Today in 1960, a guy in Liverpool got a temp job that he could dine out on for the rest of his life: for two weeks, he played bass for the Beatles.
This is before Beatlemania swept the UK, the US and the rest of the world.
In 1960, the Beatles were a moderately successful club act.
They had been playing regularly in their home city of Liverpool, and done some long (and notorious) residencies at clubs in what was then West Germany.
But they hadn’t had a hit record yet, they hadn’t shown up on The Ed Sullivan Show and they certainly hadn’t sold out Shea Stadium in New York.
They also had a different lineup than the Fab Four we all know now.
John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison were on guitars, but it was Stuart Sutcliffe holding down the bass and Pete Best on drums.
In late 1960, John, Paul, George and Pete returned to Liverpool, but Stu stayed behind with his German girlfriend.
The band had shows coming up in town, so they needed a bassist.
Best suggested a fill-in: Chas Newby, the bass player from his previous band, the Blackjacks.
Newby was on break from school, so he was able to jump right into the open spot, though as a left-hander he did have to play a right-handed bass upside down.
The four shows Newby played with the band over those two weeks drew big crowds and a lot of attention; people who’d seen the band before they played in Germany were stunned at how much they’d improved.
These shows are sometimes called the beginning of Beatlemania, there was that much excitement in the air.
And while John Lennon asked Newby to keep playing bass with the Beatles going forward, the fill-in decided he’d rather continue his chemistry program in college.
So the Beatles moved Paul McCartney over to bass, and I think you know how they ended up doing.
As for Newby, he went on to get several degrees, worked as an engineer, he taught math for a time, raised a family and, many years later, played a few gigs with his old bandmate Pete Best.
And no, he wasn’t disappointed that he narrowly missed becoming a musical megastar.
As he once said, “People sometimes don’t believe me when I say I’ve no regrets, but I really haven’t. I have enjoyed my life immensely.”
Today in 1985, a holiday stunt on WLLR-FM in Davenport, Iowa.
A DJ whose on-air name was Jack Daniels decided to ward off the holiday blues by playing “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer” 27 times in a row, before he was suspended by management.
He said next time he would play “Jingle Bells” by those barking dogs instead.
When Chas Newby Was With the Beatles for Two Weeks (Ultimate Classic Rock)
DJ`S RECORD EFFORT PULLS HIM OFF AIR (Chicago Tribune)
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