In a live recording from the 2019 Port Eliot Festival, John and Andy are joined by the grand old men of music writing, David Hepworth and Mark Ellen. David Hepworth was born on July 27th 1950. Since this makes him twelve when the Beatles first came along and still an attractively boyish nineteen when they broke up, this, as far as pop music is concerned, is the winning ticket in the lottery of life. After a career which involved school teaching and spells inside the music business he began writing for the music papers in the 70s. During the 80s and 90s he was editorial director of the publisher of such music magazines as Smash Hits, Q and MOJO while also doing his time as a presenter of BBC TV's Whistle Test. During Live Aid he was sworn at by Bob Geldof in front of earth's largest TV audience. His books include 1971: Never A Dull Moment and A Fabulous Creation: How The LP Saved Our Lives. Mark Ellen spent his teenage years sitting in fields at the feet of hairy rock voyagers like Atomic Rooster and began writing for the NME in the late ‘70s. He was an editor-in-chief at the publishers EMAP, helped launch MOJO, edited Smash Hits, Q, Select and The Word, worked for BBC television and radio and for VH1, and now writes and witters about a range of stuff but mainly music. His 2014 memoir of his life in music, Rock Stars Stole My Life!, is now considered a classic of the genre. The pair are co-hosts of the A Word in Your Ear podcast, one of the original inspirations for Backlisted.

Books mentioned:

The Beatles - The Beatles Anthology
Michael Braun - Love Me Do: The Beatles’ Progress
Ian McDonald - Revolution in the Head
Joe Orton - Head to Toe & Up Against It
David Hepworth - 1971: Never A Dull Moment; A Fabulous Creation: How The LP Saved Our Lives
Mark Ellen - Rock Stars Stole My Life
Barry Miles - The Zapple Diaries: The Rise and Fall of The Last Beatles Label
Derek Taylor - As Time Goes By
Nick Cohen - Awopbopaloobop Alopbamboom : Pop from the Beginning

Other links:

Andy’s ‘Shabby Road’ literary fundraiser - link for tickets
Frank Sidebottom’s version of ‘Flying’ (featuring Beatles recap)
Beatles fans in New York, 1964
’Maxwell's Silver Hammer’ - Decca and the Dectones
’I Am The Walrus’ - The Beatles
Up Against It (1997 radio production)
All Things Must Pass - George Harrison