Move over, Ms L!

Hi all, wondering why you are looking at this jumbled up page? This is due to the fact that Facebook didn't like our url since it starts with wog, so we have been forced to move the blog. This was some time ago, and we have placed a script which would automatically send you to our new location. Obviously, this hasn't worked for all of you, since we have just finished moderating some of your comments which appeared on this site recently, and not on our new (and improved!) site. So what we're saying is head on over to our new site, and update your bookmarks!

Thursday 13 July 2017

Some 2018 calendars

Calendar from Day Dream, themed to Yellow Submarine
Calendars are upon us! While we are still waiting for the official Danilo Beatles calendar, some other manufacturers have released theirs. Danilo will likely reveal their Apple sanctioned calendar on August 1, but here are a few of their competitors for that precious wall space in our homes and offices. And it's no surprise that some of these calendars focus on the upcoming fiftieth anniversaries of Yellow Submarine and The Beatles' White album. The above depicted calendar from Day Dream is an example.
Sample page and drawings from the Yellow Submarine calendar from Day Dream.
 There is a "deluxe" version Yellow Submarine calendar, as well.
Special Edition calendar from Day Dream

 The same company is also responsible for a calender themed to The Beatles' White album:


Pretty familiar images in this one. Day Dream
Then there are calendars where each month is themed to one of the Beatles years.

Beatles Years calendar from Day Dream

A year a month, including a few repeats
The above calendars are all 12", like an LP record. The Beatles Years calendar is also available in a smaller format, 7" like a single.

Smaller version of the Beatles Years calendar.
The company called Mead also has their own 2018 Beatles calendar available:

Tinted images in the Mead calendar

Sample month and pics from the Mead calendar.
Links:
Beatles 2018 calendars at Amazon.com
Beatles 2018 calendars at Amazon.co.uk

Wednesday 12 July 2017

Argentinas Beatles museum

Beatles figurines from the new museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Photo: AP.
Despite the fact that the Beatles never played in Argentina, an obsessive fan has put his country on the Beatlemania map. A Beatles museum has been open to the public in Buenos Aires since 2011.

The eclectic collection is the work of self-confessed obsessive Rodolfo Vazquez, a 53-year-old accountant who became a fan at the age of 10 when he got their album Rubber Soul.
Since then he has collected everything he possibly can related to the Fab Four and has amassed more than 8,500 items.  In 2001 he was recognised by Guinness World Records as having the planet's largest collection, with a hoard of 5,612 items.

But his haul has kept growing and his museum, located on Avenue Corrientes in a tourist area of Buenos Aires, is only able to hold a quarter of it. The items will change on an annual basis, as Vazques plans to rotate stuff from his collection for display.

Vazquez claims he doesn't know the total value of his private collection, which includes record covers, autographs, toys, original pictures, concert programs, and cups and plates with Beatle images.

His reason for creating a museum? "Otherwise all of it would be closed into boxes and trunks without anyone being able to enjoy them." Something to consider for many of us, I believe.

Read the full story and see more photos from the museum in the Daily Mail.

Beatles museums:
The Beatles' Story in Liverpool
Das Beatles Museum in Halle, Germany
Beatles Museum in Alkmaar, The Netherlands.
Museo Beatle, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Egri Road Beatles Museum, Hungary

Tuesday 11 July 2017

1999 Yellow Submarine comic book resurrected

New Yellow Submarine comic book
For the upcoming fiftieth anniversary of The Beatles' full length cartoon movie "Yellow Submarine", Apple Corps Ltd is resurrecting an old project which was abandoned earlier - a new comic book adaptation of the film. Dark Horse Comics were scheduled to release this new comic book in 1999, but it was aborted after more than half of the book's artwork had been completed. Now it's Titan Comics who are going ahead with the book.

The 1999 re-release on VHS and DVD
The idea came about when the film was being re-released in 1999, as extensive work was done to restore the images, and remix the music and dialogue in stereo as well as in surround sound. To coincide with the film re-release, Apple wanted a new comic book, one that adhered more to the film than was the case with the previous comic book adaptation.

Early in 1999, Bill Morrison was approached by Dark Horse Comics, and commissioned to produce the new comic book. The DVD was released in September of ’99, and Morrison remembers the comic adaptation was being timed to coincide with the DVD release, according to a 2006 article over at the comics website CBR.com.

The 1968 comic book adaptation.
There had been a Yellow Submarine comic published by Gold Key Comics in 1968, produced in advance of the movie. It included passages not found in the film, and character designs made prior to the final designs were okayed for the film. However, the new Dark Horse project was to be a true adaptation of the film.

