Editing Stuart Sutcliffe

{{Short description|British painter and musician (1940–1962)}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2012}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Stuart Sutcliffe
| image              = Stuart stucliffe.jpg
| caption            = Sutcliffe in 1961
| birth_name         = Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe
| birth_date         = {{birth date|1940|06|23|df=y}}
| birth_place        = [[Edinburgh]], Scotland
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|1962|04|10|1940|06|23|df=y}}
| death_place        = [[Hamburg]], West Germany
| occupation         = {{flatlist|
* Painter
* musician}}
| years active       = 1957–1961
| partner            = [[Astrid Kirchherr]] ({{abbr|eng.|engaged}} 1960)
| module             = {{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes
  | background = solo_singer
  | origin = [[Liverpool]], England
  | instrument = {{flatlist|
*Bass
*vocals
}}
  | genre = [[Rock and roll]]
  | past_member_of = {{flatlist|
* [[The Quarrymen]]
* [[The Beatles]]
}}
}}
}}

'''Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe''' (23 June 1940&nbsp;– 10 April 1962) was a British painter and musician from [[Edinburgh]], Scotland, best known as the original [[bass guitarist]] of [[the Beatles]]. Sutcliffe left the band to pursue his career as a painter, having previously attended the [[Liverpool College of Art]]. Sutcliffe and [[John Lennon]] are credited with inventing the name "Beetles" (sic), as they both liked [[Buddy Holly]]'s band, [[the Crickets]]. They also had a fascination with group names with double meanings (as Crickets, for example, the word referring to both an insect and a sport), so Lennon then came up with "The Beatles", from the word ''[[Beat music|beat]]'' (though Lennon's original spelling was "Beatals"{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=175}}). As a member of the group when it was a five-piece band, Sutcliffe is one of several who are sometimes referred to as the "[[Fifth Beatle]]".

When he performed with [[the Beatles in Hamburg]], he met photographer [[Astrid Kirchherr]], to whom he was later engaged. After leaving the Beatles, he enrolled in the [[Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg|Hamburg College of Art]], studying under future [[pop art]]ist [[Eduardo Paolozzi]], who later wrote a report stating that Sutcliffe was one of his best students.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/report.aspx |title=Report by Eduardo Paolozzi, 23 October 1961 |publisher=Museum of Liverpool |access-date=3 January 2017}}</ref> Sutcliffe earned other praise for his paintings, which mostly explored a style related to [[abstract expressionism]].

While studying in [[West Germany]], Sutcliffe began suffering from intense headaches and experiencing acute light sensitivity. In February 1962, he collapsed in the middle of an art class after complaining of head pains. German doctors performed tests, but were unable to determine a cause. After collapsing again on 10 April 1962, Sutcliffe was taken to a hospital, but died in the ambulance on the way. The cause of death was later found to have been a [[brain haemorrhage]]—severe bleeding in the right ventricle of his brain.

==Early years==
Sutcliffe was the eldest child of Martha, known as Millie, a teacher at an infants' school{{sfn|Norman|2005|p=62}} and Charles Sutcliffe, a senior civil servant. Charles had moved to [[Liverpool]] in 1943 to help with wartime work and subsequently signed on as a ship's engineer, so he was often at sea during his son's early years.

Sutcliffe had two younger sisters, Pauline and Joyce; three older half-brothers, Joe, Ian, and Charles; and an older half-sister, Mattie, from his father's first marriage to a woman also named Martha.{{sfn|Kane|2007|p=52}}{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Tufnell|Cornish|1998|p=30}}

Sutcliffe was born at the [[Edinburgh Royal Maternity Hospital and Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion]] in [[Edinburgh]].<ref>{{cite news|last=McGinty|first=Stephen|title=Stephen McGinty: Scotland meant a lot more to the Beatles than just Mull of Kintyre|url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/stephen_mcginty_scotland_meant_a_lot_more_to_the_beatles_than_just_mull_of_kintyre_1_1795434|access-date=13 November 2011|newspaper=The Scotsman | location = Edinburgh |date=12 August 2011}}</ref> After his family moved to England,<ref name="Stuart Sutcliffe Estate">{{cite web |url=http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/about_stuart.html |title=Stuart |publisher=Stuart Sutcliffe Estate |access-date=1 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622064538/http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/about_stuart.html |archive-date=22 June 2011}}</ref> he was brought up at 37 [[Aigburth]] Drive in Liverpool.{{sfn|Pawlowski|1989|p=88}} He attended Park View Primary School, [[Huyton]] (1946–1951), and [[Prescot School|Prescot Grammar School]] from 4 September 1951 to 1956.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/stuart-sutcliffe-school-beatles-story-11512980 |title = Stuart Sutcliffe's school reports reveal he had a 'mischievous character'|date = 23 June 2016}}</ref> When Sutcliffe's father returned home on leave, he invited his son and art college classmate Rod Murray (also Sutcliffe's housemate and best friend), for a "real good [[Alcoholic beverage|booze-up]]", slipping £10 into Sutcliffe's pocket before disappearing for another six months.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=105}}

