KOOL 98 » the beatles

The Beatles' 'Help!' Coming to Blu-ray

Michael Gallucci — Wed, 15 May 2013 20:08:22 +0000

TheÂ Beatles‘ 1965 movie ‘Help!’ is finally coming to Blu-ray. The remastered disc will be available on June 25 with a beefed-up soundtrack and more than an hour’s worth of bonus material. ‘Help!’ followed the Beatles’ first film, 1964′s ‘A Hard Day’s Night,’ into theaters at the height of Beatlemania. Directed by Richard Lester, who also [...]

43 Years Ago: The Beatles' 'Let It Be' Album Released

Michael Gallucci — Wed, 08 May 2013 15:00:50 +0000

‘Let It Be’ was supposed to be the album that would bring the Beatles back together. After an increasingly fractious couple of years that culminated in 1968’s self-titled (‘White’) album, which was basically four solo records for the price of a double LP, the four Beatles holed themselves up in London’s Twickenham Film Studios, and then at Apple Studios, during the first month of 1969 to re-spark their dying flame. No outside visitors, no BS -- just four guys hanging around playing music. Just like the old days. They called it ‘Get Back.’

Paul McCartney Debuts Five Beatles Songs in Concert

Dave Lifton — Mon, 06 May 2013 13:34:51 +0000

If there's any rocker who can rest on his laurels onstage, it's Paul McCartney. After all, with such a huge catalog, he can simply fill up a setlist with dozens of his hits, play them night after night without changing, and nobody complains that they didn't get to hear their favorites.

Except he doesn't. Consequence of Sound noted that, at the op

The Beatles Revived by Greg Kihn in New Novel

Jeff Giles — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:21:34 +0000

For most music fans, Greg Kihn will always be known as the guy behind hits like ‘Jeopardy’ and ‘The Breakup Song (They Don’t Write ‘Em).’ But he’s also an established writer and all set to publish his fifth novel, the Beatles-inspired ‘Rubber Soul.’ “I asked where the Beatles got their records,” Kihn explained in a [...]

45 Years Ago: Beatles End Spiritual Retreat

Dave Swanson — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:40:34 +0000

On April 19, 1968, the Beatles parted ways with the Mararishi Mahesh Yogi. After submerging themselves in his teachings for what was supposed to be a three-month spiritual course, cracks began to appear. The band had flown to Rishikesh, India, in February 1968 along with friends like Donovan, Mia Farrow and the Beach Boys' Mike Love to begin an education in enlightenment.

Beatles Top List of Artists Used to Help Students Learn English

Jeff Giles — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 15:54:34 +0000

English is a tricky language, and no one method is universally accepted as the best way to learn it — but quite a few teachers have found that playing their students Beatles songs can help. A recent study conducted by Kaplan International Colleges surveyed more than 500 English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers from [...]

Paul McCartney Spokesman Shoots Down Rumors of Upcoming Nirvana Collaboration

Nick DeRiso — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 20:18:25 +0000

It looks like Paul McCartney's not collaborating with the surviving members of Nirvana again, after all. A report from earlier this week, citing an unnamed source at McCartney's label, has been quickly debunked by the former Beatle's spokesman.

46 Years Ago: Beatles Pose for 'Sgt. Pepper' Cover Photo

Bryan Wawzenek — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 18:58:32 +0000

At the time, it was one of the most expensive album covers ever created. And in the end, it would become one of the most iconic images in rock ‘n’ roll history. On March 30, 1967, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr visited Michael Cooper’s studio in the Chelsea area of London [...]

Derek Watkins, Trumpet Player for the Beatles, Eric Clapton, James Bond + More, Dead at 68

Billy Dukes — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:24:52 +0000

If you've seen any of the 23 James Bond movies, you're familiar with British trumpet player Derek Watkins. The session player also sat in with Eric Clapton, the Beatles, Elton John and more during a nearly 50-year career. Watkins died on Friday (March 22) after a two year battle with cancer.

