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Well, my goodness. Our resident cowboy just snuck a couple of songs by us, but by golly, we know 'em both. Loved your little French insert, dys. I do have to grin remembering how I first pronounced Camille Saint Saens' name when we were listening to our choir director perform a chanson by him on piano.

They say everything can be replaced,
Yet every distance is not near.
So I remember every face,
Of every man that put me here.

I see my light come shining,
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any day now,
I shall be released.

They say every man needs protection,
They say that every man must fall.
Yet I swear I see my reflection,
Somewhere so high above this wall.

Sing,
I see my light come shining,
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any way now,
I shall be released.

There standing next to me in this lonely crowd,
Is a man who swears he's not to blame.
All day long I hear his voice shouting so loud,
Crying out he has been framed.

I see my light come shining,
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any way now,
I shall be released.

Everybody sing with me.

I see my light come shining,
From b'da west to east,
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any day now,
I shall be released.

How many times have you heard someone say
"If I had his
money, I could do things my way?"
Little they know that
it's so hard to find
One rich man in a hundred with a
satisfied mind.

Once I was waitin' for fortune
and fame
Everything that I dreamed for to get a start in
life's game
Suddenly it happened, I lost every dime
But I'm richer by far with a satisfied mind

Money can't buy back your youth when you're old
Or a friend when you're lonely, or a love that's
grown cold
The wealthiest person is a pauper at times
Compared to the man with a satisfied mind

When my
life is ended, my time has run out
My trials and my loved
ones, I'll leave them no doubt
But one thing's
for certain, when it comes my time
I'll leave this old
world with a satisfied mind
I'll leave this old world
with a satisfied mind

Okay, dys. We'll sing with you. How's this one?


DING DONG DADDY FROM DUMAS
(Baxter)

Recorded by : Louis Armstrong; Lawrence Brown; Eddie Condon;
Arthur Godfrey; Benny Goodman; Phil Harris: Eddy Howard;
Ben Pollack; Somethin' Smith; Squadronaires; Bob Wills


Now, I know all, you all don't know who I is
Because I just got here today
My hometown is a little town
Way down Dixie way

Now, everybody down there from miles around
All calls me by my name
Now that I'm up here
In your big city
I sure wish you'd all do the same

Because I'm a ding dong daddy from Dumas
And you oughtta see me do my stuff
Why, I'm a clean cut fella
From Hohner's Corner
Ooh, you oughtta see me strut

I'm a paper cuttin' cutie
Got a gal called, Katy
She's a little, heavy lady
And I call her baby

I'm a ding dong daddy from Dumas
And you oughtta see me do my stuff
Yes, a ding dong daddy from Dumas
And you oughtta see me do my stuff

I'm a ping pong papa from Pitchfork Prairie
Oughtta see me strut

I'm a ding dong daddy
Got a whiz bang mama
She's a Bear Creek baby
And a whompous kitty

I'm a ding dong daddy from Dumas
And you oughtta see me do my stuff

-Instrumental Break-

Just a ding dong daddy from Dumas
Ooh, you oughtta see me do my stuff

I'm a cornpone popper
And an apple knocker
You oughtta see me strut
I'm a momma lovin' man
And I just left Mary
She's a big blonde baby
From Peanut Prairie

I'm a ding dong daddy from Dumas now
And you oughtta see me do my stuff

-Instrumental Break-

Just a rinky dinky daddy from the Dumas
Who you'll see me doin' my stuff

I'm a peach pie papa
From Jackson's Holla
Ah, you oughtta see me strut

I'm a honey drippin' daddy
Got a hard-hearted baby
She's a sheep shakin' Sheba
And hallelujah!

I'm a ding dong daddy from Dumas
And you oughtta see me strut!

