Monday 29 April 2013

New Website for The Jacaranda Project





The BBFC has been covering the development of the Jacaranda Project, the project to honour the club in Liverpool where the Beatles got their start and which sadly closed in 2011. 

We're now delighted to be able to share the news that the website is live at http://thejacarandaproject.tumblr.com/

Natalie and Chynna, the masterminds behind this great project, would like your help though.  They say:

  "If you’re a Beatles fan (or a fan of Merseybeat and all things Liverpool) you’ve probably heard of the place. It’s a massive part of the musical history of the City and we’d love you to be involved. Did you ever see anyone play there? Did you perform at one of their popular Open Mic nights or do you know anyone who did? If you have any photographs, memories or stories to tell us about the Jac please let us know! We’d love to hear what you thought of it. 

 We're looking for people to write about 50 - 100 words about the Jac (add any images if you'd like too as well) and we'll include it on our site! Thanks again to everyone who has already shared stories with us."

The website already contains a selection of images, interviews and memories, so check it out! And please get in touch with the project to share your own memories and photos.

To share your memories, use one of the links below:

Twitter: @thejacproject

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheJacarandaProject

Email: thejacproject@gmail.com




Jameson & Hills Perform Songs of The Beatles - Leeds, May 3





For more information, visit the website at http://www.jamesonhills.co.uk/gig-diary

Saturday 27 April 2013

USA WRITERS ENTER BEATLES PLAY FESTIVAL



Two entries from America will be staged in The Ticket to Write Festival for Beatles-themed plays making this year’s contest a truly international event.

Three of the eight fifteen-minute plays selected to be performed at Liverpool’s Unity Theatre on July 30th have been penned by Merseyside writers.

The author of the best play, as judged by theatre professionals and votes from the audience, will win £150.
“We’ve been very pleased with the entries and the enthusiasm shown by the writers in this, our second year,” said Jamie Gaskin, Festival Director.

For 2013 four of the plays selected focus on George Harrison to mark the 70th anniversary of his birth. The other four are general pieces about the Fab Four.

Those chosen (in alphabetical order):
·         Beatlemania, by Maureen Johnson, Ohio, USA (General entry)
·         Darren and George, by Phil McNulty, Southport, Merseyside (George entry)
·         Digital Age, by Chris Jenkins, Ince Blundell, Merseyside (General entry)
·         Double Fantasy, by Paul McGuire, Ainsdale, Southport, Merseyside (George entry)
·         Happy Birthday, by Martin Drury, Bromsgrove (George entry)
·         The Night I Met George, by Margaret Histed, Brockenhurst, Hampshire (George entry)
·         Vulgar Numbskulls, by Tom Glover, Fleetwood, Hampshire (George entry)
·         When I Got Home, by Trevor Boelter, Valley Village, California, USA (General entry)

To help fund this venture, which not only allows new writers to parade their work but also local actors to showcase their talents, a benefit night is being held at Parr Street Studios, Liverpool on Thursday 27th June.
A fun night of music, quizzes, entertainment and supper all for £10!

For news of this and full details of the Festival and those involved check out www.acedrama.co.uk.



Tuesday 23 April 2013

The Quarrymen in Concert in London!

The Quarrymen: L-R Len Garry, Colin Hanton and Rod Davis
c. The Quarrymen

On the evening of Monday 6 May the Quarrymen will be playing a special gig to mark the London premiere of a play about John Lennon “And in the end”. The gig is at the St James Theatre Studio, which is in Palace Street, between Victoria Station and Buckingham Palace. 

For more information, and to buy tickets, visit the website: http://www.stjamestheatre.co.uk/events/john-lennons-original-quarrymen

In addition to the Quarrymen the cast of the play will also be present, together with the author, Sandy Marshall, a two times Ermmy award winner.  

Rod Davis with Sandy Marshall and Valentine Pelka
The play itself opens on Tuesday 7 May at the Jermyn Street Theatre, close to Piccadilly Circus. 

For more information, and to buy tickets for what promises to be a fascinating and fabulous play, visit the website (which was designed by the famed Beatles artists, Shannon: www.andintheend.com



Monday 22 April 2013

The Upbeat Beatles 50th Anniversary Tour



It was 50 years ago that The Beatles had their First hit record, and went on to shake the world with their brand of “Rock n Roll”


The Upbeat Beatles
The 50th Anniversary Tour

“IF YOU MISSED THEM IN ’63 - NOW’S YOUR CHANCE!”

