New auction tape: Hull, 16 October 1964

Upcoming Pop Culture auction has lots of Beatles memorabilia

Being auctioned by Christie’s this Friday:

1. A rare and previously unheard reel-to-reel tape recording of The Beatles in concert at the A.B.C. Theatre, Hull, 16 October, 1964, the recording with loud screaming throughout, recorded on 1/4 inch Emitape by John Hill from the orchestra pit at the theatre, the recording, over two tapes with an approximate total running time of 24 minutes, contains ten tracks, each introduced by either John Lennon, George Harrison or Paul McCartney, comprising:

1. Twist And Shout

2. Money (That’s What I Want)

3. Can’t Buy Me Love

4. Things We Said Today

5. I’m Happy Just To Dance With You

6. I Should Have Known Better

7. If I Fell

8. I Wanna Be Your Man

9. A Hard Day’s Night

10. Long Tall Sally

Accompanied by a ticket stub for the A.B.C. Theatre, Hull, Friday 16 October, 1964, 2nd performance 8-3, Centre Circle (Front); another smaller ticket stub printed Front Stalls; a CD recording of the concert; three original black and white photographs of the Beatles on stage, one of John Lennon, one of Paul McCartney and another of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, all 3 1/2 x 5 1/4 in. (9×13.5cm.); and a document concerning the provenance.

This appearance in Hull on 16 October, 1964, came as part of The Beatles’ 1964 British Tour. A Hard Day’s Night, the band’s third studio album, had been released earlier that year in July and this appearance saw them perform six songs from the LP, which formed part of their standard repertoire for the U.K. and later World Tour in 1964. By this time, Beatlemania was in full swing and, with much of the performance drowned out by the intense screaming of the fans, this recording gives the listener a real sense of the atmosphere in the theatre at that time. George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney all take turns to address the audience and make introductions to the songs, with McCartney in particular rallying the audience and scat singing in between songs.

2. A previously unheard reel-to-reel recording of Paul McCartney playing piano during a press conference at the A.B.C. Theatre, Hull, 16 October, 1964, the recording on 1/4 inch Emitape recorded by John Hill on a Fi-Cord Fidelity Recording machine, with a running time of 3 minutes, the recording features McCartney playing Have A Go Joe and Roll Out The Barrel, with John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr singing and responding to comments from the assembled press; accompanied by a CD recording; four black and white photographs of Paul McCartney playing piano with John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr gathered round singing and smoking, majority 3 1/2 x 5 1/4 in. (9x13cm.); and a document concerning the provenance.

Although it is known that the Beatles occasionally played Roll Out The Barrel and Have a Go, Joe during their early performances at the Cavern, the songs had certainly disappeared from their stage repertoire by 1964. Although various recordings of interviews with the Beatles are in existence, this is believed to be the only known recording of the band playing piano and singing during a press conference.

3. A previously unheard reel-to-reel recording of an interview with John Lennon, the interview conducted by John Hill at the A.B.C Theatre, Hull on 16 October, 1964 for the Hull University Union newspaper, Torchlight, published on 21 November, 1964, the interview, recorded on 1/4 inch Emitape on a Fi-Cord Fidelity Recording machine with a running time of 8.30 minutes, includes Lennon discussing the songwriting and recording process, his favourite books, failing his exams whilst on tour in Germany and Scotland and his recently released book “In His Own Write”; accompanied by a CD recording of the interview; two black and white photographs of John Hill with John Lennon and one photograph of Paul McCartney with another Torchlight reporter, largest 4 3/4 x 6 1/2in. (12×16.5cm.);a copy of Torchlight, 21 November 1964; an issue of Fabulous magazine, 18 January, 1964; and a document concerning the provenance.

Accompanying photo.

During this interview, Lennon gives some candid responses in answer to questions about various subjects. When asked if he was told what to record, he replies “We were nearly told at the beginning to record other stuff. It was us that forced the issue to record our own songs.” He discusses his songwriting process “sometimes I use the piano, I can just about handle a couple of chords…” and confesses “I enjoy recording better” [than being on stage]. When asked what he would have been if he hadn’t been a Beatle, he answers “I probably would have been a layabout” and reveals that whilst he was at Art School “I was in Scotland on tour and some other lad did the exam for me”. He talks about the last book he read Clockwork Orange and admits “I’ve enjoyed very few books…the one I enjoyed the most was Alice In Wonderland”. When probed about his future plans, he reveals that he would like to work more with film: “I fancy working on films and making them good…there’s a lot to do in films…”

Link: Christie’s