Chapter 54: Pacific Ocean Blues (May - December 1977)

May - August 1977

Stevie Nicks and Jeff Lynne in Amsterdam, 1977.

The Electric Light Orchestra's sixth album, A New World Record, was a platinum seller despite losing Roy Wood, Rick Price and Mike Burney, the former two who had been part of the group since its inception in 1970. With hit singles "Livin' Thing" (#4 UK, #13 US) and "Telephone Line" (#8 UK, #7 US), the band was slowly beginning to reach new heights. Casey Kasem would later dub ELO as the "world's first touring rock 'n' roll camber group" before he played "Livin' Thing" on the radio.

JEFF LYNNE: "After that big tour following New World Record, we took a break. I wrote up what would become Concerto for a Rainy Day in the Swiss Alps over three weeks after I felt this sudden burst of creativity. It was raining hard during my time in Switzerland, and it was the weather there that inspired what would become one of ELO's biggest hits." (2001)

What would become known as "Mr. Blue Sky" had a Beatlesque arrangement, inspired from the Beatles' very own "A Day in the Life" and "Alice and the Puppy" (working title, "Martha My Dear") while sharing the harmony of the first four chords and rhythm with the highly-regarded "Yesterday". It was to be the final track of the concerto, while ending with a message telling the listener to turn the record over and play the second side.

July - September 1977

Linda and Paul McCartney, the latter of whom holding a newborn James in his hands, 1977. Like his dad and grandfather before him, James would go on to have a music career himself. (Image courtesy of the Beatle Photo Blog.)

BRIAN MAY: "We'd already made a decision that after A Night at the Rock Show and Silly Love Songs, we wanted to go back to basics for Water Works. But it was very timely because the world was looking at punk and things being very stripped down. So in a sense we were conscious, but it was part of our evolution anyway." (2017)[1]

Although Paul McCartney & Smile had begun demoing a few tracks for their fifth album, to be titled Water Works, back in February in the midst of a tour for Silly Love Songs, proper work did not begin until July. By then, John Lennon, Madeline Kahn and their son Freddie had visited the McCartneys at their home in Scotland, and Lennon had brought in a few recordings to present to McCartney, many of them being from Apple's newest artists courtesy of their new A&R Jake Riviera and producer/singer Nick Lowe. Along with the changing landscape of music, this inspired McCartney to take Smile's next album on a left turn from their previous album.

ROGER TAYLOR: "By then, we'd recorded a few of Paul's and Denny's songs - 'London Town', 'Deliver Your Children', 'Don't Let It Bring You Down', just to name a few. When we got back into the studio, we recorded probably some of our hardest material yet - 'Sheer Heart Attack', which I'd actually started when we did Band on the Run, 'Girls' School', 'I've Had Enough', etc. We even did a version of 'Girlfriend', although Paul was intending to give this to Michael Jackson to record as a guide track." (1989)

PAUL McCARTNEY: "I didn't want the entire album to be all punk, y'know; had to throw in a few ballads to kind of balance things out. It was also during the sessions that we did a song Denny and I wrote reflecting on my love for the Scottish countryside." (2005)

During the sessions, Linda McCartney's pregnancy was advancing, which put plans for another tour on hold before they were cancelled altogether. On 12 September, her fourth child (her third with Paul) and only son was born, James Louis McCartney, sharing the same first name as his father and grandfather before him, the latter of whom had died the year before. (Paul was nearly always called thus since childhood to avoid confusion with his father Jim.) Despite the break in recording due to young James' birth, they had managed to get the album ready for an October release.

23 September 1977

Electric Light Orchestra - Concerto for a Rainy Day

Released: 23 September 1977

Recorded: May - August 1977

Producer: Jeff Lynne

Track listing[2]

Side A

Night in the City
Believe Me Now
Standin' in the Rain
Big Wheels
Summer and Lightning
Mr. Blue Sky

Side B

Sweet is the Night
Starlight
Jungle
Birmingham Blues
Steppin' Out
Across the Border

Although seventeen songs were recorded for Concerto for a Rainy Day, four of them were held back as non-album singles, with a fifth serving as a non-album B-side. "Turn to Stone"/"Wild West Hero" (#6 UK, #13 US) was released shortly after the album on 17 October, while the second non-album single, "Sweet Talkin' Woman"/"It's Over" (#5 UK, #20 US), would not come out until the following year on 27 February. The only single off of the album was "Mr. Blue Sky", backed with the non-album B-side, "The Whale", and was released under Apple Records on 12 December, topping out at #2 in the United Kingdom (kept off of the top spot by Paul McCartney & Smile's "Mull of Kintyre") and #10 in the United States, since then being regarded as the group's best ever song.

Concerto for a Rainy Day also received a similar appraisal by critics and fans, with the first side being dominated by the titular suite while being preceded by "Night in the City" and with "Believe Me Now" segueing into the suite itself. The second side consisted entirely of self-contained songs. The album reached #4 on both sides of the Atlantic based upon pre-orders alone and quickly went multi-Platinum, remaining on the UK charts for about 108 weeks. It was sometimes referred to as "the Blue Album" for its plain cover accompanied only by its text while the back cover consisted of a spaceship designed by John Kosh with illustrations by Shusei Nagaoka. Although it was intended to be the front cover, it had been made the back cover due to an error, resulting in the plain blue front cover instead. Later releases would have the spaceship as part of the front cover.

7 October 1977

Freddie Mercury - Champions of the World

Released: 7 October 1977

Recorded: July - November 1976 and July - September 1977

Producer: Freddie Mercury and Mike Stone

Track listing[3]

Side A

We Are the Champions
You Take My Breath Away
Who Needs You
The Millionaire Waltz
You and I

Side B

Somebody to Love
Get Down, Make Love
Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy
Spread Your Wings
My Melancholy Blues

As was becoming tradition by this point, Freddie Mercury's next album consisted of newly recorded material alongside the material that had been previously recorded for an extended play. The five new tracks were "Get Down, Make Love", "Who Needs You", "My Melancholy Blues", and both sides of the lead single, "We Are the Champions" and "Spread Your Wings" (#2 UK, #4 US). The former was inspired from an audience response following a concert at Bingley Hall in Stafford in which they sang "You'll Never Walk Alone" to Mercury as well as Paul McCartney & Smile. The latter was penned by John Deacon, often performing bass duties whenever Brian May and Roger Taylor recorded and performed with Mercury.

Champions of the World hit #1 in the United Kingdom and #3 in the United States and garnered mixed to positive reviews from critics. The cover featured remembers of the Liverpool Football Club after winning the European Cup in their 1976-1977 season; it was very fitting given the theme of the opening track, "We Are the Champions", which has since gone down to become an anthem for victories at sporting events.

28 October 1977

Paul McCartney & Smile - Water Works

Released: 28 October 1977

Recorded: February - September 1977

Producer: Paul McCartney & Smile

Track listing[4]

Side A

I've Had Enough
Cafe on the Left Bank
Sheer Heart Attack
All Dead, All Dead
London Town
Famous Groupies
Fight from the Inside

Side B

Girls' School
Deliver Your Children
I'm Carrying
Sleeping on the Sidewalk
Don't Let It Bring You Down
Mull of Kintyre ("With a Little Luck" in US re-releases)

In the midst of Bee Gees domination in America, Water Works stalled out at #2 there and managed to reach #3 in the United Kingdom, but it was still a commercial success nonetheless. Critical reception, however, was a bit more mixed, with some deriding Paul McCartney for straying as far away from the "good boy" image previously established with the Beatles in the 1960s as possible, while others claimed that even in a world in which the Sex Pistols, the Ramones and the Runaways dominated the music scene, his music was still too soft at times.

