甲殼蟲光輝歲月裏的10件軼事(下)

Wanted To Buy An Island

5.打算買座島

In 1967, The Beatles planned to sail to Greece, find a suitable island, and set up a Beatletopia. They'd build four houses, all connected at the center by a glass-domed recording studio/entertainment complex. The island would also have homes for members of their inner circle.

1967年，甲殼蟲計劃乘船到希臘，找個合適的小島，建立一個"甲殼蟲匹亞"。他們蓋了四座房子，都與中間玻璃圓頂的錄音棚（也是娛樂場所）相連。島上還將爲團隊其他人修建房屋。

It was a wild plan, and it was John's idea. Tired of English weather and crazy fans, Lennon wanted a place where he and his friends could live in peace. Paul, on the other hand, had a different take on the situation. "I suppose," he once said, "the main motivation . . . would probably be that no one could stop you smoking."Dreaming of rest and recreational drugs, The Beatles flew to Greece, rented a yacht, and searched for their new home. As they cruised the Mediterranean, the boys dropped quite a bit of acid, and John and George spent a lot of time playing ukuleles. So they could sneak their LSD into the country, Magic Alex—their Greek friend and the eventual head of Apple Electronics—cut a deal with the Greek government. In exchange for a photo op with the Ministry of Tourism, The Beatles received diplomatic band found a spot to their liking, a guitar-shaped island called Leslo, which doesn't exist on any map. They sent one of their assistants to buy the island, but by the time they got their money out of the UK, The Beatles had lost interest in their Greek getaway. Evidently, this was par for the course with The Beatles. According to McCartney, they once considered buying a little English village, but they dropped that idea, ly, it's a shame that the deal never went through as The Beatles were about to fall apart. Perhaps an island getaway could've saved their friendship. Of course, it might've smudged their "peace and love" personas, as Greece was ruled by a fascist dictatorship at the time.

這個瘋狂的計劃是約翰的主意。列儂厭煩了英國的天氣和瘋狂的粉絲，希望有一處可以和朋友平靜居住的地方。另一方面，保羅對這件事有不同的意見。"我認爲，"他曾說，"主要動機——很可能是沒人阻撓你抽菸了吧。"渴望休息和娛樂性藥物，甲殼蟲飛到希臘，租了一艘快艇，開始尋找新家。在地中海航行的途中，他們扔掉了一些藥物，約翰和喬治花了很多時間玩夏威夷四絃琴。所以他們能偷偷地帶着LSD致幻劑入境，亞力克斯巫師——他們的希臘朋友，後來蘋果電子公司的領頭人——與希臘政府達成了一項協議。作爲滿足旅遊部形象宣傳的條件，甲殼蟲獲得了外交豁免權。樂隊發現了一個他們喜歡的、吉他形狀的島嶼，叫做"Leslo"——任何地圖上都沒有。他們讓一位助手買下這座島，但是等把資金轉出英國時，甲殼蟲對逃亡希臘已經失去了興趣。顯而易見，這發生在甲殼蟲身上不足爲怪。據麥卡特尼所言，他們曾考慮買下英國一個小村莊，但是他們也放棄了這個想法。這真是件讓人羞恥的事：協議從未兌現，因爲甲殼蟲不久將解散。或許，逃亡小島也不能拯救他們的友誼。當然，這可能玷污了他們"平和友愛"的形象，因爲希臘當時正由一位法西斯獨裁者統治。

Short-Lived Apple Boutique

4.曇花一現的蘋果精品店

After the death of manager Brian Epstein, The Beatles took their musical empire in a new direction. Wanting more say in financial matters, they established Apple Corps, a company that branched into several divisions like Apple Records, Apple Films, and Apple Electronics. The Beatles were also interested in retail, so in December 1967, they opened the Apple Boutique, a strange little store at 94 Baker Street in London.