During his first year at the Liverpool College of Art, Sutcliffe worked as a [[bin man]] on the [[Liverpool Corporation]]'s waste collection trucks.<ref name="Sutcliffe's cheque book">[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/cheque.asp Sutcliffe's cheque book -] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608062041/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/cheque.asp |date=8 June 2011 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> Lennon was introduced to Sutcliffe by mutual friend [[Bill Harry]] when all three were students at the College of Art. According to Lennon, Sutcliffe had a "marvellous art portfolio" and was a very talented painter who was one of the "stars" of the school.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=105}}{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=107}} He helped Lennon improve his artistic skills, and with others, worked with him when Lennon had to submit work for exams.{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Tufnell|Cornish|1998|p=31}} 

Sutcliffe shared a flat with Murray at 9 Percy Street, Liverpool, before being evicted. He moved to Hillary Mansions at 3 Gambier Terrace, home of art student [[Margaret Chapman]], who vied with Sutcliffe to be the best painter in their class.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/painting.asp Painting by Sutcliffe in Percy Street flat] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925013321/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/painting.asp |date=25 September 2006 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> The flat was opposite the new [[Liverpool Cathedral|Anglican cathedral]] in the rundown area of Liverpool 8, with bare lightbulbs and a mattress on the floor in the corner. Lennon moved in with Sutcliffe in early 1960.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=50}}{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=63}} ([[Paul McCartney]] later admitted he was jealous of Sutcliffe's relationship with Lennon, as he had to take a "back seat" to Sutcliffe.)<ref name="TheBeatlesAnthologyDVD">"The Beatles Anthology" (DVD) 2003 (Episode 1 – 0:27:24) McCartney talking about being jealous of Sutcliffe's friendship with Lennon.</ref> 

Sutcliffe and his flatmates painted the rooms yellow and black, which their landlady did not appreciate.<ref>Norman Allanson
[http://triumphpc.com/mersey-beat/beatles/sutcliff2.shtml "I heard that Stuart had painted his room"], triumphpc.com. Retrieved 26 November 2007.</ref>

After talking to Sutcliffe one night at [[the Casbah Coffee Club]] (owned by [[Pete Best]]'s mother, [[Mona Best]]), Lennon and McCartney persuaded him to buy a [[Höfner 500/5]] model bass guitar on hire-purchase from Frank Hessey's Music Shop.<ref name="Sutcliffe's cheque book"/><ref name=autogenerated2>"The Beatles Anthology" (DVD) 2003 (Episode 1 – 0:28:02) Harrison and McCartney talking about Sutcliffe's first bass guitar.</ref><ref>[http://www.rockmine.com/Stu2.html Sutcliffe's President Bass] rockmine.com. Retrieved: 9 May 2007</ref> Sutcliffe's prior music experience consisted of piano lessons, which his mother had insisted on since he was nine; singing in the Huyton church choir, playing [[Bugle (instrument)|bugle]] in the [[Air Training Corps]], and playing guitar using chords his father had taught him.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=173}}<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/choir.asp Photo of Sutcliffe in church choir] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929092650/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/choir.asp |date=29 September 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> 

In May 1960, Sutcliffe joined Lennon, McCartney, and [[George Harrison]] (then known as "[[the Silver Beatles]]").{{sfn|Coleman|1995|p=212}}{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=66}} Although he had previously played [[acoustic guitar]], Sutcliffe's fingers would often blister during long rehearsals, as he had never practised long enough for his fingers to become [[callus|calloused]].{{Sfn|Lennon|2005|p=64}}<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/guitar.asp Sutcliffe's first guitar] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927000109/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/guitar.asp |date=27 September 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> He started acting as a [[booking agent]] for the group, and they often used his Gambier Terrace flat as a rehearsal room.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=50}}