It's 1963 and a new band is taking the country by storm, playing a heady mixture of Blues, Motown and Rock ’n’ Roll… Since 1997 The Upbeat Beatles have been the best in the business at re-creating the excitement, raw energy and authentic sound of the original Fab Four.

This show will have you tapping your feet from the opening bars - dancing in the aisle, and screaming like you did in 63 by the end. With songs that changed a generation, from the depths of Liverpool’s Cavern Club, to the Roof Top of The Apple Building, the Upbeat Beatles will take you on a journey that is the story of The Beatles through their songs.

The Upbeat Beatles are four supremely talented guys - great powerhouse vocals and close harmonies, pumped out with a driving backbeat to give you a night you’ll never forget.

The Upbeat Beatles are in constant demand and their hard earned reputation for authenticity and attention to detail has taken them around the world, playing to ecstatic audiences. These have included The Jordanian Royal Family and the Hollywood film actor Michael Douglas.
The Beatles were the band that shook the world - Let the Upbeat Beatles shake your night!

“The fab-est four around today, THE UPBEAT BEATLES are the nearest you'll ever get to the real thing!”

For a full list of venues, and to buy tickets for the 50th Anniversary Tour, visit the Upbeat Beatles website by clicking here!

Julian Lennon's New Single Out Now!


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Discovery of ‘Beatles in Croydon’ Pictures Could Be Worth Thousands





New pictures of The Beatles have come to light after nearly fifty years of lying in an attic. The pictures are of the Fab Four performing at The Fairfield Halls in Croydon in April 1963 and then relaxing backstage in the Artist’s Bar after the concert. The pictures are potentially worth tens of thousands in licensing rights.

Andy Wright, the photographer, had forgotten all about the pictures he’d taken nearly fifty years ago until his memory was prompted by a new website at www.fairfieldat50.com. The website celebrates the forthcoming 50th anniversary of the iconic venue in South London which was opened in November 1962.

The pictures, and others taken at Fairfield by Andy, can now be seen on the website. They were taken by Andy when he was a fifteen year old schoolboy at Woodcote Secondary School in Coulsdon and keen on pursuing a career in photography. His father worked as a steward at the Fairfield Halls and he got the manager’s permission to allow his son to wander around with a camera. The week he chose for his ‘work experience’ was a fortunate one because, as well as The Beatles, Andy also snapped a young Shirley Bassey and Matt Monro. Andy now lives in Hertfordshire, and he did eventually realise his dream of becoming a professional photographer and started out with the Surrey Mirror.

As well as being a historical archive the www.fairfieldat50.com website also asks Fairfield patrons, past and present, to submit their own pictures of Fairfield to celebrate the anniversary. Having seen this request when browsing the site Andy dug out the pictures, scanned them and sent them to Fairfield, not fully realising both their historical and monetary value. The pictures were received by Fairfield’s John Spring, a Beatles fan, who had been searching for pictures of the Beatles at Fairfield for years and had almost given up hope of ever seeing any. Having worked in the image licensing business in the past he put Andy in touch with the right people to realise their potential value.

Fortunately Andy had also kept the negatives and the pictures have now been registered with the world’s largest commercial picture library, Getty Images, which should see them generate a significant return for Andy from global licensing rights. Andy has generously allowed the Fairfield Halls to use them, free of charge, for their own purposes, by way of a thank you for giving him the opportunity to take them in the first place.

Andy says “I only had 12 pictures on my roll of film. Film was expensive back then. The picture of all four of them backstage (potentially the most financially lucrative) was taken with the last shot I had. They were very nice to me but they were a bit shattered after the concert. I went home on the bus, developed the pictures, and proudly took them into the school the next day. I still have the Rollei camera I took pictures with.”

The Beatles in Croydon:

The Beatles played three times in Croydon. The first was on March 21st 1963 when they supported Chris Montez and Tommy Roe. This was at the then ABC Cinema on London Road.

