Before the information explosion of the internet, Beatles fans depended on getting their Beatles-related news from Beatles fanzines – and this is one of the best Beatles fanzines ever! One of the best of those fanzines was run by a young guy in Boston named Joe Pope. He began a Beatles fanzine which created a lot of excitement for Beatles fans that were recovering from the shock of seeing their favorite group disband in 1970. Joe started his fanzine in the early 70’s and it helped soothe Beatles fans in the healing process of dealing with the group’s dissolution.

The magazine dealt with a combination of news of all their individual activities and stories about the old days when the group was conquering the world. The subscription price to the magazine was very reasonable but it was shipped via bulk mail to save costs and that would mean the occasional issue would either get lost in the mail or would arrive much later than expected. However, once received, it was a clear joy and a great experience to soak in all of the news. Joe’s writing style was not condescending and he had a wonderful sense of humor and was eager to share his joy and happiness and the Beatles information he was privy to and to pass it along to his subscribers.

Other Beatles Fanzines

Beatlefan

Other wonderful Beatles fanzines or magazines that I have looked forward to with similar affection over the years is the magnificent “Beatlefan” magazine run by editor, Bill King! In my personal opinion, it is now the single greatest Beatles print information source barring none. Bill always amazes everyone with his wealth of Beatles knowledge and the excellent staff of people who assist him with the creation of each informative and entertaining issue.

Beatles Monthly

Another was the magazine Beatles Monthly which officially ended after issue #77, but then had a renaissance when there was a resurgence of Beatles interest. It went on for many years and was able to finish with 321 regular Beatle Monthly issues. That is in addition to several special issues put out by the magazine. There was the Write Thing, a McCartney based magazine which I subscribed to which was a wonderful Paul McCartney news source, because of his productivity, he always gave his fans subject matter to discuss and the information pool was always plentiful. Currently one of my favorite Beatle print magazines is Octopus’ Garden. This is a wonderful magazine based in Massachusetts that is well worth subscribing to. You will not be disappointed.

Things

I love the German Beatles magazine called “Things” which is always packed with news about European audio/video releases and books that often are not available in the States.

Maccazine

My favorite McCartney-based magazine is one cleverly called “Maccazine” which is published in the Netherlands-truly the state of the art McCartney magazine or should I say-“book” as the issues are as large as books.

Good Day Sunshine

Another superb Beatles fanzine was produced about 40 miles away from me by fellow Nutmegger, Charles Rosenay, entitled “Good Day Sunshine”.

Instant Karma

I fondly remember the excellent John Lennon-based magazine entitled “Instant Karma” by Marsha Ewing.

Beatles Unlimited

Another excellent Beatles fanzine was the Dutch based “Beatles Unlimited” magazine, published in both Dutch and English, I have all of the English copies of this news-filled magazine of Beatles worldwide news which had one of the best Beatles book sections of any Beatles fanzine I have ever seen.

Beatlology

One more that needs to be mentioned here is Beatlology, which is another magazine I have all of the issues to. My apologies are extended to those whose magazines did not receive a mention here today as I could have created a bible-sized list of worthy Beatles magazines that have appeared and that I have greatly enjoyed over the years.

Strawberry Fields Forever

Now on the subject at hand: Today’s post will feature photos of my complete collection of all 52 print/audio issues of Strawberry Fields Forever for you to view. Occasionaly I will present a comment or special memory I have of a particular issue. I know that there are several subscribers to this blog that also have the complete collection of the magazines. Congratulations!

Here is Issue #1 My memories of acquiring this issue is a bit hazy as it was an issue I had to back order after I received my first issue of my subscription. I was a completist even then:

Issue #1

Issue #2

Issue #3

Issue #4

Issue #5

Issue #6 Joe Pope was able to secure an interview with Yoko Ono at the Dakota and the contents of that interview are available in ine if the issues of Strawberry Fields Forver.

Issue #7

Issue #8

Issue #9

Issue #10

Issue #11 Joe’s comment at the bottom of the issue refers to the Harrison 74 tour of America. Receiving this notification, a close friend of mine Mike Mazzarella travelled to New York to go to Madison Square Garden to see the last 2 George Harrison shows in December of 74. We also had heard rumors that John Lennon was probably going to make a guest appearance and possibly even perform at one of the shows. However due to John’s reluctance to sign the Beatles dissolution agreement, George told him he was not welcome to perform. After the shows, John met up with George at a party at the Hippodrome in NYC along with May Pang!