In July 1960, the Sunday newspaper ''[[The Sunday People|The People]]'' ran an article titled "The Beatnik Horror" with a photograph taken in the flat below Sutcliffe's of a teenaged Lennon lying on the floor, with Sutcliffe standing by a window.{{sfn|Ryan|1982|p=43}} As they had often visited the Jacaranda club,{{sfn|Ryan|1982|p=53}} its owner, [[Allan Williams]], had arranged for the photo to be taken, subsequently taking over from Sutcliffe to book concerts for the group: Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Sutcliffe.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=53}} The Beatles' subsequent name change came during an afternoon in the Renshaw Hall bar when Sutcliffe, Lennon, and Lennon's girlfriend, [[Cynthia Lennon|Cynthia Powell]], thought up names similar to Holly's band, the Crickets, and came up with Beetles.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=175}}

==The Beatles and Hamburg==
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Sutcliffe and Harrison.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Sutcliffe (left) and [[George Harrison]] during the Beatles' [[The Beatles in Hamburg|period in Hamburg]]]] -->
Sutcliffe's playing style was elementary, mostly sticking to [[root (chord)|root note]]s of [[chord (music)|chords]].{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=184–185}} Harry—an art school friend and founder and editor of the ''[[Mersey Beat]]'' newspaper—complained to Sutcliffe that he should be concentrating on art and not music, as he thought that Sutcliffe was merely a competent musician whose talents would be better used in the visual arts.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=173–174}} While Sutcliffe is often described in Beatles biographies as appearing uncomfortable onstage and occasionally playing with his back to the audience, Pete Best, their drummer at the time, denies this. Best recalled Sutcliffe was usually good-natured and "animated" before an audience.<ref>[http://www.rickresource.com/rrp/petebest.html An Evening With Pete Best, Part I: The Interview] rickresource.com. Retrieved 20 January 2007</ref> When the Beatles auditioned for [[Larry Parnes]] at the Wyvern Club in Liverpool, Williams later claimed Parnes would have hired the group as the backing band for [[Billy Fury]] for £10 per week ({{Inflation|UK|10|1960|fmt=eq|cursign=£}}{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}}), but as Sutcliffe turned his back to Parnes throughout the audition (because, as Williams believed, Sutcliffe could not play very well), Parnes said he would hire them only if they got rid of Sutcliffe. Parnes later denied this, stating his only concern was that the group had no permanent drummer.<ref name="HarryBeatleFolks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080827174825/http://www.beatlefolks.com/bharry2.shtml Bill Harry interview on Beatle Folks] – Retrieved 28 November 2007</ref> [[Klaus Voormann]] regarded Sutcliffe as a good bass player,<ref>"Stuart Sutcliffe, The Lost Beatle" documentary</ref> although Beatles' historian [[Richie Unterberger]] described Sutcliffe's bass playing as an "artless thump".{{sfn|Unterberger|2006|p=7}}

Sutcliffe's profile grew after he began wearing [[Ray-Ban Wayfarer|Ray-Ban]] sunglasses and tight trousers.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=65}} His high spot was singing "[[Love Me Tender (song)|Love Me Tender]]", which drew more applause than the other Beatles and increased the friction with McCartney. Lennon also started to criticise Sutcliffe, joking about his size and playing.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=242}} On 5 December 1960, an underage Harrison was sent back to Britain. McCartney and Best were deported for attempted arson at the [[Bruno Koschmider|Bambi Kino]], which left Lennon and Sutcliffe in Hamburg.{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=93}}<ref name="BeatlesTimeline">[http://beatles.ncf.ca/timeline.html#60 The BeatlesTimeline] Beatles.ncf.ca. Retrieved: 9 May 2007</ref> Lennon also returned home, but as Sutcliffe had a [[Common cold|cold]], he stayed in Hamburg.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=230}} Sutcliffe later borrowed money from his girlfriend [[Astrid Kirchherr]] so he could fly back to Liverpool on Friday, 20 January 1961, although he returned to Hamburg in March with the other Beatles.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=242}}