The concert on April 25th 1963, when these pictures were taken, was barely a month after the release of their first album, ‘Please Please Me’. The show comprised two performances (5.30pm and 8pm) as part of ‘The Mersey Beat Showcase’ mini-tour featuring acts from Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein’s stable. The tour also featured Gerry and the Pacemakers, The Big Three, Billy J Kramer and The Dakotas (it says ’Dakotas’ on the drum kit Ringo can be seen playing in the pictures) and Vic Sutcliffe. John Leyton was joint top billing with The Beatles. With an album heading for the top of the charts their stock had risen considerably since March but not quite enough to be sole headliners. Unfortunately John Leyton was taken ill and couldn’t perform so The Beatles ended up on their own at the top of the bill.

The Beatles later returned to Fairfield as part of a bigger tour on September 7th 1963, very much as the headline act and at the height of Beatlemania.

Therefore these high quality pictures taken on a Rollei medium format camera are of a relatively early Beatles concert. Three of the pictures show the band on stage from the left, right and centre of Fairfield’s concert platform. Other pictures show all four posing together backstage in the Artist’s Bar, Ringo and John being interviewed by a lady we believe to be a ‘Mrs Kirby’ and then there is also a shot from the Artist’s Bar showing waiting fans at the Stage Door gates. Fairfield Halls would be especially keen to hear from any Beatles expert that knows if the recorded interview by Mrs Kirby is still in existence.

Were you in the audience when the Beatles played at Fairfields Hall in 1963?  If so, Croydon Radio would love to hear from you!  
Croydon Radio, 1 Matthews Yard, Croydon CR01FF
croydonradio.com facebook.com/croydonradio @croydonradio


Fairfield Halls:

The Fairfield Halls celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. There are effectively three ‘halls’. These are the 1800 seat Concert Hall (where the Beatles played), the 750 seat Ashcroft Theatre and the flat-floor Arnhem Gallery which acts as a 400 capacity standing venue. It’s always been a source of conjecture as to whether it should be described as The Fairfield Hall (i.e. just describing the Concert Hall) or Fairfield Halls (as in all three spaces). The public have always described it as ‘the halls’ and these days Fairfield tends to describe it as ‘The Fairfield Halls’ too. This is because it tends to be more descriptive of a ‘complex of venues’, which is exactly what it is.

The Queen Mother opened Fairfield on Friday 2nd November 1962. This was covered extensively in the press and praise lavished up Fairfield Halls ‘imaginative and bold design’. What wasn’t known was that Queen Mother had a fractured foot and the opening was nearly called off. After the ceremony she then attended the inaugural concert which was given by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Malcom Sergeant, with the soloist being the famous Yehudi Menhuin.

Fairfield Halls continues to host international classical music, comedy, ballet, opera and a wide range of theatre. The 50th anniversary is being celebrated with the new anniversary website at www.fairfieldat50.com and a number of concerts featuring, amongst others, the RPO, the LMP and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. In three years time Fairfield will be undergoing a £25m redevelopment to ensure that it enjoys another 50 years as an international venue.

Sunday 21 April 2013

Rare Beatles Guitar on Display in Ireland


RARE BEATLES GUITAR EXCLUSIVELY ON DISPLAY AT NEWBRIDGE SILVERWARE MUSEUM OF STYLE ICONS - IRELAND

Tuesday, April 16 to Wednesday May 8, 2013




Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons in partnership with Julien’s Auctions is hosting an exclusive exhibition featuring a very rare Beatles guitar played by both John Lennon and George Harrison.  The rare VOX guitar played by both legendary artists is what true rock n’ roll is made of. The striking custom guitar built by Mike Bennett and Dickey Denney was gifted to “Magic Alex” Mardas by John Lennon in 1967.  Harrison played the guitar while practicing “I am the Walrus” during The Magical Mystery Tour and by Lennon while recording a video session for “Hello, Goodbye” but it is not seen in the final version of the video that was released. Lennon gifted the guitar to “Magic Alex” Mardas. A plaque affixed to the back of the guitar reads “To Magic Alex/Alexi thank you/for been (sic) a friend/2-5-1967 John.”

