The band that forever changed the face of popular music was celebrated Sunday at Duke’s restaurant with a live broadcast of “Breakfast With The Beatles” airing on 95.5 FM KLOS. The 33-year-old show, billed as America’s longest running Beatles program, airs every Sunday and recently started a once-monthly live broadcast from Malibu. The program’s host, Chris Carter, said he was happy to broadcast from Duke’s in Malibu.
“I love it here. It’s the perfect setting,” Carter said. He further noted, “Beatles fans are very dedicated. They’ve always been that way — very loyal.”
A sold-out crowd of 250 guests travelled from all over southern California to take in the view and take part in the festivities. The show paid tribute to John Lennon who was killed on Dec. 8, 36 years ago. Lennon had ties to Malibu; the founding member rented a beachfront home here in the early 1970s.
Several Beatles “dignitaries” were among the crowd including mega producer, friend to the Beatles, Apple artists and repertoire (A&R) man, and former pop star Peter Asher; former Apple Records President Jack Oliver; and former Wings guitarist Laurence Juber, who wowed the audience with a live performance.
Juber, who has played in two Malibu Guitar Festivals, is currently on his “Santa” tour playing in Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo. The world-renowned guitarist recalled working with Wings.
“It was not just Paul McCartney. It was Paul and Linda McCartney,” Juber said. “I have very fond memories of both of them.” Juber has a book, “Guitar With Wings,” which chronicles his adventures in the band.
The legendary Asher, who also produced James Taylor and Linda Rondstadt among others, shared a comment about each Beatle.
“I remember going to a Monkees party with George and, on arrival, to discover that everybody was naked, which George was quite British about,” Asher said. “He was rather startled. John could be quite acerbic and a difficult man to have a conversation with, especially if you didn’t agree with him. When I was a teenager, Paul and I shared the top floor of my parents house for a couple of years and these days I see Ringo a lot, too.”
One event patron, Richard Marlis of Tarzana, recalled working with Ringo while filming a commercial in the Bahamas in 1987.
“Ringo was absolutely a pleasure — working with somebody who is so iconic in the world of music and as a person,” Marlis said. “Filming with Ringo was one of the best experiences I ever had. Our director, the world famous rock and roll photographer Norman Seeff, would always play music in the background to loosen up the talent and he wanted to play Beatles music and I was very nervous about how Ringo would react, but he loved it. He led the entire crew in singing all these Beatles songs.”
Another guest, Terry Wittert of Calabasas, reminisced about how he saw the Beatles live at the Hollywood Bowl as a teenager in 1965, but only reluctantly.
“I was invited to go with box seats, but I wanted to mess around with my friends and initially turned down the offer,” Wittert said. “Then people told me, ‘You’ve got to go. This is something great.’ So at the last minute, I went. The interesting thing was that at first it was quiet and then built to a dull roar. Then all of a sudden, you saw a speck in the sky. It was coming closer and closer and closer and it turns out it was a helicopter carrying the Beatles. And it landed right behind the stage at the Hollywood Bowl. And as soon as that speck of helicopter got in the sky the crowd started screaming. They got on stage and the girls were screaming so loud you could hardly hear anything the entire concert. You couldn’t hear anything until they got in their helicopter and they flew away and the speck disappeared. It was incredible. But it was still one of the most fantastic experiences of my entire life. What if I had hung out with my friends?”
It was the idea of radio executive and Malibu resident Paul Joseph to bring the popular radio show to Malibu.
“The success of Breakfast With the Beatles is legendary,” Joseph said. “I thought bringing it to Duke’s where they can accommodate people and enjoy this amazing view would be a great idea.”
The next live broadcast of Breakfast With The Beatles at Duke’s is scheduled for Jan. 29 and will continue monthly in 2017.