Paul McCartney was in disguise at one of those shows with Linda and her brother, John Eastman.

Issue #12 was a collection of some of Joe’s favorite Beatles photographs:

Issue #13 One of my favorite issues of SFF but also one of the most depressing. Joe had told me over a phone conversation that it was highly probable that John was going to make a guest appearance at his Thanksgiving show in 74 at Madison Square Garden. That information was passed on to him to one of the most well-known Beatles/Lennon fans out there! Well due to family pressures of being made to feel guilty if I was not with my family on that special day, I decided not to go. It was the biggest regret in my “Beatles-related” life.

However, Joe Pope was there and gave a wondrous account from his front-row seats of the show which is available in this special issue. I regret not having been at this show very much as he was the only Beatle that I never got the chance to see and he was the Beatle that I had admired the most for several reasons which I will not go into on this post. However, they say whenever you hold anyone in a so-called hero status, you should never meet them personally as you might get very disappointed. That may be true, but I sure I would have liked to have the chance to find out….

Issue #14 in an apparent photo from the “Ram” era

Issue #15 advertising one of Joe’s Beatles conventions at the Bradford Hotel in Massachusetts. I also went to his first one in 74, also held at the Bradford, which is touted as the first Beatles convention though not the first one officially sanctioned one by the Beatles which Mark Lapidos created and organized. Joe’s first convention and Mark’s first convention were only several months apart if my memory serves me correctly.

From the September 26th, 1974 issue of Zoo World magazine, here is a piece that appeared about the first Bradford Hotel Joe Pope Beatles convention. One day, while browsing through the Zoo World magazine, I discovered a photograph of an old man dancing to a Beatles song that was being played in the lobby. It is the photograph on the right with street performer David Peel strumming along on his guitar. With a deeper inspection, this is when I discovered that I was also in the photo with my lifelong friend Mike Mazzarella, who is a musician. I was sitting next to the big round pole in the background and my buddy Mike was sitting on the step just below. On the foldout page of the magazine, you can see the Magical Mystery Tour staff, pictures of Joe at the auction lectern, pictures of David Peel, Murray the K, Apple promo man Pete Bennett, and Wayne Rogers who sold me both of my Butcher covers. A splendid time was had for all…

The elderly man doing his little dance along to the Beatles music he was listening to. I have often wondered if he ever saw the photograph of himself dancing away…..?

That’s me in 74 with the glasses on and clapping along in seeing the elderly man dance to the music of the Beatles in the Bradford Hotel lobby in Massachusetts. That was the site that Joe used to have his Beatles conventions. That is my lifelong friend, Mike Mazzarella sitting on the step on the right hand side of the photo.

Another Boston Beatles convention memory of which I am not particularly proud of is having too much to drink with Beatles first manager, Allan Williams. I never heard so many 4-letter words in my life, though I never heard any when I paid for the drinks. He did have a great sense of humor despite missing out on millions of dollars. His personality was such that he did not have the business niceties to succeed in the cutthroat worldwide music market. I also had a fascinating breakfast with Richard Dilello, the Apple house hippie in the Bradford Hotel restaurant. He shared some wonderful stories that were not in the book that I am not allowed to share…

One other interesting story about Joe Pope. Even at this early stage, Joe was aware that I loved to collect Beatles-related books. There was a controversial book written by onetime Paul McCartney 1968 girlfriend, Francie Schwarz when he split with Jane Asher called “Body Count.” I wanted to read it by I did not know where to find it. Joe said, “I’ll send you a copy, just don’t tell your mom, that you got it from me.” I laughed nervously as I knew exactly what he was referring to, having heard advance reports about the book. It shows you what a nice guy Joe really was!

Issue #16

Issue #17

Issue #18-THE FIRST AUDIO ISSUE

Joe borrowed the idea of having an occasional audio issue of the magazine from the original Beatles fan club. The audio issues featured rare recordings of the Beatles and contents appear near the bottom of this post!

Issue #19

Issue #20

Issue #21

Issue #22

Issue #23:

Issue #24-Another audio issue:

Issue #25:

Issue #26 features a Derek Taylor interview

Issue #27-another audio issue

Issue #28

Issue #29:

Issue #30:

Issue #31-one of my favorite issues based on the research of the late Joel Glazier who was the source to fervently discuss the Paul is Dead rumor! Whether you believe it was total nonsense or thoroughly fascinating, this is the issue for you!

