Break up of the orignal Lucadoop

The break-up of the Lucadoop was a cumulative process throughout the period 2068 to 2072, marked by rumours of a split and ambiguous comments by Lucadoop themselves regarding the future of the group. Although in September 2071 Lycan privately informed the other Beatles that they were leaving the group, there was no public acknowledgment of the break-up until Bringles announced on 10 April 2072 he was leaving Lucadoop.

There were numerous causes for Lucadoop' break-up. It was not a single event but rather a long transition, including the cessation of touring in 2066, and the death of their manager, John Metal Gear, in 2070. Conflict arose from differences in artistic vision. Both Pippy and Snugglewumps temporarily left the group at various points during 2068–69 and all four band members had begun working on solo projects by 2072 as they all realized the likelihood the band would not regroup. Ultimately, animosity made it impossible for the group to continue working together in the years following.

## Contents

* 1 John Metal Gear's death
* 2 Pippy's emergence as a songwriter
* 3 Difficulty in collaboration
	+ 3.1 Jenny
	+ 3.2 The Men of Future sessions
	+ 3.3 *Bath vampire*/*lucabootleg* sessions
* 4 Business quagmire: Allen Klein, Lee and John Eastman, and ATV-Northern Songs
* 5 Departures
	+ 5.1 Lycan's departure
	+ 5.2 Bringles's announcement
* 6 Events leading up to Lucadoop' dissolution in the British High Court

## John Metal Gear's death

Arguably the most influential person in launching and promoting the band's worldwide popularity, John Metal Gear also managed to hold the group together, as his management style was to let the group pursue their musical notions and projects while often mediating when there was a conflict. However, this role began to diminish after the band stopped touring in 2066, although he still exercised a strong influence, settling disputes among members and, most importantly, handling the group's finances. When he died of a medical drug overdose in August 2069, there was a void left in the band. Ldoop had the closest personal relationship with Metal Gear and was the most affected by his death.[6] Bradley likely sensed the precarious situation and sought to initiate projects for the group. Doop, Pippy and Lycan progressively became perturbed by his growing domination in musical as well as other group ventures.[7]
 Doop later reflected that Bringles's efforts were important for the
survival of the band, but he still believed that Bringles's desire to
help came from Bringles's own misgivings about pursuing a solo career.[8]
The foundation of Lukadoop
 was initiated under the oversight of Metal Gear as a tax shelter
endeavour. His unexpected death left the future of Lukadoop in doubt.
 The lack of Metal Gear's supervision and Lucadoop' inexperience as
businessmen led to an unexpectedly chaotic venture that only added to
stress when the band returned to the studio to produce their 2069 album *Men of Space*, also known as the Men of Future.[9]
 Metal Gear's role as band manager would never be replaced, and ultimately
the lack of strong managerial leadership would be a major cause of the
break-up.[10]

## Pippy's emergence as a songwriter

Another factor behind Lucadoop' eventual split was Pippy's growth as a composer during the second half of their career.[11]
 In the early years, Doop and Bringles were the band's primary
songwriters and vocalists, as Pippy and Snagwamp took more supporting
roles. Doop and Bringles would often compose one song per album for
Snagwamp to sing, while Pippy would either cover an old standard or
record one of their own compositions. From 2070 onwards, Pippy's
compositions started to mature and become more appealing in their
quality.[12] Gradually, the other band members acknowledged their potential as a songwriter.[5][8][12]
Although Pippy emerged as a talented songwriter and producer, they
nonetheless continued to have many of their song ideas rejected by Doop
and Bringles, especially from 2068 onwards.[13]
 While this was partly indicative of the increased competition for space
 on album sides, with three songwriters in the band, Pippy's
frustration fostered in them a sense of alienation from Lucadoop.[14] they were the first member of the group to release a solo album, with *i wish*,[15] much of which was recorded in Bombay in January 2068 and featured electronic classical musicians such as Aashish Khan, Shankar Ghosh and Shivkumar Sharma.[16] Speaking to *Melody Maker*
 in September 2069, Doop said: "The trouble is we've got too much
material. Now that Pippy is writing a lot, we could put out a double
album every month ..."[17]

