Murray the K: The Brian Epstein Interview

Murray Kaufman, professionally known as Murray the K, was an influential rock and roll impresario and disc jockey during the 1950s, '60s and '70s. He reached his peak of popularity in the mid-1960s when, as the top-rated radio host in New York City, he became an early and ardent supporter and friend of The Beatles.

Brian Epstein was an English music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967. He was referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" due to his role in the group's business affairs, image and rise to global fame.

This interview was conducted in New York for WOR-FM in March 1967.

Epstein

Kaufman

Epstein had traveled to New York to announce the merger of his company NEMS with the Robert Stigwood Organisation, and to promote Stigwood's premier acts, the Bee Gees, Cream and The Who.

Epstein addressed a variety of subjects, including rumors of a Beatles split, the work-in-progress that would become the Sgt. Pepper album, the "bigger than Jesus" fallout during the 1966 U.S. tour, and praises of the then unknown Jimi Hendrix, along with The Four Tops.

Only a few months after this interview, Brian Epstein died of an overdose of barbiturates, in his locked bedroom on August 27, 1967. He was discovered after his butler had knocked on the door and then, hearing no response, the housekeeper called the police. Epstein was found on a single bed, dressed in pajamas, with various correspondence spread over a second bed. At the statutory inquest his death was officially ruled an accident. He was 32 years old.