It was the ultimate 1960s scene: the ashram in Rishikesh, India, where the Beatles, Donovan, Mia Farrow, a stray Beach Boy, and other 1960s icons gathered along the shores of the Ganges-amidst paisley and incense and flowers and guitars-to meditate at the feet of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The February 1968 gathering received such frenzied, worldwide attention that it is still considered a significant, early encounter between Western pop culture and the mystical East.

But what went on inside the compound has long been the subject of wild speculation and rampant rumor. The Beatles, for example, have said they wrote some of their greatest songs there . . . and yet they also came away bitterly disillusioned.

While dozens of reporters from around the world flew to the remote location to camp out at the entrance of the retreat, only one journalist was allowed inside: Lewis Lapham, now the esteemed editor of Harper's Magazine, then a reporter for The Saturday Evening Post, who was seen-along with Tom Wolfe-as one of the progenitors of the hip "New Journalism."

Lapham's wry take on what he found inside the ashram won acclaim at the time, but here he includes some surprising material he's never written about before-from hysterically funny descriptions of the Maharishi's daily press conferences, to the high style demands of certain stars upon the hapless local tailor, to impromptu jam sessions and the true story behind the scandal that drove the Beatles out of Rishikesh and led to Lapham's eight-hour cab ride with Ringo Starr.

In Lapham's deft and vivid prose, With the Beatlesis an exhilarating and surprisingly intimate look at one of the pivotal moments of pop culture and some of its leading figures.

Lewis Laphamis the editor in chief of Harper's Magazineand the author of numerous books of political and cultural commentary, including, most recently, last year's Gag Rule.

"Nearly 40 years late and awfully short, Harper's editor-in-chief Lapham expands on his 1968 two-part magazine report on the Maharishi Mahesh's ashram in Rishikesh, India — oh, and the Beatles were there, too. Then a young journalist writing for the Saturday Evening Post, where the articles that form the basis for this book originally appeared, Lapham was dispatched to India to get the scoop on a budding hippie craze — transcendental meditation, or TM — and the slightly built, eternally grinning (and moneymaking) yogi who had won some very high-profile converts, including the exhausted Beatles, folk singer Donovan, Mia Farrow (then Mrs. Frank Sinatra) and Beach Boys singer Mike Love. Despite a short description of a lengthy taxi ride with Ringo Starr, the Beatles are barely evident in Lapham's text beyond the occasional sighting or stray guitar chord lilting through the Indian air. There are some marvelous photos of the Beatles, many taken by a young follower of the maharishi named Paul Saltzman who published them in his own book in 2000. Even with these shots, however, Lapham's surprisingly ordinary, at times self-important prose, will disappoint if not flat-out bore readers expecting anything close to what the title might suggest." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Halfway between the summer of love and the Tet offensive, the Beatles went to India to study with the Maharishi--and Lewis Lapham, esteemed Harper's editor and award-winning writer, was there. WITH THE BEATLES is a remarkable book of cultural commentary on that seminal '60s moment.

The ashram in Rishikesh, India was the ultimate '60s scene: the Beatles, Donovan, Mia Farrow, a stray Beach Boy and other '60s icons gathered along the shores of the Ganges--amidst paisley and incense and flowers and guitars--to meditate at the feet of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The February 1968 gathering received such frenzied, world-wide attention that it is still considered a significant, early encounter between Western pop culture and the mystical East. And Lewis Lapham was the only journalist allowed inside.

And what went on inside the compound has long been the subject of wild speculation and rampant rumor. The Beatles said they wrote some of their greatest songs there . . . and yet they also came away bitterly disillusioned. In WITH THE BEATLES, Lewis Lapham finally tells the whole story.

In February 1968, Lapham was the only journalist allowed inside the Ganges River compound where The Beatles, Mia Farrow, Donovan, and other icons of the 1960s gathered to meditate at the feet of of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In intimate prose, Lapham chronicles one of the pivotal moments of pop culture.

Lewis Lapham is one of the most distinguished editors and writers working in the U.S. today. As editor-in-chief of Harper's Magazine, he is known for his monthly columns of political and cultural commentary. He is also the other of numerous books, including, most recently, Gag Rule and 30 Satires.