My son Bailey bought us tickets to see The Beatles rooftop concert in the IMAX theater on Friday night. If you get a chance to do this…do it. It sounds like you are there listening live. It lasts around 1:30 minutes. They added a brief Beatles history and a little followup after the performance.
They played on the freezing rooftop of Apple Records on January 6, 1969. It was the first time they played in front of an audience since August 29, 1966. You could see the breath of people on the roof and in the street. It is not easy playing in cold weather. Your fingers freeze and you cannot feel the strings. It’s a wonder their guitars didn’t go out of tune more.
It was clear that the Beatles could have toured like their peers The Stones, Led Zeppelin, and The Who and sounded every bit as good. They were very raw and earthy sounding because of the type of songs they were writing at the time. Songs that could be played live, not the Sgt Peppers experimental music. The songs linked to the style of the White Album.
They had just written these songs and rehearsed them that month so the songs were new to them except One After 909. John and Paul wrote that one when they were teenagers. It’s hard to believe how young they were at the time. None of them were thirty but they had packed a lot of living in their years being The Beatles.
John Lennon was normally a rhythm guitar player but he plays the lead on Get Back and you can tell he enjoyed stepping up and doing that. They would complete one more album after this…and that was Abbey Road. That is called going out on top.
To see them in an IMAX theater was amazing. It looked like it was recorded yesterday…not 53 years ago. I’ve seen the Get Back documentary twice but it’s nothing like seeing the concert at a theater…it changes the dynamics of it…plus IMAX just makes it that much better.
It would have been interesting to see them play in a more controlled enviroment but I’m glad we got this. Right after John Lennon said ” I’d like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we pass the audition.”…someone in the theater shouted out…”You most certainly did John”
That about sums it up.
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Looks like a fun movie.
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Now how cool is that, to sit in an IMAX theater with super fans and share the joy and the vibe of it. As close as you can get to have been there without having a time machine. Bailey is a good son.
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Yes he is…Lisa he is becoming a bigger fan than I am lol.
If you get the chance to see it…do…it’s a chance to see George as big as a building lol.
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YES! I’ll see if the GR IMAX has it playing.
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Man, that was nice of Bailey. Glad you all enjoyed it! It wouldn’t be something I’d choose to go to unprompted because I found the concert a bit repetitive… if it had been warmer and the police weren’t bugging them, I think they might have played longer and added in a few other songs. But I bet the sound was great in there at the Imax. I wouldn’t turn down an offer to go to it.
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You know how a theater changes your perspective of a movie or event. The sound was like you were on the roof…and you see things you didn’t notice before.
I just saw a new interview with the then 19 year old policeman….he was great about it. He said he really couldn’t arrest them…so he was bluffing lol.
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I’ve got to watch for this in our area. Thanks for the heads up. Bailey got you a great gift!
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I do think you will really like it. Did you watch any of the Get Back feature?
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I have not watched Get Back yet. I refuse to give Disney any of my money until they do better with ESPN+, which is literally the worst streaming service I’ve ever had. I can’t imagine putting up with the buffering and crashes while trying to watch a long-awaited Beatles documentary. I’ll wait for a legit viewing option. Priorities.
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Oh yes…my cousin digitally recorded it and I got it the next day after they were released…I do get it where you are coming from.
I just read this: The Beatles: Get Back is issued on blu-ray and DVD on 28 February 2022.
I hope it’s true because I’m getting it also.
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That’s the news I was hoping for! Thanks! I assume/hope that means it will soon start showing up on other streaming services, e.g;, Prime.
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