58: Beatle Mal – The “Gentle Giant”

SATB 58In this extended episode, Richard and Robert pay tribute to The Beatles’ road manager-turned-producer/songwriter. Evans did more than lift and carry: he contributed musically in the studio and continued assisting and collaborating with them until his sad and tragic end at 40. Hear our analysis, musical clips and – in an interview with Laura Gross taped five weeks before his death – his own words.

Songs include “Lonely Man” and “No Matter What.”

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16 thoughts on “58: Beatle Mal – The “Gentle Giant””

    1. It was a tape recording of a private interview, not professional. At times I thought the interviewer was something of a groupie, with her inartful interjections and artificiality. But she does get in some good questions, and clearly knew something beyond the basics of the Beatles’ history. And her approach seemed to enliven Mal.

    1. It was a tape recording of a private interview, not professional. At times I thought the interviewer was something of a groupie, with her inartful interjections and artificiality. But she does get in some good questions, and clearly knew something beyond the basics of the Beatles’ history. And her approach seemed to enliven Mal.

  1. Hey guys…I just loved this week’s show and wanted to tell you how great it was to hear your thoughtful retelling of the Mal Evans legend. Our home office for White Horse Pictures is only a short distance from 8122 West 4th Street, where Mal met his end…I think about it every time I’m there. I remember the words of my Beatles mentor, the late great Joe Pope, after we heard about Mal’s death in 1976; “He stood in the doorway when the police came for The Beatles on the rooftop, but there was no one to stand in the doorway when the police came for him.”

  2. Hey guys…I just loved this week’s show and wanted to tell you how great it was to hear your thoughtful retelling of the Mal Evans legend. Our home office for White Horse Pictures is only a short distance from 8122 West 4th Street, where Mal met his end…I think about it every time I’m there. I remember the words of my Beatles mentor, the late great Joe Pope, after we heard about Mal’s death in 1976; “He stood in the doorway when the police came for The Beatles on the rooftop, but there was no one to stand in the doorway when the police came for him.”

  3. Just came upon this…very interesting, especially the audio with Mal speaking. I have read about poor Mal’s issues with the Beatles following the breakup, marriages, etc. I can recall Alistair Taylor corroborating this, both at Beatle fests and notably in his book, Mr. Fixit…where he was treated much the same way. Who knows…not wanting to stick up for Paul’s deplorable behavior but he was fairly messed up at the time and apparently pushed all related Beatle folk away during this period. Still, it was so unnecessary and very cruel. I don’t blame Mal at all for keeping those diaries. I know he felt this would garner him the revenue he so desperately needed as well as telling the world what it was like being inside the Beatles’ inner circle. I’ve always felt badly for Mal. I hope Paul and Ringo do, too. He deserved better. Btw…You and Me Babe…great song. Did he receive money for this song?

  4. Just came upon this…very interesting, especially the audio with Mal speaking. I have read about poor Mal’s issues with the Beatles following the breakup, marriages, etc. I can recall Alistair Taylor corroborating this, both at Beatle fests and notably in his book, Mr. Fixit…where he was treated much the same way. Who knows…not wanting to stick up for Paul’s deplorable behavior but he was fairly messed up at the time and apparently pushed all related Beatle folk away during this period. Still, it was so unnecessary and very cruel. I don’t blame Mal at all for keeping those diaries. I know he felt this would garner him the revenue he so desperately needed as well as telling the world what it was like being inside the Beatles’ inner circle. I’ve always felt badly for Mal. I hope Paul and Ringo do, too. He deserved better. Btw…You and Me Babe…great song. Did he receive money for this song?

  5. Loved this show. Could you PLEASE settle something once & for all? There is no doubt that Mal was in HELP but I never believed that the man with the Chello in “A Hard Day’s Night” was him. Do you know the scene I am writing about? It’s where John is talking with the woman back stage about him looking “just like him” and a man walks by with a chello. I’ve always been told that the male in the scene was Mal but it doesn’t look like him to me. Is it? Please settle this long, on going debate. Thank you. Brian J Moran, Lindenhurst, Long Island , NY.
    P.S. She looks more like him than I do!

