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The Beatles: Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years

brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,683
in Other Music
I finally got around to seeing this great documentary by Ron Howard.  What took me so long?  I had no idea what I was missing!  I loved the Beatles from the day I first heard "I Want to Hold Your Hand" single came out and I ran out and bought a copy.  And then seeing them on the Ed Sullivan Show- that flipped me out!  For quite some time, my interest has lapsed a bit.  I've heard all the songs a million times over the last 55 years and as much as I like their music, they haven't been in my top 5 favorite bands since the early days.

But this film really piqued my interest and got me to notice things I hadn't focused on much before.  Here are the stand outs for me:

-The rigors of the early years.  We are reminded in this film that The Beatles did not just wear sharp suits and cute hair cuts from day one.  They started out as humble musicians working the gritty clubs.  They worked hard, long hours for little pay.  Talk about paying one's dues!  Man!

-The unity of the Fab Four.  Every decision they made was democratic.  And how tightly bonded they were for the first years!  These guys really supported each other and cared for each other. So much of the press over the years has focused on the later disputes but here, in this film, you see how close they were for so long.

-Ringo.  Oh man, how I have underestimated Ringo's musical contributions!  I always thought Ringo was cool but never really noticed the impact and quality of his musicianship.  Some of the footage in this film really brings that out. 

-The Beatles anti-segregation stance.  Fantastic!  When The Beatles played Jacksonville, FL, they said, "No segregation or we don't play."  They stood their ground and the show was, indeed, integrated.  Them film states that this broke the mold in the south for ending segregated events in stadiums.  Socially, this is huge!

-Paul's adept playing and singing.  I never really noticed how well Paul played and sang at the same time.  It's one thing to strum chords and sings, but in some of this footage, we see Paul flawlessly running through these bass riffs while singing.  Same thing with Ringo playing and singing. 

-The high level of musicianship of the Beatles.  You know, when I got into Hendrix and Cream and so forth, the Beatles music seemed weak to me.  I was young and want the music to roar.  Now I look back and realize that is the Beatles song writing superb (I always recognized that) but now am reminded of how highly professional they boys are as musicians.

-Whoopi Goldberg, the Beatles fan.  I love Whoopi and she is so cool in this film 

This is one of the best music documentaries I've ever seen and I've seen a bunch!  Don't miss it!


“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.













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    Thoughts_ArriveThoughts_Arrive Melbourne, Australia Posts: 15,165
    I saw it in the cinema then bought the blu ray.
    Fantastic film.
    I remember in the cinema the audience were mostly elderly and were bobbing along to the music which was nice to see them relive their youth.
    Adelaide 17/11/2009, Melbourne 20/11/2009, Sydney 22/11/2009, Melbourne (Big Day Out Festival) 24/01/2014
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    BIGDaddyWilBIGDaddyWil Michigan Posts: 3,030
    I totally agree with you Brian!  Great documentary!
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    brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,683
    edited February 2018
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    I saw it in the cinema then bought the blu ray.
    Fantastic film.
    I remember in the cinema the audience were mostly elderly and were bobbing along to the music which was nice to see them relive their youth.
    In a theater? A-a-a-a-a-wesome!
    “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
    Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.













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    Thoughts_ArriveThoughts_Arrive Melbourne, Australia Posts: 15,165
    brianlux said:
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    I saw it in the cinema then bought the blu ray.
    Fantastic film.
    I remember in the cinema the audience were mostly elderly and were bobbing along to the music which was nice to see them relive their youth.
    In a theater? A-a-a-a-a-wesome!
    Sure was. Beatles songs in cinema sound. It was only a limited screening. I also saw PJ 20 and Cobain: Montage of Heck in a theater.
    Adelaide 17/11/2009, Melbourne 20/11/2009, Sydney 22/11/2009, Melbourne (Big Day Out Festival) 24/01/2014
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    brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,683
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    brianlux said:
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    I saw it in the cinema then bought the blu ray.
    Fantastic film.
    I remember in the cinema the audience were mostly elderly and were bobbing along to the music which was nice to see them relive their youth.
    In a theater? A-a-a-a-a-wesome!
    Sure was. Beatles songs in cinema sound. It was only a limited screening. I also saw PJ 20 and Cobain: Montage of Heck in a theater.
    Co-o-o-o-l!
    “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
    Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.













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    Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 28,936
    I had free tickets to this film, but I gave them to my uncle who's a big Beatles nerd and former collector. 

    So haven't seen it.
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
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    Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 28,936
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    brianlux said:
    Thoughts_Arrive said:
    I saw it in the cinema then bought the blu ray.
    Fantastic film.
    I remember in the cinema the audience were mostly elderly and were bobbing along to the music which was nice to see them relive their youth.
    In a theater? A-a-a-a-a-wesome!
    Sure was. Beatles songs in cinema sound. It was only a limited screening. I also saw PJ 20 and Cobain: Montage of Heck in a theater.
    I also saw PJ20 and Montage of Heck in a theatre... I mean it had a theatrical run (even in Sweden... had to go to Denmark for PJ20 though).

    My dad saw Jim Jarmusch Year of the Horse in a theatre back in the 90s. That would have been cool.
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
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    brianluxbrianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 40,683
    Spiritual_Chaos said:
    I had free tickets to this film, but I gave them to my uncle who's a big Beatles nerd and former collector. 

    So haven't seen it.
    Even if not a huge Beatles fan, it's worth checking out.  Really well done- Ron Howard did a great job and the life footage is fantastic.
    “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
    Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.













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