50 Years Ago: The Beatles' 'Please Please Me' Album Released

Michael Gallucci — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 10:14:40 +0000

How confident were the Beatles in what they had and how they played it when they entered EMI Studios in February 1963 to record their now 50-year-old debut album, ‘Please Please Me?’ So much so that they recorded almost all of the songs for it in one marathon session that didnâ€™t even last 12 hours. [...]

10 Most Unique Beatles Cover Versions

Dave Swanson — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 17:20:28 +0000

Since the very beginning, many an artist took note of the songwriting brilliance of John Lennon and Paul McCartney (and later George Harrison), and lined up to record their own versions of a Beatle

Metallica and the Beatles Combined on Beatallica's 'Abbey Load' Album

Nick DeRiso — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 16:44:18 +0000

The Milwaukee-based Beatallica’s latest assault on the delicate sensibilities of Beatles fans arrives with their hilarious new Metallica-meets-the-Fab-Four mash-up ‘Abbey Load.’ This latest effort, which combines Metallica’s lyrics, riffs and a James Hetfield-esque growl with the Beatles’ studio swan song, follows bruising earlier combinations like “The Thing That Should Not Let It Be,” “Fuel on [...]

20 Beatles Songs Beatboxed in New One Minute Mash-Up Video

Dave Lifton — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:43:10 +0000

How many Beatles songs can be mashed-up in a one-minute span? That’s the question posed by musician Chad Neidt in a new video that features him and a beatboxing friend running through the group’s catalog at breakneck speed. Apparently, the answer is 23. Beginning with the count-in of ‘Taxman,’ the duo then move on to [...]

50 Years Ago: The Beatles Record 'From Me To You'

Dave Swanson — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 18:10:14 +0000

On March 5, 1963, the Beatles began recording sessions that would yield their third single, 'From Me To You.' That afternoon, the band ran through seven takes of the tune. Written just a few days prior to the session, 'From Me To You' found the songwriting team of John Lennon and Paul McCartney moving forward.

47 Years Ago: John Lennon "More Popular Than Jesus" Story Is Published

Dave Swanson — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 15:09:29 +0000

On March 4, 1966, an article appeared in the London Evening Standard that would cause an uproar and ripple for some time. Journalist Maureen Cleave was doing a series entitled 'How Does a Beatle Live?' and her encounter with John Lennon provided controversy that spread far beyond the London paper.

Songwriter Diane Lampert Dead at 88

Jeff Giles — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 18:27:42 +0000

Diane Lampert, the prolific pop songwriter whose extensive list of credits included songs recorded by the Beatles and Harry Nilsson, has passed away at the age of 88 after suffering heart failure in a Manhattan hospital.

New Cookbook Pays Tribute to Beatles' Golden Anniversary

Jeff Giles — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:25:06 +0000

Good news, Beatles fans: While you're reflecting on the passage of a half-century since the release of the band's first LP, you can celebrate the band's groundbreaking music by baking all the meals listed in a brand new Beatles-inspired cookbook.

45 Years Ago: The Beatles Arrive In Rishikesh, India To Study With The Maharishi

Dave Swanson — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 18:15:42 +0000

By the second half of 1967, the Beatles were searching for answers to some of life’s larger questions. This search would lead them to meditation, Eastern philosophy and, eventually, to Rishikesh, India, where, on Feb. 15, 1968, they began a period of study with theÂ Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. “We’d been into drugs, the next step is, [...]

49 Years Ago: The Beatles Land in America

Dave Lifton — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:02:07 +0000

In October 1963, the word "Beatlemania" was coined in Britain to describe the reactions of screaming young girls every time they heard the Beatles' music, either in performance or on the radio. On Feb. 7, 1964, the U.S. got its first proper taste of Beatlemania, as the group arrived in America for the first time.

55 Years Ago: George Harrison Joins John Lennon and Paul McCartney in the Quarry Men

Dave Lifton — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 15:18:40 +0000

The third part of the equation that would become the Beatles fell into place on Feb. 6, 1958. George Harrison joined the Quarry Men, the John Lennon-led group that Paul McCartney had joined as a second guitarist and singer the previous summer.