The sound of The Beatles is returning to Festival Hall, West Melbourne, 50 years after the original line-up played there to a packed house of frenzied fans at the peak of their career.
When The Beatles came here in 1964, Festival Hall was among the major venues at which they performed on their Australia and New Zealand tour. Others included Auckland and Dunedin.
To mark this important one-off event in Australia’s history, local tribute band the Beatle Boys is set to virtually walk in their footsteps by recreating the original tour, with performances at many of the same venues. Organisers have even fine-tuned it further, coordinating shows with the original program of dates as filled by The Beatles half a century ago.
Notably, tribute band members Christopher Frazer, John Kater, Rod Auld and Michael Brady are set to earn more for the gigs than their superstar counterparts, who reportedly received just $23,000. This was said to have been because the tour deal was struck before The Beatles reached the ‘big time’.
On the recommendation of the band’s manager, Brian Epstein, Australian promoter Kenn Brodziak took a gamble – and it paid off. The usual flyer and poster printing proved a windfall for fans who quickly scooped them up as keepsakes of this major music event.
Fab Four enthusiasts can see The Beatles 50th Anniversary show starring the Beatle Boys at Festival Hall on June 14th.