[[File:Gedenktafel Kaiserkeller - Hamburg.jpg|thumb|Plaque commemorating The Beatles' visit to Hamburg.]]
In July 1961, Sutcliffe decided to leave the group to continue painting.<ref name="IssueNo23"/> After being awarded a postgraduate scholarship,{{sfn|Sutcliffe|Tufnell|Cornish|1998|p=31}} he enrolled at [[University of Fine Arts of Hamburg|Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg]], where he studied under the tutelage of [[Eduardo Paolozzi]].{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=65}} He briefly lent McCartney his bass until the latter could earn enough to buy a specially made smaller left-handed [[Höfner 500/1]] bass of his own in June 1961. However, Sutcliffe specifically asked McCartney (who is left-handed) not to change the strings around or restring the instrument, so McCartney had to play the bass as it was.{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=74–75}}

In 1967, a photo of Sutcliffe was included on the cover of ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (extreme left, in front of fellow artist [[Aubrey Beardsley]]).<ref name="BeatlesinScotland">{{cite news|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/archive/2008/11/09/the-beatles-in-scotland-stuart-sutcliffe-s-story-78057-20880481/ |title=The Beatles in Scotland: Stuart Sutcliffe's story |first=Ken |last=Mcnab |newspaper=[[Sunday Mail (Scotland)]] |date=9 November 2008 |access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref>

==Astrid Kirchherr==
<!-- Put in-line references into this article from books (with page numbers) or from web pages. -->
Sutcliffe met Astrid Kirchherr in the Kaiserkeller, where she had gone to watch the Beatles perform. She had been brought up by her [[widowed]] mother, Nielsa Kirchherr, on Eimsbütteler Strasse, in a wealthy part of the Hamburg suburb of [[Altona, Hamburg|Altona]].{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=64}} After a photo session with the Beatles, Kirchherr invited them to her mother's house for tea. She showed them her bedroom, which she had decorated in black including the furniture, with silver foil on the walls and a large tree branch hanging from the ceiling. Sutcliffe was smitten and began dating Kirchherr shortly afterwards.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=224}}

He wrote to friends that he was infatuated with her, and asked her German friends which colours, films, books and painters she liked. Best commented that the beginning of their relationship was "like one of those fairy stories".{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=225}} Kirchherr and Sutcliffe got engaged in November 1960 and exchanged rings, as is the German custom.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=65}} Sutcliffe later wrote his parents that he was engaged to Kirchherr. They were shocked because they thought he would give up his career as an artist,{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=235}} although he told Kirchherr he would like to be an art teacher in London or Germany.<ref name="FreshAirinterviewwithAstrid"/> After moving into the Kirchherr family's house, Sutcliffe used to borrow Astrid's clothes. He wore her leather trousers and jackets, oversized shirts and long scarves, and collarless jackets. He borrowed a [[corduroy]] suit with no lapels to wear on stage, which prompted Lennon to sarcastically ask if his mother had lent him the suit.<ref name="FreshAirinterviewwithAstrid">{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=18112532&m=18112531 |title=''Fresh Air'' interview with Astrid Kirchherr (15 January 2008) |publisher=[[WHYY-FM]]|access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref>

==Art==
[[File:Sutcliffe painting.jpg|thumb|right|''Hamburg Painting no. 2'']]
Sutcliffe displayed artistic talent at an early age.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=105}}{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=47}} Fellow student Helen Anderson remembered his early works as very aggressive with dark, moody colours, which was not what she expected from such a "quiet student".{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=107}} One of Sutcliffe's paintings was shown at the [[Walker Art Gallery]] in Liverpool as part of the [[John Moores (merchant)|John Moores]] exhibition, from November 1959 to January 1960. After the exhibition, Moores bought Sutcliffe's canvas for £65 ({{Inflation|UK|65|1960|fmt=eq|cursign=£}}), which was then equal to 6–7 weeks' wages for an average working man.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=50}} The picture Moores bought was titled ''Summer Painting'', and Sutcliffe attended a formal dinner to celebrate the exhibition with another art student, Susan Williams.<ref name="BeatlesBrowserFourp4">{{cite web|url=http://triumphpc.com/mersey-beat/beatles/beatlesbrowser-four4.shtml |title=Beatles Browser Four (p4) |publisher=Bill Harry/Mersey Beat Ltd. |access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref> Murray remembered that the work was painted on a board rather than a canvas. Due to its size, it had to be cut in two and hinged. Murray noted only one of the pieces actually got to the exhibition (because they stopped at a pub to celebrate), but sold nonetheless because Moores bought it for his son.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=168}}

