My favorite Beatles books of 2025
December 29, 2025
I read a lot of books about the Beatles. I thought I’d write a bit about a few of my favorites that I read in 2025.
MY TOP 3
1. John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs (Ian Leslie)
This is not just my favorite Beatles book that I read in 2025, it’s my favorite that I’ve read in a long, long time. It ranks up there with Can’t Buy Me Love by Jonathan Gould, Dreaming the Beatles by Rob Sheffield, and Tune In by Mark Lewisohn. When I read a book about the Beatles, I want it to give me a new way of looking at the band and their music. Ian Leslie’s book absolutely does that, focusing entirely on Lennon and McCartney’s relationship, both musically and personally. I would not say it presents a wealth of new information (for someone who has read a ton of books on the band), but it puts their relationship in a new light, allowing the reader to see the two men from a different perspective. This is a must read.
2. The McCartney Legacy, Vol. 2: 1974-1980 (Allan Kozinn and Adrian Sinclair)
I read Volume 1 last year and loved it. I loved Volume 2 just as much. Because of the length (700+ pages), I read Volume 2 in chunks - read several hundred pages, took a couple months off, picked it back up, etc. I am so glad Kozinn and Sinclair have undertaken this project. It is the most in-depth, well-researched, comprehensive look at McCartney’s career that is available. When there are so many books of this type on the Beatles, it feels long overdue for this kind of study of McCartney’s post-Beatles life and career. It can at times get bogged down in details, but that’s also the point of the book: to present as much information as possible on every aspect of McCartney’s life in the 1970s. I am already looking forward to the next volume.
3. Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run (Paul McCartney)
This book is pure fun. It’s an oral history of Wings with each member getting a chance to tell part of the story. It uses archival and brand new interviews (when possible) to discuss each album and tour. It is not, however, a balanced and entirely honest look at the band. McCartney curated the book to be the story he wanted to tell. For all the brutal details, read Kozinn and Sinclair. For a quick overview of Wings with a positive spin, this is a really fun and easy read.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
George Harrison: Behind the Locked Door (Graeme Thomson)
I haven’t read a George-specific book in a while, so I was excited to dive into this one. (It was originally published in 2013 but I read a new edition for 2025.) This book is well-researched and generally well-written. It is not, however, an altogether pleasant read. I had the sense while reading the book that the author doesn’t particularly like George, which gives the book an odd tone. The author presents a generally negative view of Harrison and his work, at times making bizarre judgments on the quality of individual songs. I don’t know the author’s credentials, but his assessment that All Things Must Pass would have been stronger if Harrison had left off “Let It Down” and “I’d Have You Anytime” is enough for me to question his authority. But if you want a well-researched look at George’s life and career, this book will do it.
Let Me Take You Down: Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields Forever (Jonathan Cott)
This was a short, enjoyable read. I had recently read James Campion’s Take a Sad Song, a fantastic book entirely about the song “Hey Jude” and its emotional impact, so I was excited to read a book that focused on only two songs (and two of my favorites). Ultimately, this book is not as inspiring as Campion’s, but it’s a nice quick read.
Back to the Egg: The Story of Wings’ Last Album (Luca Perasi)
This book is self-published and would have benefitted from having an editor, but as far as information is concerned, this book is top-notch. It’s a detailed account of Wings’ last album, critically derided at the time, and often forgotten. Back to the Egg is one of my favorite Wings albums, though, and it’s very exciting to read such an in-depth account of it.
'Everything Fab Four Fest,' "Something About the Beatles' podcast, and more
December 6, 2025
A lot has happened since my last update!
At the beginning of November I attended the Everything Fab Four Fest in Asbury Park, NJ. The focus of the conference was the Beatles album Rubber Soul. It was three days of presentations about the album from some of the top Beatles scholars, authors, historians, and podcast hosts, plus live music every evening.
I gave a presentation on McCartney’s bass lines on the album. I made a short video of a section of my presentation where I analyzed the differences in the bass lines on Help vs. Rubber Soul. Watch that here.
New Bass Covers
I also recently posted bass covers of “Penny Lane” and “A Day in the Life.” Both are fantastic bass lines and it was really fun to learn them. Having covered “A Day in the Life,” I am now finished with the Sgt. Pepper album. I’ll move on to Magical Mystery Tour soon.
Penny Lane
A Day in the Life
Something About the Beatles
This week I was honored to be a guest on Something About the Beatles, the long-running podcast hosted by Robert Rodriguez. I’ve been a fan of Robert’s work for a long time so it was a thrill to get to talk to him. Joining us was fellow bassist Arion Salazar (Third Eye Blind, Fungo Mungo). The topic of the episode was, unsurprisingly, Paul McCartney’s bass playing, which is my favorite thing to talk about.Listen to the episode here or wherever you usually listen to podcasts.
Coming to Patreon
In the new year I will begin offering subscription content through Patreon. I’ll still be posting on YouTube and Instagram, but for the folks who want more, there will be transcription pdfs (tab and standard notation), isolated bass tracks, playalong tracks with the bass removed, lesson videos, analysis videos, and more fun things.
As a way of easing into the Patreon platform, I have posted some transcriptions for sale by album. Currently you can buy transcription pdfs of every bass line from Please Please Me, A Hard Day’s Night, Rubber Soul, Revolver, and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band for $20 per album.
I’ll be posting more in the coming weeks, so keep a look out.
Beatles Bass Lines on Patreon
Harder than I expected: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
November 3, 2025
New bass cover day! I’m inching closer to the finish line of the Sgt. Pepper album. Today’s cover is the 2nd to last song, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise).” This was harder than I expected! It’s clear McCartney had a general structure in mind for this bass line, but he was improvising within that structure. Improvised bass lines are often a little harder to replicate, because rhythmic patterns tend to change slightly every measure. Getting all of those little variations and embellishments is a challenge. Watch Sgt Pepper's on YouTube
In January I will begin offering subscription content through Patreon. I’ll still be posting on YouTube and Instagram, but for the folks who want more… there will be more! Perks for subscribers will include transcription pdfs (tab and standard notation), isolated bass tracks, playalong tracks with the bass removed, lesson videos, analysis videos, and more fun things. If there are specific things you’d like to see, please let me know! I’m in the process of figuring out what all to offer and I would appreciate any suggestions. Send them here.
In the meantime, as a way of easing into the Patreon platform, I have posted some transcriptions for sale by album. Currently you can buy transcription pdfs of every bass line from Rubber Soul, Revolver, and Please Please Me for $20 per album. I’ll be posting more in the coming weeks, so keep a look out for Beatles Bass Lines on Patreon.
A few days ago I posted a bass cover of “Nowhere Man.” I had made a video of this song earlier in the year, but my bass was slightly out of tune with the recording (as was kindly noted by some viewers, and not so kindly by others). So this was a “redo.” It’s still a fun bass line to play! And still very challenging. Watch Nowhere Man on YouTube.
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I’ll be traveling to Asbury Park, New Jersey in a few days for the Everything Fab 4 Fest: Rubber Soul. That’s right - a whole conference dedicated to Rubber Soul! I’m giving a presentation on McCartney’s bass lines on the album. (Which is also a reason I was revisiting “Nowhere Man.”) Rubber Soul is not my favorite bass album, but it was definitely a turning point for McCartney and marked the beginning of his “mature” style of melodic bass lines.
Learn about Everything Fab 4 Fest
-Rob