New
Drummer
The Beatles that
come to the first recording session are John, Paul, George
- and Pete!
Pete Best has been The Beatles drummer since they played
in Hamburg. But Pete is becoming a
problem for The Beatles. He is very popular with female
fans in Liverpool but not with the other band members.
Record producer George Martin is also unhappy with Pete
Best's drumming.
The Beatles are about to conquer the world - without Pete
Best. But they do not tell him this directly. Instead they
ask their manager Brian Epstein to replace Best with
another Liverpool drummer - Ringo Star.
In August, 1962 Epstein takes Best to a pub opposite The
Cavern. He says, 'The lads don't want you in the
group anymore".
Why Ringo?
The Beatles did not treat Pete
Best well. Though there were questions about his drumming,
the main problem was social. In Hamburg Best spent much of
his time alone. Because he was shy and quiet, Best became
an outsider in the group
The replacement of Pete Best was very unpopular with the
group's fans in Liverpool. One girl even attacked George in
The Cavern. But it was true that Ringo's personality better
suited the group. Lennon later said, 'Pete was a good
drummer but Ringo was a good Beatle'.
For many years Pete Best worked in an office. He originally
received almost nothing for his contribution to the group.
But in the 1990s The Beatles released 'Anthology' which
contained tracks on which Best played. Finally he received
over £1 million in royalties.
But his photo was removed from the cover.
