beatles story tour

The Beatles Story

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The Beatles Story - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

• Liverpool: 50-Minute Mersey River Cruise (From $16.16)
• Liverpool & The Beatles Rail Day Trip from London (From $255.67)
• Overnight Rail to Liverpool from London: Hard Days Night Hotel & Beatles tour (From $415.28)
• The Beatles & Liverpool Magical Mystery Tour, Beatles Story Museum & Cavern Club (From $250.94)
• The Liverpool Pass®: All top attractions inc. Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour | 2-Days (From $101.38)
• (0.02 mi) Premier Inn Liverpool City Centre (Albert Dock) hotel
• (0.02 mi) Holiday Inn Express Liverpool - Royal Albert Dock, an IHG Hotel
• (0.02 mi) *Location* *River View* *Free Parking* *Albert Dock* *Echo Arena*
• (0.10 mi) Leonardo Hotel Liverpool - Formerly Jurys Inn
• (0.15 mi) Staybridge Suites Liverpool, an IHG Hotel
• (0.01 mi) Rudy's Albert Dock
• (0.01 mi) Maray (Albert Dock)
• (0.01 mi) Lunyalita
• (0.01 mi) Fab4 Cafe
• (0.01 mi) Rosa's Thai Liverpool

The Beatles Story

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Also popular with travellers

THE BEATLES STORY: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

• Liverpool: 50-Minute Mersey River Cruise (From £12.78)
• Liverpool & The Beatles Rail Day Trip from London (From £202.13)
• Overnight Rail to Liverpool from London: Hard Days Night Hotel & Beatles tour (From £328.31)
• The Beatles & Liverpool Magical Mystery Tour, Beatles Story Museum & Cavern Club (From £198.39)
• The Liverpool Pass®: All top attractions inc. Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour | 2-Days (From £80.15)
• (0.02 mi) Premier Inn Liverpool City Centre (Albert Dock) hotel
• (0.02 mi) Holiday Inn Express Liverpool - Royal Albert Dock, an IHG Hotel
• (0.02 mi) *Location* *River View* *Free Parking* *Albert Dock* *Echo Arena*
• (0.10 mi) Leonardo Hotel Liverpool - Formerly Jurys Inn
• (0.15 mi) Staybridge Suites Liverpool, an IHG Hotel
• (0.01 mi) Rudy's Albert Dock
• (0.01 mi) Maray (Albert Dock)
• (0.01 mi) Lunyalita
• (0.01 mi) Fab4 Cafe
• (0.01 mi) Rosa's Thai Liverpool

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The Long, Winding, and Weird Legacy of the Beatles’ Notorious ‘Let It Be’ Movie

By Rob Sheffield

Rob Sheffield

Let It Be is back? Nobody thought this day would ever come. The Beatles ’ 1970 lost-lost documentary Let It Be has always been dismissed as the band’s tombstone. It’s a movie that people regard as a disaster but hardly anyone has actually seen, just like Magical Mystery Tour . Directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Let It Be came out in May 1970, right when the Fabs were splitting up, and went down in history as their “break-up film.” All four refused to show up for the premiere. Apple has kept it officially unavailable for decades. It’s barely been seen in the past 50 years. Of all the Beatles’ artifacts, Let It Be seemed to be buried deepest.

But Get Back definitely changed the way people thought about this era and these sessions, revealing the joy and camaraderie. So will the world finally be ready to see Let It Be with a fresh perspective? How will it look now that we know so much more about the story? 

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Let It Be begins in January 1969, when John, Paul, George, and Ringo bring in Lindsay-Hogg to film them in the studio. Over 21 days, he shoots 56 hours of footage. The Get Back sessions get nasty, with George quitting the band (offscreen). The Fabs argue. They sulk. They look miserable. At the end, they go up on top of the Apple building for their famed rooftop concert, playing live for the first time in years. (Until the cops come.) The footage is meant for a 30-minute TV special. But new manager Allen Klein, having just gotten his fingers in the Beatle pie, decides to hustle it into theaters as a cash-cow movie. Now titled Let It Be , it hits theaters at the worst possible moment— just a few weeks after Paul announces the break-up .

Even Peter Jackson was so traumatized by Let It Be he wasn’t sure about the idea of doing Get Back . “As a longtime Beatle fan, I really wasn’t looking forward to it,” he told Rolling Stone. “I thought, if what we’ve seen is the stuff they allowed people to see, what are the other 55 hours going to be? When I went to Apple, my feet were heavy. I thought, ‘I should be excited, but I just dread what I’m about to see.’” 

