The Beatles in Hamburg | Brigadoon Weekend

Brigadoon Weekend = Global Street Smarts
February 20, 2021

Where is your Hamburg?

The Beatles might have hailed from Liverpool, but the band got its big break in Hamburg. 

The band had secured a bid to play the Indra, a seedy strip joint complete with a neon-lighted elephant beckoning the passersby in Hamburg's infamous red-light boulevard.

On August 17th, 1960, The Beatles, who then used the stage name used the stage name Silver Beatles, played their first gig in the Indra Club in Hamburg. A 48-night stint at this "musical venue."

The band's contract required the five of them - John, Paul, George, drummer Pete Best, and bassist Stuart Sutcliffe - to perform for 30 hours a week. Each one received a generous weekly sum of about fifty-one bucks in those days.

Indra's owner was generous; he did provide the group free lodging. 

The Beatles slept behind the stage in two dark, dank, cramped storage rooms with small beds, folding cots, and a couch. The nearby men's room, where broken toilets often overflowed into their rooms, served the group's personal hygiene needs. 

The days of Hamburg are a far cry from Paul McCartney's concert riders of today.

McCartney now has an amusing list of plant demands - yes, plant demands: "No trees please! We want plants that are just as full on the bottom as the top, such as palm, bamboo, peace lilies, etc. No tree trunks!" 

Also, of course, the McCartney rider requires a pre-show sweep by some bomb-sniffing dogs.

Paul has come a long way from a pre-show neon-lighted elephant.

However, playing Hamburg was essential to the band's success.

After two months of incessant playing, Indra's owner Bruno Koschmider promoted The Beatles to his flagship club, the Kaiserkeller.

"We had to learn millions of songs because we'd be on for hours," George Harrison later said. "Hamburg was really like our apprenticeship, learning how to play in front of people."

This apprenticeship, learning millions of songs, and properly playing in front of people was essential.

Hamburg is where The Beatles celebrated their first successes, dropped the word "silver" from the band's name, and devised their infamous mop-top haircuts.

Where is your Hamburg?

Where is the place you can work on your craft, build your skills, and harness your talents regardless of the environment?

THE BEATLES IN HAMBURG DEEP DIVE

How The Beatles found their sound in Hamburg, 60 years ago: DW reports, The Beatles' unique career took off in Hamburg in 1960 — it's where the band from Liverpool became the magical Fab Four.

Forget Liverpool. Hamburg, Germany, made the Beatles into the band they became: Dean Owen writes, on a business trip to Germany, I spent three days in St. Pauli, the Hamburg district where The Beatles became really good before they became really, really famous. My expert guide: Peter Paetzold, a bearded 68-year-old with the street cred of a chain-smoking rock drummer, well versed about St. Pauli’s music scene of the 1960s.

61 years ago: The Beatles play their first Hamburg: UCR reports, the stints the Beatles did in Hamburg, Germany, are widely credited with turning them from just another teenage band in Liverpool into a tight rock 'n’ roll combo.

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Dreams Traveled: The Beatles in Hamburg

Ophelia Belleu: The Beatles in Hamburg

Eliodue: The Beatles sites in Hamburg

BeatlesArchivesHQ: Tony Sheridan talks about Hamburg and The Beatles

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BRIGADOON READS | BOOKS ON THE BEATLES IN HAMBURG

The Beatles in Hamburg: The Stories, the Scene and How It All Began by Spencer Leigh

The Beatles in Hamburg by Ian Inglis

Harry Benson. The Beatles by Harry Benson

The Beatles Anthology by The Beatles

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BRIGADOON EVENTS

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | February 26, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | March 5, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | March 12, 2021

Brigadoon March Call | Customers are the Disruptors
Dr. Leigh George | CEO @ Freedom
March 17, 2021

Brigadoon April Call | Less Logic. More Magic.
Rory Sutherland - Vice Chairman @ Ogilvy UK
April 21, 2021

Brigadoon May Call | The Poetry of Leadership
Fateme Banishoeib | heARTist + Founder @ ReNewBusiness
May 19, 2021

Brigadoon June Call | Adventures with Fiat Pandas + Autogrills + Negronis
Matt Hranek | Founder + Editor @ Wm Brown Magazine
June 16, 2021

More details and passes - click here.

Thanks for supporting Brigadoon. See you next week.

