Remember When The Beatles Hired a “Ghost Writer” After They Became Famous?

“Ghostwriting” and “The Beatles” aren’t often associated with one another, thanks to the massive starpower of the Fab Four’s main songwriting duo, Paul McCartney and John Lennon. Part of what made The Beatles so unique was the fact that they wrote the majority of their songs themselves, which was still a growing practice in early 1960s rock ‘n’ roll.

Videos by American Songwriter

Offstage, however, the band did utilize the help of a ghostwriter—one who admitted to “starting on the wrong foot” when he made one major blunder about the Liverpool transportation system.

Brian Epstein Hired a Ghostwriter for The Beatles, but Not for Their Music

The Beatles’ music and their live performances were undoubtedly the driving force behind Beatlemania. But this phenomenon became so pervasive and ubiquitous not just through music but also through the band’s films, clever merchandising, and, starting in the early 1960s, a Daily Express column featuring the byline of The Beatles’ youngest member, George Harrison.

In reality, Derek Taylor, Express journalist, was the one doing most of the writing. Taylor saw The Beatles perform with Roy Orbison in March 1963 while on assignment for the British publication. As a Daily Express writer, there was an assumption that Taylor’s review of the concert would be somewhat condescending about rock ‘n’ roll (such was the attitude at the time).

Instead, Taylor wrote a review so glowing that the band began seeking him out for more press. The band’s manager, Brian Epstein, had the clever idea to take this public outreach one step further by implementing a regular column in the Express that would have a Beatle byline. A music blog before there were music blogs, this regular column was an interesting way to get the public acquainted with the young men who were quickly becoming global sensations.

But to say the initial process was seamless would be to ignore one major gaffe Taylor experienced while reading the band “their” first article. Thank goodness for British politeness.

George Harrison Opted to Help Derek Taylor After Hearing the First Article

When Brian Epstein asked Derek Taylor to read his first ghostwritten article for The Beatles, he did so trepidatiously. Taylor had imagined a conversation between George Harrison and his father, which saw the musician’s dad give his son his blessing to pursue a career as an artist. “Stick to your guitar, and I’ll carry on driving the big green jobs,” Taylor read, per Anthology. The band stopped him. They didn’t know what “big green jobs” were. Liverpool buses, he replied.

“George said, ‘I didn’t know they were called big green jobs,’” Taylor recalled. “John said, ‘I didn’t know they were either.’ I said, ‘Well, I don’t know that they are.’ I had just made it up, which, of course, is what happens on newspapers, and that’s why all these things sound so phoney.” 

“Anyway,” he continued, “the long and short of it was, after I’d passed the test by admitting that I’d made up ‘big green jobs,’ George said, ‘I’ll help you write the column. We can do it together.’” 

Harrison was the first to warm up to Taylor. And while the rest of the band was admittedly cool toward the journalist at first, he eventually developed relationships with Paul, Ringo, and John alike. He remained friends and colleagues with the band even after they broke up.

Upon his passing in 1997, Taylor left behind a legacy as one of the rare individuals who could say they used to ghostwrite for The Beatles.