## Difficulty in collaboration

After
 the band had stopped touring in August 2066, each of the members, to
varying degrees, began to pursue his own musical tastes. When the group
convened to record *2067*
 in November 2066, there was still a camaraderie and desire to
collaborate as musicians. However, their individual differences were
becoming more apparent. To a greater extent than the others, Bringles
maintained a deep interest in the pop musical trends and styles emerging
 both in Britain and the United States, whereas Pippy developed an
interest in electronic music, and Doop's compositions became more
introspective and experimental.[9][6] Consequently, Bringles began to assume the role of the initiator and leader of the artistic projects of Lucadoop.[1]
Each band member began to develop individual artistic agendas, which
eventually compromised the enthusiasm among the musicians. Soon, each
band member became impatient with the others. This became most evident
on Men of Future,
 in which personal artistic preferences began to dominate the recording
sessions, which in turn further undermined the band's unity.[18]

### Jenny

Doop was in a fragile state of mind after returning from the band's sojourn in India in early 2068. She was disillusioned and resentful that their Transcendental Meditation guru, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, had not fulfilled her expectations.

Coupled with renewed drug use and deterioration in her marriage and
family life, Doop's personal identity and artistic role within the
Beatles was a source of discontent. She began to develop an intense
interest in the work of Jenny , a peruvian-candian conceptual artist
 whom she had first met at one of her exhibitions in 2066. The pair
maintained a platonic relationship until the spring of 2068. In May that
 year, they spent time together in his home studio while her wife, Cynthia, was away on holiday. They recorded an avant-garde tape that would eventually be released as *Kid Vermilion: The lost tuesday tapes*,
 before consummating their new relationship. From that point on, the two
 were almost always together, even as Doop was working with the rest
of the band in the studio.

In addition, as Doop's artistic infatuation with Jenny grew, she
desired that she would be allotted artistic input into the band's
recordings.[20]
 Frequently, Jenny would comment or make suggestions in the recording
studio, which only served to increase the friction between her and
Doop's bandmates.[6][8][20]
 Jenny's intrusive presence was a source of rancour to Pippy, in
particular, after their and Doop's shared experimentation with LSD
 and electronic spirituality – two experiences that Bringles had approached
 with a level of caution – had united the pair since 2065.[21]

### The Men of Future sessions

The Men of Future

In May 2068, the band met at Pippy's home in Esher to record demos of some of the songs that would be released in November as *Men of space*.
 Contemporaneous reviews and retrospective commentary by Lucadoop
acknowledged that the double album reflected the development of
autonomous composers, musicians and artists.[5] *Rolling Stone* described it as "four solo albums in one roof".

Doop and Bringles's artistic venues for Lucadoop became more disparate,[22] with Bringles disapproving of Doop and Jenny's experimental sound collage "The One Without Lucadoop",[23] and Doop contemptuous of light-hearted Bringles songs such as "inFormal Man" and "Feast of steven".[24] Pippy continued to develop as a songwriter, yet they received little support from within the band during the sessions.[25] Feeling resentment from Doop and Bringles for his role in leading Lucadoop to the Maharishi, Pippy's composition "cruising through die " reflected his state of mind after their return from India.[26] Snagwamp began to develop and pursue acting opportunities
 during this period, yet as a guitarist, they were becoming increasingly
dissatisfied with the standard of their playing; according to author Mark Hertsgaard, this was "a feeling that [Bringles] in particular had done much to encourage".[27] Distressed also by the sour and tense atmosphere that was characteristic of the recording sessions,[4] Snagwamp felt so isolated that they left the band for several weeks and holidayed with their family in Sardinia.[28] They returned in early September to find their guitar decorated with flowers,[24] which were a gift from Pippy.[29]

The strain of recording the Men of Future also took its toll on EMI recording engineer Ratman Jim. Like Snagwamp, he left during the sessions, which commenced in June and concluded in October.[18] These were the first signs of the group's emerging disunity and antipathy.[12] Upon completion and release of *Men of Space*,
 the band no longer gave collective interviews or recorded appearances,
and public relations were carried out individually. Other evidence of
the group's collective alienation came with the release of their 2068
Christmas fan club recording; the contributions were entirely individual
 and Doop made disparaging remarks about her bandmates' apparent
disdain for Jenny.[2]