經紀人布萊恩·厄普斯頓去世後，甲殼蟲引導他們的音樂帝國走向了一個新方向。想要在經濟方面獲得更多話語權，他們成立了蘋果公司——下轄幾種不同種類的分支，比如蘋果唱片、蘋果電影和蘋果電子。甲殼蟲還對零售感興趣，所以1967年12月，他們開了一家蘋果精品店——位於倫敦貝克街94號的奇怪小商店。

Paul described the shop as "a beautiful place where beautiful people can buy beautiful things." While musicians like James Taylor recorded songs upstairs or in the basement, fans could shop for goods on the ground floor. The merchandise was created by a Dutch design collective called The Fool, and they painted the storefront with a psychedelic rainbow mural, complete with stars, planets, and a yin-yang. The locals didn't care for the artwork, and the city council had it painted Boutique didn't do so well. For all their musical savvy, The Beatles were lousy businessmen. Their merchandise was garbage, and official "house hippie" Richard DiLello described the shop as "a bog of bad taste." In fact, the store was losing money so fast that seven months after opening, The Beatles gave all their goods away for free. That was a rather hectic last closing of the Apple Boutique resulted in one last scandal. Wanting to publicize their upcoming single, Paul whitewashed the window and wrote "Hey Jude" in huge letters. The rest of the neighborhood misinterpreted his message. Since the band hadn't released the song yet, everyone assumed it was a reference to the Nazi habit of scrawLing "Juden" on stores owned by Jews. Local shopkeepers were furious, and somebody even put a brick through the window before The Beatles could clear up the mistake.

保羅這樣描述這家店："一個漂亮的人能買到漂亮東西的漂亮地方。"當詹姆士·泰勒等音樂家在樓上或者地下室錄製歌曲，歌迷可以在一樓看看商品。商品由一個叫做"愚人"的荷蘭設計團隊創造，他們還把商店正面塗成能產生幻覺的彩虹壁畫，用星星、行星和太極圖作裝飾。當地人並不在乎這件藝術品，而市議會則用塗料把這幅畫抹去了。精品店生意不好。他們有音樂才能，卻是糟糕的商人。他們的商品是垃圾，公認的"房屋嬉皮士"理查德·迪萊羅說這家店是"低級品味的泥淖"。實際上，商店正在迅速虧損，營業7個月後，甲殼蟲免費派發商品。最後一天相當忙碌。蘋果精品店關閉還引起了另一個醜聞。想要公開他們即將發行單曲的消息，保羅用石灰水把窗戶刷白後，寫上"Hey Jude（嗨！裘德）"幾個大字母。鄰居誤解了他的意思。因爲樂隊還沒有發行這首歌，人們都以爲這是模仿納粹在猶太人的商店的牆上書寫"Juden（猶太人）"的習慣。當地的店老闆很生氣，在他們澄清事實前，甚至有人向他們的窗戶扔磚頭。

r On-Staff Astrologer

3.他們的占星家

Before we leave the Apple Boutique behind, we should mention the store's weirdest employee. His name was Caleb Ashburton-Dunning, he was the store's assistant manager, and he could supposedly see the future. The Beatles thought that an astrologer might help out with their fledgling business, so every day, he whipped up horoscopes for John, Paul, George, and Ringo. If they ever hit a snag or wanted advice on an upcoming event, he was the man with the answers.

拋開蘋果精品店這個話題之前，還應該說說商裏古怪的僱員。他叫做凱萊布·阿什伯頓-鄧寧，是商店的經理助手，據說他能看見未來。甲殼蟲認爲占星家也許能幫他們拯救處於危險中的商業，所以每天他都爲約翰、保羅、喬治和林戈占星。如果他們遇到什麼困難，或者想聽聽對即將發生事情的建議，他就是有答案的人。

One fateful day, after examining John's horoscope, Ashburton-Dunning told Lennon to break up with Yoko Ono and return to his first wife, Cynthia. John didn't take this very well and fired the man on the spot. Crushed, the Apple astrologer joined a bizarre cult called "The Process Church of the Final Judgment," a group that worshiped both Jesus and Satan. The group evolved into an animal shelter, and Ashburton-Dunning disappeared from Beatles history. As an astrologer, he probably should've seen it coming.

在具有決定性的一天，看過約翰的星象，阿什伯頓-鄧寧告訴列儂讓他與小野洋子分手，回到前妻辛西婭身邊。約翰沒有接受這個建議，當場向他開了槍。受挫之後，蘋果占星家加入了一個古怪的宗教派別，叫做"終審的進程教派"——他們崇拜耶穌和撒旦。這個教派逐漸發展成爲動物收容所，阿什伯頓-鄧寧從甲殼蟲的歷史上消失了。作爲一個占星家，他本應預知這個結局。

Apple Scruffs

2.蘋果鐵桿粉絲

Wherever The Beatles went, they were hounded by rabid fans. While filming A Hard Day's Night, several scenes were interrupted. When performing at Shea Stadium, girls tried to storm the stage. And when the group visited the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., an 18-year-old Beverly Markowitz sneaked up behind Ringo and snipped off some of his hair.

