Artists & Innovators
“No Complaints”: An Interview with Pete Best, the Original Drummer of the Beatles
By Zachary Stockill 25 August 2014

Between 1960 and 1962 Pete was the drummer of a well-travelled, but so far mostly unsuccessful British rock and roll act called variously Johnny and the Moondogs, The Silver Beetles, and, finally, The Beatles.

And just like that, Pete was no longer a Beatle….

Q. When I was watching you play tonight, you looked like you were having a lot of fun. I found it inspiring.

A. If you can’t have fun, then don’t go back on the stage. It’s as simple as that. Simple rule in music: people feel what you’re presenting onstage. And if you’re not enjoying yourself, it comes out in the music. No matter [if] you try to disguise it.

At the end of the day you wouldn’t be where you are without that audience, and you have to thank them for it. The only way you can thank them is [by] making sure your performance is 100%. Simple rules.

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