Stuart Suctliffe

Stuart Suctliffe was a close friend of John Lennon. He had a more difficult relationship with Paul McCartney. The body language of the young men in the photo suggests this.

Stuart hides behind his sunglasses. He is not happy in the group. He is a very talented artist but a poor musician. Paul sometimes unplugs his bass guitar on stage.

Tragedy

The girlfiend of Stuart, Astrid Kirchherr took the Hamburg photo.When the other Beatles left Hamburg, Stuart left the group to stay with her.

Tragically, Suctliffe died a year later on 10 April, 1962 of a brain hemorrhage. He was only 21. His death had a particularly strong effect on John.

A photo of Stuart appears on the cover of The Beatles most famous album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band