無論甲殼蟲去哪裏，他們都會被狂熱的粉絲糾纏不清。在拍攝《一夜狂歡》的時候，有幾個鏡頭被打斷。在謝亞球場表演時，女孩兒們試圖衝擊舞臺。當他們訪問英國駐華盛頓特區大使館時，一位18歲的貝弗利·馬爾卡維茨悄悄走到林戈身後，減掉了他的一些頭髮。

However, none of their fans were as devoted as the Apple Scruffs. Named for their big, thick coats, the Scruffs waited on the front steps of Apple Headquarters every single day, longing for a glimpse of one of their idols. There were about 20 Scruffs, most of them young British women who'd given up their jobs to follow The Beatles full-time. Some of the members included Margo Stevens, the leader of the group, and Sue-John, named for her huge crush on Lennon. But a few Scruffs stood out from the crowd, like 63-year-old Emma Eldredge, Carol Beford from Texas, and a gay New Yorker named times, the Scruffs took their obsession too far. Once, they spotted an open window on Paul's house, grabbed a ladder, and climbed inside. After wandering around, they made off with a pair of pants, one of his tapes, and some of Linda McCartney's photos. Infuriated, Paul tracked them down and demanded his things back. He knew they'd done it because real thieves "would have taken more expensive things."But mostly, the Apple Scruffs were a harmless bunch. They printed their own fan magazine and created cards for club members. They even helped The Beatles from time to time. For example, their breaking-and-entering stunt inspired Paul to write "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window." Most importantly, their dedication and devotion helped The Beatles cope in their final days when things were getting rough. At the very least, they certainly encouraged George who later dedicated a sweet song to his favorite fans.

即便如此，他們的歌迷比不過蘋果鐵桿粉絲。得名於又大又厚的外套，鐵桿粉每天都在在蘋果總部前面的梯子上等着，希望瞥見一個偶像。他們大約共20人，其中大部分是年輕的英國婦女——放棄工作全天追隨甲殼蟲。其成員包括馬戈·斯蒂文斯——鐵桿粉的領袖——和蘇-約翰——這樣起名是因爲她巧遇過列儂。但是有幾個鐵桿粉很突出，比如63歲的艾瑪·埃爾德雷奇、來自德克薩斯的卡羅爾·比弗德和名爲托米的紐約同性戀。有時，鐵桿粉的行爲很過分。曾經，他們看見保羅的房子打開了一扇窗戶，於是架上梯子爬了進去。四處逛完之後，他們離開時帶走了一條褲子、一盒磁帶，還有琳達·麥卡特尼的照片。保羅很生氣，一路跟蹤他們，要求他們退還自己的東西。他知道他們會這樣做，因爲真正的小偷"會帶走更貴重的東西"。但在大多時候，鐵桿粉不會帶來危害。他們印刷自己的粉絲雜誌，爲俱樂部成員製作卡片。他們有時甚至能幫助甲殼蟲。例如，他們破門而入的驚人行動啓發保羅寫了歌曲"她從盥洗室的窗戶而來"。更重要的是，他們的專注和付出幫助甲殼蟲處理最後日子裏遇到的問題，那時事情變得很糟糕。至少他們的確鼓舞了喬治——他後來爲他喜愛的歌迷獻上了一首甜美的歌曲。

Ringo And George Quit The Band

1.當林戈和喬治退出樂隊的時候

Thanks to a mix of egos and economics, Paul McCartney left The Beatles in April 1970, ending the most famous musical act in history. But Paul wasn't the first member to leave the band. That honor goes to Ringo Starr, who quit back in 1968 while The Beatles were recording their famous The White Album.

