Fixing A Hole - The Beatles podcast you didn't know you needed

By December 1973, no one could knock Paul's work ethic. It was now 3 years since he announced he was leaving The Beatles. In that time he had released 4 albums and 8 singles (in the UK). But although…

In last weeks episode we took an indepth dive into The Beatles record breaking appearance at Shea Stadium, New York in August 1965.

This week we backtrack exactly 3 years to the August of 1962. When a…

60 years ago, The Beatles played the biggest concert of their career. When on 15th August 1965 they played to over 55,000 fans at New York’s Shea Stadium.

Only 2 years ago they had waved goodbye to t…

By the mid-1960s, The Beatles had achieved global superstardom, but were increasingly frustrated by the limitations of touring and the expectations of their audience. "Rubber Soul," their previous al…

Unlike in the USA where Capitol released Beatles singles in colourful picture sleeves. British 45's, with 2 exceptions came in Parlophone company sleeves. But unlike America where EP releases failed …

Between their debut single 'Love Me Do' in October 1962 and their final 45, 'Let It Be' in March 1970, The Beatles released 22 original singles. 

Many of these releases featured songs that were unique…

John Lennon has been quoted as saying "You haven't heard Sergeant Pepper, if you haven't heard it in mono"... and he's right. Yes, the songs are the same, but the mix is very different. Once you hear…

Love it or hate it, music streaming is here to stay and for younger listeners is introducing the music of The Beatles to a whole new audience.

The collectors out there who cherish their original firs…

In 1964 Dave Lewis discovered music courtesy of the Dave Clark Five. But with the arrival of Thunderbirds on the television and football at the local park, music quickly new took a back seat.

Then in…

In this week’s episode Paul and Mark take a peep into the world of alternate mixes. 

Not those multi-format extended mixes record companies released in the 1980’s. Paul McCartney’s ‘No More Lonely Ni…

Following on from last week’s pirate radio edition of Fixing A Hole we carry on with the pirate theme. Looking into the under the counter world of Beatles bootlegs.

We trace the origins of these Ille…

Unlike the United States where you could hear wall-to-wall pop music on the radio 24 hours a day. In early 1960's Great Britain, the airwaves were controlled by the BBC. With numerous restrictions im…

By the summer of 1964 The Beatles had conquered the world. Hot on the heels of their first visit to America, they were back at work. But not in the recording studio. This time it was the film studio,…

On 29 January 1964 while playing an 18-day residency at the Paris’ Olympia Theatre. The Beatles entered the Marconi Studios in Paris, for their first and only session for EMI outside of the United Ki…

Patrick Humphries is a well-respected music journalist and author. He worked for both the NME and Melody Maker from the mid-70’s and has written features for Mojo, VOX and Record Collector. In additi…

At lunchtime on January 10th 1969, George Harrison walked out of Twickenham film studios and out on his band mates. As he left his parting words were, ‘I’ll see you in the clubs’.

The Beatles January…

On their return from India in the spring of 1968. The Beatles set about recording the ‘White Album,’ a collection of 30 songs, many of which were written in Rishikesh. 

In between these 6 months of r…

Ever since Paul McCartney announced he was leaving the group on 10th April 1970. Fans desire to hear new, or unreleased Beatles music has never stopped. 

In this episode we tell the story of how a se…

Each year between 1963 and 1969 The Beatles gifted members of the official UK fan club, specially recorded Christmas messages. These exclusive recordings have not only become collectors’ items. They…

Like an old family photograph, or a treasured gift. Music has the ability, to instantly transport you back in time to the place where you first heard a certain song. Or trigger a special memory, of a…