His attitude really seemed to turn around once he got the $1,000,000. And that's not meant as a criticism, he earned it for playing on the tracks and it's well deserved. Glad he ended up getting a portion of the pie that represented his contribution.
Not sure about how accurate that timeline is, but I could imagine there's truth in the idea that being rewarded with such a sum would 'mend' things. And just like you say, that has nothing to do with greed or capitalist corruption or whatever you may. It has to do with being recognized for your efforts and receiving your fair share.
Band members quit and get tossed all the time. One HAS to go with what they feel is the best fit. Ringo was the right fit. Pete was well compensated for that move.
Not sure about your money figures but one thing is sure. It’s a steady, reliable income source till the end of his days. Good for him. He did step up and go with to the the piss- bowl Hamburg gig when he was asked. Fir that, he was more than handsomely repaid.
Ringo is lovable and never competed with any of the others, which made all of us love him. He just seemed like a happy guy with a ready smile, and he made it seem so easy!
He's never had much sweetness for Pete - competitive with him. He was sued for slander against Pete in the 80's for spreading false rumours (and rightfully so.) Ringo is not an angel - I wonder how he would feel if he was in the same situation
Yes Ringo was the better drummer but more importantly it was about the "beatle spirit", yk? Ringo possessed and shared the charisma, wit and humour of the other 3. It's staggering how naturally he fits with in the Beatles. Also an important point to note is Pete just didnt hung out with the other 3 and partook in their shenanigans after their shows in Hamburg, he preferred to be by himself. He was a loner. Its like George said, Pete was just a drummer but Ringo was a Beatle, last piece of the puzzle. Last point of the "Beatle square".
Pete would end up working for Job Center in Liverpool, eventually rising to regional director. His position would help people find new careers after losing their old ones. Quite appropriate, as Pete had a very good "I was fired from an awesome job" stories in history!
The job centre never helped anybody get a new career? They hindered rather than helped! "Take this shitty job or we will stop your money!" Never mind the job you've found but need help with PPE we have a new career for you collecting glasses in a pub!
Actually, he had a shitty job when he was fired. The Beatles hadn't achieved anything yet. He was just a mediocre drummer in an unknown band. That's hardly an "awesome job".
I read about the rock solid marriage Pete Best had and he had loving children who respected and honoured him. His reputation is great. Who cares about being sacked from a band when you have been blessed so much. Pete Best, you have done great with your life.
Correct. He didn't make the grade as a Beatle and can't let it go. It's become he's meal ticket. A good life is all any of us wants. The Beatles were just an average band in a Hamburg dive when he left them. The future was in no possible way known to be the eruption it would soon become. They got a better a drummer and that was all. Happens all the time
The Beatles were a bunch a money grabbing narcissists, later Harrison realised the errors of his life and turned to religion but McCartney Lennon & Starr thought they were in some way important, they play pop music and not very well and sing about trash, they slept with other people wives and girlfriends, ALL of them, they even sang and wrote songs about it, ask anyone who came into contact with them, they had to hide their wives,
I met Pete Best yesterday at the Casbah Coffee Club, 8 Haymans Green (Pete Best's mum's house), "Where it all really began!" He was setting up drums for a gig. Great guy. God bless him! As for being fired - well, that's show biz, he knows that. A true professional.
hit the nail on the head with this one. i’m terribly sick of those types of videos, as well as the clickbait titles/thumbnails they come with that never have anything to do with the video itself
Agreed, but the closed captioned was amusing. "Bols". Demonstrates the way the British drop the "T" sounds when speaking. A lot of great info, well done.
A million in royalties would certainly put a smile on anyone's face . Given the hundreds of millions the Beatles made it would have only been fair to have compensated him earlier.
OH BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO FUCKING BOO HOO . Best had been peddling his stupid sob story for decades now. He could have been a Beatle! So what? The Beatles are nothing more than silly pop group.These days I'd be embarrassed to be associated with The Beatles. And this is coming from someone who used to actually like The Beatles.
Looking at the way Lennon treated the son he had with his first wife ( Julian ) , it is clear the man was a narcissist. Despite of all the peace loving , hippie image he loved to portray.
As a drummer and a fan, Pete Best did not have good “time”, pure and simple! Ringo had the timing of a clock and was much more imaginative! He was just better and he made the band better!
Chad Channing was fired from Nirvana right before they hit it big with Nevermind! As a drummer, what's your assessment of Chad's drumming? Chad wrote the drum parts for "Nevermind" and you can hear his playing on the Smart Studios demo for what became Nevermind. How does it compare to Grohl's drumming on the finished record?
@@ThatOpalGuy Dragging, mostly. His EMI recording of Love Me Do is all over the place - but George Martin had told him to play a groove with more swing, and Pete was winging it. Martin probably did so to convince the Beatles a session drummer was necessary for the recording. Other recordings show Pete in better form, but he wasn't nearly as solid as Ringo. Pete's fills were rather bland, too. He didn't have Ringo's creativity and he relied on basic rolls far too much.
Thousands have been dumped from bands in music history. Most became nothing but bar bands and so no hard feelings were had. Pete Best has had a great life and family and can now retire. God blessed him in other ways!❤
In my younger days I was an athlete. Many teams got better after I was replaced. Until I saw this video I never even considered that I may have been too good looking for these teams.
I'm happy to see Pete's doing well. I got to meet him once in the 1980s at a Beatles fan day in the NLs. Just a very charming, soft-spoken, gracious person.
That was so cool but he was right, as producer he wanted to capture the best possible recording, which he knew he wouldn't have been able to do with Pete.
@@richardbrown1189 George Martin only said he wanted to use a session drummer 🥁 for the first recording session. He never implied or insisted that Pete would never record with the group or that he wasn’t good enough to play with them live.
7:42 John was being brutally honest about sacking Pete, not sugarcoating it at all. But he explained it about as succinctly (and accurately) as possible. Pete never really grew as a drummer. Watching him play in more recent years, his drumming just hasn’t improved much (if any). His timing is awkward and inconsistent, and he’s barely able to provide any imaginative fills. Pete simply could never have pulled off the interesting drum parts that Ringo played in songs like “Rain” and “A Day in the Life.” He would have held them back, even if they used a studio drummer for the records. John was totally right. Pete’s firing also had nothing to do with his popularity, as Ringo was often voted the most popular Beatle during the touring years… and nobody sacked him because of it. Listen to the Hollywood Bowl recording of “Boys” and you hear all the girls go totally apesh*t. It’s remarkable to hear. Lastly, Pete didn’t gel with the other three. He had a different personality and didn’t hang out with the others off stage. Ringo was “one of the guys,” someone who not only was a better drummer but more fun to be around. Having said that, Pete has been rewarded by having a decent life… outliving two of his band mates by decades, while still retaining his freedom to enjoy the little things in life without being mobbed. Fame was cruel to John, shot in the back when he was only 40. George was stabbed multiple times in the chest in his own home thanks to his fame. Pete can walk down the street and drink a pint in his local pub.
John was technically correct, but he could have been more human about it. John was a talented musician and performer, he could also be an absolute jerk.
Nothing against Pete Best but this would not have been an issue if the Beatles did not become so successful. If they had become a mediocre band Pete would have just said yeah I played for them at one time. They had no idea they were going to get as big as they did.
You're missing the whole point. It was the fact that the band became the biggest on the planet that was the problem. Can you imagine trying to deal with that, let alone the media constantly hounding you for your story. Mental torture in indeed, I'm sure. Glad he got something out of it financially in the end to compensate for all that mental hardship I'm sure he'll have gone through. Especially the lads not giving him any credit. Lennon's take on it was embarrassing.
@@1blastman exactly Ringo was a self-taught left-handed drummer and I can say as a drummer myself his drumming added a whole different dynamic to The Beatles Pete best was a very good drummer but very generic with a cookie cutter style
@@rael1999credit? For what? Did he write their songs? He was just the drummer at one point. The fact that he stayed for so long and yet didn't improve a little bit is enough to not bring him up, because otherwise it would be humiliating towards him.
It's as John said - they couldn't go to Hamburg without a drummer. They had approached Chapman and Moore who'd drummed for them before, but neither could or would go to Germany, and they only had a few days left. They knew about Pete from the Casbah Club so he was a last resort. Pete was a nice guy but he was never a great drummer, unlike Ringo. It was kind of inevitable he would end up out of the group.
Yes, but this was the Beatles and just weeks before they made it big, Beatle big! It had to hurt, I mean they all worked very hard to get where they had a recording contract & then to get sacked, ouch!
Yeah, it's a consensual thing. At a certain point, the targeted band member would receive 'hints', but no formal warning, and then there's the "cross the line" act or performance which proves to be the final nail. Most of the time these people are quite young, relatively speaking, and somewhat brash, with inflated egos.
pete wasn't screwed by the other 3 beatles out of a life of success, wealth and fame. its not like john, paul and george sat down one day in 1962 and said - "we're on our way to historical prominence and to revolutionize music. lets screw pete out of it." they couldn't see into the future and had no idea just how successful they'd become. pete was let go from a small, little-known liverpool r&r band and replaced by someone its leader, john, thought was a better drummer. if pete wasn't replaced by ringo the likelihood that the beatles would've become the legends they became was probably very slim. ringo, for whatever reason, was the missing piece. and its the charisma and talent of all 4 of the beatles that was ESSENTIAL for this little liverpool rock band to become a worldwide sensation. thanks for the video.
Nonsense, they sacked Pete out of petty jealousy, nothing more. Pete was the far and away most popular Beatle, and they couldn't handle playing second fiddle to him.
This kind of stuff happens in a professional business situation whether it’s a music group or actors and directors being replaced in the movie business. Life is all about performance end of story
@@dfreeman120 100% agree mate! Best was given the flick because he couldn't cut it in the recording studio...and that decision was made by George Martin! Martin didn't say "Sack best" but he did say I want another drummer on the recordings sessions. So whats to decide? Drop best and find another drummer who can do the job...indeed.....end of story.
You're missing the point. The fact the Beatles became so famous is why Pete went through what he went through mentally. If the band hadn't have gone on and done anything, then yeah there'd have been no media spot light on Pete. It wasn't just about the money, it was about being kicked out of a band that went on to be the biggest on the planet and having to cope with how that would affect someone mentally.
7:36 Lennon's infamous clip must be put into context. By the time he made this comment John was rather embittered by the entire situation. The Beatles had long since broken-up. John had seen Pete sue the Beatles (and Brian) for 'breach of contract' and Ringo for 'libel'. He also saw Pete put out an album called THE BEST OF THE BEATLES. John was sick of the 'Pete situation'! However, during Pete's tenure as a Beatle, John and Pete were friends. They hung out a lot. The Beatles reached many milestones with Pete as their drummer from 1960-1962. If he were really as terrible as John describes in this clip, they would have replaced him MUCH earlier.