NEIL DIAMOND lyrics - "The Windmills Of Your Mind"


www.OldieLyrics.com



Round like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending on beginning
On an ever-spinning reel
Like a snowball down a mountain
Or a carnival balloon
Like a carousel that's turning
Running rings around the moon
Like a clock whose hands are sweeping
Past the minutes on its face
And the world is like an apple
Whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind

Like a tunnel that you follow
To a tunnel of its own
Down a hollow to a cavern
Where the sun has never shone
Like a door that keeps revolving
In a half-forgotten dream
Or the ripples from a pebble
Someone tosses in a stream
Like a clock whose hands are sweeping
Past the minutes on its face
And the world is like an apple
Whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind

Keys that jingle in your pocket
Words that jangle in your head
Why did summer go so quickly?
Was it something that I said?
Lovers walk along a shore
And leave their footprints in the sand
Was the sound of distant drumming
Just the fingers of your hand?
Pictures hanging in a hallway
Or the fragment of a song
Half-remembered names and faces
But to whom do they belong?
When you knew that it was over
Were you suddenly aware
That the autumn leaves were turning
To the color of her hair?

Like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning
On an ever-spinning reel
As the images unwind
Like the circles that you find
In the windmills of your mind

Hey, Hawk. Love that song, and it's all done in a minor key. Ever see The Thomas Crown Affair? Great movie.

From Pierce's James Bond experience:

Artist: Madonna Lyrics
Song: Die Another Day Lyrics

I'm gonna wake up, yes and no
I'm gonna kiss some part of
I'm gonna keep this secret
I'm gonna close my body now

I guess, die another day
I guess, die another day
I guess, die another day
I guess, die another day

I guess I'll die another day
(Another day)
I guess I'll die another day
(Another day)
I guess I'll die another day
(Another day)
I guess I'll die another day

Sigmund Freud
Analyze this
Analyze this
Analyze this

I'm gonna break the cycle
I'm gonna shake up the system
I'm gonna destroy my ego
I'm gonna close my body now

Uh, uh

I think I'll find another way
There's so much more to know
I guess I'll die another day
It's not my time to go

For every sin, I'll have to pay
I've come to work, I've come to play
I think I'll find another way
It's not my time to go

I'm gonna avoid the cliche
I'm gonna suspend my senses
I'm gonna delay my pleasure
I'm gonna close my body now

I guess, die another day
I guess I'll die another day
I guess, die another day
I guess I'll die another day

I think I'll find another way
There's so much more to know
I guess I'll die another day
It's not my time to go

Uh, uh

[Laugh]

I guess, die another day
I guess I'll die another day
I guess, die another day
I guess I'll die another day

Another day [x6]

Hallelujah

Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew her
She tied you
To a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah


Leonard Cohen

Hey, edgar. Leonard again? Wow! He loves to break those golden rules, Texas.

Here's another who does, folks


Artist: George Gershwin
Song: It Ain'T Necessarily So
Album: Porgy & Bess
]

It ain't necessarily so
It ain't necessarily so
The t'ings dat yo' li'ble
To read in de Bible,
It ain't necessarily so.

Li'l David was small, but oh my !
Li'l David was small, but oh my !
He fought Big Goliath
Who lay down an' dieth !
Li'l David was small, but oh my !

Wadoo, zim bam boddle-oo,
Hoodle ah da wa da,
Scatty wah !
Oh yeah !...

Oh Jonah, he lived in de whale,
Oh Jonah, he lived in de whale,
Fo' he made his home in
Dat fish's abdomen.
Oh Jonah, he lived in de whale.

Li'l Moses was found in a stream.
Li'l Moses was found in a stream.
He floated on water
Till Ol' Pharaoh's daughter,
She fished him, she said, from dat stream.

Wadoo ...

Well, it ain't necessarily so
Well, it ain't necessarily so
Dey tells all you chillun
De debble's a villun,
But it ain't necessarily so !

To get into Hebben
Don' snap for a sebben !
Live clean ! Don' have no fault !
Oh, I takes dat gospel
Whenever it's pos'ble,
But wid a grain of salt.

Methus'lah lived nine hundred years,
Methus'lah lived nine hundred years,
But who calls dat livin'
When no gal will give in
To no man what's nine hundred years ?

I'm preachin' dis sermon to show,
It ain't nece-ain't nece
Ain't nece-ain't nece
Ain't necessarily so.

