a little. There weren't that many people there which surprised me even more which went with the normalcy of everything which you don't often see when beatles fans are there but that's what it was like for me and perfect and special for it. 

It was a beautiful autumn day and these personal perspectives of the crossing are meaningful to me because It was my first cross over connected to the emotions I had. And I'm not very photogenic so I don't feel that I need a photo of me crossing by my friend although we tried my enthusiastic strides across.

Every reference to abbey anything I radiated towards and I settled with this as I couldn't spider climb onto the building opposite for a close shot of the real Abbey Road sign. I stood around for quite a long time. My friend Christen is a great sport because I stared at abbey road studios for a really long time. The walls took my breath away. You can feel the history and the feelings of everybody who has ever been able to visit and the messages scattered everywhere were the most beautiful disarray I have ever got up close with.

This sign is incredible. I want to marry it for the reference and the general embracing spirit it had for the tradition. There was even a marker there to use.

It's one of the most moving things in the world to have lyrics from people from all works of life to come and leave. I have a suspicion that they repaint every so often but underneath it goes back a long time and every message attaches to one another. Christen's message is very emotion-driven. :P

Now I can think of so many things that I could have written such as 'I've just seen a road I can't forget, the time or place that we just met.' I really want to be there but my mind fogged and I went with the typical 'All you need is love' because it encompasses everything I didn't know how to say.

One of my favourite doodles is the Walrus.

The John picture I love a lot more than words can describe.

I took in everything lots more and we crossed the crossing again, helped take a picture for somebody else and by then I had unsheathed my John Lennon cap and wore it on the way back across and we returned back from whence we came where school children were walking the pavements and everything was back to moving again.

After this we went back to the tube station where we found The Beatles Cafe and there was no question that I had to go inside it, mooch around at the endless souvenirs and cinnamon-y chai tea Christen introduced me to in the morning only fitting that I get my first from this cafe.

And that was what was on the cup. It was extremely funny to me and probably Paul, John, George and Ringo would probably have something to say about too.

As a last comment these are the things which I got from the beatles cafe. Two 'I crossed abbey road' postcards and no that isn't an album it's a card which I wanted to stick on my wall and an abbey road pen where the beatles when you move the pen walk across the crossing which I didn't discover until the train and is the marvel of a lifetime. 

Have you ever been to Abbey Road, or plan to? When did you go and what was it like for you?

Merchandise and things I have which remind me of/are inspired by The Beatles.

Aside from books and DVDs there are quite a few things that I own.

1. 

John Lennon inspired circular glasses.

I've always really wanted a pair of these and I found them in a shop called 'Just Beauty' and they were perfect and I'm in love with having them. 

And this is me in them:                                                                                                                    

                                       

Er. No. Maybe not. Er wrong file there.

This is actually probably maybe me in them:

2.                                                                                                                                                            

John Lennon cap circa 1960s.

I've wanted one of these for a really long time and I found ones that were on ebay but I'm a little afraid to spend money so I was looking at it for months and they started appearing in my dreams I was going that mad but fortunately I got the chance to go to the beatles shop on Baker Street again in July and there was one there and I was united with a companionable hat. It even has an apple tag on the inside. There are no nice photos of me wearing it at this time.

3.                                                  

I've mentioned replicas before but this is an example of how they scatter my walls and some which I just keep not stuck up. These are probably my favourite things I have by far.

And not forgetting I also have your 'typical neighbourhood' Abbey Road poster. What kind of fan would I probably be without one? :P

4.                                                                                                                                                             

The Stella Mccartney Red Nose Day tshirt 2013

One of my first ever Beatles shirt and I love wearing it a lot I just think it's awesome and I wear it out and I wear it to sleep.

I really like this tshirt because of the shot and it's different to the ones that I usually see and I'm really fond of it and I wear it an extreme amount.

I bought this one recently. It was me vs the wide spellbinding array of tshirts at the beatles shop in London that I finally decided on this because of the fact that it is of Hamburg, the colouring, the photograph and the appearance like I somehow got to see them. :P

Although I've seen and almost got a lot of beatles clothing I surprisingly don't have that many and that should probably stay the same otherwise I probably wouldn't wear a lot else.

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I have the Ringo and the Paul Yellow Submarine Pop Vinyl's. Ringo is from The Forbidden Planet store in Cardiff and Paul is from HMV in London. I haven't come across a John Pop Vinyl and I haven't had a chance to buy George yet. Allegedly they are discontinuing so I'm glad they at least have Ringo and Paul.

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A couple of badges that I also the beatles shop in London again and I have put them on my satchel.

7.                                                                                                                                                                

A calender which when the months finish I cut the photo of the month out and tend to stick them up like posters.

