This document is available from: https://www.ibiblio.org/mal/MO/philm/derek_taylor/

Monday September 8 1997 2:34 PM EDT

Derek Taylor's official obituary and biography from Apple:

DEREK TAYLOR, The Beatles' friend and Press Officer across a span of
30 years, has died at his home in Suffolk after a long illness.  He
was 65.

Derek Taylor was born in Liverpool on May 7, 1932.  He was educated in
the city and became a journalist for "The Hoylake and West Kirby
Advertiser" before joining "The Liverpool Daily Post & Echo."  In
1962, he became the show business correspondent for the northern
edition of "The Daily Express," based in Manchester.

In 1958 he married Joan Doughty in Bebington, The Wirral.

On May 30th, 1963, Derek covered The Beatles' concert at The
Manchester Odeon.  In his review in "the Daily Express" the next day
he wrote: "The Liverpool Sound came to Manchester last night, and I
thought it was magnificent. . . The spectacle of these fresh, cheeky,
sharp, young entertainers in apposition to the shiny-eyed teenage
idolaters is as good as a rejuvenating drug for the jaded adult."

Following a number of subsequent exclusive interviews and reports on
The Beatles, Derek developed a close relationship with the group,
ghosting a weekly column by George for the "Express," and then
ghosting Brian Epstein's biography, "A Cellarful Of Noise."

In April 1964, Derek became Brian Epstein's personal assistant and
scriptwriter and The Beatles' Press Officer.  He traveled with The
Beatles on their world tour of 1964, and then resigned and moved to
California, where - as a publicist - he represented The Byrds, The
Beach Boys, Captain Beefheart, Paul Revere and The Raiders and
co-founded the Monterey International Pop Music Festival of 1967.

In 1968, with the institution of Apple Corps, Derek returned to
England with his wife Joan and their children to become The Beatles'
Press Officer, casually establishing his legendary press "salon" at
the Apple building in Saville Row, from where he befriended all comers
and addressed the world until the break-up of The Beatles in 1970.

Derek then joined Warner, Elektra and Atlantic Records, rising to vice
president at Warner Brothers in America by 1977.  During this period,
he produced albums by George Melly, John Le Mesurier and Harry
Nilsson.

In 1978, he left Warner Bros to become a writer.  Derek wrote and
consulted on numerous books, among them George Harrison's biography,
"I, Me, Mine" and Michelle Phillips' "California Dreamin'," and his
own works, including "As Time Goes By," "Fifty Years Adrift" and "It
Was Twenty Years Ago Today."

In the mid-80's, Derek returned to Apple Corps, from where he
orchestrated and controlled the massively-successful launches of "The
Beatles Live at the BBC" and, perhaps rock and roll's greatest
multi-meida success of all time, "The Beatles Anthology."

Derek Taylor leaves a wife, Joan, and children Timothy, Dominic,
Gerard, Abigail, Vanessa and Annabel - and thousands of friends.

Sir Paul McCartney paid tribute to Derek today.  He said:  "He was a
beautiful man.  It's a time for tears.  Words may come later."

Paul McCartney's publicist and Derek Taylor's "Anthology" press
assistant Geoff Baker commented today:  "Derek leaves a thousand
friends.  Derek was not only the World's Greatest Press Officer, he
was also one of the funniest, kindest and most decent men you could
have met.  All who did meet him, loved him.  In 1969, The Beatles sang
"and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make" -
Derek Taylor was the proof of that equation."

Rupert Perry, Chairman of the EMI Records Group, UK & Ireland, said
today:  "The untimely death of Derek Taylor is a sad loss for our
industry and especially for those of us at EMI privileged to have
known him.

"During his years holding the outside world together during the crazy
days of Apple at 3 Savile Row, and more recently as the constant voice
of sanity and reason amidst the furor of The Beatles' 'new' recordings
and reunions, Derek's calmness and infinite charm and wisdom cooled
many a hot head.  Despite his illness, Derek continued to provide
support to The Beatles, Apple and EMI, and we will remember him with
great affection and gratitude."

David Hughes, head of communications at EMI, said:  "I felt I knew
Derek Taylor before I actually did.  While working on "Disc & Music
Echo" in the Sixties, Derek's wild weekly column from Los Angeles
became the most eagerly-anticipated words of any music writer of the
time.  When in recent years, I came to actually know him, it was as if
we had been friends for all those 30 years.  I will not see his like
again."

A private funeral for Derek Taylor will be held in Suffolk on Friday. 


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