If Stuart Sutcliffe had lived...

[ringo9]

What an interesting question! Interesting input by Lord Reith and paul62. I often think about that and tend to think that had he stayed he would have improved as a player but who knows if he would have started to write songs. Maybe he would have and George would have yet another competitor??? We'll never know. BTW what do you think about Stu's sister las comments when she implied that Stu may have died as a consequence of John kicking him in the head a couple of years earlier. I've searched the web but apparently there's no account of that ever happening. On the contrary I read that John once got into a fight to defend him

[miggynav]

It's hard to imagine Stu not becoming involved with Apple in some way. The more I think about it the more it seems like Stu's passing was a very big deal for John and had a profound effect on how things panned out.

He could have been the head of Apple instead of Neal....now what kind of post Beatles releases would he had initiated?

[Lord Reith]

It's hard to imagine Stu not becoming involved with Apple in some way. The more I think about it the more it seems like Stu's passing was a very big deal for John and had a profound effect on how things panned out.

He could have been the head of Apple instead of Neal....now what kind of post Beatles releases would he had initiated?

Love Me Tender, by the Boston Show Band!

[georgefromhenley]

Interesting post.

In my new book "The Beatles Mach Schau in Hamburg" I have a large chapter on Stuarts life after leaving the Beatles but I haven't asked "what if"-questions.

Nevertheless- great answers here.

Check out my book here.
www.apcor.net

PS
There is a large analysis about the Polydor sessions and a round up of the Star Club tape in separate chapters in it.

[paul62]

In an alternate reality, Stu Sutcliffe didn't die but developed a vocal and bass-playing style on a par with Jack Bruce. Stu joined forces with Tony Sheridan (who'd become fascinated with playing blues guitar loudly through a big amplifier stack, just like Eric Clapton) and together they managed to convince Pete Best to join them in Hamburg, practice sixteen hours a day and become a highly-skilled jazz-influenced rock drummer, just like Ginger Baker.

When Cream became famous, Stu, Tony and Pete's band (called "The Best") was considered by some to be better than Cream. The band was signed to Polydor Records and Bert Kaempfert produced their records. Like George Martin with The Beatles and Felix Pappalardi with Cream, Bert played on some tracks recorded by "The Best". Alas, the records failed to sell outside West Germany but they were highly influential in the West German hard rock scene: some copies were smuggled into the Eastern Bloc and were highly prized by a small but loyal group of fans.

[WilliamShears]

In an alternate reality, Stu Sutcliffe didn't die but developed a vocal and bass-playing style on a par with Jack Bruce. Stu joined forces with Tony Sheridan (who'd become fascinated with playing blues guitar loudly through a big amplifier stack, just like Eric Clapton) and together they managed to convince Pete Best to join them in Hamburg, practice sixteen hours a day and become a highly-skilled jazz-influenced rock drummer, just like Ginger Baker.

When Cream became famous, Stu, Tony and Pete's band (called "The Best") was considered by some to be better than Cream. The band was signed to Polydor Records and Bert Kaempfert produced their records. Like George Martin with The Beatles and Felix Pappalardi with Cream, Bert played on some tracks recorded by "The Best". Alas, the records failed to sell outside West Germany but they were highly influential in the West German hard rock scene: some copies were smuggled into the Eastern Bloc and were highly prized by a small but loyal group of fans.

I think we all just witnessed the birth of a legitimate Stu Sufcliff fan fiction genre!

[PanKotskiy]

Here's Spencer Leigh's take on what might have happened If Lennon had left The Beatles in 1962 (11/11/2005 BBC Liverpool).

After all this time, John Lennon has been persuaded to perform again. Tonight, after 40 years, John is going to be playing at the Cavern in a band which includes Ringo Starr from the Hurricanes, his son Julian, and a few former Quarry Men. ‘I have nothing to prove,’ he insists, ‘It’s just a way of spending some time. I know I was the best. The Beatles are the nowhere men, not me.’

How's that for an alternative history idea?