Excellent research as always. My question is always, what's the motivation? What's in it for the Greek government to have the Beatles on an island there? Surely it can't just be a desire to send a signal that Greece, even under a repressive government, is a good place for artists? Repressive governments generally don't want artists. Artists are trouble. Especially the Beatles.
Thanks! Yes, in general the government was not friendly towards artists. They may have seen the Beatles’ visit as a way of gaining legitimisation internationally. And it also seems that publicity from the trip was seen as a way of encouraging more tourism to Greece (which they did want).
So your thinking is, they wanted them to come, be a good photo op for the tourist board, and leave. But not to buy anything?
I keep thinking about how they got the name of the island wrong in the story. And given that Paul and John are two of the greatest wordsmiths of the 20th century, it seems unlikely that they would misremember the name of the island. Maybe they were given the wrong name? The equivalent of selling someone real estate that doesn't exist?
Good question - the answer really isn’t clear but I agree that it is puzzling! However, according to a newspaper report, the Beatles *were* blocked by the Greek government from buying one particular island (Tsougria). But presumably the Beatles lawyers/accountants in the UK would have checked that the proposed sale was possible and it seems that negotiations went on for several months before the idea was eventually abandoned.
If they did. I'm not in this moment remembering the timing, but if the interest in the sale extended to after Brian died, all of that was so scrambled and there was really no one looking after the store… And the beginning of them having a parade of incompetent characters acting in their name.
(One of my favorite quotes is from Alan Williams, who said. "The Beatles were brilliant musicians but they had no other talents.” Which would include hiring qualified people and making good business decision)
Excellent research as always. My question is always, what's the motivation? What's in it for the Greek government to have the Beatles on an island there? Surely it can't just be a desire to send a signal that Greece, even under a repressive government, is a good place for artists? Repressive governments generally don't want artists. Artists are trouble. Especially the Beatles.
Keep digging! I'm all in.
Thanks! Yes, in general the government was not friendly towards artists. They may have seen the Beatles’ visit as a way of gaining legitimisation internationally. And it also seems that publicity from the trip was seen as a way of encouraging more tourism to Greece (which they did want).
So your thinking is, they wanted them to come, be a good photo op for the tourist board, and leave. But not to buy anything?
I keep thinking about how they got the name of the island wrong in the story. And given that Paul and John are two of the greatest wordsmiths of the 20th century, it seems unlikely that they would misremember the name of the island. Maybe they were given the wrong name? The equivalent of selling someone real estate that doesn't exist?
Good question - the answer really isn’t clear but I agree that it is puzzling! However, according to a newspaper report, the Beatles *were* blocked by the Greek government from buying one particular island (Tsougria). But presumably the Beatles lawyers/accountants in the UK would have checked that the proposed sale was possible and it seems that negotiations went on for several months before the idea was eventually abandoned.
If they did. I'm not in this moment remembering the timing, but if the interest in the sale extended to after Brian died, all of that was so scrambled and there was really no one looking after the store… And the beginning of them having a parade of incompetent characters acting in their name.
(One of my favorite quotes is from Alan Williams, who said. "The Beatles were brilliant musicians but they had no other talents.” Which would include hiring qualified people and making good business decision)