By Amanda VanNostrand.
50 years have snuck by since The Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album was released. Regardless of whether you have learned what the passing of 50 years feels like, you will want to celebrate The Beatles and experience RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles. Currently playing for you at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, this group is traveling the states in the foreseeable future, bringing the next alternative to The Beatles to lucky audience members across our country and sending messages of Peace and Love to prevail!
RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles is a multimedia concert resurrecting the music heard and loved by all to the stage to be listened to in real time. The four members of the band are talented Beatles fans (and look-alikes) and do a pristine job of delivering the classics. Steve Landis (Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Harmonica, Piano, Original Broadway Cast) is a self-taught guitarist who listened to Beatles records since the age of 13; Paul Curatolo (Vocals, Bass, Piano, Guitar) is a self-taught drummer and has learned to be the second-best Paul McCartney there ever was; Aaron Chiazza (Drums, Percussion, Vocals) received a drum set at the age of 5 and drumming and music have been his life since; Alastar McNeil (Vocals, Lead Guitar, Guitar Synth) is from Hawaii and has mastered both the ukulele and the guitar in his assorted music experiences; and Mark Byer (Keyboard, Percussion) began playing the piano at age 8 and is the primary programmer and sound designer for the keyboards used in RAIN’s production.
RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles is fantastic from the moment you enter the venue to the minute you leave. Upon your arrival, you will be given the chance for photo op. Make friends with fellow concertgoers as you exchange phones to take pictures on Abbey Road. Sit down at your seats for the view of a black and white screen with icons representing The Beatles: Shea Stadium, record players, a Penny Lane street sign, hippies, daisies, peace signs, lava lamps, and more. Make note of the screen as you listen to music from long ago and prepare for the classics up ahead. Prior to our band coming to the stage, enjoy a video tour through the past as you remember and appreciate some times (both good and bad) The Beatles brought you (and/or your parents and grandparents) through. After the video, you’ll sit back (and at times stand up) and enjoy the music that most everyone knows and loves. The performers look like the quartet and play their music seemingly as closely as possible. From the outfits to the instruments, the experience is as authentic as can be without the actual Beatles. As the band plays, enjoy the British flags, baseball stadiums, and crazily obsessed fans of the past as they are projected in the background. (As the show goes on, you will recognize some of the fans being projected!)
Possibly the best part of the concert is the feeling you get while the band is playing; not one unhappy guest is present. Music from The Beatles, especially live, has the power to resurrect joy from every person in the room. Look around and see smiles, couples holding hands and reminiscing, heads bobbing, feet tapping, and feel the comfort that is brought by this nostalgic experience. If you have had the misfortune of growing up without the actual Beatles as I have at 31 years old, have no fear: bring along someone who holds the history of first-hand experience and witness to the history of The Beatles and enjoy great conversation and music as your suspicions that The Beatles are simply the greatest band ever, are confirmed.