lennonluvr9
Jun 09, 2006, 06:44 AM
Found this kinda amusing article this morning in the paper...also has to do with all that debate that's been going on about who the 5th beatle is so i thought i'd post it.
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/1149842113184260.xml&coll=2
The Fab Four -- and then some
Friday, June 09, 2006
Tom Feran
Plain Dealer Columnist
I was thinking of calling myself the Seventh Beatle. I thought it would be a nice distinction, and a relatively modest one.
It wouldn't be like claiming I was fifth or even sixth. Seventh is far enough down the list that I figured I could get away with it.
Fat chance, as I was reminded after musician Billy Preston died this week.
The obituaries listed many credits and distinctions. Among them were the facts that he performed with the Beatles and played a key role in keeping them together to finish their final project.
As a result, he was sometimes called the Fifth Beatle.
But so was their producer, George Martin, as well as Brian Epstein, the group's early manager. And you can't forget Pete Best, the band's original drummer. Or John Lennon's pal Stuart Sutcliffe, a bassist who was in the group for two years and sometimes gets credit for coming up with the name the Beatles.
There is also John's son Julian. He's been called the Fifth Beatle, too.
George Harrison once gave the title to disc jockey Murray "the K" Kaufman. He did it jokingly, but Murray was probably the most famous Fifth Beatle in the country at one time.
That's seven Fifth Beatles right there, and I haven't even broken a sweat.
Everybody can't be fifth, even allowing for ties.
I figured I would play it safe by dropping down the list to open at no better than Twelfth Beatle. The others all have stronger claims to the inner circle, especially since mine rests largely on the fact I thought the Beatles were really good and saw them perform, several times, on television.
But if you mention Julian Lennon, you also need to include John's son Sean. And John's wife, Yoko Ono, who was one of the women given Fifth Beatle status. The other was Linda McCartney, Paul's late wife.
Harry Nilsson was said to be the Beatles' favorite American artist. He was sometimes called the Fifth Beatle for that reason.
Because Eric Clapton performed with the group, he got the title the same way Billy Preston did. A few less famous musicians also won Fifth Beatle status by that route.
I looked it up and discovered a couple of drummers, Jimmy Nicol and Tommy Moore, each were called the Fifth Beatle because they filled in for Ringo Starr on occasion.
So were members of the bands -- notably the Quarrymen -- that preceded the Beatles: Pete Shotton, Colin Hanton, Len Garry, Eric Griffiths and Rod Davis. The title also went to several roadies and assistants who toured with the group.
That's at least 15 more, for a conservative total of 22, which explains the famous quotation often attributed to Abraham Lincoln: "The good Lord must have loved Fifth Beatles, he made so many of them."
Plus the one supposedly uttered by Winston Churchill: "There are two kinds of people in the world, Fifth Beatles and everyone else."
There are more legitimate holders of Fifth Beatle status than there were pretenders to the Russian throne. It's like being a Kentucky Colonel.
Certain standards are observed, but they are less stringent than those to qualify as the Fourth Stooge of the Three Stooges. (There are only four of those, by the way: Shemp, who was also the original third Stooge; Joe; Curly Joe; and Emil Sitka.)
Obviously, however, Fifth Beatle status is something special -- maybe even unique. You never hear about anybody being called the Fifth Top or Fifth Season. Or, for that matter, the Four Hundred Thirty-Sixth Member of Congress.
I don't know why not. As the 436th Beatle, I can tell you it's still quite an honor if you can get away with it.
To reach this Plain Dealer columnist:
tferan@plaind.com, 216-999-5433
http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living/1149842113184260.xml&coll=2
The Fab Four -- and then some
Friday, June 09, 2006
Tom Feran
Plain Dealer Columnist
I was thinking of calling myself the Seventh Beatle. I thought it would be a nice distinction, and a relatively modest one.
It wouldn't be like claiming I was fifth or even sixth. Seventh is far enough down the list that I figured I could get away with it.
Fat chance, as I was reminded after musician Billy Preston died this week.
The obituaries listed many credits and distinctions. Among them were the facts that he performed with the Beatles and played a key role in keeping them together to finish their final project.
As a result, he was sometimes called the Fifth Beatle.
But so was their producer, George Martin, as well as Brian Epstein, the group's early manager. And you can't forget Pete Best, the band's original drummer. Or John Lennon's pal Stuart Sutcliffe, a bassist who was in the group for two years and sometimes gets credit for coming up with the name the Beatles.
There is also John's son Julian. He's been called the Fifth Beatle, too.
George Harrison once gave the title to disc jockey Murray "the K" Kaufman. He did it jokingly, but Murray was probably the most famous Fifth Beatle in the country at one time.
That's seven Fifth Beatles right there, and I haven't even broken a sweat.
Everybody can't be fifth, even allowing for ties.
I figured I would play it safe by dropping down the list to open at no better than Twelfth Beatle. The others all have stronger claims to the inner circle, especially since mine rests largely on the fact I thought the Beatles were really good and saw them perform, several times, on television.
But if you mention Julian Lennon, you also need to include John's son Sean. And John's wife, Yoko Ono, who was one of the women given Fifth Beatle status. The other was Linda McCartney, Paul's late wife.
Harry Nilsson was said to be the Beatles' favorite American artist. He was sometimes called the Fifth Beatle for that reason.
Because Eric Clapton performed with the group, he got the title the same way Billy Preston did. A few less famous musicians also won Fifth Beatle status by that route.
I looked it up and discovered a couple of drummers, Jimmy Nicol and Tommy Moore, each were called the Fifth Beatle because they filled in for Ringo Starr on occasion.
So were members of the bands -- notably the Quarrymen -- that preceded the Beatles: Pete Shotton, Colin Hanton, Len Garry, Eric Griffiths and Rod Davis. The title also went to several roadies and assistants who toured with the group.
That's at least 15 more, for a conservative total of 22, which explains the famous quotation often attributed to Abraham Lincoln: "The good Lord must have loved Fifth Beatles, he made so many of them."
Plus the one supposedly uttered by Winston Churchill: "There are two kinds of people in the world, Fifth Beatles and everyone else."
There are more legitimate holders of Fifth Beatle status than there were pretenders to the Russian throne. It's like being a Kentucky Colonel.
Certain standards are observed, but they are less stringent than those to qualify as the Fourth Stooge of the Three Stooges. (There are only four of those, by the way: Shemp, who was also the original third Stooge; Joe; Curly Joe; and Emil Sitka.)
Obviously, however, Fifth Beatle status is something special -- maybe even unique. You never hear about anybody being called the Fifth Top or Fifth Season. Or, for that matter, the Four Hundred Thirty-Sixth Member of Congress.
I don't know why not. As the 436th Beatle, I can tell you it's still quite an honor if you can get away with it.
To reach this Plain Dealer columnist:
tferan@plaind.com, 216-999-5433