The Beatles Audiobook By Bob Spitz cover art

The Beatles

The Biography

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The Beatles

By: Bob Spitz
Narrated by: Alfred Molina
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Even before the Beatles hit the big time, a myth was created. This version of the Beatles legend smoothed the rough edges and filled in the fault lines, and for more than forty years this manicured version of the Beatles story has sustained as truth, until now.

The product of almost a decade of research, hundreds of unprecedented interviews, and the discovery of scores of never-before-revealed documents, Bob Spitz's The Beatles is the biography fans have been waiting for.

Never before has a biography of musicians been so immersive and textured. We are there in the McCartney living room when Paul and John learn to write songs together; backstage the night Ringo takes over on drums; in seedy German strip clubs where George lies about his age so the band can perform; and at the Ed Sullivan Show as America discovers the joy and the madness. From Shea to San Francisco, through the London night, on to India, through marmalade skies, across the universe, all the way to a rooftop concert and one last moment of laughter and music.

It is all here, the highs and the lows, the love and the rivalry, the drugs, the tears, the thrill, the magic never again to be repeated. Bob Spitz's masterpiece is, at long last, the biography the Beatles deserve.

©2005 Bob Spitz (P)2005 Simon & Schuster Inc. All rights reserved. Entertainment & Celebrities Music

Critic reviews

  • Winner of Audio Publishers Association 2007 Audie Award, Non-Fiction, Abridged

"As with all great history writing, Spitz both captures a moment in time and humanizes his subjects. While some will blanch at the unsettling dark sides of the Beatles, most will come to appreciate the band even more for knowing the incredible personal odysseys they endured." (Publishers Weekly)
Comprehensive Biography • Fascinating Anecdotes • Excellent Narration • Detailed Early Years • Insightful Relationships
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This audio was very well done. This audible tells a version of the Beatles' story which explains the genesis, the genius and the genocide of the group and the interpersonal dynamics. If you idolized John as your favorite Beatle, this account may have you reconsider. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and highly recommend it.

O-bla-dee;O-bla-dah... Life goes on...

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Book was fact filled and provided a good amount of insight on what made these guys click add a group.

also showed how they were manipulated and taken advantage by the sharks of the music business.

insightful

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Bob Spitz takes us on a journey that we thought we knew. Filled with anecdotes that show the Beatles’ humanity as well as their human failings, we are on board their remarkable journey from its beginnings until its end. But of course there is no end as the Beatles’ music lives forever.

An insightful account of the greatest band in rock & roll history

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Good overall survey. A few more details along the way would be nice. Just not quite enough.

Good but not quite enough

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Loved it all. Great retrospective of a great band. The legend lives on. Long live the Beatles.

My

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I loved hearing this story deeply — but was frustrated halfway through to find that it was abridged. I ended up buying the book in order to read all the juicy details dropped from this recording.

Audible, why do you hide this rather critical detail?

Fabulous - but abridged

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Engaging from the start, new stories abound almost every few mins. I had to pause to digest the info more than once.

This is must-have. And I think, must listen.

A personal account of gifted musicians

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I have listened to other Beatles books. I really enjoyed this book because it starts from the beginning to the end.
I will listen to it again and again to learn new things about my fav band!

Learned a lot -Loved it

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There is a lot of info on the beginning and the breakdown of the group. It goes into details of how they became so successful. There are a lot of facts here to process. The sad thing is Yoko Ono single handedly broke this amazing group up.

History of the Beatles

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Going into it I was just a fan without knowing much of their back story. Was really informative and can appreciate their music more knowing the back story to some of the best songs ever created.

Great Bio Of The Greatest Band Ever!

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