REVIEW: The Bootleg Beatles
PERFORMING a Beatles tribute is like scaling Everest without oxygen or winning a trio of Olympic golds - possible but tricky.
The Bootleg Beatles might not be Chris Hoy but made a pretty good job of performing those iconic numbers with the right clothes, the right instruments, certainly the right backing if not, always precisely the right voices.
The Bootleg Beatles kicked off their British tour at The Dome, Brighton on Monday.
The coach was waiting outside to take them on a whistle-stop British tour of one-nighters finishing with a grand 2008 finale at Indigo2, London.
Phew - just like the real thing then.
The packed Brighton auditorium gave them an ecstatic coastal welcome, acknowledged gracefully by John (Neil Harrison) whose performance possibly suffered most from first night gremlins.
For me he overdid the adenoidal, faux Merseyside drawl but his voice melded with the others and superb backing musicians to deliver a near orchestral second act.
Opaque-tight, mini-clad adolescents outnumbered the grey pony-tailed rockers in the audience.
But for those of us closer to the latter, the music demonstrated how the group pinned down the zeitgeist of those optimistic years.
Evocative scene-setting videos provided atmospheric backdrops reminding us all too vividly of 'the pound in our pockets,' 'one small step for man,' mods and rockers, flower power and the inaugural flight of Concorde - how times have changed.
Top mop-top award must go to David Catlin-Birch's eerily look-and-soundalike Paul.
Hugo Degenhardt (Ringo) was a terrific drummer and Andre Barreau almost surpassed George Harrison's virtuoso guitar mastery.
Enjoyable intergroup banter was as up-to-date as this morning's Sky News.
'This is Paul - this song made him a lot of money. He's gonna need it. Stay away from the North East, Paul.'
Wrap-around backing was as tight as a drum and near identical to the original with traditional instruments supplemented by tubular bells and a fire extinguisher bravely manned by cellist Rob Woollard.
A truly terrific night which left us wondering where modern music has gone and asking why.
To catch the group again in the south you'll have to head to London (December 19-20), Croydon (March 11) or Southend (March 12.)
It's worth the journey.
Susan King
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Friday 10 February 2012
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