A couple of weeks following the release of the album, the first single "Mull of Kintyre"/"We Will Rock You" came out on 11 November, with the A-side quickly reaching #1 in the United Kingdom, and staying there all the way into Christmas. "Mull of Kintyre" was a darling in McCartney's native country, even becoming the all-time best selling single there, taking over the record previously broken by the Ladders' "Imagine"/"Bangla Desh" double A-side from 1971, which in turn had broken the record set by the Beatles' "She Loves You" in 1963. This marked the third time that any combination of the Beatles had broken the record for having the United Kingdom's all-time best selling single, and they remain the only band to do so. Sadly, the A-side failed to appeal to North American sensibilities; instead, they preferred to listen to the non-album B-side, penned by Brian May, "We Will Rock You", which consisted of a stomp-stomp-clap-pause beat and a power chorus, becoming an anthem in its own right, especially after hitting #4 in America. In a sense, it wasn't all a big loss for the single.

Two more non-album singles, both recorded during the Water Works sessions but were left off due to lack of space, would come out the following year - "With a Little Luck"/"Children Children" (#1 US, #5 UK) on 20 February and "It's Late"/"Name and Address" (#17 US, #39 UK) on 8 May. The former marked Paul McCartney & Smile's eighth #1 single overall in either the United States or the United Kingdom (in some cases, both), and because of its success in America, "With a Little Luck" ended up replacing "Mull of Kintyre" as the final track in future re-releases there, while the British re-releases stuck with using "Mull of Kintyre".

Footnotes

1. Verbatim quote taken from The Quietus, with the album titles changed up to reflect TTL.
2. All tracks are sourced from Out of the Blue.
3. Tracks are sourced from Queen's A Day at the Races and News of the World.
4. Tracks are sourced from Wings' London Town and Queen's News of the World. "Mull of Kintyre" and "Girls' School" are bonus tracks on the 1993 release of the former.

Author's Comments

Well, here we go with the third to last chapter of the 1976-1977 block, and after a surprise chapter and an Apple Corps summary for that period, we move onto the 1978-1980 period. If I'm lucky, and if I keep to the fortnightly schedule, I'll have completed not only Phase Three, but also the first draft of Strawberry Peppers by the end of next year. Fingers crossed!

There won't be much going on for ELO in Phase Three; while the post-Concerto albums come out like in OTL, there will be changes made like a compilation album being released in 1978 and an odds and ends album in 1980 both as stop-gap releases. 1979's Discovery will come out like it did with no changes, while 1981's Time and 1983's Secret Messages will have changes in their own right, but you'll have to find out what they might be, though I reckon you can guess what they are.

Meanwhile, it's not long before Paul McCartney parts ways with Smile, largely due to a desire to have the Beatles properly reunite, something that's also lingering in the minds of the other three for the remainder of the decade. Although it hasn't been stated, Paul could see that Freddie Mercury was working far better with the rest of Smile than he did, and over time, Freddie's taking over as a full-time vocalist for Smile. We'll see how this all plays out over the next three years. (In universe, obviously!)

Chapter 53: Shower the People (June - September 1977)

June 17, 1977

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Yacht Folks

Released: June 17, 1977

Recorded: 1976-1977

Producer: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young with Ron and Howard Albert

Track listing[1]

Side A

Shadow Captain
Let It Shine
Carried Away
Fair Game
Anything at All
Cathedral

Side B

Dark Star
Just a Song Before I Go
Fontainebleau
Cold Rain
In My Dreams
I Give You Give Blind

The latest album by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young had a particularly interesting history behind it; recording for Yacht Folks had begun following Neil Young's departure to focus on a solo career, and yet he was only present on two songs ("Let It Shine" and "Fontainebleau"), both of which were recorded during the Long May You Run sessions but were left off at the time. While they had usually maintained a balance between the four members of at least three songs each - with one or two members sometimes getting four - it was Graham Nash who contributed four songs to Yacht Folks, including the lead single "Just a Song Before I Go". Stephen Stills also contributed four songs, with one of them, "Run from Tears", being held back to serve as the B-side to the single, which charted at #4 in the United States and #57 in the United Kingdom. The following single, "Fair Game"/"In My Dreams", came out in September and hit #30 in America.

Yacht Folks received positive reviews from critics, but despite the acclaim, it had stalled at #2 in the United States (and also topped out at #23 in the United Kingdom), being left off of the #1 spot by Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, which would go on to become Apple's biggest selling album of 1977. Yet despite this loss, Yacht Folks still remained Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's best selling album, only behind Human Highway. Save for touring, the rest of the 1970s were fairly uneventful for the now-trio; the most significant being that they received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for their contributions to the music industry on June 21, 1978. Around that time, they had begun work on a new album under Crosby, Stills & Nash, but it'd be two years before it actually came out, largely due to David Crosby's drug problems. But what about their runaway horse, Neil Young?

July 1, 1977

Neil Young - Chrome Dreams

Released: July 1, 1977

Recorded: November 29, 1975 - April 4, 1977

Producer: Neil Young and David Briggs

Track listing[2]

Side A

Pocahontas
Will to Love
Ride My Llama
Like a Hurricane
The Old Country Waltz

Side B

Hold Back the Tears
Lost in Space
Captain Kennedy
Hey Babe
Powderfinger
Look Our for My Love

Neil Young's first post-CSNY album consisted of a lot of solo material that he had recorded before, during and after the Long May You Run sessions, among the earliest being "Like a Hurricane", representing the more electric side to Young's music. The final sessions, taking place in April, featured backing band Crazy Horse alongside the likes of Ben Keith, Nicolette Larson and Linda Ronstadt, adding a more country sound to the album, further showcasing Young's diverse range of music styles.

Chrome Dreams was released under Highway 61 Records, charting at #15 in the United States and #10 in the United Kingdom, but it performed best in Young's home country of Canada at #8. Since its release, it has received mixed to positive reviews from critics and fans, with one of the tracks, "Will to Love", recorded May 1976, being especially divisive. Some call it one of the highlights of Neil Young's career, while others claim it's one of the worst.

Pre-September 1977

Andy Gibb, 1977. Since joining the Bee Gees, he had often been labeled in the press as the "baby Bee Gee", as he was the youngest of the Gibb brothers, consisting of himself, Barry and twins Robin and Maurice. Andy was younger than the twins by about eight years and two months.

Since switching over to more dance-oriented music, beginning with 1975's Main Course, the Bee Gees had become one of the most popular acts of the 1970s, putting out chart-topping numbers such as "Jive Talkin'" and "You Should Be Dancing". The band had been around since 1958, but had never achieved such great success as they were going through right now, eventually being dubbed the "Kings of Disco". Now, they were about to get even bigger, having recently gotten involved in contributing a few songs to the upcoming film Saturday Night Fever, due for release on December 16 for the Christmas holiday season.

ANDY GIBB: "It was a huge deal for all four of us. I was only eighteen, almost nineteen, in fact, when I joined my older brothers in the Bee Gees. Barry was helping me at the time with a potential solo album, but then Robert [Stigwood] heard two of the songs ["I Just Want to Be Your Everything", "Thicker Than Water"] and said that I should probably hold them back for a Bee Gees album. Whether that was a good move or not, I still haven't figured it out to this day." (1995)[3]

Robert Stigwood, the Bee Gees' manager, head of RSO Records and producer for Saturday Night Fever, had purchased the rights to use the Beatles' music in 1974 for a live Broadway show dubbed Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on the Road, and had even commissioned Henry Edwards to write a script based around the music. It was later submitted to Apple Corps for approval before starting work on filming in October. To Stigwood and Edwards' disappointment, the script had been rejected by not only Michael Lindsay-Hogg, but the four Beatles as well.

