Lisztomania is a 1975 film by Ken Russell, drawn from a biography of Franz Liszt.
Depicting the flamboyant Liszt as the first classical pop star, Lisztomania features contemporary rock star Roger Daltrey (of The Who) as Franz Liszt. The film was released the same year as Tommy, which also starred Daltrey and was directed by Russell. The film is derived, in part, from an actual "kiss-and-tell" book, Nélida, by Marie d'Agoult, about the couple's affair.
The term "Lisztomania" was coined by the German romantic literary figure Heinrich Heine to describe the massive public response to Liszt's virtuosic piano performances. At these performances, there were allegedly screaming women, and the audience was sometimes limited to standing room only.
Rick Wakeman, from the progressive rock band Yes, composed the Lisztomania soundtrack, which included synthesizer arrangements of works by Liszt and Wagner. He also appears in the movie as the Nordic god of thunder, Thor. Daltrey and Russell wrote the lyrics for the soundtrack, and Daltrey provided vocals.
Of the other rock celebrities appearing in the movie, Ringo Starr, drummer of The Beatles, appears as the Pope.
This movie was first to use the relatively new Dolby Stereo noise reduction sound system.
Since the original video release of Lisztomania, available copies of the movie have declined. Available copies of the movie were bolstered by a 1990s release of the 2.35:1 letterbox format with Dolby Surround sound on Laserdisc. Warner UK has recently come to an agreement with special interest label Digital Classics DVD to release Lisztomania on DVD.
French alternative rock band Phoenix released a song "Lisztomania" on their 2009 album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.
Wikipedia
Friday, August 26, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Son of Dracula
Son of Dracula is a musical comedy film released in 1974 by Apple Films, starring Harry Nilsson and Ringo Starr. It is also the title of a Harry Nilsson album released in conjunction with the film. It includes Nilsson songs that were showcased in the film as well as portions of dialogue, used as bridging sequences. All song tracks with the exception of "Daybreak" are from Nilsson Schmilsson (1971) and Son of Schmilsson (1972), albums previously released.
Ringo Starr appears as Merlin the Magician, who follows the birth and rise of young Count Downe, played by Harry Nilsson. Starr and Nilsson were longtime friends, and Starr had played drums on Son of Schmilsson, which had spoofed horror movie motifs. A year or so later, Starr decided to make a rock and roll Dracula movie, and invited Nilsson to come on board. Nilsson thought at first the whole idea came from his recent album; as it turned out, Starr hadn't followed its release, and until then-wife Maureen brought him a copy, he didn't even know Nilsson had already used a similar theme.
Making the movie, both Nilsson and Starr came to realise it wasn't going to be a great piece of cinematic art, though they still enjoyed their time on the set. After its release, not even wooden stakes were needed to put the movie in its coffin, seemingly once and for all. Showings over the years have been limited to midnight movies and similar outlets, no official home video release has ever been made, and reviewers including Leonard Maltin have little positive to say about the film.
The LP release of the soundtrack album included a T-shirt iron-on advertising the movie, and a companion songbook included a reproduction of the movie poster. The single version of "Daybreak" edited out the words "it's pissing me off" (referring to daylight), repeating the lyric "it's making me cough" instead, and the fadeout is longer than in any LP or CD release of the song. ("Daybreak" was covered later by Nilsson friend and former Monkee Micky Dolenz.)
Keith Moon, legendary drummer of English rock band the Who, as well as John Bonham, legendary drummer of Led Zeppelin, make appearances in the film, drumming in the Count's band. Among the notables credited on the album were George Harrison and Peter Frampton, the later appearing courtesy of A&M Records. Klaus Voorman, who worked frequently with The Beatles, also played bass on many of the songs.
The story follows a motley group of characters, including Count Downe, who is a vampire dreaming of immortality. Just when he think it's safe to be a living dead fiend, he is approached about getting his life changed from a vampire to normal life by Dr. Van Helsing (Dennis Price), who claims he can help the Count become human. Other characters include a rock band, Baron Frankenstein (Freddie Jones) and a girl named Amber (Suzanna Leigh).
