Photo of the Day: Abbey Road

Abbey Road Wall, May 22nd 2017

Tea & A Butty Podcast 13 - 'Abbey Road'

Here is, sadly, our last podcast in the Beatles album series. All about Abbey Road. We hope you all have enjoyed this series and we encourage you to listen back to our podcasts. We will be back with more podcasts in the future though and we want YOU to be in them with us!

Photo of the Day: Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney at Abbey Road during sessions for....well....Abbey Road. 1969.

I'm In Love with London and I Feel Fine

 

Leaving my mark on the Abbey Road Wall.

By Elizabeth Alvarado

Okay, the title might be a bit of an understatement because I feel more than fine. But I really wanted to throw in a Beatles song reference to make this seem more exciting than "My adventures in London" or some other boring title like that.

Signed John Lennon guitar, I'm not making this up!

And a signed Paul McCartney guitar that used to be at the Apple offices.

For as long as I can remember, London has been the one place I've always wanted to visit. England itself seemed like such a magical place and I know that sounds really cheesy but I don't know how else to describe it. I've always been so drawn to this place. So you can imagine my surprise when I was accepted to a study abroad program in London through my university. Finally I was going to visit the one place I'd always dreamed of going. Ten glorious weeks in London. It seemed so unreal. Honestly, being here still seems so unreal.

I arrived in London on March 23rd and everything has been so insanely amazing. I can't remember the last time I felt this happy. As a huge Beatles fan, this is the ultimate pilgrimage to make (apart from Liverpool of course) and it's still beyond me how much better London is than I thought it would be. Yes, this is really mushy and full of clichés but this is what London has done to me.

The second week I was here I went to see "Let It Be" which is a musical on the west end about the Beatles. It's basically a tribute band singing over 40 Beatles songs. The guys looked nothing like the real Beatles (surprise, surprise) but I was far enough way that if I squinted and turned my head to the side I could trick myself into thinking they looked just like them. It was actually really fun - the show not pretending they looked like the Beatles. The show ended with "Hey Jude" and I swear that song might just be the closest thing we have to magic. The way it brings people together never fails to amaze me. Throughout the show much of the audience had been reserved and casually nodded their heads along to the music (unlike me who was screaming out every song and probably (definitely) embarrassing myself) but once "Hey Jude" started everyone was on their feet screaming out the lyrics and it was great. If there’s one thing I love, it’s not being the only person embarrassing myself through my horrible singing. 

The Bag O'Nails Club!

The next day I visited Abbey Road and I was so overcome with emotion that I actually started to cry. I mean, I pretty much cry at everything but I really wasn't expecting this. I'd seen Abbey Road Studios in so many pictures and to actually be there was quite an experience. After signing the wall with possibly the lamest message ever, I took approximately 6,384 pictures. (This is a joke, by the way - but it was a lot) Finally I was going to cross that famous crosswalk. It didn't go as smoothly as I'd hoped considering that cars would pass by in a hurry and honk incessantly, but I finally did it. None of the pictures came out too well but I'm not sure whether that's my fault for being so awkward or my roommate's for being the worst photographer ever. 

*Insert Heavy Fan Girl Breathing Here*

Don't know what I'm doing with my hands but I felt SO happy here!!

 

Me, trying not to cry and smile at the same time.

Obviously the next stop after Abbey Road was Paul McCartney's house. Luckily, no one else thought to visit Paul's house so I was alone with my photographer and yes, I started crying here too. For some reason, I kept remembering this thing I'd read in a book once about how fans would stand on overturned flower pots to peek over the gate and they'd be able to see Paul in the bathroom. Yes, in the bathroom (!!!). As I was standing outside the gate I kept thinking about how great it must have been to be a Beatles fan in the 60s. Just to see Paul in the bathroom.

People walking by gave me weird looks for taking a photo of the sign but I didn't care, I had to get one!

Paul's house. Unfortunately, no overturned flower pots so I could peek over the gate.

