Brian Samuel Epstein was born on 19 September 1934 on Rodney Street, Liverpool. His parents were Harry and Malka Epstein. Before his death in 1967 he would make his fortune as manager of The Beatles, as well as Gerry and the Pacemakers, Cilla Black and Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas.
Harry and Malka (known to all as Queenie, as Malka is the Hebrew word for ‘queen’) owned a furniture store in Liverpool. Later the family business expanded and they bought the North End Road Music Store (known as NEMS) next door.
In 1950, at the age of 16, Brian began working at the family’s Walton Road store, although he wanted to become a dress designer – a move opposed by his father. He was conscripted to the army at 18, but was discharged after 10 months for being emotionally and mentally unfit.
In his autobiography A Cellarful Of Noise, published in October 1964, Epstein claimed he was caught impersonating an officer. The hidden truth was that he had asked a tailor to make an officer’s uniform, which he wore while cruising the bars of London. He was arrested by the military police, but avoided a court martial by agreeing to see an army psychiatrist who uncovered Epstein’s homosexuality.
Upon his return to Liverpool in 1954 he was put in charge of Clarendon Furnishing, a branch of the Epstein family business in the Hoylake district. He proved a successful salesman, but persuaded his parents to let him train as an actor at the Royal Academy for Dramatic Arts.Brian passed the RADA audition, and became a classmate of Susannah York, Albert Finney and Peter O’Toole. However, he dropped out after the third term.
He returned once more to work for his parents, and in 1955, at the age of 21, he was made a director of NEMS.
When Harry Epstein opened a new NEMS store on Liverpool’s Great Charlotte Street, Brian was put in charge of managing the ground floor. He expanded from selling pianos and wireless radios to gramophone records, and the shop became one of the biggest music outlets in the north of England.
The record department was such a success that he was put in charge of a new NEMS branch which opened at 12-14 Whitechapel. Around this time he asked Bill Harry – the editor of Mersey Beat magazine, which Brian had sold since its first issue in July 1961 – if he could write a music column. His first article, under the heading ‘Record Releases, by Brian Epstein of NEMS’, appeared in the third issue on 3 August 1961.
With The Beatles
Mersey Beat was where Epstein first noticed the name The Beatles, who were featured on the cover of issue two. His curiosity is said to have been was piqued when a customer, Raymond Jones, entered NEMS and asked Epstein for a copy of ‘My Bonnie’, the single recorded by the band with singer Tony Sheridan in Hamburg.
At about three o’clock on Saturday, October 28th, 1961, an eighteen-year-old boy called Raymond Jones, wearing jeans and black leather jacket, walked into a record-store in Whitechapel, Liverpool, and said: ‘There’s a record I want. It’s “My Bonnie” and it was made in Germany. Have you got it?’Behind the counter was Brian Epstein, twenty-seven, director of the store. He shook his head. ‘Who is the record by?’ he asked. ‘You won’t have heard of them,’ said Jones. ‘It’s by a group called The Beatles….’
Prologue to A Cellarful Of Noise
The Whitechapel store was a short walk from the Cavern Club in Mathew Street. On 9 November 1961 he watched The Beatles play a lunchtime concert, after which he entered the dressing room and met the group.
Despite his lack of experience, Epstein became their manager in January 1962, and quickly asserted his influence over their dress and onstage performance.
After hawking the band around a number of London labels, Epstein eventually secured an audition at EMI’s Abbey Road studios, where George Martin decided to sign them.
Epstein was key to the success of The Beatles – Paul McCartney later said: “If anyone was the fifth Beatle, it was Brian”. He also managed a number of other Liverpool acts, including Gerry and the Pacemakers, Cilla Black, and Billy J Kramer and The Dakotas.
As The Beatles retired from live performance in 1966, Epstein found his influence on the group waning. He had used amphetamines from the earliest days with the band, but his use of pills became an increasing problem as he became more involved in the London drug scene of the 1960s.
