John Lennon - The Music, The Magic

& The Murder

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - The Birth of a Legend

Chapter 2 - Growing Up in Liverpool

Chapter 3 - The Birth of The Beatles

Chapter 4 - The Road To Hamburg

Chapter 5 - On Track For Success

Chapter 6 - Conquering America

Chapter 7 - John Meets Yoko

Chapter 8 - Beyond The Beatles

Chapter 9 - John’s Lost Weekend

Chapter 10 - A New Beginning and a Tragic End

Chapter 1 - The Birth of a Legend

At the time, the St. Peter’s Garden Fete at Woolton, Liverpool, in 1957 did not appear to be a particularly memorable event. Yet at this mundane parish event, an event occurred that was to change the history of modern music for ever...and to catapult the 16-year old John Winston Lennon relentlessly towards fame and fortune on an extraordinary scale - and ultimately towards the horror of his tragic and untimely death.

The day had not started well. When John came down for breakfast on 6 July dressed in his most outrageous Teddy boy gear, Aunt Mimi - who had raised him - was not impressed. She was even less impressed at the fete that afternoon, when she discovered that the entertainment included a performance by John and his band, The Quarrymen. Yet as the young rock-and-roller and his cronies belted out tunes by Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley, even the staid Mimi had to admit that the band was not bad at all.

John and The Quarrymen Playing in Liverpool

After the performance, John and the band retired to the village hall to chat and drink a stolen beer or two. They were joined by a Liverpool lad that John knew by sight, but whom he had never spoken to before. Another member of the band had suggested that this baby-faced 15-year old might be a useful addition to The Quarrymen’s line-up. The newcomer picked up a guitar and gave the band an impressive rendition of Eddie Cochran’s Twenty Flight Rock. He followed this up by switching to the piano to perform ‘A Whole Lot of Shakin’’ by Jerry Lee Lewis. Most impressive of all, the youngster was able to tune all the guitars properly - a feat which was beyond the modest musical knowledge of any of The Quarrymen. As he played, John thought about the possibilities.

‘I thought “he’s as good as me”’, he said later. ‘It went through my head that I would have to keep him in line if I let him join. But he was good, so he was worth having. He also looked like Elvis. I dug him.’

And so the decision was made. The young man who went by the name of Paul McCartney was invited to join John Lennon’s band. The greatest songwriting partnership in the history of popular music was born...and the first page in the epic and extraordinary history of The Beatles was written.

Chapter 2 - Growing Up in Liverpool

John had a complicated and eventful childhood. Born in Liverpool on 9 October 1940 at the height of the wartime blitz, he was raised in a poor but loving family. His father, Alf, was a merchant seaman who spent a lot of time away from home, and by the time John was old enough to aware of his family, Alf had permanently separated from John’s mother, Julia, and - apart from a bizarre episode where he tried to abduct John and take him to New Zealand  - was not seen again for many years.

Julia was a warm and loving mother, and she soon formed a relationship with another man, Bobby Dykins, and moved in with him. John was happy with this home life, despite their straitened circumstances, but things were about to change. Julia’s older sister, Mimi, was appalled that Julia was ‘living in sin’ with a man, and even more appalled to find that the young John was sleeping in the same room as Julia and Bobby. She made a complaint to the council’s child-care services, and eventually John was taken away from Julia and sent to live with Mimi.

Mimi’s motivations for taking this action seem complicated. While her conservative middle-class ethics certainly objected to the ‘over the brush’ arrangements at Julia’s house, there may have been a degree of self-interest, too. Remarkably, it became apparent many years later that Mimi’s long marriage had never been consummated - - for reasons unknown - which meant she had no children of her own. By adopting John, she gained a child to love and care for as her own...which is exactly what she did, even if in a straitlaced Victorian fashion.

As a result of this change of ‘ownership,’ John grew up not in working-class Liverpool, but in the much more refined suburb of Woolton. Mimi and her husband George owned a large semi-detached home called Mendips, in posh and aloof Menlove Avenue. The environment here was austere, but nevertheless, Mimi was totally devoted to John’s upbringing and happiness. What Mimi lacked in terms of warmth and affection was compensated for by her husband, George, a big, friendly man who loved John without restraint. John also maintained a good relationship with Julia, often spending time at her home, or enjoying her visits to Mendips. Mimi also took in lodgers to help with the household expenses, and John got on well these part-time residents.

Mendips... John’s childhood home in Woolton, Liverpool

John worked his way through primary school uneventfully, then managed to pass the 11-plus selection exam which entitled him to join the elite of British schoolchildren at a Grammar school. Mimi selected Quarry Bank High School, an easy ride on the bike George had bought him for passing the exam. At High School, John’s previously unblemished record soon started going downhill fast. He and his soulmate, Pete Shotton, had started together in the top ‘A’ stream with bright prospects. However, both showed more interest in having fun and playing pranks than they did in schoolwork, with the result that they rapidly descended to the bottom ‘C’ stream - collecting numerous canings and other punishments along the way.

The only area where John showed real talent was in the caricatures he drew of his teachers and classmates. These were not only funny, but they showed real artistic talent and creativity - a foretaste of things to come. As John grew into his teens, he adopted the look of a Teddy boy, a cool tough-guy image that suited his changing personality.

At that time, the first of the two terrible tragedies that marred his teenage years occurred one evening in June 1955. A loud bang from upstairs at Mendips raised the alarm in the household, and it was soon discovered that George had suffered a massive cardiac arrest. He was rushed to hospital, but died shortly afterwards. John was away with family in Scotland at the time, and returned home to a household that now seemed cold and lifeless without George’s hugs and humanity.

Although John missed his lovable step-father greatly, one benefit did emerge from George’s death. Julia now spent more time than ever at Mendips, comforting Mimi and John - with the result that John forged a stronger relationship with his mother than ever before. But the loss of George’s income also meant that money was a problem, and Mimi was forced to scale up the use of lodgers to close the income gap.

Meanwhile, John had discovered that girls were much more interesting than they had seemed to be a few years earlier, and began flirting with young ladies from various schools in the neighborhood. Soon he had a steady girlfriend, and their relationship quickly graduated into a sexual one, but with their intimate moments hampered by the lack of anywhere private to go...with the flat surface of tombs in the local cemetery often doing duty as a substitute bed.

Alongside this sexual awakening, John was experience a musical enlightenment, too. Rock & roll had hit the UK, with the sounds of Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and other US acts blasting from record players and jukeboxes around the UK. John loved the energy and power of this new musical form, and become a rabid fan of American rock & roll. But at first, it did not occur to him or his friends that they could participate in the revolution by playing in a band themselves. After all, none of them had any musical ability, and rock & roll was something that was magically created in America - not generated by local lads in the back streets of Liverpool.

That view of the world changed, however, with the emergence of skiffle as a popular music form in Britain. Pioneered by Lonnie Donegan, skiffle became a craze in the UK that even briefly eclipsed rock & roll in popularity. But what was revolutionary about skiffle was that anyone could play it, even without conventional musical instruments. An old tea chest could be converted into simple double bass, a washboard provided percussion, and anyone who could manage three chords on a guitar could become a frontline performer.

Even more interesting for John, the banjo suddenly experienced a revival as a popular instrument. As it happened, Julia was an accomplished banjo player, and she started teaching him how to play simple tunes. But while the banjo captured his interest initially, he had soon set his heart on playing the instrument that was the key to any skiffle group - the guitar. Julia bought him one by mail order, a Gallotone Champion, and he was able to learn to play on this wondrous new instrument. The problem with this arrangement was that Julia only knew banjo fingering, so the guitar was tuned like a banjo - and John learned to play banjo-style chords.

Mimi was unsurprisingly appalled when playing this guitar obsessively led to him neglecting his schoolwork. The sense of horror mounted when John banded a few of his friends together to form an informal skiffle group. As they were all students at Quarry Bank High, they named themselves The Quarrymen - a reference to a line in the school song. As it turned out, John was the only one who showed any singing ability, so he naturally became the leader of the band. Their initial repertoire included skiffle songs and simple folk songs - anything more complex was beyond the reach of their limited musical skills. The Quarrymen were soon playing gigs at church halls and other venues around Liverpool, hauling their equipment from venue to venue on doubledecker buses. They rehearsed wherever they could, most notably in the bathroom at Julia’s house - where the acoustics were good - with John standing and singing in the bath.

As time went on, the constant rehearsing and gigging led to a rapid improvement in their musical talents. As a result, John felt confident enough to start introducing more adventurous songs into their sets. Soon the skiffle hits were dropped in favor of rock & roll classics, and the band gained a new identity as a serious band of performers.

The young Paul McCartney

As The Quarrymen became better known around the neighborhood, they attracted the interest of a lad who lived nearby, Paul McCartney. He too, was a dedicated rock & roller and a studious guitar player, and was keen to strike up a friendship with John, mainly because he hoped to join the fast-improving group. He asked a mutual friend, Ivan Vaughan, to effect an introduction, but for a while no opportunity for this arose.

Meanwhile, John had developed a sudden interest in religion. This was not borne of any spiritual enlightenment, or even as a reaction to his mother’s death, but from the realization that boys who were ‘confirmed’ in church were showered with gifts of money. Consequently, he developed a temporary religious zeal which impressed the rector of St. Peter’s so much that he invited John’s band to play at the church’s annual garden fete - so setting up the meeting that introduced Paul McCartney to his world.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

Chapter 3 - The Birth of The Beatles

Throughout his life, John always seemed to need a close partner - a friend who was not just a friend, but also a confidante and source of inspiration. In his younger years, Pete Shotton had fulfilled this role. Later in life, he would form such an intense relationship with Yoko Ono that it accelerated the break-up of The Beatles. But in 1957, this role was handed to John’s new friend and musical soulmate - Paul McCartney.

After the informal audition at the Woolton garden fete, Paul soon became good mates with John, and they realized they had a great deal in common. Apart from a shared interest in music, especially rock & roll, they both liked the same books and movies, and shared in interest in nonsense verse. More significantly, Paul had also lost his mother in the last year, and the two were able to gradually share their feelings about their losses, revealing emotions that neither would normally expose to the outside world.

Paul now took his place in the line-up of The Quarrymen, and the band recommenced a gigging schedule around the clubs and halls of Liverpool. John’s prediction that the new member would strengthen the group proved correct, with Paul’s ability to imitate Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard adding a whole new dimension to their performances. What came as a something of a surprise, though, was the new era of professionalism that Paul ushered in. Soon the previously-chaotic band were turning out for gigs in matching black jeans, white shirts and bootlace ties.

Between gigs, John and Paul frequently met at each other’s houses to rehearse and try out new songs as potential gigging material. At first, they worked through the proven catalog of rock & roll classics. The problem with this arrangement was that they were playing the same songs as every other band in Liverpool. There were only two solutions to this problem - to play obscure ‘B’ sides that no-one else was playing...or to write their own material. As Paul had already started experimenting with their writing his own songs, they chose this route - figuring that if Buddy Holly could write his own songs, they the could, too.

Both have freely admitted that their early efforts were nothing to get excited about. But as time passed, they learned fast, and found that they worked well together as a songwriting team. Paul’s melodic ideas and neat lyrics contrasted perfectly with John’s raw but unpolished creative drive. The result was songs that were both inspired and melodic - a potent combination that was to produce some of the greatest songs ever written.

Although John and Paul could both play guitar competently, neither of them qualified as a lead guitarist, and any serious band needed to have a good lead player if they were to be taken seriously. Paul had a solution in mind. He had a friend who was becoming pretty adept at playing guitar solos, so Paul suggested that John should audition him. John was reluctant, however, as the guitarist was his junior by over two years - a huge chasm when you are in your teens But Paul persisted, and finally managed to get John to listen to his friend play as they travelled on the top deck of a double decker bus. John was was won over, and the youthful George Harrison was invited to join the band.

George Harrison practices for his future career

Meanwhile, John was struggling to figure out what he was going to do next in the world of education. Having failed his exams in spectacular fashion, he was not destined to move onto six-form studies with the rest of his pals. The only redeeming light in his educational history was the flair he had shown for art in his caricatures. So with some reservations, and a great deal of coaxing from the determined Mimi, John was recommended as a candidate for the Liverpool College of Art - despite having failed his art exam, along with most other subjects.

Consequently, John turned up at college in September, ready to commence a four-year course for a National Diploma in Art and Design. However, if Mimi was hoping for a sudden conversion from school layabout to studious scholar, she was to be disappointed. John started his college career in much the same way as he had ended his school life - turning up more out of duty than commitment, and failing to find any subject where his talents were put to good use. Once again, only his surprisingly good caricatures and private drawings stood out as being exceptional, and helped him to keep his place in the student world.

John did make some new friends, though, including the artist Stu Sutcliffe, easily one of the most talented artists in the college. John was impressed by Stu’s raw talent as a painter, and also by his cool and enviable presence. Stu was equally impressed by John’s irreverence and humor, and the two became great friends.

In July 1958, the second and greatest tragedy of John’s youth occurred. One day, Julia came over to Mendips to visit Mimi, and at the end of the evening she left to catch a bus home. Mimi was too busy to walk her to the bus stop, as she usually did, so Julia walked part of the way with one of John’s friends, who lived nearby. Shortly after they parted company, she started to cross the road to head for her bus stop. A moment later, she was struck by a car driven by an unaccompanied learner drive and hit high in the air. She was dead on arrival at hospital.

John with his mother, Julia

John, of course, was devastated when he head that his mother was dead. Unable to express his emotion in any other way, he locked himself in his room for days and consoled himself with his guitar. Eventually, time began to heal the wounds, and John resumed life in Mimi’s house, which now seemed colder than ever without Julia’s high-spirited visits to relieve the gloom.

College resumed in September, and John turned to alcohol to suppress his feelings about Julia’s death and the other complications in his life. His poor performance in most subjects the previous year left him few choices in subjects, and he found that he had no option but to take the Lettering class. He duly turned up in class with his guitar strapped over his shoulder, and found there was only one seat available at the back of the class. He sat down grumpily, little realizing that the mousy-haired and bespectacled young woman in front of him would soon become his wife.

***

Cynthia Powell was not an immediate candidate for a relationship with someone like John. Despite his middle-class upbringing, John was undoubtedly a rough-and-ready Teddy boy with Trouble as his middle name. Cynthia, by contrast, had been brought up in the ultra-respectable suburb of Hoylake. This was only a short distance away across the Mersey river, but a million miles away in terms of class. And in the class-conscious Britain of the 1950s, that mattered a lot.

Cynthia became aware of the new boy in the class when he poked her in the back and asked to borrow a pencil. Over the next few weeks, their relationship mainly consisted of her being poked in the back every time John needed some equipment to complete his lettering task, and she wasn’t particularly impressed. Things didn’t progress much until a discussion in class revealed that both of them were extremely short sighted, as well as feeling very uncomfortable wearing glasses. Then John discovered that she had also lost a parent - her father - the year before, and suddenly they had a great deal of common ground.

John with Cynthia

Cynthia, however, already had a steady boyfriend who she intended to marry, so she took little romantic interest in her new friend. Or at least that is what she thought...until one day she felt a pang of jealousy when another girl touched John’s hair, and realized that she had a crush on him. One day, she noticed that John was taking a great deal of interest in a blonde-haired girl who was walking up the stairs ahead of him. She promptly went home to dye her own hair blonde, and to switch her usual dowdy clothes for more sensual and revealing attire.

Despite his short-sightedness, John noticed the change immediately, and began to take an interest in ‘Miss Powell,’ as he usually jokingly referred to her. She soon became part of the group that frequented Ye Cracke pub, and it wasn’t long before John and Cynthia became lovers, consummating their passion on a mattress at Stu’s Liverpool flat. She became utterly devoted to him, and gave him practically anything that he wanted that was in her power to give. In return, John showed her an intensity of love she had never received before, constantly writing her impassioned notes and letters, ringing her at home and demanding that she spend every hour possible with him. He also became extremely jealous, and was quick to thump any man who dared to go near her - including Stu, when he innocently asked her to dance.

With The Quarrymen now becoming a serious band, John knew it was time to graduate from his acoustic guitar to an electric one - however, the modest funds they received from gigs came nowhere close to the seemingly vast sum required to buy a decent guitar. But Mimi came to his rescue, and agreed to fork out the down payment of 17 pounds required to purchase a Hofner Club 40 semi-solid electric guitar. John was enthusiastic about his new instrument, but Mimi still had reservations.

‘Playing the guitar is all very well, John’ she said. ‘But you’ll never make a living at it.’

He had a chance to try out his Hofner when The Quarrymen got a regular gig playing at The Casbah, an illegal club run in the basement of a house owned by Mona Best. They also entered for a local talent contest, and decided that a name change was needed, as none of them had any connections with Quarry Bank High any more. After some debate, they went on stage as Johnny and the Moondogs. With George in the line-up, the band now had four guitars - but no bass player, and no drummer. Finding a drummer proved to be a difficult task, but the lack of a bass player was quickly resolved. Stu sold a painting for the extraordinary sum of 55 pounds, and John persuaded him to buy a bass guitar. He had no idea how to play it - but simply owning such an instrument qualified him as a member of the band.

The name Johnny and the Moondogs stuck only for a short time before the boys decided that a snappier and more memorable name was required. After some fruitless discussion, Stu said that he liked the sound of Buddy Holly’s Crickets, and suggested they consider similar names. This led to someone suggesting The Beetles. John suggested that as they were going to ‘beat’ the competition, they should change the spelling to The Beatles.

And so the next chapter in musical history was written.

Chapter 4 - The Road To Hamburg

When they were not playing themselves, the boys loved to hang out at The Jacaranda, a seedy club that featured some of the best bands in Liverpool. One of their favorites was Rory Storm and The Hurricanes, a tight rock band that was building up a loyal following. Their set even included a special spot for their drummer, Richard Starkey. Like many musicians of the day, Richard had decided to give himself a stage name, based on his fondness for gaudy jewelry.

He called himself Ringo Starr.

Ringo in the early days

The fledgling Beatles got to know Ringo well, with the two bands often performing on the same bill, or turning up to watch each other perform. But at that time, Ringo’s band were at the top of the tree in Liverpool, while The Beatles were still staring up from the bottom. However, their fortunes improved when the manager of the Jacaranda, Alan Williams introduced them to the biggest impressario in the North of England - Larry Parnes. Some time later, Larry Parnes asked them to do a tour of Scotland as the support to one of his acts. The would get them a fee of £18 each, with an older man, Tommy Moore, filling in as drummer. The tour proved to a challenging and traumatic experience, with the boys returning home broke. However, they had learned a lot about performing during their travels, and were now more actively promoted by Alan Williams.

Alan had his fingers in many pies, and one of these was a deal with a club owner from Hamburg, Germany. The German businessman needed a band to play in his club, and as such talent could not be found locally, he had arranged for Alan to send over one his acts, Derry and The Seniors. This proved to be a success, so some time later, Alan was asked to send another group. The Beatles were the most available candidates, and immediately agreed to go. There was only one problem...they were required to have a drummer. But back at The Casbah, Mona Best’s son Pete had not only acquired a drum kit, but was even able to sustain a beat. The boys briefly auditioned him, hired him on the spot...and the next day set off for Hamburg.

In August 1960, Hamburg was not the kind of place that parents hoped to send their children. If Mimi had realized exactly what went on in the red-light district of the Reeperbahn, she would have done her best to prevent John from going. Arriving in the small hours of the morning, the Beatles were amazed to find that the Reeperbahn was still a hive of activity...a place that truly never slept. Their initial delight was somewhat tempered when they discovered that were not to play in the same posh club as Derry and The Seniors, but in a dingy strip club. Worse still, their accommodation was a filthy room in an old cinema, with no washing facilities except for the public toilets. And to cap it all, they found that there were required to play four-and-a-half hour marathon sets on weeknights, and up to six hours at weekends.

The early Beatles in Hamburg

In order to meet this demanding schedule, The Beatles had to extend their repertoire considerably, adding a vast number of new songs, and learning how to extend a three-minute song into a twenty-minute extravaganza. They would take requests from the audience, and would be rewarded with rounds of beer. Nevertheless, the long nights took a heavy toll, and they were soon introduced to the variety of drugs that other performers used to stay awake throughout their stints.

But playing in the Reeperbahn brought other benefits that were greatly appreciated by the boys from Liverpool. Situated in the heart of the sex industry of Europe, they were soon besieged by a variety of females - strippers, customers, waitresses and other hangers-on. No seduction was required...the ladies would pick the Beatle they wanted to sleep with by pointing at him, or would simply go backstage and get into one of the beds...waiting for a Beatle - any Beatle - to return and take advantage of the opportunity. John proved to have the biggest sexual appetite of all the band, despite regularly writing passionately to Cynthia and telling her how much he loved her.

Soon The Beatles were moved from the strip club to the slightly more respectable KaiserKeller, where they were required to play even longer sets. Rory Story and The Hurricates, complete with drummer Ringo, arrived to play in the same club, with the two bands alternating sets through long nights of music, drinking and chaos. Ringo got on well socially with John, Paul and George, with Stu and Pete often choosing to be on the sidelines.

One night as the bands played in the Kaiserkeller, a young man by the name of Klaus Voorman wandered in for a beer. He was so impressed by the sound of The Beatles that he invited his photographer girlfriend, Astrid Kircherr over to check them out. Astrid was duly impressed...but not quite in the way Klaus had expected. Whilst she loved the look and sound of the band overall, it was the James Dean lookalike in the corner - Stu - who captured her attention, and her heart. Astrid offered to take photographs of the band, as a way of building a relationship with Stu, and the project was a great success. Soon Astrid ended her relationship with Klaus, and fell into one with Stu. Barely a month later, they decided to get engaged.

In the meantime, a new club had opened in Hamburg - The Top Ten. This was the plushest club in the town, and when the owner offered to give the band a residency there, they snapped at the chance - much to the fury of the owner of the Kaiserkeller, who soon found a way to exact revenge. The next day, the police received a tip-off that 17-year-old George was playing illegaly because of his age, with the result that he was arrested and deported back to England. Paul and Pete were soon to follow, being arrested for a starting a minor fire when leaving the Kaiserkeller.

For once, John was the only member of the band who did not get into trouble. But with no band to play with, he had no option to make the long trek back to England, and home to Mendips.

After a few weeks spent recovering from their disastrous exit from Europe, The Beatles started gigging again in Liverpool. And the ragtag of customers who saw them play were astonished at the performance. The average Liverpool band that had left for Hamburg had now been replaced with battle-hardened veterans who knew how to make a show, and how to play loudly enough to demand attention. Soon amazed patrons were leaving the bars of the clubs to pack close to the stage and enjoy this multi-sensual adventure.

As the band became more popular, they needed proper transport to get to gigs, and someone to take on the responsibility of driver. They hired Neil Aspinall, a trainee accountant who was already a friend and nascent Beatles fan, to drive them around in his red-and-white van. The only fly in the ointment was the growing realization that Stu’s bass playing was simply not up to the standard of the rest of the band. Always a reluctant musician, he often played with his back to the audience, so that no-one could see that he had no idea what he was playing.

The good news, however, was that the band had found a regular venue to play. A local basement club, the Cavern, had opened up to for lunchtime shows designed to attract the office workers and shop assistants who worked in their thousands in the surrounding area. As The Beatles were not encumbered by daytime jobs, they were the perfect fit for the Cavern...and the Cavern was perfect for them.

The Beatles rock the Cavern

The Beatles first appearance took place in February 1961, earning them the princely sum of £5. Their lunchtime gigs became increasingly popular, and soon people - mostly young ladies - were forming long lines outside the Cavern at 1.00pm every day. The boys played confused and complicated sets comprised of every rock & roll classic they knew, plus many other songs swiped from any other kind of music that took their fancy. They experimented with a few Lennon & McCartney ballads, but it wasn’t what the fans had come to hear. Onstage, the Beatles were loud, leather-jacketed and informal - eating and drinking between songs, joking around and generally having a good time. When the gig was over, all five had their pick of the dozens of adoring females that crowded around them.

However, the fans were soon to be disappointed, as the Beatles were invited back to Hamburg to play at The Top Ten Club, the various immigration difficulties having been smoothed over. George was now 18 and able to play legally, and soon the band were in residence in Hamburg alongside singer Tony Sheridan. Their Hamburg fans, including Astrid and Klaus, flocked to see them, and Stu was able to continue his relationship with the beautiful Astrid.

A dedicated follower of fashion, Astrid decided to give Stu’s style a makeover, and that included a new hairstyle. She combed his hair forward over his forehead, in the French fashion. When Stu turned up at the club, everyone initially laughed at him. But a few days later, the rest of the band asked Astrid if she could style their hair in the same way. And so the moptop look was born. But this contribution apart, Stu was spending less and time with The Beatles, and more time on resuming his career as an artist. George and Paul became resentful of the fact that Stu still could not play well, and that he showed little inclination to improve. As he became more passionate about his art, Stu also started to suffer severe headaches that grew in frequency as time went on.

Chapter 5 - On Track For Success

The most significant event of the second Hamburg trip was the first professional Beatles recording. Acting as the backing band to Tony Sheridan, a local entrepreneur recorded them playing ‘My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean’ and a few other songs. The recording was notable for the fact that Paul took over the bass playing role, relegating Stu merely becoming an onlooker. But The Beatles didn’t even get a credit in their own name, being billed alongside Tony Sheridan as The Beat Brothers. This turned out to be final episode in Stu’s association with The Beatles. He decided to stay on in Hamburg permanently, to marry Astrid and continue his career as an artist.

The record was not a success, and by the time The Beatles had finished their second stint in Hamburg and returned to Liverpool, it was all but forgotten...yet not quite. One day, a young man walked into NEMS record store in Liverpool, and asked for a copy of ‘My Bonnie’ by The Beatles. The shop manager, Brian Epstein, was puzzled that he couldn’t find the record - hardly surprising as it had been recorded overseas under a different name. But Brian took pride in giving the best possible service to his customers, and set out to track the record down. He was surprised to find that The Beatles were in fact a Liverpool band - and that they regularly played a few streets away at The Cavern. Intrigued, Brian decided to check the band out, and so he dropped into The Cavern one day to watch them perform.

Brian Epstein brought a whole new era of professionalism

It is hard to imagine anyone more opposite in character to the leather-clad rockers who swore and fooled around on stage. Brian came from a middle-class Jewish background, and was very much a gentleman. Refined and aloof, he was also a closet homosexual - something that had to be kept very much hidden in the tough world of Liverpool in the 60s. He usually spent his free time in fine restaurants and listening to classical music, so the scenes he saw in the Cavern were something of a shock to the system.

Yet Brian was also impressed and intrigued by what he saw. He immediately recognized that amongst the rude jokes and antics, there was a great deal of raw musical talent and showmanship just waiting to be harnessed. He astonished the boys by telling them that he was interested in becoming their manager. A short time later, the deal was done, and Brian set about transforming the local beat group into superstars.

His first priority was to get them to clean up their act. No more eating sandwiches on stage, turning up wearing whatever they fancied or drinking while they played. From now on, they were to become professionals...and that meant wearing suits. The boys had a few reservations about this, but Brian won them over with the promise of great success to come.

Next he set to work on getting them a record deal, and on New Year’s Day 1962, Neil drove them all to London to audition for Decca. The boys recorded 15 tracks, and then went home to wait for news from the record company management. When it came, the news was not good. They had been turned down, because: ‘guitar groups are on the way out.’ Brian was not discouraged though, and continued to hawk his Beatles tapes to every record company and promoter in London, but with no success. He remained upbeat, and so did The Beatles. ‘Where are we going, fellas?’ he would ask the rest of the band. ‘To the top, Johnny,’ they replied. ‘And where’s that?’ ‘To the toppermost of the poppermost!.’

Luck then lent a hand when Brian took his tapes into a HMV store in London in order to get copies made. The technician who performed the copying was impressed by what he heard, and called a contact in the music industry, who in turned called a producer friend, George Martin. Soon George and Brian were discussing the Beatles, and George agreed that they should audition for him. At first glance, George did not seem to be the obvious choice for the producer of a pop group. As middle class as Brian, he was trained in classical music and his recording career had largely consisted of producing comedy records. Yet ironically, this turned out to be an ideal background - his muscal knowledge plus his understanding of how to record live performances was exactly what was required.

George Martin at Abbey Road Studios with the Beatles

While Brian negotiated with George to arrange an audition, The Beatles returned to Hamburg for their next stint in Germany. But they arrived to tragic news - learning that Stu had died from a brain hemorrhage the day before. Once John had recovered from the shock of losing his close friend, the band took up residence in the new Star Club. Now they were better paid than ever before, and enjoyed respectable accommodation. They played their way through Spring, and just as the Hamburg trip was coming to a end, they received a telegram from Brian. George Martin had finally agreed to an audition date in June.

The audition went well, with George allowing the band to record some Lennon McCartney originals along with some classics. But there was a problem. George Martin took Brian to one side and told him that Pete’s drumming was not good enough for the recording, and that he wanted to bring a session drummer in to replace him for future recordings. When George, Paul and John heard this, it was the final nail in the coffin for Pete’s career as a Beatle. For some time, they had been uneasy about his presence in the group, as he had never fitted in with them socially. On a few occasions, Ringo had sat in for Pete when he had been unavailable, and the others had been impressed by the improvement he brought to their sound. So now they decided it was time for a personnel change. Ringo accepted an invitation to join The Beatles, and Brian was given the unenviable job of telling Pete that his services were no longer required.

Back in Liverpool, Beatles fans were not impressed by the change of lineup, and at their next Cavern gig they were heckled by Pete’s supporters, with one of them giving George a black eye.

As if John didn’t have enough going on in his life already, he discovered that Cynthia had some news for him, too. She was pregnant. She was worried that he might go mad when he heard news, but he accepted it gracefully. ‘There’s only one thing for it, Cyn’ he said. ‘We’ll have to get married.’ On a rainy day with just a few friends attending, John and Cynthia married at Mount Pleasant register office. There was no honeymoon, or even a proper wedding night - the Beatles were playing that evening in Chester.

Soon the band was back in London to record their first single with George Martin on the Parlophone label. After a battle of wills in the recording studio, it was agreed that ‘Love Me Do’ was good enough to release as a single. It was released a few weeks later, and began a slow but steady climb up the charts, never becoming a huge hit, but certainly getting The Beatles some national attention. After another trip to Hamburg, the band was soon back in the studio to record their second single. George Martin suggested a new, faster treatment of a Lennon-McCartney, and so Please Please Me became their second single. George Martin was so impressed at the recording that he announced that this would be the band’s first number one.