@@JustPlainSteve5372 Not just "implying", John clearly said that once they got signed they fell apart as a live band. Well, as soon as they got signed they sacked Pete and hired Ringo. Harrison echoed Lennon's thoughts saying that they became such a tight band in Hamburg and that they never got back to that level after they got a record deal.
How the hell do you come to the conclusion that he's "an amazing man" ?!!...what next "he's a legend" ? ...Lord help us ! he's a crap drummer who ended up getting lucky with an undeserved pay packet...get real you fool
It's hard as a musician to see it when you've just turned twenty, but over time you put pieces together and realize, "Yeah. Ringo was the best around. Every band wanted him. How could they NOT snatch him up given the chance? I should have practiced more."
In the words of John Lennon when asked by a reporter if he thought Ringo was the best drummer in the world. Lennon's reply was "Best drummer in the world! He isn't even the best drummer in the Beatles...."
SINCE JIHN I N D E E D W A S DEAD AGAINST YESTERDAY?! HOW COME? WHY DIDN'T HE / JOHHNY WRITE A SINF, TITLED AS TOMMORROW?? JOHN CONSTANTLY CHEATED ON THE ACUSTICTS - ON THE MUSICAKL INSTRUMENTS! HE TRYED TO BLAST THE BEATLES, NUMEROUS TIMES, UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF YOKO!
History says the girls loved Pete Best. He was the most popular Beatle by leagues. That's why George got punched in the eye when Ringo came in. They were that mad that Best was replaced. You just have to look at the dude and see he was easily the best looking out of the lot of them. You just have to read Mersey Beat, and get a real story about Pete Best's POPULARITY. He had the star power. It was the drumming that let him down, but he's not a bad drummer. He can keep a beat. Unlike McCartney! PS - Stuart Sutcliffe NEVER turned his back on the audience. Klaus Voorman LEARNED Bass from Sutcliffe, because everyone knew Stuart was a good bassist. Even McCartney seemed to know it back in the 60s, calling him great! By the 90s, he's believed the beatles mythology so much, he claims Stuart didn't even know what notes were. (he still has to explain how he purchased a left handed hofner, when back in the day, you had to special order direct from hofner to get a left handed instrument. they weren't a shelf item, and he didn't "flip it" from a right handed version, because it's very clear it's a left handed hofner. ) (pronounced HOAFner, like LOAF. german)
There's even correspondence between George Harrison and Stuart Sutcliffe, where Harrison asks Stuart TO COME BACK TO THE BAND, after staying behind in Germany, because Paul on Bass ain't exactly working out like they hoped at that time. (cue people saying mccartney??? not know how to play bass??? harrison is a jerk) (have you seen the instruments mccartney was playing before he bought that hofner?) (just because you play guitar does not give you carte blanche over bass. you're going to sound like a guitarist playing bass. which is not what bassists do.)
@DrTomoculus Just because he had good looks didn't make him a star. He didn't have the personality to go along with it. His drumming couldn't compare to Ringo's, all you have to do is listen to the two side by side. Best was a mediocre bar room drummer.
@@Melcop1886 He was dark and moody. When you're dark and moody, THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR PERSONALITY. They're too busy imagining all the mysteries within. He was massively popular with the ladies with his "no personality". His drumming did not compare to Ringo's. But he was the most popular Beatle in Liverpool.
Its not that he did not take what it had to be a Beatle it is he did not stoop that low to be a Beatle. Mr Best had class the others were just grown men who acted like teenagers, talented but emotionally arrested.
Pete seems like a very very likable person and I’m very happy to hear he’s doing fantastic! Ppl saying he’s a terrible drummer and they’re glad he got kicked out is just uncalled for really. Him feeling the way he felt is only natural after getting kicked out of the band and told you’re a lousy drummer, he wasn’t the right guy so they got ringo who was absolutely the right person for the job.
He was a lousy drummer. I'm a guitarist, and I know what it feels like to play with a drummer who can't keep a beat. I don't hate Pete. I hate those idiots who insist that he was better than Ringo and that jealousy was the reason why he was fired.
Pete had his early years in India. I wonder if the Indian syncopation/beat is what was predominantly in his system. Curiously the Beatles , George especially took to the Indian flavour after a few more years later . Interesting also that George is the one depicted as the main motivator for getting rid of Pete . I don't think they wanted to discuss that scam Guru they adopted in later interview appearances.
@@ruelitocayamanda8162 People judge Pete by his "Love Me Do" EMI recording, but you gotta remember George Martin told Pete "I'm not happy with Love Me Do, play a beat with more swing"... on the day of the recording! Pete had no time to practice and was winging it. Very few people would perform well under those circumstances. There aren't that many recordings with Pete Best on them kicking around but from what we have I think it's fair to conclude Pete Best could hold a beat just fine but he wasn't particularly imaginative with fills and he didn't have the natural feel that Ringo did. Ringo was certainly a far better drummer. I'd say Pete was "okay". He wasn't _awful_ but he lacked natural talent; good enough for a bar band, not good enough for the big leagues. It's not surprising he never made it as a drummer after being fired from the Beatles.
He is an objectively bad drummer though. Nothing personal but I can hear it. His timing is all over the place. Others can get away with bad timing because you learn to just follow the drummer. The drummer can't. I don't care really, I won't say anything bad about him personally, but He was not a good Drummer that's just the fact of it.
@@rdrrr All I have to go on is the recordings we have and in those he had bad timing. He wasn't consistent. every time they switch sections his tempo would change, and he never seemed to maintain a constant tempo even in the sections. Just use a metronome on one song, you will see how off he gets. Bad timing is not a "I didn't get to practice it" sort of thing. You shouldn't have to practice maintaining a tempo as a drummer. It's something you should just be able to do. Thats what people mean when they say he was bad. He speeds up and slows down randomly. I can conclude that on those recordings he was an inexperienced drummer who probably never really had any lessons and couldn't keep tempo. It's no surprise to me that when George Martin heard this band his only thing was to change the drummer.
The Beatles wouldn't be the same without Ringo. He was the missing ingredient that completed the potion for their magical spell. There's no one else that could've completed the mixture to make "The Beatles". They were all perfect for each other. It's not what he played, but what he DIDN'T play, and HOW he played. That's an important distinction that gets overlooked. John Bonham, for example, was an incredible drummer. If he was with the Beatles, it simply would NOT work. Simple ingredient, timeless magic. #teamRingo
Ringo's personality was just as important as his drumming. During their Beatlemania phase, Ringo was always good for some funny one liners, and had a way about him that was very appealing to Beatles fans.
@@guntertorfs6486 It's a very entertaining thought that a random average drummer that would have been found in any random amateur band could have ended up in the most successful band in history, by pure fluke, and managed to fake it as a very innovative drummer that even many great drummers today name as their greatest influence. Not saying that it was the case, but it's funny to think about it.
In the late 70’s I left a band I co-started to join a band I really liked. After a year or so I got fired from that band (that went on to do absolutely nothing). It was tough at the time- I remember it like yesterday. I think we both thought we could do better with a move, but both proved wrong.
The Beatles ended up not liking to carry on 8 years later and never reunited. So did Credence Clearwater Revival. So did Ozzy's bandmates bassist Bob Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake. The drummers seem especially to get left out like with Black Sabbath's Bill Ward and AC/DC's Phil Rudd in recent reunion albums.
Best might've been reliable, but Ringo has a metronome in place of a heart, he is incredibly creative, playing fills that not only Pete couldn't play, but neither most drummers, and even more importantly, he had the personality and charisma to be part of the cultural phenomenon the Beatles were
Ringo definitely didn’t play anything that most drummers couldn’t play. His drum parts are fine to learn even for beginners. He is a brilliant drummer though, for his groove and how he arranged his parts.
@@ShawnKennedy-w2i He's a competent drummer, and knows what he's doing, but compared to someone like Billy Cobham or Steve Gadd he can barely play at all. Those guys are what you call top drummers.
1/I don't get the impression the guys ever criticized Pete's playing to his face, or encouraged him to improve. They just figured they'd get a better drummer when they could. He probably thought he was doing fine. Maybe not good enough for the world's most successful band, but good enough for the band at the time. 2/With fans calling him the best looking member, he'd be unlikely to change his hair to look more like theirs. 3/He couldn't fit in. He just wasn't as clever. Few people are. Four guys in the same band being so 'on top of it' is a one-off.
What a beautiful video. It fully gives Pete Best credit for all that he did, and how he finally forgave them. I saw that very resentful interview with David Letterman at the time, and I felt so sorry for him, but was struck by how bitter he had remained. They did nothing wrong initially, but no-one likes getting fired. It was their later treatment of him that was really bad, and all but John freely admitted it. But it does state that they were very young and inexperienced in business. Would you or I have done it better? I doubt it. I'm so glad Pete finally got money and credit for his time with the Beatles.
"for Pete Best life wasn't so great". But the Beatles didn't enjoy their every waking minute in the spotlight. Harrison said it stopped being fun once they became famous and that Hamburg was the best of times.
If you search on YT, someone has put a metronome over Pete's version of Love Me Do. It's all over the place timing-wise. John always said they wanted to get rid of him as soon as they returned from Hamburg.
@@Heisrisenthemusicalyou need to hear it for yourself. I have and the difference is much greater than other popular drummer variance. We all like an underdog story, but this is not it.
@@ironchimpo Baloney. Pete was good enough to do a few Hamburg tours of 5PM to 1:30 AM gigs 6 days a week. Ringo never played longer than 30 minutes EVER. Listen to the Hamburg tapes. Then listen to Ringo at same time (and place) with Rory Storm and he's WORSE than Pete all day long. Jump forward to their first Live gig in USA at Washington Colosseum and dig Ringo jacking up the BPM like mad, same at Shea stadium. John and Pete actually got along well, so did Ringo and Pete. John is just a liar as usual when he tries to make up excuses about Pete. Both J&P were jealous he was THE most popular Beatle in Liverpool. When they signed to EMI ONLY Pete's photo was on the front page of Mersey Beat. The irony was J&P were pissed when it became Ringo was the most popular Beatle in the USA ! Hence Ringo always thought they's "pull a Pete" on him. Carries that chip to this day, being replaced twice. People tend to think Ringo in the studio after hundreds of takes and cutting and pasting tape together to make a take is the same as banging it out in '63 in a rotten club. LOL Just dig up Rory Storm in Hamburg, and drink your shut-up juice. 🥁
Nobody played to a metronome and until drum machines/sequencing/MIDI and time code in early 80s nobody played to a click. ALL music classical, jazz fluctuates BPM, especially Rock - music breathes it's not a lockstep march but it all got ruined when everybody locked into BPMs on DAWs and drum machines. Early 70's LPs like Close To The Edge could not be done today if you used a click. 👀
@@guntertorfs6486Show some respect to Ringo Starr. He was absolutely the magic touch especially in the isolated tracks you can tell Ringo is all about the technicality not the flashiness and a human metronome
@@KimberleeT25He's not showing disrespect. He is telling the truth. Even Ringo himself has said several times that he is not a technical wonder. He's a decent drummer with good stamina. That's it.