 

This past weekend I went on a Beatles walking tour and it wasn't as bad as I'd expected. Sure, the tour guide spit a lot when he spoke but he was nice and seemed really enthusiastic. I kind of wish he'd been younger though because I seriously think we could have been soul mates. He majored in journalism too and he loves the Beatles. And obviously those two characteristics are the only ones needed to qualify as my soul mate. After the tour, I went back to Abbey Road and just leaned against the gate hoping and praying I’d magically be transported back in time, but alas, nothing. While I was standing there an old man approached me and gave me a flier advertising his Beatles shop down the road. After a few more minutes of wishful thinking I followed the directions on the flier to the shop and while it was tiny, it was overfilled with tons of Beatles merchandise. There was even original memorabilia from the 60s that the owner has been collecting for years. I had a nice chat with him about his collection and then I left with my purchases which included a Beatles pen, shot glass and mug – three things I obviously need.

A costume from 'Help!'

Just in case I haven't made it obvious enough - London has been everything I'd hoped for and much, much more. I wish I could just stay here forever and ever. Do you ever have those moments where you feel as if you're dreaming? Because that's exactly how I feel right now. And I never want to wake up.

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We'd like to thank Elizabeth for graciously taking time out of her adventures to do a write up for us here so THANK YOU and we encourage you to check out Elizabeth's writing at:

http://www.collegemagazine.com/author/alvara64uw-edu/

The Paul McCartney Dream I Had Last Night.

Hofner in Hand: Macca & Nancy arrive in Japan for the rescheduled dates on his tour.

Last night I had a dream about Paul McCartney.

I know many of you will think "Who hasn't? Come on!" but this dream was one of the more vivid ones I've had. I usually can't remember my dreams but this one I can. It's stuck in there!

I was walking along Abbey Road, not Abbey Road in London but Abbey Road in Torquay. Torquay is where I was born and my first home was on Warren Road, which is just off Abbey Road in Torquay.

Here, let's have Google Maps explain:

See?

Anyway, I was walking along Abbey Road, (I guess I'm homesick?) and who should I see walking up towards me, in an outfit not unlike the one he has on in that picture? Paul McCartney. At first it was so vivid and I was thinking in my dream. "Hang on a minute, he looks like Paul McCartney" and he got closer and closer and I realised it WAS him and he was looking at me.

"I thought it was you!" He says to me.

"I thought it was YOU!" I replied back. Surprisingly calm about everything.

"Shall we go and get some Ice Cream?" He said with that trademark boyish smile. (This is "Present Paul" for those who are wondering)

Ice Cream? With Paul McCartney? Would YOU say no? Even if you HATED Ice Cream? Which I don't, I LOVE Ice Cream but I'm interested to hear from those who have an aversion to Ice Cream what their answers to Paul McCartney wanting to go get Ice Cream would be. Answers on a Postcard to this email please!

Anyway we got Ice Cream from a conveniently placed Ice Cream van. Paul got a 99 with raspberry sauce, he ordered after me and wanted the same as me. Well, it was my dream, I suppose he felt obligated to order what I ordered rather than go with something crazy like a double 99 with chocolate sauce and nuts and sprinkles. But he is Paul McCartney, he can order what he bloody well likes!

What a 99 with Raspberry Sauce looks like, for those that don't know.

We then strolled along Torre Abbey Sands, we talked about various recordings, including some of George's, he kind of really went on about George in the dream which I've never heard him do in real life! He also gave me some tips on how I should approach songwriting.

After our stroll it was starting to get dark. We sat down on some steps and then it hit me.

"Hey, nobody's recognised you!" I whispered to him.

He shook his head and said "No, they don't here. It's about the only place"

Before I could ask him what that meant he suggested we get chips!

"I can smell them and I haven't had chips in ages!" he says.

So we get up and go to the chip shop and we order a large portion to share. We sit there on the wall outside and just munch on the chips and he says. "I'm probably going to have to get going. I'm on tour and I have to go to Japan, you know..."