According to Madras the date refers to his 25th birthday earlier that year and not the date the guitar was given to him. The guitar body has a unique scroll design, marked “Vox Custom” on the headstock. It also featured 24 fret rosewood fingerboard with rectangular inlays, mahogany hollow body, single f-hole along with electronics which include six push buttons for: treble, bass, top boost,  mid-boost, fuzz and repeat. The guitar was not originally designed as part of the VOX Kensington line but it has become known as such.  The guitar is discussed by Andy Babiuk in his book “Beatles Gear: All the Fab Four’s Instruments: From Stage to Studio” and seen in “Beat Instrumental” November 1967 which shows an image of George Harrison playing the guitar.  Because of the relationship with the Beatles and Madras the guitar adds a unique emotional pull to Beatles lore.

The spectacular piece of Beatles history will travel from Los Angeles for an exclusive exhibition at the Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons in Dublin from Tuesday  April 16, 2013 through Wednesday - May 8, 2013. Fans and visitors can view the iconic piece of music memorabilia at the museum from 9 AM each day.  After the exhibition the guitar will travel back to the United States where it will be auctioned to the highest bidder at Julien’s Auctions Music Icons event to be held in New York on Saturday, May 18, 2013. It is estimated to bring $200,000-$300,000.  The extraordinary opportunity for fans and visitors to view the guitar is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity limited to the exhibition at Newbridge.

The Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons is one of Europe’s premier museums dedicated to design and style excellence and showcases the influences of some of the world’s most prominent and respected personalities.  The guitar will join the four D.A Millings Beatles suits which are on permanent display at the museum which continues to welcome thousands of visitors since its official opening to the public in 2009.  The Museum of Style Icons is located onsite at the Newbridge Silverware Visitor Center.

The Museum features signature pieces from Ireland's most notable designers and showcases artifacts associated with some of the most legendary Stars of the Silverscreen including Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly Bette Davis, the Beatles, Gloria Swanson, Barbara Streisand, Julie Andrews, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor, Gloria Swanson, Jean Simmons, Sarah Jessica Parker, Barbara Stanwyck and many more  Newbridge has also introduced a range of jewelry designed as recreations of such Hollywood icons as Maureen O’Hara and Greta Garbo.

ABOUT NEWBRIDGE SILVERWARE MUSEUM OF STYLE ICONS:

Since 1934, Newbridge Silverware has been Ireland's premier designer and producer of homeware and giftware products. The brand is continuously innovating and producing items that are relevant to the lifestyles of each new generation of customers. Today Newbridge Silverware is regarded as the premier solution for all gifting occasions. The unique history of the company provides a wealth of tradition craftsmanship and experience, while a contemporary and fresh attitude to design puts Newbridge Silverware on the cutting edge of modern living. In addition to timeless silverware and jewelry, the Newbridge Visitor’s Center hosts the acclaimed Museum of Style Icons. The museum is a permanent exhibition dedicated to design and style excellence while celebrating some of the world’s most iconic personalities.  The museum features personal effects and items from Ireland’s most notable designers and also showcases artifacts and personal items from legendary stars of film and television known worldwide. These include Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Bette Davis, Gloria Swanson, Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth Taylor, Jean Simmons, Sarah Jessica Parker, James Stewart, Ingrid Bergman, The Beatles and so much more. The visitor’s center also hosts an award winning restaurant named Silver Restaurant. Newbridge is located in Kildare, Ireland near R445 and Main Street. Telephone contact is +353 45 431301. Hours of operation are Monday – Saturday 9am-6pm and Sunday and Holidays form 11am – 6pm. For more information on Newbridge Silverware & Cutlery, The Newbridge Silverware Museum of Style Icons, Newbridge Jewelry and events go to www.newbridgesilverware.com.



The Beatles - Young and Reckless in Hamburg Film



For the past 6 months we, Future Artists, have been throwing around ideas for our latest project: a documentary following the early career of The Beatles in the Reeperbahn of Hamburg. We’ve had a positive response so far and have managed to build up a community of fans and followers who have not only given us support, but have helped us develop the idea itself. As well as Beatle fans we’ve been in contact with multiple Hamburg-Beatles experts from around the world, such as Spencer Leigh, Eric Krasker and Hans Olof Gottfridsson (all authors of Hamburg-Beatles related books).