JOHN LENNON: "I've a lot of respect for the Gibb brothers, but that Sgt. Pepper movie idea was just stupid. No way it could've worked. Not then, not now, not ever." (2006)

GEORGE HARRISON: "Had that Sgt. Pepper film come out, I think it would've damaged the Bee Gees' image, their careers, and they didn't need to do it. It's just like the Beatles trying to do the Rolling Stones. The Rolling Stones can do it better." (1979)[4]

Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Brian Epstein and George Martin also had similarly negative views on Edwards' script.

Robert Stigwood (far left) with the Bee Gees, 1970

BARRY GIBB: "Robert was rather upset about the Sgt. Pepper film being rejected, but really, could you blame those at Apple for wanting to preserve the legacy of the Beatles' music? We had to come up with a Plan B pretty fast." (2009)

ROBERT STIGWOOD: "When interest in the Bee Gees had been revived, the label had re-issued their 1969 album Odessa. Critics and fans didn't care for it back then, but when it was re-released, in shortened form, they liked it. So I figured that this should be their film instead jointly produced with Apple Films." (1987)

ROBIN GIBB: "I was skeptical about Robert's Plan B. I didn't even like working on the album back in 1968 and a lot of arguments among myself, Barry and Maurice forced me to leave the group for a while. Still, I was at least willing to try and give the Odessa film the benefit of the doubt." (1994)

The story of Odessa, released March 30, 1969, was intended to be about the loss of a fictional ship in 1899, not dissimilar to the story of the maiden voyage of RMS Titanic in 1912. Disagreements between the Bee Gees regarding the album's direction had changed the final product, and it was a dispute over what should be the main single (it was "First of May", released two months ahead of the album) that forced Robin to leave the group. An early member of the band, Vince Melouney, had also left during that time.

With a new script by Henry Edwards locked down and approved, and with Lindsay Anderson and Gilbert Taylor brought in to respectively direct the movie and do the cinematography, it was now a matter of choosing who to star as supporting cast alongside the Gibb brothers. Among the actors for consideration were George Burns, Frankie Howerd, Donald Pleasence and Paul Nicholas, as well as a relatively unknown Sandy Farina playing a love interest to one of the brothers, plus Peter Frampton as a stowaway. There was even a special appearance written with up-and-coming actor Steve Martin in mind, portraying a slightly eccentric doctor on the Odessa.

September 23, 1977

The Bee Gees - Night Fever

Released: September 23, 1977

Recorded: May 1976 - 1977

Producer: Barry Gibb, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson

Track listing[5]

Side A

Night Fever
Words and Music
How Deep is Your Love
Rest Your Love on Me
(Love Is) Thicker Than Water

Side B

I Just Want to Be Your Everything
If I Can't Have You
Emotion
More Than a Woman
Stayin' Alive

Four of the tracks on the Bee Gees' latest album Night Fever - "Stayin' Alive", "How Deep is Your Love", "More Than a Woman" and the title track - would also later turn up on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, as well as Yvonne Elliman's version of "If I Can't Have You". "Rest Your Love on Me" had been recorded during the Children of the World sessions, but had been left off before being reused for Night Fever. "Emotion" would later be given to Samantha Sang, and the remaining three tracks - "Words and Music", "(Love Is) Thicker Than Water" and "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" - were all sung by Andy Gibb, with the latter two having writing contributions from Barry.

Night Fever managed to reach #1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom. "How Deep is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever" were all also #1 hits in the former country as well. They were later followed up by a non-album single in April the following year, "Shadow Dancing" (with Andy on lead vocals) backed with "Warm Ride", that also hit #1. The Bee Gees were now on a hot streak that almost rivaled the Beatles back in the 1960s. But now they were working on a movie based upon an album that the Bee Gees themselves did in that same decade; could the Odessa movie continue that hot streak or bring it to a grinding halt? Well, it wasn't due for release until July, so only time would tell.

Footnotes

1. All tracks are sourced from CSN (1977), excluding "Let It Shine" and "Fontainebleau", both taken from The Stills-Young Band's Long May You Run. "See the Changes" was already used on Human Highway, and "Run from Tears" is relegated to a B-side.
2. Track listing is based upon what Neil Young was intending for Chrome Dreams in OTL, with some changes made to replace tracks used on previous albums; "Ride My Llama" and "The Old Country Waltz" appear on side one in place of "Star of Bethlehem" (already on Homegrown) and "Too Far Gone", respectively. On side two, "Lost in Space" replaces "Homegrown" (also already on Homegrown), and "Stringman" and "Sedan Delivery" are both removed in favor of "Hey Babe". "Lost in Space" is sourced from Hawks & Doves, "Look Out for My Love" from Comes a Time, and the remaining tracks are from Hitchhiker and American Stars 'n Bars.
3. Some time after the release of Flowing Rivers, Andy Gibb revealed that a lot of people said that it sounded like the Bee Gees.
4. Near verbatim to what George Harrison said about the Sgt. Pepper film. Dialogue was changed to reflect the film being scrapped before filming had even begun.
5. "Words and Music", "(Love Is) Thicker Than Water" and "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" are sourced from Andy Gibbs' Flowing Rivers. "Night Fever", "How Deep is Your Love" and "More Than a Woman" are all sourced from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. "Rest Your Love on Me" was the B-side to "Too Much Heaven", recorded 1976 but not released until 1978. The Bee Gees' version of "If I Can't Have You", performed by Yvonne Elliman for the movie soundtrack, was originally the B-side to "Stayin' Alive" before later appearing on Bee Gees Greatest; the extended seven-minute mix of the latter track can also be found on said album as a bonus track. The band's version of "Emotion", originally performed by Samantha Sang, appeared on Their Greatest Hits: The Record, albeit recorded in 1994 for a cancelled album called Love Songs.

Author's Comments

Lately, it seems as though I've been uploading chapters on a fortnightly basis. That's probably not a bad thing, to be honest, as it gives me more time to think about the direction each chapter and story arc will go. In the case of Crosby, Stills & Nash, however, we're not going to be seeing much of them during Phase Three, largely due to lengthy gaps in collaborations and recordings between 1977 and 1988 (save for 1982's Daylight Again). Their peak in quality was certainly during 1968-1976, but since then, it's been kind of downhill from there, finally crashing and burning in 2015 when they broke up for good, largely due to David Crosby being kind of a dick. Granted, the others weren't exactly angels either, but David and his personal problems were certainly a factor. He has offered an olive branch to get together again, but at their age... who knows what'll happen?

Neil Young, on the other hand, is going to be a bit more prominent than the others during Phase Three, largely due to his output being greater in terms of quantity. I think it'll be interesting to see where I take his music in the 1980s, especially with the (soon to come) birth of his son Ben. Maybe his output won't be as controversial as it was in OTL?

Lastly, there's the Bee Gees. Yes, I have effectively removed the Sgt. Pepper movie from existence. Why had I done that rather than try to make it more tolerable? Well, I think all you need to do is see Across the Universe from 2007 and the problem should clear itself up. Plus, considering that Odessa was given a reevaluation in 1976, it probably would've made better sense had a movie been based on that instead. Plus, it spares the Bee Gees the embarrassment of starring in a movie featuring Beatles songs. Earth, Wind & Fire's cover of "Got to Get You Into My Life" can still exist as a non-album single, and I've got an idea in mind for Aerosmith's take on "Come Together". You'll find out what it is soon enough.

Also, Andy Gibb is officially a Bee Gee. I couldn't come up with a reason as to why that happens, but if you have an idea, please let me know. I had the idea of bringing him into the band because the Bee Gees had almost enough material for an entire album, plus Andy's music sounds reminiscent of them in a way, so I pulled a few tracks from Flowing Rivers to flesh out Night Fever to make a ten-track album. There is one other album with Andy on a Bee Gees album, but after that, I'm not sure what happens next.

Chapter 52: Two of Us (May - August 1977)

5-8 May 1977

John Lennon, 1977.

