BEATLES ‘64 documents the moment when the Fab Four conquered the final frontier that was America. Beatlemania was well and truly underway at home in England and in Europe but America remained largely oblivious to the mop tops’ collective charm. This all changed when the band arrived in 1964 for a series of live concerts and the now legendary appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on prime time TV.
Directed by by David Tedeschi and produced by Martin Scorsese, the documentary relies heavily on footage originally shot by Albert and David Maysles who were granted access to the group during that three week trek across North America.
Using restored and remastered footage as well as plenty of talking heads from those who were there to experience it all in 1964, the documentary gives a unique insight into the Merseysider’s nascent career.
Of course, new (and later) interviews with the band have been added to give a sense of perspective. But more importantly, interviews with various persons who were there also add to a real “eyewitness” sense to the proceedings. For instance, a teenage fan who had camped outside the Plaza Hotel to catch a glimpse her favourite band was asked to reminisce on the experience some 60 years later. Noting that the music was “joyful” and had an almost innocent quality about it was what attracted her and many others to the music.
This sentiment was echoed by another “bobby sox” (slang for teenager in the 60s) who said teenage girls were attracted to The Beatles because, unlike the music of Elvis Presley, it was not draped in overt sexuality and alpha male machismo. Just like the K-pop boy bands phenomenon of today, it was the “softness” of the Fab Four that seem to make the band such an appealing proposition.
Famed director David Lynch was also among the talking heads as he was privy to be in the crowd at The Beatles’ show at the Colisuem Stadium, Washington DC, stating that there was a purity and simplicity to the music that made the music sound new, even though the Liverpudlians took their inspiration from American acts such as Chuck Berry and Little Richard. The clever repackaging by manager Brian Epstein made The Beatles look cute, cuddly and less threatening allowing them to worm their way into mainstream consciousness.
The most telling aspect of the documentary is that it attempts to decipher the reason why The Beatles captured the imagination of the Yanks in the manner which it did, from the screaming hordes to blanket media coverage. Firstly, it surmised that the country was still grieving from the recent assassination of President John F Kennedy and needed an outlet to lift the gloom. Secondly, America was coming to terms with the civil rights movement and the Fab Four were open about being inspired by black musicians. As noted by Smokey Robinson, nobody as big as The Beatles had ever said they were inspired by The Miracles (Robinson’s band) or covered one of their songs. It was a pretty big deal as a new generation of American youth was brought together by a common love of music.
Beatles ‘64 offers a unique look into obsessive fandom before the internet, as a nation paused to catch The Beatles’ performance on The Ed Sullivan Show. Amazingly, an estimated 70 million viewers stopped whatever they were doing to tune in to watch that show-stopping performance (as opposed to clicking on-demand on YouTube).
As Beatles guitarist George Harrison noted, apparently the national crime rate dropped during that seismic 10 minutes – “Even the criminals stopped to watch us”!
Paving the way for future success, the Scousers evolved from uniformed mop tops to long haired hippies in the space of a few short years, completely altering the face of popular music forever.
Beatles ‘64 is streaming on Disney+.
