Best, beloved by the Beatles' earliest fans, had to watch from the sidelines as his former bandmates and Starr became the biggest group on the planet. Now, thanks to a Facebook campaign, he is getting a little compensation from the city where it all started.
A group on the social network calling itself "Name a Street After Pete" aimed to persuade Liverpool City Council to honor Best; it gained more than 10,000 supporters. The council was persuaded and announced Wednesday that Best would get not one but two street names in a new housing development -- one for himself and one for the Casbah, a club started by his late mother Mona, where the Beatles played some of their earliest gigs.
"We only name a street after a living person if it is an exceptional case," councilor Malcolm Kennedy told the website Click Liverpool. "Pete Best is certainly one of those exceptional individuals -- he has made a significant contribution to the musical heritage of our city, and he is a worthy recipient."