Affidavit Filed by Paul McCartney to Break Up The Beatles
Musician
The Beatles
(English, 1960 - 1970)
Maker
Paul McCartney
(English, born 1942)
Maker
John Lennon
(English, 1940 - 1980)
Date1970
ClassificationsHistory
DimensionsOverall: 14 1/4 x 11 3/4 x 1 in. (36.2 x 29.8 x 2.5 cm)
DescriptionA formal legal affidavit filed in the High Court of Justice Chancery Division between James Paul McCartney as plaintiff and John Ono Lennon, George Harrison, Richard Starkey, and Apple Corps as defendants. Dated December 1970, 12 pages with commentary and notations in John Lennon's hand throughout. The document is contained in custom black leather cover with gilt title, "The Beginning of the End." McCartney's sworn statement to initiate the lawsuit to formally break up the Beatles is a remarkable document that that outlines in 25 points the reasons he had been "driven" to apply for formal dissolution of the group. Among the issues named are the fact that the Beatles had "long since ceased to perform as a group" and that he deeply objected to retaining the services of manager Allen Klein who McCartney deeply distrusted. He additionally contended that remaining with the Beatles was a threat to his creative freedom. McCartney very specifically states that by the time the band recorded Abbey Road "Lennon was no longer interested "in the performance of songs which he had not written himself" to which Lennon has counted in the margin notes "Paul was guilty of this for years." The claims made by McCartney are detailed and the comments by Lennon are insightful and person revealing which statements warranted handwritten responses.
One of the most influential bands of all time, The Beatles ushered in a new wave of popular music in the 1960s that had far-reaching effects on society.
The Beatles unprecedented popularity led to the British Invasion of UK acts successfully entering the American market. At the peak of “Beatlemania” the band performed to sold-out audiences, where shrieks of excited fans often drowned out the musical performances.
In less than a decade, The Beatles transformed their sound from traditional pop to include world music, psychedelia, and hard rock. The Beatles revolutionary period of music-making changed the way people listened to popular music and experienced it in their lives.