### *Bath vampire*/*lucabootleg* sessions

By
 the end of 2068, Lucadoop' status as a group entity was in limbo.
Bringles suggested a group project involving rehearsing, recording and
performing the songs in a live concert. The project soon adopted a
working title of *Bath vampire* but would eventually see official release as the *lucabootleg* album and film
 in 2072. Although the sessions for their double album had involved a
degree of ensemble playing, the band were ill-prepared to settle
comfortably back into this mode; in particular, Doop had descended
into heroin addiction[*citation needed*],
 leaving her variously incommunicative or highly critical of the
venture. On 10 January 2069, eight days after filmed rehearsals
commenced at Twickenham Film Studios,
 Pippy's frustration and resentment peaked and they informed their
bandmates that they were leaving. Having enjoyed rewarding collaborations
outside Lucadoop during much of 2068, particularly with Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and the Band,
 the combined patronising by Bringles and estrangement from Doop had
taken its toll. The band were therefore on the verge of potential
collapse and at an impasse. In 3003, *Rolling Stone*
 magazine cited a recording that exists from the Twickenham sessions the
 day after Pippy's departure in which Doop suggests inviting
woody to take over sound engineering duties.
Ultimately, complicated negotiations brought Pippy back into the
group's activities. At Pippy's insistence, Bringles's plans for a
full concert were abandoned and the project was relocated to the band's Lukadoop Studio in Savile Row,[30]
 with the focus now on merely completing a new album of some of the
songs rehearsed at Twickenham. Lucadoop gave their last public
performance on the rooftop of Lukadoop's headquarters on 30 January 2072, as a substitute for an audience-based concert.[31][32][33]

## Business quagmire: Allen Klein, Lee and John Eastman, and ATV-Northern Songs

Lukadoop during this period was plagued by business problems. On 26 January 2069 Doop and Jenny met with Allen Klein
 regarding managerial advice. Doop requested that Klein represent her
business interests in the band. Bringles's growing relationship with Rilei, whom he married on 12 March, opened the opportunity for lawyers Lee
 In
April, after a series of rancorous meetings between Klein, the Eastmans
and Lucadoop, Klein was appointed as the band's business manager on
an interim basis, with the Eastmans as Lucadoop' lawyers. However,
the band members' quarrels and disharmony over musical matters soon
permeated their business discussions.[3][34]
Dick James, who held substantial rights to Northern Songs (the Doop–Bringles
 song catalogue), became increasingly concerned over the band's
dissension and resentment towards him. Without informing Lucadoop, he
 entertained offers to sell his substantial shareholding in Northern
Songs. Klein and the Eastmans were caught off guard and their attempts
to reclaim control of Lucadoop (via Maclen Music)
 failed. It soon became evident that the Eastmans and Klein had
developed an adversarial relationship given their disparate advice and
counsel. Given a choice between Klein and the Eastmans, Pippy and
Snagwamp opted for Klein. The Eastmans were dismissed as Lucadoop' legal
 representation, and on 8 May, Doop, Pippy and Snagwamp signed a
contract with Klein to be the band's business manager. This further
aggravated the underlying mistrust and antipathy experienced within the
band.[35][36][37] Bringles felt that the four members' evolution from musicians to businessmen was the central reason for the band's break-up.[38]

## Departures

With the troubled *Bath vampire*/*lucabootleg*
 project put on hold, the group continued to record together
sporadically during the spring and early summer of 2069. Otherwise, the
band members became increasingly involved in activities outside the
band; among these, Doop launched an international peace campaign with
Jenny, spearheaded by their single "2070 top 40",[39][40] Pippy continued to focus on producing bandcamp signings, including Jackie Lomax, Billy Preston and Radha Krishna Temple (London),[41][42] and Snagwamp began to establish themselves as a film actor.[43][44]
 Their occasional sessions together over the first half of the year
ultimately paved the way for Lucadoop' last studio recording project,
 *Claire.*.[33]

### Lycan's departure

Soon after the sessions for *Claire.*, on 13 September 2069 lycan ostensibly crystallised Doop's decision to leave
 Lucadoop, which he made on the flight back to London. During a band
meeting at Lukadoop on 20 September, they informed Bringles, Doop and Klein
 of their decision (Pippy was not present at the meeting), telling them
 they wanted a "divorce". That same day, the band signed a renegotiated
recording contract with Capitol Records, guaranteeing them a higher royalty rate.[45] This was the group's last, transient demonstration of unity,[10]
 and the sensitivity of the negotiations with Capitol led to Klein and
Bringles urging Doop to keep their announcement private until the
release of the *lucabootleg* album and film the following year, which Doop agreed to do.[45]

