Editing Neil Aspinall (section)

==The Beatles==
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The Beatles played at the opening of [[the Casbah Coffee Club]] on 29 August 1959, which was in the cellar of [[Mona Best]]'s house. Aspinall later rented a room in the house and became very good friends with then-Beatle [[Pete Best]].<ref name="TheCasbahClub ">[http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.samleach.com/album/casbah_club.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.samleach.com/photos_beatles.html&h=600&w=509&sz=128&hl=en&start=9&tbnid=tfDP9PmjD52POM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=115&prev=/images%3Fq%3DCasbah%2BClub%2B%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG Photo of The Casbah Club] samleach.com – Retrieved 8 October 2006</ref>{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=44}} The Beatles had previously used public transport to travel to local bookings, however by February 1961, they were playing two or three shows per night at different locations needing their own transportation. Best asked Aspinall to be a part-time [[road manager]] for the band, so Aspinall bought an "old, grey and maroon Commer van" for £80, and charged each of the group five [[shilling]]s (60d [old pence], or 25p [new post-1971 pence]) per concert. Harrison later said: "Our early van became the centre of attention every time it pulled up. It was brush-painted red and grey and from head to foot was covered in graffiti – girls' names, and things like 'I love you, John'. It looked interesting, but the moment anybody saw it they would feel free to write all over it."<ref name=autogenerated1>''The Beatles Anthology'' DVD 2003 (Episode 1 – 0:55:54) Aspinall talking his early days with The Beatles.</ref>{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=73}} The Beatles returned from their second trip to [[Hamburg]] in July 1961, and Aspinall left his job to become their permanent road manager, as he was earning more money driving them around than he was earning by being an accountant.<ref name="Beat"/><ref>[http://www.beatlesource.com/savage/1960/1960.html photo of Aspinall’s van being loaded on the ferry to Hamburg] beatlesource.com – Retrieved 4 November 2007</ref>

The Beatles were driven down to London by Aspinall on New Year's Eve in 1962, for their [[The Decca audition|Decca audition]], but Aspinall lost his way, and the trip took ten hours.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=285}}{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=89}} They arrived at 10 o'clock at night, and John Lennon said that they arrived "just in time to see the drunks jumping in the [[Trafalgar Square]] fountains."{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=108}} In 1963, Aspinall was joined by [[Mal Evans]], who also helped set up the Beatles' equipment (and acted as a bodyguard) which freed Aspinall to concentrate on other duties, like arranging appointments or buying things for them, such as suits, boots, meals, or drinks.{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=92–93}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Villa/4389/bio/aspinall.html |title=Photo of Aspinall and Mal Evans |access-date=2010-10-10 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090804154410/http://geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Villa/4389/bio/aspinall.html |archive-date=4 August 2009 |df=dmy-all }} geocities.com – Retrieved 12 February 2007</ref>

Best was sacked from the Beatles on 16 August 1962, by manager [[Brian Epstein]] acting on behalf of Lennon, McCartney and Harrison. Accounts vary of Aspinall during this event. According to ''Mersey Beat'' editor [[Bill Harry]], Aspinall was waiting downstairs in Epstein's [[Brian Epstein|NEMS]] record shop, and was the first one to talk to the by then ex-Beatle in the Grapes pub, across from the [[The Cavern Club|Cavern]].{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=331}} Aspinall was furious and said that he would stop working for the band as well, but Best strongly advised him not to.<ref name="MerseyBeatNeilAspinall"/> Aspinall asked McCartney and Lennon at the next concert why they had fired Best and was told, "It's got nothing to do with you. You're only the driver."<ref name="MerseyBeatNeilAspinallPage2">[http://triumphpc.com/mersey-beat/beatles/neilaspinall2.shtml Aspinall, The Beatles and money – Mersey Beat] triumphpc.com – Retrieved 11 February 2007</ref> However, in a 2007 interview, Aspinall provided Beatles historian [[Mark Lewisohn]] with a distinctly different version of events, saying that he was physically present when Epstein sacked Best, that he told Best unprompted that he planned to continue working for the band, and that on his first subsequent encounter with the other band members, their first question to him was how Best had taken being sacked.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2013}} Aspinall stayed with the band, ending his affair with Best's mother, a relationship that had led to the birth of baby Vincent "Roag" Best. Aspinall denied the story for years before publicly acknowledging that he was indeed Roag's father.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6551609.stm |title=Faces of the week |work=BBC News |date=13 April 2007 |access-date=22 August 2015}}</ref>