The Beatles perform on ‘Thank Your Lucky Stars’

The biggest factor that helped make this claim become true was an appearance on a TV show called Thank Your Lucky Stars. Broadcast on a snowy night when millions of teenagers were watching TV, the sheer engery of Please Please Me burst into living rooms around the UK, and the single started flying off the shelves around the country. By 22 February 1963, the single had hit the number one spot. The news was greeted with delight everywhere except in the Cavern, where their female fans cried as they realized they lost their home-grown heroes to national success.

The single was soon followed up by a single of the same name, recorded in a single, mammoth recording session. By the end of it, John’s voice had all but given out, and the final song recorded, Twist and Shout shows clear signs of his voice breaking up. By now, John and Paul’s songwriting was flourishing, the two still working together to exchange ideas and share the credit for everything they wrote. The partnership produced their next single, From Me To You, which quickly flew up the charts and took residency in the number one spot. Lenon-McCartney songs were also covered by other artists, and the British public were surprised to find that this latest hit group could not only sing hit songs, but write them, too.

On 8 April, Cynthia gave birth to a boy, who was named Julian in honor of John’s mother. John was on the road at the time, and didn’t get to see the boy until several days later, sneaking in disguise past fans camped out at the hospital gates. John loved the new addition to his family, but still found it hard to juggle the demands of his flourishing musical career with his new-found role as a father. Cynthia hoped that the new arrival would bring them closer together, unaware that John had been carrying on multiple long-term affairs for many years, both in Hamburg and in Liverpool, whilst also taking advantage of the many casual encounters that came his way.

Despite being not just married, but now also a father, the growing legions of fans around the country mostly believed John to be still single and available, thanks to Brian’s insistence that The Beatles were marketed as eligible bachelors. Just a few weeks later, Brian invited John to go on holiday with him to Spain, a ten-day nature that has launched speculation about the nature of their relationship from that day to this. On his return to the UK, one of their associates made a remark about trip, which resulted in John beating to him to a pulp. Brian’s PR machine went into overdrive to play the incident down, knowing that it could have ruined The Beatles’ career.

Playing at The Royal Variety Show in 1963

Throughout 1963, The Beatles progressed at an astonishing pace from becoming just another new band to a level of fame that was hard to comprehend. Their third single, She Loves You, catapulted to number one in August, as Beatlemania took hold across Britain. Returning from a tour of Sweden, the band was amazed to find a huge contingent of fans waiting to greet them at the airport. When they played the major TV show Sunday Night at the London Palladium, a huge police contingent was required to keep the teeming crowd of teenage fans under control. As their popularity soared, they were invited to play The Royal Variety Show in front of the Queen Mother, prompting John’s famous remark during the show: “those of you in the cheap seats, clap your hands...and the rest of you, if you’ll just rattle your jewelry.”

The next single, I Wanna Hold Your Hand had advance orders of one million copies, ensuring that it went straight to number one on release. Their second album, With The Beatles followed suit, with the result that The Beatles held both the number one and the number two spots in the album charts. Even The Times music critic called John and Paul ‘the outstanding English composers of 1963,’ giving them some unexpected establishment credibility.

John with Cynthia and Julian

John soon hit the headlines independently when the press found out about Cynthia and Julian. But Brian’s fears of catastrophe proved groundless, and the teenage fans accepted John’s married status with no more than disappointment. But this meant there was no reason to keep his family hidden away in Liverpool, so Cynthia and Julian joined John in a flat in South Kensington. Here they were perfectly positioned to enjoy life in the Swinging Sixties, partying and clubbing through the night. As the machine that was The Beatles rolled on, money began to flow faster, and John realized that he had achieved the wealth he had always dreamed of.

As their fame grew and multiplied, the initial novelty of the experience began to wear off. It was one thing to step onto stage and hear a huge audience scream in delight...but it was another thing to have that that scream continue as such volume throughout the performance that the music could barely be heard. The initial pleasure of being stars quickly waned when fans began camping out everywhere where the boys might be found, from John and Cynthia’s flat, to Mimi’s house in Liverpool. More particularly, John resented being obliged to meet an endless stream of uninvited guests after every show, including local dignitaries and long processions of people in wheelchairs.

Chapter 6 - Conquering America

Having conquered the UK, The Beatles began to turn their attention to the biggest prize of all - America. British acts had a poor record of success in the US, mostly failing to make more than minor dents in the charts. Yet it was clear that if The Beatles could take their success across the Atlantic, there would be huge rewards. Initially, though, the band did not get off to a great start. Their first three singles were declined by the major labels, and ended up being distributed by minor labels who lacked the resources to promote them well.

Finally, however, Capitol Records reluctantly agreed to release I Want To Hold Your Hand, as reports of Beatlemania in Britain reached back to America. Encouraged by this, Capitol ramped up their production of the record and started a heavy promotional campaign. The effect was instantaneous. I Want To Hold Your Hand shot to number one, and the previous failures - Please Please Me and She Loves You - also experienced a revival and hit the top ten. Even My Bonnie was resurrected and made a surprising appearance in the charts.

John, Paul, George and Ringo arrive in America

The Beatles left England on 7 February 1964, with John saying to the press, ‘I just hope we go all right.’ That was to prove to be an understatement by a mile. When their plane pulled up the terminal at JFK Airport, the most extraordinary scene awaited them. Tens of thousands of screaming fans besieged the airport, with all of The Beatles lost for words as they stepped out of the plane and into chaos. The scenes continued as the bemused boys charmed their way through a busy press conference, and then were hounded through the streets of New York by yet more screaming fans.

Yet, amazing as these scenes were, there was more to come. On 9 February, they made an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show - the show that had launched Elvis’s career just a few years before. An audience of over 73 million tuned in to watch the boys from Liverpool belt out the moptop anthems, starting with All My Loving, ‘Til There Was You and She Loves You. As the show progressed, America watched enthralled. It was later noted that there was not a single crime throughout the New York area while The Beatles were performing.

The tour continued with appearances in New York, Washington and Miami, with the boys constantly amazed at the adulation and attention that followed them everywhere. They found themselves trapped in their hotel, longing to go out onto Miami’s beaches, but able to do no more that watch their fans scrawl messages in the sand.

Back in the UK, the boys were due to not only start recording a new album, but also to make their first film. With a title based on an accidental comment by Ringo, A Hard Day’s Night stretched their talents in a new direction. The budget was tiny, but the project was saved by the imagination of director Dick Lester. The story was simply a tale of the life of The Beatles, but it succeeded in capturing their unique humor, and had the benefit of featuring a new crop of Lennon-McCartney songs - from I Should Have Known Better to If I Fell. Another song, Can’t Buy Me Love, also became their next international number one.

Playing the Ed Sullivan show to an audience of over 73 million

When a journalist saw some of John’s caricatures and poems during an interview, he encouraged John to complete a book. In His Own Write was finally published to acclaim from the literary world that took John by surprise.

But none of these distractions could stop The Beatles touring machine, and soon the boys were out on the road again, this time for a massive world tour. With a substitute drummer initially sitting in for the sick Ringo, they set off for Europe. Ringo rejoined the band in Australia, where the huge crowds showed that their popularity reached to the far side of the planet. In America, they played shows to huge crowds across the country. Along the way, they got to meet their latest musical hero, Bob Dylan, who introduced them to the joys of marijuana. After that, drugs became a regular part of their lives, smuggled with them on tour, and part of their regular recreational habits.

When they got home, the sheer crush of fans thronging around John’s flat forced him to find more private accommodation for his family. They bought a mansion in the commuter town of Weybridge, where they found some peace, and the chance to live a millionaire lifestyle. Cynthia hoped that this would be a time when they could rebuild their relationship, still only vaguely suspecting that John might have had affairs with other women - and so totally blind to the realities of his sexual appetite. Although they shared some good times together, John was often absent on business and social duties.

Filming ‘Help!’

These included their next film, Help, which had a more generous budget than the first, and was shot in glorious color. However, the screenplay was not inspired, and the result was a success, but not in the same way as A Hard Day’s Night. Paul and John were now writing regularly at John’s house, but the title track from Help was largely a John composition, drawing on his own feelings of helplessness in a crazy, chaotic world.

Another tour took them across America again, this time playing in huge venues such as Shea Stadium. This was the precursor of the giant rock tours that are so commonplace today, yet amplification systems in the 60s were not really up to the job, and the sound of the band was drowned by the tens of thousands of screaming teenagers. However, the trip was notable for one meeting - The Beatles finally got to meet their erstwhile hero, Elvis Presley. The meeting was a slightly awkward one at first, but warmed up when John and Paul started playing the Elvis hits they had relied on in their earlier days. The rest of the trip was less inspiring, and John became increasingly depressed, writing a long and passionate letter to Cynthia, saying how much he regretted all the time spent away from her and Julian.

On their return home, the boys made a trip to Buckingham Palace to receive MBEs from the Queen, inevitably causing huge crowds, even by the Queen’s standards. Then it was back into the studio to record another batch of Lennon-McCartney classics. By this time, the two composers were mostly writing separately. George Martin noticed that for John, composing was something that took all his energy and ideas...

The Beatles show off their new MBEs

“John tended to develop his melodies as the thing went along. Generally, he built up a song on a structure of chords, which he would ramble and find on his guitar until he had an interesting sequence. After that, the words were more important than anything else. They used to come out sometimes as a monotone, just one note punctuated by the rhythm of the words. He never set out to write a melody and put lyrics to it. He always thought of the structure, the harmonic content and the lyrics first, and the melody would come out of that. However good the song was, John never seemed that confident about it. In all the time we worked together, I never heard him hype his own work in any way.’

If he was unsure about his compositions, he was even more unsure about his voice:

‘After a time, I realized he was actually embarrassed by his own voice. Whenever we did a vocal, he always insisted on wearing [headphones] and told me to put lots of echo through them, so that he couldn’t hear what he really sounded like.’

These insecurities were foundless, however, as John and Paul produced another round of classics for Rubber Soul, their next best-selling album. Now a new maturity was creeping into their songwriting, producing some timeless classics that had more depth and insight than the pure pop songs of earlier years. Their drug-taking habits flourished during the recording sessions, with the boys sneaking off to the toilets to smoke pot without George Martin’s knowledge. But Ringo later acknowledged that this did not help the creative habit - everything they produced while under the influence later proved to be unusable.

Yet there was worse to come. At a dinner with George (Harrison) and some friends, John, Cynthia, George and his wife were unwittingly given coffee spiked with LSD. They soon found themselves hallucinating, experiencing weird visions and sensations. John found the experience exciting and enjoyed the creative visions it opened up. Before long, all of the band were experimenting further with LSD, but no so keenly or openly as John.

The effects of these experiences can be heard on the next album, Revolver, which takes their music one step further ahead of their contemporaries for daring and imagination. John’s inspired contributions ranged from the energy of Dr Robert to the acid-inspired dreaminess of Tomorrow Never Knows.

By June 1966, they were back on the road again, while the new single Paperback Writer/Rain rode high in the charts. The trip proved to be an eventful one, including a nostalgic gig at Hamburg, where they met up with Astrid and many other old friends. In Tokyo, they had to be protected from martial arts experts who threatened to kill them for playing on sacred ground. And in the Philippines, they had to leave the country in a hurry after unintentionally offending the country’s despotic dictator. From there, they progressed to America, little aware that a ticking time bomb was about to explode all around them.

Burning Beatles records in southern USA

A few months earlier, a trusted journalist had interviewed John at home. In discussing The Beatles rise to fame, John had made an incidental remark:

‘Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn’t argue about that. I know I’m right, and I will be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now. I don’t know which will go first - rock & roll or Christianity. Jesus was all right, but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It’s them twisting it that ruins it for me.’

In the context of the discussion, the remarks were harmless and certainly not intended to cause any offence. The article was published in the UK, without anybody seriously objecting to its content. It wasn’t until four months later, just before The Beatles arrived in the USA, that the bomb finally exploded. An American magazine, Dateline, reprinted the article, headlining the comment: ‘I don’t know which will go first - Christianity or rock & roll.’

The effect was immediate...especially in the heart of the Bible Belt in the American South. Within hours, Beatles records were banned from radio stations in many states, and DJs encouraged people to destroy their Beatles records. Communities even providing special community dump sites where erstwhile fans could burn their records in public. Brian made a press statement to make an apology on John’s behalf, but by the time the boys arrived in Chicago it was evident that John would have to make a personal appearance. He spoke to the press at length, and helped to reduce the damage.

Nevertheless, the rest of their trip - especially in the Southern states - was marred by security worries. The world didn’t know it at the time, but their final gig of the tour, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, was to be their last ever. They had had enough of the dramas, the travelling, the screaming and the threats...the Beatles would never play in front of an audience again.

Touring and performing had been such a huge part of John’s life for so long that when he got home, he found there was a huge void to fill. Sadly, the opportunity to spend more time with Cynthia and Julian did not seem to be enough. He took a part in a film, How I Won The War, and went to Spain to play the part of Private Gripweed. John’s character comes to a tragic end in the film - being shot whilst walking...a grim forebear of things yet to pass. John’s performance received good reviews, but he realized that a film career would mean yet more public exposure, so he retreated into the comforting world of LSD.

One of his companions in his druggie adventures was John Dunbar, who ran the Indica Gallery in London. The two of them spent a lot of time spaced out, while Cynthia desperately tried to regain the John who was fast moving away from her. Little did she know that the first nail in the coffin of her marriage was about to be firmly nailed. On returning from filming in Spain, John received a catalog from the Indica gallery, announcing an exhibition by a Japanese artist, Yoko Ono.

Chapter 7 - John Meets Yoko

Dunbar offered to give John a preview of this new exhibition, as he had done many times before at other events, mainly because he knew John had the spending capacity to make the trip very worthwhile. At the gallery, John was initially baffled by Yoko’s exhibits - which included a couple of nails in a plastic box, and an apple (which John took a bite out of). He thought this was all slightly nutty, until he saw a ladder leading to a spyglass. John obediently climbed the ladder, and looked through the Spyglass to see nothing but the word ‘Yes.’ This piqued his sense of humor, and he was intrigued enough to stay and find out more about Yoko and her art.

John and Yoko

After the first meeting, Yoko sent John a copy of her book of poems. Much to Cynthia’s disgust, John was fascinated by this little book, with it’s weird messages such as ‘Light a match and wait until it goes out.’ Cynthia was even more disgusted when Yoko was invited to join a dinner party at their house, finding the Japanese intruder somewhat inscrutable and baffling. But at that time, John’s main preoccupation was with The Beatles next album project.

As the end of 1966 turned into 1967, George Martin had a problem. The Beatles were due to release an album, but they did not have enough material ready. So instead, he decided to release a double A side - Strawberry Fields plus Penny Lane. Both are exceptional songs that showed how Paul and John were still developing as songwriters, yet for the first time, a Beatles release failed to hit the number one spot in Britain, reaching only number two. The press leaped onto this ‘failure’ and began to express the thought that the days of The Beatles were numbered. John, Paul, George and Ringo assembled in the studio, ready to prove them wrong.

Paul’s first contribution to the project was a song called Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Once again, the lads explored whole new territories in music, from the sheer creativity of A Day in the Life to the magical world of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. The album was completed with an innovative cover to match the music within, and launched to an unsuspecting public in the ‘Summer of Love’ in 1967. It made an arrow for the number one spot, and stayed there for the next six months, notching up another 19 weeks at number one in America. A few weeks after it had launched, The Beatles took part in the inaugral international satellite broadast, singing All You Need is Love to an audience of over 350 million worldwide.

Sergeant Pepper was a landmark album

Although an Indian influence had been creeping into the Beatles’ music for some time, it wasn’t until August 1967 that a more intense chapter in their relationship with the Far East developed. George had invited John to a seminar in London given by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. They were so intrigued by the concepts he discussed, that all of the Beatles, plus wives and hangers-on, were soon on a trip to Bangor, North Wales to join the Maharishi for an in-depth course on transcendental meditation. As usual, a press pack hounded them all the way from the London train station where they started their journey (leaving Cynthia behind in the confusion) to Bangor. For a couple of days, the group was able to enjoy relative peace and seclusion while they learned meditatoin techniques, but soon some tragic news broke the spell.

Brian Epstein had been found dead in his flat at the age of 32 from an accidental drug overdose. All of the Beatles were mortified, especially John. Apart from losing a close personal friend, he knew that the band was now leaderless and rudderless...a ship sailing aimlessly at sea.

‘I knew we were in trouble then,’ John said later. ‘I didn’t really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music, and I was scared.’

Finding a new manager proved to be a complex undertaking, and realizing that they had to do something to take control of the situation, the Beatles formed their own company, Apple. This allowed them to expand into new areas of business, beginning with the Apple boutique. This foray into the fashion industry was followed by the creation of a music publishing company, which signed up a whole roster of acts with little talent or hope of success. A great deal more of the the Beatles’ money was wasted on projects which proved to be colossal loss makers.

The Apple Boutique brightens the streets of London

But if the Apple ventures were doomed to failure, they had nothing on the Beatles next project, The Magical Mystery Tour. As the Summer of Love drew to a close, the idea of making a film whilst rambling around the country seemed suitably hippy-ish and creative. Unfortunately, the result was as rambling and disorganized as the mystery tour itself, and so the Beatles first major flop was created.

After a few fleeting meetings with John, Yoko had moved to Paris temporarily as her career unfolded. When she got back to London, she found a mound of letters awaiting her - all from John. And so their growing relationship resumed, yet still surreptitiously. The Beatles and their entourage left for India to study with the Maharishi, a trip that Cynthia hoped would save their marriage. But throughout the trip, John was secretly receiving daily postcards from Yoko. During this time, though, John took advantage of the hours of relaxation to write some of what he came to regard as his best work. But after a few weeks, John became disillusioned with the Maharishi, feeling that he was more concerned with fame and money than he was with enlightenment. He left in a hurry, angrily writing about the Maharishi in the song who’s name would later be changed to Sexy Sadie...’what have you done? You made a fool of everyone...’

However, if anyone was making a fool of someone, John was the culprit, and Cynthia was the victim. A few weeks later, Cynthia arrived home from a holiday overseas to find Yoko in residence at her house with John, and it was immediately clear they had become lovers. Yet it was another four weeks before the general public found out that Yoko was now John’s official partner, to a general sense of shock and bewilderment.

Paul, George and Ringo were equally bewildered when John started bringing Yoko to recording sessions. It had always been a firm rule that no outsiders were allowed to attend recording sessions, including wives and girlfriends. Despite George Martin’s reseverations, the sessions produced some great music, including the songs for the first single on the Apple label, Hey Jude and Revolution. The first of these had originaly been entitled, Hey Jules, written by Paul to Julian when he heard that John had separated from Cynthia.

For the album itself, the sessions produced so much music that the only way to accommodate it all was to release a double album. George Martin fought against this, wishing to choose only the best songs and make one excellent record, rather than two average ones. But he was over-ruled, and the double disc The Beatles, generally known as The White Album, was born. But what this album shows more than anything else is a band reaching the end of the road, with Paul and John diverging in very different directions, never to meet again.

Just as the album was being prepared for release, John and Yoko were raided by the police at home, and charged with the possession of cannabis. The circumstances around the raid were unusual, with heavy resources deployed to find cannabis in what John had believed to be a ‘clean’ apartment. A few years later, the police officer leading the raid was jailed for corruption. John agreed to a plea bargain where he pleaded guilty to possession in return for Yoko’s release without charge, this avoiding the risk of her being deported. It was a decision that would come back to haunt him in a few years time.

The next day, John and Yoko’s first album, Two Virgins, was released to a very dubious public. Yoko had recently suffered a miscarriage, and so Cynthia was able to sue for divorce with Yoko as correspondent. She got custody of Julian, and accepted a pitiful financial settlement in order to avoid a lengthy legal battle.

Having put his personal affairs in order, John was now under pressure to put his business affairs in order, too. The Beatles still had no official manager, and the Apple company was bleeding money heavily on a whole range of unmanaged and loss-making projects. Paul suggested bringing in his future father-in-law as business manager, but the others objected to Paul gaining more influence in the band and vetoed the idea. Instead, they proposed Alan Klein, who was already managing the Rolling Stones...but now it was Paul who had serious doubts.

While they wrangled over business issues, they continued to record together, albeit with increasing acrimony. It was decided that the next album should be a simple recording with an almost live feel, and George Martin was brought over to the new studio at Apple headquarters to produce it. They temporarily acquired an extra Beatle in the shape of keyboard player Billy Preston, who they had originally met back in the Hamburg days. Apart from adding a new dimension to their sound, Billy’s presence help to combat the tensions within the band, with everyone acting on their best behaviour when the newcomer was in the studio.

For the finale of the album, the band played a short but famous gig - their last ever live appearance - on the roof of the Apple building on a cold and dreary January day. Despite looking cold and windswept, the Beatles managed to capture some of the old magic, while onlookers in the streets of London looked up in amazement. But inevitably, they had only managed few songs before a contingent of policemen arrived on the roof to close down the disturbance. Two songs recorded in this session, Get Back and Don’t Let Me Down, were released as a single.

Playing on the roof of the Apple building

When both John and Yoko’s previous marriages had been dissolved, John was keen to marry Yoko as quickly as possible. They flew to Paris, believing they could arrange the ceremony there, but soon found that a wedding almost anywhere in Europe was impossible at such short notice. There was only one place where a ceremony could be arranged almost instantly, the British territory of Gibraltar. Arrangements were hastily made, then John and Yoko flew into for a brief one hour visit and an an even briefer wedding ceremony...then flew out again immediately to return to Paris. There they settled into the Presidential suite of the Hilton hotel, and commenced ‘bed in for peace’ that was destined to last a week.

Having engaged the attention of the international press on a grand scale, the couple followed up this success with another PR stunt. In Vienna, they staged a Bag Event. The bemused media found John and Yoko hidden inside a sack. Back in London, John was soon back on the roof of the Apple building, this time to affirm his commitment to Yoko by officially changing his name to John Ono Lennon. With Ringo and George out of town, John temporarily called a truce with Paul to record The Ballad of John and Yoko, with Paul playing the drums and John playing lead guitar.

Following the success of their first bed-in-for-peace, John and Yoko planned another one for the US. But en route to board the QE2 for the transatlantic voyage, he found that he had been denied a visa because of his drug conviction. Instead, they travelled to Canada, to make their protest from just across the US border. When a journalist asked John what they were trying to achieve, he said: ‘all we are saying, is give peace a chance.’ With some encouragement from Yoko, John turned this into a song soon afterwards. The press gathered around them at their hotel in Montreal, and on the final day Give Peace a Chance was recorded in their hotel room on an 8-track recorder, with a whole group of hangers on joining in with the singing. This proved to be the first incarnation of The Plastic Ono Band, a flexible group that became the vehicle for John and Yoko’s musical work.

Bed-in for peace in Montreal

For once, John began to miss his son Julian, who was now six years old. Back in England, he invited Julian to stay with him at weekends, and they began to rebuild something of a relationship. This took an unexpected turn when John decided to take Yoko, her daughter and Julian on a trip to Scotland to visit his relatives. They made it safely as far as the North of Scotland before John lost control of the wheel, and the car pitched into a roadside ditch. They all escaped with minor injuries, and a few days later, John was back in the studios at Abbey Road, ready to record the next album.

After the acrimony which had marred their last recording sessions, the recording of what was to become the Abbey Road album was a pleasant surprise to all of the Beatles. Somehow, they all sensed that this would be their last album together - a glorious swansong that they would be remembered by forever. Consequently, they managed to recapture the magic, working together with George Martin in the way they had for so many years.

‘We all knew this was the end,’ George Martin said later. ‘There was an unspoken feeling of “Let’s make it the best we possibly can.” I’m sure that’s why John was so collaborative.’

Indeed, John, Paul, George and Ringo all poured all of their energies into making their final recording a masterpiece, and they achieved their goal. They collaborated together in a way they hadn’t done for many years, and succeeded in producing a masterpiece that will live on as a classic end to the 1960s.

The classic ‘Abbey Road’ album cover

John and Yoko moved into a new mansion called Tittenhurst Park, near Ascot, to start the next chapter in their lives together. Unfortunately, this took a downward turn when John took an interest in heroin. Friends soon noticed that John was a shadow of his former self, as heroin addiction set in and threatened his future. But to his credit, when he realized that the drug could threaten his future child if Yoko became pregnant, he decided that the two of them should quit. The pains of the withdrawal process led to a new song Cold Turkey, which - after being rejected by Paul, George and Ringo - became the Plastic Ono Band’s second single.

Chapter 8 - Beyond The Beatles

Finally, John made the decision that he had been agonizing over for time. At a meeting in the Apple boardroom, he told the others that he was leaving the band. The days of the Beatles were over.

‘I started the band, I disbanded it. It’s as simple as that,’ John said later.  ‘When I finally had the guts to tell the other three...they knew it was for real.’

Officially, though, the band was still in one piece, because no-one wanted to damage the sales of Abbey Road. The album was released in September 1969 to great acclaim, shortly followed by the John and Yoko’s Wedding Album. The couple became involved in more and more peace projects, notably protesting against the Vietnam War. To mark his feelings, John returned his MBE to the Queen.

As the 1960s rolled into the 1970s, John and Yoko launched themselves into a series of live performances, art projects and musical activities. George Harrison joined them onstage, along with other band members that included everyone from Eric Clapton to Klaus Voorman, their old Hamburg buddy. Instant Karma was released as a single, reaching number five in the UK, and number three in the US. In March, it was revealed that Yoko was pregnant.

At this time, John took an interest in Primal Scream therapy, designed to help people rid themselves of the demons of their younger lives. For John, this was a chance to bury the hatchet with the problems that had dogged him throughout his life - the absence of his father in his life, being forced to leave his mother and live with Mimi, and the deaths of Julia, Stu and Brian.

The recordings of the previous were finally salvaged thanks to some superb production work by Phil Spector, and the final Beatles album Let It Be was released to become a number one hit on both sides of the Atlantic. At about the same time, the public finally realized that the Beatles had split, when Paul let the bombshell drop. John was philosophical about the breakup of the band that had been his life for a decade and a half.

‘It’s just natural. It’s not a great disaster. People keep talking about it as if it’s the end of the earth. It’s only a rock & roll group that’s split up. It’s nothing important.’

***

Good news and bad news followed in October 1970. Yoko unfortunately miscarried her baby, but the album John Lennon/The Plastic Ono Band was released successfully. On the business side, John, George and Ringo found themselves on the receiving end of lawsuits by Paul, as the breakup of the band became acrimonious.

John continued to write, with his output varying from vicious attacks on Paul to the sublime message of Imagine and Happy Christmas/War is Over. But growing tired of life in the dreary Britain of the early 1970s, he and Yoko moved to New York. From the very start, John enjoyed his new life in New York:

‘New York is at my speed...I like New Yorkers because they have no time for the niceties of life. They’re like me in this. They’re naturally aggressive. They don’t believe in wasting time.’

After a short hotel stay, they moved to SoHo, where John loved the chaotic downtown life that he found there. More importantly, he found that for the first time in years, he could enjoy the freedom to walk the streets without being hounded by thousands of fans. Yes, there were always a few fans demanding autographs, but as John said ‘they don’t bug you.’

However, a much bigger and more powerful force was about to have an impact on John’s life. As he continued to protest against the Vietnam war in public, he made himself many enemies - most notably the most powerful man in the world, President Richard Nixon. With millions of young voters now able to vote for the first time, following a change in the law, Nixon was afraid that John and his fellow protesters had the power to turn public opinion against him and his policies, and so threaten his re-election.

John and Yoko in New York

Before long, FBI agents were infiltrating events that John attended, as well as peace groups that he had associations with. They eventually managed to muster up enough ‘evidence’ to prevent John and Yoko’s visas from being renewed. The Onos were fortunate enough to find a good lawyer to act for them, and an epic battle began - the former Beatle verus the leader of the western world. Soon John and Yoko and their assistants found that they were being followed everywhere by FBI agents, and that every movement was recorded and analyzed for evidence of anti-American activities.

Meanwhile, John and Yoko moved into the Dakota building adjacent to Central Park on the Upper West Side. John tried to get Mimi to come and visit him in his new home, but she declined, saying prophetically: ‘I’m not going to a land where there’s guns, John.’

John recorded a new album, but this time it was in his own name only, with no mention of Yoko or The Plastic Ono Band. Mind Games proved to be his best work for some time, showing some of the genius he had left behind in the Beatles.

Chapter 9 - John’s Lost Weekend

Yoko and John were growing apart in other ways, too. In a twist that was bizarre even by their relationship standards, Yoko suggested that John should have an affair. Not content with just suggesting the idea, she also found the perfect woman for the job - 22-year old May Pang, a Chinese-American who had been acting as their secretary. In September 1973, John flew to Los Angeles with May, anticipating just a two-week trip for ‘business’ purposes. In the end, he was to stay for 14 months - for what he later called his ‘lost weekend.’

The whole episode proved to a complicated and inexplicable one. John didn’t want to be apart from Yoko, and Yoko did not want to be apart from John. May was unclear to the end where she was his mistress or his secretary. And dozens of other young ladies had their moment with John, as if he had been transported in time back to Hamburg. Nevertheless, John still stayed closely in touch with Yoko, phoning her many times a day.

John and May Pang in L.A.

But John was soon back in the studio in L.A. recording an album that was destined to go nowhere. After a two-year break, he reconnected with Julian, inviting his son and Cynthia to visit. Months rolled by, and John moved back to New York, living in an apartment with May while the legal wrangles over his visa continued. Two albums followed, Walls and Bridges then John Lennon Rock ‘n Roll, the second a simple and powerful album that harked back to his roots in the Cavern.

John had recorded the single Whatever Gets You Thru The Night with Elton John, and promised Elton that if it ever go to number one, he would go on stage with him to perform the song live. To his astonishment, both the single and the album Walls and Bridges hit number one in America, and Elton made sure that John kept his promise. On Thanksgiving Eve, he joined Elton in New York to play three songs in a memorable performance. Unknown to John, Yoko arrange to have a VIP seat just in front of the stage.

John was so nervous before going on stage that he threw up, but he was welcomed by 18,000 fans in a joyous return to live performance. By the time they had played I Saw Her Standing There, introduced by John as ‘a number by an old estranged fiance of mine called Paul,’ the audience was going wild. In what turned out to be his final stage appearance ever, John felt that his fans loved him as much as ever.

