Neil Harrison (born 4 December 1950) is a British musician and dramatist. He was a founder-member of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

tribute band A tribute act, tribute band or tribute group is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act. Tribute acts include individual performers who mimic the songs and style of an artist, such as Elvi ...

The Bootleg Beatles The Bootleg Beatles are a Beatles tribute band. They have performed over 4,000 times since their establishment in March 1980. History The Bootleg Beatles were formed by Andre Barreau, Neil Harrison and David Catlin-Birch, fellow London cast m ...

, in which he played

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

The Bootleg Beatles

In 1979, aged 28, Harrison had joined the cast of the West End musical ''Beatlemania''.Cast of Beatlemania: Neil Harrison, Rhythm Guitar
Beatlemaniaalumni.com In March 1980, after the musical's last West End show, Harrison formed The Bootleg Beatles with fellow cast members Andre Barreau and

David Catlin-Birch David Catlin-Birch is a British musician. He was a bass guitarist for pop/alternative rock band World Party, and was the original "Paul" for the March 1980 launch of The Beatles tribute band, The Bootleg Beatles. With Rowland Rivron and Richa ...

. The band invested their dwindling finances in two guitars – an Epiphone and a Gretsch – as well as two Vox amplifiers, four black polo-necks and a wig.The Bootleg Beatles Souvenir Programme 2004–2005 On 26 March 2011 at a gig in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

, Neil Harrison – otherwise known as "Bootleg John" – shocked the audience after coming to the stage to perform "Imagine" as an encore by announcing that he was leaving the group "to bring the average age down a bit'. He sang "

Imagine Imagine may refer to: * Imagination Music Albums * ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008 * ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002 * ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012 * ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971 ** ''Imagine: John Lennon' ...

" after shouts of support and thanks from the crowd and was presented with a bouquet of flowers and a further gift from the band. The Bootlegs then performed "

Back in the U.S.S.R. "Back in the U.S.S.R." is a song by the English rock band the Beatles and the first track of the 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as the "White Album"). Written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership, ...

" followed rather fittingly by the medley of songs from the '' Abbey Road'' album that culminates with " The End". The band left the stage to a standing ovation and further shouts of thanks to Neil.

Meet the Beatles

Harrison has stated that he has met two original Beatles, on three occasions. His first experience was in 1968, when he and some friends sang

Christmas carols Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

outside

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

's father's house on

the Wirral Wirral (; ), known locally as The Wirral, is a peninsula in North West England. The roughly rectangular peninsula is about long and wide and is bounded by the River Dee, Wales, River Dee to the west (forming the boundary with Wales), the Ri ...

. A photograph taken at the time exists. The second meeting was in 1996 at

David Gilmour David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...

's 50th birthday party. Gilmour booked both the Bootleg Beatles and the

Australian Pink Floyd Show The Australian Pink Floyd Show, more frequently referred to as the Australian Pink Floyd, is a Pink Floyd tribute band formed in 1988 in Adelaide, South Australia. Their live shows attempt to recreate the look, feel, and sound of Pink Floyd' ...

as he'd "always wanted to have the Beatles support Pink Floyd".

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

was in the audience and quipped "you probably know the chords better than I do" and "Where's the Bootleg Brian Epstein? 'Cos he's got all the money!" The third meeting was at the

Party at the Palace The Party at the Palace was a British pop/rock music concert held at Buckingham Palace Garden in London on 3 June 2002. The event was in commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II held over the Golden Jubilee Weekend. It was the ...

for the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2002, where McCartney headlined.

Other works

Outside the Bootleg Beatles, Harrison released an album in 1974 on

Deram Records Deram Records was a subsidiary record label of Decca Records established in the United Kingdom in 1966. At the time, U.K. Decca was a different company from the Decca label in the United States, which was owned by MCA Inc. Deram recordings w ...

called ''All Dressed Up and Nowhere To Go''. He was an exclusive producer for the best selling Yugoslavian rock band Bijelo Dugme in period between 1975 and 1979. He also wrote several songs for Lulu's album '' Don't Take Love for Granted'', including the title track and "

I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do) "I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do)" was the fourth and final US Top 40 hit for Lulu. History "I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do)" was introduced on Lulu's 1978 album '' Don't Take Love For Granted'', a Rocket Records release co-produce ...

", which was released as a single in 1981 and also included on her 1981 self-titled album '' Lulu''. He has released another solo album entitled ''Richmond Hill''. He sang an acoustic version of " Strawberry Fields Forever" for the 2013 Spanish movie ''

Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed ''Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed'' ( es, Vivir es fácil con los ojos cerrados, links=no) is a 2013 Spanish comedy-drama film written and directed by David Trueba, and starring Javier Cámara, Natalia de Molina, and Francesc Colomer. The film's ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Neil 1950 births Living people The Bootleg Beatles members British male guitarists British male singers British rock guitarists British male songwriters