The Brian Epstein Book

"Mr. Moonlight: Brian Epstein and the Making of the Beatles": https://www.amazon.com/Mr-Moonlight-Epstein-Making-Beatles-ebook/dp/B0FTVW9JN5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0 You can't make it without a manager. With hindsight you'd think that the Beatles were fully-formed, waiting to be picked up by a label and blasted into the stratosphere. But nothing could be further from the truth. Of course there's the story, the facts, but even more interesting to me is the identity of these people, who they were, what motivated them, what sustained them? Brian Epstein was a terrible student, who didn't even serve a full term in the military and ultimately became ensconced in his family's business, mostly furniture, but he opened a record department... Funny to think about the importance of retail today, it was everything prior to the internet, it was where the sales transaction took place, where the rubber met the road. And Brian was an active manager of the store, stocking all the hits and writing in the local music paper, having star-studded openings of new outlets, but there was nothing in his past that would have you believe he'd go into music management. But then he saw the Beatles. And not only did it change their life, but his too. Brian was a classical music fan. He was relatively upper-crust, he was out of place at the Cavern Club, but what he saw there... Not only a performance, but the reaction, and the reaction is key. So he proposes to the Beatles that he become their manager and they say SURE! They've been around the block, they don't expect much, if this rich guy wants to give them some money and promote them, they'll take that ride. Not that overnight success is imminent. Brian can't even get them better gigs. As for a record deal, he keeps striking out, until he ultimately gets connected with George Martin. Epstein gets a bad rap, over the inadequate deals he made. But what people forget is HE WAS THE FIRST PERSON TO DO IT, HE WAS THE PROGENITOR! Sure, there were pop acts before the Beatles, but always time-stamped, evanescent. You went for the quick buck as opposed to the long term, there was no belief there'd be a long term. And there were underlying circumstances. Northern Songs? It went public as a tax dodge. And John and Paul selling shares shortly after it was floated on the exchange? That was a way of getting cash. No one could foresee these songs would be worth so much more than half a century later. Ditto Apple. It too was a tax dodge. Conventional wisdom was that the Beatles had a hunger, wanted to spread their wings and have their own company. But Apple was just a way to avoid paying taxes, they had no idea what they were going to do with the company. As for the bad merch deal... No one had sold this amount of merch previously, and Epstein changed the percentages mid-term in the boys' favor. Was Epstein the first to call his charges "the boys"? I'm not sure, but that's what acts are referred to in the U.K. to this day, no matter how old they might be. If not quite ruffians, the Beatles' image was more in the gutter, more punk than rattle your jewelry cleanliness. Epstein insisted on the suits, and the Beatles went along BECAUSE NOTHING ELSE HAD WORKED! It was totally different from today. Where everybody is a student of the game and does their best to retain artistic control and get the lion's share of the money from day one. What is a reasonable percentage from a movie deal? "A Hard Day's Night" was not the first pop act film. They were throwaways at best. No one foresaw the juggernaut the flick would become. Should Epstein have hired an attorney sophisticated in the business? Sure, but how many were there? Even better, how many savvy music business attorneys were there? No, Eppy was making it up as he went along. Always with the band's best interests at heart. This is stressed, how he wanted the deals to be fair, he didn't want to rip them off. Having said that, HE SPENT! Now you've got to know, you've got to spend to make it, like Brian buying up copies of "Love Me Do" in the hope of it storming the chart. Success requires money. And it was more about image and lifestyle than cash anyway. It was a ride, which was gonna end, enjoy it as you go. It's totally different today. Almost all managers are behind the scenes. Become a public figure and you risk getting fired, the act becoming jealous, wondering if you have its best interests at heart. But Brian? He hosted TV programs... He was in the public eye far beyond any manager today. The only person even close is Sharon Osbourne, but her path was different, who knew "The Osbournes" TV show would be such a hit? Then again, Sharon never signed the deal, such that when the show was a success, she could go in and renegotiate. A modern tour? They run the numbers before a deal is even made. Encompassing advances, ticket prices, costs... Whereas back then it was much more seat of the pants. We're going to earn a pile of money, that will cover all our costs, right? Was anybody truly keeping track of the costs? So the book stresses the price of Epstein being Jewish and gay. But what was most interesting was that once he built it, once he'd been there and done that, Brian lost the passion, he got depressed. He'd broken the Beatles, now what? And he couldn't sustain a love relationship. So he was a unique guy who didn't fit in anywhere else. As are all the great managers. They're all outsiders, rule-breakers, who are usually laughed at before they triumph. You see they believe before anybody else does, and then make their vision real. This is a dry book. And not all of it is brand new. And there is no smoking gun, other than raising the issue whether Brian was murdered... But who was this guy who found, molded and broke the Beatles? I'd like to tell you every detail is here, but it's not, yet there's more than I've encountered previously. Then again, managers always operate behind the scenes, with smoke and mirrors. The truth? That is fungible. If you're hungering for more Beatles info, here you go. As for lessons... Great managers are born, not made. You can't learn the trade in school. And even at this late date there are few rules. There's no safety net. You've got to keep both sides of the transaction happy. You know people only want you when you and your charges are hot. It's a balancing act. This was not Colonel Parker, behind the scenes, refusing to let Elvis tour Europe for fear of being arrested himself. And Epstein never wanted to compromise the vision, turn the band into movie stars and Vegas performers. But no one could foresee what great writers the Beatles would become, who they'd become. Except Brian. Who ended up lonely and depressed and taking too many pills... People think once you make it, all your problems are solved. But that's just when they begin. And if you're at wits' end, who do you call, who do you talk to, who has had the same experiences? I mean who does Madonna call to commiserate? Or Mick Jagger? You're out there alone. As was Brian Epstein. As are the greatest managers. Today the landscape is clear, the path is well-trodden. But back then, Epstein was breaking trail for his boys. It was a different era. But the band and its music were more vital than any of today's acts, Beatlemania has never bitten the dust. This is where the ascent truly started, when they started working with Brian Epstein. -- Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/ -- Listen to the podcast: -iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj -Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp -- http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz -- If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter, http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1 If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25 To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25