Beatle news briefs: You say it's his birthday!

June 17, 10:39 PMBeatles ExaminerSteve Marinucci

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Happy birthday, Sir Paul! What can you say about the guy that hasn't been said? 67 and he still rocks the house. Above is a ripping version of "Birthday". Hope it's a good one for you, Sir Paul!

Yer Blog has a birthday tribute, as well.

Here's what we posted Wednesday:

• Rare family photos, memorabilia of John Lennon on view in new exhibit (slideshow)
• Paul McCartney to write musical score for new animated film
• John and Yoko bed-in photos go on display in Bethel, N.Y. (slideshow)         

The photos from the Liverpool exhibit (top link) are amazing looks into the private life of John, Cynthia and Julian Lennon. The exhibit opened Tuesday and the link contains a report from the Liverpool Daily Post. And after the initial build on the page, we found some pictures of Cynthia and Julian Lennon at the opening that we added to it. Looks like a wonderful exhibit. Congrats to Julian and Cynthia for this.

   Musician Sean Lennon arrives for the 2009 Mojo awards at the Brewery
   in London on June 11. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)

In an interview with the UK Herald, Olivia Harrison admits she was the reason  "Let It Roll: Songs by George Harrison" happened.  "I instigated this one, and I consulted lots of friends and family until it was just the problem of diversity. Everyone had a different list, and at some point I just had to draw the line," she told the paper. She also wishes, though, there was more to it. "It should have been twice this. To me it's missing huge chunks. It had started out as a larger collection, but for now this is the right thing to do. It's a great way for people to get reacquainted with George's music and a place to start for those who don't know it. It goes through all the phases of his life." 

Is the demo of "Isn't It a Pity" the first Beatle song on iTunes? According to some, including Davey Lane, it dates from Beatle days.

I don't have the bonus iTunes demo of Isn't It A Pity (don't know if I can justify the expense at the moment!), but I have listened to the excerpt on the iTunes store. What I noticed immediately was George's "Leslie speaker" electric guitar sound, which he favoured during early 1969.

 

According to Lewisohn's 'Recording Sessions' book, a solo George electric guitar demo of Isn't It A Pity was recorded on January 26 1969, the same day versions of Let It Be, The Long And Winding Road were put down, along with a medley of old rock 'n roll numbers (Shake Rattle & Roll/Kansas City/Miss Ann/Lawdy Miss Clawdy). These (previously bootlegged) tracks indicate that George indeed utilized his Leslie speaker on this day, leading me to believe the iTunes version of Isn't It A Pity could very well be a Beatle-era demo from the Get Back sessions...

 

Sorry if I'm pointing out something that's obvious to all, or if someone out there has already brought this to everyone's attention, but I just thought it was just quite interesting to note that the Beatle-era Harrison tracks were taken from the Bangladesh concert, while the iTunes-only bonus track looks to have been taken from a day of Beatles recording.

 

Cheers,

Davey Lane

 A couple of people reported still no "Let It Roll: Songs by George Harrison" at Walmart. And others told us the "Isn't It a Pity" demo is not only at iTunes now.

The next edition of “Dennis Mitchell’s Breakfast With The Beatles” will feature special guest Olivia Harrison.  She’ll talk about the creation of the new album “Let It Roll: Songs By George Harrison,” and her very busy life.

Goldmine Magazine has an article about a new book, "The Searchers and Me," by Frank Allen.

Mia Farrow's brother was found dead in his art gallery under suspicious circumstances, reports the New York Times. (Thanks to Yer Blogger.)

    Yoko Ono arrives for the 2009 Mojo awards at the Brewery in
     London on June 11. She was honored with a musical lifetime
     achievement award. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)