On stage with Elton John

Yoko met John backstage, and they both knew that the reunion that had been on the cards for so long was not far away. Before long, John had moved back into the Dakota, and their married life resumed as more or less normal, May Pang being discarded as an extra who was no longer required. John and Yoko renewed their wedding vows in a ceremony in their apartment, both dressed in white as they had been at the original ceremony.

With their marital life resumed, Yoko soon found that she was pregnant at the age of 42. Because of her history of miscarriages, Yoko was advised to stay in bed as much as possible, and John became her faithful servant, bringing her whatever she needed. A few months later, she gave birth to a boy, named Sean Taro Lennon. While Yoko was in labor, they learned that John had finally won his campaign to live legally in America. He got his green card a year later.

When the family arrived back in the Dakota, John took on a new role, that of house husband. It was agreed that Yoko would get on with the business of making money, while John raised Sean. Yoko proved to be a brilliant negotiator, helping to settle the legal battles with Alan Klein and the other Beatles in a way that worked out very well for John.

John settled into his new role raising Sean, investing far more time and energy into this son than he had ever done for Julian. While Sean was cossetted with every luxury that money could buy, Julian and Cynthia struggled on in poverty in the UK, with little support from John’s wealth. John enjoyed leading a relatively normal life, taking Sean out for walks around the neighborhood. People would sometimes stop and ask if he was John Lennon.

‘I get told that a lot,’ he would say. ‘I wish I had his money!’

Relationships with Paul, George and Ringo healed, and they often met up. On on occasion, John and Paul were watching TV in the Dakota apartment when the producer of Saturday Night Live jokingly offered to pay $3000 if the Beatles would come into the studio and perform. The two songwriters briefly contemplated getting into a cab and turning up for a surprise performance, but in the end, it was just too much trouble. And so the next few years past without much by the way of incident. John made up for all the years of chaos and non-stop action with a peaceful interlude of family life.

Chapter 10 - A New Beginning and a Tragic End

Throughout the late 70s, John had been watching other artists achieve increasing success while he continued his role as domestic child raiser and bread maker. Yoko was highly-successful in her business ventures, turning their healthy royalty income into the foundation of a business empire that extended from dairy farms to Egyptian artefacts.

John, however, secretly ached to get back into show business and demonstrate that he was still a force to be reckoned with. He saw the other Beatles doing well, especially Paul, who signed a $22.5 million record deal that John eyed enviously. But somehow, he had lost the creative spark. He had never officially retired, so there was continual speculation in the media about when the next John Lennon musical project would appear. None did, because John simply didn’t have the material, and he had vowed with Yoko to suspend all creative work while Sean was young.

Early in 1980, John felt the urge to travel. Not only that, but Yoko’s numerologist had detected ‘dark clouds gathering above his head’ and told him that he needed to leave the US. He ended up in South Africa, but that adventure only whetted his appetite for more. John sailed towards Bermuda on a chartered yacht, intending to meet up with Sean at the end of the journey. But as the yacht travelled through the notorious Bermuda triangle, a heavy storm blew up, with all of the crew becoming seasick except for the captain and John. After 48 hours of steering the ship alone, the captain had no option but to ask John to take over. He briefly taught John what to do, and then had to retire to get some sleep. John picked it all up very quickly, and after some initial panic, began to enjoy himself.

After the storm subsided, John had found a new role on the ship as a crew member, not just a famous passenger. When they finally reached Bermuda, John was able to enjoy the relief of a relaxed two-month vacation with Sean. And during that time, his spirit of creativity returned. He wanted to make another album.

‘I was so centred after the experience at sea that I was turned into the Cosmos,’ he said. ‘And all these songs came...after five years of nothing. Not trying, but nothing came anyway, no inspiration, no thought, no anything, then suddenly voom voom voom...’  John bought some basic recording equipment, and started committing a whole host of new songs to tape.

John with Sean on the yacht that he steered to Bermuda

He returned to New York in July 1980 with a catalog of songs ready to record. He hired Jack Douglas as producer, and went into the Hit Factory Studios to record. John had some great songs prepared, but the producer was a little concerned to notice that each John song was to be alternated with a Yoko song. Nevertheless, the news that John Lennon was recording sent vibes running through the recording industry, and soon major labels were clamoring to get in on the act. John was determined to beat Paul’s $22.5 million deal, but in the end settled for a deal with a newcomer in the industry, Geffen Records.

The first single Just Like Starting Over was released in October, and John found himself in the public eye once more. The album Double Fantasy followed a month later, and sales of both were promising. Yet John wasn’t done yet, and immediately went back into the studio to record the next project album, provisionally entitled Milk and Honey. As November rolled into December, John seemed happier than he had for many years. He was enjoying the attention that the new records were bringing him, but also glad to have his sound domestic life with Yoko and Sean. He felt that he had turned a corner, and was looking forward to life in his 40s.

Mark Chapman after his arrest for John’s murder

What he did not know was that the recent press coverage had also stirred up the interest of a man named Mark David Chapman. Born in Texas, Chapman had moved to Hawaii and lived a confused a troubled existence. He had been obsessed with the Beatles from a young age, but recently his passion had begun to turn to a new and uglier dimension. As fresh stories about John hit the press, Chapman became disillusioned with his former hero, believing that the ‘working class hero’ had sold out to become a rich businessman - one of the ‘men in suits’ the Beatles had always despised.

Chapman also had an obsession with Holden Caulfield, the narrator of J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. He  began hearing voices in his head that told him Lennon must die, and believed that when John was dead, he would be able to become Holden Caulfield himself. He bought a gun, and made a trip to New York in October, but lost his nerve about the whole idea and returned home. Yet a few weeks later he was back, and in early December was hanging around the Dakota building with the few regular fans and photographers who stalked the building.

On 7 December, he tried to take some photos of John, pushing closer than convention allowed. John got angry and tried to snatch the camera, but Chapman pulled away. John said to Yoko in frustration: ‘if anyone gets me, it’s going to be a fan.’

Monday December 8 dawned as an ordinary if busy day for John. After some interviews and a photo session, he was due back in the studio to continue recording. So in the late afternoon, he left the Dakota building with Yoko. Chapman saw his chance to get an autograph, and John paused to ask him: ‘is that all you want?’

Chapman later said that he had planned to shoot John at that point, but due to his politeness, he backed off. For the rest of the evening, John was busy in the studio, working on a song called Walking on Thin Ice. He found time to call Mimi and talk about his planned trip back to the UK. Afterwards, Yoko wanted to go for a meal, but John said he wanted to go home and say goodnight to Sean.

They arrived back at the Dakota by limo, pulling up at the kerb outside. Yoko got out first and walked around to the entrance, with John following a few yards behind. Chapman had left his hotel that morning, knowing that he would never return. He had left a few possessions neatly laid out on a table in the centre of the room, as a message to the police who would find them later. The display included a copy of the Bible, opened at the gospel of St. John, with the text altered to read ‘The Gospel According to John Lennon.’

John and Yoko outside the Dakota

Chapman was waiting in the shadows, still holding the copy of Double Fantasy that John had autographed earlier. As John passed ahead of him, he called ‘Mr Lennon,’ and dropped into a combat stance. He fired five shots at John’s back, the first missing and going over his shoulder, the other four hitting John in the back and shoulder. John staggered forward and managed to climb the first few steps towards his apartment, then collapsed calling out, ‘I’m shot.’

The porter on duty rang the alarm then knelt to see what he could do to help. He thought of applying a tourniquet, but when he saw the extent of the blood loss, he knew it was hopeless. The security guard approached Chapman and shook the gun from his hand, kicking it away into the gutter. Two police cruisers pulled up moments later, finding Chapman standing at the scene of his crime, silently reading The Catcher in the Rye.

It was clear there was no time to wait for an ambulance. John was carried into the back of a police car and rushed to Roosevelt Hospital, with Yoko following behind in the second police car. When they arrived at the hospital, John had no pulse and was not breathing. Doctors fought to save him, but with 80% blood loss, it was clear that they had no hope. At 11.07 pm he was pronounced dead. Yoko, of course was distraught. ‘Oh, no, no, no’ she cried, ‘please tell me it’s not true.’

***

John’s death led to worldwide shock and mourning on a scale that had not been experienced since the assassination of President Kennedy. Just Like Starting Over and Double Fantasy shot to the top of the charts, while sales of all of John’s material, plus everything recorded by the Beatles, went through the roof. At least two people committed suicide after hearing the news. On 14 December, huge crowds gathered in New York and Liverpool, as well many other places around the world, to remember John in a ten-minute silence. In 1985, a part of Central Park was dedicated as Strawberry Fields in John’s memory.

Fans join a silent vigil for John in Central Park, New York

Chapman pleaded guilty to John’s murder, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. In recent years, he has applied for parole numerous times, but each request has been declined.

***

More than three decades after his tragic death outside the Dakota, John’s memory lives on in the collective consciousness of the world today. Many of today’s most successful musicians cite the Beatles as one of their main influence, and their music continues to sell in huge volumes. translating first from vinyl to CD, and now to the new world of MP3s and iTunes.

John’s message to the world...’give peace a chance’

Millions of people who had not been born when John was shot, let alone when the Beatles were performing, still get great pleasure from his unique and extraordinary contribution to music, art and culture in the modern world. John Lennon may be gone, but we can safely say that he will never be forgotten.

Michael Jackson...Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll: The Truth About the Man Behind The Legend

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - A Star is Born

Chapter 2 - The Road To Success

Chapter 3 - On Track for Stardom

Chapter 4 - No Sex, Please...I’m Michael Jackson

Chapter 5 - The Thriller Phenomenon

Chapter 6 - Wacko Jacko Makes Another Fortune

Chapter 7 - The Accusations Start To Fly...

Chapter 8 - Michael On Trial

Chapter 9 - This is it For Michael

Chapter 10 - Long Live The King of Pop!

Chapter 1 - A Star is Born

The world of entertainment changed for ever on a grey day in 1963, when a five-year old kid climbed onto the stage at Garnett Elementary School in Gary, Indiana.

Nobody was expecting much except enthusiasm, including his mother, who was in the audience to witness the child’s first ever public performance. But when he started to sing the ambitious choice of 'Climb Ev’ry Mountain' from The Sound of Music, a stunned silence filled the hall. It became immediately apparent that this small boy not only had bags of self-confidence, but a great deal of natural singing talent, too. His teacher and some members of the audience started to cry, and when the astonishing performance ended, the young man got a standing ovation.

Michael Jackson as a young boy

This was just the first of many standing ovations for the young Michael Jackson. And while his mother’s heart brimmed with pride as she applauded her son along with everyone else, she could scarcely have imagined that this was the first step on the road to fame, fortune...and one of the most bizarre and extraordinary lives in the history of show business. A story that was to one day end in tragedy, but which had begun five years earlier in the most inauspicious way imaginable...

***

Michael Joseph Jackson may have been destined for a life of great wealth and luxury, but his life began on in a style that can only be described as dirt-poor poverty. He was born on 29 August 1958 with, according to his mother, 'a funny-looking head, big brown eyes and long hands.'

His family lived in Gary, Indiana - a bleak industrial suburb of Chicago with little to recommend it except for the chance to find employment in the local steel mill. His father, Joseph, worked intermittently at the mill when work was available, taking jobs such as potato picking when it was not. But his income was unpredictable and never amounted to much. So the family had to manage as best as they could in a tiny, two-bedroom shack at 2300 Jackson Street.

2300 Jackson Street, Gary, Indiana

Michael later recalled that the house was so small that 'you could take five steps from the front door and you’d be out the back.' When the family returned to this home many years later for a nostalgic visit, they were astonished to think that this modest home had once accommodated their entire family.

And what a family it was. Although not particularly religious in nature, Joseph did not believe in birth control or abortion. As a result, the population of 2300 Jackson Street grew rapidly. First a daughter, Maureen (known as Rebbie), then three boys - Jackie, Tito and Jermaine. Next another daughter, LaToya, followed by son Marlon. Sadly, Marlon’s twin brother Brandon died within 24 hours of birth. Michael was the next in line, with Randy and Janet following to complete what would become one of the most famous families in the world.

The first few years of Michael’s life were not easy ones. Apart from the challenges of making sleeping arrangements for 11 people in a small two-bedroom home, there was never enough money to go round, and the Jacksons frequently ate the simplest and cheapest of meals - beans, collard greens, corn and any potatoes Joseph had managed to liberate while potato picking.

Michael’s mother, Katherine, was always a cheerful and positive influence, however. She made the best of what she had, and managed against the odds to create a happy and united family. She had been raised a Baptist, but had turned against conventional religions after discovering that two of her pastors had engaged in illicit affairs. When a Jehovah’s Witness came to her door, she was easy prey, and readily converted. As a result, her family became Jehovah’s Witnesses by extension, and were obliged to follow the odd customs and practices that this strange cult dictates.

This meant that the family did not celebrate birthdays and Christmas, as these were seen as pagan festivities, and their lives were restricted in many other ways. But on the whole, Katherine’s influence on the family was overwhelmingly a loving and caring one.

The same could not be said for their father, however. Having been brought up by a strict disciplinarian father himself, he firmly believed in the biblical message of 'spare the rod and spoil the child.' He had no intention of let his children be spoiled, and administered a good thrashing whenever his kids stepped out of line. The children soon learned to be very afraid of him. Despite this vicious nature, though, he was unquestionably a family man, and his main concern in life was to ensure that his children had a future. He did not want them to share his fate of being trapped in poverty with limited prospects. He had a plan...a vision that one day he would find a way to take his family away from the depressing streets of Gary, Indiana to a new life in a better place.

And it wasn’t too long before an opportunity arose to do exactly that.

For a black family in the United States in the 1960s, there were not many ways to escape the humdrum existence that millions endured. But Joseph hoped he might find an escape route through the music industry.

'I was dissatisfied,' he recalled later. 'Something inside of me told me there was more to life than this. What I really wanted more than anything was to find a way into the music business.'

An accomplished guitar player, Joseph decided to form a band that could make money gigging around the surrounding towns. He formed The Falcons, a rhythm and blues band that did indeed manage to get paid for playing in local clubs and bars. But the money soon dwindled, and Joseph abandoned the idea...and abandoned his guitar to a closet at home.

But while Joseph had lost interest in the guitar, another member of the family found it very interesting indeed. When Joseph was at work, Tito would secretly take the guitar from the closet and practice. Soon he had learned a few chords, and began to sing with his older brothers. This was great fun until the day Katherine came home early and caught them with the guitar.

There was a moment of panic. The boys knew that if the incident was reported to Joseph, the consequences would be very serious. Much to their relief, however, Katherine told them to carry on playing. She knew that there were only two choices for kids in their neighborhood - either start a singing group, or join a gang. She was happy that they had chosen the first option, and that they had an interest to keep them off the streets.

The boys continued practicing and improving, until one day disaster struck. Tito broke a string on the guitar. None of them had any idea how to replace it, so they could only put it back in the closet and hope that Joseph wouldn’t notice it.

But notice it he did, and that night Tito paid for his crime with a severe beating. Later, when he had calmed down, Joseph went to talk to Tito, who was still crying in his room. Tito was upset, but defiant. 'You know, I can play that thing,' he said.

Joseph was skeptical, but allowed Tito to show him what he could do on the guitar. Jermaine  and Jackie joined him, and together they sang the songs they had been practising. Joseph was amazed...and also excited. He could see that his boys had talent, and realized that he should forget his own musical ambitions and focus on theirs.

And that is how the earliest lineup of the Jackson family band originated. Joseph bought Tito his own guitar, while Jackie, Jermaine and Marlon concentrated on vocals. Michael, however, was considered too young to be involved in the group.

As he grew older, and particularly after his spectacular performance at school, it became clear that Michael had a great deal of promise as a singer. Not only that, he was a great performer, too, dancing with both enthusiasm and real rhythm. And so he was allowed to join the band, and the lineup that would find fame and fortune was born.

As the fledgling group practised at home, Michael soon become the acknowledged front man and lead singer. He studied the singers he saw on TV, such as James Brown, and learned their moves and dance routines. Soon he was choreographing the whole group, and between them, they put on an impressive show.

Under Joseph’s strict supervision, they practised hard at home, and before long were good enough to enter the talent contest at a local school, Roosevelt High. They sang The Temptations song 'My Girl' - delighting the audience and winning first prize.

After that, things developed rapidly, and soon The Jacksons, as they were known, began winning talent shows in many different towns, collecting enough trophies to fill the house. Joseph somehow managed to buy them the equipment they needed for a full band, and drafted in two other young kids to play keyboard and drums. The band was renamed The Jackson Five (despite now having seven members!) and started playing further afield in Chicago.

The routine was relentless. The boys would come home from school, rehearse until around 7.00pm, and then load the van and travel to Chicago, or wherever they were playing that night. During breaks in the gig, they would do their homework, and when it was all over at around 2.00am, they would head for home, arriving at four or five in the morning. A few hours later, they would get up to go to school...and the process would start all over again.

In August 1967, the Jackson 5 made it to the Apollo Theater in Harlem to perform on the biggest amateur night for black entertainers in America. This was a tough venue to play...if the audience didn’t like you, they would pelt you with food and other missiles, so the boys were understandably nervous about going on stage.

The Apollo Theater, Harlem

They needn’t have worried...their performance was terrific, and the crowd lived it. Every song was greeted with enthusiasm, and they drove home clutching yet another trophy.

***

A lot of things started to happen within the Jackson family. Rebbie married a man against her father’s wishes and moved away from home. Meanwhile, a small record label in Gary, Steeltown Records, signed the increasingly-popular Jacksons to a minor record deal. They recorded their first single, and although it had little hope of being a hit, they had the pleasure of hearing themselves on the radio for the first time ever.

But events were now unfolding quickly. The band played a gig in Chicago, supporting Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers. Bobby Taylor was so impressed with their act that he called Motown and suggested that The Jacksons should be invited to audition. At first, Motown executives were skeptical - acts featuring children could be a nightmare to manage. But to his credit, Bobby persisted - and finally, they relented, and the band was formally invited to go to Detroit for an audition.

The next remarkable chapter in the history of The Jacksons was about to begin.

Chapter 2 - The Road To Success

On 23 July, 1968, the Jacksons drove to Detroit, the home of Motown records - Hitsville, USA. The boys had all grown up immersed in the Motown sound. From every radio and every record player, the sound of artists such as Diana Ross, The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and many others had been the backdrop to their childhood. And now they were here at the Mecca of music itself.

Motown Records, Detroit, Michigan

The success of Motown was inspired by the genius of its founder, Berry Gordy, who had a knack for recruiting raw black talent off the streets and re-packaging these acts into superstars. With the best songwriters, arrangers and producers in the business, Gordy had created the unique Motown sound and transformed the history of music in the process. And now the Jackson 5 were in town to show what they could do.

Before entering the studios, Joseph lined the boys up outside for a pep talk. 'Either your a winner in this life, or a loser. And none of my kids are losers.' Inside, they were taken to a recording studio and introduced to Suzanne dePasse, Gordy’s creative assistant. Joseph was disappointed to discover that Gordy was not there in person. The demo was to be filmed, and then shown to Gordy in Los Angeles. Gordy had ambitions to break into Hollywood, and to that end had recently opened new offices there.

In his absence, Ralph Seltzer was in charge. He motioned his assistants to get everything ready, and the audition began. Michael led the band into an enthusiastic rendition of James Brown’s I Got The Feeling. During the performance, the studio executives smiled, nodded and wrote on their notepads. But when the song finished, there was no applause - just an expectant silence.

After a moment of confusion, Joseph urged the band to continue. Michael introduced the band members one by one, as he always did on stage, then they launched into the next song. This also finished to silence, and the boys realized the audition was over. Ralph Seltzer walked over to them. 'I’ll be in touch in two days,' he said, 'when Mr Gordy renders a decision.'

And that was that.

The boys were disappointed...but not for long. The film was shipped to Gordy, who called Seltzer as soon as he had seen it. He was brief and to the point.  'Sign these kids up...they are amazing!'

A few days later, Joseph was standing in Seltzer’s office, hearing the extraordinary  news that Motown wanted to sign The Jackson 5 to Motown. This was it...this was exactly what Joseph had been dreaming of throughout the years of rehearsals and constant gigging. Now all he had to do was sign on the dotted line.

Seltzer presented Joseph with the standard Motown contract. Joseph did not have a lawyer with him, and it did not occur to him that he should get one to check the contract over. After all, this was Motown, and he would have signed almost anything that got The Jackson 5 onto the label.

Seltzer read the contract to Joseph, but most of the details went over his head. But he was immediately concerned when he heard that the contract was for seven years. He negotiated to get that reduced to one year, and Seltzer finally agreed. It turned out to be a hollow victory, though. Another clause in the contract stated that if the Jackson 5 left Motown, they could not work for another studio for five years...making it impossible to get another contract, and rendering Joseph’s negotiating redundant.

Thinking he had improved the contract in their favor, Joseph was satisfied. The boys were called into the office, and all the necessary paperwork was signed.

Within a few years, Joseph would come to regret signing the contract without legal advice. The Motown contract is notoriously restrictive, giving Motown all the power and creative control, while the artists simply do as they are told. However, he really didn’t have much choice. Motown offered artists a 'take it or leave it' deal. If The Jackson 5 had proved problematic, they would have been shown the door - and another group selected from the thousands of hopefuls around the country. They would have gone home and returned to a humdrum existence with not much of a future.

The deal was certainly not one that any lawyer would be proud of - but nevertheless it was the key to wealth and stardom for the young lads from Gary, Indiana.

***

The next few months passed in a buzz of activity, and soon Christmas was approaching. Gordy arranged for a big party at his luxurious Detroit estate, with all of his Motown stars in attendance. The Jackson 5 were to be the entertainment for the evening, as a way of introducing them to other acts on the label.

On arriving at Gordy’s mansion, the Jacksons were astonished at the display of wealth and opulence. Joseph could not believe that a black man could live in such luxury, it seemed unthinkable. The boys were understandably nervous about playing in front of so many of their heroes - Diana Ross and The Temptations amongst many others. But they were very well received.

After the performance, Michael got to meet Diana Ross, and the two of them hit it off immediately - beginning a friendship that would last for many years.

During this time, the band had been working hard under the direction of Bobby Taylor, the man who had originally discovered them in Chicago. They recorded 15 songs which were sent to Berry Gordy for review. Unfortunately, Gordy didn’t feel that any of the songs was strong enough for release. But he was great impressed by the performances that young Michael was delivering.

'Michael was born a star,' he said later. 'The first time I saw him, I saw this kid as something real special.'

Gordy decided that the band should move to Los Angeles so that he could supervise their development more directly. Joseph took the boys to L.A., while Katherine stayed in Gary with Randy, LaToya and Janet...waiting for things to get a little more settled. The move was a big one, especially as it left the family divided. But at a meeting at Diana Ross’s home, Gordy spelt out his ambitious plans for the group:

'I’m gonna make you kids the biggest thing in the world,' he said. 'You’re gonna have three number one hits in a row.'

Diana Ross joined them and explained that she was to present the band to the industry elite at a special party. The boys were delighted, but also puzzled by a few inconsistencies. Michael was being portrayed as being eight years old, when he was now actually ten. And in a brisk rewriting of history, it was now Diana Ross who had discovered the Jacksons in Chicago, not Bobby Taylor.

Gordy explained that this manipulation was called public relations. For boys who had been brought up in a strict religious faith, where lies were totally unacceptable, this concept was a little hard to grasp. But after a while, Michael understood out how it works.

'‘I figured out at an early age that if someone said something about me that wasn't true, it was a lie. But if someone said something about my image that wasn't true, then it was okay. Because then it wasn't a lie, it was public relations.’

They went on to perform brilliantly at the show and other events organized by Gordy, who then decided that Michael should move in with Diana Ross. Living in her beautiful home, Michael was delighted to have the opportunity to learn from her, and to study her professionalism - helping him to acquire a work ethic that would stand him in good stead for years to come.

A few weeks later, Katherine and the rest of the family arrived from Gary, and the whole family was reunited. Katherine was amazed at her new home, which dwarfed the one she had just left back home. Joseph took her outside to see the view of Los Angeles at night, with thousands of lights sparking.

'This must be what heaven looks like,' she said. 'I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.'

The Jackson 5 were soon in the studio recording their first single for Motown. The talented creative team of Deke Richards, Freddie Perren and Fonce Mizell collaborated to write I Want You Back - a song that was perfect for The Jackson 5, and for the new 70s sound that Gordy was aiming for. The song was released in October 1969, and was soon shooting up the charts, making it to No.1 just as the new decade of the 70s began. It went on to sell over six million copies.

Motown groomed the boys under the tutelage of Suzanne dePasse, learning everything they needed to know to pass as professional entertainers. Michael, meanwhile, continued to grow artistically as be studied the greats such as Jackie Wilson and James Brown, perfecting their moves and spins, and incorporating them into his own act.

The group’s first album was released - Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5, amassing over 600,000 sales in total. An appearance on the Ed Sullivan show propelled them further towards stardom, with Michael wowing the huge national audience with his cute looks and highly-polished performance.

An early publicity photo of The Jackson 5

Following up a successful single is always a challenge for artists, but thanks to another great song by the same creative team, the Jackson 5 soon had another hit on their hands with ABC. This also went to number one, knocking the Beatles off the top spot to get there. In May 1970, they followed this with The Love You Save, which also went to number one - fulfilling Gordy’s promise of three number one hits.

Despite these huge successes, no-one realized just how popular the band had become until they played their next major live concert at the Philadelphia Convention Center. Thousands of screaming fans mobbed them as they arrived at the airport, and during the concert it took over a hundred police officers to prevent fans from overrunning the stage. When they finally got back to their hotel under police escort, the boys were all shaken up, but Michael was not just worried - he was terrified.

'I don’t know if I can do this for ever,' he said.

After that, life became an endless round of concerts and recordings. More hits followed, and the band played to sellout crowds across the country. The most memorable was the one played in their home town of Gary, Indiana, where they arrived by helicopter and were greeted as superstars by the same people who had once thrown rocks at their windows as they rehearsed. They has sure come a very long way in a very short time.

Success on the road brought The Jackson 5 more than just trophies. As they played more gigs further away from home, it was often not practical to drive home the same night, so they would stay overnight at a cheap motel. The older boys were well into their teens now, and consequently developed a serious interest in girls. Fortunately for them, as their fame spread, girls developed a great deal of interest in them, too.

At the end of a performance, Jackie and Jermaine often found themselves in the company of adoring females, and it was hardly surprising that many of these females ended up going back to their motel rooms. As the boys slept two or three to a room, this meant that Michael was often kept awake by the sound of his brothers 'entertaining' their female companions.

Joseph had little interest in controlling their activities, as he was too busy enjoying the company of any girls that might be left over. He would often arrive back at the motel with a couple of young ladies on his arms, not caring who in the family witnessed them going to his room. To exploit these opportunities to the full, Joseph rented an apartment near their home, expressly so that the older male members of the family could entertain these lady friends, without any interference from Katherine.

In May 1971, the Jackson family moved to a more luxurious property at  4641 Hayvenhurst in Encino, California, which remains the family home to this day.

The Jackson family home at Encino, California

The enormous size of the house was both a delight and a cause for concern. While everyone had plenty of space,  Michael and some of his siblings felt a little lost, missing the closeness they had enjoyed back in Gary. Despite their new-found wealth, Joseph enforced a strict five-minute rule for phone calls, and didn’t hesitate to use the strap on anyone in the family who broke that rule, no matter how famous they might be.

His boys might be stars with adoring fans, but one thing was clear - Joseph was still the master of his home, his family...and The Jackson 5.

But Joseph was about to get a surprise.

Chapter 3 - On Track for Stardom

In October, Joseph decided that it would a good idea for Michael to release his own single. That way, the family would have two acts instead of one, and they would all make money. Michael was enthusiastic about the idea, as he had lots of ideas he wanted to explore. The idea was certainly a successful one - perhaps a little too successful. Got To Be There became a top five hit, and suddenly Joseph and the other brothers saw that Michael had a future as a solo performer. Gradually it began to sink in that they were becoming a sideshow on the Michael Jackson bandwagon. Their precocious but uniquely-talented little brother was heading for stardom in his own right, and didn’t actually need them any more.

He could do this all on his own.

Got To Be There was a big international hit, too. It stayed in the top 50 in the UK for around three months, and sold over one and a half million copies worldwide - an impressive total by any standards, and remarkable for a kid who still hadn’t reached his teens. The band toured the South shortly afterwards, and found that while they had more fans than ever, changes were afoot. During a stop in Dallas, a crowd of girls gathered outside their motel room, chanting: 'Michael! Michael!'

When Tito opened the door, the girls burst past him and smothered Michael, completely ignoring the others. The girls were escorted out of the room by security guards, and the brothers teased Michael mercilessly about the incident. They thought it was funny, and joked about him being a 'ladies man.' At this point, they hadn’t realized that things were changing fast in the Jacksons camp. Whether Michael was interested in girls or not, they were certainly interested in him. The constant adulation was something that would dog him for the rest of his life.

Michaelmania was just beginning.

The hits kept coming for Michael. Ben became his first solo single to reach number one, selling over a million copies and bagging an Oscar nomination along the way. The song was part of a movie soundtrack, and Michael loved to watch the movie over and over again, sitting at the back and waiting to hear his song, and to see his credit at the end.

‘Ben’ was a No.1 hit for Michael.

The Jackson 5 was still recording, but changes in the system were further increasing the distance between Michael and his brothers. Purely for practical reasons, Motown started recording Michael’s lead part first, then bringing the brothers in later to record their backing track. The aim was just to make the process more efficient, but it had the effect of singling Michael out from the rest of the band, and making them merely backing singers to his starring role.

The gap widened when they arrived in Europe for their first international tour. Sales of recent Jackson 5 singles had been disappointing in the UK, while Michael’s solo singles had been spectacular successes. The crowd that met them at Heathrow mobbed the whole band, but went absolutely crazy over Michael - pulling at both ends of the scarf he wore and nearly choking him to death.

At their hotel, the police had to disperse his fans with water hoses, and the Rolls Royce that the band travelled in sustained $12,000 of damage caused by fans. The trend continued throughout their tour across mainland Europe.

When they got back to the States, the band found that record sales were becoming an issue for them. They released a number of singles with disappointing sales, and struggled to get any memorable hits. Joseph blamed Motown for failing to promote their records properly. Berry Gordy was now mainly concerned with his Hollywood career, and The Jackson 5 were being left behind as yesterday’s boy wonders. But Joseph still believed in his boys, and knew that they could achieve more success with the correct promotion. He started to think it was time for the band to leave Motown and find another label.

