"Get up meathead, don't pretend that you are dead,
Get yourself up off the car.
Get yourself together now and give us something tasty
Everything you try to do you know it sure sounds wasted"
            - Charles Haltrey, recording under the name Ringo Starr
"Back off Boogaloo"

As everyone knows the real Ringo Starr was first replaced in Beatles
concerts in Australia in 1964.  Brian Epstein's official reason was
illness, but Paul and John had strong artistic differences with Ringo.
Ringo sounded too much like burlesque.  The switch can be detected as
early as 1965's recording of "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party" and was
final when  Haltrey first sang on a Beatles record, the cover of Buck
Owens "Act Naturally"

Haltrey went on to record four top hits after the Beatles breakup
including "Boogaloo", "Sixteen", "Oh My My", and "Photograph", which
is about Paul.  Haltrey recorded his hits with "the fifth Beatle"
Billy Preston, who also recorded as Billy Joe Royal and had hits under
other names in the tradition of artists like Leadbelly, Charlie
Parker, Robert Johnson and even Chuck Berry.

In 1971 John Lennon was quoted as saying "the guy has four number one
hits, I dont know how he does it" and at that time the artist
recording as Ringo Starr was the most successful of the former
Beatles.

When Paul McCartney finally did stop pretending he was dead it was
with a song recorded with Michael Jackson.  "The Girl is Mine" was
recorded half in California and half in Scotland.  The two never met.
This song is clearly McCartney - with jazzy melodies, solid bass
lines, and outstanding vocals.  This song is clearly superior to the
music first heard in the rooftop sessions from the Let it Be album.
In those live recordings and in the collection of "Paul McCartney" or
"Wings" albums we hear inferior compositions, bad singing, and a guy
who cannot play the bass.

In fact the real Paul McCartney has not been since since a 1968 photo
session when he surprised John by being the real thing, and not the
Paul look-alike, Billy Shears.  Shears, the six foot two son of a
Nigerian diplomat  first appeared in photo sessions for Sgt Pepper,
and had his first musical recordings with a band called "Badfinger"
(after the working title of Paul's melody for "Help from my Friends")

In 1968 the real Paul McCartney appeared on the album of Abbey Road in
bare feet in order to prove that he was not any taller than the other
Beatles, only five foot ten, just like he claimed on the original
Beatle bubble gum cards in 1964.  The real Paul McCartney in his
stocking feet.  Will the real Paul McCartney please stand up?

Hey maybe there is a Paul McCartney inside all of us.  Let's all stand
up.

Greg Utrecht
www.geocities.com/gregu10/main.htm





---------------------------------------------------------------------------------