From Liverpool, via London, they conquered the world and to date they’ve sold something like 1.6 billion records. The Beatles was, and probably still is, the most celebrated pop group of all time, a band that really did shake the world to its core. The Fab Four made records for just seven years (1962-69) before the joy of being fun-loving mop-tops slowly soured into acrimony and led to their inevitable split at the end of that decade. But what beautiful music and songs they created in the interim!
That much you probably already know. Now, imagine if you could get up and go see The Beatles in the flesh, playing in concert — and in Bangkok to boot. A two-hour show crammed back to back with the Fab Four’s greatest hits. Starting at the stark and simple beginning, with four musicians pounding out the infectious tunes and rhythms of Twist And Shout and A Hard Day’s Night, then moving forward in time to the psychedelic landscape and multicoloured costumes of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds. Imagine an orchestra playing with the band as they rip into classics such as I Am The Walrus, A Day In The Life and Penny Lane?
Well, just under two weeks from now, on June 16, The Bootleg Beatles, billed as “the world’s leading tribute band”, is scheduled to perform at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center where they will be accompanied by the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra. The band faithfully recreates the sound and look of The Beatles down to the very last detail — it’s as close to the real thing as most of us will ever get. As the (real) Beatles’ producer, George Martin, said after seeing the Bootlegs in action: “It’s a terrific show.” You can’t say fairer than that — and he’s had the opportunity to hear both bands play!
Who are The Bootleg Beatles anyway? Formed from the West End cast of the Broadway musical Beatlemania, The Bootleg Beatles’ career began at a now-long-forgotten students’ bash in Tiverton, in the English county of Devon, on March 26, 1980 — almost 10 years to the day since Paul McCartney announced that the original band had split up. The group toured the UK, the USSR, the Middle East, Asia and finally, on Feb 7, 1984, the United States, exactly 20 years after the Fab Four had done the same thing. After storming Glastonbury Festival in 1994, Brit-pop band Oasis invited The Bootleg Beatles to perform with them at gigs scheduled for Southampton’s Guildhall, Loch Lomond, Cork (in Ireland) and Knebworth, Hertfordshire. In 1995 the band joined Noel and Liam Gallagher on a stage in Earl’s Court, London to sing I Am The Walrus. And they have since become regulars jamming with the likes of Rod Stewart, Elton John, The Corrs, David Bowie and Iggy Pop.
Over the years the Bootleg Beatles have performed in front of many, many thousands of people including such notable luminaries as Sir Paul McCartney, George Harrison, George Martin and Queen Elizabeth II. Of all the venues they have played perhaps none (aside from Buckingham Palace!) was more auspicious than their appearance on the rooftop of the Apple Building at 3 Savile Row, London. On the freezing morning of Jan 30, 1999, The Bootleg Beatles’ performance on that rooftop commemorated the Fab Four’s farewell gig exactly 30 years before to the day, an event transmitted on news channels across the globe.
Now into their 35th year, The Bootleg Beatles (www.bootlegbeatles.com) claim to have set the standard for all those hundreds of “tribute bands” that have followed in their footsteps as they continue to keep the spirit and magic of the greatest pop group the world has ever seen well and truly alive.
Tickets for The Bootleg Beatles/Bangkok Symphony Orchestra concert on June 16 range in price from 1,000 to 5,000 baht and are available from Thaiticketmajor.com. Doors open at 8pm. Visit www.thaiticketmajor.com or www.bangkoksymphony.org for more.