Good morning, did you notice…

The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia
Vicki Lawrence lyrics

He was on his way home from Candletop,
Been two weeks gone and he thought he'd stop
At Webb's and have him a drink 'fore he went home to her
Andy Wollo said hello,
And he said, "Hi, what's doin', Wo?"
Said, "Sit down. I got some bad news; it's gonna hurt."

Said, "I'm your best friend and you know that's right.
But your young bride ain't home tonight.
Since you been gone, she's been seein' that Amos boy Seth."
Well, he got mad 'n he saw red,
And Andy said, "Boy, don'tcha lose your head
'Cause to tell ya the truth, I been with her myself."

Chorus:
That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia
That's the night that they hung an innocent man
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer
'Cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Well, Andy got scared and left the bar,
Walkin' on home 'cause he didn't live far
See, Andy didn't have many friends and he'd just lost him one
Brother thought his wife musta left town
So, he went home and finally found
The only thing Papa had left him 'n that was a gun

And he went off to Andy's house,
A-skippin' through the backwoods quiet as a mouse,
Came upon some tracks too small for Andy to make
He looked through the screen at the back-porch door
And he saw Andy lyin' on the floor
In a puddle of blood and he started to shake

Well, the Georgia Patrol was a-makin' their rounds
So, he fired a shot just to flag 'em down,
And a big-bellied sheriff grabbed his gun and said, "Why'd ya do it?"
And the judge said, "Guilty!" in a make-believe trial,
Slapped the sheriff on the back with a smile,
Said, "Supper's waitin' at home and I gotta get to it."

Chorus

Well, they hung my brother before I could say
The tracks he saw while on his way
To Andy's house and back that night were mine
And his cheatin' wife had never left town
And that's one body that'll never be found
See, little sister don't miss when she aims her gun

Did you notice, Try, that innocent men or women who get capital punishment is the reason the I don't support it?

For example, folks:

Artist/Band: Cash Johnny
Lyrics for Song: The Long Black Veil
Lyrics for Album: At Folsom Prison

Ten years ago, on a cold dark night
Someone was killed, 'neath the town hall light
There were few at the scene, but they all agreed
That the slayer who ran, looked a lot like me

The judge said son, what is your alibi
If you were somewhere else, then you won't have to die
I spoke not a word, though it meant my life
For I'd been in the arms of my best friend's wife

Chorus
She walks these hills in a long black veil
She visits my grave when the night winds wail
Nobody knows, nobody sees
Nobody knows but me

Oh, the scaffold is high and eternity's near
She stood in the crowd and shed not a tear
But late at night, when the north wind blows
In a long black veil, she cries ov're my bones

Repeat Chorus

Perfect for the Man in Black, no?

Good afternoon and a Happy Thanksgiving to whom it may concern.

Here are Boris, Harpo and Franco. Victor requested that his picture not be posted.

IMG]

Hey Raggedy, great pictures, PA, and here is the missing man.



Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men.....

Not RLS, folks:

My Shadow
I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.

The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller than an india-rubber ball,
And sometimes he's so little that there's none of him at all.

He hasn't got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close beside me, he's a coward you can see;
I'd think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me

One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.

Getting ready to eat in just a few.

Like the wallpaper sticks to the wall
Like the seashore clings to the sea
Like you'll never get rid of your shadow
You'll never get rid of me

Let all the others fight and fuss
Whatever happens, we've got us.

(Me and my shadow)
We're closer than pages that stick in a book
We're closer than ripples that flow in a brook
(Strolling down the avenue)
Wherever you find him, you'll find me, just look
Closer than a miser or the bloodhounds to Liza

Me and my shadow
We're closer than smog to all of L.A.
We're closer than Ricky to confessing he's gay??
Not a soul can bust this team in two
We stick together like glue

And when it's sleeping time
That's when we rise
We start to swing
Our clocks don't chime
What a surprise
They ring-a-ding-ding!
Happy New Year!