Sutcliffe was turned down when he applied to study for an Art Teacher's Diploma (ATD) course at Liverpool Art College,<ref name="IssueNo23">{{cite web |url=http://www.merseybeat.co.uk/articles-details.php?cat=Bill+Harry's+Mersey+Beat&id=546 |title=Issue No.23 Mersey Beat Reveals The Beatles Are To Record! |access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref> but after meeting Kirchherr, he decided to leave the Beatles and attend the Hamburg College of Art. In June 1961, he did so, under the tutelage of Paolozzi, who later wrote a report commending Sutcliffe.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=65}}<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/idcard.asp Hamburg identity card, 1961] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925013351/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/idcard.asp |date=25 September 2006 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/report.asp Eduardo Paolozzi's Report] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070514220147/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/report.asp |date=14 May 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> In Paolozzi's words: "Sutcliffe is very gifted and very intelligent. In the meantime he has become one of my best students."<ref name="Stuart Sutcliffe Estate"/>

Sutcliffe's few surviving works reveal influence from British and European [[abstract art]]ists contemporary with the [[Abstract Expressionist]] movement in the U.S. His earlier figurative work is reminiscent of the [[kitchen sink realism|kitchen sink school]], particularly of [[John Bratby]], though Sutcliffe was producing abstract work by the end of the '50s including ''Summer Painting'' purchased by Moores.<ref name="The Summer Painting">{{cite web |url=http://www.stuartsutcliffeart.com/gallery.php?category=Middle%20Work |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061128113811/http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/gallery.php?category=Middle%20Work |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 November 2006 |title=The Summer Painting |publisher=Stuart Sutcliffe Estate. |year=2010 |access-date=1 July 2011 }}</ref> Sutcliffe's works bear some comparison with those of [[John Hoyland]] and [[Nicolas de Staël]], though they are more lyrical (Sutcliffe used the stage name "Stu de Staël" when he was playing with the Beatles on a Scottish tour in spring 1960). His later works are typically untitled, constructed from heavily impastoed slabs of pigment in the manner of de Staël (whom he learned about from [[Surrey]]-born art instructor Nicky Horsfield) and overlaid with scratched or squeezed linear elements creating enclosed spaces.

''Hamburg Painting No. 2'' was purchased by Liverpool's [[Walker Art Gallery]] and is one of a series entitled ''Hamburg'' in which surface and colour changes produce atmospheric energy. European artists (including Paolozzi) were also influencing Sutcliffe at the time.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/collections/20c/sutcliffe.asp  ''Hamburg Painting No. 2'' 1961] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070213165122/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/collections/20c/sutcliffe.asp |date=13 February 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 12 May 2007</ref> The Walker Art Gallery has other works by Sutcliffe: ''Self-Portrait'' (in charcoal) and ''The Crucifixion''.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/portrait.asp Sutcliffe's self-portrait (in charcoal)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925013300/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/portrait.asp |date=25 September 2006 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/online/exhibitions/beatles/art/sutcliffecrucifixion.asp "The Crucifixion" by Sutcliffe] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925013208/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/online/exhibitions/beatles/art/sutcliffecrucifixion.asp |date=25 September 2006 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 12 May 2007</ref> Lennon later hung two of Sutcliffe's paintings in his house ([[Kenwood, St. George's Hill|Kenwood]]) in [[Weybridge]], and McCartney had a Paolozzi sculpture in his [[Cavendish Avenue]] home.{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=170}}{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=258}}

==Death==
[[File:Grave of Stuart Sutcliffe at St Michael's Church, Huyton.jpg|thumb|Stuart Sutcliffe's grave at St. Michael's Church]]
While studying in Germany, Sutcliffe began experiencing severe headaches and acute sensitivity to light.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/letter3.asp Sefton General Hospital report] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070514030253/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/letter3.asp |date=14 May 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref> According to Kirchherr, some of the headaches left him temporarily blind.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=278}}{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=110}} In February 1962, Sutcliffe collapsed during an art class in Hamburg. Kirchherr's mother had German doctors examine him, but they were unable to determine the exact cause of his headaches. They suggested he return to the UK and have himself admitted to a hospital with better facilities; however, after arriving, Sutcliffe was told nothing was wrong and returned to Hamburg. He continued living with the Kirchherrs, but his condition soon worsened. After he collapsed again on 10 April 1962, Kirchherr took him to hospital, riding with him in the ambulance, but he died before they arrived.{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=110}} The cause of death was a [[cerebral haemorrhage]], specifically a ruptured [[aneurysm]]{{sfn|Lennon|2005|p=110}}{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=305}} resulting in cerebral paralysis due to severe bleeding into the right [[Ventricular system|ventricle]] of the brain. He was 21 years old.<ref name="Ingham">Ingham, Chris, (2003) [https://books.google.com/books?id=htl2U1fPq8QC&pg=PA361 ''The Rough Guide to the Beatles''], First Edition. London: Rough Guide, Ltd. p. 361. {{ISBN|1-84353-140-2}}. Accessed 25 August 2013.</ref>

