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It’s hard to believe that as well as The Beatles career
was documented that there’s any footage that hasn’t been
discovered and exploited in the 43 years since they broke
through to become one of the most influential and popular
bands of all time. Love them or hate them, The Beatles musical
impact cannot be underestimated. Whether you find their
music cloying and annoying or innovative and challenging,
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr
opened the door for the British invasion and helped give
birth to power pop, prog rock, hard rock and symphonic rock
all in the course of a relatively short (8 years from their
first major British release 1962’s “Love Me Do” and 10 years
from their first commercially available recording with Tony
Sheridan). ***
This unusual documentary attempts tells The Beatles
story through their tour of the world. With rare footage
shot as the band toured the world, “Unseen Beatles” features
the band the infancy of touring. Now bands tour with equipment
and a system that works. The Beatles like their contemporaries
The Rolling Stones and others had to invent it as they went
along. The documentary opens with footage of The Beatles
doing their last show at San Francsico’s Candlestick Park.
Ed Freeman a roadie for the band, Tony Barrows their early
press officer and Barry Tashian who opened the shows with
his band The Remains appear discussing their experiences
with the band. The TV special produced by the BBC features
engineer Norman Smith discussing their first recording with
producer George Martin. Smith and Martin weren’t impressed
with their handful of original songs but they were impressed
with their charisma, irreverence and presence. Journalist
Maureen Cleave (who was close to the band and did the interview
where Lennon said that The Beatles had become more popular
than Jesus Christ) discusses what made them different and
revolutionary. Tony Bramwell who was their tour manager
from 1962 to the end points out that what made them different
was as much the influences that they carried forward (the
humor of The Goon Show, Chuck Berry and cheeky wit) as the
musical statements they made. Amateur footage shot of the
show as the Candlestick was set up for their appearance,
the fans rolled in, their sound check and appearance in
1966 when the band pulled the plug on their increasingly
chaotic concerts which they hated doing. Why? They couldn’t
hear themselves, couldn’t grow as musicians and were limited
in what they could play as a four piece effectively for
these shows. ***
“Unseen Beatles” features rare footage much of which
hasn’t been seen at all or since the band’s heyday. This
release along with “The McCartney Years” (which focuses
on Paul McCartney’s long solo career and as a member of
his band Wings) is a big boon for Beatles fans starved for
new material about the four lads from Liverpool. ***
Jouranlist/Radio DJ Larry Kane (author of an excellent
book on The Beatles and another on his experience with John
Lennon) and Tony Barrow also discuss the lack of decent
security and the fear that John Lennon might be killed in
the wake of his comments about Jesus Christ and The Beatles.
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