8.                                                                                                                                                                

On my key I have a Magical Mystery Tour keyring which is from 'Head' In Bristol.

And also a St Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band phone pouch which I bought from TK Max in Bath.

Thank you for reading. Do you have any beatles related things? or what is a beatles related thing that you have always wanted? I'd like to have merchandise authentic from the time but I'm very happy with what I have and I probably wouldn't spend as much as they are worth.

                                                                                                           

Favourite film depictions and documentaries of The Beatles.

My top five favourite film depictions of The Beatles:

1. Nowhere Boy (2009)

Nowhere Boy is a film which gives John Lennon's teenagehood the light that not everyone is aware of and it was done extremely well. Aaron Johnson is a version of John which works really well to tell the story of John's upbringing and essence before we widely knew him. I adore it because of the portrayal of his emotions and soul.

2. Two of us (2000)

Ok don't bite my head off for this one because I have a perfectly good explanation. Yes, this film is pretty based on fiction. Yes, it never happened as such. But it is a gateway to what John and Paul's relationship was like and I believe the events of this film are very likely to have happened several times, probably a lot more and I feel like it encompasses them so completely even if slightly parodic at times. And that's exactly how they would have wanted to be perceived - John would have got a good laugh out of it and it's very heart-wrenching too, and incredibly moving and beautiful, to me at least. The actors, although the accents aren't the greatest sometimes, have the mannerisms and discontent lifestyles and differences brilliantly used in my opinion and there are endless times where I'm just grinning at their relationship and their interactions make me tear up with glee and references they would for sure use against each other and just their love for each other.

3. Across The Universe (2007)

Dsspite the beatles not featuring as themselves in this film at all, it is a musical made up of beatles songs and I needed it to be on here because it is one of my favourite films of all time. It's chill-spingingly spectacular visually, emotionally and great justice to the beatles voices put into situations and embodiments which fit and meld together like they always belonged. It encompasses the sixties and it conveys the struggles of activism and the political environment at that time and I could gush about it for eternity. The characters, the everything.

4. Chapter 27 (2007)

I wished against all odds that this was a film that was ever needed to have been made and of course it's conflicting and it does make me intensely upset that Mark Chapman can possibly be glorified but on the other hand it does dramatise the sequence of events and conveys facts of Mark Chapman's psychology and for that reason I find it an important thing to watch even if partly fictionalised.

5. The Linda Mccartney Story (2000)

On the surface it is a film that looks cheesy and misrepresented however I found it to capture Paul and Linda's relationship really really beautifully. The actor who plays Paul is a bit hit and miss but you can forgive it for that. No matter what it gets wrong, it has breathtaking scenes especially the scenes involving Paul's depression and family life and overall it's a good attempt and shows the growth of their relationship really strongly and has very good context for Linda's career and life.  

I have a lot more but these are ones which come to mind first and it sometimes changes.

My top 5 favourite documentaries about The Beatles:

1. The Beatles Anthology (2000)

What can I say? This is 'the' beatles documentary. It is everything you could ever want it to be - it's from them and the access to stories, personal feelings, reflection, led through everything with them

2. 'George Harrison - Living in the material world.' (2011)

This is a true and loving ode to George. No documentary has striked me quite as hard as this one. It's like they have crafted George's mind to play out to you, with every single person that was ever in contact with him and makes it the most thorough study that I've ever seen and every piece is put together so expertly.

3. Good Ol' Freda (2013)

'Good Ol' Freda' has to be one of those point of views you feel really grateful to have. It is a documentary centred on the life of Freda Kelly, The Beatles' secretary. She is someone who was extremely close to them and her insight is really valuable because it is authentic and her experiences and memories were harboured and they're new. It's also heart-warming how she still holds things she doesn't want to divulge and watching how her life was changed and how it has come after being with the beatles is so interesting and really lovely to have a lot more of what went on behind scenes and how strongly she contributed to making the fan community a big part of who the beatles are.

4. The Day John Lennon Died (2010)

This isn't a happy one but I like this documentary because it has intimate accounts of the effect that John's death had and John's life in New York and details of his being at that time and what he was reading and doing, what he was like and also what people who didn't like him thought about him and although this documentary shares devastation it leaves forms of positivity too. 


5: Imagine: John Lennon (1988)

This documentary I like because of the interviews including Sean and Julian and Yoko, home footage and John in his element and the making of 'Imagine' and John as a father to Sean.

My collection of 'The Beatles' books.

The Beatles are one of the biggest parts of my life and one of the things that I have of The Beatles are books on and they're something which as soon as I seem them I buy because that's how deep the addiction is. Today I wanted to show them and review them a little from a fan's perspective. I've seen lots of others along the way which I haven't experienced yet but I'm sure a part two will come along. I'm going to make this a series where  I talk about different merchandise I've found, documentaries I like, film portrayals and all kinds of beatle-related things.