-Marc

Curation + commentary by Marc A. Ross | Founder + Chief Curator @ Brigadoon

Brigadoon is always powerpoint free and conversation-driven for better insights and connections.

More @ thebrigadoon.com

Why be a Brigadoon Member?

+ Business intelligence
+ Extraordinary networking
+ Global street smarts
+ You'd be a great addition





Say the quiet part out loud.

"I used to tie myself in knots trying to figure out how to word what I wanted to say in work emails or in meetings. And finally, I realized, probably while talking to myself: just say what you mean. Ask for what you want. Share your confusion...or excitement.

"Don’t guess what other people want to hear. Get the thoughts out of your head and be honest, authentic, and transparent about what you know...or don’t know...and what you need.

"It’s incredibly freeing and makes you a much better communicator."

To hear this quote and other profound insights directly from Leigh, please join a special Brigadoon Monthly call on Wednesday, March 17 @ 2:00 pm ET.

Full details below.

This is going to be a good session.

-Marc

Brigadoon March Call with Dr. Leigh George

Title: Customers are the Disruptors

Time + Date: 2:00 pm ET | Wednesday, March 17, 2021

Speaker: Dr. Leigh George | CEO @ Freedom

Customers are the disruptors. If you don’t understand their needs, motivations, and behaviors, your competitors will.

Leigh founded Freedom—a strategic branding and marketing un-agency—to help organizations understand their products and services from customers’ point of view and develop brand messages and marketing that are welcome, persuasive, and spur action.

Leigh is a recognized branding expert with a Ph.D. in branding and over 20 years of experience in branding and marketing strategy.

Good pod this: Dr. Sinan Aral speaks with Guy Kawasaki

The pod covers much ground, including:

The tension between security and privacy...

The wisdom and madness of the crowd...

How to determine if a social media account is a bot...

The long game in marketing and advertising...

Dr. Sinan Aral is the David Austin Professor of Management and Professor, Information Technology and Marketing at MIT. He's a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Northwestern University.

He has Master's degrees from the London School of Economics and Harvard University. And he has a PhD from MIT.

He recently published a book out called The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health--and How We Must Adapt.

In short, he is an expert in social media and its impact on society.

Good pod this.

Listen here.

Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.

-Marc

Soft Power | Brigadoon Weekend

Brigadoon Weekend = Global Street Smarts
February 13, 2021

Soft Power

This edition of Brigadoon Weekend is soft power.

Joseph Nye coined the term soft power in the late 1980s.

Simply put, soft power is a nation's ability to persuade others to do what it wants without force or coercion.

Nye states the world's most successful nations need both hard and soft power -- the ability to coerce others as well as the ability to shape their long-term attitudes and preferences.

Nye initially set out three primary sources of soft power: political values, culture, and foreign policy.

Power in international relations traditionally has been assessed in the easily measurable metrics in inflexible terms - think military and economic might.

Soft power makes use of tactics that are often hard to measure, can take years to bear fruit, and aren't as sexy as a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

But today, soft power matters more than ever and shuns carrots and sticks. Soft power succeeds in building relationships, using communications and storytelling, operating under universal international rules, and harnessing a nation's unique resources that make a country attractive to the greater world.

The United States can undoubtedly dominate others through money and might, but America has excelled in using soft power.

From companies like Apple, foundations like Charity Water, universities like Stanford, to sports leagues like the National Basketball Association, America is a soft power hothouse.

When I read about the Thucydides Trap leading the US and China down a path to increased competition and possibly even war, I think no.

If the US can't succeed with Walt Disney World, Levi's, Tesla, Harvard, Serena Williams, Coca-Cola, Run DMC, Kelly Slater, and Detroit-style pizza, then what are we doing?

Sitting in London Heathrow a few years back, I was observing a family from Norway. The kids dressed in Under Armour, the parents were wearing smart casuals from the GAP, and the entire crew was teched-out in designed-in California Apple swag. It was the all-American family living in Oslo.

US culture and aspirations have been influential in helping the US government secure partners and enhance alliances.

Sure there are limits of soft power: it tends to have diffuse effects like jello, and sometimes it is not skillfully wielded to achieve specific outcomes.

However, US economic success and security hinges as much on winning hearts and minds as it does on winning wars.

Plus, with more of the world easily accessed by trans-continental flights and the internet, countries like Germany, Canada, South Korea, India, and China are all making use of the same tools and tactics to improve their strength and influence.

Game on.

