Though Brian Epstein and Elvis’s manager both agree to a photo- and recording-free secret event, fans and media catch wind of it anyway and tail the Beatles’ limousines all the way from their rented mansion, in Benedict Canyon, to Elvis’s, in Bel Air. But a few joints smoked en route calm the Beatles down over the unwanted intrusion.

Even so, John recalls that they were all “terrified” at the sight of Elvis Presley in the circular room where he receives guests. John’s heart is pounding. It’s Elvis! It’s Elvis!

In addition to Elvis, his then girlfriend, Priscilla, is there, as are half a dozen or so members of his entourage, a.k.a. the Memphis Mafia. But after introductions are made, there’s an awkward silence. No one knows exactly what to say.

Now what?

Elvis finally breaks the ice. “If you guys are just gonna sit there and stare at me, I’m goin’ to bed.…I didn’t mean for this to be like subjects calling on the King. I thought we’d sit and talk about music and maybe jam a little.”

Everyone laughs, and the King starts picking out notes on a Fender bass and calls for someone to bring in some guitars.

John picks up a guitar, and Paul gives Elvis a few bass tips while Ringo “[taps] out the backbeat with his fingers on the nearest bits of wooden furniture” to the tune of “I Feel Fine.” George plays for a while, then wanders around a bit. “I spent most of the party trying to suss out from the gang if anybody had any reefers,” he later said, but he didn’t have much luck. “They were ‘uppers and whiskey’ people.”

Several hours later, around two in the morning, as the music carries them out of the house and onto the street, John has an observation to share. “Elvis was stoned.”

To George, the answer is obvious. “Aren’t we all?”

Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Ah, you don’t believe we’re on the eve of destruction.

—“Eve of Destruction”

The Beatles have run out of songs.

Yet the band is contractually obligated to put out its sixth studio album in time for Christmas.

And all the songs have to be great. Lennon-McCartney originals, not covers.

There is reason to worry. Rivals on two continents are spoiling for a takedown.

The Rolling Stones jokingly criticized the Beatles for the rigid, Liverpudlian way the band positions their guitars, high up on their chests. “No wonder you can only rock,” Keith Richards tells John. “No wonder you can’t roll.”

In the summer of 1965, the Rolling Stones’ single “Satisfaction” surpasses the Beatles’ “Help!” on the charts en route to becoming the Stones’ first number-one hit in America.