On 13 April 1962, Kirchherr met the Beatles at [[Hamburg Airport]], telling them Sutcliffe had died a few days earlier.<ref name="BeatlesTimeline"/>{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=305}} Sutcliffe's mother flew to Hamburg with Beatles manager [[Brian Epstein]] and returned to Liverpool with her son's body.<ref name="FreshAirinterviewwithAstrid" /> Sutcliffe's father did not hear of Stuart's death for three weeks, as he was sailing to South America on a cruise ship, although the family arranged for a [[Military Chaplain|padre]], a military chaplain, to give him the news as soon as the ship docked in [[Buenos Aires]].{{sfn|Giuliano|Giuliano|1996|p=3}} After Sutcliffe's death, Kirchherr wrote a letter to his mother, apologising for being too ill to attend his funeral in Liverpool and saying how much she and Lennon missed him:
<blockquote>
Oh, Mum, he (Lennon) is in a terrible mood now, he just can't believe that darling Stuart never comes back. [He's] just crying his eyes out ... John is marvellous to me, he says that he knows Stuart so much and he loves him so much that he can understand me.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/letter4.asp Astrid's letter to Millie Sutcliffe] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926235836/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/sutcliffe/letter4.asp |date=26 September 2007 }} liverpoolmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 13 May 2007</ref>
</blockquote>
The cause of Sutcliffe's aneurysm is unknown, although authors of books on the Beatles have speculated it was caused by an earlier head injury. He may have been either kicked in the head, or thrown head first against a brick wall during an attack outside [[Lathom Hall]] after a performance in January 1961.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=240}} According to booking agent [[Allan Williams]], Lennon and Best went to Sutcliffe's aid, fighting off his attackers before dragging him to safety. Sutcliffe sustained a [[skull fracture|fractured skull]] in the fight and Lennon's little finger was broken.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=884}} Sutcliffe refused medical attention at the time and failed to keep an [[X-ray]] appointment at Sefton General Hospital.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=241}}

Although Lennon did not attend nor send flowers to Sutcliffe's funeral, his second wife, [[Yoko Ono]], recalled that Lennon mentioned Sutcliffe's name often, saying he was "[My] alter ego ... a spirit in his world ... a guiding force".{{sfn|Kane|2007|p=52}}

Sutcliffe is buried in [[St Michael's Church, Huyton|Huyton Parish Church]] Cemetery (also known as St. Michael's) in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, in North West England.

==Posthumous music releases==
[[File:Flickr - ronsaunders47 - The Beatles-Sgt Pepper backdrop..jpg|thumb|An image of Sutcliffe is included on the ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' album cover.]]
The Beatles' compilation album ''[[Anthology 1]]'', released in 1995, had previously unreleased recordings from the group's early years. Sutcliffe plays bass with the Beatles on three songs they recorded in 1960: "[[Hallelujah, I Love Her So]]", "[[You'll Be Mine (The Beatles song)|You'll Be Mine]]", and "[[Cayenne (song)|Cayenne]]".<ref name=autogenerated1>''The Beatles Anthology'' (DVD) 2003</ref> In addition, he is pictured on the front covers of all three ''Anthology'' albums.

In 2011, Sutcliffe's estate released a recording claimed to be Sutcliffe singing a cover of Elvis Presley's "[[Love Me Tender (song)|Love Me Tender]]", recorded in 1961 and donated to the estate in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stuartsutcliffefanclub.com/lovemetender.html |title="Love Me Tender", sung by Stuart Sutcliffe |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2011 |website=stuartsutcliffefanclub.com |publisher=The Official Stuart Sutcliffe Fan Club |access-date=11 January 2016 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303225820/http://www.stuartsutcliffefanclub.com/lovemetender.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The cover art shows a Sutcliffe painting entitled ''Homage to Elvis''. The recording was quickly proven to be fake by amateurs and industry professionals alike; it was clearly an amateur '[[pitch shift]]' edit of the 1967 recording of "Love Me Tender" by The Boston Show Band (later known as the [[Glittermen]]).{{cn|date=August 2023}}

==Film, television, and books==
Part One of ''[[The Beatles Anthology]]'' video documentary covers Sutcliffe's time with the group. There is no mention of his death in the documentary, but it is discussed in the [[The Beatles Anthology (book)|accompanying book]].