The following is excerpted from John Lennon's autobiography, Nowhere Man[1], originally published under Apple Books, July 1990:

"There was one weekend in particular that I don't think we will ever forget. Madeline and I had just had little Freddie, George, Ringo and I (George especially) had mended fences with Paul after nearly five years of bitching in the press, and we even had a reunion as the Beatles. But we never really put out a proper reunion album for our fans, something that would eat at us for the rest of the 70s.

Paul was very much busy recording and touring with Smile, George and Ringo had reformed once again to play with the Dark Horses, and that left me to spend time with my family, something I never had the chance to do back when the Beatles were a worldwide sensation. The constant touring and recording in the 60s meant that I had little time to spend with Julian, and it was after getting divorced from Yoko that I was able to get to know Julian better. Even more so now that I had dual citizenship between America and England.

But I'm getting ahead of myself here. Less than two months ago, Maddy had appeared on stage for a musical called She Loves Me as Amalia Balash, for a limited run of performances at The Town Hall in the Big Apple[2]. Having seen a performance myself, as well as having roles in Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, (Maddy would soon be appearing in Mel Brooks' next film, his fourth under Apple Films, High Anxiety) it got me interested in having a part-time acting career, be it on film or on stage. Ringo had taken up acting himself, as had David Bowie with The Man Who Fell to Earth.

So... maybe it could work out for me too? Also, I wanted an excuse to get out of the house every now and again.

'What should be the first thing I ought to know about acting performances?' I asked Maddy. 'How does it differ from performing music on stage?'

'Erm... probably not that different,' Maddy shrugged. 'I mean, you get on stage, say your lines and all. I'm... sorry i-if that-that wasn't the best advice I can offer...'

'No, no, it's fine. I'll take it,' I said. 'D'you think the transition from performing music to just performing would be easy? I have been doing it for quite a while.'

'Yeah, you have,' Maddy agreed. 'Acting, playing music, or even a simple reading, it's all in the performance.' My wife was right; being an actor or musician isn't that difficult. I'd starred in Dick Lester's How I Won the War a decade ago, and after that, I did Alice in Wonderland with the rest of the Beatles. Then when the 70s rolled around, I appeared in Willy Wonka and Blazing Saddles before landing the starring role of Young Frankenstein, and that was when I understood that being an actor's not that different from being a musician. It's all a matter of performance. Being around Maddy, Mel, Gene, etc. during production of the latter two probably helped as well.

Anyone can do it; all you need is to understand and know what you're doing.

Madeline Kahn as Victoria Brisbane in High Anxiety, released Christmas 1977. The film was Mel Brooks' fourth to be produced with Apple Films, with his contract being extended from three to five following the success of Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein in 1974.

'But what's all that got to do with a particular weekend that I mentioned? Well, it was during that conversation between me and Maddy that I brought up the topic of dropping Paul and Linda a surprise visit. Not surprisingly, she was in favor of the idea; I knew how close she and Linda had gotten over the past year, especially over Christmas 1976. Had I still been with Yoko, she would've shot the idea down, but there was a chance that Paul would've come uninvited and I'd have dismissed him, though probably without meaning to be rude. I mean, could you honestly blame a guy for trying to look after their infant child and some guy you've known for twenty years bursts in without prior warning?[3]

Anyway, we made plans to head over to the United Kingdom that May - partially so Maddy and Freddie could see the sights there, partially so I could check in to listen to some recordings by the newest signings to Apple Records, but mostly to give a surprise visit to the McCartneys. We arrived on the fifth to give ourselves a bit of time to acquaint (or reacquaint) ourselves with England, with the intention of arriving at Paul and Linda's home in Scotland on the sixth.

The three of us took a train to Scotland on the morning of the sixth - changing Freddie during station stops, of course - before arriving the rest of the way with Mal Evans driving us.[4] It was getting late in the evening by the time we had arrived at where Paul and his family lived, but I didn't care. Spirits were very high among us, and I was sure that Paul was feeling the same as well.

It was Linda who answered the door, five months pregnant, and with little Stella behind her. She smiled big when she saw Maddy, and Maddy smiled back. The two greeted and hugged each other happily, and Mal and I greeted Linda and little Stella as well. 'Sorry for turning up so late in the day,' said Maddy, 'but do you know where Paul is?'

'I'll get him,' Linda replied. 'Wait here.' She and Stella quickly went back inside to tell Paul about our surprise visit, and it was barely a minute before good old Paulie Macca returned with them to greet us.

'Well, hello there, John,' he smiled warmly, shaking my hand. 'I didn't expect you to turn up this late in the evening.' Paul then went to hug Maddy and gave little Freddie a bit of a stroke on the head.

'I just figured we'd come by to see how you were doing, Paul,' I said.

'Quite well, thank you,' Paul replied. 'Why don't you all come in?' So we did.

It was our first time being at the McCartney household that he had bought back in 1966 when he was dating Jane Asher. Since giving it renovations, I have to say, he and Linda had done a fine job, both inside and out. I could see why he preferred to live in the countryside rather than a big, bustling city like London or New York. It's isolated, private and remote, completely surrounded by grasslands, trees and bushes. He even had a small farm of his own. Quaint, but still had a bit of charm to it."

Paul and Linda McCartney, 1977. That September, they would have their first (and only) son, James McCartney.

The following is excerpted from Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now, written and compiled by Barry Miles and originally published under Apple Books, October 1997:

"I was not expecting a visit from John and his family so soon following Freddie's birth, when the Lennons and McCartneys celebrated Christmas together in New York, y'know. They didn't really have to come all the way to Scotland just to see us, but still, it was a nice gesture coming from John. I mean, our friendships were a lot stronger than they had been at the start of the decade, probably even stronger than they'd been since the early days of the Beatles. I think that feeling got even stronger when a few musicians [Syd Barrett, Marc Bolan, Ronnie Van Zant] died in 1977 at a really young age, which made the four of us realize that life was too short to hold onto petty grudges, y'know. We could lose someone at any time and we may never get the chance to make amends before they die.

On the surface, the Lennons' visit wasn't anything special. But dig deeper, and there was a lot more to it. Linda and Madeline, with Heather's help, would look after the kids and sometimes tend to the animals and ride horses. Our wives had grown very close over the past year, y'know, and public would assume that it was because they were married to two of the most famous singer-songwriters in the world. Those who actually know them know that they had a lot more in common than that.

Which left me and John. He was very different from the John Lennon I knew back in 1958, 1964, 1970 or even 1974. He was a rebel growing up in Liverpool, and I was the good kid by comparison, y'know. John had to grow up without his parents being there for him, living with his aunt Mimi, while I always had support from my parents until my mother Mary died when I was fourteen. John losing his mother Julia just as they were repairing their relationship had left a big hole in his heart that had never been completely filled in. He ended up with Yoko, but their relationship fell apart after a few years and then he found Madeline and realized how much she understood him, despite having differing personalities.

John said that he wanted to clean himself up and stay away from drugs of any kind (unless they were medical reasons) and overcome his demons. By the time of the surprise visit to Scotland, John had been over two years sober and had not smoked a joint since that same time. As I had often gotten busted for drug use in the 70s, I realized that I had to stop taking them as well, and I believed that George and Ringo had followed suit as well by the end of the decade. That was perhaps the right thing to do for us, y'know; as we get older, we get wiser too.

Twenty years ago, John and I were aspiring young musicians from Liverpool, but now, come 1977, both of us were happily married - not to each other, y'know! - and with kids of our own. Over that weekend, John and I would sometimes jam on the guitar, and we'd let each other informed on what was happening in our families' lives. I remember particularly when he informed me about how the latest artists under Apple Records were doing and what they were like. He'd even brought copies of some of the new recordings like the Clash, Motörhead, Elvis Costello and Wreckless Eric.

'I can almost hear us on these recordings,' John said after, I think, the eighth song I was presented. 'There's a certain rawness to them that reminds me of our youth in Liverpool. Y'know, before all the egos and the bullshit, they could've come from some cellar in Liverpool or one of our Hamburg shows.'

