One of earliest photos of The Beatles to be auctioned

www.liverpoolecho.co.uk
One of earliest photos of The Beatles to be auctioned
1961 picture features Paul McCartney at the front of the stage and Pete Best on drums
Aug 11, 2014 

One of the earliest photos of The Beatles in Liverpool’s Cavern Club is being auctioned later this month along with a series of other recently unearthed snaps taken of the the band at the beginning of their career.

The picture, taken in 1961, features Paul McCartney at the front of the stage and Pete Best on drums – a year before he was replaced by Ringo Starr.

Stephen Bailey – the manager of The Beatles Shop, in Liverpool – said the forthcoming memorabilia sale includes a series of negatives brought into the Mathew Street store by a man who casually told him: “My father was a professional photographer and these might be of interest to you.”


One of the earliest photos of The Beatles in Liverpool's Cavern Club which is being auctioned later this month

Mr Bailey said the man then handed over a series of envelopes of transparencies which all turned out to be in perfect condition.

Another shot which stands out features George Harrison, John Lennon, McCartney and Best posing with six girls.

Mr Bailey said he did some detective work on this photograph and found out it was taken on June 14, 1961, at St John’s Hall, Tuebrook, Liverpool – the first date the band played after returning from Hamburg.

Two of the mystery Beatles fans in the picture were tracked down thanks to the ECHO after we published the snap showing the band posing with six fans.

Sandra Swift, from Kirkby, said her sister-in-law spotted the photo in the paper first and identified her as the girl in the middle below John Lennon.

And Wendy Riley contacted the ECHO identifying the woman on the left of the photograph as her late mum Yvonne Leigh.

Mr Bailey said: “It’s a lovely photograph and so evocative of the relationship The Beatles had with their early fans.”

He added he is still looking for the other three.

Mr Bailey, who has managed The Beatles Shop for 28 years, said there will 330 lots at the auction including rare first, second and third editions of the legendary Merseybeat magazine, published in 1961.

He said he thinks the Cavern Club pictures could fetch £1,500 and the Merseybeat magazine could go for between £2,500 and £3,000.

The Annual Liverpool Beatles Auction will be held in the Paul McCartney Auditorium at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts on August 23.


Richard Avedon Posters with Mailing Tube.