When Paul Met George [article]
I copied and pasted another article about this, fearing the lost of information, since most blogs like these lead to dead links in a few years or so
When Paul met George [article]
George Harrison did not recall his time at Liverpool Institute High School with affection. “That’s when the darkness came in. Be here, stand there, shut up, sit down. You could punch people just to get it out of your system. It was the worst time of my life.”
The ‘punch people’ reference confirms that George was not a model pupil. Paul also refers to George ‘head-butting’ an older boy a perceived slight.
Harrison & McCartney had both passed their 11+ exams, a year apart. This enabled them both to attend selective school in the city centre. The Liverpool Institute High School was a prestigious, academic school — and Harrison hated it from the start.
The Liverpool Institute High School for Boys offered a course in music. To George Harrison’s disappointment, this did not cover either guitars or rock and roll. He did not partake — a statement that could have been applied generally to his secondary education. Most classroom time he spent drawing his favourite guitars.
The school for its part was not impressed by Harrison’s disruptive behaviour. And while over at Quarrybank, John Lennon’s similar unruliness was accompanied by signs of artistic talent, George had no obvious redeeming features.
As Aunt Mimi would disapprovingly observe he presented as ‘very dose’ — in short a lower class loudmouth from Speke, then a notoriously tough area. His loathing of the Liverpool Institute was palpable and the contempt was mutual. His teachers wrote George off as someone destined for factory work, at best.
This was not its perception of Paul McCartney, who while not an academic star, showed promise. Paul (usually) did his homework and (largely) kept himself off the naughty step. He was even enthusiastic about English, though his may be overplayed in his later reflections.
Like George, Paul had no interest in studying music at school. He, too, saw no connection between the rock and roll they listened to and the dusty scores studied in music class.
In playground the age difference between Paul and George was a practical and psychological barrier to socialising. Kids hung out with kids in their year group. Other fraternising was largely reduced to brief nods when you passed your brother/cousin/next door neighbour.
Outside the school’s premises the social rules were looser. Though they lived in different areas, both boys took the same bus into town. This is where their paths would cross, as George would later explain:
he … had the same uniform and was going the same way as I was so I started hanging out with him.”
George later joked that Paul had struck him as odd
he sitting by himself & laughing! I thought we had a real nut on our hands!
Nonetheless, the two boys quickly found they shared musical tastes. Paul was then learning the trumpet his father had bought him for his birthday but not enjoying it. He swapped it for a guitar, which instantly took to.
Soon they were swapping notes, in every sense. They studied chord charts together and carefully observed other musicians trying more advanced sequences. Once they even travelled across the city to meet a man who knew a magical new chord: B7
Even at this stage, Paul was the senior partner and not just because of age. His stronger musical background and innate gifts allowed him to master an instrument intuitively. By the age of fifteen he was confident enough to approach Lennon as an equal if not superior musician.
Very soon a vacancy came up for a third guitarist Quarrymen. Paul knew just the man — or rather boy, as George was still only fourteen. Lennon hated the idea of ‘a bloody kid’ joining his band but Paul persuaded give George an audition.
This famously occurred on the deserted top-deck of a late-night bus. George played Raunchy — note perfect.
Though he may at this stage have lacked Paul’s musical creativity, George was fiercely committed. The endless practice hours of guitar practice had paid off. He was in.
How George and Paul met Being childhood friends George and Paul knew each other the longest. Meeting when they were 12 and 13. They met on the bus. They would take the same bus route into town, they both went to Liverpool Institute of High School, it wasn't common to have younger or older friends, you would stick to your own year, but on the outside it was different. This is where they’re paths would cross.
George says Paul struck him as odd. When George was getting on the bus, he thought Paul was laughing at him, but then realized Paul wasn’t laughing at anyone around him, he was giggling at his own reflection.
“Q: How did you first meet Paul?
A: On a bus coming home from school. He was sitting by himself and laughing! thought we had a real nut on our hands!”
More Posts from Beatlesinfoarchive and Others
The Beatles and their fans: Some interesting facts that Lizzie Bravo, a brazilian fan who lived the beatlemania in 1967/1968, said. I translated from the interview that Lizzie gave to "Pitadas Do Sal" in 2021. May Lizzie rest in peace. ♡
Paul McCartney lived near Abbey Road so he walked around and sometimes barefoot.
The Beatles called their fans "luv" and always said hello/goodbye even if they were in the car.
When Lizzie was invited to record Across The Universe with the band, Paul McCartney asked her to sing something "in brazilian" but she was so nervous that she couldn't.
It was hard to distract John Lennon and Paul McCartney when they were together. They talked a lot in private, laughed a lot, and even finished each other's sentences. "They lived in their own bubble" Lizzie about Lennon-McCartney.
