How George Harrison landed The Rolling Stones their first record deal
The Rolling Stones and The Beatles’ respective legacies are forever intertwined. They were not only the two defining rock ‘n’ roll acts of their respective eras, bringing the genre to the attention of millions globally, but they also played a significant role in pushing one another to brilliance.
While the two acts had a degree of rivalry, it wasn’t a relationship built on tense hatred. Nevertheless, both groups understood that it was for the greater good of pop music if they played up to the somewhat fabricated feud by making petty remarks and vying to be the biggest band in Britain.
Although The Beatles eventually began to take The Rolling Stones seriously, they were initially willing to help them get their foot on the ladder. The Fab Four didn’t perceive the upstarts as a threat to their throne and famously even allowed The Stones to have their song, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man‘.
However, The Beatles guitarist George Harrison was particularly interested in the hellraising Londoners before they recorded the aforementioned song. Not only was he a top-tier guitarist, songwriter and composer, but Harrison also possessed a magnificent eye for talent, which had a pivotal role in helping The Rolling Stones secure their first-ever record deal.
That deal would change musical history by setting the foundations for Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Brian Jones and Charlie Watts to become one of the most celebrated rock groups ever.
In Bob Spitz’s biography of The Beatles, he details how Harrison came to act as the broker for The Rolling Stones’ first deal, ushering them into the music industry. At the time, The Beatles were the hottest property and anything they recorded turned to gold. Therefore, industry executives bowed to Harrison’s Midas touch.
Harrison’s intervention on behalf of The Rolling Stones with Decca Records occurred around the time when The Beatles released their seminal debut album, Please Please Me. Of course, it went straight to number one in the charts and catapulted the Merseysiders to icon status.
The meteoric rise also saw demand for the Fab Four rise dramatically, with requests to make personal appearances at events spiralling out of control. The Beatles’ hectic schedules demanded they be in a million places at once, which was impossible to maintain. With limited time available in a single day, the group decided that individual members would appear at different events to fulfil their duties.
Their manager, Brian Epstein, was always keen on marketing the four sides of the band to different sets of fans. John Lennon was the rocker, Paul McCartney was the boy next door, George Harrison operated as the shy one, and Ringo Starr proved to be the joker of the pack. Splitting the group into factions had practical advantages and worked as a positive branding exercise.
At one of these events, Harrison acted as a judge in a ‘Beat Group’ talent show, made up of local Liverpool bands hoping to replicate the Fab Four’s success. A fellow judge at the contest alongside Harrison was Dick Rowe, the president of Decca Records. The talent show’s winner would secure a deal with the label and hope to emulate the pop music stardom, similar to The X-Factor but on a smaller scale.
Rowe is best known for turning down The Beatles when they auditioned for Decca, a decision he regretted deeply and that haunted him for the rest of his life. The Beatles subsequently took the rejection on the chin, signed with EMI, and became the best-selling band of all time.
Even after one album, Rowe was already ruing his decision and was under severe stress due to the Fab Four’s imposing record sales. However, rather than quit the business, Rowe was determined to avoid making the same mistake twice.
After a few bands of differing abilities performed for Harrison and Rowe in Liverpool, the two began discussing the acts they’d recently witnessed. Harrison, unimpressed by what he had seen on the day, explained that none of the groups performing in the talent show were on the same level as a band from London called The Rolling Stones, whom he had seen a few days prior.
Later, Harrison recalled the moment The Beatles witnessed the band performing for the first time. “We’d been at Teddington taping Thank Your Lucky Stars, miming to ‘From Me To You’, and we went to Richmond afterwards and met them,” the guitarist shared.
He continued: “They were still on the club scene, stomping about, doing R&B tunes. The music they were playing was more like we’d been doing before we’d got out of our leather suits to try and get onto record labels and television. We’d calmed down by then.”
Harrison had spoken to Rowe about The Rolling Stones with the same fervent energy, landing them a place on the record executive’s radar. Furthermore, due to making the mistake of the century with The Beatles, Rowe had little time to waste.
With his ears pricked by Harrison’s suggestion, Rowe instantly leapt out of his judge’s chair and hunted down The Rolling Stones like there was no tomorrow. Rowe didn’t even conclude his contractual obligation in Liverpool and instead headed straight to London to see Rolling Stones perform that very same night.
Rowe later recalled: “I pushed my chair back, and I basically ran to my car and got myself down to Richmond to make sure I was there for that Rolling Stones gig.”
Unsurprisingly, The Rolling Stones lived up to the hype created by Harrison and landed themselves a record deal that provided the platform to superstardom. Although Rowe could never fully atone for not signing The Beatles, the decision benefitted The Rolling Stones in the long run and compensated Decca for his misdemeanour, likely keeping him in a job.
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