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This scene horrified people at the time, before rock docs or reality TV existed, before anyone knew how a REAL rock-star fight sounded. Yet from a modern perspective, it’s ridiculously tame. As music producer Giles Martin said, “When you see this famous argument in the film, It’s like, ‘That’s it? That’s the thing?’” For a band like Aerosmith, this would count as friendly conversation. “I was working with Aerosmith producing their Vegas show, God bless them. Even arguing about their flights to Boston was worse than that!”

Let It Be didn’t come out until May 1970—14 months after it was filmed—so it’s hardly a documentary of a band breaking up. Right after the Get Back sessions, the Fabs made Abbey Road , not just their sunniest music but their most popular. Yet that’s how people still talk about this movie—the band divorcing on camera. “It was a very dark time not just for the Beatles themselves, but for their fans,” Peter Jackson said. “I can just imagine that if you were going to the cinema in May of 1970, and you just heard that the Beatles had broken up, then you’re obviously going to look at the movie through a particular filter. The timing of it—what was in people’s minds when they were looking at the movie, as much as the movie itself—I think that has led to it being known as the break-up film.”

Michael Lindsay-Hogg, now 84, has always valiantly defended his original Let It Be . “I always thought, for a variety of reasons which weren’t its fault, it was positioned badly in the world of rock & roll documentaries, and even Beatles lore,” he told Rolling Stone’s Brian Hiatt in 2021 . Ringo complained, “There was no joy in Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s documentary.” Lindsay-Hogg’s reply?  “Personally, I don’t care.” 

Lindsay-Hogg was a director of the U.K. music TV show Ready Steady Go! , and he had a long history with the Beatles, directing their pioneering videos for “Hey Jude,” “Paperback Writer,” and Rain,” as well as Rolling Stones projects like Rock and Roll Circus . The famous “Hey Jude” clip was filmed at Twickenham Studios in London, with the band surrounded by 300 fans singing along. “They enjoyed that so much that the whole concept with the Get Back thing was that ‘we’ll do exactly the same thing,’” Peter Jackson said. “Basically the ‘Hey Jude’ promo but with 14 songs and broadcast live on TV.” But the lads soon got sick of this whole project. They moved on to Abbey Road , and the abandoned footage got turned into a movie.

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When Get Back dropped in November 2021, part of its rapturous reception was in the way it dispelled the bitch-and-shout bad vibes of Let It Be . Jackson went back to the 56 hours of footage, but used it to tell a whole new story, a 6-hour feast for fans, showing the band coming together to make timeless music in their hour of darkness. Get Back , in some ways, was presented as an antidote to Let It Be . So the time is right for this much-maligned, rarely-seen film to get a second look. Lindsay-Hogg, for one, is confident that after seeing Get Back , the audience will finally be ready for Let it Be . “It’s in everybody’s interest to put out  Let It Be  again after Peter’s because they’re totally different films,” he said. “They’re not competitors.” Now that both version of the story will exist, the world can finally see Let It Be with fresh eyes. 

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Beach Boys' Mike Love on giving the Beatles songwriting tips and life with Brian Wilson

Mike Love was obviously pleased to see the Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds” holding strong at No. 2 in the latest update of 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in Rolling Stone , with only Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” above it on the 2023 edition of the list.

“When I first saw that, I said, ‘Well, I demand a recount,” he says with a laugh. “Being the bratty sort of guy that I am, you know? But anyway, no, that’s pretty good company, don’t you think?”

Love is speaking by phone from the Caribbean, about to catch a flight to Phoenix to visit his son, Brian, who lives in Scottsdale, before a string of tour dates with his latest version of the Beach Boys that includes performances at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California, and Talking Stick Resort in metro Phoenix (on Friday, April 26).

Here’s what he had to say.

Mike Love on the Beach Boys at Stagecoach Festival: 'We do what we do'

It's interesting to see the Beach Boys at a country music festival. Have you done Stagecoach before?

No, although we did appear with our friends LoCash on that stage a couple years ago . They did a song called 'Beach Boys.' It's, like, some country guys going to the beach. And they asked us to sing with them, so we did.

So you're just doing your normal Beach Boys set at Stagecoach?

Well, yeah, we do what we do, you know? We'll do all our hit songs that we're known for, everything from “Surfin' Safari” and Surfin’ U.S.A.” to “I Get Around” and “Fun, Fun, Fun” to “California Girls” and “Help Me, Rhonda,” “Good Vibrations” and “Kokomo.” And John Stamos is gonna be with us. He loves to come out and play drums with us.

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It’s great to see “Pet Sounds” hanging strong at No. 2 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

It's amazing. Bruce Johnston, who joined our group in 1965 to take Brian Wilson's place after Glen Campbell filled in for six months or so, actually took the album as an acetate, before it was printed up. Keith Moon of the Who introduced Bruce to John Lennon and Paul McCartney. So he played the album for them a couple of times in his suite.

