Peter Jackson’s “Get Back”: Now Thanksgiving on Disney Plus

By |2021-06-21T07:11:00-07:00June 21, 2021|1968, 1969, Breakup, Documentaries, Get Back, Let It Be, Movies, Uncategorized|

Peter Jackson's "Get Back," which was expected to be released in theaters this September, is now going to be a six-hour documentary on Disney Plus, premiering during Thanksgiving weekend. Variety reports that "each episode is approximately two hours in length, rolling out over three days, November 25, 26 and 27, 2021, exclusively on Disney Plus." So, more footage, but to watch it you'll need a Disney Plus subscription. It will be interesting to see how all this plays out.

Eddie Cochran Documentary on Arena

By |2021-05-07T16:05:42-07:00May 7, 2021|1960, Documentaries|

The venerable BBC documentary series "Arena" is my television happy place. It's really an unparalleled trove for people interested in a certain era of American and European culture. Last night, as I recovered from Moderna shot #2, I happened upon this documentary about early rock and roller Eddie Cochran. Eddie was one of the early influences on the Fabs, as well as the man behind "Twenty Flight Rock," reputedly the song that convinced John to let Paul into the band. Well worth a watch, if you're into such stuff. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNAA6kosegA

Rob Sheffield on the Beatles’ breakup and Peter Jackson’s upcoming film

By |2020-09-10T10:56:56-07:00September 2, 2020|Allen Klein, Breakup, Brian Epstein, Documentaries, Film, Let It Be|

This piece by Rob Sheffield (whose most recent book is Dreaming The Beatles) just came out in Rolling Stone. Sheffield uses the lens of the new Peter Jackson documentary due out next August and put together from the same sessions that yielded Let It Be to consider, again, just why the Beatles came apart as and when they did. There's nothing especially new in Sheffield's analysis, but he deserves credit for making some good points trenchantly. Peter Jackson, of "Lord of the Rings" fame. Sheffield summarizes the situation thus: "In the end, it’s really a story about four friends trying to hold [...]

Deconstructing The Beatles, the movie

By |2016-11-15T12:04:19-08:00November 15, 2016|Documentaries|

Enjoying your magical mystery tour...? Against all odds, and perhaps against our better judgment, life seems ever-so-slowly to be returning to normal. This morning I received an email from musicologist Scott Freiman, who lectures regularly on the Fabs, dissecting some of their most interesting albums in front of a live audience. Now Freiman's lecture on the White Album has been filmed and is being shown in many cities across the country starting on November 16th (that's tomorrow!). You can find a list of venues and book your tickets here. Don't be like me! Don't have something already planned for tomorrow [...]

Eight Days A Week

By |2016-09-27T20:16:04-07:00September 27, 2016|Documentaries|

A room and a room and a car and a room: At least this room has wheels. Well, I finally went to see the much-anticipated Eight Days A Week last night at 10:00 in the p.m. Why so late? Because I've been working eight days, etc etc. I know the story, backwards and forwards, and so do you. So going in, I expected nothing, especially after reading Nancy's review which suggested a surface take. And a surface take it was indeed -- but I loved it. I think you should see it; in fact, I think every serious Beatles fan [...]

Eight Days A Week trailer

By |2016-06-20T12:53:16-07:00June 20, 2016|Documentaries|

Am I excited for Ron Howard's upcoming documentary, Eight Days A Week? Hell yes, I am. The story of the Beatles' touring years is the great untold portion of their career, and it deserves more attention. In part because the touring experience was what made them who they were; in part because we think we know what it was like; and in part because no one but them could ever truly know what it was like. In my generation, Touring Beatles (1962-66) were often dismissed as pop lightweights turned into artists by exposure to drugs and Bob Dylan. And that viewpoint has [...]

All Things Must Pass

By |2016-05-01T12:24:19-07:00May 1, 2016|Documentaries|

Cool car, too Dullblog readers will likely enjoy All Things Must Pass, a recent documentary on the rise and demise of Tower Records. Directed by Colin Hanks, All Things Must Pass probes all the nooks and crannies of the legendary record store chain, which via the magic of contemporary American capitalism, only exists in Japan anymore. Turns out that the biggest threat to our way of life isn't "handtruck fuel" (store slang for cocaine), but bankers. The doc is a fascinating glimpse into Sixties, and particularly Seventies, rock culture, which generated oodles of cash and spawned a million mini-ecologies, from [...]

Art and the 60s

By |2015-01-19T10:35:41-08:00January 19, 2015|Art, Documentaries|

Yesterday, I watched the BBC Four documentary "Art and the 60s," which tells the story of Swinging London through its two iconic galleries, the Kasmin Gallery, and (of course) Robert Fraser's Robert Fraser Gallery. http://youtu.be/7anAtAgEpFs "Groovy Bob" was great pals with Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and Brian Epstein (and even greater pals with the Rolling Stones, to the point of famously being busted with them at Keith's house in February 1967). That bust dealt Fraser and his Gallery a mortal blow -- even though he reportedly had "a wonderful time" serving a six-month sentence in Wormwood Scrubs. Fraser's Beatles connections were many, [...]

John or Paul

By |2014-12-17T12:49:52-08:00December 17, 2014|Documentaries, John and Paul|

Reader Nicole wrote in yesterday: "Sometimes I think I will scream the next time I hear or see Lennon VERSUS McCartney. However, this video has gained a little traction in the past day and it really interests me. Lennon storms it, but it's the way people answer and their reasons (sometimes given, sometimes not) which are the interesting bit, to be honest. Note the apologetic way some people answer McCartney, for example. Highly recommend it, not for stirring up contention between fans of either of them but because who answers, what their answer is, and why they answer the way they do [...]

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