The Fab Four Comes to the Sunrise

Since the 2009 release of The Beatles’ digitally re-mastered catalog and The Beatles: Rock Band video game, a new generation has connected with the band that defined modern music. It was apparent at the Sunrise Theatre last Sunday, where people both young and old came in Beatles regalia to watch tribute band The Fab Four.

The Fab Four's selling point is its pitch-perfect recreation of Beatles tracks. The show started with a voiceover by Penn Jilette of Penn & Teller fame, who assured the audience that all voicals and music were performed on stage. Afterward an Ed Sulliven impersonator came on stage and reenacted the show that led to The Beatles’ first performance on American TV. Finally the Sulliven impersonator announced the band: John Lennon (Ron McNeil), Paul McCarthy (Ardy Sarraf), George Harrison (Gavin Pring), and Ringo Starr (Rolo Sandoval). From then on The Fab Four went on a journey from the Beatlemania days through the psychedelic era and ending at the twilight of the band's history.

As in the original band Lennon/McNeil and McCarthy/Sarraf sung most of the songs, but Harrison/Pring and Starr/Sandoval also chimed in with signature songs “Here Comes the Sun” and “With A Little Help From My Friends.” All the members stayed in line with the original recordings and avoided placing emphasis on different notes from the first Fab Four.

The band sung like The Beatles, but they also needed to show they could play like The Beatles as well. An arsenal of guitars and violins sat on stage, and The Fab Four switched instruments on the fly with no tune-up time needed.

Things got trickier during the concert’s second half, as later Beatles songs weren’t performed on tour and thus were not restricted to guitars and drums. The Fab Four’s solution was to place two keyboards placed at either side of the stage. Aside from piano notes, the group used them to synthesize instruments like the horns in “Yellow Submarine” and the chaotic crescendos of “A Day in the Life.” As with the vocals, the band stuck with script and didn’t try to add extra arrangements that would take away the sense of The Beatles performing live.

Instead, the band used a giant screen to enhance the experience. "Help!" burst on screen during the chorus of the song of the same name, and groovy images flowed during "Strawberry Fields Forever". Archived footage like a fan who painted a picture of Paul McCarthy aired in between breaks.

The Fab Four also went though several costume changes. The Fab Four started out in the matching suits and bowlcuts of the early years. On the second half, the four came on stage wearing the uniforms from the cover Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Finally, the band played in the casual clothes that marked a lack of uniformity as the original group went their separate ways. Each faux Beatle stayed in character between songs, ribbing on each other and the crowd.

"If you notice any mistakes tonight, it's probably Ringo's fault," McNeil said.

When the concert entered the final phase of Beatles history, McNeil walked in by himself in Lennon’s white suit off the cover of Abbey Road. Before playing “Imagine”, McNeil discussed Lennon’s death and how he had to fight the U.S. government to stay in the country. While a pitch-perfect reprisal the original Fab Four’s catalog is great, recreating the history and spirit of The Beatles generation is just as important for this Fab Four.

Chris Hoadley
Blog Editor

Photos by Michael Poole

Sunrise Theatre Presents - The Fab Four: The Ultimate Beatles Tribute

Fun Fact: In The Beatles film Yellow Submarine, the band members don’t voice their animated counterparts. The band's only appearance in this tale of psychedelic seas and Blue Meanies came in a live-action cameo at the end of the film.

Cut to 2010: The Year of the Remake. Director Robert Zemeckis is making a new Yellow Submarine. He has actors to voice John, Paul, George, and Ringo. He has the original catalog to use for songs. But Zemecks wants to use motion-capture technology for The Beatles' look and playing style, and a lot has changed since Jeremy the Nowhere Man.

But who can recreate the Fab Four?

Why not The Fab Four, the best Beatles tribute band on the circuit? More than a dead ringer for the group, The Fab Four takes the audience on a journey through each phase of the band's seminal career. And you can catch them at their day job when they perform on the Sunrise’s stage this Sunday.

Check out more about The Fab Four on their official site, and you can also read an interview with Ron McNeil, who plays John Lennon, on TCPalm.com. Click here to order tickets.

A Night at the Sunrise With One Night Of Queen

Gary Mullen: Ascended fan. Mullen won the British TV show Stars In Their Eyes with the most votes in the show's history through his recreation of legendary Queen singer Freddie Mercury. Now he tours with his band The Works as the “One Night of Queen” tribute show, which stopped by the Sunrise last Friday.

Mullen hits all the Mercury mannerisms. He comes out in the classic white pants and a jacket he removes as the concert goes on. He wields a microphone with half the stand still attached, holding it upside down while singing and miming the guitarists during instrumentals. He roams the stage, using every square foot to his advantage.

Big deal. Anyone can imitate a performer’s mannerisms, and Mercury is a once-in-a-lifetime performer. So what makes Mullen more than "The Great Pretender"?

After a few songs Mullen does the bit in Live Aid and other concerts where Mercury shows his vocal range while the audience tries to mimic it. Mullen goes low and high, coming close to the tonal range that made Mercury famous. Eventually he reaches for his highest pitch and hits it perfectly. For half a minute.

A tribute singer has two challenges. Aside from just being a good singer, Mullen has to sing as close as the original as possible – to create the illusion that it is the real Queen on stage. Mullen does right on both tests, and doesn’t shy away from a variety of songs.

Of course Mullen can do classics like “Another One Bites the Dust,” where the 48 lights hanging over the band flashed to the song’s beat. But he can also sing ballads like “Love of My Life” and “Too Much Love Will Kill You” that few would attempt. Just as Mercury had done, Mullen also stepped out of the regular Queen set for a rendition of Elvis’s “Jailhouse Rock.”

His bandmates were also excellent. David Brockett’s guitar solos capped off several songs, while Jonathon Evans alternated between cymbals as purple and green lights danced in the background. Mullen played with his bandmates, messing around with keyboardist Malcolm Gentles and swiping a cowboy hat off of bassist Billy Moffat.

The playfulness extended to the audience. Mullen slapped his fanny in the middle of songs and spotted himself a front-row drink during interludes. He took pictures with an audience member’s camera and let a young fan onstage for the “We Are the Champions” encore (yeah yeah - it isn’t hard to predict which songs would be in a Queen encore.) Mullen is the ascended fan, singing so hard his eyes bulge out, commanding the audience to rise and sit to his whim, and having fun doing what he did in British karaoke bars years ago.

As Mullen said after commanding the crowd to rise for another fast-paced song – “That is how you change a theater audience to a rock and roll audience.”

Chris Hoadley
Blog Editor

Sunrise Theatre Presents - One Night Of Queen (Gary Mullen & The Works)

Gary Mullen’s day job was a computer salesman. Then he entered a British talent show where he took on the persona of Freddie Mercury. He was pretty successful.

Mullen won the competition with the most votes in the show's history. Now he and his band The Works travel the globe performing their tribute to Queen. This Friday, April 2, the Sunrise will host a one-of-a-kind recreation of one of the greatest live bands of all time. Click here for more information and tickets.

Sunrise Theatre Presents - Memories of Elvis

Get the parodies out of your head. Chris MacDonald’s ode to the legend is the tribute act of choice for Graceland’s Heartbreak Hotel, and he has worked with Presley’s original band The Jordanaires. When he comes to the Sunrise this Friday his band will be joined by D.J. Fontana, Presley’s drummer during the 50s and 60s and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Learn more and buy tickets here.