We are so so so so so sad to report this news.
Neil Aspinall, road manager, personal assistant, business manager and close friend of The Beatles, died yesterday. He was 66 years old.
Aspinall had been treated for lung cancer at Sloan-Kettering Hospital in New York, where Paul McCartney was said to have made a special trip to visit him before his death.
Aspinall met Paul McCartney and George Harrison when they attended grammar school in Liverpool together, and was the last of the Beatles' hometown inner circle to still be employed by them. He headed Apple Corps Ltd., the corporation formed to handle the Beatles' business affairs, from its founding in 1968 until last year when he stepped down. He was executive producer of the hugely successful 1995 "Beatles Anthology" album, which he had begun compiling in 1971, shortly following the band's breakup. He also made major contributions to their other recent successes, including the "Beatles One" album, the "Live At the BBC Collection," and the recent Las Vegas Cirque du Soleil production "Love."
Drummer Ringo Starr said:
"I've known Neil many years and he was a good friend. We were blessed to have him in our lives and he will be missed."
The band remembered Aspinall In a joint statement issued today by McCartney, Starr, Olivia Harrison (George Harrison's widow), Yoko Ono (John Lennon's widow), and Apple Corps:
"As a loyal friend, confidant and chief executive, Neil's trusting stewardship and guidance has left a far-reaching legacy for generations to come."
Aspinall is survived by his wife Suzy and five children. He is pictured here with Paul McCartney in 1969.
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