When They Was Fab: Electric Arguments About the Beatles

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

2026.40 Rubber Soul Superdeluxe Disc One

Marv and I are joined by star of stage, screen and a man who knew some bandmates of the Rutles, Austin's (and Houston's) own Darin Murphy. We talk a lot about Rubber

Oct 12
1 h 25 min

2026.39 Simon, Clapton, Mike Love, more Pearl Jam and Jimmy Kimmel.

News, Paul Simon, Back to Dungeon Lane and the neverending Pearl Jam drummer questions. Marv and I talk about George Harrison's favorite Beatles cover, Ye Cracke, the

Oct 5
1 h 14 min

2026.38 The 2004 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction, Abe, Pearl Jam, Kimmel and More.

Marv and I chat about the 2004 George Harrison (and Prince, ZZTop and Others) Rock Hall Induction. How exactly did that "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" solo happen.

Sep 28
1 h 13 min

2026.37 Norwegian Wood, Second Version - Giles Martin - US 1966

This week - the third track from the "Rubber Soul" box set. Marv and I also chat about some new interviews with Giles Martin (connecting "Pet Sounds", George Harriso

Sep 20
1 h 20 min

2026.36 Bob and George Pt.2

More of Bob Dylan and George Harrison. Most of these tracks are live, the disc starting with the rehearsals for "The Concert for Bangladesh". We wander through th

Sep 14
1 h 20 min

2026.35 Aurelius Lennon, his grandfather and more...

Labor Day fun with Tom Hunyady (2legs), Marv and myself covering the latest in Beatles news. Sean has a son, we get to see a long-lost Beatles (miming) appearance from

Sep 6
1 h 00 min

2026.34 George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Jesse Ed Davis ... and Taj Mahal

George Harrison was working on Cloud Nine, and visited the States in early 1987. George and his producer-in-crime Jeff Lynne hooked up with Wilbury-to-be Bob Dylan and

Aug 31
1 h 22 min

2026.33 Storytelling through the solo years.

Marv and I talk storytelling within the solo Beatles story. Given the documentaries and biopics covering the Beatles together and as a group, what else might make for

Aug 23
1 h 09 min

2026.32 Bob and George Pt.1

The first of the "George Harrison and Bob Dylan" session discs. This show mostly covers the "Winter of Discontent" 1968 and May 1970 sessions, but Marv and I also mea

Aug 16
1 h 10 min

2026.31 What Up With That? The Rubber Soul box, Help! Teases and more...

Marv, Susan and I chat about recent events in Beatles-world. We start with an extended breakdown of the contents of the various Rubber Soul releases (Vinyl, CD, Blu-Ra

Aug 9
1 h 12 min

2026.30 Paul and Declan Demoland Pt.2 and Rubber Soul Chat

We continue our discussion on the Paul and Declan demos. Marv relays details from recent conversations with Chris Whitten and Kevin Armstrong concerning playing on the

Aug 3
1 h 11 min

2026.29 Paul and Declan Demoland Pt.1

Following on from Declan and Paul on the Late Show finale, we start a discussion on the "McCartney/McManus demos", those found on the Flowers in the Dirt Archive Editions

Jul 26
1 h 08 min

2026.28 John, Paul, Ringo, Central Park ... and your blue album.

You know her from the Fests, you know her from "Fab Four Cities", and if you do not, now you will know her from this show! Welcome Susan Ryan to our rotating cast of c

Jul 19
1 h 15 min

2026.27 Beatles, Manila and guest David Guerrero

Author David Guerrero joins Marv, Jon Stone and myself as we discuss the Beatles in Manila, and his book "You Won't See Me: When the Beatles ghosted Imelda." Early Ju

Jul 12
1 h 12 min

2026.b03 Peace and Love 2026

Start this episode at 11:40 AM, and we will all celebrate "Peace and Love" with Ringo at noon! Join Marv and I for some good wishes, some thoughts on Ringo Starr "Twot

Jul 7
21 min

2026.26 The Beatles 1966, Germany Japan etc Pt.1

Our look at the tour on the verge of the controversial "bigger than" US tour of 1966. The Beatles run through Germany on a Luxury Train, spend two days in a plane gett

Jul 5
1 h 08 min

2026.25 More Horses, Soda, and Exploders! (corrected)

It has been pointed out there was an error in the upload. Enclosed is the corrected 2026.25 #madeonzencastr

Jul 1
1 h 19 min

2026.25 More Horses, Soda, and Exploders!

More of George Harrison's guest appearances, along with discussion covering Paul McCartney and Hrishikesh, Sean Lennon on Sodajerker and the latest from Spain on the Beat

Jun 28
1 h 22 min

2026.24 Horses, Water and Anna Julia

Marv amd I return to George Harrison-land. We present the first half of our look at the music George guested on in the nineties. Some of our old familiars (Lee, Ca

Jun 21
1 h 22 min

2026.23 Chicken Shops, Tik Toks and the Record Store Day Podcast

One more look at the new promotion for "The Boys of Dungeon Lane". Paul sits down with Willie Geist, Amelia Dimoldenberg, the NME and you, and we converse on the conve

Jun 14
1 h 21 min

Chart trend

Position in the Music History chart (US), last 90 days.

#1#99#196JulAugSepOct

#19

all-time peak

191

days in the top 50 since Nov 2024

Chart positions

Where When They Was Fab: Electric Arguments About the Beatles ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Oct 14, 2026).

#38 ▼ 18 Music History US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

This is a wonderful Beatles podcast and I listen to many each week and yours is one of the best. I’m so happy that you did an episode on Olivia. I feel like there’s not much out there about her and I found her and George’s relationship fascinating. So thank you very much!

BM,Long Island NY · Apr 2025

Recently discovered this Beatles podcast and it has quickly become a favorite. They are well versed fans of the band and ask the questions of their guests that I would want to know too. And the topics are up to date. I'll be a regular listener!

JerryK_in_TX · Dec 2024

Ed has an ability to find amazingly great cohosts. First there was Dave, who was terrific. Now we have Lonnie, who is equally terrific if not even better somehow, and I miss him while he's on sabbatical and hope he comes back soon. But even without Lonnie, Ed is carrying on in fine style, and the two Rutles episodes are a good example. They might be in my top 10 episode list for the show. If you like the Beatles and their respective solo careers, try listening. When They Was Fab rewards listeners who know most of this stuff already, as well as listeners who aren't as well read about the group. I would give it a 5th star if they would trim the opening theme music to 10 seconds and just get on with the amazing content. That music to my subjective ears is a "plodding" rather than a quick cheery opening to this otherwise very positive, upbeat show. But don't let that keep you from accessing the incredibly good, and frequently published, free content. Thank you Ed and Lonnie.

Pallando · Feb 2020

I really like how Lonnie and Ed really dive into several topics and are very knowledgeable with their facts. Hopefully they can continue with this project and continue with their contagious passion and admiration for the greatest band in history.

Blaahcherry · Jun 2019

The poor handling of The Lewisohn Kerfluffle is disappointing and uninformative, but this podcast when it's happy is entertaining and light, which is most of the time, with a folksiness I find charming. The hosts are well in the groove as lifelong collectors and ready with tidbits about possible upcoming Beatles and solo releases, their ears close to the wires as fan-consumers.

EYEBALL HATRED · Jun 2024

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.