We’re planning on part-funding these early stages of the film via a Crowdfunding campaign which can be found at: igg.me/at/TheBeatles

Here you’ll find a selection of perks up for sale such as:

- Digital, DVD and Bluray copies of the film
- Copies of Hamburg Beatles Caricature drawn by Mark Rehkopf
- Signed copies of Eric Kraskers book ‘The Beatles - Fact and Fiction’
- The chance to be an extra in the film!

All contributions above $10 also receive their name in the credits of the film!

The money made from these perks will part-fund the initial stages of the production, any help you can give us so early on in this film-making process will go a long way, and so will be much appreciated!
Thank you - Beatles Hamburg team, Future Artists

Take Flight Again in 2013…With Wings over America


c. MPL Communications Ltd

· Re-release of Paul McCartney & Wings’ groundbreaking 1976 live album Wings over America containing bonus material out May 28th on Hear Music/Concord Music Group
· DVD release of the live concert film ‘Rockshow’ documenting the band’s epic Wings over the World tour across America (June 11th)
· Theatrical release of ‘Rockshow’ and an exclusive VIP premiere screening – featuring an introduction by Paul – at BAFTA (May 15th)
This Spring will see another chapter unfold in the life of Wings, the band formed by Paul McCartney after the break-up of The Beatles – and one of the most successful bands the UK has ever produced.
c. MPL Communications Ltd
Wings over America
First, the historic live album, which documented the band’s triumphant 1976 tour across North America, will be reissued in a range of formats. Fans and hardcore devotees alike will be especially thrilled with the stunning four-book, four-disc (3CD, 1DVD) Deluxe Edition Box Set. The box set's superior audio and video include the two-disc Wings over America album remastered at Abbey Road, a bonus audio disc recorded live at San Francisco’s Cow Palace, a bonus DVD containing the rarely seen 75-minute television special Wings over the World and the photo gallery montage entitled ‘Photographer’s Pass’. Moreover, the Deluxe Edition Box Set contains four exquisitely rendered art books packaged with an incredible array of exclusive memorabilia, souvenirs, mementos, keepsakes and never-before-seen photos and art work from this historic tour. The spectacular 110-page commemorative tour book beautifully recounts the behind-the-scenes drama through dozens of live performances and backstage photos along with new interviews and liner notes from eminent music journalist David Fricke. 
c. 1976 MPL Communications Ltd/Photographer Robert Ellis
The Wings over America leatherette-bound ‘Tour Itinerary’ contains extravagant memorabilia including printed 8X10 glossy band photos, a backstage guest pass, facsimiles of the invitation to the infamous end-of-tour party at the Harold Lloyd Estate in Beverly Hills along with Wings over America concert tickets, original album art work, tour posters, set lists, lyrics, press materials and much more. ‘Look’, the box set’s warm and intimate book of Linda McCartney photography features Paul and the band in their everyday life as they made their way across the country in the spring of ’76. Lastly, the set contains ‘The Ocean View’ an extraordinary hardbound compendium of drawings and sketches by artist Humphrey Ocean that captures the band on tour in relaxed and revealing ways. A striking artistic achievement in and of itself, the audacious Wings over America Deluxe Edition Box Set is a must have for any McCartney enthusiast.
c. 1976 MPL Communications Ltd/
Photographer Robert Ellis
Rockshow DVD Release
And for the first time a DVD will be released by Eagle Rock of the live concert film Rockshow which was shot in 1975 and 1976 when Paul McCartney & Wings undertook the epic Wings over the World tour--the largest-scale tour they would ever undertake as a band. Packed with all the classic Wings hits - plus some of Paul's solo and Beatles classics - the film is released on both DVD and Blu-ray formats. Although filmed on this tour at the enormous Kingdome in Seattle, Rockshow, originally an edited version of the concert, was not premiered until November 1980 in New York and April 1981 in London. It was originally released on Betamax (later on laserdisc) but it’s only now that the complete full-length concert is being made available fully restored from the original 35mm film and with restored & remastered sound, including a 5.1 mix for the first time.
Rockshow Theatrical Release
And then third, but by no means least, Eagle Rock has partnered with distributors Specticast who are releasing the film theatrically worldwide for a ‘one night only’ event’ on May 15th (see here for more details: http://rockshowonscreen.com/) – meaning the film will be shown in more than 500 theaters across the world! The theatrical release features an exclusive introduction with Paul McCartney, but there will also be an exclusive VIP premiere screening of Rockshow, with Paul in attendance and introducing the film, at BAFTA on 15 May 2013.
For Wings Across America Paul brought with him one the most sophisticated and dazzling rock shows of the mid-Seventies (a time when nobody worried about extravagance or expense) and the band would eventually perform to more than 600,000 people at 31 shows in the US and Canada, ending with three mind-bending nights at The Forum in Los Angeles. It’s no exaggeration to say that the demand that greeted Paul McCartney & Wings (Linda McCartney, Joe English, Denny Laine and Jimmy McCulloch) in the spring of 1976 as they embarked on what would become their one and only North American tour was overwhelming. Having released four consecutive chart busting albums including Red Rose Speedway, Band on the Run, Venus and Mars and Wings at the Speed of Sound – not to mention 1973’s Academy Award-winning James Bond theme “Live and Let Die” – Paul’s solo career was in full flight… and having not performed in the States for 10 years either solo or with The Beatles, excitement had reached fever pitch.
Now Paul gives fans the chance to be able to immerse themselves in a concert that is destined to live forever.
For a Wings over America Sneak Peak via YouTube: 

