The Manuscript

Hamburg Days

'George was younger, the little one. He was very sweet, with his little tooth and the cocky songs he was singing. He was really cute, and was an essential part of the team. When all of them were harmonising together was incredible!' - Klaus Voormann

Hamburg Days is a two-volume boxed set. Volume 1 tells the story of The Beatles' years in Hamburg, through the previously unpublished memories of Astrid Kirchherr and Klaus Voormann. Covering life in war-torn Germany through to the arrival of The Beatles and their first years of fame, an 80,000-word manuscript is illustrated with Kirchherr's photographs of the young Beatles bandmates and Voormann's illustrations.
'When John sang I never got the impression that he put anything on, he just loved the songs. I don't think he posed himself on stage in a deliberate attempt to look sexy, or tough. Not John. He just loved the music and played it his way, and if he had to put the microphone in a particular position and take a certain stance, it was because he could sing best that way.' - Klaus Voormann

'When I think of all the pictures I did - when I look at them now - I can see a change. Nobody will ever see it but me, but it's about what those boys went through in a very short period. They went through such a personal change. Especially with the grief of Stuart's death.' - Astrid Kirchherr

'It was Hamburg that did it. That's where we really developed. To get the Germans going, and keep it up for twelve hours at a time, we would really have to hammer. We would never have developed as much if we'd stayed at home. We had to try anything that came into our heads in Hamburg. There was nobody to copy from. We played what we liked best and the Germans liked it as long as it was loud.' - John Lennon

The Authors

Hamburg Days

'I know for sure that if I hadn't have met The Beatles in 1960, my life would have been completely different.' - Astrid Kirchherr

'Astrid asked us if she could take some photographs of us and because we loved the idea that led to our first photo session, when she took us to the Hamburg Fairground. Astrid was totally responsible for that whole image.' - George Harrison from his Foreword

Astrid Kirchherr and Klaus Voormann both met The Beatles in Hamburg while they were performing a residency in the Kaiserkeller night club. They became close acquaintances, with Kirchherr taking some of the band's first photographs within days after their first meeting, and lifelong friendships were formed.

In Hamburg, Klaus Voormann began his music career by playing bass for The Beatles. He would later join the Plastic Ono band and play on solo albums for John, Paul, George and Ringo. Most know his graphic artwork through the classic album covers he created for Revolver and The Beatles Anthology.