One of the sad aspects of the Beatles story is how little good footage remains of their live act. Most of what we know of their legendary music comes from their albums. But, before they became masters of the studio recording process, The Beatles were a tight and versatile band which could play rock and pop songs with equal skill. Howard’s movie has some rare glimpses of their stage shows from 1963 to their final full concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco in 1966. And it is all stunning to watch, especially on the big screen. “Beatlemania” was its height for much of this time and it is still unnerving, after five decades, to see its full-blown effects on (mostly female) teens of the time, who all seem to be in the grip of collective hysteria.
Chronologically, in the documentary, we move through all the major Beatles events from 1963 onwards – from the early albums to the first big US tour in 1964 to world domination and then, in 1966, the collective decision to stop touring. This last year was a difficult one for the band in many ways – John Lennon’s (understandable but silly) comment that his group was now more popular than even Jesus Christ led to a massive backlash in the southern parts of the US; other bad moments included the objections (on cultural grounds) by some Japanese when the band played at the revered Budokan arena in Tokyo and also antagonising the Marcoses in the Philippines when they failed to turn up for an event with the-then First Lady Imelda Marcos.
The pressures of fame and the fact that no one could really hear what The Beatles were singing on stage (because of the non-stop screaming of the female fans and the poor sound systems of the time) meant that there was less and less enjoyment from touring, even though they were making huge amounts of money on the road. Finally, the decision was made to retreat to the studio; that wise move would result in some of the most complex and ambitious music of their career. But that story is not covered here, though we are shown glimpses of the group’s final (short) concert on the rooftop of their Apple Corps building in early 1969.
Nods are dutifully made in the film to the key people behind the “four-headed monster” that The Beatles would go on to become – these include roadies Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall and press agent Derek Taylor. There is also plenty of welcome footage on the band’s manager Brian Epstein (he was the one who cleaned up their stage act and put them in identical suits and made them wear the same “pudding bowl haircuts”) and aristocratic producer and “Fifth Beatle” George Martin (who was key to the Beatles sound). There is a poignant shot of Epstein looking on calmly at his wards during the Shea Stadium concert in 1965 (more about that show later) – one wonders what he was thinking of, at that point in time. Two years later, he would be dead and his passing was one of the many reasons that would splinter this tight “band of brothers” by the end of the decade.
As a band-sanctioned project, it is no surprise to see original drummer Pete Best not mentioned even in passing in this particular film. Plenty of celebrity talking heads (ranging from Elvis Costello to Sigourney Weaver to Whoopi Goldberg) are shown offering insights on and memories about The Beatles – the most interesting of these come from American radio broadcaster Larry Kane, who was lucky enough to travel with the band on their first and second tour of the United States, in 1964 and 1965. The amusing press conferences from the early years are still great fun to watch and listen to, with the bubbly wit and impish humour of the foursome on full display.
There are some new interviews with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr to liven up things while the late Lennon and George Harrison are shown talking from earlier interviews. But none of this would matter without plenty of iconic Beatle music – fanatic Beatle followers like myself have listened to all these songs hundreds of times by now but, even so, it was electrifying to hear them again, and that too performed live. Track after timeless track (both originals and covers) are either heard in the background or shown performed on stage in that brisk and typically joyous head-bobbing, hair-tossing Beatles style. The harmonies are heavenly and you are soon caught up in the magic of it all.
It is astonishing to note the sheer range of the compositions Lennon and McCartney came up with, month after month during the mid-1960s. One has to remember that these four 20-somethings were also acting in movies, touring continuously, as well as appearing on various TV shows at this time – and all of this in the full glare of the world media! Their sheer productivity and astonishing stamina can only be marvelled at. Has any musical act since then achieved so much, and within such a short period of time? I doubt it.
For me, interestingly, the best part was what came after the actual documentary. The screening I was at showed an edited and restored 30-minute version of the historic Shea Stadium concert on Aug 15, 1965 in front of a (then) record audience of 55,600. This is generally regarded as the most famous of all The Beatles concerts. Amid the mayhem and bedlam of full-blown Beatlemania, The Beatles gamely try to perform some of their most popular tracks to date but are almost drowned out by the screaming of the fans. But even amid the chaos, there are plenty of electrifying moments to savour – a revelation for me was a wonderful version of Baby’s in Black, a little-known song from the album Beatles for Sale (1964), which is sung beautifully.
One wishes somebody would soon make a similar documentary on the years from 1967 to 1969, the last two of The Beatles’ career. This was the time when they made their most celebrated and influential albums, starting with Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Sadly, this was also the period the musicians would go their separate ways, which would result in the breaking-up of the group by 1970. But the astonishing memories of Beatlemania, as a pop-culture phenomenon whose success is unlikely to be ever repeated, remain.
And now, would you please excuse me? I need to go and listen to some Beatles songs. It has been only a few hours since I last heard them …
P.S. Here's the theatrical trailer for those of you keen to check out the documentary