During the recording of Sgt Pepper, Epstein spent time trying to kick his drug habit, including spells in the Priory in Putney, London.
Brian Epstein died of an accidental drug overdose on 27 August 1967. His death was most likely due to a build-up of the sedative Carbitral, mixed with alcohol.
At the time The Beatles were in Bangor, north Wales, for a meeting with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. They did not attend the funeral, in order to not attract the media and fans, but were present at a memorial service at the New London Synagogue.
Epstein is buried at the Kirkdale Jewish Cemetery in Liverpool.
Thank you for the great information you gave us here.
Is it true he had a crush on John?
Sorry, no… it was Ringo.
Actually it was John….as the rumour goes. In April of 63′, John and Brian went on holiday to Barcelona Spain….together ….just the two of them. After they returned, the story started getting around that they had a homosexual encounter with each other.
p.s…..Also, it’s said that John wrote the song, “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away” about Epstein.
Ringo had a crush on John?
One of the best outlines of Brian’s life that really appears authentic!!!
There was a movie made about the early 60’s music revolution within the U.S.A. & it’s called “That Thing You Do!”
It was a comedy drama film written, directed by, and co-starring Tom Hanks.
I speculate that this is the closest Tom Hanks could put himself (within his star-power) to the Beatles
and so he chose to himself to become Brian Epstein.
What was the house number in Rodney Street where Brian lived
Epstein didn’t live on Rodney St, but was born in a private hospital that was No 4 Rodney St
If you read “The Beatles Anthology” by The Beatles, John and Brian’s holiday to Spain is explained thoroughly… Somewhere. And yeah, John talks about how Brian came on to him some.
According to Pete Shotton, John’s childhood friend, John told him he had had an experience with Epstein. But according to Pete, who swears he doesn’t care whether people put him down for saying so, John’s first, confused (and more loving) encounter was with the obvioiusly “metrosexual” Stu Sutcliffe, where Stu came on to him as they talked and they just kept going. It makes sense because John was embarrassed, confused and afraid of being a gay from one encounter. Epstein had power and affection but was not into being the dominant sexually; John had to fend him off for a while, then one way or another gave in and became in a way a dominant. In the long run, once the “Satyricon” of girls and boys and trans-gendered in Hamburg and later parties was in full swing, John would very likely, while preferring women, also seek out other males if need be or if available. In Goldman’s book (too-often shunned as if everyone were merely making things up to get publicity), where about a thousand people were interviewed, some very detailed content about Brian and John surfaces, rather plausible in context. One way or another, John knew different types of people sexually.
Bullshit John NEVER had anything w a man.Just lots of Girls
Ever, neither did Stuart, says Paul, & everyone that was there.
Just normal friendships w many of the gay people around at the time.
Stop trying to dig dirt on dead people please
“dig dirt” ??? Is it dirty to have a sexual encounter with a same-sex person? Hello…. Let’s just take it easy please. Who cares? Love is love.
Like lennon epstein was a tortured soul, which brought them close but i believe that brian was primarily always going to look out for lennon first and foremost. By all accounts brian was hopelessly infatuated with him.
In terms of the band as a whole, epstein had a great knack of massaging all the individual members ego’s and smoothing over arguments that helped projects get done. Because of the unity he promoted paul tolerated brian’s management a bit longer than maybe he would have normally. Both he and john had started to smell a rat with some of the groups commercial deals,royalty rates and business matters where epstein had been not only incompetent but also more than a a bit naughty with the groups earnings. When klein exposed the full details of what brian had been doing after his death the band were deeply shocked.
So while “eppy” was integral to making the beatles a more professional act, and vital to projecting the bands influence to a wider audience he also had lost them an inestimable amount of money. Brians strengths were working with people but in matters of negotiation and planning he was woefully neglectful. I guess in his defence it was very early days in terms of pop music but the likes of elvis had long shown the way – colonel tom always made sure his act got the best deal. Brian could have done with someone like him to help him out instead of the hangers on and his buddies at NEMS.