Aspinall worked closely with Epstein, who provided weekly notes for Aspinall to give to the group members detailing their concert appearances and the fees they would receive.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=280}} The Beatles had to travel in Aspinall's van along with their equipment, but British roads in the early 1960s were notoriously [[Pothole|pot-holed]] and slow to navigate.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=376–379}} Ringo Starr remembered that the travelling never seemed to stop during the early tours of Britain in Aspinall's van, as they would be driven up and down [[Great Britain]] with one of the group in the passenger seat, but with the other three on a hard bench seat in the back.<ref name=autogenerated4>''The Beatles Anthology'' DVD 2003 (Episode 2 – 0:13:46) Ringo Starr talking about touring in Aspinall's van</ref>

===Personal assistant===
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Aspinall's job as personal assistant consisted of driving to concerts and meetings, but mostly meant just being there whenever someone needed something.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=736}} Aspinall went on the first trip to the United States, and when George Harrison became ill with a fever and had a temperature of {{convert|102|°F|°C}}, he was ordered to stay in bed, so Aspinall stood in for him for ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' camera rehearsals;{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=464}} however, Harrison was back in time for the final shooting. Before the cover of ''[[Sgt. Pepper's]]'' could be completed by [[Peter Blake (artist)|Peter Blake]], Aspinall was sent out to find photographs of all of the people that were to be shown on the front cover.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=336}} Aspinall suggested the idea of Sgt. Pepper being the [[Master of Ceremonies|compere]], who would introduce the group, and the reprise of the title song near the end of the album.<ref name=autogenerated2>''The Beatles Anthology'' DVD 2003 (Episode 6 – 0:43:21) Aspinall talking about Sgt. Pepper being the compere.</ref>

After recording sessions, Lennon, Harrison and Starr would be chauffeured back to their houses in the '[[stockbroker belt]]' of [[Southern England]], but Aspinall would often drive McCartney and Evans in an [[Austin Princess]] limousine to a late-night club to eat.{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=166–167}} [[The Bag O'Nails]] nightclub was one of their favourites, at 8 [[Kingly Street]] in [[Soho]], London, as it also presented live music. They would eat steak, chips and [[mushy peas]], but Aspinall would always take out a [[flashlight|torch]] from his pocket (in the dimly lit club) to inspect the portions on each of their plates.<ref name="Nails">[http://www.revolverbook.co.uk/beatleslondon.html Location of The Bag o’Nails] revolverbook.co.uk – Retrieved 11 February 2007</ref> This was to make sure that the portions were exactly as they had ordered, which McCartney always found amusing.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=141}} Although Harrison, McCartney and Starr had passed their driving tests, Lennon didn't pass his driving test until 1965; however, he rarely drove himself due to being a notoriously bad driver by poorly navigating roads and failing to notice other traffic, and as a result, he was usually chauffeured to and from recording sessions and appointments by his own personal chauffeur.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.beatlesbible.com/1965/02/15/john-lennon-passes-driving-test/ |title=15 February 1965: John Lennon passes his driving test |date=15 February 1965 |publisher=The Beatles Bible |access-date=22 August 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.beatlesbible.com/1969/07/01/john-lennon-crashes-his-car-in-scotland/ |title=1 July 1969: John Lennon crashes his car in Scotland |date=July 1969 |publisher=The Beatles Bible |access-date=22 August 2015}}</ref>

===Musical contributions===
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Although not a musician, Aspinall made minor contributions to a handful of the Beatles' recordings. He played a [[Tanpura (instrument)|tamboura]] on "[[Within You Without You]]", harmonica on "[[Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!]]", some percussion on "[[Magical Mystery Tour (song)|Magical Mystery Tour]]", and was among the many participants singing on the chorus of "[[Yellow Submarine (song)|Yellow Submarine]]".<ref name="AMG"/>

===Manager===
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Following the death of Epstein in August 1967, there was a vacuum in the management of the Beatles' affairs. The Beatles asked Aspinall to take over the management of Apple Corps in 1968, which had been founded in April of the same year.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=440}} Aspinall later said that he only accepted the position after being asked, but did not want to do it full-time, and would only do it "until they found somebody else."{{sfn|Granados|2004|p=12}} [[George Martin]] (The Beatles' [[record producer]]) was against the idea, as he thought that Aspinall did not have the necessary social qualifications to be able to speak to the [[upper class]] executives at EMI.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=735}} Aspinall accompanied McCartney and Lennon to New York on 11 May 1968, to announce the formation of Apple to the American Media.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=716}} Apple Corps had five divisions: electronics, film, publishing, records and retailing. Aspinall later spoke of the Beatles' business arrangements:
{{blockquote|We did not have one single piece of paper. No contracts. The lawyer, the accountants and Brian, whoever, had that. The Beatles had been given copies of various contracts, maybe, I don't know. I didn't know what the [recording] contract was with EMI, or with the film people or the [[Music publisher (popular music)|publishers]] or anything at all. So it was a case of building up a filing system, find out what was going on while we were trying to continue doing something.{{sfn|Granados|2004|p=19}}|author=|title=|source=}}

