This will be a vacation read that I'll set loose somewhere sometime after I finish it.

RELEASE NOTES:

I left it in the lobby ... near the Beatles picture!

Read the Beatles is a worthwhile collection of pieces examining The Beatles from a chronological perspective and other angles. The biggest revelations for me from this book dealt with George Harrison: his songwriting contributions to the band cresting just as The Beatles were dissolving; his humanitarian work; and his role in furthering the popularity of what has come to known as world music. The best Beatles biography is still the Spitz book, but this one is a good companion as it brings together influential shorter pieces and sheds light on the post-Beatles period in ways that Spitz doesn't attempt to cover. Ringo gets a little shortchanged here, but there is an excellent piece on his musicality.