Pete Best - Reasons For Dismissal

Reasons For Dismissal

Best was never fully told why he was dismissed, as the only reason Epstein stated was, "The lads don't want you in the group any more". Epstein subsequently claimed in his autobiography that Lennon, McCartney and Harrison thought Best "Too conventional to be a Beatle, and though he was friendly with John, he was not liked by George and Paul". It has been documented (notably in Cynthia Lennon's book, John) that while Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison usually spent their offstage time together in Hamburg and Liverpool, writing songs or socialising, Best generally went off alone. This left Best on the outside, as he was not privy to many of the group's experiences, references, and in-jokes.

A German photographer, Astrid Kirchherr, asked if they would mind letting her take photographs of them in a photo session, which impressed them, as other groups only had snapshots taken by friends. The next morning Kirchherr took photographs in der Dom, a municipal park, close to the Reeperbahn. In the afternoon Astrid took them to her mother's house in Altona; minus Best, who decided not to attend. Best was described by Dot Rhone—McCartney's girlfriend at the time, who later visited Hamburg—as being very quiet, and never taking part in conversations with the group.