Alan Livingston with The Beatles at the Plaza Hotel, NYC, February 7, 1964
Alan Livingston died a couple of days ago. He was with Capitol Records on-and-off over a period of twenty years, and he happened to be its president when The Beatles were tossed in his lap by EMI, which had bought Capitol in 1955. Many news sources have stated that Livingston signed the Beatles, but that’s simply not correct. The man who best knows the American side of the Beatles saga is Bruce Spizer, and at this link he explains Livingston’s role in their story. The band that Livingston really deserves credit for signing is the Beach Boys.
Bozo! Yeesh! Plus, I keep forgetting that Frankie had hit a snag in his career back then, but not for long. Some of his best work was done with Nelson Riddle, as well as Gordon Jenkins. Livingston must have been proud of his work with the Beach Boys! as everybody claimed to have a piece of the Beatles pie.