1. 

'The Beatles' by Kim Aitkin

This is one of the first books I received that I didn't get myself and I'm really fond of it for lots of reasons. One of my favourite things to have is memorbilia and this book inside of it has that and it is one of the more detailed books that I have come across and it's very descriptive and like most books written about the beatles it visits every beatle in turn and goes through events chronologically featuring glossy photos. What I really like is that at the end of the book there is a chapter dedicated to the legacy itself and that is a very cool part to it which has a lot of interesting information which is just as important and not always touched upon.

2. 

'The Illustrated John Lennon' by Geoffrey Giluliano

A slightly older, slightly less thorough in a few ways book which is really interesting to me. However with an introduction written by John's uncle, Charles Lennon written in 1993 gives it really cool aspect which gives it a sense of legitimacy which Charles mentions as a 'A fitting record of his incredible life and times. This means a lot to me personally.' and that really comes through in the ways it's written. Honest and to the point which John probably would have liked or would told to lighten up a bit. There's a bit of information in this book which I hadn't got anywhere else. Also the chapters are nicely named.

3.                                                                                                                                                                               

'I met the walrus' by Jerry Levitan

This book is one of my favourites out all of the books that I own. Jerry as a young fan was able to meet John during the 'Bed or peace' movement with Yoko and it's an extremely intimate, access to knowledge which also describes the intensity of John and The Beatles impact for the young people of the time and is so beautifully written. It conveys a meeting between people which was unique among the insensitivity of the press. This part of John's life is spoken about so often that this book blows out of the water in some ways because it was a period where people saw John as very confused and he was anything but. John bubbled on inside of him and the glimpses you see in this represents everything about John and how he could move his layers around and it wasn't all serious. Jerry fights for his interview to be heard and the way that people responded to him is really fascinating. The end of the book is Jerry describing how his world changed when he heard that John has been killed and the personal feeling of the entire thing is one of the most moving things in the world to me. But, Jerry, 'The Walrus was Paul.'? :P

4.                                                                                                                                                             

'The Beatles Graphic' by Herve Bourhis

A book I am really fond of is this one. It's different because it tells the story of Paul, George, John and Ringo from the very beginning of their lives to the present day through beautiful drawings in a graphic novel style that goes from page to page like a timeline and litters facts and clever references throughout and I really like looking at it regularly because it's so gorgeous. Really. I would really recommend this because it captures them very well and is also good for the purpose for somebody who likes to read lightly and be immersed at the same time.

5.                                                                                                                                                                 

'The Fifth Beatle: The Brian Epstein Story' by Vivek Tiwary

Carrying on in the theme of graphic novels this is another book which I cherish a lot. It's a shift from the beatles and looks in depth at the life of Brian Epstein who, of course, is an extremely important person in their lives. Extremely, extremely talently drawn, it gives Brian's life the exposure it should always have. It is incredibly emotional and although there is a slight fictitious quality, it doesn't lie and it never differs from darkness and how Brian never entirely stopped feeling despite success. It also gives an unusual idea of the beatles being in the background of a lot of things. It's a reverse and it is done really well. It's being turned into a film and I'm really looking forward to seeing it come to life.

6.                                                                                                                                                              

'Love Me Do: 50 greatest beatles moments' By Paolo Hewit

'Drive my car: 100 objects that made the beatles the beatles.' By Brian Southhall

I put these two books together not only because I got them from the same place but because they have the style of both of them in common. Both books list significant events or objects that are important to every Beatle's fan's knowledge to have. Especially with 'Drive my car' it's the first time you are able to see each item up close and backed up with information it's really interesting and cool to skim as if you're visiting a museum. They both make good points of showing things which have contributed to the cultural significance many of these things have had. They're good for reference and a different way to experience information. I also look at the items, wanting them and it can be a little bittersweet for that reason. 

7.                                                                                                                                                                

'The John Lennon Letters' edited by Hunter Davies

This was obviously always going to be one of the best books there is because they are John's letters that he wrote throughout his life, what else can I say? I adore having them all in one contained huge, never-ending book of John-isms, wit, frustration and personal feelings. One of the most amazing parts are how they are sectioned and the stories surrounding who the letters now belong to or how they were found and the exact context the letters were written in. I love having access to John's notes and how they evolve and how he spoke to the people in his life and how he approached people he was angry with. His thoughts are the closest to the primary source you will ever get at every point of his life reflecting his state of mind at each corner, who he kept in contact with and why and it goes on and on. You have all of his drawings too in one place, and in order and it's incomparable.

