Beatles’ master tapes were once hidden at The Mirage

For a time in the mid-2000s, The Mirage housed the most famous music catalog in history and hardly anyone knew.

The Beatles’ master tapes were reportedly kept in tightly guarded vault backstage at Love Theater, during the early days of “Love” at the hotel. Word of the history of these tapes made the rounds as the show closed July 7, and the hotel itself shut down July 17. Cirque PR rep Ann Paladie has not verified the history of the tapes related to the production.

But sources familiar with the music’s chain of possession report the masters were delivered from Abbey Road studios as theater construction was being completed in late 2005 through early 2006. The tapes were then sent back to England.

In keeping with the integrity of The Beatles’ catalog, the sound studio at Love Theater was created to the specifications of Abbey Road Studios. The annex served as the show’s audio nerve center throughout its run.

“Love” opened in June 2006, with The Beatles’ original producer George Martin leading the original sound editing. His son Giles Martin oversaw the remixing of the music for the live show, working from the original tapes in Las Vegas.

Just entering the “Love” studio required clearing multiple levels of security, requiring several hand scans and heavy security personnel inside the entire venue.

Giles Martin returned for a refresh of the music leading to the 10th anniversary in July 2016. Pieces of the original score were removed and added. By that time, Martin worked from digital copies and not the tapes themselves.

It’s often said that the younger Martin produced the same type of artistry with digital files as his father performed with the original tapes. The soundtrack was the last produced by George Martin before his death in 2016, and the last remnants of a show that thrilled audiences for 18 years.

Goodman says Sarno

On Wednesday, the night The Mirage closed on the Strip, former Mayor Oscar Goodman hosted his monthly Oscar’s Dinner Series event at Oscar’s Steakhouse at the Plaza.

The topic was centered on Goodman’s trip to Kansas City to watch his hometown Philadelphia Phillies play the Royals in Game 3 the 1980 World Series. The trip was set up by Goodman associate and Kansas City mob overlord Nick Civella.

Goodman mentioned he’d once run into Civella while representing the late gaming legend Jay Sarno, founder of Caesars Palace and Circus Circus, in an IRS bribery case (Sarno was acquitted).

Sarno had also envisioned the grandiosely designed, but never realized, Grandissimo for the Strip.

“With all due respect, a lot of people say Steve Wynn was the guy who built all of these beautiful buildings, but in my opinion Jay Sarno was the mastermind of Las Vegas as we know it today,” Goodman told the oversold audience. “He’s the one who built all of these gorgeous, theme-typed hotels.”

Goodman has made that claim about Sarno a few times during his dinner talks. An individual who backs up that opinion has been Wynn himself, who interviewed by UNLV’s David Schwartz for the book “Grandissimo,” said, “If anyone changed Las Vegas, it was Jay Sarno.”

Goodman took time away from his mini-roasts of family members, law enforcement figures and yours truly to tell the dinner crowd he nearly owned a casino. This was another Sarno brainstorm.

“Jay came to me and said, ‘How would you like to own a casino?’ And I said, ‘It sounds good to me. Which one do you have in mind?”” Goodman recalled. “He said, ‘How about the the Bingo Palace? … All you have to do is get licensed.”

Goodman relented when learning he would need to turn over his financial records to the state Gaming Commission. This is not something a mob attorney does.

“I said, ‘I can’t do that, I’m a criminal lawyer, I represent important people, I’m not going to turn over my financial dealings with them,’” Goodman said. “He appreciated the fact that I was protecting my clients. After that we became almost simpatico with each other.”

The history of Vegas would have been different had Goodman taken on Bingo Palace. His dinner location would be different, for starters.

Cool Hang Alert

Blake Shelton’s Ole Red Las Vegas is inviting up-and-coming country artists to the “Next Up” battle of the bands competition scheduled for Aug. 6, 13, 20 and 27 from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. On the final date, winners from each week will return to the stage to decide the overall champion of the month. The winner will be awarded $1,000 and a regular performance spot at Ole Red Las Vegas. Go to olered.com/lasvegas/ole-red-vegas-battle-of-the-bands for intel.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.