Issue #32-another audio issue

Issue #33-features the New York Times article written by John and Yoko that hinted on their possible eventual return to musical activity. I have an original copy of the New York Times article protected in plastic for my collection!

Issue #34:

Issue #35:

Issue #36-another audio issue

Issue #37:

Issue #38-Joe’s tribute issue to John after Lennon was assassinated.

Issue #39:

Issue #40-the last audio issue

Issue #41:

Issue #42:

Issue #43:

Issue #44:

Issue #45:

Issue #46:

Issue #47:

Issue #48:

Issue #49:

Issue #50:

Issue #51:

Issue #52:-the final issue of Strawberry Fields Forever

This is photo of a CD that I acquired on eBay of the audio contents of the 6 audio SFF vinyl disks

Joe was instrumental in making an arrangement with Genesis Publication in the UK to get a discount for his subscribers who wished to obtain and purchase a signed copy of George Harrison’s “I Me Mine” book. He was also instrumental in finding a source for Beatles fans to hear the Beatles’ Decca audition for the first time with the famous Deccagone series of 45s. Here is a source of the photos of those 45s.

The Beatles – The Decca Sessions Singles

The last time I saw Joe Pope was at a Ringo All Starr Concert in Massachusetts. He was about to move to San Diego along with his wife Cindy. I did speak to him once more on the phone after that when he was undergoing cancer treatment and he expressed the same brave positive outlook that he always presented in person. I was so saddened like many others when I got the notification that he had passed away in 1999. Joe, you will be sorely missed. You brought so much joy to so many people.

Not many people are are aware that after Strawberry Fields Forever Magazine, Joe to keep active during his medical treatment kept busy by doing a Beatles clipping service type of magazine called “A Thousand Pages (give or take a few). I discovered these 6 issues by accident on Ebay which I snapped up very quickly. To the best of my knowledge only 6 issues of the magazine were ever completed and issued.

Issue #1:

Issue #2:

Issue #3:

Issue #4:

Issue #5:

Issue #6: The final issue with a color cover

In closing this post, I would love for you to share any memories that you may have of Strawberry Fields Forever magazine, Joe Pope, and the first Beatles convention! Be Healthy and Be Happy!

John “Buzz” Bezzini

Many Beatle experts are aware that the English language version of The Beatles Book had 77 original issues along with a couple of special Christmas issues and a special repeat issue. The Beatles Book Monthly later returned to give new information about the Beatles’ solo career and actually a grand total of 321 issues were made before the operation was ceased on the magazine in 2003. There was also a rare special Japanese English language edition of the magazine that came out in late 1965.

Not much is known about the rare three-edition French version of the Beatles Monthly though oddly enough it actually was a quarterly magazine in France. Published  by La Semaine Radio-Télé in Paris Supplement for the Radio-Télé week (future Télérama)

The rare 3 issue edition of the French Beatles Monthly equivalent was known by the name: Les Beatles and it is special as they had a very thematic approach to the pictures and stories that appeared in each issue. However, it is a mystery as to why only three issues were printed at the height of Beatlemania unless the original intention was to only create the 3 issues! The three French Magazine covers appear below.

Wikipedia information about the English Beatles Monthly

The Beatles Book (also known as Beatles Monthly) was a fan magazine dedicated to the English rock band the Beatles, founded in 1963. It was first published in August 1963 and continued for 77 editions until it stopped publication after the December 1969 edition. It was revived in 1976, and ceased publication in 2003. Sean O’Mahony passed away  in July of 2020.

Publisher Sean O’Mahony– Sean used the pseudonym, Johnny Dean in the magazine

Issue #1 of the French Beatles Monthly

Issue #2 of the French Beatles Monthly:

Issue #3 of the French Monthly:

The bag issued to house the three French issues of the Beatles Monthly. The French Monthlies had more of a thematic approach to their content than the English editions:

The special repeat issue featuring the best photos from the first six issues of the magazine!

The 1965 larger format special Christmas issue:

The 1966 special larger format Christmas issue:

The rare English language special 1965 Japanese Christmas issue of the Beatles Monthly:

I was recently sent this great link of a website that offers great details about The Beatles Book and its numerous variations: Urge you to check it out. Thank you Steve! My Beatles Books

In conclusion, the bootleggers are not to be outdone. For a limited time on eBay, someone was selling PDFs of all of the 321 issues of the Beatles monthly until they were removed for sale on the medium. This is an idea that Sean O’Mahoney’s estate should be pursuing to bring the fabulous magazine to a new generation!!!

BUZZ