The Beatles Anthology is the ticket to ride (1995)

 

ABC's 'The Beatles Anthology' is the Ticket to Ride for Band's Fans

By Douglas Durden

Richmond-Times Dispatch

November 18, 1995

    Where were you when you first saw the Beatles? I was glued to the Family TV set for the band's American debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. The next day, I was so hoarse from screaming that I had to stay home from school. 

    Who was your favorite Beatle?  Paul, John, sometimes George. If there was a Ringo phase, I don't remember it. 

    These are defining questions for a generation that was conquered by the British Invasion, first by The Beatles, later by many groups who existed only as trivia questions. 

    Now it's members of that generation who will flock to ABC's three-part Beatles Anthology, airing at 9 p.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday on Channel 8. It's all here from the early years in Hamburg and the Beatles' 1964 arrival in New York -through their musical growth that never stopped, to the breakup of the band in 1970 .

    The Beatles Anthology may have less appeal for twenty-something viewers, the all-important demographic group whose knowledge of the Beatles is secondhand, but the program does come equipped with a gimmick. The three-part documentary told by the Fab Four themselves through miles of interviews also includes two "new" Beatles songs, thanks to the magic of remixing and Yoko Ono's permission.

     In deference to the Beatles Anthology Volume One being released next week, those songs were not included in review copies of The ABCs TV special. "Free as a Bird" will air on the first night, "Real Love" will air on the second night. 

    Documentary is probably the wrong word for this Apple produced event, since the people providing the documentation are the people being profiled. Given that we are talking about four of the most important people in the 60s? (Well, two and a half), That's not such a bad idea. Which would you rather hear some omnipotent narrator tell us that the Beatles were influenced by American rhythm and blues, or a Beatle proclaimed that "When I was 16, Elvis, what was happening --a guy with long, greasy hair, wiggling and singing 'Hound Dog'."?

     The interviews, some conducted as late as this year, covered decades and changing points of view. Events alter, depending upon who is doing the reminiscing; the differences among the four men are what made the band what it was and led to the breakup of the Beatles. Those differences still show today. Ringo Starr, the earthy pragmatist, talked about the early days and the fact that every time a song moved up on the charts, "We'd have a celebratory dinner. If you look at the Beatles, in the first 18 months, we ballooned up because we were eating all this food. This is when I discovered smoked salmon."

     On the opposite end, John Lennon was the thinker whose razor-sharp humor found targets early on,  "The people in the cheaper seats clap their hands." He instructs his audience at a Royal Command performance in 1963, "and the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewelry. "

    George Harrison provides the poignant insight. "I always felt sorry later for Elvis, because there was only one Elvis; no one else knew what he felt like. But for us, we all shared the experience. We were tight."

    Paul McCartney can't say enough nice things about John, but make sure he gets his due. "I think the thing that impressed him the most was that I knew all the words to an Eddie Cochran song," said Paul of his initial meeting with John in the 50s. 

    Unlike most music specials that concentrate on music groups in concert only, the Beatles Anthology is full of old newsreels plus home movies. That means you get to see not only the first appearance of these youngsters from Liverpool on The Ed Sullivan Show, but also their first trip to Miami and their retreat to Rishikesh, India, with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. 

    Numerous Beatles songs are featured in their entirety. It's one thing to hear "She Loves You". It's quite another to see it as it was performed 31 years ago. 

    And even if you think you've heard it all, there's more-- like John's and Paul's first recording session, which included Buddy Holly's "That'll be the day", or Paul explaining that "Hey Jude" was written for young Julian Lennon, whose dad had left him his mom for Yoko Ono.

     In covering the Beatles from 1960 through 1970, The Beatles Anthology also covers the band's five movies, proving the Beatles were visual as well as musical innovators. John, Paul, George, and Ringo had their MTV long before anyone had dreamt of music videos. 

    But you won't see this life beyond the Beatles. This is the Beatles Anthology, not the story of Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, or George Harrison. Yoko Ono exists solely as the wedge between John and the rest of the group. Linda McCartney is the woman who married the last Beatle bachelor, not a future member of Wings. Ringo does not go on to star in Caveman, and George does not become a movie producer.

     For six hours,  during the three anthology collections, the Beatles are together again, whatever differences they may have had in the past, the remaining Fab Three looked down that long and winding road with fondness and sentiment. Ringo says, "We were four guys who really loved each other."