Tuesday, 2 September 2014

New George Harrison Box Set available soon!

Good news for all you George Harrison fans out there!

The Harrison family just announced that there will be a new box set with previously unavailable material released on September 22, 2014. The box will contain 6 albums that George Harrison released on the Apple label between 1968 and 1975.

The albums are:

- Wonderwall Music
- Electronic Sound
- All Things Must Pass
- Living In The Material World
- Dark Horse
- Extra Texture (Read All About It)

Gleison Tulio and Keilla Jovi at The International Beatle Week

I don't understand why Gleison Tulio and Keilla Jovi played a concert called "The Songs The Beatles Gave Away", because they only played true Beatle classics like You Can't Do That, Love Me Do, Ticket To Ride, or Paul's Coming Up. Still, their funky sound was very refreshing.

Highlights were:

- Ticket To Ride
- I've Got a Feeling
- Coming Up

Beatle-ness: 2/5 (they don't look like The Beatles, don't sound like The Beatles, don't feel like The Beatles)
Originality: 5/5 (never heard The Beatles sounds so funky, so inventive, so creative as when Gleison does his one-man-show)
Technical Skills: 5/5 (Keilla does a nice job on the bass, but Gleison is phenomenal when he starts bashing his guitar)
Crowd Interaction: 3/5 (I'm sure he could fine-tune the show so that the audience gets more involved)
Selection of songs: 3,5/5 (I would have liked to see some more original songs, for example something like Dear Prudence)

My verdict: 4 stars out of 5 and the title of most original tribute band of BW 2014

Monday, 1 September 2014

Beatline and Seppo at the International Beatle Week

The first group to play at the Alma de Cuba (during the "Songs The Beatles Gave Away") was Beatline & Seppo.

Together with Them Beatles they stayed true to the concept of the show, and mainly played songs by Lennon & McCartney that were recorded by other groups.

Highlights were:

- You Got What I like
- One and One is Two
- From a Window

Beatle-ness: 4/5 (three guitars and one drum, matching suits, nice harmonies)
Originality: 4/5 (fresh songs, funny texts between songs, nice mix in musical styles)
Technical skills: 3,5/5 (good straight rock, no frills)
Crowd Interaction: 3,5/5 (nice warm-up, but they were better at the Cavern Live Lounge)
Selection of songs: 4/5

My verdict: 4 stars out of 5

Liverpool Beatles Auction

During Beatleweek there was also a Beatles auction at the Paul McCartney Auditorium (Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts).

There were some nice items that I wanted to bid on:

- Lot 43: School photograph featuring Paul McCartney and signed by Paul aged 10 (£1250-£1500)
- Lot 79: Please Please Me album signed by George and Paul (£300-£400)
- Lot 163: Menu card for the Grand Central Hotel Belfast signed by John, George and Paul (£1200-£1500)
- Lot 300: Very rare Cavern Club photograph of The Beatles in 1961, complete with negative and copyright (£1500-£1750)

But in the end I just bought a signed copy of Mark Lewisohn's Tune In.

What is your favourite Beatle Lyrics?

The Beatles have written some memorable lyrics:

- "The Love you Take is equal to the Love you Make"

- "When the brokenhearted people living in the world agree, there will be an answer, let it be"

- "Words are flowing out / Like endless rain into a paper cup / They slither while they pass / They slip away across the universe”

- "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see"

- "All you Need is love"

And what is your favourite line?

Wings at the Speed of Sound and Venus And Mars have been delayed!

Normally the two new Wings Archive Collections were due to appear on September 22, 2014. Unfortunately production has been delayed until the beginning of November 2014.

Wings At the Speed of Sound Box Set will include:

• The original 11 track album, remastered at Abbey Road Studios in London
• 7 previously unreleased bonus audio tracks, including a version of ‘Beware My Love’ featuring John Bonham
• DVD featuring previously unreleased footage of Wings in Venice in 1976, a new behind-the-scenes edit from the 1976 Wembley shows, as well as the original music video for ‘Silly Love Songs’
•Plus downloadable 24bitkHz high-resolution audio versions of the remastered album and bonus audio tracks
• All set within a 112 page hardbound book containing memorabilia, many previously unpublished images by Linda McCartney and Clive Arrowsmith, a new interview with Paul McCartney, and expanded track by track information.

Wings Venus and Mars Box Set will include:

• The original 13 track #1 album, remastered at Abbey Road Studios in London
• 14 bonus audio tracks (including the hit single ‘Junior’s Farm’)
•DVD featuring previously unreleased and exclusive content, including footage of the band in New Orleans and rehearsing the songs from Venus and Mars at Elstree Studios, and the original TV commercial for the album, directed by Karel Reisz
• Plus downloadable 24bitkHz high-resolution audio versions of the remastered album and bonus audio tracks
• All set within a 128 page hardbound book containing memorabilia, many previously unpublished images by Linda McCartney and Aubrey Powell, album and single artwork and a full history of the album, including a new interview with Paul McCartney and expanded track by track information

The Paul McCartney Archive Collection

Paul McCartney has embarked on a wonderful odyssey: He plans to remaster and re-issue his solo back catalogue over the next years.

So far the following Archive Collections have already appeared or are expected:

- Band on the Run (Wings: November 2010
- McCartney (Paul McCartney): June 2011
- McCartney II (Paul McCartney): June 2011
- RAM (Paul McCartney): May 2012
- Venus and Mars (Wings): November 2014
- Wings at the Speed of Sound (Wings): November 2014

Most Deluxe editions (so-called Box Sets) contain:

- 2 or 3 CDs containing the remastered album, bonus disc(s) with unreleased material
- a DVD with videos, promotion material, concert edits and documentaries
- A hardcover book (approximately 120 pages with interviews, "the making of" and unpublished pictures
- Facsimili, for example posters, handwritten lyrics, pictures, ...
- Downloadable songs in high-resolution format

The Beatles Live at the Convention Hall, Philadelphia

On September 2, 1964 The Beatles appeared at the Convention Hall, in Philadelphia. Also called "The Municipal Auditorium" and "Nation's Most Historic Arena), the concert hall seated more than 12,000 Beatle fans on that historic day.

Famous American DJ Hyman Aaron "Hy" Lit booked the band for Philadelphia for $25,000. Tickets went on sale in May 1964 and sold out within 90 minutes (pre-online days!!). The concert was also transmitted on local radio. It would be great to hear if somebody still hase a tape of that concert.

Other groups that appeared on the same evening were:

- The Bill Black Combo
- The Exciters
- Clarence 'Frogman' Henry
- Jackie DeShannon

When looking at pictures of the concert, you can't help but notice that the audience was "all-white". Normally The Righteous Brothers were also scheduled to appear, but they stopped touring with The Beatles because of the "loud and unruly" behaviour of Beatle fans.

At 9:30pm exactly, The Beatles appear on stage and 12,000 teenagers scream: "OMYGOD, THEY'RE HERE! THEY'RE REALLY REALLY HERE!

They play the following setlist:

- Twist & Shout
- You Can't Do That
- All My Loving
- She Loves You
- Things We Said Today
- Roll Over Beethoven
- Can't Buy Me Love
- If I Fell
- I Want to Hold your Hand
- Boys
- A Hard Days Night
- Long Tall Sally

Unfortunately, the "Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center" no longer exists, having been demolished in 2007 and replaced by the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine.

Picture of the new Perelman Center