Beatles: New Doc Documents Their First U.S. Visit
On February 7, 1964, the Beatles arrived in New York City, landing at Kennedy Airport bringing Beatlemania to America; nothing would ever be the same. And now a new documentary, Beatles ’64, tells the story of that trip. Per the Beatles’ announcement, “The film captures the electrifying moment of The Beatles’ first visit to America. Featuring never-before-seen footage of the band and the legions of young fans who helped fuel their ascendance, the film gives a rare glimpse into when The Beatles became the most influential and beloved band of all time.”
The trip included their debut performance on The Ed Sullivan Show, watched by more than 73 million people, the most watched television broadcast ever at the time. The doc doesn’t just show the spectacle of the Fab Four; it also promises to tell a more intinmate behind the scenes story, showing the camaraderie of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
The film includes rare footage filmed by documentarians Albert and David Maysles, who were shooting for the film What’s Happeing! The Beatles In The U.S.A. (which was later re-edited and re-released in the ’90s as The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit). The film will feature new interviews with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.
Beatles ’64 was produced by Martin Scorsese, and was directed by David Tedeschi. It will air on Disney+ starting November 29, 2024. The Beatles are also issuing a vinyl box set: The Beatles: 1964 U.S. Albums in Mono, which will include seven albums released in America between January 1964 and March 1965. This will be fully analog releases and they’ll be in mono, as the original releases were (all of the early Beatles records were recorded in mono and were later remixed in stereo to satify market demands). The box set will include Meet The Beatles!, the A Hard Day’s Night soundtrack, and Beatles ’65 among LPs. Most of the albums will be avilable individually if you don’t want to spring for the whole box set. The box set costs about $300, while the individual albums are about $30 each.
Meanwhile, the surviving Beatles remain busy: Paul McCartney is currently on a tour that lasts through December. He’s also been recording new music with Andrew Watt, who has recently produced albums by the Rolling Stones, Elton John, Ozzy Osbourne and Pearl Jam.
Ringo Starr, meanwhile, recently wrapped up his latest “All-Starr Band” tour and is currently working on a country album with producer T-Bone Burnett.