由於自我和經濟的混淆，1970年4月保羅·麥卡特尼離開了甲殼蟲，結束了歷史上最著名的音樂行爲。但是保羅並不是第一個離開樂隊的成員——那是林戈·斯塔爾，他早在1968年就退出了樂隊，當時甲殼蟲正在錄製著名的唱片《白色專輯》。

In addition to its influence on Charles Manson, The White Album marked a particularly dark period for The Beatles. George was trying to assert himself musically, Paul was becoming rather bossy, and John kept bringing Yoko Ono into the studio, which threw off the band's groove. As a result, there was a lot of fighting, resulting in band members recording by themselves. In the words of Paul, the White Album was actually the "tension album." That tension boiled over on August 22, 1968, when Ringo called it quits. Everyone was fighting, Paul had mocked his drumming, and he was feeling like an outsider. Frustrated, Ringo approached John and said, "I'm leaving the group because I'm not playing well, and I feel unloved and out of it, and you three are really close." Lennon was flabbergasted. "I thought it was you three!" he shouted. When Ringo approached Paul, he got the same exact rtheless, Starr borrowed Peter Sellers's yacht, sailed for Sardinia, and spent two weeks on the high sea writing "Octopus's Garden." In the meantime, Paul filled in for Ringo, drumming on "Back in the USSR" and "Dear Prudence." But eventually, the band sent Ringo a telegram proclaiming him the best drummer in the world and begging him to come back. And when Starr returned, he found flowers spread across his drum set, spelling out the words, "Welcome Back, Ringo."The good mood didn't last. In 1969, George was getting angry at Paul for suppressing his songs and was furious at Lennon for taking Yoko's advice over his. It also didn't help that a documentary crew was filming every little flare-up. Finally, things exploded when Lennon told the press that Apple was going bankrupt. An enraged George confronted John, and the two ended up getting into an actual fistfight. Sick of all the shenanigans, Harrison decided it was time to go."See you ‘round the clubs," he said as he stormed off. Lennon, always one to add fuel to the fire, made a joke about replacing George with Eric Clapton. The four were able to smooth things over for a little while, and George returned to finish Let It Be and Abbey Road. Sadly, though, time was running out for The Beatles, and in just a matter of months, the dream would finally be over.

除了對查爾斯·曼森的影響，《白色專輯》標誌着甲殼蟲經歷過的一段極其黑暗的歲月。喬治試圖增強音樂自信，保羅越來越像老闆，約翰總帶着小野洋子去錄音棚——這些改變了樂隊的習慣。結果打鬥不斷，樂隊成員自己記錄了這些事情。用保羅的話來說，《白色專輯》實際上就是"緊張專輯"。1968年8月22日，林戈宣佈退出，緊張關係到了一觸即發的地步。人人都在爭鬥，保羅嘲笑他打鼓，他感覺自己是個局外人。心灰意冷之後，林戈靠近約翰說："我離開樂隊，因爲我演得不好，我感覺不到愛，不在樂隊裏，你們三個纔是真正親密的，"列儂很驚訝。"我以爲是你們三個！"他大喊。當林戈對保羅這麼說時，保羅的反應一模一樣。然而，斯塔爾借了彼得·塞勒斯的遊艇，去了撒丁島，在公海花了兩週星期創作了"章魚的花園"。同時，保羅爲林戈填曲，用鼓點演奏"在蘇聯的時候"和"親愛的謹慎"。但是最終，樂隊向林戈發出一份電報，聲明他是世界上最好的鼓手，希望他回來。當斯塔爾歸隊時，他發現鼓架四周都是鮮花，拼出了一句話："歡迎回來，林戈。"好景不長。1969年，喬治對保羅不發行自己的歌曲和列儂採納小野洋子而不是他的建議感到十分生氣。雖然有一組製作紀錄片的人要把所有細節錄在膠捲裏，但也無濟於事。最終，當列儂告訴媒體蘋果即將破產時，危機一觸即發。憤怒的喬治與約翰對峙，兩人最終拳腳相向。哈里森厭煩這些鬧劇，感到離開的時刻到了。"俱樂部見，"憤然離去的時候他這樣說。列儂——總是雪上加霜——拿艾瑞克·克萊普敦取代喬治說笑。四人和睦相處了一段時間，喬治回來完成了《隨它去》和《莊園之路》。但是很可惜，甲殼蟲的時間不多了，僅僅幾個月之後，好夢終於結束了。

翻譯:羅惠月 來源：前十網