Joseph was now clearly of the opinion that he could not trust Motown to promote The Jackson 5, so he took the matter into his own hands. He arranged for the band to play at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, the most impressive hotel in the city. In order to give the show broader appeal, he drafted the younger members of the family - Randy and Janet, into the act. LaToya was also recruited as a singer and dancer, and Rebbie would have been involved if she had not suffered an injury before the show started. The new family act was a stunning success, and a triumph for Joseph. He had shown that his family could survive without Motown and do things their own way.

As well as changes in their professional life, the band was seeing many personal changes, too. Tito, Jackie and Jermaine all got married, with Jermaine marrying Berry Gordy’s daughter Hazel. Meanwhile, Joseph has secretly fathered a daughter with a Jackson fan - a fact that would remain hidden for some years to come.

Relations with Motown continued to deteriorate. The band still struggled to get hits, and even Michael’s solo albums were not getting much by the way of promotion. More importantly, the Jacksons wanted to have more creative control. They were fed up with being bit parts in the Motown sausage machine, and wanted to play a role in the writing and production of their material.

This was partly because they were growing up and felt they were ready for more responsibility, but also because they realized they were giving away a fortune in song publishing rights. Because they had no part in creating the material, the Jacksons did not receive any income from the song publishing - the most lucrative part of the business. They wanted to write and record their own material. Berry Gordy, however, was unwilling to listen to Joseph, who he thought was a difficult and obstinate businessman.

So one day, 16-year old Michael decided to take the matter into his own hands. He arranged a private meeting with Gordy to discuss his concerns. At Gordy’s L.A. home, he said that if he could have just one of his own songs on an album it would show some faith in his ability, and would allow him to demonstrate what he was capable of. Gordy was annoyed that he was being pressed in this way after all that he had done for the band. But he was also impressed that Michael had the nerve to demand this meeting and say what he thought. Although the meeting didn’t achieving anything for the Jacksons, it was a major step forward for Michael. For the first time, he was acting on his own initiative and taking the lead in business matters.

Joseph and the boys were furious when they found out that Michael had met with Gordy behind their backs. But when everyone had calmed down, they decided to vote on whether they should leave Motown.

The voted that they should.

The next priority was to get another record deal. After shopping around for a while, they attracted the attention of Ron Alexenberg, who was running Epic records, a CBS subsidiary. He felt that the band was far from finished. In fact, he thought that with the right management, the Jacksons career would be only just starting to take off.

An agreement was reached, and this time the deal was a good one for the Jacksons. They would get $750,000 up front, and at least $350,000 per album, plus a royalty rate that worked out at almost a dollar an album. Better still, the Jacksons would get to choose at least three songs per album, and any songs they wrote themselves would get serious consideration. This deal was not just better than the Motown deal - it was hundreds of times better.

But there were snags. It soon became apparent that Motown now owned the name The Jackson 5, and was not about to allow the boys to use it after leaving Motown. They had to rename themselves The Jacksons. Then Motown sued for damages relating to the ending of their contract, with the result that the band had to pay half a million dollars back to Gordy’s company. But when that was settled, they were all finally free to move on with their career.

All of them, that is, except for Jermaine, who had married Berry Gordy’s daughter Hazel. His loyalties were now split, and he felt that he had little choice but to support his wife and stay with Motown as a solo artist. So Jermaine dropped from the lineup, but young Randy was recruited into the team as a replacement.

Jermaine Jackson marries Hazel Gordy in 1973

The Jacksons could not start recording music with CBS until the legal issues were settled, so in the meantime they kept themselves busy by starring in a show on CBS-TV. This was notable in being the first time a black family had played such a major role on TV.

Although the series was popular, Michael hated being involved. A perfectionist by nature, he wanted to spend as much time as necessary working on a project to get it exactly right. He had thrived in the music studio environment, where it was normal to do things again and again until they were done exactly right. But in the world of TV, everything was ruled by deadlines. OK was good enough, and average was always better than late. Michael felt there was never enough time to practise his routines, to choreograph things properly, or to do a professional job of entertaining. He privately vowed to avoid TV like the plague in future.

The first album recorded for CBS included Michael’s first songwriting effort - Blues Away, and another song co-written by the brothers. They also helped to produce two of the tracks, and felt that at last they were part of the creative process. The input of legendary producers Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff ensured a professional finish. Michael thoroughly enjoyed working with Gamble and Huff, saying they taught him how to structure a melody, and how the anatomy of a song works.

Chapter 4 - No Sex, Please...I’m Michael Jackson

By the time Michael Jackson reached his late teens, he was not only a handsome young man, but also an international superstar with money at his fingertips. It was hardly surprising that the legions of adoring female fans had now greatly multiplied in number. Michael clearly had plenty of opportunities for relationships, both casual or of a more serious nature. But it became readily apparent that he wasn’t really interested.

Why this was the case has never become clear. Certainly he had experiences in his younger years which may have affected his desire to form relationships. Not only had he reluctantly witnessed his older brothers having sex many times, he was also exposed to his father’s constant infidelities. But there was more. On one occasion when he was about 15, someone in the family locked him in a hotel room with two hookers so that he could enjoy his first sexual experience. Instead, Michael was horrified and traumatized by the whole episode.

Michael enjoyed the attention from his fans, and as he got older he learned to dance in a sensual manner to drive his fans wild. Yet, he still had no desire to take things further.

‘I think it's fun that girls think I'm sexy,’ he once said. ‘But I don't think that about myself. It's all just fantasy, really. I like to make my fans happy so I might pose or dance in a way that makes them think I'm romantic. But really I guess I'm not that way.’

He did find an unlikely first girlfriend in his early teens in the attractive shape of child-star Tatum O’Neal. But despite them enjoying a jacuzzi together at one time, he insists that nothing sexual ever happened between them. In a later interview, Michael revealed that Tatum was ready to take their relationship to a more intimate level, and invited him over for that purpose. She asked Michael to lay down on the bed, but when she started to undress him, he recoiled in horror. He wasn’t ready for that kind of relationship yet.

Michael with Tatum O’Neal

Tatum apart, the public soon noticed that as he grew older, he did not seem to be forming any serious relationships with women. Combine this with his high-pitched voice and effeminate manner, and it is easy to put two and two together to make five. Rumours abounded that Michael was gay, much to his disgust and puzzlement. Still a devout Jehovah’s Witness at that time, Michael considered homosexuality to be against God’s will, and therefore beyond the pale. Of course, repressing your natural desires does not extinguish them, but whenever pressed on the issue of his sexuality, Michael would always angrily insist that he definitely was not gay.

To complicate his life still further, Michael was becoming increasingly worried about his appearance. Like many teenagers, he started breaking out in acne. But most teenagers don’t have to broadcast their spotty faces to hundreds of millions of critical viewers. His brothers also teased him about his wide nose, calling him Big Nose to his face, and making him desperately unhappy about the way he looked. To make it worse, as he looked in the mirror every day, he saw himself looking more and more like his father - the last person in the world he wanted to resemble.

The more he looked at the reflection of the man in the mirror, the more determined he became to find a way to change it.

***

One of the downsides of Michael’s busy life was that his education largely went by the wayside While he did have good tutors at times, and was enrolled into school at other times, his education was patchy and largely home grown. As a result, he was not the world’s greatest scholar. However, fate can take strange twists and turns, and his educational difficulties led to an encounter that would change his life for good.

In July 1977, Michael travelled to New York for a entirely new experience in his career - making a film. The Whiz was a movie with Motown connections, a slightly bizarre and entirely black production of the Wizard of Oz story. Michael was invited to play the part of the the Scarecrow, and leaped at the chance.

The movie was not destined to be a Hollywood success, to say the least, but Michael thoroughly enjoyed playing the part of the Scarecrow, even though it took five hours to put his make up on. In fact, he enjoyed the look so much, he sometimes wore it back to his hotel at night.

Filming went well, with only one minor issue. Michael proved to be so good at learning the dance routines that he made the other actors look stupid. He only had to see a routine once to be able to dance it flawlessly. The rest of the cast struggled to keep up. Finally, star Diana Ross took him aside one day and hissed at him to learn the dances more slowly, as he was making a fool of her.

However, the most important moment in the filming was one that didn’t seem to have much consequence at the time. At one point, Michael was required to pull out a piece of paper and read a quote from Socrates. This was where Michael’s spotty education let him down. He thought Socrates was pronounced So-crates (as in sew crates). The crew laughed, but Michael had no idea what was wrong.

Then someone whispered the correct pronunciation in his ear. Michael turned to see a man extending his hand.

'I’m Quincy Jones,' he said. Quincy was the show’s musical director.

Michael smiled back. Neither of them had any idea that this moment was the start of a relationship that would single-handedly save the music industry from ruin.

***

About a year later, Michael decided he wanted to embark on a new solo album. This would not only be his first solo album as an adult performer, but also the first one in which he had real creative control.

More importantly than anything else, he wanted to create an album that was definitely his own, one that could not be identified with The Jacksons in any way. He wanted to escape the family ties and create his own identity. But to do that, he had to find a new producer, someone who had no previous connections with the Jackson family. He remembered Quincy Jones from The Whiz, and thought he might be able to suggest some producers from his contacts in the music world.

Quincy did indeed have a producer in mind...himself. A little cheeky, perhaps, but as it turns out, by far the most profitable business proposal he ever made in his life. Michael decided that he might be the right man for the job, and they started working together in 1979.  As it turned out, they complemented each other perfectly. Michael was full of ideas, creativity and enthusiasm, and Quincy had the professionalism and arrangement skills to turn the ideas into reality.

Michael with Quincy Jones

Quincy was also greatly impressed by Michael’s work ethic. He would prepare for sessions in advance, and come into the studio ready to record, with no time wasted. Their relationship developed to the point where Michael saw Quincy as being a father figure - the kind of father he didn’t have in Joseph. Starting with an initial selection of hundreds of songs, they eliminated everything until only the very best were left. Then they honed and perfected each song until they had an album that they both knew was brilliant. Soon Off The Wall was ready for release to the public...and the public were amazed.

The transformation began on the cover, where the child star that people were accustomed to was now replaced by a very adult Michael Jackson in a tuxedo. Inside, they were treated to a cast of great songs that were sung brilliantly and produced creatively.

‘Off The Wall’ was Michael’s first major solo album

Four singles from the album became No.1 hits in the US, and five became top-ten hits in the UK. The album went on to sell over eleven million copies. Yet despite its huge success with the public, Off The Wall only one Grammy award, and that was in an obscure R’n B category. Michael was devastated...he had expected to sweep the board.

He was down...but not out. 'You watch. The next album I do, you just watch...I’ll  show them,' he said.

And oh boy, he did.

Chapter 5 - The Thriller Phenomenon

Having established his independence artistically, Michael now knew the time had come to separate his business affairs from the rest of the Jacksons. He hired a tough entertainment lawyer, John Branca, and broke the news to Joseph that as he had turned 21, he now wanted to handle his own affairs.

The news did not go down well. Joseph had always believed that the family was bigger than any individual, and that they should all continue to work together as a team. He felt that Michael owed them his loyalty, and he knew that The Jacksons would be nothing without Michael, the big draw and attraction. But it was too late...the die was cast, and John Branca set to work building the framework for Michael’s future fortune.

The first order of business was the existing deal with CBS. Branca negotiated a deal that gave Michael the highest royalty rate in the industry, whilst also ensuring that he never had to record again with The Jacksons unless he chose to. Next, Branca arranged to buy some real estate for Michael - a three-bedroom condo in Encino that gave him independence from his family.

By the time Branca had finished, Michael was not only in a much better position financially, he had also clearly separated himself from the family, and was now very much his own man.

***

A close examination of the cover of Off The Wall shows that Michael’s appearance had changed noticeably since earlier albums, and not just because he was getting older. His nose was now considerably thinner than it was before. This was no accident...but it was due to an accident....

Michael had long been unhappy with the look of his nose. He hated being called Big Nose, and certainly didn’t want to be reminded of Joseph every time he looked in the mirror. He had often considered plastic surgery, but was simply too scared to go through with it. Then fate intervened when he fell and broke his nose while rehearsing. Rhinoplasty was required to fix the damage - and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. When Michael removed his bandages a few days later, his family was surprised to find that his nose was no longer a Jackson’s nose - it was one step closer to a Caucasian nose.

The operation was not a great success, though, and Michael complained that he had trouble breathing. He was referred to another plastic surgeon, Dr Steven Hoefflin, who would be a constant factor in Michael’s life for many years. A second operation was conducted to fix the breathing problem...but when the bandages were removed, Michael’s nose had once again become noticeably thinner.

These operations always came as a surprise to his family and friends, as Paul McCartney pointed out.

‘He told me he was going to a religious retreat,’ he said. ‘But he came out of the retreat with a new nose. That’s the power of prayer, I guess.’

For the time being, Michael was happy with the new look - the one that can be seen on the cover of Thriller. He was particularly happy that he no longer looked like his father’s son...he resembled nobody but Michael Jackson. Many people have commented that if he had stopped there, the results of the plastic surgery would have been impressive - he was still clearly a very handsome African-American man. Unfortunately, Michael was becoming addicted to the process. He loved the fact that his money allowed him to control the look that had bothered him for so long. Although he strenuously denied it in public, this was just the beginning of a long road of unnecessary surgery. One that would eventually turn the handsome man of the early 80s into the circus freak show of the 90s and beyond.

***

Although John Branca had done much to separate Michael from his family in a legal and business sense, there was one element over which he had no control. Katherine. Joseph and the brothers all knew that if they needed Michael to participate in a venture, the way to get him to co-operate was to apply pressure through Katherine.

The rest of the band, of course, were very concerned about their own future careers as Michael’s star continued to ascend. More particularly, they all needed money. Although each had made substantial sums from their careers with The Jacksons and The Jackson 5, most of the money had been spend on supporting extravagent lifestyles. Now they all needed cash to keep that lifestyle rolling. They knew they had to make as much money as possible while the band was still viable, and that meant releasing an album and going on tour.

Michael was not keen on either idea, as he knew they were leaning on him to prop up their own fading careers. However, Katherine was able to persuade him that it was in the family’s interest, and the band went out on the road once again. But it was plain that Michael’s solo spots for his Off The Wall songs were the fan’s favorites in every show, and another nail was driven into The Jacksons’ coffin.

***

Now that the word has lived with Michael Jackson’s eccentricities and downright weird behaviour for so long, it is hard to remember a time when he was considered to be a normal, if unusually famous, adult. But back in 1981, he appeared to be a normal 23-year old who only made news because of his music.

Things were about to change.

About this time, people started noticing that Michael seemed to be becoming strangely childlike. He proclaimed his hero to be Peter Pan, and plastered Peter Pan posters all over his bedroom walls. Yet whereas Peter Pan simply never grew up, Michael seemed to be going backwards into childhood. He started buying toys, furnishing his room with childlike pictures and taking pleasure in video games and other activities designed for children. He love to go to Disneyland, spending hours being sneaked behind the scenes by security staff to get from ride to ride. One day, he hired the costumed figures of Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs from Disneyland, and had them cover over to his house. In video footage of the event, playing with these new friends looks like one of the happiest times of his life.

Soon, people noticed that he was often seen with children, and many of them. At first, this seemed cute and rather charming. But it wasn’t long before this behaviour was starting to cause raised eyebrows, both in his inner circle and beyond. But Michael was unfazed.

‘One of my favourite pastimes is being with children – talking to them, playing with them in the grass. They're one of the main reasons I do what I do. They know everything that people are trying to find out, they know so many secrets, but it's hard for them to get it out. I can recognize that and learn from it.  They say things that astound you.’

However odd it may have seen to outsiders, Michael did seem to get huge innocent enjoyment from simply enjoying the company of children. But however innocent his intentions, this behaviour was setting up a great deal of trouble in store for the future.

***

Michael teamed up again with Quincy Jones for his next album, Thriller. Michael was keen to top sales of Off The Wall, but neither of them had any idea they were creating what was to become the best-selling album in history. When they had finished working on the songs, the final mixes were played to Michael. And he was horrified. Something had been lost in the mix, and the songs sounded somehow just wrong. He fled the studio in tears.

The team set to work on the songs again, and remixed them one by one. Finally, they were complete, and Michael was happy with the results. The album was ready for release...until another problem arose. Quincy and Michael’s managers explained to Michael that he should not expect great sales for the album in the difficult music market of the time. Two million was a good result.

Once again, Michael was shocked. He could not believe that the very team that was working on this project had such low expectations. How could it ever succeed if even they had so little faith in it? He decided that the only option was to cancel the entire project. Michael called John Branca and ordered him to prevent Thriller from being released. John tried to calm him down and passed him over to the president of CBS, who managed to ensure him that the album had his full backing. Michael relented, and Thriller hit the shops in time for Christmas 1982.

‘Thriller’ became the best-selling album of all time

At first, the album sold well, but not spectacularly. Then Billie Jean was released as a single, and the pace started accelerating. The thundering bass line roared out across clubs around the world, and blasted from millions of radios. Thriller rocketed up the charts and sales started going off the chart. But there was more to come.

For the launch of the track Thriller as a single, Michael created a production that took music videos to a whole new level. Shot on 35mm film instead of video, and referred to as a short film rather than a video, this 13-minute blockbuster wowed audiences around the world. And having been wowed, they rushed to the shops to buy the album. S

At one point, CBS was shifting 500,000 units of Thriller a week. Sales were so high that Thriller was responsible for saving the entire record industry, which had been in the doldrums for some time. People went to record stores to buy Thriller, and while they were there, they bought albums by other artists, too. Companies like Tower Records which had been facing bankruptcy found themselves in the red again, and many other artists rebuilt their failing careers on the back of the increased sales that Thriller generated.

The Thriller juggernaut rolled on and on, with the album going on to sell fifty million copies worldwide, after being glued to the charts for up to three years. The album also produced seven top ten singles, something that no artist or album had every achieved before. With over $60 million in the bank from Thriller sales, CBS were very happy. And so was Michael, who cleared at least $50 million from the album...probably much more.

At the time when Billie Jean was number one, Suzanne dePasse of Motown was busy working on an anniversary TV special for the company - Motown 25: Yesterday, Today and Forever. She thought it would be a great idea to reunite The Jacksons to sing for the program, and all the brothers agreed...except for Michael. Two problems bothered him. Firstly, his experiences with CBS-TV had put him off television productions for life. And secondly, he wanted to separate himself from the family, not get involved in yet another Jacksons project.

Berry Gordy was keen to get him on board...after all, he was now by far the biggest superstar that Motown had ever developed. After a lot of badgering, Michael gave in, on one condition - that he could have a solo spot to sing Billie Jean. Gordy agreed.

The TV special was filmed before an audience of industry luminaries at the Pasadena Civic Center. The Jackson 5 reunion was a great success, with Jermaine back up in the lineup, and the audience enjoying every moment. They left the stage to great applause, feeling great about their performance. Then came Michael’s solo spot.

Motown 25: the star becomes a superstar

For the next few minutes, the audience was transfixed as Michael delivered a stunning and unforgettable performance. From the fedora hat and the single white glove, to the sequined socks and the glittering jacket, he looked every inch the superstar. And when he moonwalked across the stage the audience gasped and rose to their feet. The performance ended with a standing ovation. Michael had come a long way since his first standing ovation nearly twenty years earlier. Then he was an unknown kid - now he was universally acknowledged as The King of Pop.

***

While his public life was taking off into the stratosphere, Michael’s private life was beginning a long downward slide that would lead to his eventual ruin. He struck up a friendship with chidl star Macaulay Culkin, but this came to an end when his chaperones decided that it was not a good idea for the boy to sleep over in Michael’s room, much to Michael’s puzzlement. Instead, he struck up a friendship with 12-year old Emmanuel Lewis, another actor.

Michael developed what is best described as an unhealthy friendship with the boy, carrying him in his arms, playing games and checking out Michael’s various pets - including Bubbles the chimpanzee, and Muscles the eight-foot anaconda. But the friendship came to an abrupt end when Michael and the boy checked into a hotel as father and son. Emmanuel’s parents quickly concluded that it would be better if the boy never saw Michael again.

If Michael had learned from these experiences and changed the nature of his relationship with children going forward, his future life may have unfolded in a much happier fashion. Certainly, his friends, family and advisors encouraged him to rethink what he was doing. But Michael was not used to listening to anybody, especially now that he had enough wealth and power to make almost anything happen. He was Michael Jackson, after all...who was going to argue with him?

***

Michael was on fire at the start of 1984. Literally.

Pepsi-Cola had signed Michael and his brothers up in a major sponsorship deal to promote Pepsi. The brothers were due to record two ads, with Michael naturally the star of the show. Filming began, with Michael walking down a stairway with bright magnesium bombs exploding around him. Unfortunately, one of them exploded too close to Michael, and sparks reached his hair. His hair spray proved to be highly flammable, and soon smoke and flames could be seen billowing from his head. At first, Michael didn’t realize anything was wrong, as he thought the heat was just from the stage lights, and observers thought it was all part of the act. As soon it became clear that something was wrong, helpers rushed in to douse the flames.

Michael suffers severe scalp burns

An ambulance was called, and Michael was put on a stretcher ready to load into the ambulance. But despite the immense pain he must have been in, Michael saw an opportunity for a TV moment. He called for his white glove, put it on and waved meekly to the inevitable cameras. The next day, many millions of newspaper readers saw photos of Michael waving valiantly with a gloved hand as he was taken away for hospital treatment. Whatever else he may have been, Michael was undoubtedly a consumate showman. Pepsi paid Michael $1.5 million in damages to avoid a legal battle. He donated the funds to what would become the Michael Jackson Burns Unit at Brotman Memorial Hospital.

This incident was to have a profound impact on Michael’s life. Not only were the burns extremely painful, but the procedures used to help grow his hair back were also uncomfortable. As a result, Michael turned to heavy-duty painkillers to dull the pain, and used other drugs to help him get to sleep. Despite growing up in the drug culture of the 70s, Michael had never used recreational drugs, and was still a clean-living Jehovah’s Witness at this time. But the injuries took a long time to heal - in fact, he never got over the injuries completely. So as time went on, he became more and more dependent on the drugs that made his life bearable. He was starting on a slippery and dangerous slope that he would never escape from, and which would ultimately claim his life.

***

Soon it was time for the Grammy Awards, and Michael felt that this would be his year. The judges may have largely ignored Off The Wall, but there was no way they could ignore what was shaping up to be the biggest selling album ever. He received no less than twelve nominations for awards across the board.

When the night of the Grammy’s arrived, Michael showed up with Brooke Shields on his arms, as he had done in two previous award ceremonies. There was no romance between them, but the arrangement worked well for both of them - she got great publicity, he got to look fairly normal with a beautiful woman on his arm....or at least as normal as a man can look when wearing pancake makeup and heavy eyeliner.

Michael with Brooke Shields at the Grammys

At this time, Michael was still friendly with Emmanuel Lewis, and Brooke was disconcerted to find that the boy was joining them for the ceremony. When photographers started taking photos of this unusual threesome, Brooke got out of shot hastily. She was even more upset when Michael practically ignored her during the ceremony, sitting with the boy on his lap, apparently whispering sweet nothings in his ear. Michael couldn’t understand why she wanted to leave early.

Despite these dramas, this was undoubtedly Michael’s night. He swept the awards, winning a total of eight Grammys, including Best Album award.

***

Having finally extricated from his management contract with Joseph, Michael was in the market for a new manager. He was greatly impressed by the way an executive at CBS, Frank Dileo, had promoted his albums, and thought he would make a great manager. Frank accepted, and got to work on organizing Michael’s affairs.

One of the Frank’s first tasks was to deal with a call from the White House, asking if Michael would let them use Beat It as the background music for a public service commercial on drink driving. Michael was not keen on giving his music away for free, but he had another idea - he said they could use the music if the President gave him some kind of award. After consulting with the President, the White House agreed, and a visit to Washington D.C. was arranged.

On the big day in May 1984, both the President and the First Lady looked great. But they paled into insignificance compared to the star of the show, Michael himself. Dressed in a bold, blue military uniform, he looked like a camp but powerful army general in full dress regalia. Ronald Reagan presented the award, which had been invented especially for this occasion, and Michael beamed as the cameras flashed. The only discordant note was the presence of a mysterious young man that Michael described as a 'close friend.' White House dealt with the manner by telling the press that he was with the Secret Service.

Michael get an award at the White House

Inside the White House, Michael was due to meet with the Reagans for a private chat. But things went downhill fast when the pop star saw that a large number of people were gathered for the event. He had been told it would there would only be a few people. Worse still, he had been told there would be children - and there were none. Michael ran down the hall in tears and locked himself in the toilet. While Frank tried to talk him out of the toilet, officials cleared the reception room of most of the adults, and shepherded in a few of their kids instead.

Michael finally returned to the room, and as he spoke to others in the room, Nancy Reagan confided with one of Michael’s aids.

‘It's all so peculiar, really,’ she said. ‘A boy who looks just like a girl, who whispers when he speaks, wears a glove on one hand and sunglasses all the time. I just don't know what to make of it.’

The aide whispered back to her.

‘Listen,’ he said. ‘You don't know the half of it.’

***

Chapter 6 - Wacko Jacko Makes Another Fortune

With plenty of money in the bank, Michael was keen to find ways to invest his cash, especially within the music industry. He saw an opportunity to do this when he teamed up with Paul McCartney to write some songs.

The partnership seemed like a great idea. Two of the world’s great songwriters, one American, one British getting together to write new material. Their work did produce some great songs as they worked together at Paul’s retreat in rural England. However, what Michael found most interesting was Paul’s publishing empire. The Beatles had naively sold the publishing rights to their songs at an early age, with the result that they only receive half of the songwriting royalties for their songs. The rest of the money went to Northern Songs, a company that was later bought by ATV. However, Paul had compensated for this by building his own publishing empire of music. Apart from his own post-Beatles songs, he had acquired the catalogs of Buddy Holly and other major artists. In the early 80s, this collection of songs was bringing him in around $40 million a year.

Michael was impressed by the numbers, and by the idea of running his own song publishing empire. When he got back to the States, he asked John Branca to start looking out for properties in this market that he could buy. Michael started building a profitable business, but there wasn’t much in the catalog to get excited about. Then one day, John called Michael to tell him that the Northern Songs catalog was up for sale.

‘You don’t mean the Northern Songs, do you?

‘Yeah, Mike,’ We're talking The Beatles, man. The Beatles!’

A frantic round of bidding followed, with Paul McCartney taking an interest, then dropping out as the price escalated. Michael finally acquired the entire Northern Songs catalog for $47.5 million. At the time, it seemed an outrageously high price to pay. In retrospect, it looks like a bargain.

Michael was delighted to be the new owner of most of the The Beatles songs, but having shelled out so much money, it was imperative to start seeing some return on that investment. One consequence of the deal was that every time Paul played one of his own early Beatles songs in concert, he had to pay a royalty to Michael. But what really angered Paul was that Michael now started exploiting the songs by allowing them to be used for commercials and other advertising purposes. This was certainly profitable. Panasonic paid $240,000 for the rights to use All You Need is Love in a commercial, and there were many other deals of a similar nature.

Paul was incensed, but there was little he could do. Michael couldn’t see the problem. As far as he was concerned, he was introducing Beatles songs to a whole new generation, and putting money in both his and Paul’s pockets at the same time. Yoko Ono, who controlled John Lennon’s estate, agreed with him. And after all, Michael had bought the company fairly in an open auction.

***

In 1984, Bob Geldof - singer of the Irish band The Boomtown Rats - was horrified by the scenes of famine in Ethiopia that he saw on the TV news. Compelled to do something to help, he roped in a bevvy of rock stars to record the British charity single, ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ The single was a huge success, and raised a great deal of money for charity. The whole event also raised Bob’s profile enormously, making him a national hero, with national newspapers calling for him to be knighted ‘Sir Bob.’ (even though that was not possible as he was not a British citizen).

All this attention did not go unnoticed across the pond in the US, and soon a similar project was planned for the American market. Stevie Wonder became involved, and he called Michael and asked if he would sing on the record. There was no way Michael was going to turn this opportunity down. He had always been willing to help the sick and homeless...and sick and homeless children were a no-brainer. On top of that, there was clearly an opportunity to be seen as a champion of the needy, exactly the kind of publicity he reveled in. It was decided that Michael and Lionel Ritchie should write the song, and after a week of writing, We Are The World emerged as the result.

Michael and Lionel Ritchie wrote ‘We are The World’ together

An all-star cast was roped in to make the recording, including everyone from Bruce Springsteen and Diana Ross to Billy Joel and Tina Turner. The recording session lasted all night, but by the next morning, the whole song was in the can. It went on to sell over four million copies, topping the charts in both the US and the UK.

***

For some time, Michael’s increasingly odd behaviour had been attracting headlines around the world. Despite his denials, it was transparently obvious that he was having more and more plastic surgery, with his nose getting thinner still, and a new cleft suddenly appearing in his chin. As his fame grew, he seemed to become more and more obsessed with creating the perfect look. He seemed to be oblivious to the fact that most people saw each operation as another step towards freak-show status. Some speculated that he was trying to look more like Diana Ross, others that he had just lost the plot. But nobody knew the real answers except for Michael...and he was adamantly denying that he had undergone any procedures after the first two.

The rumors about Michael being gay persisted, taking on a new twist as he was seen more and more often with pretty young men and boys in his company. Michael still denied that there was any kind of sexual relationship with them, yet he continued to be seen with these young males in what could be considered compromising situations.

You might think this was enough adverse publicity for one superstar, but Michael had other ideas. Whist in hospital after the Pepsi fire incident, Michael saw a special oxygen chamber, called a hyperbaric chamber, used to heal burn victims by exposing them to pure oxygen. He thought it would be fun to have his photo taken in it, but somehow the story got back to the press. Frank Dileo wanted to kill the story, but Michael thought it would make a great publicity story that could put him on the front pages of newspapers worldwide. He arranged to have the photo leaked to the press, and soon the story spread like wildfire.

The picture that made headlines around the world

As he flicked through cable TV channels and saw the story repeated over and over again on many different news shows, Michael realized something important. He didn’t have to let the media control him - he had now discovered that he could control the media.

