Reviewed by Kristin
Mark Lewisohn is not just a casual music fan who decided to
write a book about the Beatles. He is
known as the world authority on the group, perhaps the best Beatles historian
of this, or any age. It is no wonder
that this first volume of a planned trilogy weighs in at over 900 pages,
including about 100 pages of notes, credits, and an index. Although a tremendous undertaking just to read the book, I believe it is well
worth the time of any Beatles fan.
Exhaustively researched (the first volume took Lewisohn almost a
decade,) Tune In utilizes thousands of primary documents and hundreds of
new interviews to tell the story of how the Beatles came to be.
Tune In begins in January 1958, when
17-year-old John Lennon invited 15-year-old Paul McCartney to join the Quarry
Men, the musical group that John had begun in 1956-57. This first volume spans the era through
December 1962, the point when the Beatles were beginning to be known to the
wider music world. Lewisohn discusses
the inclusion of Pete Best, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe, Ringo Starr, and
a few other musicians who played in some version of the group which would come
to be known as the Beatles, meticulously noting how and when friends and
acquaintances were added and/or removed from the group. Manager Brian Epstein and producer George
Martin’s significant influences are considered as well.
From a couple of teenage boys playing around on their
guitars, to the single Love Me Do
making a splash by hitting the charts in the fall of 1962 and peaking at number
seventeen, Tune In examines those early years. Playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg,
Germany honed their skills, and much text is dedicated to the breadth of their
live experience before being awarded recording contracts. Lewisohn delves into the influence that
musicians such as Little Richard, Buddy Holly, and Elvis had on the Beatles, as
well as other societal influences of the post-World War II era.
Published in 2013, Tune In is a comprehensive telling
of the Beatles early years. It was an
easy “read” for me as I listened to the audiobook version. I was entertained for 43+ hours over the last
few weeks as I drove, fixed dinner, etc.
This is one of those “driveway stories,” where I just couldn’t quite
bring myself to turn off the book even though I had arrived home. After finishing the audio version, I checked
out the print version from the library as there are quite a few interesting
photographs. The author does not have a
definite date for the publication of the next volume; I am anxiously awaiting
that information. Although the story is
of all those years ago, the Beatles still hold our attention and our hearts,
and Lewisohn is a master storyteller who should not be missed.
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