We have a connection that goes back many years with the Beatles. And, of course, I spent a couple of months in Rishikesh at the Maharishi's place. I didn't know before I got there but when I did get there the Beatles were all there. That was a fascinating time. Meditation and music. In fact, I was the first person to hear “Back in the U.S.S.R.” from Paul McCartney's acoustic guitar at the breakfast table one morning.

What did you think of them doing their Beach Boys thing on “Back in the U.S.S.R.”?

I thought it was amazing. I was staying in the same sort of area. It was like a motel kind of thing. Paul was down at the other end. And Prudence Farrow was in a similar area. You know, John Lennon came up with that song “Dear Prudence.” But yeah, when Paul came down, he said, “Listen to this, Mike. Flew in from Miami Beach, BOAC” and all that.

I said, “Well, Paul, what you've got to do is talk about all the girls around Russia in the middle part,” which he did. So it turns out Sir Paul is pretty capable of crafting a tune.

There was a lot of music that came out of that course. They actually did a song called “The Spiritual Rejuvenation Foundation” and played it for me on my birthday. It was styled after “Fun, Fun, Fun.” I had my birthday on the 15th of March and George Harrison had his on the 25th of February. So we're both Pisces, as it turns out, and we're both very much into our meditation.

Do you find that meditation help with creativity?

Yeah, just life in general. And I'm in a creative field. So it's absolutely helped me a lot. On a practical level, Transcendental Meditation, which is taught by Maharishi, your metabolism slows down to a level of rest twice as deep as sleep. So you get this profoundly restful relaxation, which is great for everything, your emotions and your physical well-being. I've been doing it since December of '67 when I first learned meditation from Maharishi.

Mike Love on the Beach Boys throwing a curve with 'Pet Sounds'

Getting back to "Pet Sounds," does it feel as through that album has been getting more and more appreciated as it ages?

You know, Capitol Records really didn't know when we first made it what to do with it . So it never got the push that it probably deserved, because we really put a lot into that album. But it was regarded very highly by all the people in the music business. Paul McCartney once said that “God Only Knows” was his favorite song. I mean, that's a pretty fantastic statement coming from a guy who's written some of the most famous and best songs ever.

But Capitol Records really didn't know what to do with it because it was such a departure. When we played the record for the A&R guy, the nicest guy you'd ever want to meet, he wanted something more like “California Girls,” “I Get Around” and “Fun, Fun, Fun” because they'd had so much success with that type of thing.

But here's an album with symphonic orchestrations and stuff, dealing more with emotional themes than, you know, the beach or girls or cars, which there's nothing wrong with that stuff. I love it. But they just didn't know how to handle it. Then “Good Vibrations” came along a few months after that and went to No 1. and we were voted the No. 1 group in Great Britain, No. 2 being the Beatles, on the strength of “Good Vibrations.”

“Barbara Ann” came out in the first part of the year, then “Pet Sounds” and “Good Vibrations.” That was quite a year for us, 1966.

That was quite a year for you. Could you address the stories we've all heard that you were not a fan of what Brian had come up with for “Pet Sounds” when you first heard it?

That's really not true. I don't know. There's always been detractors. But no, I worked on every song on that album and even wrote some of the words. So that's absolutely inaccurate. In fact, I named the album “Pet Sounds.” Brian didn't know what to call it. I said, “Well, how about 'Pet Sounds?'” And that led to our going to the San Diego Zoo, the petting zoo, and taking the album cover photo, which is pretty trippy.

Anyway, so yeah, I came up with the title of the album. And I'm the one that presented it to Capitol Records along with Brian. He and I were the ones that took that album and played it for them.

And Capitol was like, “Well, we don’t hear a single?”

Well, they were used to getting these two-, three-minute singles that were so successful. And it was kind of a departure. But hey, that was how many years ago now? It’s all worked out. We do “God Only Knows,” “Sloop John B” and “Wouldn't It Be Nice” at virtually every concert we do. So it's well represented in our shows along with the other singles we've managed to have been blessed enough to have.

I mean, we're one of the top groups ever in terms of number of Top 40 singles.

Mike Love on thought of another reunion with Brian Wilson

You guys reunited with Brian and Al Jardine for a 50th anniversary tour and album. Do you think we'll ever see all the guys come together like that again?

I think maybe it would be interesting if we could get in the studio, but Brian's not doing very well lately. I hope the best for him. And I think it'd be great if we could, but we'll have to see if it actually can happen. Brian hasn't been touring for the last year or so. And I'm not anticipating him going out anymore. In fact, they're putting him in a conservatorship or something. (Multiple news outlets have reported that Wilson's family has asked a court in Los Angeles to set up a conservatorship for Wilson.)