It wasn’t long before Michael found another opportunity to leak a bizarre story. For many years, he had been interested in the movie The Elephant Man, about the Victorian man who was born so disfigured that he became a circus freak show exhibit. Michael discovered that his bones were held in a hospital in London. He thought it would be a great publicity stunt to announce that he had offered half a million dollars to buy the bones to take home. The story was leaked in the same way as before, and the story spread like wildfire once again.

One unexpected side result of the story was that Michael was contacted by the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ elders in California. They thought this kind of publicity about one of their congregation portrayed the faith in a bad light. You might think that was a case of the pot calling the kettle black, but they persisted. In response, Michael announced that he was leaving the religion, a decision which caused his mother a great deal of anguish.

Meanwhile, Michael discovered that the publicity campaign was beginning to backfire. Playboy magazine quipped: ‘Rumour has it that the descendants of the Elephant Man have offered $10,000 for the remains of Michael Jackson's nose.’ The British tabloids named him Wacko Jacko, and he became increasingly seen as not just eccentric, but possibly completely barking mad. Soon the press stopped waiting for Michael to leak stories to them, and started making up their own. Michael became extremely irritated about the fictions, but as he was the one who had fanned the flames, he was hardly in a position to complain.

One fictional story did amuse, him, however. It claimed that musical rival, Prince, had used ESP to control Michael’s chimpanzee, Bubbles.

‘He’s gone too far this time,’ Michael was reported as saying. ‘What kind of sicko messes with a monkey.’

Michael laughed for hours about that one.

***

By 1987, Michael had a bit of a problem on his hands. He had become accustomed to being the major star in the family, and enjoyed the power and influence that gave him over everybody. So it came as a bit of a shock when his kid sister Janet unexpectedly flourished into a star in her own right. Her album Control became the big hit of 1986, going on to sell six million albums.

Michael’s kid sister becomes a superstar

This put Michael under a lot of pressure whilst working on his new album, Bad. The last thing he wanted for his little sister to overtake him in the stardom stakes. And seeing as she was the star of the moment, while he was seen by the world as being Wacko Jacko, he had a significant challenge on his hands. The other problem was that Michael knew his latest album would be compared directly to Thriller...and that was a hard act to follow. But he knew he had some great songs, and spent a lot of time with Quincy Jones, working to get the new album exactly right.

The new album, Bad, was not destined to beat Thriller, but it put in a pretty respectable performance, reaching No.1 in both the US within a few weeks of release. The first single ‘I Just Can’t Stop Loving You’ reached No.1 in both the US and the UK, while the next single, Bad also shot to the top of the charts. The Bad tour kicked off in Japan and took Michael on a gruelling 18-month worldwide journey. The concerts were a huge success, but when Michael returned home for the Grammy awards, disappointment set in. He was nominated for four awards, but won none. He was inconsolable, and looked it. As one reporter said: ‘He couldn't have looked any more heartbroken if someone had walked away with his pet chimp.’

Some time earlier, whilst filming a video in the Santa Ynez Valley in California with Paul McCartney, Michael had become enchanted with the estate that Paul rented for the duration of his visit. When this came on the market sometime later, Michael decided to buy it. After some fierce negotiation, he became the proud owner of 2700 acres of prime real estate for a mere 17 million dollars, which he promptly renamed Neverland, in honor of his hero Peter Pan.

Neverland was soon transformed into a private theme park, with everything from fairground attractions and a Ferris wheel to a four-acre man-made lake and many acres of green and expensively manicured grassland. The house was opulent when Michael moved in, but soon became much more so, with vast sums of money spent to furnish it just the way he liked it. It was no surprise to any of his staff when regular visitors to Neverland included not just hundreds of disadvantaged children, but also a string of young boys, who were typically discarded when they reached their teens. The parents of one received a Rolls Royce in return for their friendship, so it is easy to see why such parents were tolerant of the odd relationship between Michael and their sons.

With a little more privacy now that he had moved out of the family home, Michael was able to continue with an alarming series of cosmetic surgery operations. By this time, the structure of his nose had collapsed under the strain of repeated operations, and he had to wear a prosthetic nose tip to make his nose look normal. This required a fair bit of effort every morning, and often Michael chose to simply wear a surgical mask to hide his face instead.

Michael entertains more children at Neverland

That was not the only change in the Gloved One’s appearance. It had been apparent for some time that his skin was becoming whiter and whiter, the result of using bleaching agents on his skin. He was also diagnosed with Vitiligo, a skin disease which can be hereditary - but can also be caused by excessive use of bleaching agents on the skin. One of its effects is de-pigmentation of the skin. Add to that the excessive quantities of pancake makeup that he uses to hide skin blemishes, and you have a very strange look indeed. This is most noticeable in the rare family photos of the Jacksons brothers in later years. In these, you see a group of healthy, good-looking African-American guys - plus a porcelain-faced clown who forgot to remove his makeup. At first glance, you might think the photo must have been taken on Halloween.

Chapter 7 - The Accusations Start To Fly...

Even if you are the world’s biggest superstar, fate can intervene in surprising ways to throw your life off course. When Michael’s car broke down as he was driving on Wilshire Boulevard in May 1992, it was certainly an inconvenience. But he could not have imagined that this incident would start a change of events that would cost him many millions of dollars, his reputation...and ultimately his life.

Michael found himself at the side of the road, stranded in a jeep that was blowing steam all over the busy highway. He had no idea how to deal with such an emergency, so he called 911. The emergency services told him they couldn’t help...even if he was Michael Jackson. A few minutes later, a Rent-a-Wreck tow truck pulled up and asked if needed a hand. He certainly did, and soon Michael’s truck was being towed back to the Rent-a-Wreck garage. Back at the garage, owner Dave Schwartz called his wife, June. He told her to bring their son Jordie over right away.

Jordie Chandler (Dave was not his real father) was about 12 years old, good-looking and white. In other words, exactly the profile that matched so many of Michael’s young friends.

Michael’s sexuality was still an ongoing subject of discussion in the press. The general verdict that he was still a virgin, damaged by the traumas of his childhood in witnessing both his father’s repeated infidelity and his brothers’ wild partying with groupies. Although he had made a point of being seeing with beautiful women such as Tatum O’Neal and Brooke Shields, everyone knew that this was a smokescreen, and that no sexual relationship had emerged in these cases. The rumors that he was gay continued to circulate, but Michael vigorously denied them all. And in any case, there was nothing to support them except for his oddly effeminate manner. Certainly, there was no suggestion at that time that Michael was having any kind of sexual relationship with the young white boys that were so frequently seen in his company - even if some people thought the relationships were inappropriate.

Michael had often said he had missed out on his childhood - constantly rehearsing, recording and gigging while other kids were playing and having fun. So there seemed to be a simple explanation to his love of children and childish things - he was simply acting out the childhood he never had.

Michael’s work with children was well known, ranging from the We Are The World project to his own Heal The World Foundation. There was no doubt that he had very generously donated millions of dollars to children’s charities, including the $7 million he had earned on the last Jacksons tour. He portrayed the image of someone who genuinely loved children, even claiming that he would commit suicide if there were no children in the world. Everyone believed him, including Jordie’s mother. She thought it would be a great idea for Jordie to become Michael’s friend, so she encouraged this by giving Michael their phone number.

A few days later Michael called Jordie, and discovering a mutual interest in video games, invited him over to his “hideout” - the apartment he secretly owned as a place to get away from everyone. But Jordie was busy with schoolwork, and Michael was about to go on tour promoting his new album, Dangerous. So they spoke only on the phone for some time, becoming firm friends in the process. However, Michael was not short of company on tour. He was accompanied by an 11-year old Australian boy, Brett Barnes, and nine-year old Prince Albert von Thurn und Taxis.

In February 1993, Michael appeared on the Oprah show for one of the most famous TV interviews ever. The interview was arranged to prop up Michael’s increasingly-probematic public image, and to battle against the Wacko Jacko rumors that were now spiralling out of control. Michael flatly denied that he had had more than two cosmetic surgery procedures, and when asked if he was a virgin, he confirmed that he was a “old-fashioned gentleman.”

The Queen of television interviews the King of Pop

Elizabeth Taylor appeared briefly to confirm that Michael was “the least weird person” she knew. Later, Michael would send her a $250,000 diamond necklace to thank her for this support. Taylor had supported Michael in many different ways over the years, with the depth of her affection closely paralleling the value of the expensive gifts he sent her. At one time, Michael had decided that would like to be known by some kind of title, in the same way that Elvis was known as ‘The King.’ His publicist christened him ‘The King of Pop,’ and in return for a suitably generous gift, Elizabeth Taylor crowned him with this title in an award ceremony. The name stuck, and Michael felt it was $250,000 well spent.

Shortly after the Oprah interview, Michael invited Jordie, June and Jordie’s sister Lily to Neverland, and with Michael splashed all over every news broadcast, they could hardly refuse to meet the man of the moment. They arrived at Neverland and were astonished at what they saw. Even Walt Disney, one of Michael’s heroes, would have been hard pressed to come up with such an extravagant wonderland - and even more hard pressed to pay for it all. The house was enormous and opulent beyond measure, decorated in an obscenely expensive manner. And for a child, it was a fairy tale come true. Free candy dispensers offered every kind of confection a child could imagine, while the grounds boasted an entire private zoo - complete with elephants, giraffes, lions and alligators. There were pictures of children all round the house, and a vast network of loudspeakers broadcast Disney music around the property. The dozens of staff who took care of the property were required to be happy and smiling at all times, with instant dismissal following if they were not.

It was hardly surprising that Jackie described Michael as a Man-child...and now this Man-child had his own fairy tale universe to live in - and friends to share it with. The Chandlers spent the day with Michael exploring this magical land and watching movies. Later they went to a toy shop which was kept open for them after hours, where Michael told the kids they could have anything they wanted. They managed to rack up a bill of over ten thousand dollars, but Michael just beamed.

As the weeks went by, the Chandlers spent more and more time at Neverland and Michael’s hideout, often with Brett Barnes also in tow. As he got to know them better, they saw a side of him that the general public and even his closest aides did not see.  In March, Michael was honored with a Soul Train award for the Dangerous album. He was supposed to perform on the show, but as the date approached, he neglected to prepare and rehearse. He couldn’t be bothered to do all that work when he had new young friends to play with.

On the night of the awards, Michael showed up on crutches, saying he had hurt his leg during rehearsals. He sang Remember The Time sitting in a chair, while a troupe of dancers performed around him. When he arrived home later, however, he threw the crutches away in front of his new friends, exclaiming: ‘It’s a miracle! I can walk! I can walk!’

On Friday, April 2, the Chandlers were invited to Neverland to sleep over. As if things weren’t strange enough already, they seemed to be getting stranger still. Michael had positioned two huge mannequins of Indian guards outside his bedroom door to keep ghosts away, and had installed a huge, golden throne in front of the fireplace in his room.               That night, June and Lily slept in the guest quarters next to the main house. Jordie slept in Michael’s room. June was a little worried about this development, but she managed to reassure herself that it would be OK. After all, this was Michael Jackson, right...there wasn’t anything odd about him, was there?

If June was able to comfort herself about the relationship initially, this became a little harder as time went on. Although the three Chandlers would be invited over, it was clear that Michael wanted to spend time with Jordie, and the two females were just inconvenient extras. The two males would spend a lot of time together, often whispering secrets and giggling. One time as they were parting, June heard Michael say to Jordie, ‘don’t forget the wishes!’

She pressed Jordie to find out what the wishes were. He was reluctant to explain, but after being badgered he told her that Michael wanted him to repeat the wishes three times a day until they came true. The wishes were:

1.No wenches, bitches, heifers or ho’s

2. Never give up your bliss.

3. Live with me in Neverland forever.

4. No conditioning.

5. Never grow up.

6. Be better than best friends.

***

While June was becoming a little worried about the nature of the relationship, Jordie’s real father, Evan Chandler, was becoming alarmed. In order to get a better idea of what was going on, he struck up a friendship with Michael through Jordie.

Initially, he felt that June was right - the relationship was an innocent friendship which might seem strange to the outside world, but which made perfect sense in the child-like world of Michael Jackson. But as time went on, his view began to change. He noticed that Michael would gaze lovingly into Jordie’s eyes as if they were passionately in love. He would follow Jordie round the house like a pet dog following its master. The situation progressed from being odd to becoming sinister. When he realized that Michael and Jordie were sharing a bed at night, he finally exploded.

‘Are you having sex with my son?’ he asked.

‘I can’t believe you would ask me that,’ came the reply.

However, Michael neither confirmed nor denied the allegation. As Evan continued to pile on the pressure, Michael began to distance himself from Evan and Jordie in order to avoid the confrontations. Soon he stopped returning their calls.

Evan was a dentist, so when Jordie needed a tooth removed, it was naturally Evan who took care of the matter. But that’s not all he did. Instead of using a regular dental anaesthetic, he arranged for a colleague to administer Sodium Amytal, also known as “the truth serum.” The idea was to get the truth from Jodie about his relationship with Michael Jackson. However, Sodium Amytal is at best an unreliable drug, known for creating false memories and making the patient susceptible to suggestion. Evan asked Evan if Michael had ever touched his penis.

In a confused and muddled voice, Evan said yes, he had. After that, things moved quickly. Evan was furious, but also not blind to the financial possibilities. Soon his lawyers were in touch with Michael’s lawyers. They wanted $20 million to settle the matter and to pay for the damage they perceived had been done to Jordie. Michael, however, refused to co-operate. He was adamant that he had done nothing wrong, and believed that the Chandlers were just trying to extort money from him. When negotiations broke down, Evan took Jordie to see a psychiatrist. The session lasted three hours, and during this time Jordie recounted multiple incidents of masturbation and oral sex with Michael over a period of many weeks.

When the interview was over, the psychiatrist had no option but to report the interview to the authorities, and the law machine kicked into action. In August 1993, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Sexually Exploited Child Unit began investigating a certain Michael Joseph Jackson.

Michael’s life would never be the same again.

His team acted quickly. The second leg of the Dangerous tour was due to begin soon in Bangkok. But Michael was slipped out of the country early, enabling to evade the arrest that would have inevitably followed. He made it just in time. The next day, dozens of  police officers descended on Neverland to sweep the place for evidence. There wasn’t much to find, even with 2700 acres to search. Michael’s team and staff had done a great job of “cleansing” the house in the hours before the police arrived. What they did have was a detailed description of Michael’s intimate body parts, as detailed by Jordie Chandler in police interviews.

Michael at home in Neverland

He had written: ‘Michael is circumcised. He has short pubic hair. His testicles are marked with pink and brown marks. Like a cow, not white but pink colour. He has brown patches on ass, on his left glut.’

The police wanted to know if Jordie’s description was accurate. But to find out, they would have to wait until the end of the international tour. Michael finally arrived home at Neverland in December 1993, and it wasn’t long before he was served with a warrant for strip search. The order specified that police could examine all of his anatomy ‘including his penis, anus, hips, buttocks and any other part of his body.’ If he didn’t co-operate, he would be arrested, and the search would be conducted in jail.

Michael freaked out. For such a private and reclusive person, this was as close to torture as you can possibly get within the legal system. On 20 December, an entire army of police, doctors and attorneys arrived at Neverland. They all waited in the parlour for Michael to appear, and he finally did so wearing only a bath robe. He couldn’t take it. He started shouting at the police officers, and then fled the room, screaming ‘get these bitches out of here.’

Finally he calmed down, and the photo session began. Michael seemed out of it, as if he was high on drugs. He was asked to stand on a platform in the middle of the room and remove his robe.

‘Please don’t make me do this,’ he said. ‘This is terrible. Don’t make me.’

Michael finally took off the robe...revealing that he was wearing a bathing suit.

The police advised him that he would have to take it off. He did.

Underneath he wore boxer shorts. With tears in his eyes, he removed these and stood naked before the assembled group. The police and doctors did not spare him any blushes.

‘Is the subject circumcised?’ was the first question. It was clear that he was not. Jordie was obviously wrong on this point, but he was right about Michael having short pubic hair, patchy skin on his buttocks and marks on his testicles.

‘I then took several photographs of Jackson’s penis,’ the police photographer said later. ‘First the right side, then the left. When I was photographing the left side, the D.A.’s doctor told Michael Jackson to lift up his penis. He didn’t want to, so there was a lot of discussion about that. Finally he did it. Then, he angrily jumped off the platform. ‘That’s it,’ Jackson said. ‘That’s enough.’ He put on his robe and ran out of the room.’

But the police weren’t done yet, and Michael’s lawyers had to coax him back into the room. It took 15 minutes, and the police could hear an argument that sounded like parents arguing with a difficult teenager. Finally, they heard footsteps stomping down the hall, and Michael sulked back into the parlour. He took his anger out on the photographers.

‘When this whole thing is done, I want pictures of you!’

As if he wasn’t in enough trouble already, things got worse for Michael when his sister LaToya turned against him and the rest of the family. LaToya, of course, had never shared directly in the fame and fortune that her brothers and Janet had enjoyed, and so she had never enjoyed a serious independent financial income. To make matters worse, she had married (apparently against her will) Jack Gordon, a businessman who was not only a very unsavoury businessman, but also a very violent and controlling husband. Gordon became her manager, and led her through a sequence of bizarre deals designed to exploit her connections with the Jacksons.

Apart from her astonishing appearance in Playboy (which went down just great with the Jehovah’s Witnesses), she started selling stories to the tabloids, under duress from Gordon. As news of the child molestation case spread, she cashed in on the publicity with a remarkable public statement:

‘Michael is my brother and I love him very much, but I cannot and will not be a silent collaborator in his crimes against young children. If I remain silent, then that means I feel the guilt and humiliation that these children are feeling, and I think it is very wrong. Forget about the superstar, forget about the icon. If he was any other 35 year old man who was sleeping with little boys, you wouldn’t like this guy. I am a victim myself. When parents abuse their children, the children go on to be abusers themselves. Do you know how many children are going to psychiatrists because of Michael? So many, many children.’

It is clear now that this statement was prepared by Jack Gordon, and had everything to do with selling more stories to newspapers, and nothing to do with anything that LaToya knew of Michael’s private life. In fact, since meeting Gordon, LaToya had had very little contact with the Jackson family at all, practically being exiled by Gordon. But at the time, this statement from within the family did enormous damage to Michael’s already frail reputation.

Michael was understandably furious at this extra knife being stabbed into his side, but there was little he could do except protest his innocence. He did exactly that in a special broadcast from Neverland shown by CNN. A tearful Michael, who no longer looked like the King of Pop, said:

‘I ask all of you to wait and hear the truth before you condemn me. Don’t treat me like a criminal, because I am innocent. I have been forced to submit to a dehumanizing and humiliating examination by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department and the Los Angeles Police Department earlier this week. They served a search warrant on me which allowed them to view and photograph my body, including my penis, my buttocks, my lower torso, thighs and any other areas they wanted. They were supposedly looking for any discoloration, spotting blotches or other evidence of a skin color disorder called Vitiligo, which I have previously spoken about. It was the most humiliating ordeal of my life, one that no person should ever have to suffer. And even after experiencing the indignity of this search, the parties involved were still not satisfied and wanted to take even more pictures. It was a nightmare, a horrifying nightmare. But if this is what I have to endure to prove my innocence, my complete innocence, so be it. Don’t treat me like a criminal, because I am innocent.’

Things did not look great for the world’s most famous entertainer .Yet after spending two million dollars on the investigation, and after interviewing over 30 of Michael’s young friends and over 200 witnesses in total, the prosecutors could find no other witness to back up Jordie’s story. All they had was one witness, Jordie himself, from a family which had already tried to get Michael to pay them $20 million, and who had made his original statement whilst under the influence of drugs.

Overall, if the case had gone to trial, Michael would have had a more than fair chance of success. But thing never got that far. Michael was sick of the publicity and the harassment, and on his lawyers’ advice, he agreed to pay around $20 million to settlte the matter once and for all. This decision did take the pressure off, but it certainly did not make the problem go away. On the contrary, the payout implied that he was guilty and was using his money to buy the Chandlers’ silence. Certainly, it was a decision that he would come to bitterly regret in years to come.

***

While all of this drama was unfolding in Michael’s life, a parallel and equally surprising story was running in parallel.

Michael with Lisa Marie Presley

At a party in February 1993, Michael was re-introduced to the daughter of Elvis Presley, Lisa Marie. They had met briefly many years before, but had not seen each other for a very long time. At this party, they started chatting, and found that they had a lot in common. Both had suffered under the problems of international fame from a young age, and both had lived in wealthy but restrictive isolation - Lisa Marie at Elvis’s Memphis home, Graceland, and Michael at Neverland. Even so, it is hard to imagine how a relationship could develop between them. After all, Michael had never shown any sexual interest in women, and as an attractive and wealthy blonde, you would think that Lisa Marie would be unlikely to choose the effeminate and eccentric Michael as a romantic partner.

A cynic might observe that they both had very practical reasons for cementing their friendship. Lisa Marie was hoping to build a singing career based on her Presley background, and Michael clearly had the connections to make that happen for her, plus the profile to propel her to stardom.

Equally, Michael loved to have famous people in his life, and the prospect of a connection with Elvis’ daughter would be enough to turn him straight, even if was as a gay as a Maypole. Then there was the matter of the Elvis back catalog (although Elvis did not write his own songs), which would fit very nicely into his growing music empire. Plus there was the $300 million fortune which she inherited. Although few people were aware of it at the time, Michael’s finances were a mire of debt and default, due his vast and uncontrolled expenditures. A few extra hundred million dollars could come in very handy.

Whatever the reasons, their friendship blossomed into what appears to have been a genuine, if unlikely, romance. Lisa Marie saw a side to Michael’s personality that few experienced - funny, down to earth, and full of practical jokes. As the Jordie Chandler affair unfolded, Michael was dating Lisa Marie on and off, despite the minor inconvenience that she was still technically married. As the child molestation allegations became public, Lisa Marie stood by him, and Michael depended on her for support, calling her frequently as the toured the world.

‘I was in on the beginning of the molestation stuff,’ she said later. ‘I was

getting the phone calls, and he was telling me that it was extortion,’ she recalled. ‘I believed him at the time. I mean, I was convinced. He was freaking out. I believed that he didn’t do anything wrong, and that he was being wrongly accused and, yes, I started falling for him. I wanted to save him. I felt that I could do it.’

Their relationship developed rapidly, and they became closer and closer. One night they stayed at Donald Trump’s estate in Palm Beach, Florida. At the end of a romantic evening, Michael dropped to one knee and presented her with pearls. She had a present for him, too...they went back to their suite and made love all night.

Of all the unlikely things that Michael did in his life, achieving a genuine and active romantic life in his relationship with Michael is perhaps the most surprising of all. Yet Lisa Marie maintained that their sex life was not just good, it was fantastic. Maybe all those years learning dance movements finally paid off. However, their romantic moments were not without their peculiarities...or at least Michael’s peculiarities. Before going to bed, Michael would spend twenty minutes in the bathroom putting on full makeup ready for their romantic encounter. When they awoke in the morning, he was aghast if she saw his smudged makeup, and would rush to the bathroom to give himself a makeover before returning to bed.

On 26 May 1994, Michael married Lisa Marie at a low-key event in the Dominican Republic. It was not quite the wedding that Michael had always planned for himself. He had dreamed that one day, he would enjoy a spectacular wedding on a grand scale with hundreds of guests. Instead, they had a short ceremony with not even immediate family invited. At first, they kept news of their wedding quiet, but soon the news slipped out, and finally the announced that they were indeed married. In September, they appeared as man and wife at the MTV awards. Michael was determined to show they were a genuine couple, and told Lisa Marie that he was going to kiss her during the ceremony. She flatly refused, but when they walked onto stage later, she was resigned to the fact that the kiss would happen.

‘By this time I realized that he does whatever he wants to do.’

Michael smiled at the audience. ‘Just think, nobody thought this would last,’ he said before grabbing her and kissing her.

When the show was over, a furious fight broke out between them. Lisa Marie was upset because he had ignored her wishes. But all Michael could see was that this had been a great TV moment, and that made it all worthwhile. Things were going downhill fast, and slid even faster when Michael seriously suggested a seance to contact Elvis Presley. Lisa Marie thought the idea was twisted. In June 1995, the couple appeared on the TV programme Dateline. As the interview progressed, Lisa Marie found herself having to defend her husband against the child molestation accusations, and explaining why it was OK for young white boys to sleep in his bed. Perhaps not the kind of relationship Elvis might have imagined for his rich and famous daughter.

The interviewer asked if he was likely to do this kind of thing again.

‘Do what again?’ Michael asked.

‘Have a child sleeping over.’

‘Of course, if they want’ he answered.

After the interview, Lisa Marie was livid. ‘Jesus, that was terrible. Oh my God. I can’t believe it!’

‘I don’t know, I thought it was pretty cool,’ Michael replied. ‘We made some good points about the allegations. We made a good-looking couple, too. People loved it, Lisa.’

Michael it seemed, had learned nothing from his experiences, but Lisa was learning fast. She had learned that Michael would compromise for no-one, wife or not. He did things his way, and everyone had to fit in with his plans or get out of the kitchen. Lisa Marie found this infuriating. She had entered the marriage with great plans to save him from himself, and to turn him into the fantastic person she believed he could be. But Michael was not interested in changing. In particular, she tried to wean him off the habit of having young boys over. After the Jordie Chandler affair, she - like everyone else on the planet except Michael - could see that this was asking for trouble, big time. In conservative California, a middle-aged black guy sleeping with young white boys was nothing less than a red rag to a bull. The fact that the man was practically a transvestite made things ten times worse. But the more she insisted, the more he dug his heels in. The relationship deteriorated fast.

Michael and Lisa Marie finally divorced in August 1996.

***

While his personal life became more complex than ever, Michael’s professional life continued to bring him success. He negotiated a new deal with Sony (who now owned CBS), which was worth $65 million - the biggest record deal in history at the time. His 1991 album, Dangerous, shipped over 32 million copies worldwide - not up to Thriller standards, but huge compared to just about every other artist in the world.

Michael was more than bad...he was ‘Dangerous’

In 1995, he merged his ATV publishing business with Sony, retaining half-ownership of the joint company, plus a $95 million bonus up front. Then he released a new album, HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. Sales were initially very promising, but the album fell off the charts very quickly, and Michael began to realize that he was now struggling to get an audience. Even so, it went on to sell 20 million copies worldwide, and picked up a Grammy for Album of the Year.

In September 1996, the HIStory world tour kicked off in Prague, the first of 82 concerts in 58 cities. Just a few weeks after the tour began - and after his divorce had been finalized - another extraordinary Michael story hit the headlines. It was rumored that a woman was carrying Michael’s baby.  The rumors turned out to be true, and the mother of the baby, Debbie Rowe was soon to become his second wife.

For a man who had shown so little romantic interest in women throughout his life, one marriage was a surprise. But when Michael followed this up with a second marriage so soon after his divorce, it was a real shock. This relationship, however, was very different from the last. Whilst Michael and Lisa Marie had genuinely been in love for at least a while, there was no pretence in his marriage to Debbie. This was business. plain and simple. When Michael first married Lisa Marie, he desperately hoped she would fall pregnant straight away. What he wanted more than anything else in the world was children. As the marriage fell apart and Michael realized they would not have children together, he was deeply disappointed, to say the least. But he had a backup plan...

Some years before, Michael had met Debbie Rowe when he was having treatment for a skin condition. Debbie was the doctor’s assistant, and Michael was given her number so that he could call her if any problems arose. The two of them struck up a friendship, and soon he was talking to everybody about his new friend, Debbie. They remained friends on an off throughout the years that followed, often calling each other to discuss the various problems in their lives. As his divorce from Lisa Marie loomed, Michael told her how sad he was that no children resulted from the marriage, and how desperate he was to become a father.

Michael with his second wife, Debbie Rowe

Debbie had a solution in mind. She offered to have a baby for him as a surrogate mother. Michael was surprised at the idea, but didn’t hesitate - ‘yes, let’s do it.’ he said. It is not entirely clear how Debbie became pregnant, although Michael insisted it was by natural means, but before long she was carrying his child. The plan was to keep the matter quiet, at least for a while. But a ‘friend’ of Debbie’s tricked her into talking about the baby whilst secretly recording the conversation. A sum of money changed hands, and soon the story ‘I’m Having Jacko’s Baby’ was plastered all over the News of the World in the UK.

Debbie was afraid that Michael would be really angry that she had been duped in this way, making their private arrangement public. But when he called her from Australia, where he was on tour, he was very sweet and understanding. He said that he always knew the media would find out sooner or later, and invited to meet him in Sydney. When she arrived, she was amazed to find that he had a big surprise for her - he wanted them to get married the next day. The two married in his suite at the Sheraton on the Park hotel in Sydney, with Michael himself playing the wedding march on the piano. The next evening, Michael went out to watch the premier of his new short film Ghosts, with a beaming and happy companion at his side. But the companion was not Debbie...it was Anthony, the latest of Michael’s young male friends.

Debbie had little to complain about, though. The arrangement had never been about love, and although Michael denied paying her to have the baby, there is no doubt that Debbie had little to worry about financially. He had already given her gifts worth millions of dollars over the years, and there was more to come.

From Michael’s point of view, there were two pressing reasons why the marriage was necessary. Firstly, his deeply-religious mother hated the thought of her son having a son out of wedlock, and was keen to legitimize  the union through marriage. More importantly, perhaps, Michael had just begun doing business with Sheikh Abdulla Bin Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, the very wealthy Prince of Bahrain. Under the surface, Michael’s financial troubles were becoming a serious issue, and he needed the influx of cash that the Prince could provide. But as a devout Moslem, the Prince could not condone working with a man who fathered an illegitimate child. Michael was quite prepared to get married in order to secure their deal.

Michael adored his three children

Prince Michael Jackson, named after his grandfather, arrived into the world in February 1997. Debbie saw the baby briefly, and then Michael rushed him away to Neverland. Debbie rarely saw him after that, but she needn’t have worried about his care. A team of six nannies and six nurses looked after the baby in shifts, checking the air quality of his room every hour, and throwing away his toys at the end of each day - so that they could be replaced with fresh, germ-free ones the next day.

In November 1997, Debbie told the world that she was expecting Michael’s second child. The child had supposedly been conceived in Paris, and so when she was born, she was named Paris Katherine Michael Jackson. Later, Michael revealed that immediately after the birth, he had snatched the baby and taken it him, with the placenta still attached. Debbie later confirmed that he had arranged for the placenta to be frozen as a memento. Michael tried to arrange for the Pope to christen the new baby, but the Vatican politely declined the request. With her job as mother done, Debbie asked Michael for a divorce, and their marriage ended in October with a ten million dollar settlement to Debbie. In 2002, an unknown mother gave birth to Prince Michael II, nicknamed Blanket.

