Carry That Weight: The Story of the Beatles - Ernst Schultze

Book Details

Country: USA
Language: English
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
Publication Date: 1998


Fictional Artist: The Beatles
Genre: Rock, Pop
Country: UK
Real World Analogue: The Beatles
Jacket Blurb: 

This novel assumes the Beatle story a great deal more complex, unsettling and unknowable than the popular biographical myth. Like the classic story of Oedipus the Beatles had within them the elements that would eventually lead to their downfall: their intelligence and willingness to puncture traditional cultural reality -- the very characteristics that made them such carefree, brazen, and wildly appealing figures. Huge sums of money was involved in their story and the 1969 Zeitgeist was baying for blood all over the world, the pressure to come up with the "Next Big Album" time after time cannot have been much fun. Problems associated with enormous fame led Lennon to deep and angry disillusionment and the original McCartney to his death -- and his his look-alike replacement to the edge of sanity. A ferocious argument among the group comes to its drunken climax in the now famous Studio number 2 at Abbey Road. Angry and frustrated, Paul runs outside during a lightning storm, roars off in his car and is killed. Not so far fetched!

The taxes flowing in from their world revenues bailed the English economy out of tough times. Those in tune with that historic moment know England was adrift in a sterling crisis and revenues coming in from the work of the Beatles were pouring in from around the world, bringing the British government out of tough economic times. The British Empire could not let the Beatles die with Paul. The government and the record company set in motion a cover-up and a replacement for the dead McCartney, for England had the legal tools to do so at the time.

The look-alike replacement grew up in an orphanage and is more talented than the original Paul, thus the "Sergeant Pepper" Album is very different from previous Beatle music. The other members of the band grow weary of the Beatle road, wanting to quit and attempt a normal life. Paul is new to Beatledom and enjoys his newfound "family" in the Band. He wants the group to go on but because of his destructive ways developed in the orphanage he ends up destroying the very group he needed most. The turmoil builds to the sad ending on Paul's doorstep.