I could certainly see where John was coming from, y'know; there was a particular rawness that we almost recognized. Maybe a few of them were even covering rock 'n' roll songs from the 50s, the same ones we used to play before our songwriting developed. In fact, it was practically the rise of new wave and punk music during that time that would influence not only my songwriting, but the sound of the next few Smile albums as well.

But all too soon, the visit from the Lennons had come to an end, and they would soon catch a flight back to New York. John and I promised to keep in touch with each other every now and again, and maybe have another jam session together when we have the chance. Who knew when that would be, y'know, and when all four of us would be in the same room again?'

May 27, 1977

The Queen's Medical Center, established 1859.

A Texas-born man, 22 years of age, had recently arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii. Not to take a vacation from a stressful job, but to commit suicide. He was inside a car with the windows rolled up, and with a vacuum cleaner hose attached to the exhaust pipe with the other end inside the car. Some time after the man was discovered unconscious in the car, an autopsy had been performed, confirming that he had inhaled several lungfuls of carbon monoxide. However, it was suspected that he couldn't have been breathing normally; otherwise, he would have woken up by now and survived the suicide attempt. The man must have been talking or singing in the car, taking deep breaths in between his speech, and that must've been what killed him before the hose had melted.[5]

The following day, a woman by the name of Diane Chapman received a call from The Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu. The voice on the other end asked her, "Are you the parent or guardian to Mark David Chapman?"

A few days following the shocking announcement of her son's demise, Diane was found dead at her home in Atlanta, Georgia, believed to be a suicide. She was survived by her husband David Chapman and their daughter of fifteen Susan. Some time after the death of his son and wife, in December 1980, David said in an interview that Mark was an avid Beatles fan ever since he had first bought his son the album Meet the Beatles, and even taught him to play guitar. However, since becoming a born-again Christian, Mark had sworn off playing any of the Beatles' music because of what Lennon had said about the Beatles being more popular than Jesus.

When Lennon himself was interviewed following David's comments, he said, "That May, back in 1977, I had a bit of a fright myself with a man I didn't know shooting his gun at me, five bullets going right through me and tearing through my vital organs, and then I just lay there, bleeding to death. I woke up screaming and after telling her that I felt a ghost grab at my soul, Maddy helped me calm down. We both went back to sleep, and by morning, I'd very much forgotten the nightmare I'd had."

"Do you think it was Mark Chapman shooting at you?" the interviewer asked.

Lennon just shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "It had been three years since that terrifying night, and Maddy and I never mentioned it to anyone, nor did I even think about it until now."

15 July 1977

The Dark Horses - Thirty-Three & 1/3

Released: 15 July 1977

Recorded: February - May 1977

Producer: George Harrison, assisted by Glyn Johns

Track listing[6]

Side A

Woman Don't You Cry for Me
Wonderful Tonight
Dear One
Lay Down Sally
This Be Called a Song
Pure Smokey

Side B

It's What You Value
The Core
I'll Still Love You
See Yourself
Peaches and Diesel

With John Lennon now taking full-time responsibility as a househusband - alongside the odd bit of performing - the Ladders were more or less finished. However, it would rise from the ashes as the Dark Horses, being fronted by George Harrison (lead) and Eric Clapton (rhythm) on guitar, along with the ever-faithful Ringo Starr on drums. They were also joined by Vangelis on keyboards and Ronnie Wood on bass guitar; although the latter had been associated with the Rolling Stones since 1974, even becoming part of the band during Red and Black Blues and the subsequent controversial tour, Wood still found time to perform bass duties with Harrison and company.

Recording for the Dark Horses' first album, Thirty-Three & 1/3, began shortly before Harrison's 34th birthday, with his contributions to the album having been written shortly after the release of Between the Lines (two of them, "See Yourself" and "Woman Don't You Cry for Me", had origins as early as 1967 and 1969, respectively). Clapton's contributions were originally intended for a fourth solo album before becoming full-Dark Horses recordings themselves, and both he and Harrison donated a song for Ringo to sing - "This Be Called a Song" and "I'll Still Love You" (a rewrite of "When Every Song is Sung", a track Harrison had given to Ronnie Spector back in 1971). The sessions for the album were largely uneventful, although Harrison was planning to marry his girlfriend, Olivia Arias, later that year.

Thirty-Three & 1/3 was backed by the single "Wonderful Tonight"/"Pure Smokey" a few days before the album's release. The A-side was penned by Clapton about his girlfriend (and Harrison's ex-wife) Pattie Boyd, who had also inspired Harrison's "Something" eight years prior. The single reached #3 in the United States but did not reach any higher than #29 in the United Kingdom. The follow-up singles, "It's What You Value"/"Next Time You See Her" (August 8, #16 US) and "I'll Still Love You"/"Lay Down Sally" (November 7, #28 UK), were not Top 10 hits on either side of the Atlantic.

Shortly after the release of the album, George Harrison and Olivia Arias were married in a private ceremony at the Henley-on-Thames Register Office in England on 6 August 1977, close to his home at Friar Park.[7] Like Harrison's wedding to Pattie Boyd, Paul McCartney served as the best man with Linda as maid of honor. John Lennon, Madeline Kahn and Ringo Starr also turned up at the subsequent party at Friar Park along with Brian Epstein, Mal Evans, Neil Aspinall, Peter Brown, Derek Taylor, as well as the Lennon, McCartney and Starkey children (with Cynthia and Maureen coming along too), Harrison's immediate family, and a few other members of British rock or entertainment royalty, including Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd, Vangelis, Ronnie Wood, Klaus Voormann and Michael Palin. The following day, the newly-wed Harrisons began their honeymoon in Hawaii.

Footnotes

1. The title of John Lennon's autobiography his is a reference to Robert Rosen's Nowhere Man: The Final Days of John Lennon, published 2000 after getting access to Lennon's diaries in 1981. OTL's Nowhere Man was a controversial account of Lennon's last five years up to his murder, contradicting the official view of Lennon as a contended househusband. This was initially brought up in Albert Goldman's controversial Lennon biography, The Lives of John Lennon, in 1988, before being further confirmed twelve years later.
2. Madeline Kahn also starred alongside Barry Bostwick (Georg Nowack), Rita Moreno (Ilona Ritter, reprising the role from the original London run in 1964), George Rose (Zoltan Maraczek) and Laurence Guittard (Steven Kodaly) for She Loves Me in March 1977. John Lennon was still living in New York at the time. As he's married to Madeline in this universe, this remains unaffected, save for John wanting to take acting performances more seriously.
3. This is a reference to what had actually happened when John Lennon and Paul McCartney saw each other in person for the last time on April 25, 1976, the day after Lorne Michaels made a joke offer for the Beatles to reunite on Saturday Night Live.
4. Mal Evans was killed by the Los Angeles police on January 5, 1976 when they mistook an air rifle he was holding for an actual rifle; him being a very tall person probably didn't help Mal's case either. In TTL, with Apple Corps being much stronger, Mal likely got his life together during the first half of the 1970s and became a valuable asset to the company. Also, he was able to publish his book, Living the Beatles Legend, the manuscript of which, in OTL, ended up being lost in the mail following his death. Had it not gotten lost and been published posthumously, it would've been the first book written by a true insider regarding the Beatles.
5. In OTL, Mark David Chapman's suicide attempt failed and made a recovery in hospital. He later then began to work at the hospital part-time before marrying and becoming a security guard. Afterwards, he moved to New York in 1980... and you can very much guess what happened on that fateful day that same year.
6. Tracks are sourced from George Harrison's Thirty-Three & 1/3, Eric Clapton's Slowhand, and Ringo Starr's Ringo's Rotogravure.
7. George Harrison and Olivia Arias were married in September 1978, shortly after the birth of their only son, Dhani. A likely reason for them marrying early would've been good feelings between the Beatles in TTL, particularly between George and Paul.