But there is a documentary coming out on the Beach Boys and we ended up getting together at Paradise Cove, the beach where we took our first album cover shots. So it was really nice. Brian and I were reminiscing together, along with the other guys, about stuff that happened when we used to go to high school games together. He remembers things that I'd forgotten. So that was pretty neat, to get together and reminisce with my cousin.

It sounds like you guys are in a better place these days?

Oh yeah, for sure. Yeah, absolutely. Especially with Brian. We go back to childhood together. The first time I remember hearing him sing, I was on my grandmother Wilson's lap singing “Danny Boy.” And we grew up singing all the Everly Brothers songs, Chuck Berry songs and all the doo-wop songs of the day. So we have a lifetime of experiences and love and respect for each other's abilities.

That's sweet. You said you could see getting together in the studio. What did you think of the way “That's Why God Made the Radio” turned out?

Well, I don't know what to say about that in a positive way, because I was told that I was gonna be able to get together with Brian and write. But that was disallowed at the time by I'm not sure who. But anyway, that didn't happen. That was kind of an inducement to me for all of us to get together, actually, but it didn't turn out the way I would've liked it, so.... That's too bad, though. Missed opportunity, I think.

Mike Love on the latest round of Beach Boys reissues

There's been some interesting reissue projects lately. Box sets combining “Sunflower” and “Surf's Up” and then “Carl and the Passions” and “Holland.” What did you think of those projects?

Great. I mean, “Holland” was a fantastic experience. I lived in Holland for six months. We wanted to get away from L.A. to record it and live in a completely different country. It was pretty fascinating. I thought it was great. In the meantime, we're in Holland doing “California Saga,” a trilogy about Big Sur and stuff. “Holland” was great.

Every album has something special about it. A couple of those albums are where individuals came out with their creativity, whether it be Carl or Brian, Alan or Dennis, Bruce Johnston. Everybody got a chance to be a little bit creative, whereas up through “Pet Sounds” and “Good Vibrations,” primarily Brian was the writer and producer.

I mean, I co-wrote with him tons of words and hooks on all the hit singles, although it wasn't originally credited, because my uncle (Murry Wilson, who managed the Beach Boys until they fired him and controlled their publishing until 1969), frankly, cheated me on that part of things, which, you know.... But that was rectified . Anyway, all the albums had their own personality.

I've been listening to “Friends” a lot lately. Such an underrated album.

That's precisely what I mean. There are many great tunes on some of those lesser-known albums. Every group has its heyday. But we've been blessed enough to hang on to millions of fans who still love to hear our song. So we're very fortunate to be able to do a lifetime of music and still have some of our albums regarded very highly.

Do you have a personal favorite Beach Boys album?

You know what? I don't know. It's like, “Do you have a personal favorite kid?”

The Beach Boys

When: 8 p.m. Friday, April 26.

Where: Talking Stick Resort, Loop 101 and Pima Road, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

Admission: $35 and up. 

Details: 480-850-7734,  talkingstickresort.com .

Reach the reporter at  [email protected] . Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter,  @EdMasley .

Support local journalism.   Subscribe to azcentral.com today.

Beatle's Japanese tea set to be shown in museum

A Japanese tea service bought by George Harrison when Beatlemania confined him to a hotel room has gone on display.

It is one of three bought by Harrison when the band was on tour in Japan in 1966.

Roag Best, who runs the Liverpool Beatles Museum, said: "Beatlemania had truly hit Japan [and] they couldn't go out."

The tea service is on display at the museum, in Liverpool's Mathew Street.

Mr Best, the half-brother of the band's original drummer Pete Best, and son of tour manager Neil Aspinall, said: "The Beatles had gone to play the Budokan.

"They played five shows in a three-day period and were playing to in excess of 10,000 people a show."

He said his and John Lennon had had to leave their Tokyo hotel in disguise, and Paul McCartney had done the same.

But Ringo Starr and Harrison stayed confined to their rooms.

"They liked buying stuff when they were touring but because they couldn't go out they were having people bringing their wares up to their rooms to sell," Mr Best said.

"George bought three really ornate Japanese tea services, which he then had shipped back to England.

"He kept one and gave my dad the choice of the other two, then the third he gave to his mother."

The crockery made its way back to Liverpool and was put in a display cabinet in the house of Mr Best's mother Mona Best, who owned the Casbah Club in West Derby.

But, Mr Best said it had not been a complete set since his mother asked him to clean it when he was 15.

He said: "I carried it all very carefully through to the kitchen and washed it but once I'd finished, I was in a rush to go and play out with my mates, so I stacked it all on top of each other to carry it back in.