***

Now that he had his own children, Michael had a great source of contentment in his personal life. But in his professional life, he was facing some difficult challenges. HIStory had not lived up to his hopes in terms of sales - his secret ambition was always to release an album that outsold Thriller. To this end, he embarked on creating Invincible with the expenditure of a great deal of money. In fact, Invincible became the most expensive album ever made, with $40 million spent on the recording, and another $25 million spent on promotion.

Sales of ‘Invincible’ were disappointing

Over a period of 36 months, over 50 songs were recorded, mixed, and mostly discarded. Michael seemed to have lost his enthusiasm for writing his own songs, and so most of the material is from other writers. The album was released to mixed response, and despite the huge promotional budget, did not receive a great deal of publicity. Tension grew between Michael and Sony as he blamed them for poor promotion, while they blamed him for poor material. To make matters worse, Michael hired a former gay porn producer to direct the video for What More Can I Give? - something that did not go down too well with Sony. Michael could not understand what the problem was.

Invincible briefly topped the charts, but soon dropped out like a lead balloon. Overall, the album only sold ten million copies, a disaster for an artist who had been hoping for fifty million sales. More significantly, this was a disaster for an individual who was relying on huge sales to finance his incredibly expensive and extravagant lifestyle. At this stage, Michael had earned something like $60o million during his solo career. You might think it would be hard to burn through over half a billion dollars , even with the most outrageous pop-star lifestyle...but Michael was more than equal to the challenge. His staff bill alone came to $300,000 a month, while the the cost of running Neverland was over a million dollars a month.

To finance his extraordinary expenditure, Michael arranged to borrow $200 million from Sony against his ATV/Northen Songs catalog. In addition, he owed millions of dollars to ex employees, consultants, attorneys and various other companies. On top of that, Michael was constantly involved in a constant stream of lawsuits, partially because of his habit of reneging on agreements, and partially because many people saw a chance to carve their own slice out of the Michael Jackson financial pie.

So despite a personal income that exceeded the GDP of many countries, the King of Pop was in very serious financial straits. However, his money worries soon became the least of his problems...

Chapter 8 - Michael On Trial

If the day that Michael met Jordie Chandler was the first step in his downfall, then 3 February 2003 was the day when the noose of fate truly tightened around his neck. That evening, a documentary called Living with Michael Jackson was broadcast initially in the UK, with a US broadcast following three days later. Michael had hoped this documentary would show a positive side of his nature that would reassure his fans and restore his damaged public image.               Instead, it accelerated the path towards the ruination of his career and his life.

The story began when British journalist Martin Bashir began badgering Michael for the opportunity to film a documentary about his life. This request would probably have been flatly refused if not for the fact that Bashir had also been responsible for the famous interview with Princess Diana a few years earlier. This extraordinary interview had the effect of winning Diana the sympathy of many millions of people worldwide, and turning them against the Royal family that she was at odds with.

Michael was certainly someone who could do with winning over a few million fans, and eventually he agreed to the documentary, even though he would have no control over the final editing. Bashir then followed Michael’s life for eight months, documenting everything from his home life at Neverland, to life on the road in Europe. When Michael sat down to watch the finished documentary, he was looking forward to seeing a positive representation of his life.

He was sorely disappointed.

Martin Bashir interviews Michael at Neverland

Instead, Bashir, aloof and parsimonious, used the documentary to highlight everything that was questionable about Michael’s world. We saw Michael acting strangely whilst feeding baby Blanket, who had a veil bizarrely covering his face. We saw him spending with wild extravagence in Las Vegas stores, and we witnessed the greedy opulence of his life at Neverland. But more importantly, the world got a sudden and shocking new insight into Michael’s relationships with children. Most disturbing of all was the sight of Michael holding hands with 13-year old Gavin Arvizo and discussing the unusual sleeping arrangements in the Jackson household. Gavin described how he reluctantly ended up sleeping in Michael’s bed:

‘I was, like, “Michael, you can sleep in the bed,” and he was, like, “No, no, you sleep in the bed,” and I was, like, “No, no, no, you sleep in the bed,” and then he said, “Look, if you love me, then you’ll sleep in the bed.” I was, like, “Oh, man...so, I finally slept in the bed.’

If this wasn’t bad enough, Michael dug himself into a deeper hole when Bashir later questioned him about this incident. Michael explained that the thought it was perfectly normal and acceptable for a 44-year old man to have children he was not relating to sleeping in his room, or in his bed. He said that sharing your bed is the most loving thing you can do....and that everyone should do it.

Michael was shocked by the documentary, and so were many people who saw it - although the reasons were different. Michael was amazed that Bashir would betray him with such a negative portrayal. His audience were amazed that he would flaunt his unusual relationships with children in this way. Soon the authorities were receiving complaints, and the government machine went into action again. This time, the police were taking no chances of missing vital evidence. No fewer than 70 police officers raided Neverland, taking the entire place apart in the process. Considering that even murder investigations rarely involve more than 5-10 officers, this seemed to be an over-the-top response. You might think that someone at the D.A.’s office had it in for Michael Jackson.

Michael’s team responded by making their own documentary as a rebuttal. Gavin Arvizo and his family were drafted in to tell their side of the story. The whole family enthused about what a wonderful person was, how much they loved being in his company, and how it was impossible to imagine Michael doing anyone any harm. Gavin’s mother, Janet, made a statement that said:

‘I’m appalled at the way my son has been exploited by Martin Bashir. The relationship that Michael has with my children is a beautiful, loving, father, sons and daughter one. To my children and me, Michael is a part of my family.’

Gavin’s father added: ‘There’s no reason to suspect any wrongdoing by Michael.’

The same story was repeated when the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department interviewed the Arvizos. Gavin told them:

‘Michael is like a father to me. He’s never done anything to me sexually.’

Their support for Michael was so clear cut that the Department of Children and Family Services decided that there was no case to answer, and that the case should be closed. The Sheriff’s Department reached a similar conclusion shortly afterwards.

Nevertheless, Michael’s advisers recommended that he should distance himself from the Arvizos, to avoid further complications. This he did...and the action provoked a surprising response. It seems the Arvizos took exception to being suddenly cut off from Michael and his money, and suddenly they began to sing a very different song.

As with Jordie Chandler, Gavin was taken to see a psychologist to assess his reaction to the Michael Jackson situation. As these sessions progressed, Gavin suddenly began to remember all kinds of incidents that he had previously forgotten. Now he remembered being plied with alcohol, and watching porn with Michael in his room. Next his brother Star was interviewed, and he belatedly recalled that Michael talked a lot about sex, and that all three of them often shared the same bed. He gave detailed descriptions of sexual acts he had seen Michael and Gavin perform. Gavin’s sister added that she was also plied with alcohol, and had frequently seen Michael hugging and rubbing Gavin.

Once again, the psychologist was obliged to report his findings to the authorities, and soon the prosecution bandwagon started rolling. But an examination of the Arvizo family background paints a worrying picture. In 1998, the mother, Janet, had filed a lawsuit against J.C. Penney after the boys were caught shoplifting. When her initial claims of violence from the security officers failed to get her anywhere, she belatedly added another charge of sexual assault. Eventually, J.C. Penney paid the family $137,000 to settle the matter and prevent further litigation. Many people begain to question their motives in this matter.

Michael was formally charged with a variety of child molestation offences at the Santa Barbara courthouse on 16 January 2004. Most of his family were there to support him, and a huge press contingent also attended, plus hundreds of fans eager to show their support, too. Michael pleaded not guilty to all the charges. On leaving the courthouse afterwards, he climbed on top of an SUV and gave his fans an impromptu show, much to their delight.

Michael salutes his supporters

The trial begain a year later in early 2005, and dragged on until June. In that time, the prosecution brought forth a vast amount of evidence, but as time went on, observers noted that none of the evidence carried much weight. Reporters speculated that the prosecution strategy was to throw enough mud, and hope that some of it would stick.

Meanwhile, Michael’s appearance and demeanour deteriorated rapidly as the trial progressed. At the start of the trial, he was in good shape, and seemed positive. But as the day after day of evidence wore him down, he seemed to age visibly with each passing hour. One day he arrived an hour late wearing pyjamas. On other days, he seemed to be high on drugs, with limited awareness of what was going on around him.

On the fortieth day of the trial, the prosecution called Debbie Rowe as a witness. As she had been prevented from seeing her own children for many years, the prosecutors must have thought she would be a good bet to bolster their case. But to their surprise, Debbie stood firmly by Michael, telling the court what a great father he was, that there was no way that he could hurt a child, and that he was clearly innocent of all the charges laid against him. As one of the prosecution team said later: “We didn’t see that one coming.”

But if the prosecution were shooting themselves in the foot, Michael’s defence attorneys were not much better. They brought out several young lads to testify that they had indeed slept in Michael’s bed, but that nothing had happened. Their intention was obviously to show that Michael could be trusted. Instead, they simply confirmed that this inappropriate behaviour had been going on for a very long time.

On the 13 June 2005, it was finally over. The verdicts were read out...and on every single count, the verdit was ‘not guilty.’ Michael must have been relieved, but you couldn’t see it on his face - he seemed to be too depressed to care about anything any more.

Chapter 9 - This is it For Michael

When the trial was over, Michael craved nothing more than solitude and seclusion. The entire affair had been dragging on for over two years, and although his name was cleared, Michael was now a shattered and broken man. He left Neverland, never to return, as he said the property had been violated by the 70 police offers who ransacked the place, without even a search warrant to justify their actions. Michael found solace in Bahrain, as a guest of his friend, the Prince.

Many people thought that Michael would see his legal triumph as a chance to make a glorious comeback and rebuild his career. But nothing seemed further from his thoughts. He was content to drift aimlessly through life, enjoying only the company of his children. Various deals, proposals and ventures came his way, but he passed on most, and reneged on those that he took an interest in. His life seemed to be out of control, spiraling ever downwards in a downdraft of misery and despair.

In 2008, he moved to Las Vegas, drifting around the city with his children with no apparent purpose in life. His debts were overwhelming him, and there seemed to be no way out. Now fifty years old, he was suffering from arthritis as a result of the decades of extreme dance routines he had subjected his body to. In December 2008, Michael rented a mansion in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles for $100,000 a month. Featuring seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, a guest house and a swimming pool, the home was opulent enough to suit Michael’s lifestyle expectations. Who knows what he thought when he moved in...but it is unlikely that he imagined this would be the place where his life would end.

Michael had still not recovered from the trial, and his health was deteriorating. Ever since the Pepsi fire incident many years before, Michael had used strong painkillers, initially to deal with the pain from the burns, but later to deaden the pain from back problems and other health issues. On one occasion, he almost missed a major award ceremony, due to having knocked himself out with Demerol, a powerful prescription painkiller.

He had long depended on a dangerous cocktail of powerful drugs and painkillers to get him through the day, and his needs were now greater than ever. As far back as the 1990s, he had hired doctors to go on tour with him. They would use hospital-strength anaesthetics to ‘take him down at night, and bring him back up in the morning.’ After one tour, a large doctor’s bill remained unpaid for some time, until it was realized that this doctor had been providing Michael with large quantities of illegal painkillers. The bill was them paid promptly in order to bury the matter and ensure that no-one started asking awkward questions.

With his finances also in ruins, Michael knew that the only way he could restore his fortune was through playing more concerts. He had previously been offered $10 million to play just two nights in Las Vegas...a longer concert series could put his finances back in the black and secure his future for many years to come. After a great deal of negotiations, Michael announced in March 2009 that he would play 10 concerts at London’s 02 concert arena, commencing in July. The series would be entitled ‘This is It’ and Michael hinted that this would be his swansong...it really was a case of ‘This is It.’

There was some concern as to whether the King of Pop could sell enough tickets after all the dramas that had brought his career to his knees.

They needn’t have worried. All 10 concerts sold out within hours, and the promoters arrange to extend the run to 50 concerts. When the additional tickets went on sale, these also sold out within hours - and there were enough people still queuing to sell out another 50 concerts. Of course, this was just in the UK. If Michael had announced a world tour, the demand would have been extraordinary.

Michael announces the London concerts he would not live to perform

However, a world tour was out of the question - Michael’s health was clearly not up to the job. The big question was whether he was up to completing the 50 concerts he had already committed to. Michael knew he needed medical help if he was going to get through the concert series, and he asked his aides to hire Dr. Conrad Murray, who had once treated his children. Dr. Murray, was keen to come on board - but at a price of $5 million a year. This was declined, and Michael made a counter offer of $150,000 a month. Dr Murray accepted at once. Soon he was a regular fixture at the Holmby Hills estate, treating Michael with a surprising array of medications.

Rehearsals for the London shows began at the Staples Center in LA, and in footage of the rehearsals, he appears to be in good shape. But behind the scenes, there was a lot of concern. In early June, with the concerts just a few weeks away, the choreographer of the show, Kenny Ortega, sent an email to Randy Phillips, producer of the shows. He said that Jackson was ill, should probably have a psychological evaluation, and was not ready to perform.

'It's important for everyone to know he really wants this,' he wrote. 'It would shatter him, break his heart if we pulled the plug. He's terribly frightened it's all going to go away.'

A meeting was called at Jackson’s house to discuss the matter. Ortega argued with Murray, who objected at Ortega’s interference in medical matters.

‘He [Murray] said Michael was physically and emotionally capable of handling all his responsibilities for the show,' said Ortega. 'I was shocked. Michael didn't seem to be physically or emotionally stable.'

Michael’s last doctor, Conrad Murray

Perhaps Murray should have been more concerned about the way things were developing. Back on May 10, Jackson had called him on his cellphone. In a recording of the conversation, Michael sounds like he was several miles high on drugs, with his voice heavily slurred and his conversation rambling and incomprehensible. Even a non-doctor hearing this would sense a major cause for concern. However, Murray was satisfied that Michael’s health was not in danger. Within a few days of the meeting with Ortega, Jackson had recovered and was rehearsing with enthusiasm.

On June 24, Michael was recorded on video as he rehearsed at the Staples Center. He looked happy and positive. It would be the last time anyone would ever see him on stage.

***

The drug that Michael had persuaded doctors to use to ‘take him down at night’ in the 90s was probably Propofol. Certainly, by 2008, Michael was a very experienced user of this drug , despite the fact that it should never be administered outside hospitals. Michael had suffered from insomnia for most of his life, and the problem had become worse as the years went by. When on tour, he knew he had to be able to sleep at night, in order to be ready for sheer hard work involved in presenting the next concert. He turned to drugs to help him, and then to high-powered anaesthetics. When he discovered Propofol, it became his drug of choice. He called it his ‘milk.’

Michael died of an overdose of Propofol

After the trial of 2005, Michael was so distressed and depressed that he found sleep impossible. He wanted to sleep not just for rest, but also for the relief of the oblivion it brought. He was prepared to risk almost anything to get the sleep he craved...and taking Propofol was certainly a risk, as it is no ordinary anaesthetic. It is used in extreme cases, such as for managing the sleep patterns of coma patients. It should only be used in a hospital environment with proper medical supervision throughout the entire process. This is because the drug slows the heart, which can lead to cardiac arrest and death.

Murray knew that Propofol was a danger, but he also knew that if he wouldn’t give it to Michael, then Michael would simply find some other way to get it. He claimed later in court that his intention was to wean Michael off the drug gradually, and use a more suitable replacement instead.

Some time before midday on 25 June 2009, Murray went to the Holmby Hills estate. Michael said that he had not slept for ten hours, and that if he did not sleep, he would not be able to rehearse, and would disappoint his fans. Murray reluctantly agreed to give him a 25 mg injection of propofol mixed with lidocaine, then left him to sleep. Murray called his girfriend on his cellphone, but in mid-conversation, he suddenly went silent, and a few minutes later, the phone went dead. Murry had discovered Michael’s lifeless body. It seems that Murray panicked and tried to resuscitate him with CPR. But he did not call 911.

Some ten minutes later, he called Michael’s personal assistant, leaving a message saying, 'call me right away, please. Please call me right away. Thank you.'  When the assistant called back, Murray said, 'get here right away Mr Jackson had a bad reaction, he had a bad reaction.’

Still no-one had called 911. Security guard Albert Alvarez was asked to go and investigate. On entering Michael’s room, he saw Michael lying on the bed with Murray administering CPR. Murray told the guard to grab a bag, while he started picking up vials and a saline drip and started stuffing these inside the bag. Finally the security guard called 911, while Murray frantically attempted to remove any evidence that he had been giving Michael Propofol and other inappropriate drugs.

Michael is rushed to hospital

Paramedics arrived at 12.30pm, and spent 42 minutes trying to revive Michael. Murray neglected to tell them that he had administered Propofol. Michael was then transported to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, arriving at 1.14pm. A whole team of doctors spent an hour trying to resuscitate him, but it was too late.

Michael was declared dead at 2.26pm, with his family by his side. As the news spread like wildfire worldwide, the moment became frozen in time. Everyone remembered where they were when they heard that Michael Jackson had died.

The King of Pop was gone for ever

***

A little after 11.00am on 8 November 2011, three buzzes were heard on the ninth floor of the Los Angeles courthouse. The buzzes came directly from the jury room and indicated that the jury had reached a decision in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, accused of the involuntary manslaughter of Michael Joseph Jackson.

Over 100mg of Propofol had been found in Michael’s system, enough to kill a cart horse. Murray claimed that he had only administered 25mg, and that Michael had self-medicated himself with the rest. The prosecution argued that this was not possible, and that Murray was responsible for the overdose.

Journalists who had been waiting for the verdict to come through grabbed their phones and rushed to see the climax of the six-week trial. Outside, hundreds of fans were gathered, and the news spread that the big moment was imminent. The judge, however, ordered a two-hour delay in order to allow the families and the media time to get ready for the announcement. Michael’s family arrived shortly afterwards in darkened limousines, while the fans outside tried to watch the live feed from the courtroom on their cellphones.

Soon news of the verdict spread - Dr Murray was found guilty of the involuntary manslaughter of Michael Jackson. He was later sentenced to four years imprisonment in Los Angeles County Jail.

Chapter 10 - Long Live The King of Pop!

Ever the showman, Michael would surely have approved of his memorial service at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on 7 July 2009. The day started with a private family service at Forest Lawn Memorial Park’s Hall of Liberty in Hollywood, and another private gathering for family and friends.

Michael makes his final public appearance

Around one billion people watched on TV as Michael’s solid-bronze casket, plated with 140-carat gold, arrived at the Staples Center at 10.00am. The service began with a stage filled with floral arrangements, photos of Michael and video montages projecting onto screens at the back. Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, Jermaine Jackson, and Shaheen Jafargholi sang Jackson's songs, and John Mayer played guitar. Berry Gordy, Brooke Shields and Smokey Robinson gave eulogies, while Queen Latifah read the poem "We Had Him." The Reverend Al Sharpton famously said to Michael’s children, "Wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your daddy had to deal with."

As the service ended, Michael’s daughter Paris - aged 11 - said tearfully:

‘Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine ... I just wanted to say I love him so much."

***

You might reasonably expect that Michael’s death would signal the end of his career. But in the crazy world of 21st century entertainment, death is not a finale...but simply the end of Act One. It is little more than a strategic career move. Surreal it may be, but Michael is all set to make far more money dead than alive. Several years after his death, he is still one of the world’s hottest-selling artists.

Michael always worried about his legacy. Long before the image troubles of later years, he tried to figure out why some stars like Elvis became legends after their deaths, while others like Sammy Davis Jr. were largely forgotten. He wanted both his music and his legend to live on for ever. Well, he certainly achieved that goal. Michael died with debts estimated at over $400 million As he earned at least $600 million as a solo artist, this means he managed to blow through over one billion dollars in the 30 years since his solo career took off. That in itself ought to be worth some kind of lifetime achievement award!

But those debts are now a thing of the past, thanks to fanatical posthumous interest in all things Michael Jackson. Massive sales of all his albums, plus a resurgence in sales of music by The Jackson 5 and The Jacksons and endless radio plays generated around $300 million in the year after his death. As a result, he earned more than Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Madonna and Jay-Z combined during that year. His estate is now estimated to be worth in excess of $1 billion, and his legacy generated over a billion dollars in retail sales in the two years after his death. His lawyer John Branca said in a statement:

“The continuing overwhelming worldwide interest in Michael confirms his status as the greatest entertainer of all time,”

Michael’s estate still earns 50% of the income from the Sony song catalog, which incorporates Michael’s own publishing company. This not only includes the Beatles songs, but also songs by Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Eminem and other songs - half a million of them in total. The catalog is estimated to be worth $1.5 billion, making Michael’s investment of $47.5 million back in the 80s look very shrewd.

And it’s not just music. The Cirque Du Soleil show Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour looks set not only to continue his legend, but also to bring in many more millions of dollars a year. As a result, Michael could earn more from touring dead than alive -and he was one of the world’s biggest concert draws.

Michael’s legacy goes on tour

Of course, Michael did not want to die. He loved his children and naturally he wanted to live and watch them grow up. But curiously, his death has brought him many of the things he longed for in life. His eccentricities and failings have been forgiven, or at least forgotten, and his image has been restored. He is now at peace, safe from the reach of the paparazzi and lurid tabloid headlines. He no longer has to fret about growing old. He can rest without the need for drugs and medications. He is once again a superstar and a legend. Michael wanted to be like Peter Pan and live for ever, and it looks like he has achieved the immortality he craved.

The King of Pop is dead. Long live the King!

Elvis Exposed: The Amazing Life and Tragic Death of the King of Rock ‘n Roll

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - A Modest Beginning to an Extraordinary Life

Chapter 2 - The Road To Fame

Chapter 3 - The Colonel Takes Control

Chapter 4 - Shocking America

Chapter 5 - Taking on Hollywood

Chapter 6 - Private Presley Joins the Army

Chapter 7 - Rebuilding His Career

Chapter 8 - Wedding Bells at Graceland

Chapter 9 - Winning in Las Vegas

Chapter 10 - Facing The Final Curtain

Chapter 11 - The Legend Lives On

Chapter 1 - A Modest Beginning to an Extraordinary Life

When guitarist Scotty Moore met a new young singer for the first time in the summer of 1954, he was not overly impressed.

‘He was wearing a pink suit, white shoes and a ducktail, and I thought my wife was going to go out the back door,’ he said.

Sam Phillips - the owner of Sun Records in Memphis - had suggested that Scotty and bass player Bill Black should get together with the newcomer to try out a few songs. But the young singer was not only outrageously dressed, he had a weird name, too...Elvis Presley. What kind of name was that for a singer?

Despite his reservations, Scotty was pleasantly surprised when he heard Elvis sing. In fact, he told Sam that if they could find the right song, this could really go somewhere. Sam booked them a session at his studios, and on a sunny July day, they came into record. At first, there was no sense that the recording session was going to become a historically important event. They ran through a few standard country music numbers together, but nothing stood out. It all seemed just too, well, ordinary. Frustrated, Sam suggested they all take a break.

Elvis at Sun Studios with Bill Black, Scotty Moore and Sam Phillips

That coffee break turned out to be an event that changed the course of popular music.

‘We were having a break, and all of a sudden, Elvis started jumping around and acting the fool,’ Scott said of the incident later. ‘Then Bill picked up his bass and started acting the fool too, and then I started playing. Sam had the door to the control booth open and he stuck his head out and said “What are you doing?” and we said we didn’t know, so he said “Well find a place to start and do it again.” ‘

The song that Elvis was singing was an established blues tune, That’s All Right. But Elvis transformed the song by increasing the tempo and adding a whole new dimension to the vocals. Scotty and Bill picked up on the change of pace, and soon they were rocking out the song in a whole new fusion of blues, country and R’ n B. Sam knew they were onto something, and asked them to play the song again - this time with echo added to Elvis’s voice to add more depth and suspense.

When they played the song back, all four of them knew they had a hit. Bill said:

‘Damn...get that on the radio and they’ll run us out of town!’

But although they knew they had created something special, none of them had any idea of just how important a moment this was. Standing in the cramped studio at tiny Sun Records, they could not conceive that this was the beginning of the astonishing rise and fall of the King of Rock ‘n Roll himself.

***

For a future ‘King,’ Elvis Presley had a very modest start in life at the poor end of town in Tupelo, Mississippi. In the early hours of 8 January 1935, he arrived into the world thirty minutes after his stillborn twin brother, surviving to become the only child of Gladys and Vernon Presley. Elvis blamed the death of his brother on the poverty of his family’s situation.

‘My little brother died, and my Mama almost died, because we couldn’t afford to go to hospital.’

Elvis’s birthplace at Tupelo, Mississippi

The young Elvis Aaron Presley did not seem to have much going for him, except for a loving family. Gladys spoiled him as far as their meagre income allowed, while Vernon did his best to scratch a living as a sharecropper - barely managing to keep up the payments on their very modest two-bedroom home. Elvis’s early childhood was uneventful, apart from the time when he impressed a teacher with his rendition of Old Shep. This resulted in him being entered into a talent show at the age of eight, where he won second prize and the princely sum of five dollars - plus as many free show rides as he could manage for the rest of the day.

Vernon, however, was less successful at making money, and the family struggled to get by. One time, when things become really tight, he resorted to writing a fraudulent check to try and get money for food. But it turned out that he wasn’t too good at cheating the system, either. This episode resulted in two-year prison stretch on the local prison farm, doing hard labor while his family struggled without him. Without Vernon’s income, Gladys was unable to keep up the payments on the house, and they had to move in with Vernon’s brother, Vester. Here Elvis took an interest in Uncle Vester’s guitar, and this led to Gladys buying him a second-hand guitar for his birthday. This was something of disappointment, as what he had really wanted was a bicycle. But he enjoyed playing his new instrument, and became reasonably adept at it. Elvis listened to music on the radio, singing along and working out the chords as he played.

Life didn’t improve much when Vernon was released from jail, with Tupelo simply not offering any real prospects of finding work. Vernon and Elvis scratched around to find what work they could, but it was clear that there was no future for them in small-town life. So when Elvis was 13, the family packed all their possessions into their car and headed for Memphis to start a new life.

‘We were broke, man, broke and we left Tupelo overnight,” Elvis said later. “Dad packed all our belongings into boxes and put them on the top and in the trunk of a 1939 Plymouth, and we just headed for Memphis.’

Memphis was certainly very different from life in Tupelo. The big city did offer better work opportunities, and Vernon soon found a job in a paint factory. But even so, all they could afford by way of accommodation was housing in a project for low-income families. They lived in a single room with no cooking facilities, and shared a bathroom with several other families. Elvis started at the local school, Humes High, and wasn’t too impressed at what he found there, either. A quiet, shy boy, he found it difficult to fit in. To his frustration, his mother insisted on walking him to school every day.

One of the big pluses of living in Memphis, however, was the opportunity to enjoy the huge cultural melting pot of musical influences that abounded there. Memphis had a very lively music scene - ranging from gospel choirs and blues singers, to country music and rhythm and blues. The young Elvis was steeped in this music from church on Sundays, to when he and his friends bunked off to the poorest side of town to hear blues musicians play. He soaked up a whole range of influences that would later play a huge role in shaping his music.

The family finances improved when Gladys found work at a local hospital, while Elvis brought in a few dollars from mowing lawns in the neighborhood. Soon, they had exceeded the income level allowed for the housing project, and had to move to a property nearby. Elvis got a job as a cinema usher, but was fired for watching movies instead of doing his job.

As he grew into his mid-teens, Elvis took a keen interest in his appearance, adopting a Tony Curtis hairstyle and spending hours grooming himself in front of the mirror. This helped him attract a good deal of interest from the girls in school, but also resulted in some incidents with boys that nearly led to fights. Elvis remained something of an outsider at school, with just a few close friends to help him stay out of trouble. But it was clear that Elvis’s future did not lie in the academic world, and he left school in 1953 to work for the Crown Electrical Company as a delivery driver. But this job was never more than a stop-gap...his real interest lay in music. He wanted to become a professional singer and musician, despite his father’s protestations that he’d ‘never seen a guitar player that was worth a damn.’

Chapter 2 - The Road To Fame

Elvis was well aware of existence of the Memphis Recording Service, which was another venture run by Sun Records’ owner Sam Phillips. It’s purpose was not to record serious music, but to provide the public with a means of recording messages, songs or whatever they wanted to use as gifts, or as personal mementos. In those days, before tape recorders and other recording equipment became commonplace, the idea of being able to record yourself on a record was a novelty worth paying a few dollars for.

Legend has it that Elvis chose to go to the Memphis Recording Service to record a record for his mother’s birthday. However, the dates don’t tie up, and it seems more likely that Elvis had another agenda. He was well aware that Sam owned both companies, and may well have thought that by paying for a recording, he might attract the attention of the big man himself. By this time, Elvis had spent a good deal of time practising his singing and playing privately, and he had an idea that he had a pretty good voice. Now it was time to try and attract some professional interest.

Whether or not that was the intention, it certainly worked out that way. Sam was not in the studio when Elvis came into record, but his assistant Marion Keisker was impressed by the sound of the youngster. She recommended him to Sam, and this led to Elvis being invited for a session at sister company, Sun Records. The first session, wasn’t a great success, with the song they recorded proving to weak to make much of an impression. But Sam believed that the young Elvis had some talent, and felt that it was worth persevering to find the right song, and the right sound. A few sessions later, the famous recording of That’s All Right was put down, and Elvis’s career took a sudden jump in the upward direction.

Sam and Elvis with Marion Keisker, the first person to spot his talent

Sam had once remarked to Marion that ‘if I could only find a white boy who could sing like a black man, I would make a lot of money.’ He now realized that in the raw talent of Elvis Presley, he had found what he was looking for. But his efforts to get the new record on the airwaves proved problematic. Although some local DJs personally loved the record, the idea of playing such a raucous record on radio stations aimed at whites was too risky...it could cost them their livelihoods.

In the 1950s, racial segregation was still strong throughout the US, but particularly so in the deep South. Radio stations were largely split into black stations for black audiences, and white stations for white audiences. The idea of music that could cross over the great divide and appeal to both was still something of a shocking one.