@@KimberleeT25 some other commenter said that they wanted three drummers before ringo and all of them refused. Is that true? If it is then you might be suffering from default bias.
It's not that Pete Best was a bad drummer, it was because he didn't fit in. If for example The Beatles employed Ginger Baker, John Bonham or Neil Peart three of the best drummers of all time.....none of those would have fitted in either, often it's about charm, humour, character and compatibility, the three Beatles certainly had that......and so did Ringo.
In middle school there was an announcement to sign up for the band. We lined up outside the band room to see what instruments we would get. I wanted the drums. When got in the room I asked for the drum…Bandmaster said just gave the last drum to kid in front of me (Arty Zandinkowski) Bandmaster says how’s about trumpet ? Later when everyone was starting garage bands nobody wanted trumpets…Not same as Pete but can relate to that feeling.🐇
ive listened to their early stuff, pete did alot of rolls, and was spot on, which I love. Ringo had an uncanny knack for hitting the spot. they were lucky to get him .for all their immense talent they were lucky: Epstein/ george martin. Sullivan, Shea. its like a moon shot. Im glad I was around then, they were that good
Fantastic bit of music history that I never knew! Thanks for making this mini-documentary on Pete Best and his contributions to the Beatles and the overall story!! ~ Victor
It's 10,000 hours of deliberate practice that is required, not just doing something over and over. Deliberate practice means identifying an issue that needs improving and focusing on that until one does it correctly without thought or effort.
When i was 17 I was a cashier at Kroger. However, despite slaving for 2 years during high school I was replaced because I had to go to college. Within a few months my old store became the #1 grossing Kroger location in the state. So, I know exactly how Pete Best feels.
The same thing happened to me , i was the lead guitarist in a band but i didn't get kicked out for playing bad , they said i partied too much so they kicked me out and hired some guy named Keith Richards.
Keith wasn’t the lead guitarist in the Rolling Stones when they began, that was Brian Jones and then Mick Taylor, Keith only became lead when they got Ron Wood.
I'm constantly amazed that there are people - mostly, seemingly, Americans in their mid-twenties - who claim (on God-only-knows what evidence) that Pete Best was a brilliant drummer and that he was unfairly manoeuvred out of The Beatles. The only people who can possibly have seen The Beatles with Pete Best as a live band must now be at least seventy five and have grown up in either Liverpool or Hamburg (and that's if they managed to get into The Cavern or The Top Ten as a thirteen year old). The recordings Pete made with The Beatles amount to seven songs with Bert Kampfert in Hamburg in 1961 (on which Pete was told to only use snare and cymbals and plays one solitary beat throughout), the Decca audition tape (on which he's adequate on the straightforward rock-and-roll numbers but when they try anything slower, he's often very unsteady - particularly on Till There Was You), six songs recorded for BBC Radio in 1962 (on which he appears, again, adequate but nothing special) and two songs recorded at EMI in June 62 (on which he's, frankly, all over the place, particularly on the version of Love Me Do which is painful to listen to). Just about everyone who actually saw The Beatles with Pete and then, later with Ringo, appear from then-contemporary reports, to suggest that they improved after Ringo joined. One stray cry of 'we want Pete!' on The Cavern People & Places film aside, there is no evidence of there being any great outcry at the time or of The Beatles losing any fans in August 1962 because Pete got the push - quite the opposite, in fact. If Pete was as great as some people suggest, then where are all of the legendary recordings of him after he left The Beatles? (His next band, Lee Curtis & The All Stars recorded three singles for Decca, none of which Pete played on; whether he drummed on any of the various The Pete Best Four records made in 1964 and 1965 is, also, highly debateable). In the end, history will be the judge of this. It's hard not to feel a bit of sympathy for Pete over what might have been - you'd have to be inhuman not to - but he doesn't exactly help himself by constantly claiming that he doesn't know why he was fired. He was told the reason in 1962 and the answer hasn't changed in the sixty two years since.
Wrong. Pete played on every recording made by his post-Beatles bands. Not only that, but during his Beatles 2-year tenure Pete was regarded as one of the best drummers in the entire Hamburg-Liverpool circuit. But hey, don't take it from me. Here's what a contemporary drummer of Pete's said when he was asked in an interview what he thought of Pete's drumming: *"He was a genius. You could sit Pete Best on a drum kit and ask him to play for 19 hours and he'd put his head down and do it. He'd drum like a dream with real style and stamina all night long, and that really was The Beatles' sound, forget the guitars. I was amazed when they replaced him. I even thought about learning guitar so he could be the drummer in my band. The Beatles didn't hate Pete Best, but they didn't want to be outshone by their drummer. Ringo was a good drummer but he was more ordinary."* -- Chris Curtis, drummer for The Searchers, a great Liverpool band who scored a 1964 Top 3 Hit in the US charts with their classic, "Love Potion # 9". Chris saw Pete Best play many times in both Hamburg and Liverpool during Pete's two years as The Beatles' drummer.
There are a couple of videos with Pete Best on You Tube so anybody who wants to hear him play can. I have and... he's not a brilliant drummer, he's not even a good drummer.
Thank you for this video. It is truly a bittersweet story. Fame and fortune unparallelled slipped through Mr. Best's fingers but he found his own way after all.
I played with the Beatles... i put on the records, got on my drum set, and banged away.... Ringo called me and said, "Get a day job, and while your at it, better get a night job." It was fun while it lasted...
When it comes to the medals on the Sgt. Pepper cover John most likely asked their road manager Neil Aspinall who was in a secret relationship with Pete Best's mother Mona for years. They even had a son together.
5:39 One must ask, how bad of a dummer could Pete have been? In December 1961, John, Paul, George & Pete signed a Partnership Agreement. They were the first Liverpool Group to do so under Brian's direction. This tied them together as a Partnership, as a group! So certainly, they were not concerned about his drumming at that time or about replacing him. Everyone must realize that in technical legal terms, Brian Epstein didn’t have the authority to “fire” Pete. Brian was the employee of Pete (and John, Paul & George). They had the authority to fire Brian, not the other way around. David Harris, Brian’s lawyer advised Brian that Pete had to leave the band voluntarily. John, Paul & George did not have the authority to “fire” Pete either. Brian convinced Pete that he was “sacked” without technically “sacking” him. In fairness, Brian still represented Pete. You are correct David; Brian did offer Pete a job in his new group the Merseybeats. The Merseybeats were prepared to dismiss their current drummer and thrilled at the idea of Pete joining them. The Merseybeats went on to have six Top 40 Hits! Personally, I feel Pete made a mistake not taking that gig but understand why he turned it down. Pete was 20 at that time, and I believe the average age of each of the Merseybeats was 17 or so.
Surprised no one has mentioned the Liverpool Beatles Museum (formerly the Magical Beatles Museum) near the Cavern replica in Liverpool. Pete and, esp., his brother Roag started the museum and for me it was the best experience I had visiting there. Thanks to Neil Aspinal's relationship with Mona and their son Roag, Roag had access to the entire Beatles paraphernalia legacy. And then the house Pete lived in and Roag grew up in has the Casbah in the cellar, and Mona and Pete save all that stuff! I really thank the Best brothers for putting so much of that history on display.
Pete always seems like a kind and gentle soul. He wasn't a really good drummer -- and Ringo was much better -- but it's hard not to feel a bit sad how it all played out. Glad he finally got his royalties owed him.
He wasn't owed any royalties until the Anthology was put together and when they did that they made sure he got he was owed from sales of the Anthology. They weren't buddy buddy with him and probably weren't in contact but they knew that if they sold recordings he played on they owed him money.
Okay, so the guy's good looks brought in the screaming girls when the Beatles first got started. But the most telling point was made by George Martin, who was the Beatles' big chance-if Pete Best is the drummer, I'm bringing in a studio drummer for the record. The change had to be made. I'm glad Pete finally cashed in with that anthology payment, though.
@@lazur1 Okay, it wasn't unusual at the time to use a studio drummer for the record. On the other hand, it's not a ringing endorsement of Pete's drumming skills either.
Ringo did later play the third version. Martin didn’t know Ringo, and so, first used a trusted session player after Pete’s didn’t cut it. The Ringo version is better.
It's been reported (I got it from another video on the topic) that George Martin didn't mean to replace Pete Best in the band, just hire another drummer for studio recording only. However it's unclear if the other Beatles as well as Brian Epstein, who were not familiar with the fact that session drummer were often hired, misinterpreted G.Martin's request as "Pete Best is not good enough, he has to be fired". For George Martin, hiring a session drummer was common practice and didn't mean that the band's drummer was bad, just that they were not up to the very high standard that is demanded for studio recording.
How could you handle what Pete had to deal with? I think he has overcome this huge obstacle. I’m glad he received his due with the Beatles’ anthology. Well done Mr. Best!
So it is true. The older you get, the wiser you become. Thank you Pete for your "small" part in the Beatles' legacy. That "small" part opened the door to success for The Beatles.
It's not too weird that Pete's mother would have had contact with the Beatles in some way, since Neil Aspinall and Pete's mother had a child together, Roag, who now does lots of Beatle-related activities in Liverpool.
I was sacked as a drummer because my replacements father had excellent connections in music. didn’t take long before I was asked to rejoin without my replacements knowledge.
Lennon was nasty, just ask her his firsf wife. He got away with giving his wife pennies after he took up with Yoko Ono. She was so hard up that she sold her most precious memories in the form of letters and drawings John had sent to her. Days after the sale, she received a package, and all the letters and drawings were returned to her and had been put in frames. Paul had bought them and included a note saying these are precious memories for you to keep
Indeed. The way he treated his son Julian was horrible. Despite all the fake love and peace hippie image he loved to portray , the man was a clear narcissist. Musically very gifted , but a complete ahole.
She should have had a bonfire party of the lot of it. If sentimental Paul didn't like that idea she should have sold it back to him for as much as she could. Suppose it was Yoko who told John 'You don't need to give her anything much, she always can sell your old drawings and stuff if she wants.'
