The Beatles "Drop T" Logo

Today, organizations often make huge investments of time and resources to develop successful logos and visual branding. It’s interesting and even refreshing to explore the simple, if not somewhat cloudy, origins of what was to become one of the most iconic graphics of a generation, The Beatles’ “Drop-T” logo.  This is one of those cases in which “Fab Fog” from years of memories and legend presents somewhat differing accounts, which I’ll share and leave to your conclusions.   

The first, and perhaps best known, of these claims comes from Ivor Arbiter, owner of Drum City. Ltd.  While web searches of his version offer differing stories, this is the best known. In April 1963, when Ringo and Brian Epstein negotiated a deal in his office to purchase Ringo’s first Ludwig drum kit, Ivor’s memory was that he hastily sketched a logo on a scrap of paper from his desk, which emphasized the “BEAT” in “Beatles.”  In doing so, Arbiter credits himself as being the designer of The Beatles' 

The "Drop-T" logo is one of the most recognizable logos in the world. Ringo does not recall this taking place. Ivor had a local freelance sign painter, Eddie Stokes, with a withered arm, paint the new logo on the front of the bass drumhead for the sum of £5, to everyone’s satisfaction.