Starr, McCartney, Lennon, Harrison and Epstein at the preview of A Hard Day’s Night in 1964 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Brian Epstein (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: The Beatles wave to fans after arriving at Kennedy Airport. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Brian Samuel Epstein was born on September 19th 1934 in London. He died tragically on August 27th, 1967 also in London…and though he was fabulously successful, having discovered and launched THE BEATLES, he was a lonely, depressed man.
Brian Epstein discovered THE BEATLES..arguably the greatest single phenomenon in pop music history. He also handled Gerry & The Pacemakers…Billy J. Kramer and The Dakotas…Cilla Black and The Cyrkle…all hit makers in their own right.
Just the fact that he discovered THE BEATLES is certainly reason enough to honor Brian Epstein by inclusion into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. But “Eppy”, as he was called was not only their manager and confidante, but also a man of great vision.
His accomplishments were many. By booking THE BEATLES on the Ed Sullivan Show, he launched their careers into the stratosphere. When THE BEATLES took the stage in 1965 at Shea Stadium, the mega business of the ROCK SHOW as we know it today was born. No one had ever played to such an audience and it was Epstein who saw the amazing potential such a venue could have.
1964 may have been a very innocent time in terms of money and business arrangements but in that very primitive time Epstein broke ground and achieved amazing things. He went places NO ONE had ever gone before. Indeed he did things in the rock n roll world that NO ONE HAD EVER THOUGHT ABOUT BEFORE. He was a man of class, fairness and dignity, even though his private life was a dark and dangerous path.
Brian Epstein lived a life of fantasy and success…as well as pain and despair. His web site describes him thus,
“Welcome to BrianEpstein.com, the official Website dedicated to celebrating the life and achievements of Beatles manager Brian Epstein, a man whose prescience, taste, vision and passion has left an indelible impact on our planet. Brian Epstein is the man who discovered the Beatles, and guided them to mega-stardom, making them the most successful musical artists of all time. Without Brian, the Beatles as we came to know them, simply wouldn’t have existed. In 1965, both Paul McCartney and George Harrison, on being awarded their M.B.E.s by the Queen, said “M.B.E. stands for Mr. Brian Epstein. Brian was, truly, “the fifth Beatle”. (Paul McCartney’s words, not ours.)
Here is what George Martin has to say about Brian Epstein.
“First of all he picked them. He actually said ‘I want to be your manager… I want to look after you.’ And if he hadn’t brought them to me, I wouldn’t have recorded them. He gave them style… He gave them taste…. He gave them their charm and their impeccability in dress. He was quite strict with them in dressing them up. He made them bow after each performance. Brian gave them all that. He was a dear man and he had a great deal of talent.”
Ringo Starr had this to say…
“He was very good. He started like we did. He didn’t know the game, neither did we, really. We knew how to play, and he tidied us up and moved us on. He ran a record division in his father’s furniture company, heard about us, or heard about them, I wasn’t even with them then, went down to the Cavern, and said, hmm, maybe I’ll manage them. He didn’t know how to manage to save his life, but he decided to be a manager, so who knew?”
Derek Taylor said this about Brian.
“Brian Epstein is a crucial part of the Beatles story. A most engaging, amusing ‘tyrant’! And much more fun than is known. Much more fun. Much more light-hearted and witty and cheeky! Brian was a most wonderful chap. Quite impossible to work for on a one-to-one basis. Because of his demands. But a terrifically good servant for them. And because he gave so much of himself to them – he expected people like me to give all of themselves to him. (But I had a family – so I wisely got out.) Brian gave them a very, very nice road. Really quite a carefree way into fame by taking care of business. No matter how many mistakes he made. When he ‘went’ it was pretty well all over in terms of direction.”
I believe Brian Samuel Epstein belongs in the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. If you agree please visit http://www.BrianEpstein.com and sign the petition to have Brian inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.
Epstein at The Cavern Club (photo by David Steen) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Daily Mirror Headline: “EPSTEIN (The Beatle-Making Prince of Pop) DIES AT 32″ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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Filed under: Bio, Music, Pop culture, The Beatles Tagged: Beatle, Brian, Brian Epstein, Ed Sullivan Show, George Harrison, London, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Shea Stadium