[[Derek Taylor]] (Apple's [[Public relations|press officer]]) said that Aspinall hated being stuck in the Apple office (at 3 [[Savile Row]]) all through the recording of [[The Beatles (album)|''The White Album'']] and ''[[Let It Be (album)|Let It Be]]'' album. Life in the Apple office, however, was improved by having a [[chef]] and assistants at hand: "The liquor bill was £600 per month and the food bill was close to that." This was mostly due to Aspinall's and [[Peter Brown (music industry)|Peter Brown's]] four-course lunches with expensive wines in the dining room at Apple.{{sfn|DiLello|2005|p=54}} After [[Allen Klein]] was brought in to be the Beatles' manager Aspinall was dismissed, but reinstated after complaints from the group, and because Klein realised that Aspinall was no threat to his control of the company.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=546}} Klein lost a [[High Court of Justice|High Court]] action in 1971 (started by McCartney) but [[lawsuit]]s between Klein and Apple kept Aspinall busy until 1977.<ref>The Sunday Times: The Culture: Section 10: 12 November 1995, pages 4–5</ref>

===Apple Corps executive===
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In 1978, Aspinall instigated the first of [[Apple Corps v. Apple Computer|three lawsuits]] on behalf of Apple Corps against Apple Computer, Inc. (now known as [[Apple, Inc.]]) for [[trademark infringement]]. The first suit settled in 1981 with an amount of £41,000 being paid to Apple by Apple Computer. As a condition of the settlement, Apple Computer was allowed to use its logo as long as it did not enter the [[music business]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4750533.stm History of Apple v Apple: bbc.co.uk 8 May 2006]  news.bbc.co.uk – Retrieved 3 February 2007</ref> The second suit with Apple Computer arose in 1989, when Apple Corps sued Apple Computer over its Apple IIGS (which included a professional synthesiser chip) claiming violation of the 1981 settlement agreement. In 1991, a settlement of £13.5 million was reached.{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=581–582}} McCartney praised Aspinall for [[trademark]]ing the Apple name worldwide, and called Aspinall "Mr. X" in the Apple Corps organisation.{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=581–582}}

In September 2003, Apple Computer, Inc. was again sued by Apple Corps, this time for the introduction of the [[iTunes Store|iTunes Music Store]] and the [[iPod]], which Aspinall and Apple Corps believed was a violation of the previous agreement for Apple Computer to not distribute music. The trial began on 27 March 2006 in the UK, and ended on 8 May 2006 in a victory for Apple Computer; the judge ruled the company's [[iTunes]] Music Store did not infringe on the trademark of Apple Corps.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2006/05/060512_apple.shtml Beatles lose court case against Apple Inc., bbc.co.uk: 11 May 2006] bbc.co.uk/worldservice – Retrieved 29 January 2007</ref> Aspinall was also involved in several court cases in which Apple Corps took action against [[EMI]]:<ref>[https://archive.today/20070311085214/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-2336456.html Apple V EMI – Times Online 31 August 2006] timesonline.co.uk – Retrieved 11 February 2007</ref>
{{blockquote|We have tried to reach a settlement through good faith negotiations and regret that our efforts have been in vain. Despite very clear provisions in our contracts, EMI persist in ignoring their obligations and duty to account fairly and with transparency. The Beatles and Apple are, once again, left with no choice but to sue EMI.<ref>[https://archive.today/20070311085214/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-2336456.html EMI court case, bbc.co.uk: 31 August 2006] timesonline.co.uk – Retrieved 29 January 2007</ref><ref name="EMIBeatlesCourtBattles">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4535330.stm The Beatles and EMI’s court cases: bbc.co.uk 16 December 2005] news.bbc.co.uk – Retrieved 3 February 2007</ref> }}

In the early 1990s, Aspinall became the executive producer for ''[[The Beatles Anthology]]''; he, producer George Martin, and press officer [[Derek Taylor]] are the only non-Beatles seen in new footage for the documentary. He continued to advise the surviving Beatles, as well as Lennon's and Harrison's estates, and to supervise the marketing of music, [[music video]]s and [[merchandising]]. On 10 April 2007, it was announced by Apple that Aspinall had "decided to move on" and [[Jeff Jones (music industry executive)|Jeff Jones]]—a longtime VP at Sony Legacy—was hired as [[CEO]] to oversee the back-catalogue.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=http://www.nme.com/news/the-beatles/27612 | title=Beatles' friend quits top job at Apple Corps | access-date=10 April 2007 | magazine=NME | date=10 April 2007}}</ref><ref>Kozinn, Allan, "Magical Mystery Tour Ends for Apple Corps Executive", ''[[New York Times]]'', 12 April 2007, ''passim''. ([https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/12/arts/music/12beat.html link])</ref> One of Aspinall's final tasks at Apple was to oversee the remastering of The Beatles' back-catalogue for an anticipated 2008 release.