Main description:

The world stopped in 1970 when Paul McCartney announced that he was through with the Beatles. His statement not only marked the end of the band's remarkable career, but also seemed to signal the demise of an era of unprecedented optimism in social history. Though the Beatles' breakup was widely viewed as a cultural tragedy, one of the most fascinating phases of their story was just about to begin.

Now, for the first time, You Never Give Me Your Money tells the behind-the-scenes story of the personal rivalries and legal feuds that have dominated the Beatles' lives since 1969. Journalist Peter Doggett charts the Shakespearean battles between Lennon and McCartney, the conflict in George Harrison's life between spirituality and fame, and the struggle with alcoholism that threatened to take Richard Starkey's life. In vivid detail, Doggett also describes the wild mismanagement of the Beatles' fortune staked largely in Apple Corps.

You Never Give Me Your Money is a compelling human drama and an equally rich and absorbing story of the Beatles' creative and financial empire, set up to safeguard their interests but destined to control their lives. From tragedy to triumphant reunion, and chart success to courtroom battles, this meticulously researched work tells the previously untold story of a group and a legacy that will never be forgotten.

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“[Doggett’s] identification of the forces that drove The Beatles apart and kept them so for the best part of 30 years is not new, but his forensic tenacity and unyielding gaze are.”

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“a breathtaking record of uncontrolled fame’s grotesque side-effects”

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“a gripping account that portrays [The Beatles] as something much more interesting than the airbrushed Gods we’ve recently seen: damaged, eternally bickering men, left punch-drunk by the group’s success”

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“an enthralling new book on [The Beatles]…impossible to put down”

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“Doggett documents rock’s most agonizing four-way divorce. Rigorously researched, You Never Give Me Your Money is a dark but compelling endnote to rock’s greatest story.”

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“Doggett has crafted an authentic and enlightening book full of myth-busting surprises and insight.”

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“Doggett’s book charts an admirably unstarry-eyed path through the break-up of the band and beyond.”

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“Doggett, a music journalist, offers refreshingly straightforward and highly readable portraits of the leading players”

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“Elegant and deeply researched...You Never Give Me Your Money posits a nuanced afterlife for the Beatles. [Peter Doggett] has found a new lens (and much new information) through which to consider the band.”

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“Fascinating…Doggett captures the competitive sparks that flew among the four men, especially between Lennon and Paul McCartney, and also the mutual affection that formed the basis of their complicated relationships…A must for Beatles fans and good for more casual pop-music enthusiasts, too.”

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“I had such a ball reading You Never Give Me Your Money: The Beatles After the Breakup that once I finished, I returned to page one and read it all over again.”

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“Peter Doggett’s book about the Beatles’ split is a real page-turner.”

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“What Doggett has achieved is a laying bare of the darker consequences of enormous fame and wealth. Yes, there is the glory but there’s also the concomitant pressure of how to deal with the myth and the legacy – while trying to keep f

“Peter Doggett’s book about the Beatles’ split is a real page-turner.” — Annie Lennox

“Enthralling… Impossible to put down.” — The Independent

Acclaimed journalist Peter Doggett recounts the previously untold story of the dramatic final chapter in the lives, loves, and legal battles of John, Paul, George, and Ringo—aka The Beatles—from their breakup in 1969 to the present day. Called “refreshingly straightforward and highly readable” by The Daily Telegraph (London), You Never Give Me Your Money is the dramatic and intimate story of the breakup and aftermath of The Fab Four as it’s never been told before.