  6. Loved this show. Could you PLEASE settle something once & for all? There is no doubt that Mal was in HELP but I never believed that the man with the Chello in “A Hard Day’s Night” was him. Do you know the scene I am writing about? It’s where John is talking with the woman back stage about him looking “just like him” and a man walks by with a chello. I’ve always been told that the male in the scene was Mal but it doesn’t look like him to me. Is it? Please settle this long, on going debate. Thank you. Brian J Moran, Lindenhurst, Long Island , NY.
    P.S. She looks more like him than I do!

  7. Was Mal in “A Hard Day’s Night?” I know that he was SUPPOSE to be the man carrying the Chello in the scene where John is talking to the woman about “him looking just like him” but I still say that that wasn’t Mal Evans.
    Please settle this argument.

  8. Was Mal in “A Hard Day’s Night?” I know that he was SUPPOSE to be the man carrying the Chello in the scene where John is talking to the woman about “him looking just like him” but I still say that that wasn’t Mal Evans.
    Please settle this argument.

  9. Interesting episode. But not sure that it really dealt with how the Beatles treated Mal after the breakup. I suspect they could all be criticised fairly heavily for a rather callous attitude. Yin and yang yet again… Cheers

  10. Interesting episode. But not sure that it really dealt with how the Beatles treated Mal after the breakup. I suspect they could all be criticised fairly heavily for a rather callous attitude. Yin and yang yet again… Cheers

  11. I’m pretty sure Mark Lewisohn said that he was in possession of the Mal Evans book manuscript, when I saw him being interviewed at the Beatles Happening (a Finnish Beatles fest) in March.

  12. I’m pretty sure Mark Lewisohn said that he was in possession of the Mal Evans book manuscript, when I saw him being interviewed at the Beatles Happening (a Finnish Beatles fest) in March.

  13. Mal Evans was a super nice guy.

    He took a lot of time with us and was especially kind to me while at EMI.

    I remember the first time I saw him he came out while I was walking down the hallway at EMI and I said….”Wow….Mal Evans?” and I think he was impressed that he had been recognized!

    I asked…”Mal where you REALLY in that cold water in “HELP?”
    He smiled and said “Oh yeah….” just had to drink lots of cups of coffee!

    Just the way he was before he was.

    TH

  14. Mal Evans was a super nice guy.

    He took a lot of time with us and was especially kind to me while at EMI.

    I remember the first time I saw him he came out while I was walking down the hallway at EMI and I said….”Wow….Mal Evans?” and I think he was impressed that he had been recognized!

    I asked…”Mal where you REALLY in that cold water in “HELP?”
    He smiled and said “Oh yeah….” just had to drink lots of cups of coffee!

    Just the way he was before he was.

    TH

  15. One of your best yet. Great episode on a somewhat forgotten man in Beates lore. He has now been gone over 40 years. What a sad ending for the “Gentle Giant”! Wish I was at the Beatlefest he was at. I bet he was great!

  16. One of your best yet. Great episode on a somewhat forgotten man in Beates lore. He has now been gone over 40 years. What a sad ending for the “Gentle Giant”! Wish I was at the Beatlefest he was at. I bet he was great!

  17. Christopher Cruz

    Is that Mal eating the spaghetti in the promotional video for Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck In The Middle With You”? I do know that the band’s debut album was recorded at the Apple recording studios (even though they weren’t actually signed with Apple, but rather with A&M).

  18. Christopher Cruz

    Is that Mal eating the spaghetti in the promotional video for Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck In The Middle With You”? I do know that the band’s debut album was recorded at the Apple recording studios (even though they weren’t actually signed with Apple, but rather with A&M).

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