Wings are one of the most successful acts the UK has ever produced, achieving no less than 14 US Top 10 hits and 12 Top 10 hits at home – including “Mull of Kintyre” which with 2m+ sales remains the biggest-selling non-charity single of all time – over their ten year career. 

The Wings over America reissue (Hear Music/Concord) follows the re-release of Band on the Run, McCartney, McCartney II and RAM for the Paul McCartney Archive Collection. To this point, the celebrated series, personally supervised by Paul, has been honored with the Best Historical Album GRAMMY Award for Band on the Run and most recently a Best Historical GRAMMY nomination for RAM.


c. MPL Communications Ltd
Released in early December 1976, Wings over America was platinum by Christmas and #1 on Billboard album chart by the third week of January. The famous live version of “Maybe I’m Amazed”, issued as a single in February 1977 (the studio version from McCartney, an FM-radio hit in 1970, was never available on 45) quickly went Top Ten on Billboard’s singles chart and has since become one of Paul McCartney’s most beloved songs.
The remastered album’s release is dedicated to late members Linda McCartney and Jimmy McCulloch.





Pre-order now!


@PaulMcCartney

The Apple Core Beatles, Slough, May 18

From The Apple Core Beatles:




The Apple Core Beatles are a Beatles tribute band from South West London. We are organising an event at the Gala Bingo club in Slough on the 18th May. The Club used to be the old Adelphi cinema where the Beatles started their 1963 Autumn tour with Roy Orbison and Gerry and The Pacemakers. The venue hasn't changed that much and is one of the few UK venues still standing that The Beatles played at.



The Apple Core Beatles are playing at the club 50 years to the night that The Fab Four played there (18th May 1963), and would love to see as many BBFC members there as possible, who want to hear some great live Beatles music and play a game of Bingo :-). We would also love to hear from anyone who saw the Beatles that night.  Proceeds for the event will go to a local charity.


For more information, or to contact The Apple Core Beatles, visit their website at www.theapplecorebeatles.com

Thursday 18 April 2013

The Jacaranda Project – Acoustic Evening





This Friday night, The Jacaranda Project will be hosting an acoustic evening at The Brink as they prepare for the launch of their website. Starting at 7.30pm, SheBeat, Reece Jones, Sam Grosvenor and their acoustic guitars in tow, are the 3 local acts that will grace the stage providing a mellow alternative to the usual Friday night.

The website will be a collection of images, interviews and will delve into The Jacaranda’s illustrious history. With plans to launch the website next week, you can keep up to date with the project on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thejacarandaproject or if you’d like to contribute to the site with your own images or stories please send them to thejacproject@gmail.com

If you loved The Jacaranda, go to The Brink (15-21 Parr Street Liverpool L1 4JN) this Friday at 7.30 pm share your stories and support local music/artists. The evening will be free entry.

