Alan Livingston Gave Us the Beatles and Sinatra -- Now Let's Give Him His Due

You may not know Alan Livingston, who died on Friday at age 91, by name. But if you know anything about 20th century popular culture, you know his work. Livingston was doubly blessed, first by being a talented, creative guy with amazing instincts, and second by being in the right place at the right time to put those talents to work.

Livingston started working for Capitol Records in 1946, only four years after the label had started up, and hit the ground running by creating the character of Bozo The Clown for kids' records and accompanying books. The records sold like crazy, helping to turn Capitol into a major force in the record business, and once Bozo moved to TV he became a bonafide pop culture icon.

With Bozo under his belt, Livingston became more involved in producing children's records for Capitol, and even wrote the hit song "I Tawt I Taw A Puddy Tat" for Tweety Pie -- er, Mel Blanc. Livingston could have coasted on his success and produced kids' music for the rest of his career. But he was just getting started.

In 1953, Frank Sinatra was a has-been crooner who'd been dropped by Columbia Records and couldn't find a new label. Over the strenuous objections of most of the Capitol brass, Livingston signed him to a long-term contract. Once Sinatra started recording for the label, it was Livingston's idea to pair him with arranger Nelson Riddle, an idea Sinatra initially disliked. The results made Sinatra a bigger star than ever, and Capitol one of the most successful record labels in the world. The Sinatra-Riddle team not only created some of the greatest records in pop history -- In The Wee Small Hours, Songs For Swingin' Lovers and Only The Lonely, to name a few -- but also a cash cow that's still paying the bills for Capitol more than half a century later.

Livingston left Capitol for a few years to work in television programming for NBC, where he oversaw the production of the pilot episode of a little show called Bonanza -- one of the biggest hit shows in TV history, which ran for 14 seasons and is still in syndication today.

Astoundingly, Livingston's biggest coup was yet to come. He returned to Capitol in 1961, and was president of the label when EMI, which owned Capitol, started having success in England with a new homegrown band called The Beatles. Livingston turned down their first few singles for American distribution; after all, who ever heard of a British group having a hit in the States? But when he heard "I Want To Hold Your Hand" in late 1963, he decided to throw caution to the wind. He spent an unheard-of $50,000 in promotion to tattoo the Fab Four onto the American consciousness.

Obviously, it worked.

During the '60s, Livingston saw the direction in which pop music was headed, and accordingly moved Capitol into the rock era by signing acts like the Beach Boys, The Band and the Steve Miller Band. By the time he left the label for good in 1968, his reputation within the music business as a genius was assured.

Strangely enough, Alan Livingston's name may be best-known to laymen -- certainly to Beatles fans -- for a rare marketing screw-up that happened on his watch. The Beatles submitted their album Yesterday And Today in the spring of 1966 with cover art that showed the Fab Four grinning maniacally, wearing butchers smocks with raw meat and dismembered baby dolls strewn about. Doesn't sound like a big deal today, but 40-plus years ago the "butcher cover" caused such a furor that it had to be withdrawn and re-released with a new cover. Livingston took home a box of LPs with the original cover and, decades later, gave them to his son, who promptly sold them. Livingston's letter to retailers about the album recall added to his lore, and "certified Livingston copies" of the butcher cover are among the most valuable Beatles collectors items, fetching up to $20,000 apiece.

But that's just a footnote to one of the most astonishing careers the entertainment business has known. Unlike Clive Davis or Tommy Mottola, Livingston never sought the spotlight. To the day he died, was assured of a comfortable anonymity, punctured only by those in the industry or fans with encyclopedic knowledge of the artists he turned into stars.

In this day and age, where record companies are no longer the mighty behemoths they once were and every music blogger is an A & R man in miniature, it's hard to imagine one person having so much influence on pop music for so long. And in this time of relentless self-promotion, it's nearly impossible to think that one guy could accomplish what Livingston did and go so unheralded by the public at large. So the next time you hear "I've Got You Under My Skin" or "Hey Jude" or "Good Vibrations" -- or, for that matter, "I Tawt I Taw A Puddy Tat" -- think about Alan Livingston and how different our shared musical history might have been had he not been around.

