The Zapple Diaries: The Rise and Fall of the Last Beatles Label
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| Out now: A book about the Zapple label, Apple’s subsidiary |
Barry Miles, renowned cultural historian and writer, brings us the fascinating inside story of Zapple, the Beatles’ experimental and spoken word label. Appointed as manager of Zapple in 1968 by Paul McCartney, Miles set up the label and planned its proposed list of radical releases in co-operation with the Fab Four.
Featuring many of the author’s previously unpublished photos, The Zapple Diaries is written as an engaging journal and illustrated with rare memorabilia from the author’s archive (now housed at the British Library). As Barry Miles takes us through this period of his career, he grants the reader unique insights into the lives and working methods of many of the leading literary and countercultural figures of the era. Artists discussed along the way include Charles Bukowski, Richard Brautigan, Frank Zappa, Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and the City Lights poets, and many others.
Barry Miles’s leading role within Zapple’s recording projects mean that The Zapple Diaries gives us a unique insight into the passions and ambitions of the members of the Beatles as they began to develop individual careers as solo artists. The book includes self-contained feature spreads on topics featured in the narrative including items detailing Barry Miles’s relentless travel schedule and his home-from-home, the famed Chelsea Hotel and its numerous bohemian inhabitants.
Miles records the increasing tensions developing within Apple Corps as he shuttled between the USA and Apple HQ in London. He documents the Beatles disquiet over the appointment of Allen Klein as Business Manager of Apple Corps, the eventual closure of Zapple, and the final breakup of the Beatles. The Zapple Diaries is packed with a winning combination of great stories, rare illustrations and beautiful designwork. A highly readable work of cultural history, the book is sure to please both dedicated collectors and avid fans.
Released in the UK 28 Sept. 2015, due to be released in USA March 1, 2016.
Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: Peter Owen Publishers
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0720618606
ISBN-13: 978-0720618600
Product Dimensions: 16.4 x 2.5 x 24.6 cm
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Wow. Amazon had listed this as a 2016 item but it's typical of Miles to beat deadlines. Thanks for the heads up!