TW: Suicide
Today, celebrated author Ken Womack joins me to unpack his extraordinary new definitive biography of Beatles road manager Mal Evans, 'Living the Beatles Legend'. Ken talks about the incredible access given to him by the Evans family, including Mal's unpublished memoirs and diaries, the digital warehouse he built to sort through the incredible archival material, how much of the Beatles story is Mal's story, how the Beatles invented the pop superstar industry as they went along, how Mal managed to take on roles that would now be filled by dozens of individuals, how the Beatles laid the template for every rock'n'roll narrative that has followed, the friction between Mal and Brian Epstein, how Mal compartmentalised his life, how Mal championed and produced Badfinger in the face of Allen Klein's opposition, Mal's friendship with Paul McCartney, the upcoming quartet of Sam Mendes directed Beatles movies, the myth of the solitary genius, how important every member of the Beatles inner circle was to their success, and the conterfactuals in Beatles history, including how Mal's story might have unfolded over the past decades if it hadn't been so tragically cut short.
Listen in the player above or download the episode by clicking here.
Subscribe to the podcast in Spotify here, Apple Podcasts here or search 'My Favorite Album' wherever you listen to podcasts.
My Favorite Album is a podcast on the impact great music has on our lives. Each episode features a guest on their favorite album of all time - why they love it, their history with the album and how it's influenced them.
Jeremy Dylan is a filmmaker, journalist, concert promoter and photographer. He directed the the feature music documentaries Jim Lauderdale: The King of Broken Hearts and Tommy Emmanuel: The Endless Road.
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LINKS
- Ken Womack’s website.
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