Sutcliffe was portrayed by David Nicholas Wilkinson in ''[[Birth of the Beatles]]'' (1979) and by [[Lee Williams (actor)|Lee Williams]] in ''[[In His Life: The John Lennon Story]]'' (2000).<ref name="InHisLife">{{cite web |url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/in_his_life_the_john_lennon_story/ |title=In His Life: The John Lennon Story (2000) |publisher=Rotten tomatoes |access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref> Sutcliffe's role in the Beatles' early career and the factors that led him to leave the group are dramatised in the 1994 film ''[[Backbeat (film)|Backbeat]]'', in which he was portrayed by American actor [[Stephen Dorff]]. Sutcliffe does not appear in ''[[Nowhere Boy]]'' (2009), but is briefly mentioned toward the end of the film.

Four television documentaries have been broadcast that deal with Sutcliffe's life:
*''Midnight Angel'' (1990) [[Granada TV]] (networked) U.K.<ref>Walker, John. (1990). [http://www.artdesigncafe.com/Stuart-Sutcliffe-Midnight-Angel-film "Stuart Sutcliffe and the film ''Midnight angel''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923174123/http://www.artdesigncafe.com/Stuart-Sutcliffe-Midnight-Angel-film |date=23 September 2015 }}. ''AND: Journal of Art'' / artdesigncafe. Retrieved 9 January 2011.</ref>
*''Exhibition'' (1991) Cologne, German TV<ref name="Stuart Sutcliffe Estate"/>
*''Stuart, His Life and Art'' (2005) [[BBC TV]]<ref name="Stuart Sutcliffe Estate"/>
*''Stuart Sutcliffe, The Lost Beatle''<ref name="TheLostBeatleEveningStandard">{{cite web |url=http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/images/peter_clark_-_sutcliffe_press_evening_standard_part_21.jpg |title=''Stuart Sutcliffe, The Lost Beatle'' |first=Pete |last=Clark |work=Evening Standard |access-date=1 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716155259/http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/images/peter_clark_-_sutcliffe_press_evening_standard_part_21.jpg |archive-date=16 July 2011}}</ref>

Books about Sutcliffe:

* ''Backbeat: Stuart Sutcliffe: The Lost Beatle'' (1994) Alan Clayson and Pauline Sutcliffe{{Sfn|Clayson|Sutcliffe|1994}}
* ''Stuart, The Life and Art of Stuart Sutcliffe'' (1995) Pauline Sutcliffe and Kay Williams{{Sfn|Sutcliffe|Williams|1996}}
* ''The Beatles Shadow, Stuart Sutcliffe, & His Lonely Hearts Club'' (2001) Pauline Sutcliffe and Douglas Thompson <ref name="Stuart Sutcliffe Estate"/>
* ''Stuart Sutcliffe: a retrospective'' (2008) Matthew H. Clough and Colin Fallows{{Sfn|Clough|Fallows|2008}}
* ''Baby's in Black'' (2010) Arne Bellstorf <ref name="Baby’sInBlackBook">{{cite web|url=http://www.selfmadehero.com/news/2011/05/the-resonance-fm-podcast-babys-in-black/ |title=The Resonance FM podcast: Baby's in Black |first=Alex |last=Fitch |publisher=Self Made Hero |date=10 May 2011 |access-date=1 July 2011}}</ref> - graphic novel

The Stuart Sutcliffe Estate sells memorabilia and artifacts of Sutcliffe's, including poems written by him and the chords and lyrics to songs Lennon and Sutcliffe were learning.<ref name="ArtifactsMemorabiliaEstateSong">{{cite web |url=http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/gallery.php?category=Artifacts%2FMemorabilia |title=Artifacts/Memorabilia: Lyrics and chords for a Lennon/Sutcliffe song |publisher=Stuart Sutcliffe Estate |access-date=1 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110704073201/http://stuartsutcliffeart.com/gallery.php?category=Artifacts%2FMemorabilia |archive-date=4 July 2011}}. The lyrics are from the [[Gene Vincent]] version of the song ''Peace of Mind'' released in 1958.</ref>