"My mum said to me, 'Don't take it back like that, you'll drop it'.

"I said, 'No, I won't', and as I uttered those words the pile buckled and three cups smashed on the floor.

"I just bolted out of the door then before she could kill me."

Visiting fans

Mr Best said his father, who went on to be the boss of Beatles' company Apple Corps, did not often talk about his time touring with the band.

He said: "I asked him about it once and he told me to close my eyes and imagine how it was.

"When I opened them, I said, 'It must have been brilliant', and he said, 'Oh, lad, it was so much better than that'."

Mr Best said he hoped the tea service would be of particular interest to Beatles fans visiting Liverpool from Japan.

He added: "The Japanese Beatles fan club has one of the biggest memberships, it is about 40,000 strong.

"I think they're going to love this."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds  and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook , X and Instagram ? You can also send story ideas to [email protected]

Liverpool Beatles Museum

• https://liverpoolbeatlesmuseum.com/
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NEWS... BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT

Number 1 record held by The Beatles for almost 50 years finally toppled

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It’s been a long time coming but The Beatles have been defeated after almost five decades for the fastest accumulation of 12 chart topping albums in the UK.

It took John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison , and Ringo Starr 14 years to land 12 number one albums, completing the feat in 1977 with a live album.

This had secured a record lasting 47 years which had a reputation for being unbeatable – until now.

Unsurprisingly, megastar Taylor Swift , 34, has achieved the same incredible feat in just 11 years and six months with The Tortured Poets Department .

This makes the ME! hitmaker the only artist to have 12 consecutive albums reach the coveted top spot in as many years.

Her latest album has truly caused a stir and while everyone paternity tested her song lyrics , TTPD broke records left right and centre.

Spotify announced it had become the most streamed album in a single day as well as the first album ever to be streamed a billion times — in just five days.

The album has shifted 270,000 UK chart units, according to Official Charts Company data, which has eclipsed her previous record of 204,000 in seven days, which she achieved when her 2022 album Midnights was released.

Every single album since Red, released in October 2012, has landed Taylor a number one spot in the UK album chart.

This does include the four re-released albums among her eight studio albums, which feature new songs and full re-recording and production.

By comparison, The Beatles’ original feat started in 1963 with debut album Please Please Me and ending with The Beatles At Hollywood Bowl in June 1977.

Since April 19, 2023, Taylor’s single Fortnight, featuring rapper Post Malone, has soared to number one in the singles chart alongside her album.

A slew of other songs from the 31-track album have flooded the charts, pushing Hozier’s Too Sweet down to number two.

Sabrina Carpenter, who is a close friend of Taylor, has also flown with her catchy new single Espresso.

Despite her incredible record breaking achievements, the Pet Shop Boys frontman bizarrely declared she doesn’t actually have any famous songs .

Risking incurring the wrath of Swifties, Neil Tennant said her success was ‘fascinating’ because she doesn’t have a ‘famous song’.

Meanwhile a pub that was merely mentioned by Taylor has been overwhelmed with fans rushing to The Black Dog to feel more connected to the star.

After the huge success of Tortured Poets Department, the Prophecy singer is heading back on her Eras Tour soon.

Kicking off in Paris, her European leg is rumoured to be getting a major shake up with a possible new section to accommodate her new album.

The mammoth three and a half hour set will then make it’s way to the UK in May, starting in Edinburgh on June 7.

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John Lennon’s Recently Rediscovered Guitar Is Poised to Smash Records at Auction

Julien's auctions believes the historic instrument could possibly become the most valuable guitar ever sold at auction..

In the 1960s, a 12-string acoustic guitar was the instrument of choice for John Lennon as he recorded and performed hits like Help! Despite its historic importance, the guitar was missing for decades until it was recently discovered in an attic in the rural British countryside. Now Lennon’s 1965 Fenton Hootenanny is expected to set a record for the most valuable Beatles guitar when it is sold next month with the Los Angeles-based Julien's Auctions .

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In addition to being used by Lennon on the recording of the Beatles’ 1965 Help! album and film, the acoustic guitar can be heard on tracks like  It’s Only Love and I’ve Just Seen a Face and was even played by George Harrison on Norwegian Wood . “Finding this remarkable instrument is like finding a lost Rembrandt or Picasso, and it still looks and plays like a dream after having been preserved for more than 50 years,” said Darren Julien , co-founder and executive founder of Julien’s Auctions, in a statement.

