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8.47am
5 October 2016
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…did Paul, John and George’s voice survive all of those gigs at the start of their career?
I’ve just been looking at the history section and the sheer number of gigs they did in 61-63 is staggering!
This is an amazing site btw. I’ll be reading this for a Long, Long, Long time…
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Zig, Beatlebug11.44am
19 October 2015
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CharlesHawtrey said
…did Paul, John and George’s voice survive all of those gigs at the start of their career?
People always forget Ringo. 
In all seriousness, they had preludin which was performance enhancing drug in Hamburg.
From the Wikipedia article on it: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wik…..nmetrazine
Phenmetrazine was taken by The Beatles early in their career. Paul McCartney was one known user. McCartney’s introduction to drugs started in Hamburg, Germany. The Beatles had to play for hours, and they were often given “Prellies” (Preludin) by the maid who cleaned their housing arrangements, German customers, or by Astrid Kirchherr (whose mother bought them). McCartney would usually take one, but John Lennon would often take four or five.[12] Hunter Davies asserted, in his 1968 biography of the band,[13] that their use of such stimulants then was in response to their need to stay awake and keep working, rather than a simple desire for kicks.
"We love them, yeah, yeah, yeah -- and with archival footage like that, you know The Beatles: Eight Days a Week -- The Touring Years can't be bad..." -Rotten Tomatoes review
12.20pm
1 November 2013
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Youth heals lots of wounds.
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Jojo McCartney
3.20pm
Reviewers
14 April 2010
Offline Welcome @CharlesHawtrey .
They did have a grueling schedule in 63/64. But remember, their concerts weren’t the full blown 2+ hour concerts we are used to today. Back then, they were package tours featuring a number of artists. Each group was allotted only a certain amount of time (the closer you were to the headlining act, the more time you were allotted). Even if they headlined, they still only played for about 20 to 30 minutes tops.
To the fountain of perpetual mirth, let it roll for all its worth. And all the children boogie.
3.26pm
1 November 2013
Offline It’s more about Hamburg days @Zig
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Zig, C.R.A.3.55pm
Reviewers
14 April 2010
Offline Ahhhhh, so it is. Thanks for the correction!
To the fountain of perpetual mirth, let it roll for all its worth. And all the children boogie.
12.22am
5 February 2014
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The Hamburg period has always been the most fascinating for me; the sheer number of hours they spent “Mach Schau” was brutal but (IMO) it was the trial required for their rise into the world’s consciousness. Without it, it’s arguable that none of us would be discussing it today.
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Zig, WeepingAtlasCedars, Beatlebug10.42am
Reviewers
14 April 2010
Offline Too true, C.R.A.
There should be no doubt that the Hamburg days allowed them to blossom as a band. I’m sure you’ve read some of the same accounts as I where a contemporary of theirs commented on how they were a completely different band than they were before Hamburg. In the very early days, they were “meh”. They returned to Liverpool as a much tighter unit.
The following people thank Zig for this post:
Jojo McCartney, Beatlebug, WeepingAtlasCedarsTo the fountain of perpetual mirth, let it roll for all its worth. And all the children boogie.