Author's Comments

First off, I'd just like to say happy (early) 80th birthday to Ringo Starr! Yet he doesn't look eighty if we consider his past history of drug use; he almost looks like he could easily pass for fifty. But here's hoping he and Paul will still be around for new music to come.

This is one of those chapters that's pretty light on alternate albums, instead putting heavy emphasis on the personal lives of the former Beatles in 1977. It was really interesting reading about what Madeline Kahn was up to during that time, especially since she was taking part in a limited performance run of She Loves Me in New York. Also interesting was having large chunks of narrative focusing on the perspectives of John Lennon and Paul McCartney during the unexpected Scotland visit. I dunno if they will be a frequent fixture in the later chapters, but I reckon they'd be fun to do if I did.

And yep, the man infamous for killing John Lennon has finished himself off. It was pretty much a foregone conclusion from the get-go that John would survive past 1980, though he will eventually die, most likely from old age. I guess ten years' worth of butterflies would be enough to shake a few things up, however minor they might be. Fifty years' worth, however, would make the world a lot different from how we see it today!

Album cover for Thirty-Three & 1/3 was designed by Auran.

Additional Information: 27 Club

Left to right: Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin and Brian Jones. All three musicians died at the age of 27 and within two years of each other (1969-1971).

The 27 Club is a term referring to popular musicians, artists or actors who died either at the age of 27, or between the ages of eighteen and 35, with 27 being the statistical average between the minimum and maximum ages. Regardless of which group of celebrities this should refer to, it has become a cultural phenomenon by documenting their deaths, with some being known for risky lifestyles such as drug and alcohol abuse or violent means such as homicide, suicide, or transport-related accidents.

The term initially came to popular usage when Brian Jones (the Rolling Stones), Janis Joplin (Big Brother and the Holding Company) and Jim Morrison (the Doors) all died at twenty-seven between the years of 1969 and 1971 - Jimi Hendrix had a very close call in 1970, and so was able to celebrate his 28th birthday the same year. However, an earlier example was in 1938, when blues musician Robert Johnson died of unknown causes, aged 27.

Upon Phil Spector's death by car accident in 1974, at the age of 34, the topic of people involved with music dying young was brought up again, even suggesting that they could be as old as 35 and still be considered having died young. This was proposed in an article by the New York Times, close to Spector's birthplace, even including those who died between eighteen and 26 (Buddy Holly at 22, Otis Redding at 26, etc.) or between 28 and 35 (The Big Bopper at 28, Danny Whitten at 29, etc.).[1]

The article by the New York Times prompted a response by the Hollywood Reporter, arguing that if the 27 Club also included those who died as young as eighteen or as old as 35, then it would become overcrowded and disorganized. Many fans of rock music also got in on the debate that still goes on to this day, especially on internet forums and sites.

It wouldn't be until late 1977 when the topic of the 27 Club would be raised once again - as well as further arguments on how it should be defined - when Syd Barrett (31) of Pink Floyd and Hunky Dory, Marc Bolan (29) of T. Rex, and Ronnie Van Zant (29), Steve (28) and Cassie Gaines (29) of Lynyrd Skynyrd all died within two months of each other, all in transport-related accidents. (Elvis Presley was not considered, having died at the age of 42, seven years older than the proposed maximum of 35.) This topic would be further dragged into the end of the 1970s and the start of the 1980s, when the likes of Keith Moon (32), John Bonham (32), Bon Scott (33) and Ozzy Osbourne (33) would all die within a few years of each other, this time from drug or alcohol abuse, and in some cases, choking on their own vomit.[2]

Whether or not anyone in the 27 Club either died at that age or as young as eighteen or as old as 35, one thing that most can agree on is that despite dying so young, their legacies will last forever.

Footnotes

1. In OTL, the idea of a "27 Club" caught on in public perception following Kurt Cobain's death in 1994.
2. This is a partial spoiler as to what's to come for Phase Three.

Author's Comments

A bit of an extension to chapter 51, talking about this universe's equivalent to the 27 Club. This time, some rock critics are suggesting that it also gives membership to those who died between the ages of eighteen and 35, given that 27 is the average between them. But what do you guys think? Should the club be bigger than it is, or should it only include those who died at 27?

Chapter 51: (Don't Fear) The Reaper (September 1976 - August 1977)

September - November 1976

David Bowie and Iggy Pop in West Berlin, Germany, late 1976.

To say that the Rolling Stones' Thin White Duke period - largely fronted by David Bowie - had been controversial would be an understatement. By the end of summer 1976, it was announced to the press that Bowie would be parting ways with the rest of the Rolling Stones - Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts. Bowie would later be replaced by Ronnie Wood, who was also a part of George Harrison and Ringo Starr's post-Ladders group, the Dark Horses alongside Eric Clapton and Vangelis Papathanassíou. A common nickname for the supergroup was "ABC", referring to former members of Aphrodite's Child (Vangelis), the Beatles (Harrison and Starr) and Cream (Clapton), respectively.[1]

DAVID BOWIE: "I think it was for the best that I'd left the Stones. My music was becoming far more experimental and the rest just couldn't keep up with me. What happened with the Duke just further solidified that, and I didn't want them to share the burden that I'd brought upon them. The good thing about the split was that I could focus more on Hunky Dory... if Syd and the rest were willing to work with me. I'm still kind of surprised they wanted anything to do with me after the Thin White Duke fiasco." (1985)

IGGY POP: "Yeah, we could've just ditched Dave outright and have nothing to do with him after the Thin White Duke, but he was practically the reason we were part of Hunky Dory to begin with. He'd done some stupid shit, but so did we in the past. Everyone's got good and bad in them. I'd written some new material myself and wanted to get it down on record with the guys." (2002)

The sessions for the next Hunky Dory project, Kicks, marked the beginning of what would later be called David Bowie's Berlin saga. Getting back together with Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Syd Barrett, Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt, the sextet of crazy diamonds recorded Kicks at the recently established Hansa Tonstudio in West Berlin, Germany. Bowie and Pop were especially prolific while the remaining four had brought in leftovers from previous projects. A double album wouldn't do, and a triple was out of the question. This meant that the material would have to be spread over two single albums, as well as a duet project between Bowie and Pop.

14 January 1977

Hunky Dory - Kicks

Released: 14 January 1977

Recorded: September - November 1976

Producer: Hunky Dory and Tony Visconti

Track listing[2]

Side A

Speed of Life
No Man's Land
Sonia
Funtime
City Waltz
Kicks

Side B

Solar Flares
Sweet Deceiver
Weeping Wall
Feel
Nobody's Business
I'm Sick of You

Hunky Dory's sixth album barely missed the Top 10 in the United Kingdom at #11, while it topped out at #23 in the United States. The influence of the musical scene in Germany could be felt throughout, what with Bowie taking in interest in the likes of Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk and Harmonia, the latter of whom Brian Eno was a member of, who would later work with Bowie on the latter's future solo projects. Kicks would later be regarded as Hunky Dory's greatest work in retrospective reviews by professional critics.

21 January - 6 July 1977

Pink Floyd - The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking

Released: 21 January 1977

Recorded: April - December 1976

Producer: Pink Floyd

Track listing[3]

Side A

Apparently They Were Travelling Abroad (4:30)
Running Shoes (4:33)
Arabs with Knives and West German Skies (4:37)
For the First Time Today, Part 2 (4:39)
Sexual Revolution (4:41)
The Remains of Our Love (4:47)

Side B

Go Fishing (4:50)
For the First Time Today, Part 1 (4:56)
Dunroamin, Duncarin, Dunlivin (4:58)
The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking (5:01)
Every Stranger's Eyes (5:06)
The Moment of Clarity (5:11)

Meanwhile, things were similarly interesting for Syd Barrett's former band, Pink Floyd. Following their Animals tour, the band took a hiatus from work to spend time with their families. However, tensions were growing between Roger Waters and his childhood sweetheart turned wife Judith Trim to the point that they cheated on each other. Divorce was finalized by the end of 1975 and the couple had no children. Waters would later go on to marry Lady Carolyne Christie, niece of the 3rd Marquess of Zetland, Lawrence Dundas, the following year. Trim would not remarry until 1996 to Leonard Hessing before dying of breast cancer in 2001 at the age of 57.