D.J. Dewey Phillips set Elvis on the road to stardom

But Sam had an ally that he could call on. Dewey Phillips (no relation) was an adventurous disc jockey who hosted an edgy radio program called Red Hot and Blue. He revelled in playing new records that broke the mold, and so didn’t need much persuading to play That’s All Right. He knew that his audience was open to the idea of innovation in music, and that they didn’t care about the artist’s social background. He played both the A side of the single,  and the flip side, ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky.’ Before long, the station was inundated with requests to play the tunes again...and again. Dewey decided he had to get Elvis into his studio right away, and called the Presley household to track him down. Elvis happened to be at the movies, and Gloria and Vernon had to rush to the movie theatre to find him. Once they had tracked him down in the dark, they rushed Elvis over to Dewey’s station, WHBQ.

Elvis was very nervous about being interviewed live on air, so Dewey told him they would do a practice session. But when the ‘practice’ was over, Elvis realized he had been duped...and the interview had already gone out on air. During their discussion, Dewey slipped in a seemingly innocuous question, asking Elvis which high school he had gone to.

‘Hume High’ Elvis replied, innocently - unintentionally revealing that the man who ‘sang like a black man’ was from the white end of town. In the racially-segregated world of 1954, that answer made all the difference to the singer’s prospects of acceptance. The studio phone continued to ring off the hook with requests to hear the recordings again.

Elvismania was taking hold in Memphis.

On the back of this success, the next step was obviously to get Elvis out on the road, capitalizing on the popularity that the radio broadcasts had engendered. His first live performance was at the Overton Park Shell on July 30, 1954, with Scotty and Bill providing the backing. Although he was low down on the bill, and incorrectly advertised as ‘Ellis Presley,’ he certainly managed to make an impression. Apart from his impressive singing voice, Elvis amazed members of the audience with his performance. As he sang, he noticed that girls in the audience were screaming, but he had no idea what was behind their excitement.

Elvis poses at the Overton Park Shell in 1955

‘I came off stage and was scared stiff,’ Elvis said. ‘I did a fast type tune, and everyone was hollering, but I didn’t know why. When I came offstage, my manager told me they were hollering because I was wiggling.’

Elvis had no idea that this was the first experience of a controversy that would dog him for the next few years. So with Scotty and Bill as his backing musicians, and Scotty also doubling as bookings manager, Elvis began making live appearances around the Memphis area. Hillbilly Cat and The Blue Moon Boys, as they were known, played at a host of small venues, gradually building up a fan base as they went. Sometimes they would play in schools, sometimes they would play at the opening of shopping malls, playing from the back of a flat-bed truck. While the older members of the audience were often puzzled by this wild boy and his act, he started building up a loyal young audience - especially amongst teenage girls.

Soon, they started to perform beyond the Memphis area, including a gig at The Grand Ole Opry. But Elvis’s wild style did not go down with the conservative country audience. Elvis was devastated, as he had listened to the show since he was a boy, and had hoped it would be the springboard to further success. Yet a performance on similar but more relaxed show, the Louisiana Hayride, was a success. Elvis performed two sets on the show on October 16, and again the reaction to the first set was disappointing. But by the time Elvis came on stage for his second set, a large number of students had joined the audience - and his act received a much warmer response.

A Press ad promoting the new singer, Elvis Presley

In fact, it was such a hit that the organizers contracted Elvis to make 50 appearances, with Elvis receiving $18 for each appearance. He was finally a real professional musician...and had proved to his father that a guitar player could be worth a damn, after all. More importantly, the shows were broadcast across 190 radio stations in the South, giving Elvis huge exposure. Now they were playing to audiences who had not only heard of Elvis Presley, they had heard him sing, too. And all Elvis needed was for people to hear him sing. The connection with the show also gave them a drummer. D.J. Fontana had backed the band when they played Louisiana Hayride, and he now became a regular part of the band, finding Elvis to be a natural performer.

‘Elvis had this charisma about him,’ he said later. ‘I don’t think anybody could ever put their finger on what he did or how he did it...onstage he could feel the audience out in about five or ten minutes. He knew the songs they wanted to hear for some reason, and he could work that crowd to his benefit. He was really good.’

All this publicity helped to and broadened Elvis’s appeal to neighboring states. As the band continued to play over the next 18 months, Elvis’s reputation spread quickly, and soon every concert was packing in hundreds of young people who had come to see the exciting new singer and his band. He did receive some complaints though - mainly from the dull country acts who had the difficult task of coming on stage after Elvis had driven the audience wild. The more exaggerated his performances became, the more the audience reacted...and the more difficult it was to take the stage after him. Elvis really was ‘a hard act to follow.’

His choice of clothing also made him stand out. While the country acts he played alongside wore conventional and unexciting stage gear, Elvis came on stage wearing outrageous clothes that he had found in Beale Street - in the heart of the Memphis R’nB district. He often wore pleated pants with broad legs and stripes down the sides, together with oversized coats and high-collared shirts. All this was topped with an exaggerated “duck’s ass” hairstyle that required no few than three different hair styling products to produce.

The extended travelling that the band was now doing meant that none of them could continue their day jobs. Giving up the security of a regular wage in return for the uncertainties of life on the road was a big decision, but they all knew this act was going places. Before long, they had all quit to become full-time musicians. Now there was nothing to stop them taking on America, and they gradually scaled up their performances across the South. By November, the business of managing the act was becoming too much for Scotty to handle on part-time basis, so they turned to Bob Neal, a local DJ who thought Elvis had real talent that deserved nurturing. Bob became Elvis’s full-time manager, and played a major role in taking the rising star to the next level of success. As well as getting more airplay for the band’s records, he booked them onto bigger tours and arranged publicity and advertising. The Elvis star was clearly now in the ascendant, and it wasn’t a question of if he would have a major hit record, but when...

The recording sessions at Sun Records continued, and more singles were released, generating very impressive sales for records released on such a small, local label. Sam Phillips was very proud of his prodigy, but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to hold onto the rising star for much longer. Only a large national label could offer Elvis the large-scale promotion that his talent clearly deserved.

1955 proved to be a huge year in Elvis’s life, bringing transformations that he could not possibly have imagined even a year before. He and the Blue Moon Boys travelled extensively around the south, playing on country music tours with the country stars of the day. Yet in each case, Elvis stood out as being something completely different, fresh and exciting. Soon the audiences were comprised not so much of country music fans, but more of pure Elvis fans - a young audience of both men and women who were attracted by the sheer energy and vibrancy of his performances.

Elvis’s stage act was soon to become notorious, but in 1955 it mostly produced puzzlement in older audiences, and wild enthusiasm from his fans. The act developed as Elvis began to realize what had an effect on his audience. Film footage of one of his early performances shows him as being relatively conservative in his movements. But as 1955 progressed, his ‘wiggling,’ leg-jerking and ‘gyrating’ intensified into a performance that brought cheers from the males in the audience, and loud shrieks from the females. He soon learned how to control the audience, building them up to a frenzied peak as the show progressed. Sometimes, however, the carefully co-ordinated plan backfired.

In May, Elvis played in Jacksonville, Florida, to a crowd of over 14,000. The concert was a great success as usual, but despite the screams of hysterical females throughout the evening, Elvis was not prepared for what happened next. A backstage gate was accidentally left open, a problem compounded by Elvis’s last remark to his female fans as he left the set: ‘I’ll see you girls backstage.’ Moments later, as Elvis arrived in his dressing room, dozens of young women broke in and began tearing his clothes off his body. Before he realized what was happening, they had pulled off his jacket and ripped his shirt off his back. In a bid to escape, Elvis took refuge in the bathroom and climbed into the shower stall. But his eager fans followed him and ripped off his shoes and socks. They had got as far as his pants when security finally realized there was a problem and pulled him to safety.

Elvis was shocked by the incident, but he could hardly have bought himself better publicity. Newspapers around the South were packed with outraged news items about Elvis and the effect he had on young women. He was accused of being immoral and vulgar, and of deliberately inciting a sexual response from his female admirers. Elvis was bemused by the response, but carried on with his natural style. However, his personal security was tightened...and the backstage doors were kept locked.

Chapter 3 - The Colonel Takes Control

It wasn’t just the newspapers that started taking an interest in Elvis. All the attention caught the eye of ‘Colonel’ Tom Parker, a music promoter who had a keen interest in up-and-coming country performers. Despite the name, he was not really a Colonel, and he wasn’t even Tom Parker. Born in the Netherlands, he was actually an illegal immigrant who had made a living in the States for many years as a carnival ‘barker’ - attracting people to watch shows. During his colorful career, he had picked up the honorary title of Colonel, and had then exploited this to his advantage ever since, adopting the name Tom Parker as a suitably American replacement for his original Dutch name. Parker discovered that there was more money to be made in music promotion than in the carnival business, and had gained some experience in promoting various acts. But in Elvis, he saw the chance to ride a gravy train to stardom.

‘Colonel’ Tom Parker made Elvis into a star

Elvis already had a manager that he was quite happy with, but Parker was not about to let that detail get in his way. He wormed his way into the management team as an assistant, and before long was badgering Elvis to let him become his ‘special adviser.’ Elvis had his doubts, and as he was still under 21, he could not sign a contract without agreement from his parents. Parker set to work, convincing them that he was the man for the job. By a series of convoluted maneuvers, Parker managed to get Elvis to sign the deal, as well as persuading Gladys and Vernon that he was the right choice for their son. Then he worked on edging Bob Neal out of the picture. Before long, Parker was Elvis’s sole representative, taking an impressive 25% of all the singer’s income for his trouble (later to rise to much higher percentages).

Colonel Tom Parker is a controversial figure, to say the least. He was a wheeler dealer by nature, and it is true that he cut many deals for Elvis that would probably not have happened without him. He was also a fierce negotiator, and frequently won deals for Elvis that were staggering by the standards of the day. He was notorious with record companies, promoters and movie producers for adding a whole range of extra clauses to standard contracts, each sweetening the deal for his client at the other party’s expense. There is no doubt that these negotiating skills added considerably to Elvis’s wealth.

On the other hand, there is also no doubt that Parker was a ruthless businessman rather than a manager of creative talent. Many of his deals put dollars in Elvis’s pocket (as well as his own), but at the expense of musical growth and development. Who knows how Elvis’s career may have developed without him, but it would probably have been more creative and inspired musically, at least. It is interesting to speculate what Elvis might have achieved if he had spent the 60s recording great music, instead of being dragged into the Parker-inspired cycle of nonsensical movies. Finally, there is no doubt that Parker’s main aim was to line his own pockets, and Elvis was little more than a very valuable pawn that he brokered remorselessly to the highest bidder.

Once Bob Neal was out of the picture, Parker set to work on getting Elvis a new record deal. The records produced at Sun Records were selling like hot cakes, but it was clear that a major national label was now required to handle the promotion of Elvis and his music on a national scale. With Elvis still hot in the news, there were several contenders for the contract, and Parker was able to play one off against the other to get an outstanding deal for Elvis, and for Sam at Sun Records. RCA agreed to buy out the contract with Sun for a staggering $35,000, plus $5000 for back royalties. Although with hindsight the deal seems a poor one for Sam - given the millions that Elvis later generated with RCA - it was a very fair deal for the circumstances at the time. Sam received what was a substantial sum in those days, which enabled him to invest in other musicians. As his roster went on to include Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash, plus several other household names, he didn’t do too badly out of the deal.

Elvis shakes on his new record deal with RCA

Parker was never shy about discussing his role in Elvis’s rise to stardom. Later he was to say,’ when I met Elvis, he had a million dollars’ worth of talent. Now he has a million dollars.’

RCA knew that the next step was to reposition Elvis in order to broaden his appeal to a wider audience. Instead of promoting him as a country and western artist, they began to portray him as a pop musician with an appeal to all of the national music charts. At the time, the pop charts were dominated by the likes of Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Junior. They had no idea what was coming in the shape of Elvis Presley.

In January, 1956, Elvis started his first recording session for RCA in their studios at Nashville, with Chet Atkins acting as producer. The studio was vast compared with the tiny one at Sun Records, and Elvis found it all intimidating at first. But he soon launched into his first song with typical Elvis enthusiasm. In fact, he didn’t just sing the song...he performed at as if he was on stage. Atkins was so struck by this that he invited his wife to come in and see this strange new artist in action. But this was no gimmick. By performing so passionately in the studio, Elvis was able to produce an intensity in song that exceeded anything recorded by his many illustrious predecessors.

On 27 January 1956, one of the songs recorded in this first session was released as a single. Heartbreak Hotel exploded out of radios across the country like a shockwave, with Elvis’s unique voice demanding attention from the very first note. Quite unlike anything else released previously, this recording sold like hot cakes, hitting the number one spot in the US and staying there for eight weeks - as well as topping the charts in the UK. From there, the hits followed thick and fast - ‘Too Much,’ ‘All Shook Up,’ ‘Teddy Bear’ and many more...

Chapter 4 - Shocking America

In just 18 months, Elvis had progressed from being an unknown truck driver to becoming a national superstar. Yet, there was more to come - a great deal more. On January 28, Elvis made his first appearance on national TV on a program called Stage Show. His first live performance was a little shaky, with Elvis unsure how to work a studio audience. But when he was invited back to make further appearances, he improved his act each time, so that by the time he made his final appearance in March, he was driving the audience crazy. In June, he made the second of two appearances on The Milton Berle Show, an event that led to national controversy.

Elvis performed without his guitar, launching into Hound Dog with unbridled enthusiasm, his hip shakes, pelvic thrusts and gyrations delighting the younger members of his audience whilst shocking the older generation. All this was emphasized when he slowed down the last part of the song to a blues tempo, exaggerating his movements and causing more hysteria in the audience.

Elvis rocks the Milton Berle show

The establishment was outraged, and said so very clearly in a barrage of newspaper articles. Elvis was seen as an example of the negative effect rock ‘n roll was having on the youth of the day - a degenerate influence that could only lead to unspeakable results. Of course, the more the newspapers condemned him, the more Elvis became a hero and an idol in the eyes of the younger generation. If the media had hoped to kill the young star’s career, they did no such thing - in fact they did quite the opposite. His popularity soared, and sales of his records continued to grow from strength to strength.

Elvis’s next TV performance was controversial for other reasons. NBC-TV announced publicly that Elvis would not be allowed to ‘bump and grind’ on The Steve Allen Show. Instead, he was reduced to the absurdity of singing Hound Dog to a live basset hound. If that wasn’t bad enough, the following segment made fun of Elvis’s roots in the South. Elvis was furious to realize that he had been manipulated and used by the television industry for its own ends. His fans were equally upset, with many of them picketing the TV studios the next day, brandishing signs which read ‘We want the gyrating Elvis.’

In 1956, the king of the TV variety shows was The Ed Sullivan Show. Parker had previously been turned down by the show’s producers, because he had asked for the seemingly outrageous sum of $5000 for an appearance. If they had taken that deal when it was offered, they could have saved themselves a fortune. But Sullivan declared that Presley ‘wasn’t his cup of tea’ and that he wouldn’t have him on the show. Yet as Elvis rocketed to fame on a massive scale, he and his producers were forced to think again. They could not afford to pass up the ratings and the prestige that an appearance by Elvis would bring to the show. By now, however, the canny Parker had upped the price to $50,000....and he got it, too.

Elvis was booked for three appearances on the show - in September and October, and then for a final appearance in January 1957. The first of these passed relatively uneventfully, but in the second one, he again shocked the establishment with a wild rendition of Hound Dog. Young women in the audience shrieked and screamed, and once more the older generation looked on in consternation.

Elvis shocks the Ed Sullivan show

Concerned about the reaction from the authorities, the broadcaster CBS decided that for his final appearance, Elvis should be filmed from the waist up only. Elvis gave an electric performance, and the fact that the TV audience could only imagine what was happening below the waist actually heightened the impact of the show. It became the talking point of the nation. Once again, A TV network had inadvertently done Elvis a favor. The nationwide discussion over the censorship of his performance - and what it may or may not have hidden - helped to seal Elvis’s place as the hottest name in entertainment.

Today, the whole argument seems ridiculous, and if you view clips of the shows on YouTube, you may be tempted to wonder what all the fuss was about. But the world of 1956 was a very different one to the world of today, and the controversy around Elvis unfolded around a much more complex backdrop.

The older generation in 1956 had suffered through the misery of the Depression, followed by six years of war, and then years of post-war struggle. It was only in the 1950s that America began to emerge as a prosperous and powerful nation with everything to look forward to. Elvis’s generation was the first to find themselves in a world where they had money to spend, and things they wanted to spend it on - fashion, rock’n roll, cars and much more. At the same time, attitudes to religion, sex and relationships were changing in ways that the older generation could barely understand.

Elvis’s wild style, his raucous songs and his gyrating, pelvic-thrusting act represented just about everything the new generation stood for - and almost everything the older generation objected to. In many ways, the controversy was not about Elvis himself, but about what he represented - an America that was changing quickly and furiously into a very different country to the one his parents had grown up in. This was a new world in which youth was everything. It’s hardly surprising that those who had lost their youth did not want to relinquish their authority to those who had not.

On one memorable occasion, the authorities in a Florida town managed to get an injunction that prevented Elvis from ‘gyrating’ whilst performing a show there. The police turned up at the show armed with cine cameras to record the performance, lest Elvis should tempt a jail sentence with a wiggle. Elvis was forced to perform the entire show standing still, and moving nothing more than his little finger. Yet with his little finger alone, Elvis still manged to whip the audience into a frenzy. That must have been a very frustrating evening for the Chief of Police!

While all this controversy and discussion certainly kept Elvis in the public eye, Parker was concerned that the negative image could damage the reputation of his ‘boy.’ He was very concerned with broadening Elvis’s audience, and certainly did not want to limit it by seeing Elvis branded as a bad-boy rock ‘n roller. He fought back aggressively, arranging events and engagements that served to soften Elvis’s image, and present him as a lovable home-town boy. He set up interviews where Elvis was able to explain his own point of view, and arranged for the press to be present when the singer gave money to various charities.

Parker was a wizard at managing the press, and soon stories began to appear about Elvis’s close relationship with his mother and father, and his quiet, Christian lifestyle. Throughout the late 1950s, Elvis garnered millions of column inches of press, and partly as a result of this, his records sold in staggering numbers across America, in Europe and beyond. By the end of 1957, Elvis had become the biggest star the world had ever known. The small-town boy had sure come a long way from the two-bedroom shack in Tupelo, Mississippi...but he had a long way to go yet on the path to even greater fame and fortune.

As soon as the proceeds of his fame began to roll into his bank account, Elvis spent $40,000 buying a ranch-style home in Memphis for his parents to live in. The gesture was well meant, but not as successful as he had hoped. Soon the family home was besieged by besotted fans who hoped to get a glimpse of Elvis. They stripped the property of souvenirs, taking everything they could remove, from bits of fencing to blades of grass. They would even come up to the house and listen at the walls, hoping to hear Elvis’s voice.

At first, the neighbors were delighted with the prestige of having such a famous resident in their neighborhood. But as time went on and the mass of fans and journalists continued to rise, they started to complain. One neighbor started to sue them for causing a breach of the peace.

Graceland - where Elvis lived and died

It became clear that a more secure home was required, and so Elvis asked his parents to look out for a new home for the family. He gave them a budget of $100,000, and they found Graceland, a mansion some nine miles from downtown Memphis. Set in over five acres of private land, Graceland was a stylish mansion that looked just the part for the home of the world’s favorite rock star. The house was extensively renovated to suit Elvis’s tastes, and extended considerably over the next few years. The famous Music Gates - featuring two guitar-playing musicians - were installed to keep the fans at bay. Here Elvis was finally able to find some peace with his family, in the house that remained his home until the day he died.

Meanwhile, Parker was busy ramping up the Elvis money-making machine. He signed merchandising deals that resulted in a flood of Elvis-related products hitting the market, from Elvis Presley lipstick and clothing, to perfume and bracelets. Parker also arranged for the production of ‘I Hate Elvis’ badges, so that they could profit from Elvis’s detractors, as well as his fans. No profit-making stone was left unturned. The merchandising operation grew into a multi-million dollar business with many tentacles and profit streams.

Chapter 5 - Taking on Hollywood

Much more significant, however, were the Hollywood deals arranged by the Colonel. Elvis had always loved movies, and was interested in trying his hand at becoming a serious actor. Parker saw that getting Elvis to appear in the right movies would soften his image and broaden his appeal with the public. To this end, he arranged for Elvis to appear in a movie based on family strife during the Civil War. The film was hastily renamed Love Me Tender to benefit from the publicity surrounding Elvis’s current single. The film was never destined to be a classic, with a few Elvis songs awkwardly wedged into a fairly serious plot. But the fans loved to see their hero on the big screen, and the movie was a success. The Colonel was worried about how the fans would react when they saw their hero die in the climactic seen of the movie. But as it turned out, only one woman was seriously affected by the sight - Elvis’s mother.

While this movie was being made, the Colonel was also working on inking a longer-term movie deal. Producer Hal Wallis had seen Elvis on TV in 1956, and he realized that the singer had the charisma and magic required to hold an audience spellbound. He saw that if this magic could be parlayed into movies, then the sky was the limit. A deal was signed, and Wallis created Loving You and Jailhouse Rock as vehicles designed to make the most of the singer’s talents.

Jailhouse Rock was a movie that Elvis enjoyed making

In each movie, the plot was at least partly based on Elvis’s own life, with parallels clear enough for the dimmest teenage fan to know whose life they were based on. Loving You told the story of a working-class Southern singer whose performances drive fans crazy as he rises to stardom. Jailhouse Rock tells the story of an ex-con who redeems himself by learning to play the guitar and starting a singing career based on his unique sound. It came as no surprise to anyone when Elvis played the part of another singer in King Creole.

In each case, the plot of the movie was constructed to allow Elvis to sing a number of songs, even if the excuses for launching into song were sometimes a little implausible. But the inclusion of the songs allowed RCA to produce a soundtrack album as an income generator, as well as a means of further promoting the movie. Despite his dreams of being taken seriously as an actor, Elvis was never in any danger of winning Oscars for his performances. But he could find plenty of consolation by looking at the impressive box-office takings that each movie generated.

Elvis starred with Dolores Hart in ‘Loving You’ and ‘King Creole’

Elvis found himself playing alongside some of the most beautiful leading ladies in Hollywood, and soon rumours abounded about his romantic involvement with them, or with other female members of the cast. There is no doubt that Elvis did enjoy many such relationships during his movie career, but as the ladies all chose to remain tight-lipped about these romances, many of the stories are based on legend rather than fact. But we can safely say that although Elvis found the movie-making process something of a trudge at times, there were compensations that made the exercise worthwhile.

Chapter 6 - Private Presley Joins the Army

Just as Elvis’s career was getting into full swing, it was sideswiped by Uncle Sam. Like all young men at that time, Elvis was eligible to be called up to serve his country in the Armed Forces for two years of national service. His draft notice finally arrived just as he was hitting the peak of his fame.

At that time, Elvis was filming King Creole, and there was still a great deal of filming to complete. He managed to get a postponement to finish the movie, but there was no avoiding the required two years of army service. He had originally thought that he would ask to join the special services unit, where he could spend his time singing to troops on army bases. But Parker thought there was much greater publicity value in the world seeing Elvis serve as a regular soldier. Elvis was philosophical about it all.

‘It’s a duty I’ve got to fill, and I’m gonna do it. I guess the only thing I’ll hate about it is leaving my Mama. She’s always been my best girl.’

Parker saw this issue as both a challenge and an opportunity. The danger was that with Elvis out of the public eye for two years, he could easily be forgotten by a fickle public, making a comeback next to impossible. On the other hand, this provided a great opportunity to showcase Elvis as a good American, doing his bit for his country.

Elvis served as a regular solidier

Whatever faults he may have had, Parker probably justified his management of Elvis’s career through his adroit handling of what could have been a career-killing event. He  milked the whole scenario for all the publicity he could get. He arranged for Elvis to travel by train from Memphis to Hollywood to complete King Creole, with hundreds of fans flocking to each station along the route in the hope of catching a glimpse of the soldier-to-be. When Elvis first reported for duty, Parker ensured that the whole event was filmed, including his medical and the shaving of his famous hair. The sight of Elvis being obliged to trade his sideburns and D.A. for a regulation army crew cut made the TV news across the world.

Parker also made certain that Elvis recorded enough material beforehand to enable RCA to release his records throughout his absence.

Sadly, Elvis’s fears about leaving his mother proved to be well founded. Not long after Elvis had commenced his service at Fort Hood in Texas, Gladys was taken ill. Elvis rushed to her side, and was heartbroken when she died a short time after he arrived.

This was undoubtedly the biggest tragedy of Elvis’s life, and in many ways he was never the same again. In fact, some of his closest friends felt that if his mother had lived, he may never have suffered the decline that finally killed him nearly twenty years later. But army life goes on regardless, and Elvis was soon shipped overseas to continue his army service in Germany.

Serving in a tank division, Elvis played his part just like many thousands of other G.I.s, the only concession to his fame being the decision to allow him to live off base to get some privacy. His father, grandmother and friends joined him at his rented home. Parker, however, decided not to visit Elvis in Germany, probably out of fears that he might not be re-admitted to the USA on his return. Apart from a brief trip to Paris, Elvis didn’t get to see much of Europe, or even Germany, his celebrity status making it impossible even to go for a meal at a local restaurant.

Priscilla as a young teenager

Private US53310761 passed his service period uneventfully, apart from one chance meeting that was to prove very significant later. A couple of months before leaving Germany, Elvis met teenager Priscilla Beaulieu - the daughter of a US Air Force Major. The two hit it off immediately, despite the fact that Priscilla was only fourteen. Elvis was particularly impressed by the fact that she was unfazed by his fame, making her very unusual for teenage girl at the time. They spent a lot of time together over the next few weeks, and by the time Elvis returned home, there were already rumours about the ‘girl he had left behind.’ But at the Colonel’s advice, Elvis quashed the rumors in a press conference, in case the news of a potential wife should affect his popularity with the millions of American women who dreamed of becoming Mrs. Presley.

When the two years of service was complete in 1960, the Colonel ensured that his boy returned home in style, with another long train journey taking him back to Memphis from Washington. The huge crowds that turned out to see him showed that his reputation and popularity were undiminished, and soon Elvis was back on track to continue his career.

Chapter 7 - Rebuilding His Career

Now that he was back home, the most important question was how to re-launch his career and put him back in the spotlight. Parker wanted Elvis to return to public performance in style, so he arranged for his ‘boy’ to appear in a TV special with Frank Sinatra. He asked for a fee of $125,000, and knowing that no other star could attract a comparable audience, Sinatra agreed. The act proved to be a mutually-beneficial experience. Sinatra was able to reach out to a younger generation through his association with the newcomer, while Elvis was presented to Sinatra’s audience as an acceptable act. They sang a duet together, with Elvis singing a Sinatra hit, while Sinatra sang Love Me Tender.

Elvis sings with Frank Sinatra

The next priority was to record some fresh musical material, and Elvis went into the studio to lay down some new recordings. It was immediately apparent that Elvis had lost none of his singing talent. On the contrary, his voice had matured into a deeper, richer sound. The next single, Stuck On You, quickly rose to the top of the charts. In the same sessions, he recorded songs for the aptly titled, Elvis is Back, album which also hit the number one spot soon afterwards.

Sadly, that was to the last spark of genius from Elvis for some time to come. John Lennon later said that ‘Elvis died when he joined the army.’ It is certainly true that the King’s career took a turn for the worse artistically when his post-army career began in earnest. Parker saw his protegee as a cash cow to be milked for as much money as it could deliver - and if that meant signing Elvis up to do a series of questionable but profitable movies, then so be it. The rock ‘n roll rebel of the 50s was about to become the Hollywood leading man of the 60s.

Parker saw the business rationale as being very simple. With Elvis as the leading man, a movie was almost guaranteed to be a hit, which meant that the Colonel could negotiate extortionate terms with studios desperate for sure-fire winners. Each movie generated a soundtrack album, which produced additional sales and more singles to hit the charts. These in turn kept Elvis in the public eye, and drove them to the movies to watch his next film. That process could be repeated until the last drop of profit was squeezed from the Elvis well of talent. Parker had no qualms at all about doing exactly that.

In the early 60s, the movies that Elvis starred in were not destined to become classics, although they did have some merit. But as the decade progressed, the quality of the movies declined dramatically. Because Elvis (and therefore Parker) earned a share of the movie profits, Parker saw it as being in their interest to reduce the cost of making each movie. The lower the budget, the sooner the movie got into profit, and the sooner the Elvis team saw dollars in the bank. This resulted in production values being cut to the bone, as various camera shots were dropped, and songs were recorded in single take wherever possible. The exciting locations settings of the earlier movies were replaced by cheaper studio sets, which offered none of the glamour or visual excitement.

Elvis plays a tank crewman who likes to sing...

As time went on, Parker became more blatant about cutting costs, hiring producers who were notorious for shooting extreme low-budget movies. The plots became nothing more than an excuse to limp from one Elvis song to the next, and all attempts at characterization and meaning were abandoned. Movie production became an exercise of bringing another poor product to market as quickly as possible to make money fast.

Worse still for the King of Rock ‘n Roll, the quality of the music declined sharply, too. Parker wanted Elvis to only record songs published by the music publishing companies under their control, so that they could get a cut of the earnings. This meant passing on many great songs by composers associated with other publishers, and instead using whatever trashy songs were available internally. As a result, other singers achieved major chart hits with songs that Elvis could have recorded, while the songs from the Elvis movies barely troubled the attention of the chart makers.

The strategy was obviously a very short-sighted one, and as the 60s progessed, Elvis’s reputation within Hollywood circles declined steadily. Nevertheless, the Elvis name still did the trick of pulling in the audiences, and Elvis became the highest-paid entertainer in Hollywood. Elvis himself became more and more disenchanted with the kind of movies they were making, and was disappointed that no-one would give him a chance as a serious actor. But if he protested too loudly, Parker pointed out that Elvis’s extravagant lifestyle demanded a very high income that only these movies could provide.

As he would sing some years later, Elvis was ‘caught in a trap.’ He found himself in the puzzling position of being both free and wealthy, yet also enslaved by a punishing schedule that he could not escape from. Each year, he was required to deliver no fewer than three films, four singles and three albums. From 1962 to 1968, the career of the superstar degenerated into a blur of movies that are best forgotten, accompanied by musical releases that are equally unmemorable.

While his own career drifted sideways, Elvis was interested to watch the rise of the Beatles and other British acts as they stormed America. They were clearly a threat to his own reign, especially as they were releasing a storm of strong songs and innovative singles while he churned out more of the same. Even so, when the Beatles toured America, he was intrigued enough to arrange a meeting with them at his Los Angeles home.