I didn't try and force him to stay longer, I knew he had to go sometime! But he gets up and before I wake up he said something which probably made me remember the whole thing.

"I appreciate what you're doing" he said.

Then I woke up. I was smiling. Paul appreciates what I'm doing.

Wait....what is it I'm doing?? What is it that he appreciates I'm doing??? Playing guitar? Running this website? If you could clarify that one for me, Paul, I'd appreciate, appreciate, appreciate it! ;-)
 
It was so clear and vivid I feel like he was actually talking to me and giving me a message. I've met many who have had these sorts of dreams where they've been talking to some historical figure who's helped them figure out something and now I have had one!

Just to clarify, this was just a dream, I didn't actually meet Paul McCartney in Torquay.

Sadly.

So I'll just sit here like this...

Have you had a dream with one or all of the Beatles that really resonated?? Tell me about it!

Take A Look Inside Abbey Road Studios Courtesy of Google.

Step Inside: Google Presents 'Inside Abbey Road: A Virtual Tour'.

This is possibly the coolest thing that Google has done with its street view webcam technology. Of course, the whole taking pictures of every street in the world is pretty cool too as well as enormously helpful, both to stalkers and lost people. They might be the same thing, we may never know.

Studio One: Famous film scores from Star Wars to Harry Potter have been recorded in this room.

Google has effectively mapped out in pictures the most famous studio in the world, Abbey Road Studios in St. John's Wood, London. People who have never been inside can now see the interior of Studio One (which is the BIG one that's normally used for scoring films with large orchestras), Studio Two (Perhaps the most famous studio in the world) & Studio Three (Which is perfect for the more intimate recordings. Great for solo artists who only work with a couple of instruments).

Studio Two: This is the room where most artists want to record in. All because of four guys from Liverpool.

You also get to explore the Mastering suite where so many legendary recordings were and still are transferred from tape to disc and where final alterations could be made before the record was released to the public.

Studio Three: This is the smallest of the 3 studios in the building, perfect for an intimate recording session.

Mastering Suite: Where the finishing touches are put to the albums before the public can hear them! Is that a copy of 'Abbey Road' I spy on the table?

For anyone who's been inside the studios, you'll know that they are not just any studios, they are THE studios. Abbey Road was officially opened by EMI in 1931 by Sir Edward Elgar and in Studio One is where he recorded 'Land Of Hope & Glory' (That's the 'Graduation Theme' for anyone who grew up Stateside). Back then it was just any old recording studio until the late 50s when Cliff Richard and The Shadows started to record there.


It was in June 1962 when a van rolled up in the car park, after driving 200 miles from up north in Liverpool, that the studios destiny was about to be irrevocably changed. The Beatles and George Martin first met on that day and went on to make all their music (bar the Let It Be album) in these studios, including their final recorded album in summer 1969 which, if the studios weren't already famous enough, the album made sure they were for all time. The 'Abbey Road' album has the distinctive cover of George, Paul, Ringo and John walking across the pelican crossing just outside the studio. To this day, fans and tourists alike flock to this site to have their photo taken doing the same thing, much to the annoyance of motorists.

Nobody puts the Hofner in the corner...

Explore Abbey Road Studios for yourself here:

https://insideabbeyroad.withgoogle.com/en

Beatle Places in London

Hello everybody, or those that are still reading this blog! After a relatively long absence in which life got in the way of doing the things I love, I'm back with a report on all things Beatle. In March 2014 we visited my home country of the United Kingdom and spent a couple of days in the capital of England, London.

To further their successful career, the Beatles knew it was inevitable that they couldn't remain in their hometown of Liverpool in the north west of England. They would have to move to London.

London is where Abbey Road studios is located and as many Beatles fans know, this is where they recorded most of their output between 1962 and 1969.

Getting into the swing of things: Piccadilly Circus in 1963. the year the Beatles moved to London.

When the Beatles finally moved down to London in the summer of 1963, they were staying at the President Hotel on Russell Square. It soon became apparent to Brian Epstein that they were in London more than they were anywhere else and more suitable accommodation needed to be found.

