The virtual Fest for Beatles Fans -- was it worth it?

 

My mom, Coral, and I at the virtual Fest For Beatles Fans

This past weekend was the Fest for Beatle Fans (known far and wide as "Beatlefest").   This was the first Fest held in person since 2019.  I thought about going to the Fest in New Jersey in person, but there weren't any rooms available.   So I decided to give the virtual ticket a try.   For the first time ever, they were doing what we in education call the "hybrid method."    It is both live in-person and online through Zoom. 

If I am honest, I didn't have very high hopes for the virtual Beatlefest.   I figured there would be a lot of technical problems and confusion, and some of it would be boring due to dead airtime.   And I am very happy to say that I was wrong!

My mom and I always attend the Fest together and so we decided to have our own Fest at my new condo.  My mom spent the weekend with me and we wore our Beatles t-shirts.   We rearranged the room, ordered food, and as usual, went into the event with the attitude that we would have a good time. 

There were two Zoom rooms available to watch.  The first one was the Main Stage Zoom.  This was the one that showed all of the concerts and interviews with the main guests.   The other Zoom was the interactive room.   This room had a variety of things going on.   I enjoyed the "virtual hub."  Roland was the guy in charge of grabbing various guests and interviewing them on the fly for us virtual fest-goers.  Roland was amazing at interviewing and keeping things alive and positive.  The virtual hub also showed some live recordings of different Beatles-themed podcasts.   At the times when the virtual hub was not going on, the camera would switch over to the room where they had panel discussions. 

The highlight of the entire event was the Zoom discussion between Peter Jackson and Michael Lindsay-Hogg.   This is the one area where I feel that those of us with the virtual ticket got the best part of the deal.   We were able to watch this amazing discussion without the instruments from the bands or that annoying tall guy in the front row blocking part of our view.  It was quiet and you could actually hear and concentrate on what was being said.  Having watched films at Beatlefest in person in the past, I know seeing and hearing can be a challenge at times.   This discussion was amazing to say the least.  

There was a lot of disappointment with the virtual attendees because Mark Lewisohn was listed as being a special guest and we were led to believe that we would be able to hear his two presentations on The Beatles in India.   Unfortunately, due to copyright material being shown, we were unable to see these presentations.   This was not known until we logged into the Main Stage Zoom to watch it and saw random fans jamming to Beatles songs.   And while I do agree, that Mark should not have been listed as a guest on the virtual ticket originally, I do believe that he made up for it.   Mark Lewisohn took the time to go to the virtual hub and spend a good amount of time answering questions directly from the hundreds of fans that were there.   So while we couldn't see the presentations, we did get a private Q & A that those in person missed out on. 

Roland interviews Mark Lewisohn in the virtual hub 

Another virtual event that in-person attendees missed out on was the interview via Zoom with Michael Lindsay Hogg.  That was not something that was publicized at all and I am so glad that we stumbled into the interactive zoom room and saw most of it. 

The music over the weekend was also really great.  I especially enjoyed the band, The Black Ties.  They performed on Friday night and sang songs The Beatles covered during the  Cavern/Hamburg days.  Laurance Juber (from the later years of Wings) as always did a wonderful set, Don from the Cyrkle's interview was so great!  And I was happy to hear him perform a few songs on Sunday night.   I have not always been a big fan of the Beatlefest house band, Liverpool -- but I really enjoyed the final Sunday night concert. 

Don (with the cap on his head) sings "Red Rubber Ball."

The one thing that I thought I would miss out on the most by having a virtual ticket and not being in person was the connection with other Beatles fans.   And while I really did miss seeing all my Beatles friends in person (especially when I was seeing them on my screen), I also enjoyed chatting in the Zoom chat with some new Beatles friends.   A big shout out to Edward, Ruthie, Nancy, Chris, George, and Annette!   It was great to make new Beatles friends!   

If I was asked for any improvements, I would say that three Zoom links needed to be provided instead of the two.   One for the Main Stage, one for the interactive room, and another in the room where the panel discussions are held.   I missed out on a lot of great discussions because they were not showing that room.    I also think there needs to be a virtual schedule that is different than the regular schedule. Not knowing what they were going to show next, made it difficult to decide what to watch. 

I also recommend that people attend The Fest for Beatles Fans and if you can go in person that is the way to go.  However -- I now will recommend that you get a virtual ticket if you cannot go in person.  It is well worth the money spent PLUS you get a week to watch it all over again and catch the things you missed. 

www.thefest.com  

Opening up

WIXY Disc jockeys

The Remains

Bobby Hebb  with  backing band, The Remains

The Cyrkle

The Cyrkle 

There aren't a lot of photographs of the support acts on the Beatles 1966 tour performing---but here are some shots from Cleveland.