(Me and my shadow)
And now to repeat what I said at the start
They'll need a large crowbar to break us apart
We're alone but far from blue

Before we get finished, we'll make the town roar
We'll hit a few late spots, and then a few more
We'll wind up at Stringy's and maybe grab show
Life is gonna be we-wow-whee!
For my shadow and me!

Ah, dys, the shadows and the silhouettes, cowboy:

We Will Become Silhouettes

The Postal Service

I've got a cupboard with cans of food, filtered water,
And pictures of you and i'm not coming out
Until this is all over
And i'm looking through the glass where the light bends
At the cracks
And i'm screaming at the top of my lungs pretending
The echoes belong to someone
Someone i used to know

And we become silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Ba ba ba...

I wanted to walk through the empty streets
And feel something constant under my feet,
But all the news reports recommended that
I stay indoors
Because the air outside will make our cells
Divide at an alarming rate until our shells
Simply cannot hold all our insides in,
And that's when we'll explode
(and it won't be a pretty sight)

And we'll become silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Ba ba ba...
And we'll become silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Ba ba ba...
And we'll become silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Ba ba ba...
And we'll become silhouettes when our bodies finally go
Ba ba ba...

And we'll become
And we'll become

A little history behind silhouettes, folks:

silhouette (sĭl'ĕt`), outline image, especially a profile drawing solidly filled in or a cutout pasted against a lighter background. It was named for Étienne de Silhouette (1709-67), who was the finance minister to Louis XV; it is said that he was so noted for his stinginess that cheap articles, including portraits, were designated à la Silhouette. Drawings in silhouette became very popular in Europe during the last decades of the 18th cent. and replaced miniature paintings at French and German courts. In England and America profile portraitists proliferated in the 19th cent. and numerous magazine and book illustrators, e.g., Arthur Rackham, employed silhouettes, or, as they were called in England, shades. Their popularity was fostered by the interest in Lavater's science of physiognomy.

The focus is on sadness when we think of Billie Holiday, but many of her songs were not full of suffering at all.

A Sailboat In The Moonlight
Billie Holiday

[Written by C Lombardo and J J Loeb]

A sailboat in the moonlight
And you
Wouldn't that be heaven
A heaven just for two
A soft breeze on a June night and you
What a perfect setting
For letting dreams come true

A chance to sail away
To Sweetheart Bay
Beneath the stars that shine
A chance to drift
For you to lift
Your tender lips to mine
Some things dear
That I long for are few
Just give me a sailboat in the moonlight and you

A chance to sail away
To Sweetheart Bay
Beneath the stars that shine
A chance to drift
For you to lift
Your tender lips to mine
Some things dear
That I long for are few
Just give me a sailboat in the moonlight and you

You read my mind, edgar. I was searching for songs by Anita O'Day. Although those ladies both had a common drug abuse problem, all their songs were not sad. That is a lovely one, Texas;

For my goodnight song:

Words & Music by David Wolford & Steve Nelson*
Recorded by Barbra Streisand, 1978


DM7/9 Bm Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7
Songbird sings from the heart; each word can tear you apart.

DM7/9 Bm Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7
I sing, you sing along, you find your life in my song.

F# F#7 Bm Bm7/E G G/F#G/E
When you need the strength to carry on,

G/B A7sus4 A7
You've got me to turn to;

B G Em7 D
With the songs that I sing, and the magic they bring,

DM7 A7
They've helped you be strong now.

B G Em7 D DM7 Bm
The song sets you free, but who sings to me?

Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7 A7sus4 A7 DM7/9
I'm all alone now. Who sings for songbird?



DM7/9 Bm Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7
Sometimes, when I'm all alone, I sing my saddest song;

DM7/9 Bm Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7
Lonely, and no one can see this time the song is for me.

F# F#7 Bm Bm7/E G G/F# G/E
I can touch your secret place inside,

G/B A7sus4 A7
And still you don't know me;

B G Em7 D
With the songs that I sing, and the magic they bring

DM7 A7
You've learned to be strong now

B G Em7 D DM7 Bm
The song sets you free, but who sings to me?

Bm7 G/B A7sus4 A7
I'm all alone now.

