British invasion in Emens

The Beatles are back

The band plays together during one of its songs on Nov. 12. DN PHOTO JONATHAN MIKSANEK
The band plays together during one of its songs on Nov. 12. DN PHOTO JONATHAN MIKSANEK

Beatles Facts

October 1962: The Beatles’ debut single “Love Me Do” broke through UK charts.

February 1963: The Fab Four appeared on UK show “Thank Your Lucky Stars” to promote new single “Please Please Me.” This year, The Beatles released several UK chart toppers like “She Loves You” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and became a household name.

November 1963: “I Want to Hold Your Hand” reached ears in America and it became the No. 1 song in the nation.

February 1964: The Beatles appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” The Beatles wrote its own material and even provided other musicians with songs. The band wrote “I Wanna Be Your Man,” the Rolling Stones’ second single.

March 1963: The Beatles’ first album “Please Please Me” was released in the UK.

June 1967: The Beatles released “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” and premiered their multi-colored sergeant suits.

September 1969: “Abbey Road,” with its iconic album cover of the four crossing the street, was released.

Sources:
http://beatles-tribute-band-uk.co.uk/history.htm

Beatlemania surged throughout John R. Emens Auditorium Tuesday night when four men posing as John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr played tribute to some of the most monumental moments in music history.

From “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” to “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,” Rain: A Tribute to The Beatles took the audience on a journey that began in 1964 on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

Ian Garcia, who plays the part of McCartney in the band, said he was raised on The Beatles records, and while Rain follows in their footsteps, the Fab Four can never really be replaced.

“I still believe there will never be another Beatles,” Garcia said. “The timing was just right and America was ready to explode with rock music.”

Garcia has been a part of other Beatles tribute bands throughout his life, but stumbled upon Rain in 2010.

“I heard about Rain a few years ago from a friend, went to audition, and the rest is history,” he said.

Rain has toured all over the world, with multiple casts and multiple people to play each character.

“The Beatles are huge in Japan,” said Jimmy Irizarry, who plays John Lennon.

The tribute band played a wide range of songs chronologically from The Beatles’ discography for two-and-a-half hours.

“It is a lot of pressure to live up to The Beatles. We put on a Beatles fantasy show with fantastic lights and costume changes,” Garcia said. “We want people to have a good time.”

Each set Rain plays represents a different era of The Beatles’ history. It begins with the Beatlemania time period and ends with the “Let It Be” album, the last one released in 1970.

Along with portraying the original band, Rain’s set includes audience involvement, authentic clothing and projected images of The Beatles’ history. The audience didn’t hesitate to sing along, clap and dance with the group.

Fog machines and a continuous light show brought the stage alive. Footage from the Vietnam war and commercials from the ‘60s took the audience back in time.

Ball State alumna Holly Brown came back to Emens for her second Rain experience.

“The last one I went to was really awesome,” she said. “It was very similar to what I would think the real Beatles would sound like.”

Albany resident Kyle Cook has been to many Beatles tribute shows before and will travel near and far to hear his favorite band’s songs.

“I think Rain does a great job at portraying The Beatles and putting on a stage performance in general,” he said. “I have been to others and this is the best one.”

The performance ended with the crowd waving their hands back and forth and singing along to “Hey Jude.”

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