MONEY (1962) by the Beatles with Pete Best

In my view, 'Money' was the pick of the songs the Beatles recorded for their Decca Audition live in the studio on 1 January 1962.

First some background (courtesy of Wikipedia). Manager Brian Epstein made numerous trips to London to visit record companies with the hope of securing a record contract for the Beatles, but was rejected by many, including Columbia, Pye, Philips, and Oriole. The Beatles were driven down to London by Neil Aspinall on New Year's Eve in 1961, for a Decca audition, but Aspinall lost his way, and the trip took ten hours. They arrived at 10 o'clock at night, and John Lennon said that they arrived "just in time to see the drunks jumping in the Trafalgar Square fountain." On 1 January 1962, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Pete Best were auditioned by Decca producer Tony Meehan (ex-drummer of the Shadows) performing a total of fifteen songs in just under one hour. All the material was selected by Epstein, who decided on a selection of covers that the band had performed in various clubs over the years, interspersed with three Lennon/McCartney originals.

The Beatles later found out that Epstein had paid Meehan to produce the studio recordings.Eventually, Decca Records rejected The Beatles, saying that "guitar groups are on the way out" and "the Beatles have no future in show business", although it has since been suggested that their work that day did not yet reflect their true potential, and the "guitar" comment may have been intended as a polite let down.

There is no film of the Beatles recording their audition songs, so I have tried to put together the definitive slideshow of the early Pete Best era Beatles, although there are a few images with Stu Sutcliffe in there (he was no longer in the group when this song was recorded).

Comments and ratings are invited but please no 'my drummer is better than your drummer'..

Category:

Music

Tags:

• beatles
• pete
• best
• hamburg
• michaelbackhouse

[Appleholic1]

If this is Pete Best then George Martin was right. He was weak on the drums. Ringo made a huge difference.

[Merti63]

@TheFernseher09 Actually, Ringo is playing on the Live in Hamburg recordings. Those tapes were recorded in december of 1962, 4 months after Ringo joined the band.

[bohica9]

There's no argument vis a vis Best vs. Starr... just as there can be no argument that H2-0 is water, CO-2 carbon dioxide or CO-1 is carbon monoxide... It's chemistry.

[62Elvis]

wow this was the month before i was born!

[ringodingo]

That is some rocking singing. He gets nasty! We'll never know what the later Beatles would have been with Pete. Lucky for him the Anthology Albums pointed some deserved earnings his way. Took long enough, tho. But what a raw sample of the early Beatles.

[SenorZorrozzz]

The drumming is terrible

[Merti63]

@MrPJ1954 Yes, that was my point, exactly.

[Earthdogbonzo3]

I feel bad for Pete. He did carry the guys to the point where they got into EMI and auditioned. Didn't all of Liverpool riot in the streets, turning over cars and setting fires when the people learned of Pete being 'fired'? I heard or read that somewhere a while back. I mean for all of Lennon's insolence, couldn't he have told Martin: "Listen George, we're a band, and we won't carry on without our Mate. We know Ringo, but was Pete ever really given a fair shot?

[MrPJ1954]

@RaananVolesPianist

Regardless of whether or not Pete needed to go, The Beatles definitely did him wrong. Brian Epstein was tasked by The Beatles to "do the dirty work" of firing Pete.

Allegedly, Epstein put it this way: "Pete, I have some bad news for you. The boys want you out and it's already been arranged that Ringo will join the band on Saturday."

[MrPJ1954]

@Merti63 TheLive at The Star Club recordings were actually done in December 1962 which was after The Beatles signed their record contract with Parlophone Records. Ringo Starr was definitely featured on drums.