@@jillfryer6699 It's touching what Paul did, but seriously, who wants their exhusband's crap lying around? Especially if it's worth money! If not sold it would have gone in the garbage anyway.
John didn't appear to have any flair for diplomacy. He was just a blunt instrument. Paul on the other hand was all diplomacy. When George passed he answered a question from the media as cold and unfeeling as he possibly could have, and that was just the unflappable, stoic, measured Paul. No offense meant, Paul just kept it all inside
I had heard this before about Mona Best keeping in touch with the beatles.. I find that very bizarre tho as the beatles first got to be known to the Liverpool public by performing in Monas club the Casbah... And as a mother you would think she would be annoyed with the band for kicking out her boy Pete Best
mona, had more connections to the beatles than alot of pepole probably realize . she was the mother of Neil Aspinall's child with her, and Neill in the beatles hierarchy was about #6 , after the boys and brain. so she was part of the "circle" that always surrounded the beatles either directly or vicariously. other notables are the german crew, Astrid, Jurgen, Klaus, the first beatle wives. mal evans, magic alex (later), eric clapton. the rolling stones.
Among other things, he dumped his wife for that J**. And then ignored his son. The new family got his money, and the first son had to fight to get some scraps.
@@oldman4595 Yes a classic do as I say not t as I do person. Promoting his b.s. peace and love . Great Beatle great songwriter . Very troubled life who could not control himself. Trying to pass off yoko as a musician was laughable. George was also a do as I say not as I do person. Preaching Hare Krishna while screwing anything with a pulse- including ringo's wife. But most famous people are like that. Most men are only as loyal as their options.
I agree. The more I read about him, the more nasty he seems. And not just to Cynthia and Julian. He apparently had a habit of winding people up and, if they reacted badly to his sarcastic put-downs, he would turn up the heat. Just look at the comments he made about Paul!
Paul McCartney mentioned that while he and John had similar backgrounds, their upbringings were wildly different. Paul came from a close-knit loving family and his mother was a midwife so pregnant ladies would often be at Mary's classes and Paul would say a two or three year old would be dumped in his lap while his mother was instructing the ladies on preparation. Paul knows how to play with children and is an excellent husband/father. John was raised by his aunt and came from a fractured family. He was both a bad father (he knew all about that) and a bad husband, especially Cynthia. John relied on friends instead of family. He walked out on Yoko for a couple of years. John wrestled demons who often got the best of him. Julian Lennon said that Paul was a joy to be around while his father was often sour and dour, while exhibiting a bad disposition. Very sad.
I live in cali but recently was in Liverpool for a couple weeks after stopping in London and all the locals and children of locals who had known some of the guys all claimed Pete was simply sacked for “looking to good”. Thought that was nuts but man everyone I spoke to who would know all said the same thing
They should have tossed him a little money after they all became millionaires. He supported them with a venue and by touring with them for 2 years. They would have broken up totally penniless without him.
Agreed. I don't buy the jealousy-is-the-reason story, but the guy was with you while you built your reputation enough to get a recording contract. When you're all making millions per month you could throw some money Pete's way.
Yep, they could have employed him somehow or ensured he was looked after. End of the day you might be the best band in the world but why not be kind to those around you.
@@lazur1 A friend who is a big Beatles fan told me that Ringo made sure some tracks with Best were put on the Anthology albums. I've not been able to confirm it, but I hope it's true.
Pete Best sucked as a drummer and as a Beatle. Ringo finalized the Fab Four. Ringo was better for the band. It’s a no brainer. Not the most brutal sacking, the most necessary! In simple terms, no Ringo, no Beatles.
@@olavirannisto3552 And Pete revolutionized Rock drumming with his Atom Beat. Pete was a fantastic drummer, he was sacked because JP&G were jealous of his status as the far and away most popular Beatle. But hey, don't take it from me. Here's what a contemporary drummer of Pete's said when he was asked in an interview what he thought of Pete's drumming: *"He was a genius. You could sit Pete Best on a drum kit and ask him to play for 19 hours and he'd put his head down and do it. He'd drum like a dream with real style and stamina all night long, and that really was The Beatles' sound, forget the guitars. I was amazed when they replaced him. I even thought about learning guitar so he could be the drummer in my band. The Beatles didn't hate Pete Best, but they didn't want to be outshone by their drummer. Ringo was a good drummer but he was more ordinary."* -- Chris Curtis, drummer for The Searchers, a great Liverpool band who scored a 1964 Top 3 Hit in the US charts with their classic, "Love Potion # 9". Chris saw Pete Best play many times in both Hamburg and Liverpool during Pete's two years as The Beatles' drummer.
@@Cosmo-Kramer Each of us can have strange beliefs. I recommend reading the result of decades of research by a leading Beatles guru. Mark Lewisohn: All These Years, Volume 1: Tune In.
I"m even worse off than Pete Best. I never played with The Beatles at all.
That made me laugh out loud in a fairly busy train station. Thanks
I'm worse off than you, I wasn't even born until the Beatles split up.
Best comment on this video !
@@mickberry164 you’re Pete Worst
Hahaha! Logical.
I'm pretty sure the sacking of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was more brutal.
Lol, true 😢
😂😂😂👏👏
*Suprrboyyy* -- _'I'm pretty sure the sacking of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258 was more brutal'_ ---- Damn Bikers 😆
😂
You funny bastard!
And correct!
His attitude really seemed to turn around once he got the $1,000,000. And that's not meant as a criticism, he earned it for playing on the tracks and it's well deserved. Glad he ended up getting a portion of the pie that represented his contribution.
It would certainly change my attitude
@@John-k6f9kSeems, that like life, it was more complex.
@@John-k6f9k You wouldn't do the same?
Not sure about how accurate that timeline is, but I could imagine there's truth in the idea that being rewarded with such a sum would 'mend' things. And just like you say, that has nothing to do with greed or capitalist corruption or whatever you may. It has to do with being recognized for your efforts and receiving your fair share.
Band members quit and get tossed all the time. One HAS to go with what they feel is the best fit. Ringo was the right fit. Pete was well compensated for that move.
Pete has gotten, so far, about £6,000,000 from the Anthology Project and CD royalties. Good for him.
Yes and now he can stop whinging.
Quite the fee for doing a job so bad you got sacked for it and became the proverbial guy who missed the beat errrr boat.
Where is your source for this figure?
Not sure about your money figures but one thing is sure.
It’s a steady, reliable income source till the end of his days.
Good for him.
He did step up and go with to the the piss- bowl Hamburg gig when he was asked.
Fir that, he was more than handsomely repaid.
ya how do you know this?
Ringo is lovable and never competed with any of the others, which made all of us love him. He just seemed like a happy guy with a ready smile, and he made it seem so easy!
He's one of the great all time rock and roll drummers.
He's never had much sweetness for Pete - competitive with him. He was sued for slander against Pete in the 80's for spreading false rumours (and rightfully so.) Ringo is not an angel - I wonder how he would feel if he was in the same situation
There was only room for 2 egos
Pete Best is a better drummer than you could ever be.
Yes Ringo was the better drummer but more importantly it was about the "beatle spirit", yk? Ringo possessed and shared the charisma, wit and humour of the other 3. It's staggering how naturally he fits with in the Beatles. Also an important point to note is Pete just didnt hung out with the other 3 and partook in their shenanigans after their shows in Hamburg, he preferred to be by himself. He was a loner. Its like George said, Pete was just a drummer but Ringo was a Beatle, last piece of the puzzle. Last point of the "Beatle square".
I think you stated it "best"...seriously. My band always listed chemistry as most important. Hardly ever had all four guys equal comradery.
True Ringo was the missing piece
Quit glazing
Also, he didn’t have the right hair.
"Yesterday ..."
Pete would end up working for Job Center in Liverpool, eventually rising to regional director. His position would help people find new careers after losing their old ones. Quite appropriate, as Pete had a very good "I was fired from an awesome job" stories in history!
I can imagine how someone would come in bitter from getting fired and then say "Nah, I can't top that one".
The job centre never helped anybody get a new career? They hindered rather than helped! "Take this shitty job or we will stop your money!" Never mind the job you've found but need help with PPE we have a new career for you collecting glasses in a pub!
Actually, he had a shitty job when he was fired. The Beatles hadn't achieved anything yet. He was just a mediocre drummer in an unknown band. That's hardly an "awesome job".
@@bugsy89
Unfortunately, that couldn't be more true.
He looks like he could be a New York wiseguy in that appearance on Late Night.
I read about the rock solid marriage Pete Best had and he had loving children who respected and honoured him. His reputation is great. Who cares about being sacked from a band when you have been blessed so much. Pete Best, you have done great with your life.
Correct. He didn't make the grade as a Beatle and can't let it go. It's become he's meal ticket. A good life is all any of us wants. The Beatles were just an average band in a Hamburg dive when he left them. The future was in no possible way known to be the eruption it would soon become. They got a better a drummer and that was all. Happens all the time
Well said
Something that can’t be said of Mr Lennon who failed his own son
@@AlanKelly-ff7tk
In whose eyes, Mr FatheroftheCentury
The Beatles were a bunch a money grabbing narcissists, later Harrison realised the errors of his life and turned to religion but McCartney Lennon & Starr thought they were in some way important, they play pop music and not very well and sing about trash, they slept with other people wives and girlfriends, ALL of them, they even sang and wrote songs about it, ask anyone who came into contact with them, they had to hide their wives,
I met Pete Best yesterday at the Casbah Coffee Club, 8 Haymans Green (Pete Best's mum's house), "Where it all really began!" He was setting up drums for a gig. Great guy. God bless him! As for being fired - well, that's show biz, he knows that. A true professional.
and Lennon has been known as an arrogant ignorant mega prick.
I've met him several times and Pete is a gentleman and genuinely a nice guy.
No hideous AI voice-over, relevant archive footage and background music at a sensible level. A rarity with video uploads on RUclips. Enjoyed this.
Just like it was in the beginning 🤷🏼♀️
hit the nail on the head with this one. i’m terribly sick of those types of videos, as well as the clickbait titles/thumbnails they come with that never have anything to do with the video itself
Agreed, but the closed captioned was amusing. "Bols". Demonstrates the way the British drop the "T" sounds when speaking. A lot of great info, well done.
@@ineedjesus7You're not the only one. I suspect there are many others like you and me.
AI doesn't exist
Great to hear that Pete is doing much better now.
I
A million in royalties would certainly put a smile on anyone's face . Given the hundreds of millions the Beatles made it would have only been fair to have compensated him earlier.
OH BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO BOO HOO HOO HOO FUCKING BOO HOO . Best had been peddling his stupid sob story for decades now. He could have been a Beatle! So what? The Beatles are nothing more than silly pop group.These days I'd be embarrassed to be associated with The Beatles. And this is coming from someone who used to actually like The Beatles.
