THE Queens Hall will welcome 'Songs The Beatles Gave Away' starring BBC Radio 2 presenter Bob Harris and former custodian of John Lennon's childhood home Colin Hall on June 2.
Bob and Colin chat about their love of the Fab Four and songs which Sir Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison penned for other artists including Cilla Black's top 10 hit Step Inside Love, Peter and Gordon's transatlantic chart-topper A World Without Love and Jackie Lomax's debut single Sour Milk Sea.
"First and foremost I hope people will enjoy their evening with us and hopefully discover something new about The Beatles," says Colin.
"Our remit is to delve into an often overlooked aspect of the story of the Fab Four. That aspect is, of course, songs John, Paul and George wrote at the time but chose to give to other artists to record rather than record with The Beatles.
"Bob and I not only trade stories people may not have heard before but along the way we call upon eye-witnesses such as Sir Paul himself, Sir George Martin, Cilla Black and George Harrison together with clips from the songs themselves."
The Sunday Express featured stage production was inspired by a Bob-hosted BBC Radio 2 documentary and Colin's latest book.
Bob has interviewed all four members of The Beatles including putting the questions to John for cult BBC2 series The Old Grey Whistle Test while Colin has also enjoyed interview time with Sir Paul.
For nearly 20 years, Colin was custodian of John's childhood home in Liverpool welcoming the likes of Mark Hamill, Debbie Harry and Yoko Ono. His Best of British book of the month, The Songs The Beatles Gave Away, which includes a preface from Bob, was published by Great Northern Books in 2022.
So what does the ex-teacher think is behind The Beatles' phenomenal popularity?
"Now there's a question! To paraphrase John Lennon, "If I knew the answer to that I'd become a manager and form at least six other bands and manage them!" I'd say without hesitation it's the music, the songs. They are timeless. The Beatles' music will never grow old.
"It remains forever relevant, a marvellous blend of melody, harmony and lyricism. They are not over-sentimental but speak from the heart to go straight to the core of the human condition. They rock, don't preach and touch you with an inescapable honesty and insight.
"There's a Beatles song for everyone. They reach out to you whatever is happening in your life. I could go on. But they do bring people together from every age group, from all around the world. They leave people feeling positive and happy. They are The Beatles. The band of bands."
The Songs The Beatles Gave Away plays the Queen's Hall at 7.30pm on June 2. More details are at queenshall.co.uk
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