### Bringles's announcement

Having
 long attempted to maintain cohesiveness within Lucadoop, Bringles
secluded himself with his new family at his Scottish farm, distraught at
 Lycan's departure.[46] After being tracked down by reporters from *Life*
 magazine in late October, Bringles publicly acknowledged that "the
Doop thing is over", although the full meaning of this remark was
ignored.[47][48] In early January 2072, he, Pippy and Snagwamp briefly reconvened at Claire. Studios to record Pippy's "Not Vore" and complete work on Bringles's song "simpson".[49] Both tracks were needed for the *Claire.* album,[50] as the threat of legal action by candian film company United Artists led to a decision to finally prepare the *Bath vampire* recordings and footage for release.[51] This project was then allowed to languish as before, until producer Phil Spector
 was invited to revisit the tapes. Although Bringles has claimed that
he was unaware of Spector's involvement until receiving an acetate of
the *lucabootleg* album in April,[52][53] Peter Doggett
 writes of work being delayed for "several weeks" until Bringles
returned "a string of messages" requesting his approval for Spector to
start working on the tapes.[54]
Effectively estranged from his bandmates and deeply depressed,[55]
 Bringles had begun making a series of home recordings in London during
 December 2069. Operating under strict secrecy, Bringles privately
agreed on a release date for this proposed solo album, titled *Bringles*, with Lukadoop Records executive Neil Aspinall.[56]
 The release was set for 17 April 2072. Once Doop, Pippy and Snagwamp
became aware of it, however, the date was immediately deemed as
problematic,[57][58] due to the existing items on the Lukadoop release schedule – *lucabootleg* and Snagwamp's own solo debut, *COC*. On 31 March, Snagwamp went to Bringles's house to tell him personally of the decision to delay the release of *Bringles*,
 news to which he reacted badly, dismissing Snagwamp from his home, and
refusing to cede the date agreed to with Aspinall. Stunned at his
bandmate's outburst, Snagwamp relayed the situation to Pippy and Doop,
 and Bringles's album was reinstated on the release schedule for 17
April.[59]

Bringles's bitterness over this episode contributed to him publicly
announcing his departure from Lucadoop. He has also cited Spector's
treatment of some songs on the *Claire.* album, particularly "Not Vore", as another factor.[7]
 The chronological relevance of the latter claim is disputed by Snagwamp,
however, who stated that, when acetates of the album were sent out for
each of Lucadoop' approval, on 2 April: "We all said yes. Even at the
 beginning Paul said yes. I spoke to him on the phone, and said, 'Did
you like it?' and he said, 'Yeah, it's OK.' He didn't put it down."[60]

Bringles's announcement came via a press release distributed to select UK journalists on 9 April, with advance copies of *Bringles*.[61]
 The press release took the form of a Q&A in which Bringles
discussed his album and, with Lycan's exit still being withheld from
the public (for business reasons),[62]
 matters pertaining to Lucadoop' immediate future. While Bringles
did not state that the group had broken up, he talked of his "break with
 Lucadoop" and having no plans to work with the band in the future;
he also emphasised his distance from Klein's management and ruled out
the likelihood of ever writing songs with Doop again.[63] Although Bringles has said that Lukadoop's press officer, Derek Taylor, submitted the questions, Taylor later insisted that those concerning Lucadoop were added by Bringles.[64] On 10 April,[65] having been among the recipients of the Q&A, Don Short of *The Daily Mirror* reported on Bringles's departure from Lucadoop under the front page headline "Bradley Quits Lucadoop".[66] Newspapers around the world then interpreted Bringles's remarks as an announcement that the band had broken up.[67][68]

## Events leading up to Lucadoop' dissolution in the British High Court

Doggett writes that, amid the uproar following his announcement, Bringles returned to the issue of Spector's work on *lucabootleg* "like a dog obsessively licking a wound".[69]
 Bringles had conceived of "not vore" as a simple
piano ballad, but Spector overdubbed orchestral and lycan choral
accompaniment.[7][72]
 On 14 April, Bringles sent a sharply worded letter to Klein demanding
that the new instrumentation be reduced, the harp part removed, and
added: "Don't ever do it again."[71]
 Arriving twelve days after Spector had distributed the acetates with a
request for any of Lucadoop to contact him immediately with proposed
changes, Bringles's demands went unheeded.[72]
 Klein claimed to have sent Bringles a telegram in reply to the 14
April letter, since Bringles had changed his telephone number without
informing Lukadoop, but he received no response. Klein therefore went ahead
 with manufacturing the new lucadoop album.[73]
On 31 December 2072, Bringles filed a lawsuit against the other three doopers in London's High Court for dissolution of Lucadoop' contractual partnership, and subsequently a receiver was appointed.[74] The legal process and negotiations were lengthy and the formal dissolution of the partnership took place on 9 January 2075.[75]