The new comic book was to be one of the various merchandise items to be made available to the public alongside the release of the film on DVD and VHS, together with the Yellow Submarine Songtrack on CD and coloured vinyl, as well as new action figures from McFarlane Toys. Morrison was first approached by Michael Martens at Dark Horse and asked to adapt the script and draw it.

The comic book was going to be a full-colour 48 page one-shot (a standalone comic book not part of a series), prestige format. Morrison was contracted to do the entire project and brought in a few of his buddies (from Bongo Comics, where Morrison was employed at the time) to help out. Nathan Kane was colouring the art, and Chris Ungar was handling the lettering. Also, Morrison enlisted his wife, Kayre, to help translate some of the dialogue from VHS copies of the film. Morrison remembers her calling him into her office to listen over and over to bits of dialogue that neither of them could understand because of the poor audio quality and the thick Liverpool accents.

The 1987 VHS video cassette
One thing to consider when Bill Morrison completes his comic book, is that if he still bases his story and drawings on the 1987 VHS cassette edition of the film, there are going to be discrepancies, as there are in fact two versions of the film. Near the end of the film, the original Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band are released (thanks to the hole carried in Ringo's pocket from the Sea of Holes) and Ringo rescues Jeremy. The Beatles then have a rematch with the four-headed Meanie dog, singing "Hey Bulldog", with the Beatles victorious once again. That latter scene was shown at the film premiere in England but when the film was released worldwide, the scene was cut out and replaced by a short dynamic battle scene to reach a lower running time. The 1987 video cassette was based on the later print of the film, and had the "Beatles to battle" scene instead of the "Hey Bulldog" scene. The 1999 re-release restored the "Hey Bulldog" scene back into the film. More about those differences here.

As he recalls, Morrison was given little input on the direction to take on the project, back in the day.
"I remember doing a little sample drawing to see if I had the style down, but I believe that was more for my sake than theirs. In fact, I don’t recall if I ever showed them that drawing. I do remember doing the cover first, because they were going to print it as a poster. Remember when Dark Horse had those promotional newspaper comics that were distributed at comic shops? It was going to be printed full-size on the back of one of those."

Sample page in "psychedelic" style, from Morrison's book.
"I don’t remember Dark Horse giving me any direction regarding style. It just seemed to be understood that I would be as faithful to the film as possible. I do recall that Dark Horse Publisher Mike Richardson loaned me his personal copy of the original Gold Key Yellow Submarine comic from 1968 for reference. I was excited about doing the first really faithful adaptation of the film. Not to take anything away from the original Gold Key adaptation, but it was obviously done well before the movie was completed. Aspects of the story are different and it’s apparent that the artist (Paul S. Newman, 1924-1999) had only preliminary designs to work from, and some characters hadn’t even been designed yet."

"I also found a copy of a Yellow Submarine book with pictures from the film. I really wanted badly to capture the look of the film. As a Beatles fan myself, I approached it from a fan point of view and tried to bury my own style (whatever that is!)."

"As for the design, I thought about the film and how psychedelic it is. I wanted to translate that onto the page beyond just what I depicted in each panel. So I found inspiration in the black light posters I used to cover my bedroom walls with. I designed the opening Pepperland pages very much like psychedelic posters."

Regular "basic and dull" panels with Ringo in Liverpool. From Morrison's book.

"Then the Liverpool scene with Ringo is pretty basic and dull. But when he and Fred start to assemble the other Beatles one by one, the page design starts getting weird and psychedelic again. I always felt that some of the pages could have had a second life as a black light poster book."

"I completed 26 pages, pencil and ink, and I believe Nathan had ten or so pages colored. I think Chris had most of the 26 pages lettered, too," Morrison said. "From what I understand, the executive at Apple Records who oversees the Beatles merchandise had a change of heart. I heard that he only wanted to do really high-class merchandise for this roll out and he suddenly decided that comic books didn’t qualify. He pulled out of the deal and left [Dark Horse Publisher] Mike Richardson holding the bag. And Dark Horse paid me for every bit of my work! He’s a real mensch, that Mike. Another story I heard was that George Harrison felt that because his company was also named Dark Horse, people may think that he was the producer of the comic. If it was bad, he’d get blamed for it. But I think that was just a rumor."

Preview from the upcoming comic book, No panels, but circles on this page.
Finally, the time has come for Morrison to complete his comic book. The deal between Apple Corps Ltd. and Titan Comics was negotiated by Bravado International, which handles licensing for the Beatles in North America. In addition to the Yellow Submarine comic adaptation, Titan's collectibles arm Titan Merchandise will also be releasing a line of Titans vinyl collectibles based on the movie. The "All Together Now" collection features two versions of the band, as well as Blue Meanies, the Apple Bonker and the Four-Headed Bulldog, and will hit stores later this month. "We’re thrilled to be publishing The Beatles: Yellow Submarine for the 50th Anniversary of this fantastic movie," Chris Teather, publishing director at Titan Comics said. "We can’t wait for Beatles fans to experience this official adaptation."