Alan Klein the con man that stole all the rights to the Rolling Stones records exposed Brian Epsteins wrong doing ?? Without Brian the Beatles NEVER would have made it out of Hamburg or Liverpool. You must be joking?
Always these dumb gay suggestions about Brian being infatuated w John get old.He admired John as we all do.
To be truthful most of the world is still ‘ infatuated w John Lennon, for good reason because he’s the man that started the greatest rock group of all times
Exactly. It was the swinging 60s Epsteins gayness was a burden as it was to Joe Meek, constant fear of prosecution, sad they had to live with that. I doubt if it bothered John Lennon at all, rumours or otherwise.
You are right: if Brian hadn’t entered The Beatles’ lives, they wouldn’t have made it out of Liverpool or even Hamburg and the next thing you know, John may have been a visual art teachers and author of books, Paul may have been a factory hand or civil servant all his life, George might have worked as an electrician and Ringo might have worked on British Railways.
For all this sensationalistic nonsense about Brian being an inept manager made by biographers or journalists who want to exaggerate and sensationalize his faults just to sell books and stories, here are some hard facts:
a) The Beatles were evidently very wealthy men when Brian was alive (they themselves acknowledged how wealthy they were in a 1965 Playboy interview), since they were able to afford nice big houses for themselves as well as their relatives, cars and nice things for themselves plus John and George bought a chain of supermarkets on Hayling Island for John’s Pete Shotton to manage.
b) Brian did not take advantage of his artists or steal their money nor did he make any effort to do. Some book unfairly vilified him by saying he kept his artists on a £10 weekly allowance, but George found a piece of paper dating to 1963 and it belies that potentially libellous passage in the book I just mentioned.
c) Brian bought guitars for John and George, drums for Ringo and things for the band, which is hardly typical of a ‘mis-manager’.
d) Paul even stated in a documentary on Brian, “If anyone was the fifth Beatle, it was Brian.”
e) After Brian died, John acknowledged that it was the beginning of the end (footage from that period shows him looking very forlorn and lost after hearing the sad news about Brian) and George stated that Brian took care of business and the finances and it was chaos after his death.
f) Paul acknowledged in the Anthology that it was very sad to lose Brian in those circumstances and Ringo also states that if one sees their faces in the footage, they were all clearly in disbelief over losing Brian. It looked as though not appointing a new manager was something that they no doubt lived to regret.
g) Brian renegotiated both their record deal with EMI in 1967 and the merchandising deals for NEMS.
h) Brian was able to buy himself a nice home in London as well as a country house in Sussex.
i) The Beatles were not living beyond their means or homeless to the point of living on the streets or in much reduced circumstances.
k) Brian did not try to interfere with their artistic ambitions and he was able to inform EMI that there would be no Beatles record in time for Christmas 1966, which hardly sounds like a man who was unable to stand up to EMI’s requests or demands.
Brian also managed acts other than The Beatles, including Cilla Black, Billy J. Kramer and The Dakotas, Gerry and The Pacemakers, The Fourmost, The Remo Four, The Cyrkle and even The Moody Blues. If he had lived, he could have very easily sued some of these biographers for defamation, but sadly, he can’t, as he has been dead for over 50 years and is not in any position to defend himself.
Allen Klein definitely fitted the descriptions of “dishonest” and The Beatles should’ve listened to Mick Jagger’s warnings about him, as Paul did, and stayed away from Klein altogether, instead going with Lee Eastman, Paul’s father-in-law, as their manager after Brian died.
Another frequent misconception is that Brian never lived to see the legalization of male homosexuality in England and Wales via the Sexual Offenses Act of 1967 – in reality, it actually occurred in July that year, so it was a month before his death. It has often been erroneously stated that homosexuality was illegal in the UK when he was alive, but in reality, it was certain acts, not homosexuality itself, that was illegal.
