At times, it’s hard to imagine that with all The Beatles accomplished, they were only together and a commercial success for about seven years. However, their roots and history are quite fascinating, and their success was during one of the most turbulent times in our history. All of that makes for a fascinating documentary, which includes previously unseen footage from the early years unearthed due to research comparable to Ken Burns’ documentaries.

The Beatles Anthology is made up of five discs. Four discs are the actual history of the band and their success while the fifth is bonus material which shows what went into making it as well as sessions with the three Beatles who were still alive at the time the anthology was put together.

The DVD collection opens with a montage of the individual Beatles through the years. It shows how much they and their look have changed over the years. Each DVD contains two episodes of the anthology.

Episode 1 – This supplies the background of the various members of the band, who their parents were, how they grew up, and where they grew up. Most of it is told in their own words. This is especially nice since two of the band members have departed this world. They talk about the early years and their time in Germany.

Episode 2 – This covers the early years of success, as well as the start of the hysteria.

Episode 3 – This starts with the hysteria of their arrival in America. It uses some of their own footage and photographs taken when they were on the first trip in Miami.

Episode 4 – This is when it starts getting a little crazy. The Beatles talk about getting stoned while visiting with the Queen. It ends leading into the concert at Shea Stadium.

Episode 5 – The entire Shea Stadium concert is shown. This is especially it’s poignant as a Mets fan, since Shea Stadium was torn down. More and more it makes me think it shouldn’t have been torn down – it’s a landmark for historical events like this. The DVD also delves into their international tours with stops in Japan and the Phillipines.

Episode 6 – Shows how they came to the decision to end touring. It also covered the controversies surrounding John Lennon’s statement that “The Beatles are more popular than Jesus” as well as the group’s extensive drug use.

Episode 7 – The performance of All You Need Is Love is the first live satellite broadcast. The Beatles and the world enter the “summer of love”. Events during this time include meeting with the Maharishi, the death of Brian Epstein, and the Magical Mystery Tour movie. You can start to see the relationship between John & Paul changing. They appear distant and unresponsive to each other when making appearances or being filmed. They don’t seem to stand next to each other any longer. The ideas behind and the making of the Yellow Submarine movie are covered. The episode ends with John’s marriage to Yoko and her being at the recording sessions all the time.

Episode 8 – This covers their studio efforts in their later years. Paul McCartney talks about the motivation behind Hey Jude. The recording of the legendary White Album. It also covers the friction and eventual break-up of the band. Jumping ahead, it shows how Paul George and Ringo came together to produce Free As a Bird while combating all of the reunion rumors.


To say this is the most comprehensive presentation of the Beatles and their history is putting it mildly. The motivation for the three who were alive at the time was to tell their story before others told it for them. They seem to be quite candid and honest, but it’s important to remember that events are being told from their point of view.

Where The Beatles Anthology seems to be missing out is in the discussion of what was going on in their personal lives and how it affected the band. That’s true right from the beginning in regard to John Lennon and the issues with Cynthia. None of the early girlfriends are discussed at all – it’s like there is no other life going on outside of what’s happening with The Beatles in their early days.

The extra material doesn’t really make up a whole disc, but it’s still a great bit of material. The three remaining alive Beatles in 1994 gathered for a session of reminiscing and jamming that is included in the special features. It’s a lot of fun to watch them and see the tensions of decades before ebb away.

The production values are very good. The material included has been cleaned up and looks great. The film clips chosen are tight and work well in the context of what’s being shown. It’s edited together that it flows well and tells the story. It doesn’t seem to bog down at all anywhere, although it would be tough to watch the five discs straight through just for the amount of time it would take.

I absolutely would advise anyone to see this, if nothing then for the history it shows. I’m planning on purchasing it as it’s something I would like to have and watch again as I am sure there are thing that can be caught on repeated viewing that were missed the first time through.


SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Recollections June 1994
• Compiling the Anthology Albums
• Back at Abbey Road – May 1995
• Recording “Free As A Bird” & “Real Love”
• Production Team
• Making the “Free As A Bird” Video
• “Real Love” Video
• Credits