Anyone who watched the Peter Jackson-directed docuseries The Beatles: Get Back will be familiar with Mal Evans, who was The Beatles’ road manager and personal assistant from the early ’60s to their breakup. Well, fans are about to learn even more about him, thanks to the new book Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans, dropping November 14.
The book was written by Beatles scholar Dr. Kenneth Womack, using the memoir Evans wrote before his tragic death in January 1976. It recalls his days working for The Beatles, along with his take on their split and his life after the band broke up. It also contains letters written by The Beatles giving Evans permission to write his story.
“Sure, you can do your book,” reads Paul McCartney’s letter, “as long as you tell them how lovely I am.” John Lennon also offers up his approval, noting he’s “been dying to read your diary for the last thousand years.” He adds, “Make a buck, but don’t f*** it up.”
And there’s even more Evans info to come. Womack is working on a second edition of Evans’ memoir, to be published in 2024, which will contain never-before-seen photos of The Beatles, one of which is believed to the last picture ever taken of McCartney and Lennon together.
People shares the first look at the photo, which Evans took in March 1974 during a recording session for Lennon’s album Rock ‘n’ Roll. People also has an excerpt from the book, recounting Lennon’s time in Los Angeles recording the album, as well as Evans’ decision to finally resign from The Beatles and the band’s reaction.
Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans is available for preorder now.
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