David – again you are incorrect.
Brian
Negotiated the 4 worst deals in the history of management.
1. He gave away 90 percent of the licensing profits of Beatles Merchandise from 1963 to 1966. He then file 39 lawsuits, didn’t tell the Beatles, to try get the money back. It is estimated that he gave away 100 million dollars in merchandising profits in 1965 dollars.
2. The contract with EMI that Klein eventually re negotiated to the Beatles favor. one penny per record sold divided by 4 Beatles.
3. Publishing Rights – he gave 50 percent to Dick James and the Accountant.
4. Somehow after he died, his Mother Epstein and Brother Clive Epstein, continued to receive 25 percent of the Beatles Income despite doing nothing to earn it. Klein eventually worked out the deal that got Nems out of the picture. At first Klein thought he could get NEMS for nothing since at that point they were doing nothing to earn the 25 percent.
Clearly in all your writings, you are following the McCartney revisionist history AKA it is now Allan Klein’s fault for the break up. When there are 50 reasons for it. Klein and Eastman are the culmination.
Allen Klein did break up the Beatles. Even John admitted eventually that Paul was right about him. He lost the other three a lot of money. But let’s go with your revisionist theory, shall we?
I’m sorry if you don’t agree with everything I write, Arnold, but that’s okay.
I was trying to point out some realities vs. misconceptions and it’s unfair to call Paul a history revisionist, as he is not like Stalin. John himself conceded that Paul was right about Allen Klein.
It was on January 27, 1967 when The Beatles signed a new contract with EMI and Brian renegotiated the Beatles’ royalty rate with EMI – this webpage confirms this aspect (https://campaignbrief.com/john-paul-mo-jo/).
Bob Spitz’s 2005 book mentioned that Brian instructed his lawyer David Jacobs to renegotiate the merchandising royalty rate to a more favourable 49%, so again, this proves that Brian was capable of realizing his mistakes as well as renegotiation.
That John would have become an arts teacher or author yet his equally creative and intelligent song writing partner would have ended up in a factory or in the civil service is laughable. Who are trying to kid?
Why was Brian buried at Kirkdale cemetery ? And not greenbank or woolton. I live about a mile away from where Brian is buried .
It is stated the Beatles appeared four times at the Grafton Ballroom West Derby Road and on an unknown earlier date as The Quarrymen (Date ?). From internet researching the first Beatles performance at the Grafton was on the 3rd August 1962. Was this organised by Albert Kinder and Brian Epstein as it is stated Brian became their manager in January 1962? Does a contract exist?
The second Beatle’s Grafton performance was on Thursday 10th January 1963 when tickets 504-606 were stolen. A contract still exists between Albert Kinder Limited and signed by Brian Epstein with a possible Beatle’s contract fee of £62 – 10 – 0. This may be auctioned next year.
The third was a Jeffrey Archer NSPCC concert in February 1963 (date?).
The fourth and last concert was on Friday 2nd August 1963 with a contract fee of £100, the contract sold by Sotheby’s some years ago. On Saturday 3rd they secured £300 at the Cavern, another last venue performance.
Welcome any more news you may have on these Grafton performances and Albert Kinder Limited promoter of Trad Jazz throughout the North West in the 50’s and early 60’s, including Louis Armstrong at the Liverpool Stadium in 1956.
I think a lot of gay stuff went on with Epstein like how the Beatles first contract was gotten with sir Joseph Lockwood at EMI, they were both gay, put 2 and 2 together, if it wasn’t for 2 gay guys making out, the Beatles may have never been.
I’m sorry, but a lot of the sexual stuff Epstein did seemed kind of predatory.
Like what exactly?
That was Jeffrey Epstein and he was not related to Brian, AFAIK.
Wow, there’s a LOT of queerphobia here. How disappointing.
That aside: rest easy, Mr. Epstein. You are a ****ing legend.