Wirral musician pleased, pleased with Beatles' find (From Wirral Globe)

Wirral musician pleased, pleased with Beatles' find

2:50pm Friday 15th February 2013 in News By Geoff Barnes

A 50-year-old invoice recording how The Beatles performed in Birkenhead  for the princely sum of £30 has turned up in a waste bin at the local YMCA.

The date was September 1962 and little over a year later the Fab Four had taken America by storm and mega stardom followed.

The remarkable piece of Beatle memorabilia came to light when cleaners retrieved it from a waste paper bin as it was destined to be thrown away.

YMCA chief executive Nigel Hughes took the invoice into safe custody and made contact with auction house Bonham’s who were said to be "very excited" about the discovery.

The band’s Birkenhead performance on September 8, 1962 was slotted in between recording sessions on September 4 and 11 for the Beatles' first ever single Love Me Do, which was released a month later.

Birkenhead musician Dean Johnson, who has strong connections with the YMCA said: “What fascinates me is that within four weeks of them playing Birkenhead their lives had changed and they went on to change the world.

"This is a gig that was right on the cusp of the success that would propel them to stardom.

"For the hour long performance that night at the YMCA Gym the band received a modest £30. The invoice is sign by their road manager and later head of Apple Records Neil Aspinall."

Paradoxically reports of the evening of Beatlemania indicated that the band were not very well received and that local bands The Peppermint Twisters and The Beat Cats made a bigger impression.

Dean said: "They didn't go down well that night. It was the first time they had played in Birkenhead. Ringo was on drums after they had famously got rid of Pete Best."

The value of the unique piece of musical heritage is a matter of conjecture.

But Dean observed: "I have heard it mentioned that it could be worth $10,000 to Beatles devotees in America."