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Living the Beatles Legend

On the Road with the Fab Four – The Mal Evans Story

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Living the Beatles Legend

By: Kenneth Womack
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**MiCannes Award Music Book of the Year**

The first full-length biography of Mal Evans, the Beatles’ beloved roadie, assistant, confidant and friend

A towering figure in horn-rimmed glasses, Malcolm ‘Mal’ Evans was an invaluable member of the Beatles’ inner circle. Serving as their long-time roadie, personal assistant and protector, he was a sometime lyricist, occasional performer and regular fixer at the height of the group’s fame and beyond.

But Mal’s dedication to his beloved ‘boys’ and his own desire for stardom took its toll, leading to the dissolution of his marriage and his untimely death in January 1976.

Until now, Mal’s extraordinary life has remained shrouded in mystery. Drawing on hundreds of exclusive interviews and with full access to Mal’s unpublished archives – including his personal diaries, manuscripts and memorabilia – renowned Beatles scholar Kenneth Womack paints the first complete portrait of this complicated figure at the heart of the Beatles’ story.

Living the Beatles Legend is a fascinating but ultimately tragic tale about life at the edges of superstardom.

©2023 Kenneth Womack Entertainment & Celebrities Historical Music Celebrity
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Critic reviews

'Exhaustively detailed … captures Beatlemania up close' Observer
‘A meticulously researched job in not only piecing together the roadie’s viewpoint of the Beatles’ story, but also in depicting the tragedy of a man who was so in love with the group he destroyed his own life’ Daily Mail Book of the Week
‘Womack has woven a portrait full of complex threads that lead everywhere and, near the end of Evans’ life, nowhere … This book is just amazing’ Q
‘A celebration – not just of Evans, but of all the unsung supporting characters who make creative life possible … It removes the cloud of mythology that often shrouds the Beatles’ story and reminds us that their superstardom was by no means predestined’ Guardian
‘A Holy Grail for fans’ People
All stars
Most relevant
Ken Womack is the master of the narrow angle Beatles book - with deep dives into specific periods and specific people a speciality (in contrast to Mark Lewisohn's comprehensive, detailed approach). Though the strokes are sometimes broad, there's a lot here now to enjoy - and access to Mal's own journals was the real driver of that.

One thing lets this down, and it's not a little thing. Womack's pronunciation of English place-names, Liverpool slang and unique words (like surnames) is so consistently bad that it's borderline disrespectful. It would not have taken long to flag difficult to pronounce names and to have checked with a consultant - any British person, basically. But Womack ignorantly and wilfully ploughs on with his invented pronunciation, suggesting that he literally does not care. It feels like at no point did he ask - "am I saying this right?" - which shows contempt for his audience and the Beatles' country of origin.

A fantastic untold story

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Ken Womack writes in an engaging style, demonstrating the extensive research he has carried out on Mal Evans. He should therefore have the nous to let someone else narrate his book and this might have been a five star production. Unfortunately, he chose to read it himself and the result is at times painful for British listeners. He makes no attempt to pronounce place names with any accuracy and this seriously detracts from what should have been a wonderful listening experience. It's a real shame because the story he tells is fascinating. What a lost opportunity. In this case, I'd buy the book, unless one has no option but to listen.

Fascinating story let down by appalling narration

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the pronounce of many of the words is American and quite annoying Such as Hamburg and places in the UK totally unrecognisable.

Great insight into the Beatles warts and all

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Mal's story is that of an ordinary man who lived an extraordinary life. There's lots if interest here especially for a Beatles fan. it's not brilliantly written but it retained my interest despite its rather excessive length. The narration was grating at times. Overall, I would recommend it.

A mixed bag

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Excellent informative story thoroughly enjoyed and learned so much about what went on behind the scenes when the Beatles were touring

Loads of info I’ve never heard before

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