Julia Baird, The Mersey Beatles, and that Liverpudlian Accent!

    On Thursday, April 23, 2015 on NPR's "Here and Now", Douglas Druick, President of the Art Institute of Chicago, was interviewed regarding a recent $500 million donation. On that program, Mr. Druick affirmed that with a greater number of pieces of art "we can tell a story with much greater nuance and complexity."
   This is how I feel about "tribute" bands. Whether they cover the Rolling Stones, Monkees, Led Zeppelin or the Beatles, I have discovered that I may indeed enjoy these tribute bands more than the "real thing" that they cover.
   These tribute bands have the benefit of looking back on the history of their claimed band and can, in Druick's words, "tell a story with much greater nuance and complexity" than those ephemeral moments which were distracted by poor seating, poor views, less than optimum audio, and any number of unanticipated problems which detracted from what was expected of the originals.
   A tribute band can, with a retrospective view, gather the best of the history, compose a story or a theme and present that to a contemporary audience such that it reminds them of their initial anticipations regarding their band, and brings them along in a magical mystery tour of "how it all unfolded" while affirming the audience's  "almost like being there" sentiment.
   The Mersey Beatles are one such tribute band.

Eric, my son, and I frame a Mersey Beatles poster(also a "Here Come the Mummies" poster) as we sport our VIP credentials

Eric and Sherry, my wife, before the concert

    But before we further discuss the Four Lads from Liverpool, let us give some attention to another making the trip from Liverpool to Elkhart. Let's focus on Julia Baird for a moment. Julia is John Lennon's sister. And though my initial intent was to focus an interview on her, rather than John, it became clear that her focus is indeed John, the Beatles, Liverpool, and the Cavern club of which she is a board member.
    Julia, wearing a "Cavern Club t-shirt, greeted folk with a welcoming smile and a down-to-Earth interpersonal style that made folk feel immediately befriended.
   She was with the band to help promote their tour, to gain attention for Liverpool and the Cavern, and also to sell her book "Imagine This...Growing Up with My brother John Lennon".
    I was with a group of fans waiting to meet her and gain her autograph on a copy of the book.

We were at the beautiful Lerner Theater in Elkhart. And while I don't like waiting in lines, this one seemed quick, and comfortable.
It was a lot like waiting to go backstage to see a rock star. Close enough for me.

Part of the band's entourage backstage

   As I don't like elevators, once we got through the "backstage area", my wife, Sherry, my son, Eric, and myself were escorted down stairs and through a maze of tunnels. It felt very much like back stage living. I overheard Julia telling another fan and autograph seeker that this was her first time in Indiana and that she was very pleased. Julia also commented that the acoustics at the Lerner are great,
   But after I had opportunity to have my copy of the book signed, and I gained a picture with Julia, we left for the concert featuring The Mersey Beatles.

These fellows are a great tribute band. I've heard a couple of other Beatles tribute bands, and I think these guys are the best. The way they position themselves on stage, their gestures and movements, and their sound contribute to an experience that runs almost up to the real thing. The phrase "suspension of disbelief", while applied to a movie-going experience, seems easily acquired here in this concert with these accomplished performers. They sound so close to the originals that if you allow, you can be mentally and emotionally "placed" in the original time period, at least for a couple of hours.

    Yes, it was a good sound. They seemed particularly authentic. And I pondered, as I listened to their expertise, why I felt this band was better than others. Yes, they are technically accomplished. Yes, they have practiced. But there was some other quality which seemed beyond practice and acquisition. It was my wife, Sherry, that identified the quality. It was that Liverpudlian accent.
   And not only that accent, which very naturally made them sound like the Beatles, but all other experiences growing up in Liverpool. These fellows grew up in the same city. They had the same cultural and local customs to mold and shape their language, pronunciations, gestures, and behaviors in general. Of course they so very closely resemble the Beatles, they almost are!

Mike with Julia

   Anyway, it was a great concert. And I encourage you to attend when they play at another venue.
You can find out more about the Mersey Beatles at
http://themerseybeatles.com/
   You can find out more about Julia Baird at
http://juliabaird.eu/

The audience waving lights during "All You Need is Love"