Rain | |
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Background information | |
Also known as | Reign |
Origin | Laguna Beach, California |
Genres | Rock and Roll Beatles tribute |
Years active | 1975–present |
Labels | None |
Members | Mark Lewis Steve Landes Joe Bithorn Joey Curatolo Paul Curatolo Jimmy Irizarry Ian B. Garcia Alastar McNeil Jimmy Pou Ralph Castelli Aaron Chiazza Douglas Cox Mark Beyer Chris Smallwood |
Past members | Eddie Lineberry Chuck Coffey Bill Connearney Steve Wight Grant Belotti Jim Riddle Victor J Campanaro Dave Campanaro |
Website | RainTribute.com |
Rain | |
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A Tribute to the Beatles | |
Music | The Beatles |
Lyrics | The Beatles |
Basis | The career and music of The Beatles |
Premiere | 1975 |
Productions | 2010 Broadway |
Awards | 2011 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revue [1] |
Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles, styled RAIN, is a Beatles tribute and later a theatrical production. Rain gives audiences the experience of seeing Beatles' songs performed live that were never done so by the band itself. It predates the popular Broadway show Beatlemania by several years. [2] Rain has played Broadway, [3] and toured for years.
The show takes the form of a roughly chronological history of The Beatles via their music. About 30 songs are performed during the show. Other than some onstage banter, there is very little dialogue during the production, which consists mostly of exact re-enactments of the Beatles' music. [4] The multimedia production uses high-definition backdrops that feature psychedelic effects, vintage television commercials, and video footage of Rain cast members recreating iconic Beatle moments. [3] For legal reasons, Rain never calls its performers the names of the actual members of The Beatles. [5]
Each production of Rain features two performers for each member of the Beatles, who alternate shows; plus an off-stage keyboardist to replicate the studio sounds familiar from later Beatles records. [3]
Rain began in 1975 as Reign, [3] a Laguna Beach, California, band that played both original music and Beatles covers. Founding members were Mark Lewis, Eddie Lineberry, Bill Connearney, Grant Belotti, Chuck Coffey, and Steve Wight. (Connearney, Belotti, Lineberry, and Alan Hawley had been members of a prior band known as Lucky Dogs.) The name of the band, "Reign/Rain," is a reference to the 1966 Beatles single "Rain," the B-side of "Paperback Writer." [4]
Co-founder and keyboardist Mark Lewis managed the band, became its lead arranger, and found Rain a regular weekly gig doing Beatles covers at the Mine Shaft in Calabasas, California. [6] Before long Rain had a following of Beatles fans around the Los Angeles/Orange County area, [3] and soon extended up the West Coast as far as Seattle.
As the band developed a reputation, they performed at the 1978 Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon. In 1979, producer Dick Clark hired Rain members to record exact Beatles covers for the Richard Marquand film Birth of the Beatles . [2]
By 1980, Lewis had built the band into a long-standing touring tradition. [3] The lineup of Rain remained constant until 1980, with Lineberry playing John Lennon, Coffey playing Paul McCartney, Connearney playing George Harrison, and Belotti playing Ringo Starr (with Lewis playing keyboards behind the scenes). Joey Curatolo joined Rain in 1978, sharing the role of Paul with Coffey; Curatolo is still a current member of Rain.
Lineberry left Rain in 1980, and Coffey, Connearney, and Belotti all left in 1982. Joe Bithorn joined the group as "George" in 1983, and is still with Rain. Ralph Castell joined Rain in 1986 as Ringo, and is still with the show.
In 2001 the Rain Corporation took over management of the band. [7] In 2005, management met with producer Jeff Parry to expand the tribute band's scope — which at that point was mostly doing concerts at casinos [5] — and develop a Broadway-style production in the manner of 1977's Beatlemania . [5] The result of this planning eventually became the 2010 Broadway run. [7]
In 2008, Pollstar listed Rain at number 17 in its yearly "Pollstar's Hot Top 20" for overall tickets sales of a touring show, band, or production.[ citation needed ]
Rain played Hollywood's Pantages Theatre in 2009. In 2010 the production performed at Kansas City's Starlight Theatre and New Orleans' Mahalia Jackson Theater of the Performing Arts.
In 2009, on the eve of Rain moving to Broadway, the Rain Corporation and Parry's Annerin Productions agreed to produce a West End theatre version of the show, with both sides splitting the profits 50-50. [7]
Rain ran on Broadway for 300 shows (and 8 preview performances), first at the Neil Simon Theatre [4] on October 26, 2010 – January 15, 2011, then at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on February 8, 2011 – July 31, 2011. [8]
In 2012, Parry/Annerin Productions put on Let It Be , a Beatles "concert experience" [9] that played in London's West End. In 2013, on the eve of Let It Be coming to Broadway, the Rain Corporation filed a copyright suit against Parry and his fellow Let It Be producers. Rain claimed that Let It Be was essentially the same concept as Rain, with similar artwork, costumes, and virtually the same song repertoire, and that Rain was entitled to 50% of Let It Be's profits."[ citation needed ] Parry and Annerin instead proposed giving Rain Corporation 7.5% of their profits. [9] The case was settled out of court. [5]
The show begins with the four actors portraying an early version of The Beatles' appearance at the Cavern Club in 1962. When this scene closes, The Beatles journey to America, beginning their tour at The Ed Sullivan Show. Moving forward, The Beatles' directions are changing musically while their band grows in popularity performing their largest concert at New York City's Shea Stadium. Subsequent scenes use hallucinogenic and psychedelic designs to represent The Beatles' ever increasing experimentation with substances and Eastern philosophies. The show culminates with the breakup of the group and the end of the 1960s. [4]
Sir Richard Starkey, known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, usually for one song on each album, including "Yellow Submarine" and "With a Little Help from My Friends". He also wrote and sang the Beatles songs "Don't Pass Me By" and "Octopus's Garden", and is credited as a co-writer of four others.