The Back Story of a Monstrous Beatles Tale

I first read this story in the Nov-Dec 2009 issue of Beatlefan magazine. I was so happy to see the "Meet the Beatles" section back. I checked out the website at the end of the article and found that the article was already online. So instead of me typing out the whole thing, I figured I might as well just copy it and let you know, that this information can be found at http://www.monsterbooks.net/about.html . This story was written my Hal Pollock.


Do you want to go with me to see the Beatles?"
The place was Cleveland, the afternoon of August 14th, 1966. Hal Pollock's father owned a trucking company that hauled equipment for big league sports teams and big name performers like the Rolling Stones and the Monkees. That night, the company was handling tons of equipment and arranging a customized trailer as dressing rooms and press centers for the most eagerly anticipated event in Cleveland's illustrious rock history - the Beatles were performing at Cleveland Stadium.

Like so many other American kids, Hal Pollock was an avid Beatle fan, had been since he first saw them in 1964 on the Ed Sullivan Show, staring wide-eyed as they sang "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and a theater full of girls screamed and fainted.

"Are you kidding?"

Hal Pollock grabbed the empty cover of his Meet the Beatles album (the LP was still on his hi-fi, the grooves on the vinyl record worn flat) and jumped in the truck.

With the concert hours away, the 80,000 seats in Cleveland Stadium were empty, but the field was swarming with activity. Workers were putting the finishing touches on the stage, set up at second base on the Cleveland Indians baseball layout. Technicians were running sound checks on the microphones. Managers, reporters and other VIPs were scurrying about the trailers in the outfield behind the stage. Vendors and ushers gathered in small groups in the quiet before the storm. Laborers secured fencing in a horseshoe from first to third base as a line of defense against intruders on the field. Behind the fence, a battalion of Cleveland police milled in the infield.

Pollock's dad walked him over to the third base dugout, where the opening acts assembled. "You can stay here for now," he said, "I'll come back as soon as I can."

That was fine with Hal - he had better than a front row seat and he was hanging with rock stars like the Ronettes (Be My Baby), Cyrkle (Red Rubber Ball) and Bobby Hebb.

Two hours later, the stadium was filled with teens eager to see the Beatles.

The Ronettes, Cyrkle, Barry and the Remains and Bobby Hebb all took their turns as the impatient crowd began to chant: We want the Beatles!

Finally, DJ's Johnny Canton and Jack Armstrong introduced the Fab Four: "And now, live from Liverpool, England - the Beatles!"

From the first moment they pranced out on stage, the sights and sounds were electrifying. A continuous barrage of flashbulbs lit the stadium like a thousand pulsing strobe lights. The cacophony of cheers, screams and squeals was the loudest noise Hal Pollock had ever heard. The Beatle voices were trumpeted through a hundred megawatt speakers and it was all but impossible to catch more than a note or two through the roar of the crowd.

It was a few songs into the set, just as the Beatles began "Day Tripper," when it happened. One fan jumped from the stands on the first base side, hurdled the fence, and sprinted for the stage. That fan was quickly collared. Then another fan jumped over the third base railing and darted toward the stage. The crowd cheered as he ran and booed as two cops tackled him near the pitcher's mound. Then an athletic kid skirted the fence in right field, zigzagged past police like a broken field runner and made it to the stage before the cops pounced on him. His successful dash sent a mass hysteria signal to the frenzied crowd. Thousands of kids poured out of the stands, swarmed past the outnumbered cops and rushed the stage.

Caught up in the excitement, Hal Pollock ran with them, one of the first to reach the stage. Up close and personal, he saw John and George laughing at the riotous scene as they continued to sing and play. Paul looked concerned as many fans climbed up on stage and the scene turned to chaos. Pollock looked over at Ringo, higher than the others at his perch on the drum stand. Girls clutched at his Beatles jacket and tugged at his hair. As Pollock watched in disbelief, Ringo was yanked off his seat, head over heels, tumbling into the crowd.

The music stopped.

Security men pushed their way through to rescue Ringo, grabbed the other Beatles and hustled them off stage to the safety of the dressing room trailer a few yards away.

A determined Big Jack Armstrong announced that the Beatles weren't coming back until everyone returned to their seats.

Pollock found his father behind the stage and accompanied him into the crowded trailer where the Beatles waited. John, Paul, George and Ringo were nonchalant, answering reporters' questions, joking about the near riot, drinking cokes and smoking cigarettes.

Standing with his father across the living room of the crowded trailer, Pollock's dad whispered, "Give me the album. I am going to try to get it signed." Pollock's dad pushed through the crowd. A few minutes later he emerged and handed Pollock the album. "Hang onto this," he said. "It might be worth something one day." Pollock looked down and saw the autographs of each Beatle scribbled in fresh blue ink on the front and back of the album. [Pollock's dad was right: the Beatles hardly ever rarely gave group autographs. An original Meet the Beatles album with all four autographs goes for well over $100,000 on e-Bay today. Hal Pollock's most prized possession is not for sale.]