Looking at the way Lennon treated the son he had with his first wife ( Julian ) , it is clear the man was a narcissist. Despite of all the peace loving , hippie image he loved to portray.
@@guntertorfs6486💯
As a drummer and a fan, Pete Best did not have good “time”, pure and simple! Ringo had the timing of a clock and was much more imaginative! He was just better and he made the band better!
Yawn 🥱
Was he rushing or dragging?
Chad Channing was fired from Nirvana right before they hit it big with Nevermind! As a drummer, what's your assessment of Chad's drumming? Chad wrote the drum parts for "Nevermind" and you can hear his playing on the Smart Studios demo for what became Nevermind. How does it compare to Grohl's drumming on the finished record?
@@ThatOpalGuy Dragging, mostly. His EMI recording of Love Me Do is all over the place - but George Martin had told him to play a groove with more swing, and Pete was winging it. Martin probably did so to convince the Beatles a session drummer was necessary for the recording.
Other recordings show Pete in better form, but he wasn't nearly as solid as Ringo. Pete's fills were rather bland, too. He didn't have Ringo's creativity and he relied on basic rolls far too much.
But didnt even play on the first record it was a session drummer.
Thousands have been dumped from bands in music history. Most became nothing but bar bands and so no hard feelings were had. Pete Best has had a great life and family and can now retire. God blessed him in other ways!❤
Some have even become better than the band that rid of them. Dave Mustaine got kicked out of Metallica and the rest is history.
Brian Wilson fired the entire band 😂
In my younger days I was an athlete. Many teams got better after I was replaced. Until I saw this video I never even considered that I may have been too good looking for these teams.
lol
I'm happy to see Pete's doing well. I got to meet him once in the 1980s at a Beatles fan day in the NLs. Just a very charming, soft-spoken, gracious person.
Saw him play the drums in his band there, with his son on drums as well.
And was that really the 80s? I feel so old now.
I met him at a Beatlefest here in Ohio as well. Sost-spoken, knowledgeable & humorous. Willing to talk about anything at all.
"I don't want to interfere... but I'm going to provide the drummer." Classic!
'I'm not saying it was aliens. But it was aliens!' Giorgio A. Tsoukalos
Only a posh Englishman could say that 😂
Kind of the role of producer 😉
That was so cool but he was right, as producer he wanted to capture the best possible recording, which he knew he wouldn't have been able to do with Pete.
@@richardbrown1189 George Martin only said he wanted to use a session drummer 🥁 for the first recording session. He never implied or insisted that Pete would never record with the group or that he wasn’t good enough to play with them live.
7:42 John was being brutally honest about sacking Pete, not sugarcoating it at all. But he explained it about as succinctly (and accurately) as possible. Pete never really grew as a drummer. Watching him play in more recent years, his drumming just hasn’t improved much (if any). His timing is awkward and inconsistent, and he’s barely able to provide any imaginative fills. Pete simply could never have pulled off the interesting drum parts that Ringo played in songs like “Rain” and “A Day in the Life.” He would have held them back, even if they used a studio drummer for the records. John was totally right.
Pete’s firing also had nothing to do with his popularity, as Ringo was often voted the most popular Beatle during the touring years… and nobody sacked him because of it. Listen to the Hollywood Bowl recording of “Boys” and you hear all the girls go totally apesh*t. It’s remarkable to hear.
Lastly, Pete didn’t gel with the other three. He had a different personality and didn’t hang out with the others off stage. Ringo was “one of the guys,” someone who not only was a better drummer but more fun to be around.
Having said that, Pete has been rewarded by having a decent life… outliving two of his band mates by decades, while still retaining his freedom to enjoy the little things in life without being mobbed. Fame was cruel to John, shot in the back when he was only 40. George was stabbed multiple times in the chest in his own home thanks to his fame. Pete can walk down the street and drink a pint in his local pub.
Boring
@@rdgrdg1632I thought it rather thoughtful and incisive.
@@rdgrdg1632 You subscribe to golf and fishing channels, you dull bastard 😂
And now, with a song called Boys, RINGO!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
John was technically correct, but he could have been more human about it. John was a talented musician and performer, he could also be an absolute jerk.
I'd say the "most brutal sacking in history"... may have been the sacking of Rome in 410 AD?
Jerusalem in 70 AD by the Romans.
julius caesar got sacked pretty good in 44 bc
The sacking and destruction of Carthage in 146 BC .
It's nice to have a happy ending to a sad story. Pete seems a nice humble bloke.
Young Mr. Hartley, you've provided the best treatment of this topic and timeframe that I have ever seen. Thank you.
Nothing against Pete Best but this would not have been an issue if the Beatles did not become so successful. If they had become a mediocre band Pete would have just said yeah I played for them at one time. They had no idea they were going to get as big as they did.
True, how many bands are there that we never heard of that sacked players and they drifted into obscurity?
You're missing the whole point. It was the fact that the band became the biggest on the planet that was the problem. Can you imagine trying to deal with that, let alone the media constantly hounding you for your story. Mental torture in indeed, I'm sure.
Glad he got something out of it financially in the end to compensate for all that mental hardship I'm sure he'll have gone through.
Especially the lads not giving him any credit. Lennon's take on it was embarrassing.
Well said. Ringo’s drumming was the final piece that made the Beatles so magical.
@@1blastman exactly Ringo was a self-taught left-handed drummer and I can say as a drummer myself his drumming added a whole different dynamic to The Beatles Pete best was a very good drummer but very generic with a cookie cutter style
@@rael1999credit? For what? Did he write their songs? He was just the drummer at one point. The fact that he stayed for so long and yet didn't improve a little bit is enough to not bring him up, because otherwise it would be humiliating towards him.
Sad story from Pete, but its good to see that he picked himself up and fought on with his life .
He'll be remembered for the role he played in the band for a short time
It's as John said - they couldn't go to Hamburg without a drummer. They had approached Chapman and Moore who'd drummed for them before, but neither could or would go to Germany, and they only had a few days left. They knew about Pete from the Casbah Club so he was a last resort. Pete was a nice guy but he was never a great drummer, unlike Ringo. It was kind of inevitable he would end up out of the group.
The royalties helped erase the pain.
Its a pretty common practice to change band members as it evolves.
mayall proves this
Yes, but this was the Beatles and just weeks before they made it big, Beatle big! It had to hurt, I mean they all worked very hard to get where they had a recording contract & then to get sacked, ouch!
@@johngalt5411 History repeats; Chad Channing was fired from Nirvana not long before Nevermind launched the band to megastardom.
Time is the enemy on the road to making it and if you really really want it you have to be ruthless!
Yeah, it's a consensual thing. At a certain point, the targeted band member would receive 'hints', but no formal warning, and then there's the "cross the line" act or performance which proves to be the final nail. Most of the time these people are quite young, relatively speaking, and somewhat brash, with inflated egos.
pete wasn't screwed by the other 3 beatles out of a life of success, wealth and fame. its not like john, paul and george sat down one day in 1962 and said - "we're on our way to historical prominence and to revolutionize music. lets screw pete out of it." they couldn't see into the future and had no idea just how successful they'd become. pete was let go from a small, little-known liverpool r&r band and replaced by someone its leader, john, thought was a better drummer. if pete wasn't replaced by ringo the likelihood that the beatles would've become the legends they became was probably very slim. ringo, for whatever reason, was the missing piece. and its the charisma and talent of all 4 of the beatles that was ESSENTIAL for this little liverpool rock band to become a worldwide sensation. thanks for the video.
Nonsense, they sacked Pete out of petty jealousy, nothing more. Pete was the far and away most popular Beatle, and they couldn't handle playing second fiddle to him.
This kind of stuff happens in a professional business situation whether it’s a music group or actors and directors being replaced in the movie business. Life is all about performance end of story
@@dfreeman120 Life is NOT "all about performance", tons of talented performers never make it big while tons of untalented ones do.
@@Cosmo-Kramer what’s your point ?
@@dfreeman120 100% agree mate! Best was given the flick because he couldn't cut it in the recording studio...and that decision was made by George Martin! Martin didn't say "Sack best" but he did say I want another drummer on the recordings sessions. So whats to decide? Drop best and find another drummer who can do the job...indeed.....end of story.
Had they had no success shortly after, nobody would have cared much. Not even Best.
No sh*t Sherlock lol
@@mitch2620 Get outta here you A**- h***.
You're missing the point. The fact the Beatles became so famous is why Pete went through what he went through mentally. If the band hadn't have gone on and done anything, then yeah there'd have been no media spot light on Pete. It wasn't just about the money, it was about being kicked out of a band that went on to be the biggest on the planet and having to cope with how that would affect someone mentally.
Instead they became the most influential band of all time.
@@mitch2620 No, this is an interesting and important point to be understood, be it obvious or no.
Pete Best did not take being a drummer seriously. His timing was off and never gave the immpression he was working on improving.
7:36 Lennon's infamous clip must be put into context. By the time he made this comment John was rather embittered by the entire situation. The Beatles had long since broken-up. John had seen Pete sue the Beatles (and Brian) for 'breach of contract' and Ringo for 'libel'. He also saw Pete put out an album called THE BEST OF THE BEATLES. John was sick of the 'Pete situation'! However, during Pete's tenure as a Beatle, John and Pete were friends. They hung out a lot. The Beatles reached many milestones with Pete as their drummer from 1960-1962. If he were really as terrible as John describes in this clip, they would have replaced him MUCH earlier.
And John's on record as saying that their "best work was never recorded" implying that that was when they were performing in Hamburg.
@@JustPlainSteve5372 Not just "implying", John clearly said that once they got signed they fell apart as a live band. Well, as soon as they got signed they sacked Pete and hired Ringo. Harrison echoed Lennon's thoughts saying that they became such a tight band in Hamburg and that they never got back to that level after they got a record deal.
I agree I don't think John was saying very nice things about anybody at that time in his life.
@@hankfederico7299clearly jealous because girls liked Pete best.
Pete showed himself to be an amazing man in his own right. Glad he's now recognized as part of their history.
Nice dude
I'm glad that The Beatles included him on the Anthology set so that he could enjoy a financial windfall in later years.
How the hell do you come to the conclusion that he's "an amazing man" ?!!...what next "he's a legend" ? ...Lord help us ! he's a crap drummer who ended up getting lucky with an undeserved pay packet...get real you fool
@@GORDONMCGOOCHAN I think Paul may have felt a bit guilty over their earlier treatment of Pete.
