Thiis 1978 film was conceived and written by Eric Idle (who also starred) and produced with a little help from Lorne Michaels. It aired way back when on NBC and the BBC. Guest stars include (but are not limited to) George Harrison, Mick Jagger, Paul Simon, Dan Ackroyd, Bill Murray, John Belushi, Gilda Radner and Michael Palin. Not only is it funny as hell, but many of the songs are of true Beatle quality. I've been listening to the original soundtrack album ever since.
This YouTube playlist will take you through the entire film, which runs about an hour and fifteen minutes.
Your Overlooked Film headquarters is Sweet Freedom
I remember years ago a comment from one of the guys when someone asked him to listen to a clutch of songs that might be unknown Beatles. One in the bunch was a Rutles tune.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of this before.
ReplyDeleteTry these guys for sounding like The Beatles http://thefabfour.com/ For my money there is nobody better. You should hear them doing Christmas Carols as the Beatles.. FABULOUS!
ReplyDelete~ Fleet Commander Johnson, retired
I saw this when it first aired; a true tour de force. Having Harrison on board was no doubt a great asset, but Neil Innes was something of a genius, accomplishing with music what Will Elder accomplished with comics; a parody so skillful it could be mistaken for the original. Just think of how many artists tried to sound like the Beatles since the sixties, and failed. The Rutles made it look easy, but you know it don't come easy.
ReplyDeleteWe saw The Fab Four at an Atlantic City casino a few years back. They're good, alright, but the Rutles create new Beatles songs.
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