SEE ALSO: UBS Makes a Major Gift of American Landscape Photography to the National Gallery of Art

The guitar is being offered with a conservative estimate of between $600,000 and $800,000. But Julien’s Auctions expects it to surpass the Beatles guitar auction record established in 2015 with the $2.41 million sale of Lennon’s J-160E Gibson. It could even become the most valuable guitar ever sold at auction; a title currently bestowed upon a Martin D-18E owned by Kurt Cobain that sold for more than $6 million at Julien’s Auctions in 2020. “ If there’s a guitar that will ever rival that, it’s this guitar ,” said Julien during a press event for the upcoming auction. “This guitar could be the guitar that sets a new world record—it’s so important, so historic,” added fellow founder and director   Martin Nolan .

Rediscovering a piece of music history

By the late 1960s, Lennon had gifted the Hootenanny to Gordon Waller of the pop duo Gordon & Waller, who subsequently gave the instrument to their road manager. The current owners, however, long believed it to have been misplaced—until they discovered the guitar in their attic while preparing for a move and contacted Julien’s Auctions. After confirming its authenticity, Julien and Nolan also rescued its tattered Australian-made Maton guitar case from a trash bin used by the homeowners.

“To awaken this sleeping beauty is a sacred honor,” said Julien, adding that the find is the greatest recovery of a Beatles guitar since the return of Paul McCartney’s 1961 Höfner bass , which was stolen from the musician in 1971. Julien’s Auctions has a storied history of selling Beatles memorabilia, having previously auctioned off record-breaking lots like Ringo Starr ’s $2.2 million Ludwig drum kit and the $2.1 million drumhead used by the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show.

Its upcoming auction also comes on the heels of several major musician-related sales. Christie's earlier this year sold 900 lots of artwork, clothing and jewelry from the collection of Elton John for a total of $20.5 million, while Sotheby's in September auctioned off the personal possessions of Freddie Mercury for a staggering $50.4 million.

Lennon’s rediscovered guitar is set to headline the auctioneer’s Music Icons sale, which will offer more than 1,000 pieces of music memorabilia ranging from a Fender bass guitar used by Adam Clayton of U2 and a 1984 “Billie Jean” jacket donned by Michael Jackson on tour. Auction highlights will be exhibited in London and New York ahead of sales on May 29 and May 30.

• SEE ALSO : Leonora Carrington’s Surrealist Masterpiece Expected to Sell for a Record $18M

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Taylor Swift Creates History on Australia’s Charts

It's a Taylor Swift sweep on Australia charts, as "The Tortured Poets Department" smashes a slew of records.

By Lars Brandle

Lars Brandle

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It’s a Taylor Swift sweep on Australia’s charts, as The Tortured Poets Department (via Universal) and “Fortnight” blast to No. 1.

Tortured Poets opens at the summit of the ARIA Albums Chart , published Friday, April 26, for her lucky 13th leader in these parts.

With that result, Swift boasts the most No. 1 albums for a solo female artist in ARIA chart history, moving ahead of Madonna to claim outright third place.

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All 31 tracks from the double album impact the top 100, with “Robin” the lowest at No. 55. Three older songs sit in the top 100 (“Cruel Summer,” “Anti Hero” and “Lover”), meaning Swift has more than one-third of all songs in the top 100 (34). The previous record was 32 in one week, ARIA reports, held by Michael Jackson and Taylor.

Swift, whose The Eras Tour visited Australia in late 2023 for seven shows, is the only artist in ARIA history to replace themselves at No. 1 on the national albums tally. She has done it three times, including this month with Tortured Poets replacing Lover (earlier, in 2023, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) replaced Midnights ; and in March 2024, Lover replaced Midnights ).

According to a statement issued late Friday by Universal Music Australia, Tortured Poet s is the most-sold album on vinyl in ARIA history, the market’s most-streamed LP in its opening week, and the biggest album debut since Adele’s 25 in 2015.

Remarkably, only two of the U.S. pop superstar’s studio or re-recorded albums have failed to reach the summit in Australia — her self-titled debut, Taylor Swift (peaking at No. 33 in 2006) and Fearless (No. 2 in 2008). Fearless (Taylor’s Version) did, however, climb the summit in 2021.

In non TTPD -related ARIA Chart news, Pearl Jam bows at No. 2 with Dark Matter, the Seattle rock legends’ 12th studio album. Pearl Jam has had eight No. 1 albums in Australia: Vs. in 1993, Vitalogy in 1994, No Code in 1996, Yield in 1998, Binaural in 2000, Riot Act in 2002, Backspacer in 2009 and Lightning Bolt in 2013. Dark Matter is the followup to 2020’s Gigaton , which peaked at No. 3.

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Tulsa's Carney Fest to celebrate legacy of Leon Russell with music and more: What to know

For the second straight year, the past, present and future of Tulsa's legendary Church Studio will be celebrated at Carney Fest .