You've put together the real key comments as to why Pete Best was fired. Excellent‼️ 👍
It's hard as a musician to see it when you've just turned twenty, but over time you put pieces together and realize, "Yeah. Ringo was the best around. Every band wanted him. How could they NOT snatch him up given the chance? I should have practiced more."
No amount of practice would have helped....Ringo fit in!! he had the personality.
In the words of John Lennon when asked by a reporter if he thought Ringo was the best drummer in the world. Lennon's reply was "Best drummer in the world! He isn't even the best drummer in the Beatles...."
@@nw8000 Actually, those are the words of British comedian Jasper Carrott in 1983.
@@davidcuny7002 Jasper Carrott or John Lennon its probably true
And it was Liverpool not the world. Oh and Ringo had by far the best looking wife.
Great Video / Lots of Great Info/ Love how Pete's outlook became and how he was and appreciates his part in the Beatles Success
11:00 "It's not about yesterday, it's about tomorrow" ... couldn't help thinking of the paradox this makes with the Beatles song "Yesterday".
SINCE JIHN I N D E E D W A S DEAD AGAINST YESTERDAY?! HOW COME? WHY DIDN'T HE / JOHHNY WRITE A SINF, TITLED AS TOMMORROW?? JOHN CONSTANTLY CHEATED ON THE ACUSTICTS - ON THE MUSICAKL INSTRUMENTS! HE TRYED TO BLAST THE BEATLES, NUMEROUS TIMES, UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF YOKO!
Your time stamp has nothing at all to do with any such quote. Not even around that time... I can't find it
Pete is a humble, nice guy with integrity. Unfortunately he didn't have the star power and talent it took to be a Beatle.
History says the girls loved Pete Best. He was the most popular Beatle by leagues. That's why George got punched in the eye when Ringo came in. They were that mad that Best was replaced. You just have to look at the dude and see he was easily the best looking out of the lot of them. You just have to read Mersey Beat, and get a real story about Pete Best's POPULARITY. He had the star power. It was the drumming that let him down, but he's not a bad drummer. He can keep a beat. Unlike McCartney!
PS - Stuart Sutcliffe NEVER turned his back on the audience. Klaus Voorman LEARNED Bass from Sutcliffe, because everyone knew Stuart was a good bassist. Even McCartney seemed to know it back in the 60s, calling him great! By the 90s, he's believed the beatles mythology so much, he claims Stuart didn't even know what notes were.
(he still has to explain how he purchased a left handed hofner, when back in the day, you had to special order direct from hofner to get a left handed instrument. they weren't a shelf item, and he didn't "flip it" from a right handed version, because it's very clear it's a left handed hofner. ) (pronounced HOAFner, like LOAF. german)
There's even correspondence between George Harrison and Stuart Sutcliffe, where Harrison asks Stuart TO COME BACK TO THE BAND, after staying behind in Germany, because Paul on Bass ain't exactly working out like they hoped at that time.
(cue people saying mccartney??? not know how to play bass??? harrison is a jerk)
(have you seen the instruments mccartney was playing before he bought that hofner?)
(just because you play guitar does not give you carte blanche over bass. you're going to sound like a guitarist playing bass. which is not what bassists do.)
@DrTomoculus Just because he had good looks didn't make him a star. He didn't have the personality to go along with it. His drumming couldn't compare to Ringo's, all you have to do is listen to the two side by side. Best was a mediocre bar room drummer.
@@Melcop1886 He was dark and moody. When you're dark and moody, THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR PERSONALITY. They're too busy imagining all the mysteries within. He was massively popular with the ladies with his "no personality".
His drumming did not compare to Ringo's.
But he was the most popular Beatle in Liverpool.
Its not that he did not take what it had to be a Beatle it is he did not stoop that low to be a Beatle. Mr Best had class the others were just grown men who acted like teenagers, talented but emotionally arrested.
They were all right and the dismissal decision has proven to be correct. It was tough for Pete but life is full of hard lessens.
Pete seems like a very very likable person and I’m very happy to hear he’s doing fantastic! Ppl saying he’s a terrible drummer and they’re glad he got kicked out is just uncalled for really. Him feeling the way he felt is only natural after getting kicked out of the band and told you’re a lousy drummer, he wasn’t the right guy so they got ringo who was absolutely the right person for the job.
He was a lousy drummer. I'm a guitarist, and I know what it feels like to play with a drummer who can't keep a beat. I don't hate Pete. I hate those idiots who insist that he was better than Ringo and that jealousy was the reason why he was fired.
Pete had his early years in India. I wonder if the Indian syncopation/beat is what was predominantly in his system. Curiously the Beatles , George especially took to the Indian flavour after a few more years later . Interesting also that George is the one depicted as the main motivator for getting rid of Pete . I don't think they wanted to discuss that scam Guru they adopted in later interview appearances.
@@ruelitocayamanda8162 People judge Pete by his "Love Me Do" EMI recording, but you gotta remember George Martin told Pete "I'm not happy with Love Me Do, play a beat with more swing"... on the day of the recording! Pete had no time to practice and was winging it. Very few people would perform well under those circumstances.
There aren't that many recordings with Pete Best on them kicking around but from what we have I think it's fair to conclude Pete Best could hold a beat just fine but he wasn't particularly imaginative with fills and he didn't have the natural feel that Ringo did. Ringo was certainly a far better drummer.
I'd say Pete was "okay". He wasn't _awful_ but he lacked natural talent; good enough for a bar band, not good enough for the big leagues. It's not surprising he never made it as a drummer after being fired from the Beatles.
He is an objectively bad drummer though. Nothing personal but I can hear it. His timing is all over the place. Others can get away with bad timing because you learn to just follow the drummer. The drummer can't. I don't care really, I won't say anything bad about him personally, but He was not a good Drummer that's just the fact of it.
@@rdrrr All I have to go on is the recordings we have and in those he had bad timing. He wasn't consistent. every time they switch sections his tempo would change, and he never seemed to maintain a constant tempo even in the sections. Just use a metronome on one song, you will see how off he gets. Bad timing is not a "I didn't get to practice it" sort of thing. You shouldn't have to practice maintaining a tempo as a drummer. It's something you should just be able to do. Thats what people mean when they say he was bad. He speeds up and slows down randomly. I can conclude that on those recordings he was an inexperienced drummer who probably never really had any lessons and couldn't keep tempo. It's no surprise to me that when George Martin heard this band his only thing was to change the drummer.
The Beatles wouldn't be the same without Ringo. He was the missing ingredient that completed the potion for their magical spell. There's no one else that could've completed the mixture to make "The Beatles". They were all perfect for each other. It's not what he played, but what he DIDN'T play, and HOW he played. That's an important distinction that gets overlooked.
John Bonham, for example, was an incredible drummer. If he was with the Beatles, it simply would NOT work. Simple ingredient, timeless magic. #teamRingo
Ringo's personality was just as important as his drumming. During their Beatlemania phase, Ringo was always good for some funny one liners, and had a way about him that was very appealing to Beatles fans.
All honest , objective drummers know the man is extremely average as a drummer.
@@guntertorfs6486 It's a very entertaining thought that a random average drummer that would have been found in any random amateur band could have ended up in the most successful band in history, by pure fluke, and managed to fake it as a very innovative drummer that even many great drummers today name as their greatest influence. Not saying that it was the case, but it's funny to think about it.
Dude..your channel is GOOD!! Keep it up. From Texas USA. Good research
In the late 70’s I left a band I co-started to join a band I really liked. After a year or so I got fired from that band (that went on to do absolutely nothing). It was tough at the time- I remember it like yesterday. I think we both thought we could do better with a move, but both proved wrong.
I wonder what the key is to knowing what is the right thing to do .. do you think its personality fit?
The Beatles ended up not liking to carry on 8 years later and never reunited. So did Credence Clearwater Revival. So did Ozzy's bandmates bassist Bob Daisley and drummer Lee Kerslake. The drummers seem especially to get left out like with Black Sabbath's Bill Ward and AC/DC's Phil Rudd in recent reunion albums.
Best might've been reliable, but Ringo has a metronome in place of a heart, he is incredibly creative, playing fills that not only Pete couldn't play, but neither most drummers, and even more importantly, he had the personality and charisma to be part of the cultural phenomenon the Beatles were
Most overated drummer ever.
@@ericdenoorman1188 By you and you alone.
Ringo definitely didn’t play anything that most drummers couldn’t play. His drum parts are fine to learn even for beginners. He is a brilliant drummer though, for his groove and how he arranged his parts.
@@ShawnKennedy-w2i He's a competent drummer, and knows what he's doing, but compared to someone like Billy Cobham or Steve Gadd he can barely play at all. Those guys are what you call top drummers.
@@adamsmith7058
The best music is not made by the best musicians but by the best composers. The Beatles are proof of this.
Pete Best “Second thought, maybe I should have tried to fit in. Maybe I should have adopted the Beatle hairstyle & been a better musician”.
What
His hair was much too thick and wavy to have they're hairstyle.
1/I don't get the impression the guys ever criticized Pete's playing to his face, or encouraged him to improve. They just figured they'd get a better drummer when they could. He probably thought he was doing fine. Maybe not good enough for the world's most successful band, but good enough for the band at the time. 2/With fans calling him the best looking member, he'd be unlikely to change his hair to look more like theirs. 3/He couldn't fit in. He just wasn't as clever. Few people are. Four guys in the same band being so 'on top of it' is a one-off.
@@lazur1hmm, yes, Ringo didn't appear to be in their league either for song writing.
@@Philip-hv2kc The last thing they wanted was another songwriter. They barely even gave George a chance.
What a beautiful video. It fully gives Pete Best credit for all that he did, and how he finally forgave them. I saw that very resentful interview with David Letterman at the time, and I felt so sorry for him, but was struck by how bitter he had remained. They did nothing wrong initially, but no-one likes getting fired. It was their later treatment of him that was really bad, and all but John freely admitted it. But it does state that they were very young and inexperienced in business. Would you or I have done it better? I doubt it. I'm so glad Pete finally got money and credit for his time with the Beatles.
I saw a. Idea of a Beatles cover band and they asked Pete Best to join them for “I Saw Her Standing There”. Sixty years later and he still can’t play.
🐴 💩
“It’s not about yesterday, it’s about today and tomorrow.” Well said Pete.
tomorrow never knows...
@@andrewcairns8266
Tomorrow’s nowhere man
"for Pete Best life wasn't so great".
But the Beatles didn't enjoy their every waking minute in the spotlight. Harrison said it stopped being fun once they became famous and that Hamburg was the best of times.
So Harry said. Note that he didn’t stop being a rockstar though and kept doing it for decades. It can’t have been all that terrible.
The rich often try to convince the poor they were happier before the money rolled in. Let me find out for myself, please.