A7sus4 A7 DM7/9 G G/F# G/B A7sus4 A7 DM7/9
Where is my songbird who sings his song for me?

That one was done by Anita as well.

Goodnight, my friends
From Letty with love

Geraldine Fitzgerald
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Geraldine Fitzgerald (November 24, 1913 - July 17, 2005) was an Oscar-nominated Irish/American actress and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.

Early life

Fitzgerald was born in Greystones, County Wicklow, south of Dublin, Ireland, to a Catholic father and a Protestant mother who converted to Catholicism. She was a great-aunt of the actress Tara Fitzgerald, and a cousin of the Australian novelist Nevil Shute.

Inspired by her aunt, the actress/director Shelah Richards, Geraldine Fitzgerald began her acting career in 1932 in theatre in her native Dublin before moving to London in 1934 to appear in British films. She quickly came to be regarded as one of the British film industry's most promising young performers and her most successful film of this period was The Mill on the Floss (1937).


Career

Her success led her to America and Broadway in 1938, and while appearing opposite Orson Welles in the Mercury Theatre production of Heartbreak House, she was seen by the film producer Hal B. Wallis who signed her to a seven-year film contract. She achieved two significant successes in 1939; she received a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Isabella Linton in Wuthering Heights and had an important role in Dark Victory, with both films achieving great box office success.

She appeared in Shining Victory (1941) and Watch on the Rhine (1943) for Warner Bros., and Wilson (1944) for Fox, but her career was hampered by her frequent clashes with the management of the studio, and the suspensions that resulted. She lost the role of 'Brigid O'Shaughnessy', the villainess of The Maltese Falcon due to her clashes with Jack Warner. Although she continued to work frequently throughout the 1940s, the quality of her roles diminished and her career began to lose momentum. She became a U.S. citizen during World War II in a display of solidarity with her adopted country. In 1946 she left Hollywood to return to New York City where she married her second husband Stuart Scheftel, a grandson of Isidor Straus. She returned to Britain to film So Evil My Love (1948) and received strong reviews for her performance as an alcoholic adultress. In 1951 she appeared in The Late Edwina Black before returning to America.

The 1950s provided her with very few opportunities in film, but in the 1960s she asserted herself as a character actress, and her career enjoyed a revival. Among her successful films of this period were Ten North Frederick (1961), The Pawnbroker (1964) and Rachel, Rachel (1968). Her other films include The Mango Tree (1977) (for which she received an Australian Film Institute "Best Actress" nomination), Arthur (1981), Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986) and Arthur 2 (1988).

From the 1940s she began to act more on stage and she won acclaim for her performance in the 1971 revival of Long Day's Journey Into Night. She also achieved success as a theatre director, becoming one of the first women to received a Tony Award nomination for directing (1982) for the production Mass Appeal.

She also appeared frequently on television in such series as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Robert Montgomery Presents, Naked City, St. Elsewhere and Cagney and Lacey. In 1987, she played the title role in the TV pilot Mabel and Max, (Barbra Streisand's first television pilot production). She received an Emmy Award nomination for a guest role playing Anna in The Golden Girls Mother's Day episode in 1988.

In 1990 she began a career as a cabaret singer with the show Streetsongs which played three successful runs on Broadway and was the subject of a PBS television special.

Geraldine Fitzgerald has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contributions to television, at 6353 Hollywood Boulevard.


Private life

She was the mother of the film director Michael Lindsay-Hogg (Let It Be and Brideshead Revisited) by her first marriage and a daughter, Susan Scheftel by her second marriage.

Fitzgerald died at age 91 in New York City following a long battle with Alzheimer's Disease.

Howard Duff
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Duff (November 24, 1913 - July 8, 1990) was a radio and stage performer before he began appearing in films in the late 1940s. He played Dashiell Hammett's private eye Sam Spade while a radio actor.

Born in Bremerton, Washington, his first film role was as an inmate in Brute Force. He also appeared in many movies with his one-time wife, actress and director Ida Lupino. They divorced in 1984. One of his later films roles was playing Dustin Hoffman's attorney in the academy award winning Kramer vs. Kramer (1979). In the 1980s, Duff became a familiar face on television appearing on dramas such as Flamingo Road, Knots Landing and Dallas.

