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BEATLES INSIDER AND MUSIC INDUSTRY EXECUTIVE
KEN MANSFIELD PENS MEMOIR OF ROCK’S GREATEST ERA:
THE WHITE BOOK
The Beatles, the Bands, the Biz: An Insider's Look at an Era
Includes Never-Before-Told Accounts About The Fab Four, The
Beach Boys, Roy Orbison, Waylon Jennings, James Taylor, Harry
Nilsson and Many More (that's where Brute fits in!)
Book Available w/Limited, Numbered Edition a la The Beatles’
“The White Album”
-- Ken Mansfield has worked with some of the biggest giants
in the rock ‘n roll and the country music genres. As the
former manager of the Apple Records label, he was invited by
his bosses, The Beatles to be among only a handful of eyewitnesses
to catch their last-ever gig on the rooftop of their London
headquarters on January 30, 1969. He was a loyal employee and
companion to John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and
Ringo Starr both during the band years and well after their
breakup in 1970. He was present when they composed some of their
most enduring tunes. As a record label exec and Grammy Award-winning
producer, he also worked on the marketing, promotion and production
of dozens of top-selling artists, such as the Beach Boys, and
was also a major player in country music in the 1970s as producer
of choice of the groundbreaking Outlaw movement, whose impact
is still felt in the genre to this very day.
Some of the great stories in the book include:
-- Spending hours with the Beatles on the floor of the yet-to-be-furnished
Apple offices in London mulling over whether “Hey Jude”
or “Revolution” should be the A-side of their first
45 with Apple Records in 1968. Ken was assigned to visit top
rock radio stations in the U.S and have the DJ’s vote for
their favorite; naturally the consensus was for “Hey Jude,”
which was then ultimately chosen and became one of the most
successful singles in their career.
-- Ken was among the very few of the Fab Four associates to
witness the historic last Beatles concert on the rooftop of
3 Savile Row, Apple’s headquarters in London, on January
30, 1969 - spot him in the Let It Be film wearing the white
raincoat, sitting next to Yoko Ono and Maureen Starkey, Ringo’s
wife. Because it was bitter cold, they were huddled together
against the smokestack; for a while Ken stood a few feet away
from Harrison holding up four lit cigarettes, so that the guitarist
could reach over and warm the tips of his fingers in order to
feel his guitar strings.
-- John Lennon and Yoko Ono protesting on Mansfield’s
decision not to release a single on Apple Records called “The
King of Fuh” in the U.S After Ken stated that the lyrics
would be blatantly objectionable by American standards, Lennon
said, “we thought you were one of us, Ken…but it looks
like you are just one of the establishment like everyone else,
after all… we thought we could trust you of all people
to understand the concept behind the whole Apple enterprise…
we didn’t know you were sent over here from the ‘land
of the free’ to act as Apple’s personal tight-assed
censor!”
http://fufkin.com/columns/gold/gold_01_05.ht
BBC
Oxford Music
Brute Force/Misty's Big Adventure @ The Cellar, By Jon Surtees
Scram
Magazine
By Kim Cooper, Editrix
Brute Force (celebrated in Scram #3 and again in this issue)
was the most unlikely Scramarama performer, more so than even
the Music Machine. Who would believe it would be possible to
lure this mysterious sixties auteur out to California, or that
when we did he would deliver a performance powerful enough to
captivate every soul in attendance? I tracked down Stephen Friedland
early in the planning stages of the fest, meeting with him and
daughter Lilah in a NYC jazz bar. My pal Keith Bearden came
along for moral support, because I was frankly intimidated and
somewhat starstruck by Brute! He quickly put us at ease with
his charming conversation, and demonstrated his people skills
when a drunken East Indian joined our party and shared a lifetime
of pain and resentment. Brute patiently drew this troubled person
out, calmed his outbursts, and sent him on his way. A couple
days later I met again with Brute and journalist Dawn Eden,
and tentatively asked if he'd be interested in playing Scramarama.
To my delight, he immediately agreed. While financial concerns
and the events of September 11 inserted some snags in the works,
this was one artist that I didn't want to let get away. Special
thanks go out to Andy Zax, for all his encouragement when it
seemed least likely to fly. I knew it was all worth it from
the moment Brute sat down at the electric piano and started
playing those weird and wonderful songs. His performance, encompassing
music, prop comedy and audience participation, was incredibly
moving and hilarious. We didn't want him to leave, and now we
all want him to come back.
LA
Times
By Falling James, Entertainment writer
But Scramarama was great for so many other reasons, like my
first experience with Stephen Friedland, who performs solo under
the name Brute Force. He was once on Apple Records, and had
his Apple single, "King of Fuh" (reverse the words),
banned. He played in and to the vacant spaces of the giant theater.
I sat in the first balcony, by myself, spying on him. He played
a small electric piano, these really lovely melodies with absurd
lyrics, like "To Sit on a Sandwich," which has this
timeless, intense urgency and yet it really is literally about
sitting on sandwiches. And the one about the world being full
of so much bullshit, a song about cows, had this really appealing
tumbling piano riff. Brute Force did comedy too, like inventing
a new pep-rally cheer for downcast Hollywood . . . acting out
sounds of various letters of the alphabet and props he played
with . . . and then finally the simply beautiful, dainty ballad
about the fuh king, such a pretty and emotional (and yes, silly)
song no matter which level you take it on. Mr. Force was a wondrous
revelation to me, and I was inspired and charmed by his multi-leveled,
intelligent and loving approach to his performance. Plus he
was hilarious. Plus his songs were glorious.
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