Beatles Superfan & Producer Releases First Beatles Book

Orange, CT - The Book of Top 10 Beatles Lists has just been released, and it’s very different from the hundreds of Beatles titles that have come out before. It contains 64 Top 10 Lists of favorite songs, albums, films, appearances, and a whole lot of memories and insights from music legends, actors, athletes, authors, disc jockeys, and many friends and relatives of The Beatles…including two former Beatles!

The book’s author, Charles F. Rosenay!!!, is best known to Beatles fans for all his promotional efforts and productions over the past four decades. Since 1978, he has presented Beatles conventions and festivals across the U.S., including events in his home state of Connecticut and as far away as Tokyo, Japan. Along with musical productions, for almost 20 years he was the editor and publisher of the world-famous magazine on The Beatles called Good Day Sunshine. Since 1983, he has organized and hosted the “Magical Mystery Tour,” an annual Beatles Fans Tour in association with Cavern City Tours, that brings travelers to Liverpool and London during Beatleweek on the ultimate fan experience. Charles has the honor of being one of the few non-musicians in the Cavern Hall of Fame, and he has been recognized and cited by the Mayor of Liverpool on numerous occasions. For as long as he can remember, Charles has been asked to write a book on The Beatles, or on his adventures through the years as a Beatles aficionado, expert, collector, archivist, and promoter. Having edited or contributed to countless Beatles books in the past, and after issuing two non-Beatles volumes, Charles has finally released his own Beatles book that is unlike any other out there.

After years of contacting celebrities and notables who were closely connected to The Beatles history, here is a treasury for pop-culture enthusiasts, music lovers, and fans of the greatest rock and roll band in history. Officially titled Celebrities, Actors, Authors, Mods & Rockers: The Book of Top 10 Beatles Lists, the long-awaited book is being released by Kiwi Publishing, in hardcover and softcover.

Charles called on many of his long-time friends in The Beatles universe to be part of this special book. Included in this unique collection are such people as original Beatles drummer Pete Best; John Lennon’s sister Julia Baird, who contributed the Foreword; Beatles friend and author Tony Bramwell; radio ersonality “Cousin” Brucie; Angie McCartney, who was married to Paul’s Dad; Paul’s half-sister Ruth McCartney; two members of The Quarrymen, the band that later became The Beatles; four members of Badfinger/The Iveys; journalists-turned-authors Larry Kane and Ivor Davis, who accompanied The Beatles on their U.S. tours; Mark Hudson; who was Ringo’s producer; R&B singer Clarence “Frogman” Henry, who opened for The Beatles on tour; Paul McCartney & Wings’ guitarist Laurence Juber: Ringo’s touring drummer Gregg Bissonette; Brute Force, who recorded on The Beatles’ Apple label; singer Frank Ifield, who was a label-mate of The Beatles on Vee-Jay Records; and Mersey Beat editor Bill Harry, a friend and supporter of The Beatles from the beginning, who wrote the book’s Afterword.
There are also chapters from such Beatles contemporaries and rock and roll artists as Tommy James; singers Leo Sayer, Gary Puckett, and Phil “Fang” Volk of Paul Revere & The Raiders; Woodstock legend Melanie; Don Dannemann of The Cyrkle; Ron Dante of The Archies; Carmine Appice, Vince Martell, and Mark Stein of Vanilla Fudge; Jeremy Clyde of British Invasion duo Chad & Jeremy; Jerry Yester of the Lovin’ Spoonful and The Association; Beau Charles of The Knickerbockers (“Lies”); Fred Schneider of The B-52’s; drummer Liberty DeVitto of Billy Joel’s band; Walter Egan; Kim Sledge from Sister Sledge; and the “other” Brian Jones.
Additional contributors include Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Terry Sylvester of The Hollies; Dennis Dunaway from the Alice Cooper band; Elliot Easton of The Cars; Darryl McDaniel of Run-DMC; Steve Hackett of Genesis; and Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Dave Winfield.

Other non-music pop culture icons include Butch (“Eddie Munster”) Patrick, actresses Mackenzie Phillips (One Day at a Time), Lisa Whelchel (Facts of Life), and Dinah Manoff (Soap, Grease); actor Larry Thomas (Seinfeld); genre author Ramsey Campbell; Tommy Chong of Cheech & Chong; and very esteemed contributor, TV personality, and famed talk show host Dick Cavett, who interviewed George Harrison and John & Yoko on national television.
How exactly did this book come to be? Charles always believed he would never write a Beatles book because he felt that every topic was already covered. But there was another reason he thought he’d never do a Beatles book. For two decades, he was the publisher/editor/designer of the Beatles magazine Good Day Sunshine. It came out every other month and although he loved each and every issue, it was one of the hardest things he ever did in his life. Most issues were about 80 pages. So, he always felt that he was already putting out six books a year! After that run, he never expected to do an actual book.

Then came COVID.

When the pandemic hit, all of what Charles did, he could no longer do. A professional party DJ/MC/entertainer by trade, there were no longer events where he could perform. He was no longer able to book live bands, as there were no longer gigs. All the international tours, including his “Magical History Tour,” which brings American fans to the Beatles’ land every summer for Beatleweek, were now postponed. With a little extra time on his hands during quarantine, Charles started to assemble, edit, and write introductions for the Top 10 Lists. He called on a friend, Janet Davis, also from Connecticut, to proofread what he had written and accumulated. Davis became his Assistant Editor, and the book had, as John Lennon sang, “Come Together.” In tribute to The Beatles’ arrival in America in 1964, and as a tip of the hat to the beloved Beatles song, he decided to finish the book “WHEN I’M (at) 64” lists. Appropriately enough, the book was completed on February 9, 2023, the anniversary of The Beatles’ historic first appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

More than just lists, every submission is a list plus additional comments as to why the choices were made. Often hilarious, sometimes thought-provoking, but always fascinating, the lists run the gamut from brief, fan-based opinions straight through to thesis-worthy chapters on The Beatles’ legacy.

Charles has always been a fan and follower of pop culture and Top 10 Lists, commenting, “Who doesn’t love a Top 10 List? They’re short, they’re fun, and we always want to see if our choices match. Readers can do that by reading every chapter, or they can cheat and skip to the back of the book. There, with the title of ‘Toppermost of The Poppermost,’ is a Top 10 List of songs most mentioned in the book’s Top 10 Lists.”

Fully illustrated with photos and at over 200 pages, Celebrities, Actors, Athletes, Mods & Rockers: The Book of Top 10 Beatles Lists is published in hardcover and trade softcover by Kiwi Publishing, ISBN # 978-1-935768-25-8, and is available on Amazon and from the website www.BookOfTop10Beatles Lists.com. More information or personally-signed author copies are available from [email protected], or by phoning (203) 795-4737.