Lewisohn about the Star-Club tapes

Mark Lewisohn discussed this album on the I Am The Eggpod podcast.

I am the Eggpod is a Beatles podcast with Chris Shaw and guests, each episode discusses a Beatles- or solo album. On New Year's eve, an episode with Mark Lewisohn as guest discussed an album which was available legally between 1977 and 1998, after which it was deemed to be property of Apple Corps Ltd.

The album in question is of course The Beatles Live At The Star-Club, Hamburg, Germany; 1962. It consisted of various recordings from the stage at this German club, in late December, 1962.

Since it had just been announced that Neil Innes had passed, Lewisohn and host Chris Shaw started with remembering Innes, who also himself had guested the podcast in May 2019.

Lewisohn shares thoughts about the Beatles' time in Hamburg and these recordings, giving examples of John Lennon's audible humorous antics on stage, and reveals that it is Paul himself who has come up with the English lyrics to the song "Falling in love again", which is performed. You may listen to the podcast below.

Lewisohn had actually himself contributed to the plethora of records exploiting these tapes, by submitting liner notes to a three volume LP series on the small record company Breakaway Records in 1983. The series was called "The Hamburg Tapes".

Lewisohn wrote the liner notes for these three volumes, and also for another LP from the same company, consisting of songs from the Decca audition tape.

During the podcast, Lewisohn also talks about the High Court hearing in 1998, where it was decided that the recordings were protected by copyright, and should never have been released in the first place. George Harrison testified on behalf of The Beatles, and the man responsible for taping the concerts, Ted "Kingsize" Taylor, was also present.

May 6, 1998: George Harrison testifies in the High Court in London.

More episodes in this podcast series to be found here.