This story puts together text from CBR.com and Hollywood Reporter.

An anniversary edition of the film itself is not on the cards, as a 2012 release on Blu-ray as well as DVD still is in the shops.


PRESS RELEASE

Titan Comics is excited to announce a deal with Apple Corps Ltd to publish an official illustrated adaptation of The Beatles’ iconic animated film, Yellow Submarine.  Due to hit stores in 2018 to tie-in with the 50th Anniversary of the release of the movie. The deal was brokered by Bravado International, The Beatles’ North American licensing agent.

The Beatles: Yellow Submarine movie (originally released in 1968) is an animated musical fantasy film inspired by the music of The Beatles. In the film, Paul, John, George and Ringo agree to accompany Captain Fred in his Yellow Submarine and go to Pepperland to free it from the music-hating Blue Meanies.

Directed by animation producer George Dunning, the film received widespread acclaim from critics and audiences alike. Since its original release, the movie has become a cornerstone of contemporary popular culture and has inspired generations of award-winning animators.

Titan’s official illustrated adaptation of The Beatles: Yellow Submarine is written and illustrated by Bill Morrison – writer and artist from The Simpsons Comics. As a huge fan of The Beatles, this has been a labor of love for Bill, twenty years in the making.

“We’re thrilled to be publishing The Beatles: Yellow Submarine for the 50th Anniversary of this fantastic movie,” said Chris Teather, Publishing Director at Titan Comics. “We can’t wait for Beatles fans to experience this official adaptation.”

The Beatles: Yellow Submarine Official illustrated adaptation from Titan is due to hit stores in 2018.

Monday 10 July 2017

Paul's One on One tour continues

From Miami 7/7-17, photo: Al Diaz, Miami Herald
Paul McCartney's "One on One" tour continues after a couple of months off the road. The new part of the tour started in Miami, Florida on Ringo's birthday, which prompted Paul to dedicate "Birthday" to both Ringo and Paul's late dad, James.
In an interview prior to the show, Paul had promised two-three surprises, and these were probably "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (Paul had sergeant stripes on his jacket, see photo), "I Wanna Be Your Man" (usually a Ringo song) and possibly "Love Me Do"?

The set list:

1. A Hard Day’s Night
2. Save Us
3. Can’t Buy Me Love
4. Letting Go
5. Temporary Secretary
6. Let Me Roll It
7. I’ve Got a Feeling
8. My Valentine
9. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five
10. Maybe I’m Amazed
11. We Can Work It Out
12. In Spite of All the Danger
13. You Won’t See Me
14. Love Me Do
15. And I Love Her
16. Blackbird
17. Here Today
18. Queenie Eye
19. New
20. The Fool on the Hill
21. Lady Madonna
22. FourFiveSeconds
23. Eleanor Rigby
24. I Wanna Be Your Man
25. Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!
26. Something
27. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
28. Band on the Run
29. Back in the U.S.S.R.
30. Let It Be
31. Live and Let Die
32. Hey Jude

Encores:
33. Yesterday
34. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
35. Hi, Hi, Hi
36. Birthday
37. Golden Slumbers / Carry That Weight / The End

The songs divide up like this: 24 from The Beatles, 1 from The Quarry Men, 3 from the last studio album (New, 2013) and 4 more from the solo albums, 6 from Wings, 1 from Rihanna. No fans were asked up on the stage during this concert. The soundcheck went like this:

1. Jam
2. Matchbox
3. Flaming Pie
4. All My Loving
5. C Moon
6. Let ’em In
7. Alligator
8. Things We Said Today
9. Ram On
10. Midnight Special
11. Lady Madonna
12.  Lady Madonna

Photo: Al Diaz, Miami Herald
A slideshow with more photos from Miami can be found here.

The tour continues tonight in Tampa, Florida. This is how the rest of the tour looks like, as of now:

JULY
7: Miami, Florida – American Airlines Arena
10: Tampa, Florida – Amalie Arena
13: Duluth, Georgia – Infinite Energy Arena
15: Bossier City, Louisiana – CenturyLink Center
17: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Chesapeake Energy Center
19: Wichita, Kansas – INTRUST Bank Arena
21: Des Moines, Iowa – Wells Fargo Arena
23: Omaha, Nebraska – CenturyLink Center
25: Tinley Park, Illinois – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre

Followed by a break of a month and a half, perhaps a good time to release the upcoming solo album?

