Beatle memories

Press, 8 October 1988, Page 23

Beatle memories

Yesterday: The Beatles Remembered. By Alistair Taylor. Sidgwick and Jackson, 1988. 211 pp. Illustrations. $29.95. (Reviewed by Hans Petrovic) After the latest dark revelations about John Lennon, it comes as a breath of fresh air to hear something good about the Fab Four. Alistair Taylor was the Beatles’ “Mr Fixit,” having worked for Brian Epstein before he became their manager, and remaining with the group almost without a break until just before their final split. Taylor prefers to remember the good times — the pranks, the laughter, the sheer exuberance of a quarter of a century ago. In these days of excesses, it comes as a surprise to recall the sheer intensity and passion of Beatlemania, when the pressure of hysterical fans threatened to squash policemen and actually bent heavy steel railings. Taylor was always there to arrange getaways from airports and after concerts, providing a shoulder to cry

on or companionship in the middle of the night. He was the man sent to buy a cottage for Paul in Scotland and an island off the Irish coast for John. The following week might find him in Greece, looking for an island there, or searching for Ringo and his family at a Paris airport. These are small, personal stories, many of them never told publicly before, and now presented in the form of a series of letters from Taylor to an imaginary friend and fan, Michelle, who gets to hear all the inside information as it happens. Taylor is still loyal to the Beatles’ brighter image, and thus manages to dismiss charges of drug-taking by the group as a harmless exercise indulged in only occasionally, as by many other musicians. Epstein’s homosexuality is mentioned only once, and Taylor says he still cannot bring himself to believe that the Beatles’ manager took his own life.

The book is so refreshingly and entertainingly presented that even I believe in “Yesterday.”