Living The Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans

Antonio G. Pereira  ©  2024  Antonio G. Pereira

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        Mal Evans was Road Manager and a close associate of The Beatles (and along with Neil Aspinall and Derek Taylor), privy to everything that went on around them, through the years of touring and live concerts, and after, when the band's focus was in the studio and advanced recording techniques; and finally the creation and demise of Apple Records and the final dissolution of The Beatles.

        During all of this Mal Evans kept a diary, that along with additional research by author Kenneth Womack, has been turned into this book. Mal Evans had started on an autobiography (with encouragement by the ex-Beatles and Neil Aspinall), and negotiations for it's publication, before he died. 

        Kenneth Womack's biography of Mal Evans is fascinating to read. For someone who remembers Mal Evans from film clips and books about the Beatles, his life story is told here in detail; and it is quite a revelation. https://www.amazon.com/Living-Beatles-Legend-Untold-Story.dp/0063248522  

        Malcolm Frederick Evans was born in Liverpool in 1935, the first of four children (he had three younger sisters) to a pretty well-to-do family. His father was a clerk who worked at the Liverpool Docks. Mal's first job was as a Telecommunications Engineer for the GPO. Having made friends with the Beatles in the Cavern before they became famous, he became a part time bouncer at the Cavern to earn extra cash for expenses of his wife and baby son Gary. Around this same period, Brian Epstein became manager of the Beatles and invited Mal to come work for Nems (his family's company), as The Beatles bodyguard. He soon made friends with Neil Aspinall, who drove the Beatles to their gigs in Liverpool and handled their equipment. Over time, as the Beatles career through Epstein's management of them, began to take off into enormous popularity in the U.K. and hit records after signing with EMI Parlophone and producer George Martin, Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall's jobs shifted; as Neil (who had studied in accountancy) began handling some of the business workload, and Mal took over as Road and Equipment manager of the Beatles transportation to gigs and instruments etc. By the time the Beatles debuted on Ed Sullivan in 1964 in the United States, after having gained tremendous popularity in England and the rest of Europe, everything was put into place like a well oiled machine; with the addition of Derek Taylor as Press Officer, later on in that year. The coverage of what went on during the touring years (especially behind the scenes), is very intricate and page turning material; keeping your interest in leaps and bounds, as the Beatles shooting star goes higher and higher. It takes a toll on Mal Evan's family life, as he tries to balance his time with them while working for the Beatles, but due to the demands he cannot; as his relationship with his family begins to unravel and deteriorate. By the time Apple Records is created, Mal eventually ventures into production, as the band he discovered and brought to the newly formed Apple, The Iveys, become Badfinger and become very successful. But by the time Badfinger finally break through with their participation in 'The Magic Christian' film soundtrack and their first album 'No Dice', Apple is falling apart. Mal Evans ends up leaving his family in England and re-locating to Los Angeles during the 1970s; during the time unfortunately, when drugs (in particular cocaine) were rampant in the film and entertainment industry. Mal, while still working at production and now songwriting, falls into drug abuse and heavy drinking. Although still in contact with and individually working for each of the ex-Beatles in different capacities, his life begins to drift. (There's an interesting photograph in this book of Mal, Ringo and John with R&B singer/songwriter Bobby Womack. {In the May 1974 issue of Black Stars Magazine during the 1970s, there was a cover story about Bobby Womack, in which his encounter in Los Angeles with John and Ringo was discussed; as well as a separate article about singer/composer Ann Peebles, where John and Ringo were mentioned again. https://www.samepassage.org/black-stars-magazine/?  Far more curious, is whether Lennon (who made a specialty of singing his songs while in the Beatles) ever encountered R&B and Rock music singer/songwriter Larry Williams, while living in Los Angeles}. And apart from sporadic visits to England to visit his family and attempts at production on records by Badfinger (by now on their last legs) and a Keith Moon solo album that becomes a disaster, he slowly falls into a depression that culminates, after appearing in a David Frost 'Salute To The Beatles' in the U.K. and an appearance at the first Beatlefest in the U.S., and while working on his autobiography (which became this book) he has an altercation with the LAPD in which he is senselessly shot and killed. This book is an important addition to The Beatles Story because aside from it being a cautionary tale, (with the exception of Derek Taylor's two books, one {As Time Goes By} easily purchased, and the other {Fifty Years Adrift} only a rare collector's item, unless a major publisher decides to put it out again), and the fact that Neil Aspinall opted to never write a book, it is the only other one by a close associate.