In addition to the Beatles, Epstein also managed the fates of other artists such as Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Fourmost and Cilla Black.
Epstein's family, of Jewish origin, owned a furniture store in Liverpool (where Paul McCartney's family had purchased a piano). Brian began his studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London, where he had classmates such as the actors Susannah York and Peter O'Toole, but when he abandoned them after the third year, his father left him in charge of the musical department of the recently opened North East Music Stores (NEMS) store on Great Charlotte Street. A second store was later opened on Whitechapel Street, and Epstein was assigned responsibility for that operation. On August 3, 1961, Epstein began a regular collaboration with a music column in Mersey Beat magazine.
Representative of The Beatles
The widely accepted version of his first encounter with the musical group he helped turn into stars indicates that Epstein first saw the name of The Beatles on a concert poster, and thought the name sounded “silly.” When a series of clients later began asking about the single he had recorded with Tony Sheridan in Germany, and not being able to find it through any of his usual record company contacts, he decided to go ask the company directly. band. Epstein and his employee Alistair Taylor went to see them perform at the packed Cavern Club pub on November 9, 1961, which was on the street around the corner from the shop; They were admitted into the premises directly, without the need to queue, and their arrival was announced through the premises' loudspeakers. Epstein recalls the group's performance that night: “I was immediately impressed by his music, his rhythm and his sense of humor on stage. And even later when I met them I was also impressed by their personal charisma. And it was at that very moment where it all began…” (He also recognized the group members as regular customers of the store, where they spent time between shows browsing records.)
This cited story may be fictitious: Bill Harry (then editor of Mersey Beat magazine) has claimed that it was he who personally introduced Epstein and Lennon. Although this version is equally unverified, it should be noted that Harry had convinced Epstein to distribute the fledgling magazine in his record store, and those magazines actually promoted the Beatles, Harry's friends.
At a meeting on December 10, 1961 it was decided that Epstein would become the band's manager, and the members signed a five-year contract with him at the home of Pete Best, the drummer of The Silver Beatles, who later became in the famous rock band The Beatles. Best began playing with the group in 1959 and continued on the Hamburg tour (1960-1961), staying until August 16, 1962, shortly after the first audition for EMI, when he was replaced by Richard Starkey, better known as Ringo Starr. on January 24, 1962. Epstein never signed the contract, thus giving the Beatles the option to break off the relationship at any time. He also contacted his previous representative, Allan Williams, to confirm that he had no remaining ties to them. Williams confirmed this, but also warned Epstein “not to handle them with a boat oar.”
Although until then not known for particularly successful business decisions and deals, Epstein became one of the main forces behind the group's promotion and initial success. When Epstein took over the band, its members wore jeans and leather jackets, and their performances were basically messy rock and roll concerts. He convinced them to wear suits on stage and to tone down their performances. He also asked them not to smoke or eat on stage, and encouraged them to perform their famous synchronized bow at the end of their concerts. Although these changes did not last long, the clean and decent image that the group projected (with the only exception of their “helmet” hairstyles) helped decisively in the acceptance of the band by the public.
After being rejected by every major record label in England, Epstein finally got the band signed to EMI's small Parlophone label. Epstein went to the local HMV store to transfer a Beatles demo tape to vinyl. An HMV technician, Jim Foy, liked the recording and referred Epstein to George Martin, a producer at Parlophone. Martin agreed to meet the group and planned an audition. All the Beatles passed the test, except drummer Pete Best, whom Martin decided to replace on the recordings with a studio musician. John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison asked Epstein to immediately fire Pete, and Ringo Starr took his place in the lineup.
Some sources attribute Epstein's interest in the Beatles to his feelings for John Lennon, but Lennon later denied this point; A fiction about the relationship appears detailed in the film “The Hours and Times.”
In October 1964, Epstein's autobiography, “A Cellarful of Noise,” was published, co-written with who would later work as the Beatles' publicist, journalist Derek Taylor.
However, from 1965 onwards, his role within the group was affected due to some mismanagement in which the group was financially harmed, the famous being the “Seltaeb” affair (a company created in 1963 by Nicky Byrne to deal exclusively with business interests on behalf of Brian Epstein, who ran NEMS Enterprises and the Beatles), in which Epstein lost a considerable amount of money.
When the group stopped touring in mid-1966, Brian felt that his role was declining and this caused him to become depressed. He thought that his contract, which expired in September 1967, was not going to be renewed.
Death
Epstein died on August 27, 1967, a year after the Beatles abandoned live performances and coinciding with the weekend in which the group met Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (Indian religious guru, founder of the movement) in Wales. Transcendental Meditation). His death was officially ruled accidental, caused by gradual poisoning with barbiturates (Carbitral or Seconal were found in his body, possibly mixed with alcohol). There have been some unfounded rumors claiming that Epstein committed suicide, but those closest to him have always emphasized that Epstein was not the type of person who would commit such an act. Additionally, her mother, Queenie Epstein, had recently been widowed, contributing to the theory that Brian would never have voluntarily inflicted this additional harm on her mother so close in time to her husband's death.
Epstein managed every aspect of the Beatles' career, including helping found the company that would later become Apple Corps. After his death, things changed and the band's business affairs began to fall apart. The four musicians had to get involved in business, in which they had barely shown much interest. John Lennon summed up the impact of the death a few years later: “When Brian died, I knew that was the end of it. I knew we had it…”
It was thought about making a film about his biography and his time in The Beatles, which would appear in 2014, which ultimately did not happen.
Inclusion in the Rock Hall of Fame
While the Beatles were inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame in 1988, Brian Epstein, the man believed to be one of the most responsible for the group's success, was not inducted into the Hall of Fame until 2014, 47 years after his death. . He, too, was not nominated for the medal of the Order of the British Empire, which the Beatles did receive in 1965 from Queen Elizabeth II.
The British comedian Martin Lewis emerged as the main defender of Epstein's memory, creating the "Official" Website, which included an electronic petition to get him a place in the Hall of Fame, which was finally achieved. .
Source: Wikipedia