THE FIFTH BEATLE
STUART SUTCLIFFE
Miles ahead of everybody.
– Klaus Voormann
Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe was born in Edinburgh on 23 June 1940, to senior civil servant Charles Sutcliffe and schoolteacher Millie. The family moved to Liverpool in 1943 to help with the war effort, and Charles became a ship’s engineer, which meant he spent most of Stuart’s childhood at sea. There were two younger sisters, three older half-brothers and one older half-sister from his father’s first marriage.
Stuart was introduced to John at art school by a mutual friend, Bill Harry (who would later found Mersey Beat magazine), at the students’ regular hangout, Ye Cracke pub. At first glance, John and Stuart’s friendship seemed an unlikely one: Stuart was introverted, sensitive and dedicated to his studies, while John was loudmouthed, tough and did as little as was possible in class. Each, though, respected the other’s talent, and saw more in each other than was superficially apparent.
In 1959, one of Stuart’s artworks, Summer Painting, was chosen to be exhibited in the prestigious John Moores Liverpool Exhibition alongside works from artists such as Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth. His painting sold for £65 (though there are varying accounts of how much money Stuart actually received in the end) – a huge sum for an art student, and he was persuaded by John and Paul to buy a Hofner President bass guitar and join the band.
Stuart was a rock ’n’ roll fan and keen to be involved, particularly as he had an artistic sensibility and a curiosity about image. He had taken piano lessons as a youngster and his dad had given him a guitar, but the bass was completely new to him. His playing has been criticised over the years, but it was adequate for a hard-playing rock ’n’ roll band kicking off their career, and he had a seriously cool, brooding presence on stage. When he sang Elvis Presley’s ‘Love Me Tender’, the audience, particularly the girls, loved it. And once Stuart joined the band, encouraging opportunities came knocking . . .
(L-R) George, John, Paul & Stuart Sutcliffe, in an iconic Hamburg picture, taken by Astrid Kircherr. Alamy