ItвЂ™s basically a cut-and-paste job, but a pretty accomplished and judiciously chosen one. Even in my early fandom days, I wanted everything. And, crucially, the book doesnвЂ™t stop in 1970 but includes just as many entries about the solo careers in the decade that followed (it stops short of McCartney IIВ and JohnвЂ™s death, but does cover PaulвЂ™s Japan pot bust). Put together by journalist Sue Wenner with photographers Goldie Friede and Robin Titone, it also features 100 photographs - all in black and white, but many of which are very interesting indeed (more on that later). As the title indicates, itвЂ™s an encyclopedia of sorts, with information arranged in alphabetical order, from Apple to Zapple. I borrowed this from a school friend just as my new musical obsession was beginning to gather momentum, and it rapidly became something of a Beatles bible for me as I pored over every word. In these post-Anthology, post-Lewisohn, post-internet days, where detailed information about what The Beatles had for lunch on any given day (and what the waiter thought about it) is available at the touch of a button, itвЂ™s interesting to look back on those books which used to be the key sources of information about the band back in the day.ДЄs a fan growing up in the 1980s (I donвЂ™t know whether that makes me second- or third-generation, or even if that really matters), one such valued tome was The Beatles A-Z, a US publication which came out in 1980.

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