==See also==
* [[Outline of the Beatles]]
* [[The Beatles timeline]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book |first1=Alan |last1=Clayson |author-link1=Alan Clayson |first2=Pauline |last2=Sutcliffe |title=Backbeat: Stuart Sutcliffe: The Lost Beatle |publisher=[[Pan Books]] |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-330-33580-5 }}
* {{cite book |first1=Matthew H. |last1=Clough |first2=Colin |last2=Fallows |title=Stuart Sutcliffe: A Retrospective |publisher=[[Liverpool University Press]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-84631-176-5 }}
* {{cite book |first=Ray |last=Coleman |author-link=Ray Coleman |title=Lennon: The Definitive Biography|publisher=[[Pan Books]] |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-330-34568-2}}
* {{cite book |author1=Giuliano, Geoffrey  |author2=Giuliano, Brenda  |name-list-style=amp | title=The Lost Lennon Interviews| publisher=Adams Media Corporation| year=1996 | isbn=978-1-55850-638-1|ref={{SfnRef|Giuliano|Giuliano|1996}}}}
* {{cite book |first=Larry |last=Kane |author-link=Larry Kane |title=Lennon Revealed|url=https://archive.org/details/lennonrevealed0000kane |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Running Press]] |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7624-2966-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Lennon |first=Cynthia|title=John |publisher=[[Hodder & Stoughton]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-340-89512-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Miles |first=Barry |author-link=Barry Miles |title=[[Many Years From Now]] |publisher=[[Vintage (publisher)|Vintage]]-[[Random House]] |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-7493-8658-0}}
* {{cite book |first=Philip |last=Norman |author-link=Philip Norman (author) |title=Shout!: The Beatles in Their Generation|publisher=[[Fireside Books]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7432-3565-5}}
* {{cite book |first=Gareth L. |last=Pawlowski |title=How They Became the Beatles |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-525-24823-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/howtheybecamebea0000pawl }}
* {{cite book |author=Ryan, David Stuart |title=John Lennon's Secret: A Biography |publisher=Kozmik Press |year=1982 |isbn=978-0-905116-08-2 |ref={{SfnRef|Ryan|1982}}}}
* {{cite book |last=Spitz |first=Bob |author-link=Bob Spitz |title=The Beatles – The Biography |url=https://archive.org/details/beatlesbiography00spit |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Little, Brown and Company]] |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-316-80352-6 }}
* {{cite book |first1=Pauline |last1=Sutcliffe |first2=Kay |last2=Williams |title=Stuart: Life and Art of Stuart Sutcliffe |publisher=[[Genesis Publications]] |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-904351-52-1 }}
* {{cite book |first1=Pauline |last1=Sutcliffe |first2=Guinevere |last2=Tufnell |first3=Ursula |last3=Cornish|title=Working with the dying and bereaved: systemic approaches to therapeutic work |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-415-91993-7 }}
* {{cite book |first=Richie |last=Unterberger |title=The Unreleased Beatles|publisher=Backbeat (UK) |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-87930-892-6}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{toomanylinks|date=August 2023}}
*{{Official website}}
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027114821/http://www.geocities.com/imagine_80_jwl/Stuart1.html |date=27 October 2009 |title=The Comprehensive Stuart Sutcliffe Website }}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040503173659/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/liverpoollife/exhibitions/sutcliffe/index.asp Stuart Sutcliffe and The Beatles] exhibition at the [https://web.archive.org/web/20040415095737/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/liverpoollife/ Museum of Liverpool Life]
*[http://www.genesis-publications.com/books/st/index.html Stuart – ''The Life and Art of Stuart Sutcliffe'']
*[http://www.instantkarma.com/johnbio.html Stuart quote about the Romeos: Lennon, McCartney and Harrison] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713044124/http://www.instantkarma.com/johnbio.html |date=13 July 2011 }}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20081031054941/http://www.komm-gib-mir-deine-hand.de/resources/Stuart_english.pdf A summary of Sutcliffe's last year of life in Germany from the book ''Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand'']
*[http://huyton-parish-church.org.uk Buried in Huyton Parish Church Cemetery]
*[http://searcharchives.bl.uk/IAMS_VU2:IAMS040-002481418 Partial letter from John Lennon to Stuart Sutcliffe]{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} at the [[British Library]]
* {{Discogs artist|Stuart Sutcliffe}}
* {{IMDb name|id=4931653}}

{{The Beatles}}
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