SOFT POWER DEEP DIVE

The benefits of soft power: It is a central paradox of American power: The sheer might of the United States is unquestioned: US troops are stationed in some 130 countries around the globe, and no opposing army would dare to challenge it on a level playing field. But as America's military superiority has increased, its ability to persuade is at low ebb in many parts of the world, even among its oldest allies. In the following remarks, drawn from an address given on March 11, 2004, at the Center for Public Leadership's conference on "Misuses of Power: Causes and Corrections," Joseph S. Nye Jr., Dean [until June 30, 2004] of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government distinguishes between hard power—the power to coerce—and soft—the power to attract.

Monocle's annual soft power survey judges which nations’ soft-power strengths make the grade. Top ten listed below and the full article here.

Top 10:

1. Germany

2. South Korea

3. France

4. Japan

5. Taiwan

6. Switzerland

7. New Zealand

8. Sweden

9. Greece

10. Canada

The growth of soft power in the world’s largest democracy: Isha Prakash writes, in a country with such a vast history as well as such rich culture, heritage, and traditions- the Government of India recognizes and acknowledges the soft power potential. Hence, with just a little effort- this can be utilized optimally to boost international influence.

Under the influence: Christopher Cermak writes isolationism has taken the shine off the perception of the US. But its foreign policy remains tightly interwoven with much of the world. As a new president takes office, what do its allies want?

Hollywood is running out of villains: Kal Raustiala writes what sets the United States apart from the rest of the world is and has always been its soft power. The Soviets may have equaled the Americans in nuclear capability, but they could never rival the appeal of the “American way of life.” And even as China tries to spread its culture across the globe, its rise tends to inspire more trepidation than admiration. Many ingredients combine to give U.S. soft power its strength and reach, but entertainment and culture have always been central to the mix. Film and television have shaped how the world sees the United States—and how it perceives the country’s adversaries. Yet that unique advantage seems to be slipping away. When it comes to some of the great questions of global power politics today, Hollywood has become remarkably timid. On some issues, it has gone silent altogether.

The world China wants: Rana Mitter writes does China want to transform the global order to advance its own interests and to reflect its own image? That may be the most important question in geopolitics today, yet the answers it elicits tend to reveal more about modern biases than they do about what a future Chinese superpower would look like.

Swiss flair: Megan Gibson writes, when it comes to money and diplomacy, Switzerland is an influential global player. But do other aspects of the national brand suit a broader international role? We asked seven of its best about what the future holds.

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BRIGADOON WATCHES | SOFT POWER

Foreign Policy Association: Joseph Nye on soft power

TED Talk | Shashi Tharoor: Why nations should pursue "soft" power

Quartz: China's 'soft power' in Kenya

Gravitas Plus: How India can harness the soft power of Bollywood

Monocle: Soft power potential

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BRIGADOON READS | BOOKS ON SOFT POWER

Soft Power: The Means To Success In World Politics by Joseph Nye

Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson

The Big Stick: The Limits of Soft Power and the Necessity of Military Force by Eliot A. Cohen

Soft Power: The New Great Game for Global Dominance by Robert Winder

The World America Made by Robert Kagan

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BRIGADOON EVENTS

Brigadoon February Call | INTRA-Preneurship
Errol Gerson| Adjunct Professor @ Art Center
February 17, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | February 19, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | February 26, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | March 5, 2021

Brigadoon Whiteboard Call | March 12, 2021

Brigadoon March Call | Customers are the Disruptors
Dr. Leigh George | CEO @ Freedom
March 17, 2021

Brigadoon April Call | Less Logic. More Magic.
Rory Sutherland - Vice Chairman @ Ogilvy UK
April 21, 2021

Brigadoon May Call | The Poetry of Leadership
Fateme Banishoeib | heARTist + Founder @ ReNewBusiness
May 19, 2021

Brigadoon June Call | Adventures with Fiat Pandas + Autogrills + Negronis
Matt Hranek | Founder + Editor @ Wm Brown Magazine
June 16, 2021

More details and passes - click here.

Thanks for supporting Brigadoon. See you next week.

-Marc

Curation + commentary by Marc A. Ross | Founder @ Brigadoon

Brigadoon is always powerpoint free and conversation-driven for better insights and connections.

More @ thebrigadoon.com

Why be a Brigadoon Member?

+ Business intelligence
+ Extraordinary networking
+ Global street smarts
+ You'd be a great addition