Despite the Beatles ascendancy, it was clear who was at the top of the food chain, with the Beatles pretty much coming to worship the King, the man who had inspired them to play rock ‘n roll in the first place. Nervous about meeting their hero, the boys had helped themselves to some marijuana during the drive over, and so were not quite themselves when they arrived. The meeting was a little awkward at first, until John Lennon and Paul McCartney picked up guitars and started playing the Elvis songs they had belted out during their early days in Liverpool and Hamburg. They left on friendly terms, and another meeting was planned, but somehow this never happened.

Chapter 8 - Wedding Bells at Graceland

While all this was happening, Elvis had a secret that Parker had remarkably managed to keep concealed from the press for many years. Priscilla, the teenager he had met in Germany, had been living at Graceland since 1962 - effectively being groomed to become Elvis’s wife. It is likely that they would have married sooner, but Parker was worried about how the millions of Elvis fans would react to losing the world’s most eligible bachelor.

Instead, Priscilla lived a reclusive life at Graceland, spending a lot of time with Elvis, and sharing his life in a more intimate way than anyone else. Yet even as she grew older, Elvis was adamant that they should not sleep together until they were married. Instead, she said she found ‘other ways to satisfy him.’ Considering how much press attention was focused on Elvis, it is amazing that Parker managed to keep her name out of the newspapers. After all, this was exactly the kind of story that the media was crying out for. But for five years, Priscilla lived at Graceland without so much as a whisper creeping out to the press.

But by 1967, Priscilla’s father was applying a good deal of pressure for the situation to be resolved in a satisfactory way. He wanted to know exactly what Elvis’s intentions were with regard to his daughter, and pressed for Elvis to make a commitment. And so the wedding could not be postponed any longer, and Elvis married Priscilla in May 1967 in Las Vegas. The ceremony was a very low-key affair, with just a few close friends attending, and it was all over in eight minutes.

Elvis marries Priscilla in Las Vegas

‘We decided to get married six months ago,’ Elvis said. ‘Priscilla was one of the few girls who was interested in me for me alone. We never discussed marriage in Germany, we just met at her father’s house, went to the movies and did a lot of driving. I waited for her to grow up.’

Nine months later, to the day, Priscilla gave birth to their one and only child, Lisa Marie. For a few years, the young family managed to be happy together, but Elvis’s commitments meant that he was spending more and more time away from home.

Elvis  somehow did manage to release a few classic songs during the mid 60s, including Can’t Help Falling in Love, Return To Sender, Devil in Disguise and Crying in the Chapel.’ In 1967 and 1968, things looked a little brighter when he released Big Boss Man, US Male, and the energetic classic Guitar Man. Unfortunately, these increasingly-rare events were usually followed by a movie that returned things to the mediocre status quo. Fans were frustrated to see glimpses of their hero, only to lose sight of him again in the next low-budget, low-quality movie.

As the income from his movies and soundtrack albums mounted up, Elvis became more and more adept at spending it. He bought a Beverly Hills mansion the week after his wedding, plus a stable of very expensive horses. His entourage of employees and hangers-on grew and grew, and he bought cars - especially Cadillacs and Lincolns - in the same way that most people buy groceries. Often he would give these away on a whim to friends or acquaintance - and on at least one memorable occasion - to a passer by in the street. It has been estimated that Elvis bought over 100 Cadillacs during his lifetime, most of these being given away as gifts. He also bought many other expensive cars, including a Rolls Royce, and two private aeroplanes.

Elvis bought his mother a pink Cadillac

At one time, in the mid 60s Elvis treated himself to a luxury gold-plated Cadillac, heavily customized with expensive extras. The cost for this ended up being over $100,000 - an astronomical sum for a car at that time. When RCA could not persuade Elvis to go on tour to support an album, they asked if they could take the car on a promotional tour instead. This was a huge success, and generated a great deal of publicity - even impressing the Beatles, who contemplated a similar plan themselves. On one occasion, an attractive young lady offered to have sex with one of the car’s attendants, in return for a chance to sit in the driver’s seat where Elvis himself had sat.

But by 1968, the income generated by the movie franchises started to falter. The public had seen enough cheesy movies with the same bad storyline, and had heard enough lamentable soundtrack albums. Elvis was increasingly disenchanted with the way his career was going, and was looking for a way out. At the same time, some of his most influential friends managed to persuade him that he was wasting his talents. They convinced him that he was still a musical superstar underneath the trashy movie facade.

It was clear to everyone that something extraordinary was need to reignite Elvis’s career, put him back in the spotlight and - most important of all - put some serious cash in the bank. The solution was the TV show which has become known as the 68 Comeback Special.

Parker’s original idea was to have Elvis sing some Christmas carols against a suitably festive background. This would be cheap to produce, and an easy way to bank half a million dollars for not much work. Fortunately, the Colonel did not get his way on this occasion. The TV management behind the program saw this as an opportunity to showcase the real Elvis, the rock star who had transformed the entire music industry. Producer Steve Binder suggested a mix of production numbers that presented Elvis in his true light as a real musical force. But he also had another idea that was to take the show to another level. He had seen Elvis in his dressing room jamming with his associates, and realized that this was where the real Elvis was to be found - playing the music he loved in a casual setting. He suggested a live, informal performance in front of a small studio audience, allowing Elvis and his band to jam their way through some of their favorite songs.

Elvis made a spectacular comeback in 1968

Despite Parker’s misgivings, Elvis jumped at the idea. Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana were rescued from obscurity to play along with Elvis and some other musicians. The jam sessions were a great success - and so was the show. Elvis appeared in a black leather suit designed especially for the occasion, and wowed audiences around the world. No less than 42 per cent of the US TV audience tuned in to watch - and that in a time when TV audiences were massive. Even the critics were impressed, especially critic Jon Landau, who reflected the views of millions when he said: ’there is something special about watching a man who has lost himself find his way back home.’

Elvis was re-energized by the success of the program, and keen to get into the studio to record a ‘real’ album as quickly as possible. From Elvis in Memphis was recorded not in Nashville as usual, but in a new studio in Memphis. This allowed Elvis to introduce more of his home town influences into the music, and a new, larger sound that was to define everything he did musically from that point forward. The album was a success, staying on the Billboard charts for 24 weeks and hitting number one in the UK. The single Suspicious Minds from the album became his first No.1 record since 1962, while In The Ghetto was also a huge hit. Elvis began to see a new career opening up - one where the music was the focus, and not just an afterthought.

Chapter 9 - Winning in Las Vegas

While Elvis dreamed of making a comeback on stage, Colonel Parker had an agenda of his own. He did very well out of his management of Elvis Presley, racking up personal earnings of around $100 million in his lifetime. Unfortunately, though, he was also an inveterate gambler, and most of his earnings disappeared into Las Vegas casinos. In 1969, he was heavily in debt to at least one of these casinos, and it is likely that this situation was responsible for triggering the final phase of Elvis’s career. The only way he could cancel his debts was by promising to bring his ‘boy’ to Sin City. Soon a deal was done for Elvis to appear at the new International Hotel. Originally, Elvis was booked to play on the night that the new hotel opened, but Parker was very wary of problems that might arise in an untried auditorium. In this case, his intuition proved correct. Barbra Streisand played the first night instead, and the show was plagued with sound problems. But these were soon ironed out, and the stage was set - literally - for Elvis to make a a comeback such as no-one had accomplished before.

It was nearly nine years since Elvis had last made an appearance before a large live audience, and he wanted to make an impression. He followed through with his new, larger sound, requiring the accompaniment of a whole host of musicians - including a 35-piece orchestra. On 31 July 1969, Elvis walked on stage and launched straight into Blue Suede Shoes - sending the audience into a frenzy that sounded like 1957 all over again.

The show mixed a whole range of Elvis classics from across his career with other songs by contemporary songwriters. When he ended the show with What’d I Say?’ the crowd gave him a standing ovation - not the first one of the evening. The show proved to be a financial success, too. The manager of the International hotel sat down with Colonel Parker after the show in one of the cafes at the hotel. They negotiated a deal for Elvis to make two month-long appearances at the hotel every year, in return for a fee of one million dollars a year. Parker famously wrote the terms of the deal on the tablecloth, and the manager signed the tablecloth to seal the deal. One million dollars a year was a huge sum then, even for a star like Elvis. But the hotel managers got the result they wanted. During Elvis’s subsequent appearances, turnover at the hotel doubled...making the hotel rather more than $1 million a year in extra profit.

Elvis was back at the end of January 1970 to start his second month-long stint at the hotel. He not only had new songs to perform, but a whole new look, too - one that was to define this last phase of his life, and shape the way the world would remember him. Elvis believed that as an entertainer, he had a duty to look special when he arrived on stage. He was not impressed by the rock bands of the day who strolled on stage in jeans and T-shirts. He wanted to put on a show - and that meant looking like a superstar.

Elvis brought a whole new look to Las Vegas

To the delight of the audience, Elvis made his first appearance wearing a white jumpsuit...but this was no ordinary jumpsuit. Featuring a tight waist and belled legs, the costume was open almost to his waist, revealing a manly chest that drove the women in the audience wild as usual. The collar was studded with jewels, and Elvis wore flashy rings on his fingers. To top it all, he wore a gold and pearl-colored karate belt. If anybody had any doubts, this outfit put them all to rest.

The King was back...and he was back in style.

Parker was not slow to capitalize on all the commercial possibilities. Apart from releases of live recordings, Parker also arranged that anyone in the hotel who ordered room service also received a catalog of Elvis records. No opportunity remained unexploited. Of course, Parker was not satisfied with the earnings from just two months of appearances, so he started arranging for Elvis to go on tour in between the Las Vegas engagements.

For the next few yeas, Elvis toured America relentlessly, traveling to cities across the US, and impressing the crowds with new jumpsuits, new songs and new presentations. Elvis was interested in the idea of touring in Europe, where he had a huge fan base. But Parker discouraged the idea, knowing that he himself could not risk travelling overseas due to his shaky citizenship, and being unwillingly to let his star too far out of his sight. The offers from European promoters kept coming in, but Parker demanded ridiculous sums, running into millions of dollars. As a result, Elvis never travelled outside the US again.

Elvis enjoyed this renewal in his popularity, and for the next few years, he revelled in being the King of Rock ‘n Roll once more. The new Elvis show completely redefined the concept of Las Vegas shows, and provided the foundation for the generation of lavish shows that was to follow.

In the first few years, Elvis looked fit and healthy, basking in the glow of this latest phase of his success. But the punishing touring and performing cycle had its downside. The long hours, the constant travelling and the late-night partying at Las Vegas began to take its toll in many different ways.

Priscilla and the wives of the rest of Elvis’s entourage were not allowed to join the boys on tour. This was supposedly to protect them from the rigors of the road, but for the males involved, the arrangement had definite advantages. While Priscilla waited hopefully at home, Elvis was found himself in a situation where countless attractive women were literally throwing themselves at him every day. A film-maker recording one of Elvis’s shows noted:

‘I saw a woman run down the aisle at full speed and launch herself like an Evel Kneivel motorcycle. From four rows back, she took a leap, sailed through the air and landed with a splat, skidding across the stage. Elvis saw her coming and side-stepped her, and she slid right into the drums.’

This was certainly not an unusual occurrence. Women would routinely throw their underwear at him on stage, or would throw their hotel keys at him, hoping we would make use of them later. This must have reminded him of the early days in the 50s, when his fans sometimes found his Cadillac in the parking lot and wrote their phone numbers on it in lipstick, or scratched them into the paintwork with nail files.

Elvis may have been raised a good Christian boy, and he may have been a happily-married man in the late 60s. But the temptation to stray was intense to say the least, and Elvis soon began to take advantage of the banquet of female flesh that came his way. Although Priscilla never knew for sure what happened while he was away, she was well aware that her husband was slipping away from her, and their marriage began to fade steadily. In 1972, Priscilla moved out of Graceland, and she filed for divorce a few months later. Yet when their divorce was finalized the next year, the couple held hands during the courtroom proceedings. Priscilla started a new life with her karate teacher, while Elvis partied on with the various women that came into his life on a daily basis.

As time went by, Elvis’s shows became grander and more showman-like. Each performance began with Also Sprach Zarathustra, the music from the film 2001 - A Space Odyssey, setting the scene for the drama that was to follow. The jumpsuits became more lavish and exotic as time went on, often accompanied by capes that reach beyond his knees. Eventually, though, the capes had to go, as enthusiastic audience members would tug at the hem of the cape, threatening to pull Elvis off the stage.

As the costumes became more elaborate, they became much heavier. The jewels and embellishments were generally real gems and stones, with the result that a single suit could weigh over 30 pounds. Moving around on the stage with such heavy gear was draining physically, especially in the energetic act that Elvis put on for his fans.

His performance often included a demonstration of Elvis’s karate moves. He had been interested in martial arts for many years, and regularly trained with his bodyguards, the Memphis Mafia. He attained a black belt in karate, although it is not entirely clear how genuine an accomplishment this was. He would often kick and punch his way across the stage, inevitably attracting more screams from the women in the audience.

Elvis would regularly throw items such as towels he had used into the audience, where they were snapped up ravenously by souvenir hunters. His friend and rhythm guitarist, Charlie Hodge, had the job of continually supplying Elvis with fresh towels to use, discard and throw to the fans. Sometimes Elvis would take things one step further and throw his rings or other valuables into the crowd. There is no doubt that for the first few years at least, Elvis genuinely enjoyed his performances.

‘A live concert to me is exciting because of all the electricity that is generated in the crowd and on stage. It’s my favorite part of the business - live concerts.’

Once the concert was over, Elvis rarely performed an encore. His main concern was to get away from the hotel before the fans could overwhelm his security guards backstage. So as the final chords of the closing music, See See Rider, rang out around the auditorium, Elvis was rushed to his limo and whisked out of harm’s way. But getting Elvis away was not enough...the audience had to know that he had gone, and that there was no hero to mob backstage. And so the M.C. would end the evening by making the announcement that has passed into legend...

‘Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has left the building.’

Chapter 10 - Facing The Final Curtain

The end of Elvis’s marriage was significant in ways that were not apparent at the time. With his mother dead, Priscilla was now the only person who had any influence over Elvis and his habits. After all, who would dare to tell the King what he could and could not do? Certainly not his friends, his family, or even Colonel Parker. The Memphis Mafia were always close to Elvis, but over the years he had loaned many of them money to buy houses and cars. On one occasion, he had bought them all motorcycles, just so that they could all go riding together. None of them wanted to risk losing their jobs and having the loans called in.

While they were still married, Priscilla was able to exert some influence over his lifestyle. She had been aware that he was using drugs of various sorts to stay awake and lively during his performances, and to make it possible to party all night long in Las Vegas. For years, she nagged and cajoled him into at least managing his use of drugs to a sensible level. But when Priscilla moved out of his home and his life, there was no-one left to force him to toe the line. One of Elvis’s cousins said:

‘Elvis changed a lot after he was married, and after Lisa was born. But I think he changed the most after the divorce.’

Elvis acquired a new long-term girlfriend in Linda Thompson, and she was astonished to see his bedside table full of bottles of prescription pills and potions of various sorts. And with unlimited funds to buy what he wanted, he was able to get any drugs he wanted. Just like Michael Jackson some 30 years later, he found a tame doctor - Doctor Nick - who provided whatever drugs his famous and generous patient demanded.

Elvis became a sad caricature of his former self

From the end of 1973 onwards, Elvis began to slip downhill rapidly. His use of drugs escalated, and became uncontrolled. The drugs made him miserable, and the more miserable he became, the more he turned to other drugs for solutions.

To make matters worse, Parker was now once again heavily in debt to the Las Vegas casinos, having taken to gambling huge sums there to while away the time while Elvis performed. To get himself out of this mess, he sold all the rights to Elvis’s back catalog to RCA - a move that would financially cripple the Elvis estate in years to come. For a paltry $5.5 million, he persuaded Elvis to sign over the rights to a catalog that would be worth hundreds of millions of dollars in the future. In better times, it is likely that Elvis would have refused to sign such a disadvantageous contract, but with his sanity deteriorating around him, he was easy prey to Parker’s maneuvers.

Elvis was now losing interest in the Las Vegas shows and in the constant touring. But despite the millions he had earned in his career, he now needed the money to finance his lifestyle. He was stuck on a merry-go-round and there was no way to get off. As he began to spiral downwards, his behaviour became more erratic.

Over the years, Elvis had received many death threats, so he had bought a gun for his own protection. Now he carried this gun wherever he went, loaded and ready for action. His daughter, Lisa Marie, later recalled one incident that occurred when she was a young child. She was sitting alongside her father on a sofa, watching TV while they ate their breakfasts off a tray. A singer that Elvis didn’t like appeared on the program, so Elvis pulled out his gun, and fired at the TV. The TV exploded, and Elvis put away his gun and continued with his breakfast.

Elvis with beauty queen Linda Thompson

On another occasion, he offered to take his girlfriend Linda out for a drive. They got in one of Elvis’s Cadillacs, but it wouldn’t start. Elvis asked Linda to step out of the car, and did so himself. He fired five shots into the bodywork, then got back into the car and tried the engine again. It started, and they drove off as if nothing had happened. On another day, Elvis was in a studio recording, but was unhappy with the quality of the sound. He had to be restrained from destroying the speakers with a shotgun.

On another memorable day, Elvis sent the Memphis Mafia into town to buy up all the photographic flash bulbs in the city. These were then dumped in the swimming pool, and Elvis and his cronies spent the next three days shooting the flashbulbs one by one. It took two days to clean the glass out of the pool afterwards.

Although Elvis’s use of drugs was escalating in the 1970s, he was was certainly no stranger to using illicit drugs to solve his problems. In fact, he may have started taking amphetamines when he was in the army. By the 1960s, he was habitually using uppers and diet pills to control his moods and his weight, and to get through his demanding schedules. In 1973, things took a more serious turn when Elvis started using narcotics such as Dilaudid and Demerol. As the drugs became more extreme, the effect on his live performances became noticeable for the first time.

The effects were exaggerated because Elvis was also being treated for a whole host of medical problems. He was taking regular medication for back pain, stomach problems and eye diseases. He ended up being hospitalized for these various conditions, as well as for throat problem and high blood pressure. During these hospital stays, he would often try to detox himself, but he always ended up back on the drug train a few days later. He didn’t have the will power to control his habits, and there was no-one else who dared to challenge him.

Elvis with his last girlfriend, Ginger Alden

Linda was soon unable to cope with the situation any longer, and she left Elvis after four years as his companion She was soon replaced by Ginger Alden, who remained his girlfriend to the end. Elvis asked Ginger to marry him early in 1977, and they hoped to marry the following year. However, Ginger did not have enough influence to stop Elvis sliding into further drug-driven despair.

Elvis’s father, Vernon, was naturally very concerned to see his son’s health take such a turn for the worse, and Parker was also very worried. So the pair hired a private investigator to find out who was supplying Elvis with these extreme drugs. Even though the investigation succeeded in cutting off this supply line, it didn’t do much good. With plenty of money to splash around, Elvis soon found other doctors to supply the drugs he wanted.

As if he didn’t have enough health issues already, Elvis was also plagued by obesity problems. Having been brought up in the South, Elvis was used to fat-heavy fried food meals, and he was not inclined to change his diet to a healthy one. During the early 70s, he found it increasingly difficult to keep his weight down, and went he went on stage, the bulges in his rhinestone suit became obvious.

Despite his worsening health, Elvis continued to tour. On 26 June 1977, he set off for what would become his final live performance in Indianapolis. He arrived in a very unhealthy state, and had to be taken directly to his hotel for a rest. Before the show commenced, RCA presented him with a plaque to commemorate the pressing of the two billionth Elvis record. The concert was a success, but Elvis returned home to Graceland feeling sick and unwell.

Back at home, he planned to have some time to recuperate, and to spend time with Ginger and Lisa Marie. Elvis had recently arranged for Lisa Marie to spend more time with him, making up for the times they had been apart, and with hopes of building a stronger relationship in the future. Unfortunately, it was not to be.

Chapter 10 - The King is Dead

On 16 August 1977 at Graceland, Elvis had been up for most of the night, as usual. He finally went to bed at 6.00am, taking eight sleeping pills of different brands in a random mixture. However, he was still not able to sleep, so he called Dr. Nick’s office to see if there was any other medication they could send over to him. He spoke to a nurse in he office, almost certainly the last person he spoke to in his life.

Ginger awoke at 2.00pm  to find that Elvis was not in bed with her, as he normally would be at that time of day. When Elvis didn’t return to bed after a few minutes, she got up to check on him. She found him slumped on the floor of the bathroom floor, and immediately called for help. An ambulance rushed him to the Baptist Memorial Hospital, where doctors attempted frantically to revive him. But it was too late, and at 3.30pm, he was pronounced dead.

It was an ignominious end for a King. Elvis had been sitting on the toilet, but had then fallen off, crashing to the floor in a pool of his own vomit. The official cause of death was "cardiac arrhythmia," but in reality this was a fudge to cover the real cause of death - a lethal cocktail of drugs that no sane doctor would ever prescribe in such doses. They included:

●       morphine

●       Demerol

●       Chloropheniramine

●       Placidyl and Vailum

●       codeine

●       sleeping pills

●       Quaaludes

●       barbituates

Some sources say that the following drugs were also found in his system:

●       Diazepam

●       Amytal

●       Nembutal

●       Carbrital

●       Sinutab

●       Elavil

●       Avental

●       Valmid

Whatever the combination, it was a cocktail that was almost certain to kill. Elvis had been flirting with death for a long time, taking potentially lethal combinations of whatever drugs he currently had in his private store. Who knows how many times he came close to death, but somehow survived. This time, however, his luck had run out. He had finally checked out of Heartbreak Hotel for good.

***

Most people who were adults in 1977 remember the moment when they heard that Elvis had died, in the same way that people remember exactly what they were doing when Kennedy was assassinated, when John Lennon was murdered, or when Princess Diana was killed. The man who represented a whole generation through his music was gone for ever.

The news of his death was suppressed until his father had been informed, but after that it could be contained no longer. At first, local reporters were suspicious about the story, as many false rumours had emanated from Graceland over the years. But when the reality sunk in, the news traveled fast - spreading around the world and stopping people in their tracks everywhere. Before long, thousands of people gathered outside Graceland, holding a silent vigil for the star they had idolized. Many thousands shed tears for a man they had never met, but who had been part of their lives for twenty years.

Elvis makes his final journey at Graceland

The next day, the King’s body was put on display in Graceland, and over 20,000 people took the opportunity to file past his coffin. Sheriff deputies and Air National Guard sentries stood in the driveway as an honor guard, and family and friends came to pay their respects privately. On 18 August, a private funeral was held at Graceland, amongst some 3000 floral tributes sent by well wishers worldwide. Afterwards, a motorcade of 17 white limos escorted the casket along the route to Forest Hills Cemetery, where his body was buried. By this time, every florist in Memphis wascompletely out of stock, and flowers had to be shipped in from other states.

Elvis was gone, but his career was by no means over. In fact, his death signalled a massive rise in the sale of Elvis-related products, from music to merchandising. Colonel Parker was quick to see the opportunity, and within 24 hours of Elvis being pronounced dead, he had signed a new deal for the marketing of all kinds of Elvis paraphernalia, pulling in $150,000 up front. But he was no longer content with taking a mere 25% - on this deal, Parker took 50%, with the remainder going to the Presley estate.

RCA were also quick to catch on, and within days, the shops were full of just about every record Elvis had ever recorded. No fewer than 14 Elvis songs hit the charts for the second time around, with Way Down reaching number one - representing Elvis’s first number one single for seven years.

Despite this fresh source of income, Elvis had not left his estate in very good shape financially. Although his income had been huge over the years, a hefty chunk of this had been taken by Parker in contracts that often took up to 50% of the proceeds of whatever came in. The sale of his back catalog had deprived his estate of royalty income, and his expensive lifestyle had drained a good deal of the rest.

Elvis’s father, Vernon, served as the executor of the estate, but when he died two years later, ex-wife Priscilla became the executor, as Elvis’s only heir - Lisa Marie - was still only 11 years old. If Priscilla was expecting to find an estate worth millions of dollars, she was to be disappointed. Only $1 million remained out of the vast fortune that Elvis had accrued in his lifetime, and even that was already ear-marked. Graceland cost $500,000 a year to run, and taxes and other costs were eating up another half million dollars. Initially, it seemed as if the only two options were to sell the property or face bankruptcy.

Fans hold a candlelit vigil at Graceland

However, Priscilla had other ideas, and decided to open Graceland to the public. In June 1982, Elvis’ home opened its doors for the first time, and within a month enough money had been earned to repay the initial investment. Priscilla remained the chairwoman and president of Elvis Presley enterprises - the company that controlled Graceland - until Lisa Marie reached the age of 21. Today, Graceland receives over 600,000 visitors a year, making it the third biggest tourist attraction in the United States. By the time Lisa Marie inherited the business, it was worth over $100 million.

A week after Elvis’s funeral, four people attempted to steal Elvis’s body. As a precaution, the body was removed and buried in an area of Graceland which is now known as Meditation Garden. Today, Elvis rests there along the with remains of his mother, father. and grandmother.

Every year on the anniversary of his death, fans meet outside Graceland for a candlelit vigil, gathring round the gates. They stand for hours, listening to Elvis music and swapping stories. Then at 11.00pm, the gates are opened, and the group is led up the drive by employees carrying a torch - lit from the eternal flame at Elvis’s graveside. the procession of fans file past the grave site, with each person carrying a candle. It often takes many hours for the whole procession to walk past the grave.

Chapter 11 - The Legend Lives On

For some time after Elvis’s death, not too many questions were asked about how he died. The results of the autopsy were accepted, and his passing was seen as little more than a tragic accident. This changed in 1979 when journalist Geraldo Rivera started investigating further, producing a TV news report called The Elvis Cover-Up. However, it proved to be impossible to get hold of a copy of the autopsy, despite a long legal battle. Nevertheless, this activity brought Elvis’s death under closer scrutiny than ever before.

Eventually, Dr Nick - real name Dr. George Nichopoulos, was required to present himself before the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners. He was accused of several charges of over-prescribing drugs. Most extraordinary, however, were the revelations about his relationship with Elvis, and the quantity of drugs prescribed. It turned out that Elvis had been prescribed over 12,000 pills and drugs in less than two years, and that on several occasions he had to be taken to hospital because his entire body was swollen through drug abuse. Even more amazingly, Elvis carried three suitcases full of drugs wherever he went on tour, to supply both his personal needs, and those of his entourage.

In 1995, Dr Nick’s license was finally and permanently revoked.

There is little doubt that Colonel Parker had intended to rake in another fortune after Elvis’s death, but this dream was brought to a quick conclusion when the Presley estate took him to court. Having examined the contracts that Parker had drawn up - especially in recent years when Elvis was too drug-addled to know what he was doing - the executors of the estate felt that Parker had mismanaged his client’s career to an extreme degree. They sued for redress. At this point, Parker revealed for the first time that he was not actually Tom Parker, or even a US citizen, but actually an illegal immigrant from Europe. His contention was this made him stateless, and therefore immune from prosecution.

Eventually, the matter was settled out of court, with all rights to the Elvis name and likeness reverting to his estate.

***

Even decades after his death, Elvis continues to make headlines. In 1988, he was one of the first people to be inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame, and was credited with having ‘launched the rock and roll revolution with his commanding voice and charismatic stage presence.’

But that’s not all. Since 1977, there have been persistent ‘Elvis is alive’ rumors that have spread on many different occasions, encouraged by the tabloid press who know that any Elvis story is good for ratings and circulation. Elvis has apparently been spotted everywhere from trailer parks and fast-food restaurants to the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. While the stories have diminished gradually over the years, they still surface from time to time...and probably will for many years to come.

In one sense, however, Elvis is definitely still alive and performing on stages across the world. Elvis impersonators abound, and remain as popular as they were in 1977. The are even female Elvis impersonators, Asian ones and African-American ones. It has been estimated that there may be as many as 250,000 Elvis impersonators worldwide.

The Elvis stamp was a huge success

In 1992, the American public was invited to vote on their preference for the design of an Elvis stamp. They were given the option to vote for the young rock ‘n roll Elvis, or for the later Vegas Elvis. The younger Elvis won. In the year that the stamp was issue, the United States Postal Service posted a record profit of $31 million. The Elvis stamp is still the most popular stamp ever released.

These oddities and peculiarities aside, Elvis the singer and musician lives in through his extraordinary influence on music today. It is fair to say that no other single person in modern history has had such a major impact on the way that music has developed. Other major influencers, such as the Beatles and Buddy Holly, all acknowledged that without Elvis, music would be very different. john Lennon once said: ‘before Elvis, there was nothing.’ While Elvis didn’t invent rock ‘n roll, he gave it a public face and single-handedly turned it into a force that transformed a generation.

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis may be gone...but he has not left the building. His legacy lives on for us all to experience and enjoy for many years to come.

Table of Contents

John Lennon - The Music, The Magic & The Murder

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - The Birth of a Legend

Chapter 2 - Growing Up in Liverpool

Chapter 3 - The Birth of The Beatles

Chapter 4 - The Road To Hamburg

Chapter 5 - On Track For Success

Chapter 6 - Conquering America

Chapter 7 - John Meets Yoko

Chapter 8 - Beyond The Beatles

Chapter 9 - John’s Lost Weekend

Chapter 10 - A New Beginning and a Tragic End

Michael Jackson...Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll: The Truth About the Man Behind The Legend

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - A Star is Born

Chapter 2 - The Road To Success

Chapter 3 - On Track for Stardom

Chapter 4 - No Sex, Please...I’m Michael Jackson

Chapter 5 - The Thriller Phenomenon

Chapter 6 - Wacko Jacko Makes Another Fortune

Chapter 7 - The Accusations Start To Fly...

Chapter 8 - Michael On Trial

Chapter 9 - This is it For Michael

Chapter 10 - Long Live The King of Pop!

Elvis Exposed: The Amazing Life and Tragic Death of the King of Rock ‘n Roll

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - A Modest Beginning to an Extraordinary Life

Chapter 2 - The Road To Fame

Chapter 3 - The Colonel Takes Control

Chapter 4 - Shocking America

Chapter 5 - Taking on Hollywood

Chapter 6 - Private Presley Joins the Army

Chapter 7 - Rebuilding His Career

Chapter 8 - Wedding Bells at Graceland

Chapter 9 - Winning in Las Vegas

Chapter 10 - Facing The Final Curtain

Chapter 10 - The King is Dead

Chapter 11 - The Legend Lives On