Rubber Soul Revolver Beatles tribute, QPAC, July 30, 2015

THIS writer is usually wary of Beatles tributes. I am such a fan of the band that the thought of hearing the music in some way mishandled or diminished makes me feel a little uneasy at the plethora of Beatles celebration shows that pass through. It was hard to resist this one though, with four young songwriters out front of a band of some of Australia’s most respected musicians, and playing the music from two of the finest albums anyone ever made.
It was only as the show progressed that it occurred to me that, as much as I loved these albums and knew them inside-out, I had never seen any of these classic songs performed live.
To hear these songs reproduced so faithfully — the band includes veteran players like guitarist Rex Goh and drummer Hamish Stuart — through a high-quality sound system in a comfortable venue like the Concert Hall was a delight.
Through the course of those two albums, released only eight months apart in 1965 and 1966, The Beatles grew before our eyes, from the writers of supremely catchy rock tunes and love ballads to a band completely rewriting the book of what was possible in the studio.
For Rubber Soul — songs like Drive My Car, Michelle, If I Needed Someone and Norwegian Wood — the rock band format is enough. For Revolver they are augmented by brass section and string ensemble, allowing the singers to soar through songs like Eleanor Rigby, Yellow Submarine and Got to Get You Into My Life
For a fan like this one who was so taken with the explosion of musical colours of Revolver, it was a delicious thrill to hear the Indian flavours of Love You To (with Goh reproducing the sitar on his Coral electric sitar) and the psychedelic symphony of Tomorrow Never Knows delivered at high volume and rich sonic fidelity on the concert stage.
The really tough job of the night is for the singers, all of whom would have been unknowns to most of the audience, but they all did well, particularly Williams with his ballad turns on Here, There and Everywhere, In My Life and Michelle.

A concert like this reinforced so many things we know about The Beatles, and some which we might have forgotten: the nuance and detail they gave each of these songs in the studio, the stellar quality of the harmony work which is almost a forgotten art in rock bands today, the sheer breadth and variety in the writing. And not just one but three of the finest singers in rock history, and Ringo as a wonderful foil to them.
Stepping into the shoes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney in particular as singers is no easy task, but these four were all sympathetic to the material, with Lane equally adept at Lennon or McCartney, from You Won’t See Me to I’m Only Sleeping. But most impressive was the songs where all four combined, like And Your Bird Can Sing, with Goh and co-guitarist Paul Berton nailing those tricky harmony riffs.
As encore, two singles from the same era, We Can Work It Out and Day Tripper, by which time even doubters like me were won over.
Coming in 2016, it was announced on the flyer handed out to patrons, is a Beatles show called All You Need is Love, complete with orchestra. Count me in!