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'You never give me your money: The battle for the soul of the beatles' by Peter Doggett

Now this is one has to be the one which I have gained the most from. I know that's strange to say that it's one of my favourites because of the subject but it really does get down to everything and I mean everything. It's very complex and it explores and investigates every single conflict within the beatles career almost by day to day it's that detailed spanning the entirety. It really conveys the tension and the hostility, betrayal and and the straying of every person involved. Where everything went wrong, patching up, falling apart, who wasn't there and why. Who almost got there, why. The business part of everything and the condition of money, the introduction and the fall of apple records, the state of money management in the 70s and decades after while still managing to weave each John, Paul, Ringo and George's feelings into the mix making what should be quite dry and intense (it can be but) making me not being able to put it down and I felt like I was sucking up knowledge so much and everything was specific for my memory to keep. It also came with a dvd of archive footage which is nice to have and I feel like is designed for you to watch with the knowledge you take from the book which you can attach to a recorded moment in time where it seems to show or if it doesn't.

9.                                                                                                                                                              

'Man on the run: Paul Mccartney in the 1970s.' by Tom Doyle

My first book purely on Paul on the list and also a full length biography and it couldn't be a better one. What is so good about this book is the attention the author gives to Paul and like 'You never give me your money' it's very to the day and it gives an insight to the years of Paul Mccartney in the aftermath of the beatles descent into nothing and the affliction of what that meant to enter a world where you weren't used to being in since a teenager and the struggle to remake yourself and the repercussions and backlash which came with constantly trying and the depression which inhabited his mind and the rollercoaster of being Paul Mccartney, being in a rollarcoaster career and being a target for failure and being named the cause of the death of the beatles for a long course of time. It really conveys the sadness that surrounded Paul but also highlighting the parts of him which are reckless and difficult to work with but with his constant eagerness to reinvent and not fade into the shadows for too long and reach out to the rest of the beatles. What makes it is also the fact that we get chapters where the author divulges his interactions with Paul and you can tell the book comes from a really inquisitive place. The interactions are extremely unique and funny and Paul's reflections are always significant stuff.

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'John Lennon Unseen Archives.' by Marie Clayton and Gareth Thomas

I was a bit dubius about this because the Daily Mail doesn't connotate the likelihood of that many good things but I discovered that as the front says it's only the photographs and any rare photos are good with me. Essentially the book has very little text but a lot of photos are full size which I really really love. It's not too original but a good book all the same and it adds to the collection and I imagine quite a few people will have bought this which makes it significant in some way. Oh and it was published where I live so that's very cool.

11.                                                                                                                                                            

'The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics.' edited by Alan Aldridge.

Another one I really liked the introduction of. This one is really important to me because it has every song the beatles as a whole or individually made and illustrated with all of the illustrations worthy of the songs and what they describe. It's very visual and styled in different art styles but really reminiscent of yellow submarine and magical mystery tour. I go to the song which I want to read when I need to and It's special having it on a page and being able to hold it. I feel like all four of them would have have been/would be chuffed about it existing.

12.                                                                                                                                                                

'The Beatles are coming. Beatlemania through the concert years. From the cavern to candlestick park.'

This is a magazine, not a book but I wanted to include it in the list. It came out around the time of 50th anniversary of The Beatles breaking America 1964 appearance on 'The Ed Sullivan Show' so I really wanted to get it although I restrained myself from getting any others. With all beatles books and publications things do get slightly repetitive which isn't a fault of the magazine's, just that I'm familiar with what's inside and it was a bit overpriced but there was a DVD provided and glossy pictures so it's not all that bad.

13.                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

'The treasures of The Beatles.' by Terry Burrows

The replicas of memorabilia that comes with this book is some of the most amazing I have. It makes me so excited to have important flyers, tour posters, signed postcards, programme covers,hand written set lists, tickets and the book has sections of time periods which it has a pocket on each page significant to it and I felt like a giddy child pulling them out and staring at them. For each time period there is a healthy amount of information written about it. It's really worth it for these reasons.

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'Paul Mccartney: Many Years From Now.' By Barry Miles

I originally saw this book on Paul Mccartney's authorised biography section on his website and I am in the middle of reading but I like what I have read so far.

These aren't all of the books I have read but they're the ones that I own and there are a lot more I still haven't gotten hold of. Three that I really want to read are George Harrison's 'I, Me, Mine.', 'Loving John' by May Pang for the purpose of reading her experience and to know more about her time with John and Cynthia Lennon's 'John', and I'm interested by Pete Best's two books which I might look into and more.

Are you a fan? Have you read any great ones? I'll take suggestions like a hungry harrowing fish. :P