If you search on YT, someone has put a metronome over Pete's version of Love Me Do. It's all over the place timing-wise.
John always said they wanted to get rid of him as soon as they returned from Hamburg.
If you put a metronome to just about ANY band back then, they'd all be lacking.
- a recently retired professional band & solo artist.
@@Heisrisenthemusicalyou need to hear it for yourself. I have and the difference is much greater than other popular drummer variance. We all like an underdog story, but this is not it.
@@ironchimpo Baloney. Pete was good enough to do a few Hamburg tours of 5PM to 1:30 AM gigs 6 days a week. Ringo never played longer than 30 minutes EVER. Listen to the Hamburg tapes. Then listen to Ringo at same time (and place) with Rory Storm and he's WORSE than Pete all day long. Jump forward to their first Live gig in USA at Washington Colosseum and dig Ringo jacking up the BPM like mad, same at Shea stadium. John and Pete actually got along well, so did Ringo and Pete. John is just a liar as usual when he tries to make up excuses about Pete. Both J&P were jealous he was THE most popular Beatle in Liverpool. When they signed to EMI ONLY Pete's photo was on the front page of Mersey Beat. The irony was J&P were pissed when it became Ringo was the most popular Beatle in the USA ! Hence Ringo always thought they's "pull a Pete" on him. Carries that chip to this day, being replaced twice. People tend to think Ringo in the studio after hundreds of takes and cutting and pasting tape together to make a take is the same as banging it out in '63 in a rotten club. LOL Just dig up Rory Storm in Hamburg, and drink your shut-up juice. 🥁
Nobody played to a metronome and until drum machines/sequencing/MIDI and time code in early 80s nobody played to a click. ALL music classical, jazz fluctuates BPM, especially Rock - music breathes it's not a lockstep march but it all got ruined when everybody locked into BPMs on DAWs and drum machines. Early 70's LPs like Close To The Edge could not be done today if you used a click. 👀
@@cuda426hemiwhat do you mean “carries that chip to this day, being replaced twice”?
They wouldn't have hit so big without Ringo. He was the finishing touch.
I've often thought of that. Ironically, that might mean something quite altogether better for one of the Beatles.
Sure. Please...
@@guntertorfs6486Show some respect to Ringo Starr.
He was absolutely the magic touch especially in the isolated tracks you can tell Ringo is all about the technicality not the flashiness and a human metronome
@@KimberleeT25He's not showing disrespect. He is telling the truth. Even Ringo himself has said several times that he is not a technical wonder. He's a decent drummer with good stamina. That's it.
@@KimberleeT25 some other commenter said that they wanted three drummers before ringo and all of them refused. Is that true? If it is then you might be suffering from default bias.
It's not that Pete Best was a bad drummer, it was because he didn't fit in.
If for example The Beatles employed Ginger Baker, John Bonham or Neil Peart three of the best drummers of all time.....none of those would have fitted in either, often it's about charm, humour, character and compatibility, the three Beatles certainly had that......and so did Ringo.
George Harrison quote: "The Beatles were John , Paul , George and Ringo not John , Paul, George and Pete"
In middle school there was an announcement to sign up for the band. We lined up outside the band room to see what instruments we would get. I wanted the drums. When got in the room I asked for the drum…Bandmaster said just gave the last drum to kid in front of me (Arty Zandinkowski) Bandmaster says how’s about trumpet ? Later when everyone was starting garage bands nobody wanted trumpets…Not same as Pete but can relate to that feeling.🐇
Why not play trumpet in school band and drums in your garage? What’s the problem? Paul McCartney and George Harrison had trumpets.
The Beatles were and are so huge that even Pete Best is a well known person.
Huge Beatles fan since their introduction to the States in 1963 and this was a nice bit of history. Thanks.
Pete seems a really nice guy and, on a human level, one can only empathise with his position.
ive listened to their early stuff, pete did alot of rolls, and was spot on, which I love. Ringo had an uncanny knack for hitting the spot. they were lucky to get him .for all their immense talent they were lucky: Epstein/ george martin. Sullivan, Shea. its like a moon shot. Im glad I was around then, they were that good
Pete Best was interviewed with his mum - can you imagine any of the others doing so! That sums up the personality problem.
my mum is helping me to write this🤗
Would be somewhat challenging as both Paul and John had sadly lost their Mothers some years earlier.
Magnanimous in old age. Glad he got some royalties.
"Best of the Beatles". That's brilliant!
Fantastic bit of music history that I never knew! Thanks for making this mini-documentary on Pete Best and his contributions to the Beatles and the overall story!! ~ Victor
'He never got better.' So much for the 10,000 hours of practice in Hamburg theory.
It's 10,000 hours of deliberate practice that is required, not just doing something over and over. Deliberate practice means identifying an issue that needs improving and focusing on that until one does it correctly without thought or effort.
@@HairExplosion Thanks for clarifying that. I've read Gladwell's book, but a while ago.
When i was 17 I was a cashier at Kroger. However, despite slaving for 2 years during high school I was replaced because I had to go to college. Within a few months my old store became the #1 grossing Kroger location in the state. So, I know exactly how Pete Best feels.
You’re joking, right?
The same thing happened to me , i was the lead guitarist in a band but i didn't get kicked out for playing bad , they said i partied too much so they kicked me out and hired some guy named Keith Richards.
That would've been around the time Keith started on the old-age pension, yeah?
Keith wasn’t the lead guitarist in the Rolling Stones when they began, that was Brian Jones and then Mick Taylor, Keith only became lead when they got Ron Wood.
I'm constantly amazed that there are people - mostly, seemingly, Americans in their mid-twenties - who claim (on God-only-knows what evidence) that Pete Best was a brilliant drummer and that he was unfairly manoeuvred out of The Beatles. The only people who can possibly have seen The Beatles with Pete Best as a live band must now be at least seventy five and have grown up in either Liverpool or Hamburg (and that's if they managed to get into The Cavern or The Top Ten as a thirteen year old). The recordings Pete made with The Beatles amount to seven songs with Bert Kampfert in Hamburg in 1961 (on which Pete was told to only use snare and cymbals and plays one solitary beat throughout), the Decca audition tape (on which he's adequate on the straightforward rock-and-roll numbers but when they try anything slower, he's often very unsteady - particularly on Till There Was You), six songs recorded for BBC Radio in 1962 (on which he appears, again, adequate but nothing special) and two songs recorded at EMI in June 62 (on which he's, frankly, all over the place, particularly on the version of Love Me Do which is painful to listen to). Just about everyone who actually saw The Beatles with Pete and then, later with Ringo, appear from then-contemporary reports, to suggest that they improved after Ringo joined. One stray cry of 'we want Pete!' on The Cavern People & Places film aside, there is no evidence of there being any great outcry at the time or of The Beatles losing any fans in August 1962 because Pete got the push - quite the opposite, in fact. If Pete was as great as some people suggest, then where are all of the legendary recordings of him after he left The Beatles? (His next band, Lee Curtis & The All Stars recorded three singles for Decca, none of which Pete played on; whether he drummed on any of the various The Pete Best Four records made in 1964 and 1965 is, also, highly debateable). In the end, history will be the judge of this. It's hard not to feel a bit of sympathy for Pete over what might have been - you'd have to be inhuman not to - but he doesn't exactly help himself by constantly claiming that he doesn't know why he was fired. He was told the reason in 1962 and the answer hasn't changed in the sixty two years since.
My Dad was an office boy on Dale Street & would often spend his lunch hour in The Cavern & saw The Beatles many times which to this day blows my mind.
Wrong. Pete played on every recording made by his post-Beatles bands. Not only that, but during his Beatles 2-year tenure Pete was regarded as one of the best drummers in the entire Hamburg-Liverpool circuit. But hey, don't take it from me. Here's what a contemporary drummer of Pete's said when he was asked in an interview what he thought of Pete's drumming: *"He was a genius. You could sit Pete Best on a drum kit and ask him to play for 19 hours and he'd put his head down and do it. He'd drum like a dream with real style and stamina all night long, and that really was The Beatles' sound, forget the guitars. I was amazed when they replaced him. I even thought about learning guitar so he could be the drummer in my band. The Beatles didn't hate Pete Best, but they didn't want to be outshone by their drummer. Ringo was a good drummer but he was more ordinary."* -- Chris Curtis, drummer for The Searchers, a great Liverpool band who scored a 1964 Top 3 Hit in the US charts with their classic, "Love Potion # 9". Chris saw Pete Best play many times in both Hamburg and Liverpool during Pete's two years as The Beatles' drummer.
There are a couple of videos with Pete Best on You Tube so anybody who wants to hear him play can. I have and... he's not a brilliant drummer, he's not even a good drummer.
Americans in their mid-twenties who claim Pete Best was a brilliant drummer? You're pulling that SH!T out of your A$$ now aren't you.
@@Cosmo-KramerWow, Chris Curtis said that? Who cares. What did George Martin say?
Thank you for this video. It is truly a bittersweet story. Fame and fortune unparallelled slipped through Mr. Best's fingers but he found his own way after all.
I played with the Beatles... i put on the records, got on my drum set, and banged away.... Ringo called me and said, "Get a day job, and while your at it, better get a night job." It was fun while it lasted...
I made the tea and sandwiches.
And some of England's most worthy footballers missed the 1966 world cup and could rightly feel greaved, hey Jimmy.
When it comes to the medals on the Sgt. Pepper cover John most likely asked their road manager Neil Aspinall who was in a secret relationship with Pete Best's mother Mona for years. They even had a son together.
5:39 One must ask, how bad of a dummer could Pete have been? In December 1961, John, Paul, George & Pete signed a Partnership Agreement. They were the first Liverpool Group to do so under Brian's direction. This tied them together as a Partnership, as a group! So certainly, they were not concerned about his drumming at that time or about replacing him. Everyone must realize that in technical legal terms, Brian Epstein didn’t have the authority to “fire” Pete. Brian was the employee of Pete (and John, Paul & George). They had the authority to fire Brian, not the other way around. David Harris, Brian’s lawyer advised Brian that Pete had to leave the band voluntarily. John, Paul & George did not have the authority to “fire” Pete either. Brian convinced Pete that he was “sacked” without technically “sacking” him. In fairness, Brian still represented Pete. You are correct David; Brian did offer Pete a job in his new group the Merseybeats. The Merseybeats were prepared to dismiss their current drummer and thrilled at the idea of Pete joining them. The Merseybeats went on to have six Top 40 Hits! Personally, I feel Pete made a mistake not taking that gig but understand why he turned it down. Pete was 20 at that time, and I believe the average age of each of the Merseybeats was 17 or so.
