Although Help! (1965) never gets the same attention as A Hard Day’s Night (1964), the 1965 film from the Beatles is getting a special restored Blu-ray release. To celebrate, the company is giving viewers some outtakes and behind-the-scenes video on the making of the Beatles’ second film. Here is the first video.
Help! was directed by Richard Lester, and of course it starred John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The plot involves a cult seeking a ring stuck on Ringo’s finger, and, well, there is a lot of Beatles music. Here is the second new video.
What is your favorite Beatles movie? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Tony Sheridan, a British singer-songwriter forever linked to The Beatles, passed away on February 16, 2013 at the age of 72 in Germany. While Sheridan recorded through his later years, he is best-known for his brief work as lead singer on what was essentially the first album by the Beatles.
Sheridan knew the Beatles when they consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe, and Pete Best. And he worked with them through Sutcliffe’s and Best’s departure and Ringo Starr’s arrival in 1962.
In 1961, a German producer signed Sheridan and the Beatles as the back up band. Under the name Sheridan and the Beat Brothers, the group recorded nine songs in 1961-1962 with Sheridan singing on seven of them. According to Sheridan’s website, the reason they used “Beat Brothers” instead of “Beatles” is because the latter name did not translate into German “except as a slang term for the male sex organ.” Sheridan also claimed that he brought Ringo to the Beatles too.
When the first single “My Bonnie” was released in Liverpool, fans mobbed record shops. The reaction to the single with Sheridan led one record store owner to seek out the Beatles. That record store owner, Brian Epstein, would then go on to manage the Beatles as they rose to super-stardom. Here is “My Bonnie”:
In this 30-minute video, Sheridan looked back on his experience with the Beatles and on music in the early 1960s:
After the Beatles went on to massive fame, Sheridan continued to perform, and in the 1960s spent a lot of time entertaining troops in Viet Nam. For his devotion to the soldiers, the U.S. Army made him an honorary captain. Sheridan also met Elvis Presley when Elvis was stationed in Germany.
The Beatles themselves maintained a friendship and fondness for their one-time front-man, whose last album was 2002’s Vagabond. Paul McCartney had nicknamed Sheridan “The Teacher” because of how he influenced the band by introducing them to R&B artists like Little Richard. Similarly, Ringo Starr once said he learned from Sheridan “all I know about rock and roll.” So, while Sheridan may not be a household name, he is certainly an important part of the history of rock music.
What is your favorite Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
On February 7 in 1964, the Beatles landed at New York’s Kennedy airport, arriving in the United States for the first time and taking the country by storm. Two days later, on February 9, Paul McCartney (21), Ringo Starr (23), John Lennon (23), and George Harrison (20) appeared on The Ed Sullivan Showin front of screaming fans.
The four continued on a short American tour before returning to England on February 22. In the next few months, they had several hits in the U.S. and released their film, A Hard Days Night (1964). And then they returned to the U.S. in August to play sold-out arenas.
On their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, during the first half of the show, the Beatles performed “All My Loving,” “Till There Was You,” and “She Loves You.” They returned later in the program to sing “I Saw Her Standing There” and “I Want To Hold Your Hand.”
Before the last two songs, Sullivan announced that Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker had sent the group a congratulations telegram.
The video below features the Beatles performing “I Want to Hold Your Hand” at this appearance. So, remember when rock was young while watching The Beatles play during their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show around a half century ago.
What do you think of the performance? Leave your two cents in the comments.
. Paul McCartney had nicknamed Sheridan “
