Vous voulez voir cette page en français ? Cliquez ici.


or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Beatles: The Biography
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

The Beatles: The Biography [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Bob Spitz (Author), Alfred Molina (Reader)
2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 54.95
Price: CDN$ 34.62 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details
You Save: CDN$ 20.33 (37%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Usually ships within 2 to 3 weeks.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca. Gift-wrap available.

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover --   -- --
Paperback CDN $16.60   -- --
Audio, CD, Abridged, Audiobook CDN $34.62   -- --

Customers Who Viewed This Item Also Viewed

Product Details

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. With this massive opus, veteran music journalist Spitz (Dylan: A Biography) tells the definitive story of the band that sparked a cultural revolution. Calling on books, articles, radio programs and primary interviews, Spitz follows the band from each member's family origins in working-class Liverpool to the band's agonizing final days. Spitz's unflinching biography reveals that not only did the Beatles pioneer a new era of rock but they also were on the cutting edge of rock star excess, from their 1961 amphetamine-fueled sets in the clubs of Hamburg to their eventual appetites for stronger drugs, including marijuana, LSD, cocaine and, eventually for John Lennon, heroin. Sex was also part of the equation; in 1962, when the band cut its first audition for Sir George Martin, all four members had a venereal disease, and both John's and Paul McCartney's girlfriends were pregnant. Spitz details the tangled web of bad business deals that flowed from novice manager Brian Epstein (though the heavily conflicted Epstein can be forgiven since he was in uncharted territory). Although this is a hefty volume steeped in research, Spitz writes economically, and with flair, letting the facts and characters speak for themselves. In doing so, he captures an ironic sadness that accompanied the Beatles' runaway success—how their dreams of stardom, once realized, became a prison, forcing the band to spend large parts of their youth in hotel rooms to avoid mobs and to stage elaborate escapes from literally life-threatening situations after appearances. As with all great history writing, Spitz both captures a moment in time and humanizes his subjects. While some will blanch at the unsettling dark sides of the Beatles, most will come to appreciate the band even more for knowing the incredible personal odysseys they endured. 32 pages of b&w photos.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

In just under 1,000 pages, Spitz offers a fresh, terrifically entertaining perspective on the world's most famous rock group. The book is packed with details and anecdotes that bring the Fab Four to life. Immensely talented but humanly flawed, they created remarkable music during an extraordinary time and were often caught up in events and circumstances beyond their control. At first amused by Beatlemania, their attitudes changed to horror when the roar of the crowds came to include death threats, and obligations became unrelenting. Spitz retells many familiar stories: when John met Paul, the triumph in America, the infamous "butcher cover" of ^Yesterday and Today, the debacle in Manila where the Beatles unintentionally jilted First Lady Imelda Marcos, the Beatles-are-more-popular-than-Jesus comment, the remarkable response to Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, manager Brian Epstein's death, and the breakup. Good though less well known is the meeting with Elvis in the King's rented house in Bel Air, California; the Beatles, nervous in the presence of a boyhood idol, were unsure about how to act and resorted to embarrassing silence. Spitz's group portrait should now be considered the definitive Beatles biography, especially for new generations of Beatles enthusiasts. June Sawyers
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
See all Product Description

Tag this product

 (What's this?)
Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.
Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?

› Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

8 Reviews
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (5)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
2.2 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most helpful customer reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Current review is too harsh, May 28 2007
By 
This review is from: The Beatles: The Biography (Paperback)
Perhaps there are some inaccuracies but I really enjoyed this book and was sorry to finish it. Bob Spitz's writing style and detail drew me in to the Liverpool way of life dating back to Paul, John, George, and Ringo's grandparents. You really got a feel for the influences that shaped the boys' lives. It still seems inconceivable that these four young, commonplace boys took the world by storm and created incredible music that is as good today as it was when it was written. If you're not hung up on "the list" of inaccuracies, there is tons of great writing here. I loved this book.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


10 of 14 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Get Out Your Red Marking Pens, Folks!, Nov 15 2005
By A Customer
This review is from: The Beatles: The Biography (Audio CD)
This book is rife with errors that are so glaring it makes you wonder how on earth this got past the editor's desk. This is just EMBARRASSING! The Beatle Literati are not pleased with this book AT ALL! This is definitely NOT the work of a Paperback Writer!

Allow me to itemize some of the more glaring mistakes, an extensive list of which have also been compiled by people directly involved with a well-known Beatle magazine. Again, the mistakes in this book are ludicrous and inexcusable!

*There are photographs of the Beatles taken in 1960, supposedly at the Star Club. That is impossible because the Star Club did not open until 1962!

*Erroneous captions - the Top Ten Club is mistakenly listed as the Star Club in some photographs taken in 1961.

*Date errors, such as when George Harrison met Pattie Boyd. The pair met in 1964 on the set of "A Hard Day's Night" and NOT in 1963 as is claimed in this book! Paul's 21st birthday was in 1963 and at that time, George and Pattie had never even met.

*Another error in re George and Pattie is in a photograph saying they met during the filming of the 1965 movie, "Help!" That is incorrect. They met in 1964 on the set of "A Hard Day's Night."

*A king sized error can be found in the 1964 photograph of John mugging with somebody's daughter in Central Park. His own son, Julian was then 10 months old and was in England during the Beatles' first whirlwind tour of America!

*The photograph of the Beatles on Ed Sullivan is erroneously captioned as being their last appearance on his show in August of 1965. NOT TRUE! That picture was taken during their February 1964 performances. The 1965 Ed Sullivan performance was filmed on August 14, 1965, one day before the famous first Shea Stadium concert and was aired on September 12, 1965.

*The 1965 "Rubber Soul" album was reported as having "an unheard of 14 cuts." Not true. At that time, all of the Beatles' UK albums had 14 cuts save for "A Hard Day's Night," which had 13.

*"Run For Your Life" was not the last song recorded for "Rubber Soul." It was the very first.

There are more, but I think you have gotten the idea. How on earth this got past the editors I will never know. If that isn't bad enough, there are plenty of mistakes throughout the text as well. Beatle literati will pick them up right off the bat. I don't know if these errors were allowed through with the thought that they would remain unnoticed, but the errors were extensive to the point where I just cannot recommend this book.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


4.0 out of 5 stars The Best Beatles Bio, Oct 7 2011
By 
James Bailie "jimmy" (London, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Beatles: The Biography (Paperback)
Spitz's book is slightly marred by its rock journalism prose style, which is a little bit in love with itself, and the occasional strange editorial comment, but it is nonetheless, a highly readable tome. The book goes into greater detail on the early years than other Beatle Bios. I cannot comment on the author's claim to have gone back to primary sources wherever possible to dig up the "true" story. I wasn't there. If you're wondering which Beatles bio to purchase, the comprehensiveness of this one recommends it over its peers.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
› Go to Amazon.com to see all 229 reviews  3.8 out of 5 stars 
 
 		 Most recent customer reviews






Only search this product's reviews


Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject















i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Amazon.ca Privacy Statement Amazon.ca Shipping Information Amazon.ca Returns & Exchanges