Surprised no one has mentioned the Liverpool Beatles Museum (formerly the Magical Beatles Museum) near the Cavern replica in Liverpool. Pete and, esp., his brother Roag started the museum and for me it was the best experience I had visiting there. Thanks to Neil Aspinal's relationship with Mona and their son Roag, Roag had access to the entire Beatles paraphernalia legacy. And then the house Pete lived in and Roag grew up in has the Casbah in the cellar, and Mona and Pete save all that stuff! I really thank the Best brothers for putting so much of that history on display.
Pete always seems like a kind and gentle soul. He wasn't a really good drummer -- and Ringo was much better -- but it's hard not to feel a bit sad how it all played out. Glad he finally got his royalties owed him.
He wasn't owed any royalties until the Anthology was put together and when they did that they made sure he got he was owed from sales of the Anthology. They weren't buddy buddy with him and probably weren't in contact but they knew that if they sold recordings he played on they owed him money.
Okay, so the guy's good looks brought in the screaming girls when the Beatles first got started. But the most telling point was made by George Martin, who was the Beatles' big chance-if Pete Best is the drummer, I'm bringing in a studio drummer for the record. The change had to be made. I'm glad Pete finally cashed in with that anthology payment, though.
Beach Boys didn't use the band drummer on recordings, & he was their BROTHER! (The best looking brother, by far:^)
@@lazur1 Okay, it wasn't unusual at the time to use a studio drummer for the record. On the other hand, it's not a ringing endorsement of Pete's drumming skills either.
To be fair, Ringo wasn't allowed to drum on the released version of "Love Me Do" either. He played some tambourine and that was it.
Ringo did later play the third version. Martin didn’t know Ringo, and so, first used a trusted session player after Pete’s didn’t cut it. The Ringo version is better.
It's been reported (I got it from another video on the topic) that George Martin didn't mean to replace Pete Best in the band, just hire another drummer for studio recording only. However it's unclear if the other Beatles as well as Brian Epstein, who were not familiar with the fact that session drummer were often hired, misinterpreted G.Martin's request as "Pete Best is not good enough, he has to be fired". For George Martin, hiring a session drummer was common practice and didn't mean that the band's drummer was bad, just that they were not up to the very high standard that is demanded for studio recording.
How could you handle what Pete had to deal with? I think he has overcome this huge obstacle. I’m glad he received his due with the Beatles’ anthology. Well done Mr. Best!
So it is true. The older you get, the wiser you become. Thank you Pete for your "small" part in the Beatles' legacy. That "small" part opened the door to success for The Beatles.
It's not too weird that Pete's mother would have had contact with the Beatles in some way, since Neil Aspinall and Pete's mother had a child together, Roag, who now does lots of Beatle-related activities in Liverpool.
Gotta love Pete Best. My heart is full of empathy for him. But at least he’s part of one of the greatest musical stories of all time. Bless him. ❤
I was fired, from a band in 1978. I was pretty good; the guy who replaced me was fantastic.
I was sacked as a drummer because my replacements father had excellent connections in music. didn’t take long before I was asked to rejoin without my replacements knowledge.
Cool study and history! Very well done; _thank you!_
Great job, David!
If George Martin says you're a bad drummer, you're a bad drummer.
Martin brought in a studio drummer for the "Meet The Beatles" lp. So I guess he did not like Ringo that much either.
Lennon was nasty, just ask her his firsf wife. He got away with giving his wife pennies after he took up with Yoko Ono. She was so hard up that she sold her most precious memories in the form of letters and drawings John had sent to her. Days after the sale, she received a package, and all the letters and drawings were returned to her and had been put in frames. Paul had bought them and included a note saying these are precious memories for you to keep
Indeed. The way he treated his son Julian was horrible. Despite all the fake love and peace hippie image he loved to portray , the man was a clear narcissist. Musically very gifted , but a complete ahole.
@@guntertorfs6486
agreed... great artists often are often abusive jerks or mentality handicapped in some way...
She should have had a bonfire party of the lot of it. If sentimental Paul didn't like that idea she should have sold it back to him for as much as she could. Suppose it was Yoko who told John 'You don't need to give her anything much, she always can sell your old drawings and stuff if she wants.'
@@jillfryer6699 It's touching what Paul did, but seriously, who wants their exhusband's crap lying around? Especially if it's worth money! If not sold it would have gone in the garbage anyway.
Lennon lays it out with no frills. George and Paul play the diplomat as ever.
John didn't appear to have any flair for diplomacy. He was just a blunt instrument. Paul on the other hand was all diplomacy. When George passed he answered a question from the media as cold and unfeeling as he possibly could have, and that was just the unflappable, stoic, measured Paul. No offense meant, Paul just kept it all inside
What a great video! Nicely done. ❤ Glad Pete received some worthwhile royalties. ❤
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN THE WORLD HAVE BEEN FIRED AND HUMILIATED.
LIFE GOES ON.
I had heard this before about Mona Best keeping in touch with the beatles.. I find that very bizarre tho as the beatles first got to be known to the Liverpool public by performing in Monas club the Casbah... And as a mother you would think she would be annoyed with the band for kicking out her boy Pete Best
mona, had more connections to the beatles than alot of pepole probably realize . she was the mother of Neil Aspinall's child with her, and Neill in the beatles hierarchy was about #6 , after the boys and brain. so she was part of the "circle" that always surrounded the beatles either directly or vicariously. other notables are the german crew, Astrid, Jurgen, Klaus, the first beatle wives. mal evans, magic alex (later), eric clapton. the rolling stones.
Well it was more with Neil (Nel) , he’d had a fling with Mona and of course they had a son together ,as we all know, so that was the link.
Great video. Well balanced.
Did anyone else think Ringo was showing his Smartphone to the Camera at 3:09 🙄
Really awesome video! Thank you!
This was very well done. Thank you.
Pete will be the last living Beatle Im sure. He will have the last laugh.
John Lennon was the most despicable person you could meet. Treated his son and ex wife terribly.
Among other things, he dumped his wife for that J**. And then ignored his son. The new family got his money, and the first son had to fight to get some scraps.
He wasn't a totally shit drummer like Pete Best though.
@@oldman4595 Yes a classic do as I say not t as I do person. Promoting his b.s. peace and love . Great Beatle great songwriter . Very troubled life who could not control himself. Trying to pass off yoko as a musician was laughable. George was also a do as I say not as I do person. Preaching Hare Krishna while screwing anything with a pulse- including ringo's wife. But most famous people are like that. Most men are only as loyal as their options.
I agree. The more I read about him, the more nasty he seems. And not just to Cynthia and Julian. He apparently had a habit of winding people up and, if they reacted badly to his sarcastic put-downs, he would turn up the heat. Just look at the comments he made about Paul!
Paul McCartney mentioned that while he and John had similar backgrounds, their upbringings were wildly different.
Paul came from a close-knit loving family and his mother was a midwife so pregnant ladies would often be at Mary's classes and Paul would say a two or three year old would be dumped in his lap while his mother was instructing the ladies on preparation. Paul knows how to play with children and is an excellent husband/father.
John was raised by his aunt and came from a fractured family. He was both a bad father (he knew all about that) and a bad husband, especially Cynthia. John relied on friends instead of family. He walked out on Yoko for a couple of years.
John wrestled demons who often got the best of him. Julian Lennon said that Paul was a joy to be around while his father was often sour and dour, while exhibiting a bad disposition.
Very sad.
Pete was asked to leave, Stu Sutcliffe left on his own. They made a movie about Stu.
He died
If you read Mark Lewinsohn's book, George was actually the one pushing the hardest for Pete's sacking. Ringo was his friend really
I live in cali but recently was in Liverpool for a couple weeks after stopping in London and all the locals and children of locals who had known some of the guys all claimed Pete was simply sacked for “looking to good”. Thought that was nuts but man everyone I spoke to who would know all said the same thing
They should have tossed him a little money after they all became millionaires. He supported them with a venue and by touring with them for 2 years. They would have broken up totally penniless
without him.
Agreed. I don't buy the jealousy-is-the-reason story, but the guy was with you while you built your reputation enough to get a recording contract. When you're all making millions per month you could throw some money Pete's way.
Yep, they could have employed him somehow or ensured he was looked after. End of the day you might be the best band in the world but why not be kind to those around you.
Pete made big bucks from the release of tracks he played on.
@@lazur1 A friend who is a big Beatles fan told me that Ringo made sure some tracks with Best were put on the Anthology albums. I've not been able to confirm it, but I hope it's true.
@@peteranderson4075 It’s true.
I heard that he finally got some money for his time with the Beatles.
He hadn’t got a Beatle personality, check out Ringos performance in a hard days night.
Good video; that's why I watched the whole thing.
One of my favorite lines from any of The Beatles solo work is "...we got Ritchie on a tour..."
From the song living in the material world.
Pete Best sucked as a drummer and as a Beatle. Ringo finalized the Fab Four. Ringo was better for the band. It’s a no brainer. Not the most brutal sacking, the most necessary! In simple terms, no Ringo, no Beatles.
Ringo was the best Liverpool had to offer and the Beatles took him. It was a proper business decision.
The most sensible sacking in history, without it there would be no the Beatles.
The Beatles would've been even bigger with Pete, he was the most popular member of the band by a mile!
@@Cosmo-Kramer Are you kidding. The Beatles revolutionized music, there is no room in the band for a musician who can't play.
@@olavirannisto3552 And Pete revolutionized Rock drumming with his Atom Beat. Pete was a fantastic drummer, he was sacked because JP&G were jealous of his status as the far and away most popular Beatle. But hey, don't take it from me. Here's what a contemporary drummer of Pete's said when he was asked in an interview what he thought of Pete's drumming: *"He was a genius. You could sit Pete Best on a drum kit and ask him to play for 19 hours and he'd put his head down and do it. He'd drum like a dream with real style and stamina all night long, and that really was The Beatles' sound, forget the guitars. I was amazed when they replaced him. I even thought about learning guitar so he could be the drummer in my band. The Beatles didn't hate Pete Best, but they didn't want to be outshone by their drummer. Ringo was a good drummer but he was more ordinary."* -- Chris Curtis, drummer for The Searchers, a great Liverpool band who scored a 1964 Top 3 Hit in the US charts with their classic, "Love Potion # 9". Chris saw Pete Best play many times in both Hamburg and Liverpool during Pete's two years as The Beatles' drummer.
@@Cosmo-Kramer Each of us can have strange beliefs. I recommend reading the result of decades of research by a leading Beatles guru. Mark Lewisohn: All These Years, Volume 1: Tune In.
@@olavirannisto3552don't waste your time with him, he is completely obsessed with Pete Best to the point that it is weird, really really weird. Lol.