An all-day, cultural music festival, the April 27 event will boast a carnival-like atmosphere and include circus performers, food vendors, art installations, nonprofit exhibitors and a live music lineup featuring headliners Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs .

A Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Campbell was a founding member and the lead guitarist of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers . He co-wrote the group's iconic songs “Here Comes My Girl," “Refugee" and “Runnin' Down a Dream," along with hits for Stevie Nicks, Don Henley, Chris Stapleton and many more. His side gig the Dirty Knobs became his main band after Petty died in 2017 .

"We're so excited to welcome him because it was 50 years ago that he and Tom Petty and Benmont Tench and the rest of (the band) Mudcrutch , which turned into Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, recorded with us. They signed to Shelter Records, which was Leon Russell 's record label, and the rest is history," said Teresa Knox, current owner of The Church Studio.

"So, to bring him back 50 years later really means a lot."

How does Carney Fest celebrate the legacy of Leon Russell and The Church Studio?

The Carney Fest mission is to provide a family-friendly outdoor experience that enriches Tulsa's community’s cultural landscape through the power of music. The festival also celebrates the enduring legacy of Russell, an Oklahoma native and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, and The Church Studio he founded.

The festival is planned during Russell's birthday month and named for Russell's seminal 1972 album "Carney," which is where the event's circus themes also come into play.

Born Claude Russell Bridges on April 2, 1942, in Lawton, the future "Master of Space and Time" grew up in Tulsa, where he was playing local nightclubs at age 14. Russell was still a teenager when he went on tour with Jerry Lee Lewis, and Russell took the influential Tulsa Sound — a mix of genres like gospel, blues and country that he helped pioneer — with him when he moved to Los Angeles.

That's where Russell joined the famed studio musicians known as the Wrecking Crew, who helped Phil Spector develop his signature “Wall of Sound” and played as a pianist on countless pop albums of the 1960s.

In 1969, Russell established his own label, Shelter Records , with producer Denny Cordell, and released his self-titled solo debut, which featured Beatles John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison. In 1972, Russell bought the historic church at 304 S Trenton Ave. in Tulsa and turned it into the studio and home-state office for Shelter Records.

The Church Studio brought a veritable constellation of stars to his hometown, from Jimmy Buffett and Willie Nelson to Michael Bolton and Stevie Wonder.

Russell remained with Shelter Records until 1976, when he and Cordell decided to part ways. While the singer-songwriter kept making music until his death in 2016 at the age of 74, The Church Studio continued under the ownership of Grammy-nominated Oklahoma musician Steve Ripley for 20 years.

But the legendary studio eventually fell into disrepair, and in 2016, Knox bought it and spent more than five years renovating it. She reopened The Church Studio as a National Register of Historic Places landmark, museum and recording studio on March 1, 2022, the 50th anniversary of Russell's original purchase of the building.  

"The first year (for Carney Fest) was fantastic. We had the Reverend Horton Heat as our headliner, and all of the artists that performed are clients of ours, except for our headliner last year. But this year, 100% of our musical lineup are our recording clients, including our headliner," Knox said.

"We want to afford new opportunities to current artists. We certainly don't want to stay in the past when we honor Leon and the other Tulsa Sound trailblazers. But, hopefully, the young artists are inspired."

When and where is Carney Fest and what bands are playing there?

Tulsa's second Carney Fest is set for 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 27, outside The Church Studio at Third Street and Trenton Avenue.

"We're in an emerging, developing neighborhood called Studio Row. Eight years ago when I bought the real estate of The Church Studio, there was nothing there. Now we have a neighborhood that's evolving with restaurants, shopping and retail that's a destination spot," Knox said.

"We've had people the past week from the UK, from Brazil, from Canada, from Australia. ... Some of it is because they're traveling Route 66 — of course, Tulsa is the epicenter of that, approaching the 100th anniversary of the Mother Road — but it's also that they love American rock 'n' roll."

This year's Carney Fest musical lineup spans from rock and country to hip hop and R&B, with the first act, Tulsa metal band She Hates Me Not, taking the stage at 11 a.m. April 27.

The bill also includes Lexi Onyango, The Stylees, Steph Simon, Austin Allsup Music, King Cabbage Brass Band , Sam Burchfield and Ann Bell and the Tulsa Sound, with Campbell and his cohorts closing out the stage.

How much are Carney Fest tickets?

General admission tickets at $49 and are available online at https://thechurchstudio.com/carney-fest-2024 .

Proceeds from Carney Fest 2024 will benefit the nonprofit The Church Studio Music Foundation and its grant program that allows Oklahoma artists to record at the historic studio at no charge, Knox said.

The festival is scheduled to go on rain or shine. For updates and information, go to https://www.facebook.com/carneyfest .