SEPTEMBER
11: Newark, New Jersey – Prudential Center
12: Newark, New Jersey – Prudential Center
15: New York, New York – Madison Square Garden
17: New York, New York – Madison Square Garden
19: Brooklyn, New York – Barclays Center
21: Brooklyn, New York – Barclays Center
23: Syracuse, New York – Carrier Dome
26: Uniondale, New York – Nassau Coliseum
27: Uniondale, New York – Nassau Coliseum

OCTOBER
1: Detroit, Michigan – Little Caesars Arena
2: Detroit, Michigan – Little Caesars Arena

Goodbye North-America - hello South America:

13: Porto Alegre, Brazil - Estádio Beira-Rio
15: São Paulo, Brazil - Allianz Parque
17: Belo Horizonte,Brazil - Mineirão Stadium
20: Salvador, Brazil - Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova
24: Colombia - Atanasio Girardot Stadium
28: Mexico City, Mexico - Estadio Azteca

Time off in November, well so far no dates announced. Finally it's time for a belated visit to New Zealand and Australia - countries not visited by Paul since the "New World Tour" back in 1993. A couple of concerts planned for Melbourne fourteen years ago were cancelled, so it's about time he made up for this. The Australian dates sold well, so a couple of extra dates were added after the first shows sold out very quickly.

DECEMBER
2: Perth, Australia, nib Stadium
5: Melbourne, Australia - AAMI Park
6: Melbourne, Australia - AAMI Park
9: Brisbane, Australia - Suncorp Stadium
11: Sydney, Australia - Qudos Bank Arena
12: Sydney, Australia - Qudos Bank Arena
16: Auckland, New Zealand - Mt Smart Stadium

Friday 7 July 2017

Ringo's new album announced

Ringo's new album is called "Give More Love", out Sep 15.
Birthday boy Ringo Starr's (77) new album "Give More Love" will be released on September 15, 2017. Recorded at his home studio in Los Angeles, Give More Love has 10 new tracks featuring collaborations with friends including: We’re On The Road Again - featuring Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather; Laughable - co-written and performed with Peter Frampton as well as Benmont Tench, Timothy B Schmidt, Richard Page and Amy Keys; Show Me The Way co-written and performed with Steve Lukather and with Paul McCartney; Speed of Sound co-written with Richard Marx and featuring Steve Lukather, Peter Frampton and Nathan East; Standing Still - co- written with Gary Burr; King of the Kingdom - including performances by Dave Stewart and Edgar Winter; Electricity - co-written with Glen Ballard and featuring Joe Walsh and Don Was; So Wrong For So Long - co written and performed with Dave Stewart; Shake It Up - co written and performed with Gary Nicholson and including Don Was and Edgar Winter. Also, four old songs are included in new versions, including the "White album" song, "Don't Pass Me By". Another re-do is "Back Off Boogaloo", which he already re-did before, on his "Stop and Smell the Roses" album in 1981. This version of "Back Off Boogaloo" is based on the original recording Ringo made when he wrote the song. He recentlty discovered the tape when he moved houses. The other three bonus tracks are collaborations based on performances from Starr’s 2016 Peace & Love Birthday event. Alberta Cross performed "You Can’t Fight Lightning" and Vandaveer performed "Photograph" and "Don’t Pass Me By". Starr loved their renditions and asked them to each record them for his new album, also adding his own vocals.
There will be a physical CD as well as a downloadable album, and a vinyl edition will be available about a week after the CD, according to Music Direct.

Tracklist

1. We're On The Road Again (With Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Edgar Winter, Steve Lukather)
2. Laughable (with Peter Frampton, Benmont Tench, Timothy B Schmidt, Richard Page & Amy Keys)
3. Show Me The Way (With Steve Lukather & Paul McCartney)
4. Speed Of Sound (With Richard Marx, Steve Lukather, Peter Frampton & Nathan East
5. Standing Still (With Gary Burr)
6. King Of The Kingdom (With Dave Stewart & Edgar Winter )
7. Electricity (Joe Walsh & Don Was)
8. So Wrong For So Long (With Dave Stewart)
9. Shake It Up (With Gary Nicholson, Don Was & Edgar Winter)
10. Give More Love (with Gary Nicholson, Timothy B Schmidt, Richard Page & Gregg Bissonette)
11. Back Off Boogaloo (Re-do)
12. Don't Pass Me By (Re-do)
13. You Can't Fight Lightning (Re-do with Alberta Cross)
14. Photograph (Re-do with Vandaveer)

Pre-order links:

Amazon (UK)

The title track is available for streaming from today at http://amzn.to/2uRylVO