Duff died on July 8, 1990 in Santa Barbara, California from a heart attack at the age of 76, survived by his daughter, actress Bridget Duff (born April 23, 1952), from his prior marriage to Ida Lupino.

Pete Best
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Randolph Peter Best (born 24 November 1941 in Madras, India) was the original drummer for The Beatles.


Role in The Beatles

The son of Mona Best, the owner of Liverpool's Casbah Club, where The Beatles played occasionally, Best was first invited to join the band in 1959, later rejoining for their 1960-1961 residency in Hamburg. He stayed until shortly after their first audition for EMI in 1962, but was fired on 16 August of that year, to be replaced by Ringo Starr, then of Rory Storm and the Hurricanes.

Best was told of the dismissal by The Beatles' manager, Brian Epstein. The reason given was that George Martin, who was to become The Beatles' producer, had been dissatisfied with Best's drumming and intended to replace him on their recordings. (Indeed, Martin did use a studio drummer, Andy White, on their first single session for "Love Me Do", even though Starr had been auditioned beforehand.) The decision appears to have been a 'last straw' with the group, who felt Best had never completely fit in as a member. While Lennon, McCartney and Harrison usually spent their offstage time together, practicing their music or socialising, Best mostly went off alone. They would often spend more time with Ringo, who would also fill in for Pete on numerous occasions when he did not turn up for a show. He therefore was not privy to many of the group's experiences, references, in-jokes and developing sense of style; when the band adopted the mop-top-style Beatle haircut, Best did not follow suit.

Starr, on the other hand, had an appealing, unique playing style (which impressed Harrison, in particular), and he was already quite popular in the Merseybeat scene and readily joined in all The Beatles' activities. Starr's affable personality fit more naturally with the personalities and egos of the others, and indeed would continue to do so until The Beatles final breakup and beyond. It has been speculated that another reason for dismissing Best (and hiring Ringo) was to draw fans from one of their primary local rivals Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. Aside from that, there has also always been the assumption that the other Beatles were jealous of Best's appeal with the female fans, since he was more conventionally handsome than the other members, a problem that certainly would not exist with Ringo in his place. It has also been reported that Epstein first offered the job not to Starr, but to Johnny Hutchinson of The Big Three, who turned it down. Ringo's old band is said to have invited Best to make the switch reciprocal by becoming The Hurricanes' drummer, but he refused. Oddly, Ringo had always worn a beard during the period that The Beatles had known him, and did not shave it off until after he had joined the band.

When word of Best's replacement broke in Liverpool (through outlets like Mersey Beat), many Beatles fans were upset, and one gave George Harrison a black eye. Quite a few female fans considered Best to be the band's best-looking member - at many early shows, Best had had his own group of female fans present in the audience. Fans would cheer "Pete Forever, Ringo Never."

In an appearance on the American game show I've Got a Secret, roughly two years later, Best seemed to deny that he was dismissed. Asked why 'he left the band', the still-ducktailed Best replied that he '...didn't think they would go as far as they did.'

In later years, Best himself has admitted to being a Beatles fan and owning their records.

Best's musicianship has been a source of debate among Beatles' fans. The Beatles were considered a tight band prior to the start of their major recording career at EMI, and Best's drumming was generally thought to be solid. His performance on a 1962 demo of The Beatles' "Love Me Do" (included on The Beatles Anthology) is virtually indistinguishable from the single version released later that year, and recordings from the German period (notably the recording of "My Bonnie" with Tony Sheridan) show him playing a harder style than Starr would in succeeding years. His main weakness was a lack of creativity. He keeps time in a standard manner on several Anthology recordings and uses conventional fills. Starr proved to be significantly more innovative with the instrument, pioneering a new drumming style (leading with his left hand) and composing drum parts particular to a song's needs.