The Beatles Story is an award-winning attraction based in the band’s birthplace of Liverpool, telling the story of ‘the world’s greatest band’.

The Beatles Story is an award-winning attraction based in the band’s birthplace of Liverpool, telling the story of lives, times and music of The Beatles as a unique immersive experience and perpetuating the legacy of what is considered by worldwide influential music critics and fans to be ‘the world’s greatest band’.

The location on The Royal Albert Dock lends credibility to the visitor experience with cavernous rooms recreating an authentic 1960’s atmosphere. Audio media guides are provided in 12 different languages to cater for its growing international audiences, authentically narrated by John Lennon’s sister, Julia.

The Beatles Story was the brainchild of founders Mike and Bernie Byrne and today is an expanding business since opening its doors in May 1990 with ancillary products including an educational division (Discovery Zone), two Fab4 Cafés and two Fab4 Stores under the trademarked Fab4 brand, located at both The Royal Albert Dock trading site and secondary Pier Head site.

In 2008 ownership was taken over by Merseytravel, a public sector owned business and the Executive body providing professional, strategic and operational transport advice to the Liverpool City Region’s Combined Authority.

In 2019, over 315k visitors from all corners of the world came to experience the award-winning The Beatles Story which is seen as an integral part of Liverpool’s future visitor economy growth.

To provide a world-class visitor attraction, which lives up to the universal acclaim of The Beatles and to develop The Beatles Story as a must-see visitor destination, protecting and augmenting The Beatles’ brand and its legacy in the city.

Our History

The Beatles Story was conceived in the minds of husband-and-wife team Mike and Bernadette Byrne in 1987 after a visit to America with a previous Beatles attraction, Beatle City. That experience formed the basis for their idea of a new attraction, The Beatles Story, which has since welcomed millions of visitors from across the world.

Whilst Mike was a Merseybeat musician himself and acquaintance of The Beatles, Bernadette was a Cavern regular who had a closer relationship with the band, particularly George Harrison whom she dated in the early 60s.

It took two long years of research and development to get the project off the ground. The couple worked alongside the architects, set and graphic designers to project-manage the exhibition from start to finish. Both felt it was important to have the right tourist location and the redeveloping waterfront location on the Albert Dock fitted the bill perfectly.

The Beatles Story opened in May 1990 and was a critical success from day one. Across the years it has won numerous prestigious awards and by its 25th anniversary, the attraction had welcomed more than four million visitors, boosting the Liverpool economy by an estimated £300m.

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The Rolling Stones announce support acts for 2024 ‘Hackney Diamonds’ US tour

The legendary band's tour is set to kick off Sunday (April 28)

The Rolling Stones have announced the support acts for their 2024 ‘ Hackney Diamonds ‘ US tour.

• READ MORE: The Rolling Stones – ‘Hackney Diamonds’ review: they’ve still got it 

The legendary band are set to embark on a massive US tour next week (April 28). The tour will see Mick Jagger , Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood perform in 16 cities across North America and Canada.

To kick off the first night of the tour, Gary Clark Jr. will serve as the opening act in Houston this Sunday (April 28). From there, Ghost Hounds will open for the Stones in Atlanta on June 7, Cleveland on June 15 and lastly Vancouver on July 5. KALEO will open the Philadelphia date on June 11.

After The Rolling Stones’ Jazz Fest performance , they will be joined by both Electric Mud and Carin León in Glendale, Arizona.  The Pretty Reckless will join Jagger and co. in Las Vegas, while it will be Joe Bonamassa in Seattle. The band will close out the first month on road with Lawrence in East Rutherford at MetLife Stadium for the second show date, as well as The Red Clay Strays in Foxboro.

Additionally, Tyler Childers will open in Orlando, Widespread Panic in Denver, Bettye LaVette in Chicago for night one at Soldier Field and Lainey Wilson on night two. The Stones will close out the series of dates in California with The War and Treaty opening the first night in Los Angeles at SoFi Stadium and The Linda Lindas on the second, followed by The Beaches in Santa Clara for the final stop.

Check out the full dates for the US ‘Hackney Diamonds’ tour above and visit here to purchase any last minute tickets .

Recommended

The legendary band released their 24th album ‘Hackney Diamonds’ last October, marking their first full-length effort since 2005’s  ‘A Bigger Bang’ . In  a four-star review ,  NME  described the project as “an absolute barnstormer”.

Elsewhere, a new book about The Beatles has revealed a John Lennon encounter that made Mick Jagger feel “uncomfortable” .

• Related Topics
• Joe Bonamassa
• The Linda Lindas
• The Pretty Reckless
• The Rolling Stones

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