The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock 'n' roll, their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. The band also explored music styles ranging from folk and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock. As pioneers in recording, songwriting and artistic presentation, the Beatles revolutionized many aspects of the music industry and were often publicized as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements.
Beatlemania was the fanaticism surrounding the English rock band the Beatles from 1963 to 1966. The group's popularity grew in the United Kingdom in late 1963, propelled by the singles "Please Please Me", "From Me to You" and "She Loves You". By October, the British press adopted the term "Beatlemania" to describe the scenes of adulation that attended the band's concert performances. By 22 February 1964, the Beatles held both the number one and number two spots on the Billboard Hot 100, with "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You", respectively. Their world tours were characterised by the same levels of hysteria and high-pitched screaming by female fans, both at concerts and during the group's travels between venues. Commentators likened the intensity of this adulation to a religious fervour and to a female masturbation fantasy. Among the displays of deity-like worship, fans would approach the band in the belief that they possessed supernatural healing powers.
Beatlemania was a Broadway musical revue focused on the music of the Beatles as it related to the events and changing attitudes of the tumultuous 1960s. A "rockumentary," advertised as "Not the Beatles, but an incredible simulation," it ran from May 1977 to October 1979 for a total of 1,006 performances.
Birth of the Beatles is a 1979 American biographical film, produced by Dick Clark Productions and directed by Richard Marquand. It was shown as a TV film on ABC in the United States, and received a theatrical release in other countries. The film focuses on the early history of the Beatles. It was released nine years after the Beatles disbanded, and is the only biographical film about the band to be released while all four members were alive. Pete Best, the Beatles' original drummer, served as a technical advisor for the production.
The Cast of Beatlemania is a U.S. Beatles' tribute band formed in 1980. The Cast is one of longest running Beatles' tribute band in the world. The group features founder Lenie Colacino, a former cast member of the 1977 Broadway hit musical Beatlemania. The group has performed in all contiguous U.S. states, and over twenty foreign countries, including Canada, England, Mexico, Central and South America, Brazil and Japan.
The Beatles staged their second concert tour of the United States in the late summer of 1965. At the peak of American Beatlemania, they played a mixture of outdoor stadiums and indoor arenas, with historic concerts at Shea Stadium in New York and the Hollywood Bowl. Typically of the era, the tour was a "package" presentation, with several artists on the bill. The Beatles played for just 30 minutes at each show, following sets by support acts such as Brenda Holloway and the King Curtis Band, Cannibal & the Headhunters, and Sounds Incorporated.
Andre Barreau was a British musician who was a member of The Bootleg Beatles, in which he played George Harrison from the group's formation in March 1980 until his departure in 2017. In 1997, Barreau performed the slide guitar solo on Robbie Williams's song "Angels".
The Beatles Anthology is a documentary television series on the career of the Beatles. It was broadcast on UK television in six parts on ITV between 26 November and 31 December 1995, while in the United States it was seen as three feature-length episodes on ABC between 19 and 23 November 1995. It was released in greatly expanded form as an eight-volume VHS set and an eight-disc LaserDisc set on 5 September 1996. The series was re-released on DVD in 2003, with an 81-minute special-features disc.
Les Fradkin is an American MIDI guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He is best known for being a member of the original cast of the hit Broadway show Beatlemania. In addition to playing MIDI guitar, he plays 12 string guitar, the Starr Labs Ztar, guitar synthesizer, SynthAxe, Hammond organ, Mellotron, piano, bass guitar, and Moog synthesizer.
Tony Kishman is an American vocalist, bassist, pianist & guitarist, most noted for his work with Wishbone Ash and the musical Beatlemania.
The Beatles were originally a quartet, but only Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr remain.
Michael Bellusci is a drummer/musician best known for his work with the post 1984 touring company of the Broadway Musical "Beatlemania" and the bands "Strawberry Fields", "Get With It" and "Shock".
Let It Be is a West End and Broadway concert revue based on the career of English rock band, The Beatles, from 1962 to their breakup in 1970.
The Fest for Beatles Fans is a twice-annual, three-day festival that honors the lasting legacy of the Beatles. The festival takes place in the New York metropolitan area, ordinarily in March or April, and in Chicago, Illinois, each August. Running Friday through Sunday, the Fest features special guests, live concerts, exhibits, art contests, a Beatles marketplace, a sound-alike contest, a Battle of the Beatles Bands, and more.
Larry Russell is a New York City-based performing musician, recording producer, audio engineer, and composer. He achieved national recognition for his collaborations with Billy Joel.
The English rock band the Beatles staged a concert tour of the United Kingdom between 3 and 12 December 1965, comprising 18 shows at nine venues across England, Scotland and Wales. It coincided with the release of the Beatles' studio album Rubber Soul and their double A-side single "Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out", and was the final UK tour undertaken by the band. Weary of Beatlemania, the group conceded to do the tour but refused to also perform a season of Christmas concerts as they had done over the 1963–64 and 1964–65 Christmas seasons.
The Beatles made several appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show, including three in February 1964 that were among their first appearances in front of an American audience. Their first appearance, on February 9, was seen by over 73 million viewers and came to be regarded as a cultural watershed that launched American Beatlemania—as well as the wider British Invasion of American pop music—and inspired many young viewers to become rock musicians. The band also made another appearance during their 1965 U.S. tour.