The Lost Beatles Photographs: The Bob Bonis Archive, 1964-1966

★★★1/2
Writer: Larry Marion
Publisher: HarperCollins

The Beatles’ US tour manager, Bob Bonis, wasn’t a professional photographer, and none of these photos ”“ which he took during the band’s three North American tours ”“ have previously been published. That’s no reflection of their quality. Shot in hotels, airplanes, dressing rooms and arenas, these nearly 200 pictures are striking in their intimacy. Arranged chronologically, with notes by rock-memorabilia expert Larry Marion, they show the Beatles goofing around (Ringo Starr spins a toy gun on his finger while wearing a pink towel on his waist), but they also hint at the Fabs’ evolution. The pics begin in August ’64; two years later, the band is hipper, more aloof. The final shot of a sullen John Lennon, wearing dark glasses and a purple and green jacket and reclining in a closet, suggests why their concerts had to end.