Thursday 11 April 2013

50th ANNIVERSARY RELAY VIDEO CELEBRATES THE GLOBAL LEGACY OF THE BEATLES




Liverpool’s Beatles Story and The Cavern Club find the world’s greatest Beatles tribute acts to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of ‘From Me to You’

The very best Beatles tribute acts from across the globe have come together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of the Fab Four’s ‘From Me to You’ hit - by contributing their versions for a new music video that showcases the global influence of the band.
And the music video will given its world premiere on the 50th anniversary of the single’s release (11thApril 1963) at Liverpool’s world-famous Cavern Club to a packed house of fans, tourists and international journalists.



To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of The Beatles ‘From Me to You’ Liverpool’s award-winning Beatles Story attraction in conjunction with The Cavern Club ­­put a call out across the globe for the world’s greatest Beatles tribute acts to record their version of the hit single. It was launched at The Cavern with the help of a rousing performance by The Cavern Club Beatles.

The response was overwhelming with exclusive video entries coming in from Liverpool, Hungary, Brazil, Japan, Slovakia, Switzerland, Canada, France, Spain, Australia, Israel, Argentina and United States of America. The amazing results were then edited into a two and a half minute version of ‘From Me To You’ that takes the viewer all around the world and back to Liverpool. A global first!

All complete entries can be viewed here - http://tinyurl.com/beatlesglobalrelay

Martin King of The Beatles Story says,
“We wanted to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of ‘From Me to You’ in a way that showed the world The Beatles’ enduring influence and engaged with fans and musicians from across the globe.
“We hope that people like the film as much as we do and that it showcases The Beatles’ and Liverpool’s contribution to global culture in a unique way. We’re really impressed with all the entries and with how much effort the tribute acts have gone to make such a fantastic 50th anniversary artefact. They have done Liverpool, The Cavern and The Beatles Story very proud.”
The enduring legacy of The Beatles has created a network of remarkable tribute bands the world over but it is thought that the ‘From Me to You’ project is the first time that these global tribute bands will have joined forces to create a single video artefact spanning the continents.

The music video forms part of the official events programme of ‘Liverpool Celebrates 50 Years Of The Beatles’. During 2012, the programme captured the imagination of visitors from across the world with a calendar of events to celebrate key milestone dates in the history of the world’s most famous band. This included setting a Guinness World Record on the 50th anniversary of the release of the band’s debut single, Love Me Do. A programme of events will continue throughout 2013 and 2014. Liverpool Celebrates 50 Years Of The Beatles is supported by VisitLiverpool, Official Tourist Board for Liverpool City Region.

‘From Me to You’ was co-written by Lennon and McCartney. It was written while the group was on a coach on tour of the UK with Helen Shapiro. The title itself was inspired by the letters page in the NME called ‘From You to Us’.

LIST OF TRIBUTE BANDS:
The Cavern Club Beatles – UK, Liverpool: http://www.cavernclub.org/
The Mersey Beatles – UK, Liverpool: http://www.themerseybeatles.com/
The Backwards – Slovakia: http://www.thebackwards.sk/
The Beatribes – Japan: http://beatribes.digi2.jp
The Nowhere Land – Switzerland, Lugano: http://nowhereland.li/
The Liverpool 4 – Canada, Toronto: http://www.theliverpool4.com/
The AfterBeat – France, Paris: http://www.the-afterbeat.com/en
The Nearly Beatles – Spain, Barcelona: http://www.thenearlybeatles.com/
The Melbeats – Australia, Melbourne: http://www.melbeats.com.au/
Getting Better – Argentina: http://www.gettingbetterarg.com.ar/
All Together Now! – USA, New England: http://www.alltogethernow.us/
Nube 9 – Argentina: http://www.nube9.com.ar/
Beatle Magic – Australia, Sydney: http://www.beatlemagic.com.au
Union Jack – USA, Massachusetts: http://www.4unionjack.com/
Magical Mystery Tour Band – Israel: http://www.themagical.co.il/
The WannaBeatles – USA, Tennessee: http://www.thewannabeatles.com/
The Clover – Japan: https://yaplog.jp/theclover/
The BlackBirds – Hungary: http://www.blackbirds.hu/
Hocus Pocus – Brazil: http://www.hocuspocus.art.br/
Strawberry Fields – Japan, Tokyo: http://band.livoon.com/sf