DAVID GILMOUR: "Roger called us back into the studio that April to present us with a concept dubbed The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking. He didn't disclose to us that it was inspired by his divorce with Judy until after she died. It wasn't that hard for me, Nick and Rick to connect the dots, but at least Rog decided to come clean with us." (2005)

(On the 2001 reissue of The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, and all future reissues, the liner notes would include the sentence, at Roger Waters' request, "Dedicated to Judith Trim, my first love whom I left behind.")

The story being Pros and Cons focused on a man's scattered, conflicting thoughts and feelings in the middle of a road trip through California, such as his ongoing midlife crisis and fantasies of adultery with a female hitchhiker he's picked up along the way. He then faces other fears and paranoia, with all of these events taking place in real time between 4:30 and 5:12 in the morning of an unspecified day.[4]

Pink Floyd's tenth album was also the first to have every song credited to Roger Waters, whereas on the previous album Animals, the track "Dogs" was credited alongside David Gilmour, although Waters received greater royalties. Rick Wright later felt bad for not pushing forward material of his own, and Nick Mason recalled Gilmour getting frustrated over not getting royalties over it. If Animals was the album where it felt to Waters that he was the sole writer for Pink Floyd, then The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking was the album that seemed to further solidify this delusion.

Pink Floyd performing live at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada, the last show of their infamous In the Flesh Tour, July 6, 1977. During the performance, Roger Waters angrily spat on a fan for being disruptive.

Pros and Cons topped out at #13 in the United States, but it did better in the United Kingdom at #6; the title track was released as a single there and hit #76 with "Every Stranger's Eyes" as the B-side. Compared to Animals or even The Dark Side of the Moon, Pros and Cons received mixed reviews, although they did lean more towards positive. Rolling Stone was among the more negative reviews, giving the album one out of five stars for saying it felt less like a Pink Floyd album and more like a Roger Waters solo album. "At least Animals had David Gilmour contribute 'Dogs (Raving and Drooling)'!" the review stated.

Shortly after the release of The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, Pink Floyd went on their next concert tour, the In the Flesh Tour, lasting from 23 January to 6 July 1977. The last show took place at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada; throughout the past five months or so, Pink Floyd had experienced playing at large stadiums for the first time, their size making the band feel nervous and Waters was constantly on edge, often yelling at disruptive audiences for screaming during the quieter numbers.

During the Montreal show, the final straw was when a particularly rowdy group of fans in the front row irritated Waters so much that in retaliation, he spat at one of them. The incident was later humorously (although rather tastelessly, given the circumstances) dubbed "the spit hitting the fan." It only got worse afterward when Pink Floyd performed a blues jam for those refusing to let them leave the stadium; a small riot took place at the front of the stage when they eventually left.

ROGER WATERS: "I was just so fucking done. We'd reached the top, but it was not glorious as we thought it'd be. Once you've reached it, it's all downhill from there. We'd become big, and that alienated us from our fandom. Pink Floyd took a break following that damned tour, but I wanted out altogether. I told Nick that I was leaving the Floyd and there was nothing he, Rick or Dave could do to change my mind. It wasn't made public yet, and it was not even two months that I announced my departure when I got a call from Rosemary [Syd Barrett's sister]..." (1987)

15 July 1977

David Bowie & Iggy Pop - Sound and Vision

Released: 15 July 1977

Recorded: September 1976 - February 1977

Producer: David Bowie and Tony Visconti

Track listing[5]

Side A

Sound and Vision
Nightclubbing
Always Crashing in the Same Car
V-2 Schneider
Tiny Girls
Be My Wife

Side B

Dum Dum Boys
Breaking Glass
Sense of Doubt
Baby
Blackout

David Bowie and Iggy Pop's duet album, Sound and Vision, was largely recorded during the same sessions that ultimately produced Hunky Dory's Kicks. After its release, it topped out at #2 in the United Kingdom and #11 in the United States, with the title track being released as a single with "Nightclubbing" as the B-side (#1 UK for one week in the midst of Bee Gees domination, #26 US). Although Sound and Vision was divisive upon release, it has since been regarded as David Bowie's best work, as well as one of the best Hunky Dory solo projects (while the band was still active) and the point where Iggy Pop's solo career could truly begin in earnest, with Lust for Life coming out on August 29 under Highway 61 Records (also produced with Bowie).

5 - 28 August 1977

Hunky Dory - The Idiot

Released: 5 August 1977

Recorded: March - April 1977

Producer: Hunky Dory and Tony Visconti

Track listing[6]

Side A

Sister Midnight
Observation
What in the World
Here I Go
She's My Best Friend

Side B

Diminished But Not Finished
A Gift
Rats
Mass Production
A New Career in a New Town

LOU REED: "When we put out The Idiot, we figured that it was high time that we finally got off our asses and go out on a tour in Europe. Much of it was attributed to David, of course." (2001)

KEVIN AYERS: "I didn't even like going crazy with promotion on my solo albums, or with Hunky Dory, but since a lot of Europeans didn't give much of a shit about crazy-ass guys like myself or Syd, I figured, what the hell." (2007)

Not too long after the release of Hunky Dory's seventh album, The Idiot (#6 UK, #38 US), the sextet began their tour throughout Europe, starting in Switzerland on 8 August. Later performances would then take place in Italy, Greece, Poland, Norway, and then back to their current "hometown", West Berlin, Germany, taking place on 24 August. In between shows, there was the odd bit of sightseeing, but all of that would come to an end shortly after the West Berlin performance.

A drunken man had accidentally stumbled in front of Hunky Dory's tour bus, causing the driver to pull on the steering wheel, accidentally causing the bus to flip over while doing so. All six members plus the bus driver were quickly taken to the nearest hospital to recover while the drunken man was taken into the police station for questioning. David Bowie, Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt all had relatively minor injuries, but Iggy Pop, Lou Reed and the bus driver would have to stay in order to recover. The sole casualty was Syd Barrett, having died from his injures a few days later on 28 August 1977 at the age of 31.[7]

SYD BARRETT: "Shine on..." (his last words, though often debated but were along those lines, 28 August 1977)

Syd Barrett, August 1977; the last photo of him ever taken. Barrett had requested for an older picture of him on the cover of Hunky Dory's The Idiot just so he wouldn't look older than the rest of the group due to his receding hairline.

ROBERT WYATT: "'Shine on.' Those two words. Our last album with him while he was still alive was his final legacy before he was so cruelly taken away from us. He may have been a little crazy, but he was our friend, an inspiration to us all." (1977, less than a month after Barrett's death)

With Syd Barrett's death, Hunky Dory's planned performances in the Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom were cancelled. It was Barrett's death, alongside the later deaths of a few members of Lynyrd Skynyrd (Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and sister Cassie), Marc Bolan of T. Rex and Shirley Brickley of the Orlons that brought forth the topic concerning the trend of music artists dying between the ages of eighteen and 35, later to be known as the 27 Club (27 being the statistical average between the minimum and maximum ages of dying young; however, it remains debated as to whether it should refer to artists who actually died at 27 or between the ages of eighteen and 35).

When Roger Waters got the word of his friend's death from Rosemary Barrett, he had now found himself in a difficult situation, especially when he was forced to temporarily reunite with the band that he had just departed following the aftermath of the last show of the In the Flesh Tour...

