LiddyPool The Birthplace of The Beatles

When it comes to the Beatles’ history, Liverpool lore is a bit like Hollywood: the legend seems to get told and printed more often than the truth. Liverpudlian and Beatles Historian David Bedford has penned an entertaining and informative new book on the Beatles that will not only give readers a glimpse of the real Liverpool, but separate fact from fiction.

Liddypool: Birthplace of The Beatles

Growing up in post-1960s Liverpool - or “Liddypool” as John Lennon renamed it - one cannot avoid The Beatles. They are “Here, There and Everywhere”. Much to Bedford’s dismay, authors were writing about The Beatles’ hometown, and getting their facts wrong.

“To understand The Beatles, you have to understand Liverpool,” says Bedford.

David spent nearly a decade compiling Liddypool: Birthplace of the Beatles.  Here's what he says about the idea behind the book.

“Most authors who have written about the Beatles write about Liverpool from their computers in another country. All of my research was done the old-fashioned way - by visiting sites, talking to eyewitnesses first-hand, collecting stories from friends and acquaintances of The Beatles, and viewing hundreds of documents and previously unseen photographs. It was a labour of love.”

Foreword by former Beatles drummer Pete Best

Pete Best certainly believes Liddypool is the definitive book on his hometown.

“Having been a Beatle for two years and not professing to be a Beatle historian, to me this book is totally enlightening.” Pete Best

Has one of the last great Beatles mysteries been solved?

This amazing book also features perhaps the most thoroughly researched, fact-based and unrefuted theories of one of the most enduring and alluring mysteries of rock-n-roll history: a mystery that has perplexed Beatles fans and historians for decades. Why was Pete Best dismissed from The Beatles on the threshold of fame, to be replaced by Ringo Starr? The myths are unravelled here and finally put the discussion to rest.

In a market that has seen over 8,000 books about The Beatles, Liddypool: Birthplace of The Beatles is the first major book to concentrate solely on The Beatles and their hometown of Liverpool. It covers their rise from childhood in the 1940s and obscurity, to their triumphant civic reception at Liverpool Town Hall on 10th July 1964, when the city said goodbye to the Fab Four, their favourite sons, and shared with the world the most famous quartet in the universe.

Bedford uses local knowledge and eyewitness testimony to chart every band member, name-change and line-up, from The Black Jacks to The Beatles: the story of the “Fab 27”.

•  · How did they become The Fab Four?
• · How did Ringo really join the band?
• · Why was Pete Best dismissed? The new theory is proposed.
• · Were they really John, Paul, George, Stuart and Norman?
• · Who was Ken Brown, and why was he such an integral part of this story?
• · Who changed the course of Beatles folklore because she won on the horses?

Why is Liddypool unique?

Over the course of a decade, Bedford has tracked down every birthplace, home, school and music venue across Liverpool and Merseyside relating to every musician from The Quarrymen to The Beatles. If you want to know which schools John Lennon attended, find all seven of Paul McCartney’s childhood homes; where George Harrison made his musical debut; why Ringo missed out on so much schooling; where Stuart Sutcliffe lived and why Pete Best’s cellar became the focal point for MerseyBeat music, then this comprehensive book answers all of these questions and more. It is Liverpool in a book.

Whether you are a fan, a fanatic or a “fanorak”, this book will tell you how they became the “Fab Four”. It is:

· A history book - the history of Liverpool, plus a chronological long and winding road through the life of John, Paul, George, Stuart, Pete, Ringo, Brian Epstein, The Quarrymen and many more. Bedford has interviewed; Pete Best, Allan Williams, The Quarrymen, Bill Harry, Alistair Taylor, Ken Brown, Julia Baird and many more, to get first-hand, eyewitness accounts.

· A reference book - search by date, song, venue, geography or favourite Beatle.

· A guide book - Bedford provides maps and directions for every suburb within Merseyside connected with The Beatles. You can follow walking tours around Liverpool City Centre; The Dingle; the Penny Lane area; Wavertree; Childwall, and Woolton with information and photographs about The Beatles. Discover and explore 59 homes, 24 schools and 103 music venues.

Who Is David

David was the MerseyCats webmaster before I took over that role and has toiled for the past nine years to produce what could be the definitive historical document of the era.

DAVID BEDFORD is a life-long Beatles fan who grew up in the Dingle, Liverpool, near the bottom of the street where Ringo Starr was born; attended the same school as the famous drummer - though many years later - and has been involved as a parent and governor at Dovedale School, where John Lennon and George Harrison attended; he has lived by Penny Lane for 20 years. Bedford is also a feature writer for The British Beatles Fan Club since 2000. He has been interviewed on BBC and Local Radio and several national British newspapers about his knowledge of The Beatles. He was most recently chosen by Paul McCartney’s production team to lead and direct the film crew around McCartney’s childhood haunts for the pre-show film on his Back in the World tour.

Some of the Comments on the Book

“The best Beatles book I have seen in 20 years; the book I wish I had written.”

Bill Heckle, Director, Cavern City Tours

 “At last Liverpool has the Beatles book it deserves. 'Liddypool' has been lovingly assembled, diligently researched and lavishly illustrated. Casual browser and avid fan alike will discover something they didn't already know about the world's most documented quartet.  I'd pay the cover price for the pictures alone.”

Steve Turner, author of "A Hard Day's Write"

 “It's great to see a book from an author who is trying to sieve his way through all the various myths, legends and half-truths and paint a realistic picture of what really happened.
Rod Davis, The Quarrymen

 “The depth of David Bedford's research is unprecedented. This is a fascinating, valuable and devoted piece of detective work which will appeal to any fan of the Beatles.”

Janine Ross, Marketing Manager, The Beatles Story Ltd.

 “David has always been a stickler for detail and passionate for facts. If I needed to know some obscure piece of information relating to The Beatles or Liverpool I knew I could rely on him to provide the answer. With the publication of this book, all the information I could require is now handily available within these pages!"
Pete Nash, Editor: British Beatles Fan Club

“It's an endless surprise and joy that interest in Stuart, as a painter of real talent is now more important than him having been an early Beatle. Not that this was insignificant - indeed once upon a time, that mattered more. It's also a constant revelation that each new generation of admirers of Stuart and his talents are now focusing on some of the myths that have held fast for so long; examining them, and if found to be false, dispelling them.

It's a pleasure to help writers like you, David, and others in your quest for a more honest picture - and I wish you every success.

Best wishes”

Pauline Sutcliffe: Stuart Sutcliffe’s sister.

“David is quite the aficionado on the Beatles. I read his book several times, and it literally blows away all the other so-called ‘Beatles experts’ who seem to follow what has been previously written. This book has everything you will ever need to get around and through your own personal tour of The Beatles’ Liverpool. The book is very well written, and informative. The photographs are brilliant! It’s a definite pleasure to read, and a book to read over and over. This is a book that will not disappoint the reader.”
Gordon Bates, Beatles’ Historian, Philadelphia

Liddypool: Birthplace of The Beatles by David Bedford

Foreword by Pete Best

Price: UK£35.00 / US$58.45

ISBN: 1854432362

Page Size 285mm x 285mm, 336 pages, case bound

Illustrations: 800 historical black and white and colour photographs, including previously unseen

PUBLICATION DATE: November 2009