After much searching, Epstein settled on a 4th floor flat (apartment) at 57 Green Street in Mayfair. This was the only time the Beatles ever lived together as a group in London and it was an extremely brief time in the Autumn of 1963.

John and Paul were the first to move out in late 1963, John moved because Cynthia and baby Julian had moved down to London and they needed to all live together so they found a place at 13 Emperor's Gate, Brompton. John, Cynthia and Julian moved into the third floor flat secured for them by photographer Robert Freeman, who lived in the flat below them. The name on the doorbell was 'Hadley' to avoid the fans finding out where they lived but by July 1964, the fans had found out that 'Hadley' was really 'Lennon' and so the Lennon's moved out of Emperor's Gate (with a little help from Paul) to 'Kenwood' which is outside of London in Weybridge, Surrey.

Paul moved out in late 1963 when he started dating the actress Jane Asher, moving into the top floor of 57 Wimpole street, Marylebone, where Jane lived with her parents and brother Peter. Paul has gone on record many times saying he hated the flat in Green Street and the fact that he had the back bedroom so when Jane invited him to live with her he jumped at the chance. Paul moved out of Wimpole Street in 1966 when he bought 7 Cavendish Avenue, St. John's Wood, which he still owns today.

With John and Paul gone, George and Ringo lived at 57 Green Street for only a short time before moving into an apartment at Whaddon House, William Mews, located not far from Harrods in Knightsbridge. Brian Epstein also lived here. George and Ringo lived here for over a year before finally buying homes in the "Stockbroker belt" in Surrey, the same as John had done. Before Ringo moved to Surrey, he moved into an apartment in 34 Montagu Square, Marylebone. After moving to Surrey, he retained the lease on the flat and several rock stars and friends were allowed to live in it, most notably Jimi Hendrix in 1966 & 67 and perhaps even more famously, John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1968. This is the place where Lennon and Ono were busted for drugs by the notorious Detective Sergeant Norman Pilcher. Starr finally sold the lease in 1969 and today there is a blue plaque on the building commemorating Lennon's time in the flat.

Of all the Beatles, Paul is the only one to have remained in London during their career, his home in St. John's Wood being only a short 5 minute walk from Abbey Road made this a perfect place for the Beatles to get together before and after a session.

Since the Beatles spent the majority of their time in London when they weren't touring, there are so many places they visited/lived in/worked in. The most notable of these are Abbey Road and 3 Savile Row. The latter being Apple Corps' HQ from 1968 to 1975. The basement of the building was converted into a recording studio and this is where the majority of the band's 'Let It Be' album was recorded and indeed much of the second half of the accompanying documentary film. As if that wasn't enough to secure the building in the annals of Rock history the Beatles themselves fully cemented it's legendary status by playing their final, albeit impromptu and unannounced, live concert on the rooftop of the building in January 1969. The Rooftop Concert has been incessantly copied and parodied over the years, notably in an episode of the Simpsons where George Harrison guest starred as himself and wryly comments when he sees Homer's Barbershop Quartet playing on the roof of Mo's Bar "It's been done".

The blue plaque dedicated to John & George on the Baker Street Apple Boutique that was open for a short while

The building today is now an estate agents.

Baker Street also is home to the London Beatles store, your one stop shop for Beatles Merchandise

Abbey Road studios. Thankfully still a working studio.

With an obligatory message by ourselves (Erica and Dominic)

And a visit to Paul's Cavendish Avenue home. (He wasn't home)

This is where John met Yoko for the first time, Formerly the Indica Gallery.

3 Savile Row as it looked in 2007. Our last visit there was an ugly Abercrombie & Fitch board around the building

How the Beatles last gig looked to the typical passerby in 1969.

Savile Row is also well known worldwide for its tailor shops.

There are several other fantastic sights to see in London too and a lot of them have a Beatles connection, no matter how small. One place they will have a lifelong connection to, however is Liverpool, which shall be explored in my next blog, so stay tuned!