Footnotes

1. This is a reference to the short-lived UK supergroup, XYZ, consisting of Jimmy Page, Chris Squire, Alan White and Dave Lawson. The name is derived from eX-Yes-&-Zeppelin, as it consisted of members from Yes (Squire and White) and Led Zeppelin (Page).
2. Tracks are sourced from David Bowie's Low, Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs, Robert Wyatt's Ruth is Stranger Than Richard, Iggy Pop's The Idiot and Raw Power, Kevin Ayers' Sweet Deceiver, and Lou Reed's Coney Island Baby.
3. All tracks are sourced from Roger Waters' solo album of the same name.
4. Roger Waters began developing The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking as early as 1977. However, with Animals being developed earlier and released in 1975, it's very likely the same could've happened with Pros and Cons.
5. Tracks are sourced from David Bowie's Low and "Heroes", and Iggy Pop's The Idiot.
6. Tracks are sourced from Iggy Pop's The Idiot, Kevin Ayers' Sweet Deceiver, David Bowie's Low, Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, and Lou Reed's Coney Island Baby.
7. In OTL, Syd Barrett died on 7 July 2006 at the age of 60 from pancreatic cancer.

Author's Comments

At long last, we kick off the third phase of Strawberry Peppers! And what a way to kick off too!

First point of discussion is that David Bowie has left the Rolling Stones. This was brought up to me by Will Steadman on Discord as he believed that Bowie would've felt that the Stones weren't being experimental enough for him to want to stick around. Thinking about that more, I decided that I agreed with him and so from 1977 onward, David Bowie is more or less a solo act. How this will affect the Rolling Stones following his departure (and Ronnie Wood's arrival), we have yet to see. It'll be interesting to see if I can change up their 1978-1986 output to improve upon the weak spots, but we'll find out if it's feasible.

Next up, it's Syd Barrett dying nearly three decades earlier than he did in OTL; there's some further Gummaumma influence there, along with Roger Waters deciding to leave Pink Floyd altogether, only to be forced back in following Barrett's death. "But just for one album," he says. Finally, we'll get to see this universe's Wish You Were Here! Next post will be about this universe's definition of the 27 Club, and after that, chapter 52, returning to the lives of the Fab Four.

Intermission: Somebody to Love

13 July 1985 - Wembley Stadium, London

"It's 12 noon in London, 7 AM in Philadelphia, and around the world it's time for Live Aid," announced Richard Skinner. "Wembley welcomes their Royal Highnesses, the Prince and Princess of Wales."

The Beatles and their families had finally arrived at Wembley Stadium in London; they were now watching Prince Charles and and his wife Diana on the television screen as the former greeted the crowd with a wave. Bob Geldof was to the Prince's left (right in viewer's perspective).

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Royal Salute!"

No sooner had Tommy Vance made this announcement, the Coldstream Guards kicked off the Wembley show with the first six bars to "God Save the Queen". They'd been performing for the British Army for two hundred years, and it seemed fitting that they be the ones to kick off the show.

"And now, to start off sixteen hours of Live Aid," Vance announced again, "would you welcome, Status Quo!"

"Let's leave the telly on," John Lennon told his bandmates. "This concert's a big deal."

"This'll be even bigger than when we did the one for Bangladesh," remarked George Harrison. "Well, back when we weren't on the best of terms with Paul," he added, acknowledging his south-pawed friend.

"Yeah, but y'know, it's all in the past," Paul McCartney assured, slightly smiling, "and we're all good friends again. We have to stick together, y'know, no matter what life throws our way."

John and George, as well as Ringo Starr, could not have agreed more; they had reunited at the start of the 1980s, which became a huge deal in the music world, but lately? They were being viewed by some critics, especially in the United States, as relics of the 1960s having gone way beyond their prime despite not playing together that much in the previous decade. In the United Kingdom, however, they had managed to salvage things by starring in a successful children's television program based upon a series of books by a clergyman, and even had a number one single the previous year.

The Beatles performing at Live Aid was a huge deal for John, Paul, George and Ringo. Either they'd pull off a hugely successful performance and maybe record a new album with renewed optimism, or it would all come crashing down on them and they'd break up once more, this time for good. If there was something between the two extremes... well, who knew? Nobody could predict what would happen.

They spent the next several hours going over their planned setlist and making sure everything was tuned just right; they planned on kicking off with a few rockers, then an acoustic medley, and then a piano-based closer. John would then come back on stage towards the end of the concert, about 22:45-ish (5:45 PM in Philadelphia), and everyone within their party knew what song he would be performing at that time, along with a little surprise before the Band Aid group performance at the very end.

At long last, the Beatles were told by a stagehand that it was almost time for them to appear on the stage.

"Well, this is it, lads," John said to the others. "An event that's been nearly thirty years in the making." Had anyone told him, back in the 1950s, that he'd be playing for a charity concert on this exact date, he would've laughed and dismissed it with a rude, possibly even vulgar, remark. But now, this was happening, and there was no backing down now.

Ringo could see Phil Collins leaving the stage with the three surviving members of the Who; Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle. Several years ago, Phil has been a part of the progressive rock group Genesis, but he left the group to pursue a gig with the Who, succeeding Keith Moon, who had died seven years ago. Alongside his work with the Who, Phil had also pursued a solo career, having so far put out three albums.

Neither the Who nor the Beatles said anything to one another as the former left the stage to make way for the latter, but their facial expressions and the odd hand gesture were enough of a sign to show that the Who had done very well out there, and in return, they were telling the Beatles to break a leg. (Ironically, it is a theatrical superstition that it's actually bad luck to say "good luck" to someone when they're about to perform on stage.)

Not too far away from the Beatles, Julian Lennon could see his younger half-brother Freddie playing with James and Dhani, the respective sons of Paul and Linda, and George and Olivia. Although the three boys were still quite young, many had somewhat expected that one day, they'd form a band of their own like their dads before them, but of course, they were also free to pursue solo careers.

Zak Starkey looked over at his new wife, Sarah Menikides, who was having a bit of a "girls' hangout" with James' older sisters, Heather, Mary and Stella, Zak's younger sister Lee and Julian and Freddie's little sister Alice (Jason was helping to look after the smaller kids). Zak kissed Sarah, who then placed his hand onto her stomach; seven months pregnant. Expecting in September, they would be bringing in the first ever Beatle grandchild into the world.

But what about Maddy, Linda, Livvy and Babs? Much like their respective husbands, they were in their own group, sitting on chairs, gossiping about anything. They were also joined by Cynthia, Pattie and Maureen, the respective ex-wives of John, George and Ringo.

Out of the first Beatle wives, Linda was the only one who stayed married to Paul, a marriage of sixteen years and counting. In 1969, John was married to Yoko Ono, and while she and Linda never really hated each other - unlike their husbands at the time - the latter did sometimes feel intimidated by the former. But now, Madeline Kahn had taken Yoko's place as John's wife, and so far his most successful marriage. She was warm, kind-hearted and funny, and it always brought a sense of delight whenever she, Linda, Olivia and Barbara were in the same room.

Yes, since the beginning of the 1980s, the Beatles had become more than just a musical affair. They were a family. And no one wanted to trade that for anything in the world.

John, Paul, George and Ringo were now close to the stage entrance, holding onto their guitars and (in Ringo's case) drumsticks, feeling excited but a little anxious about what was going to happen. Bob Geldof, one of the people responsible for organizing this event, was giving his introduction.

"This could be the most important performance of the entire concert," he was saying, "let alone the entirety of rock music history. So, please let me introduce to you, the act you've known for all these years..." He paused for dramatic effect; there was some scattered chuckling at the reference Geldof had just made, but they were drowned out by unstoppable clapping and screaming the moment he said their name...

"THE BEATLES!"