1. John Lennon was the only Beatle who never toured as a solo artist.
While George did some post-Beatles touring before his death in 2001, and Paul and Ringo still tour extensively to this day, John never toured again after the Beatles quit the road in 1966. His last and only live post-Beatles concert was August 20, 1972 with Yoko Ono at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The event was a charity concert benefiting a home for children with mental challenges.
During the show, in typical Lennon cheekiness, he introduced his song “Mother” by saying, “Here’s one of the songs I wrote since I left the Rolling Stones”.
2. The Beatles’ bass player was not always Paul.
Some remember Stu Sutcliffe as the original bass player. But when the group returned to Liverpool from their first tour of Hamburg in 1960, Stu remained behind.
A less known fact is drummer Pete Best’s friend Chas Newby then filled in for four gigs over the Christmas holiday. He was asked to go along for the next trip to Germany, but opted out. Neither John nor George wanted to play bass, so Paul accepted the new role. (Good call.)
Since 2016, Newby, (also a left handed bass player) has performed with the reformed Quarrymen, the band’s name before they were The Beatles.
3. Two future Beatles wives attended the famous Shea Stadium concert in New York.
Before they even knew their future spouses Paul and Ringo, Linda Eastman and Barbara Bach were at the legendary August 15th, 1965 show.
Barbara, 18 at the time, was not even a fan, but was there as a chaperone to her younger sister. She preferred the music of Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, and Ray Charles. Linda, then 23, was a fan and is said to have been annoyed by all the screaming. She wanted to hear the music. (But in 1965, that was impossible!)
Linda eventually married Paul in 1969. Barbara wed Ringo in 1981.
4. “With a Little Help From My Friends” was not the song’s original title.
While recording the famous Ringo song for the album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”, John had injured his index finger, and was forced to play piano relying on his middle finger. He began referring to the song as “Bad Finger Boogie”, and it became the song’s temporary working title.
Beatles assistant Neil Aspinall picked up on the phrase and it eventually became the inspiration for naming a new group to the Apple label, and “Badfinger” was born.
5. George Harrison was not the first artist to release “My Sweet Lord”.
George initially gave the song to his friend and ex-Beatles collaborator Billy Preston for Billy’s 5th album “Encouraging Words”. It was released in September, 1970, to minor success.
George then released his version of the song in November of that year as a part of his first solo project, the triple album “All Things Must Pass”. It topped the charts worldwide, and was the biggest selling single of all 1971 in the UK.
“My Sweet Lord” was also the first post-Beatles single to reach #1.