When Lizzie met John Lennon for the first time (her favorite beatle), she started crying and Mal Evans hugged her and gave her a chocolate.
George Harrison wrote Apple Scruffs for specific fans, not for all the fans who stayed in the studios.
George Harrison also wrote letters to these 3 fans in particular, thanking them for their support especially when he was starting his solo career.
Once, John Lennon was leaving Paul McCartney's house and when he said goodbye to Lizzie, who was waiting for him outside, she said "I love you" spontaneously. John smiled and waved.
Lizzie said they never seemed as mad as people sounded.
The fans did a marathon every day: They ran to Abbey Road, saw The Beatles and in the end of the afternoon they ran to Paul McCartney's house to see John Lennon go there - something he did a lot.
Sometimes they arrived together in the studio in the same car.
There were 20 or 30 fans waiting to see them everyday! It depended on which beatle would arrive before or after.
Lizzie said that The Beatles were very humble, kind and didn't even seem like the renowned band they were (and are!).
Paul McCartney discusses the design for Sgt Pepper with Mike Read in an interview for BBC Radio 1 (broadcast 1989)
PAUL: See I always hark back, when I'm making a record, in my mind, to me - in Liverpool I used to get on the bus, Saturday morning, go down to this big department store called Lewis's, go in the record department, get my record, that was a big favourite I'd been saving up for, get on the bus, upstairs on the bus, and unwrap it. And then I had a half hour to look at it. I couldn't play it, but I could look at it, and read the sleeve note and look at the pictures and everything. So I knew that other people would be doing that kind of thing so we designed Pepper with that in mind, you know, the person who's just been to his version of Lewis's, he's got that half hour to go home. So we'll give him masses, he could look at this one for months, you know, because after all its only cardboard and it really doesn't cost more to put a complicated picture on than it does just to put a picture of an orange, or something. READ: Of course Brian Epstein's idea was it being brown paper bags. PAUL: Well Brian was very keen on the album, we'd played it [for] him once it was all finished out at George's house. He was very sort of flamboyant [Brian impression] 'Oh! It's wonderful.' He really loved it, you know, he did this big, theatrical [Brian impression] 'Oh it's a wonderful album!' And we said 'Well we're still thinking about the cover, you know, we can't quite decide how to do the cover.' He said [Brian impression] 'Put a brown paper bag on it, it doesn't matter. It's so wonderful.'
John was a nail-biter too: a study
'It was just one of his little things... and I was very pleased to see that, 'cause I'd forgotten that...' - Paul McCartney, June 2023
The Beatles by Klaus Voormann
THE BEATLES at a hotel in Weston Super Mare, Somerset, by Bruce Leak, an 11 year old boy who was on a family holiday with his parents and sister. 1963.
You know, these people like Eastman and Dick James and people like that, think that I’m an idiot. They really can’t see me; they think I’m some kind of guy who got struck lucky, a pal of Paul’s or something…
(John Lennon, December 1970, interview with Jann Wenner for Rolling Stone)
Don't want your love anymore Don't want your kiss, that's for sure I die each time I hear your name Here she comes, Cathy's clown
The Beatles' first pet: George Harrison's vomit. ㅡ From the book "One, Two, Three, Four: The Beatles In Time" by Craig Brown.
In The Beatles, we’d always had this running joke: “What are we going to do when the bubble bursts?” Then it did burst and I went up to my farm in Scotland, wondering what the hell I was going to do next. I seriously thought about giving up music altogether.
(Paul McCartney, July 2004, interview with Jon Wilde for UNCUT)
PLAYBOY: But in the last ten years you’ve never wondered if it [music] might not come as easily, as naturally again as it once did? LENNON: Sure I have. I thought, Maybe that’s it. Maybe music’s over. I mean, I was preparing not to make any music again…
(John Lennon, 1980, All We Are Saying, David Sheff)
there’s a lot of bullshit lennon/mccartney quotes out there, misattributed by biases in biographers or straight-up fabrications. but there’s also “if i was a girl”. there’s also “if he had been a woman”. there’s also “is this a self-portrait?” there’s “in bed.” there’s “maybe that would’ve satisfied it”. there’s “nothing to worry about”, and “life begins at 40”, and “it’s only me.” there’s “the emperor of eternity”. “he chose me.” “i’m still in love with you”. there’s “i can always deny that it was ever written about him.” so who cares
successfully drew enough for a photoset *pumps fist*…. i love mcharrison ;__;
I’ve been deep deeeeep in reading quotes about how they were adorable bros back in grade school….i needed to doodle…
the ones with dialogue were coloured by @miss-shydeer UoU!!
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