Comments

[Shake-A-Spear]

Nice piece! Why do we have to wait for guys to die before we know about them? Can't they run pre-obituary stuff in newspapers? PEOPLE YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT( AND PROBABLY NEVER HEARD OF) BEFORE THEY KICK OFF.

[Freedoms Friend]

Always knew the Beatles were born in New York City, mark up another one for the Yanks!

[BigCheese]

I thought it was Dave Dexter who was responsible for rejecting the Beatles early singles. And he only relented with "I Want to Hold Your Hand" because the VeeJay singles were beginning to sell. Dexter was also responsible for stripping songs off the UK albums to make "filler" albums for Capitol and remixed the masters with awful reverb and "duophonic" effects.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Dexter,_Jr.

Not sure what role Alan Livingston played in all of that, but I guess he was cool with it even though the Beatles were not. (They even complained about Capitol butchering their work at a 1965 press conference with Livingston right next to them, about to present some gold records -- hillariously awkward).

Likewise, it was Nik Venet who "discovered" the Beach Boys. He was probably the only Capitol exec young enough to even understand Rock & Roll. Everyone else was still living in Sinatra-land. And despite the endless string of hits and Brian Wilson's phenomenal talent, Capitol never regarded the Beach Boys as anything more than a fad while Livingston was in charge. They completely dropped the ball with Pet Sounds and one of the reasons SMiLE wasn't finished was because Wilson was suing Capitol for artist royalties the band was owed.

I'll give Livingston credit for helping Sinatra reach his peak as an artist. But he had very little to do with the success of any of the rock acts that Capitol signed during his tenure.

[garlicpowder]

but he did take that box of butcher covers home. Didn't he?

[BigCheese]

I guess so.

It's worth stressing that the whole concept of the "Butcher Cover" was intended as a snarky protest by the Beatles over the way their albums were being mutilated by Capitol Records. (See my earlier post.) I'm not sure if Alan Livingston -- or Tony Sachs, for that matter -- ever got the message.

[Citizen54]

Great piece.

I had heard of Mr Livingston through reading about the early days of The Beatles, but I had no idea he was involved with those great Sinatra albums or other projects.

While those rejected Beatles songs are great, there is something about the beginning of I Want to Hold Your Hand that is so joyous and upbeat that it's an irresistible record.

[DCDan]

Tony, I'm a fan of your blogs, even on some subjects I'm not particularly interested in. I really enjoy your writing. And this is no exception, your deserved tribute to Alan Livingston. Without seeming disrespectul to the recently departed may I offer one note of dissent? Sure, signing a retread Sinatra and pairing him with Nelson Riddle for his more seminal work? Undoubtedly brilliant and noteworthy. But giving credit for foisting the Beatles onto the American consciousness? ... That seems more than a generous stretch.

The Beatles exploded almost in spite of Livingston and Capitol. First, they landed in Capitol's lap due to the EMI affiliation; then, Capitol not only didn't promote but outright REJECTED several singles before finally *submitting* to "I Want to Hold Your Hand." This isn't just hindsight-being-20/20: What kind of trailblazer hears and refuses to press and distribute "Please Please Me," "From Me to You," and "She Loves You," (which ended up being the Beatles' most successful single in the UK) just because, historically, British bands hadn't had success in the American market?

[Tony Sachs - Huffpost Blogger]

An excellent point, DCDan. You are absolutely correct that Livingston could have, and probably should have, noticed the Beatles' brilliance several months before he did. However, the Fabs' first three American singles, which wound up getting released on other labels, were all resounding flops. You can argue that it's because Vee Jay and Swan didn't have the marketing muscle of Capitol, but regardless, Livingston could have kept on turning down EMI's overtures because of those three flops.

Instead, Livingston not only released "I Want To Hold Your Hand," but he also promoted it more heavily than any other record released to that time. If he'd simply put "Hand" out there with no promotion, it might well have followed the fate of the Beatles' other singles. It's thanks to Livingston's saturation marketing, I think, that the Beatles' went from being a band with great songs to a cultural phenomenon, at least in the States.

And thanks for the kind words! They're much appreciated.

[Aramingo]

Not only did the Beatles first three singles flop here, but so did Del Shannon's cover of one of them. And Del was an established star at the time. That aside, thanks for giving Livingston's side of the story. The impression I've had all these years is that EMI had to force the Beatles down Capitol's throat.