After The Beatles

After his split from The Beatles, Best joined Lee Curtis & The All Stars, which then broke off from Curtis and became Pete Best & The All Stars. They signed to Decca Records ?- who had previously rejected The Beatles, and signed The Tremeloes instead ?- and released the single "I'm Gonna Knock On Your Door", which failed to gain an audience.

Best then relocated to the United States ?- along with two songwriting musicians from The Remo Four, Wayne Bickerton and Tony Waddington ?- as The Pete Best Four, and did some recording for small labels. Personnel changes in early 1965 increased the group's size to five, with the new name The Pete Best Combo. They toured the United States with their combination of 1950s songs and originals but had little success, hurt by having no hit records in England or major label promotion in the United States. Finally, they released an album on Cameo Records titled Best Of The Beatles (a dubious play on Peter's name, leading to disappointment for record buyers who expected a Beatles compilation), but disbanded not long after. (Bickerton and Waddington were to find much greater success as songwriters in the 1970s for a series of hits by The Rubettes.)

Best apparently tried to commit suicide in 1965 by locking himself in a room and inhaling fumes from a gas fire. Best filed a libel suit against The Beatles in October of that year, because Starr implied in an interview with Playboy magazine that Best had been fired because he was a drug user. The suit was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. Best decided to leave show business, and in Hunter Davies' 1968 authorised Beatles biography, he was portrayed as both somewhat bitter but also unwilling to further talk about or otherwise cash in on his Beatles association.

After a series of jobs outside music, including work as a baker and a civil servant, Best began giving interviews to the media, writing about his time with The Beatles, and serving as a technical advisor for the television movie Birth of the Beatles in the late 1970s. Thus, Best eventually found a modicum of independent fame, and toured as leader of The Pete Best Band. In this public role, Best is uniquely positioned to gratify the many fans who are fascinated with The Beatles' early days.

When the surviving Beatles released their Anthology in 1995, which featured a number of tracks with Best as drummer, Best received a substantial windfall ?- apparently between £1 million and £4 million ?- from the sales.[citation needed] Some have speculated that Apple Records head Neil Aspinall, who reportedly remains friendly with Best, saw to it that Best would be compensated. (Aspinall had an affair with Best's mother, Mona, in the early 1960s, and Best's half-brother, Roag, is Aspinall's son.) Unfortunately, some aspects of the project also seemed to perpetuate the band's legacy of insult with regard to Best. He was not interviewed for the book or the television documentaries, and later disputed a statement by former bandmate George Harrison where Harrison claimed he remembered Best missing several live gigs, with his future replacement, Ringo Starr, sitting in for the night (this is documented to have occurred on at least one occasion). His image on an early group photo used on the cover was prominently and purposefully obscured by a cut-out of Ringo Starr, contrasting with the cover collage's inclusion of fellow former early Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe's portrait. (However, Best is visible in another, less prominent, photo also appearing on the cover.) Additionally, "Ain't She Sweet," one of the early tracks included on the compilation album to feature Best on drums, was presented in its 1964 U.S. mono single mix, which had been remixed with another studio drummer playing over Best's original drumming. But Best persevered, and recently has appeared in a television special built around him titled Best Of The Beatles, telling his life story.

Twas the night of Thanksgiving, but I just couldn't sleep.
I tried counting backwards, I tried counting sheep.

The leftovers beckoned - the dark meat and white,
But I fought the temptation with all of my might.

Tossing and turning with anticipation,
The thought of a snack became infatuation.

So, I raced to the kitchen, flung open the door
And gazed at the fridge, full of goodies galore.

I gobbled up turkey and buttered potatoes,
Pickles and carrots, beans and tomatoes.

I felt myself swelling so plump and so round,
'Til all of a sudden, I rose off the ground.

I crashed through the ceiling, floating into the sky
With a mouthful of pudding and a handful of pie.

But I managed to yell as I soared past the trees...
Happy eating to all - Pass the cranberries, please.

May your stuffing be tasty, May your turkey be plump,
May your potatoes 'n gravy have nary a lump,

May your yams be delicious, may your pies take the prize,

May your thanksgiving dinner stay off of your thighs.