It is unknown if the film will ever come out officially on DVD. Harry Nillson brought a VHS copy of the film to show at the 1982 New Jersey Beatlefeast convention to be shown only at a special Friday night party that Convention host Mark Lapidos gives for the convention guests and vendors. Most party attendees ignored the film. According to journalist Peter Palmiere, Ringo has said in the late 1980s that he had a copy of the video lying on top of his TV set, but couldn't bear to look at it.
Soundtrack listing
1. It is he who will be king (Paul Buckmaster) – 3:07
2. "Daybreak" (Nilsson) – 2:43
3. "At My Front Door" (Ewart B. Abner, John C. Moore) – 2:40
4. Count Downe meets Merlin and Amber (Buckmaster) – 2:10
5. "The Moonbeam Song" (Nilsson) – 3:20
6. Perhaps this is all a dream (Buckmaster) – :47
7. "Remember" (Nilsson) – 4:09
8. Intro, "Without You" (Pete Ham, Tom Evans) – 3:47
9. The Count's vulnerability (Buckmaster) – 2:10
10. "Down" (Nilsson) – 3:07
11. Frankenstein, Merlin and the operation (Taverner) – 3:20
12. "Jump into the Fire" (Nilsson) – 3:16
13. The abdication of Count Downe (Buckmaster) – 1:10
14. The end (Moonbeam) – :49
Wikipedia
Ringo Starr appears as Merlin the Magician, who follows the birth and rise of young Count Downe, played by Harry Nilsson. Starr and Nilsson were longtime friends, and Starr had played drums on Son of Schmilsson, which had spoofed horror movie motifs. A year or so later, Starr decided to make a rock and roll Dracula movie, and invited Nilsson to come on board. Nilsson thought at first the whole idea came from his recent album; as it turned out, Starr hadn't followed its release, and until then-wife Maureen brought him a copy, he didn't even know Nilsson had already used a similar theme.
Making the movie, both Nilsson and Starr came to realise it wasn't going to be a great piece of cinematic art, though they still enjoyed their time on the set. After its release, not even wooden stakes were needed to put the movie in its coffin, seemingly once and for all. Showings over the years have been limited to midnight movies and similar outlets, no official home video release has ever been made, and reviewers including Leonard Maltin have little positive to say about the film.
The LP release of the soundtrack album included a T-shirt iron-on advertising the movie, and a companion songbook included a reproduction of the movie poster. The single version of "Daybreak" edited out the words "it's pissing me off" (referring to daylight), repeating the lyric "it's making me cough" instead, and the fadeout is longer than in any LP or CD release of the song. ("Daybreak" was covered later by Nilsson friend and former Monkee Micky Dolenz.)
Keith Moon, legendary drummer of English rock band the Who, as well as John Bonham, legendary drummer of Led Zeppelin, make appearances in the film, drumming in the Count's band. Among the notables credited on the album were George Harrison and Peter Frampton, the later appearing courtesy of A&M Records. Klaus Voorman, who worked frequently with The Beatles, also played bass on many of the songs.
The story follows a motley group of characters, including Count Downe, who is a vampire dreaming of immortality. Just when he think it's safe to be a living dead fiend, he is approached about getting his life changed from a vampire to normal life by Dr. Van Helsing (Dennis Price), who claims he can help the Count become human. Other characters include a rock band, Baron Frankenstein (Freddie Jones) and a girl named Amber (Suzanna Leigh).
It is unknown if the film will ever come out officially on DVD. Harry Nillson brought a VHS copy of the film to show at the 1982 New Jersey Beatlefeast convention to be shown only at a special Friday night party that Convention host Mark Lapidos gives for the convention guests and vendors. Most party attendees ignored the film. According to journalist Peter Palmiere, Ringo has said in the late 1980s that he had a copy of the video lying on top of his TV set, but couldn't bear to look at it.
Soundtrack listing
1. It is he who will be king (Paul Buckmaster) – 3:07
2. "Daybreak" (Nilsson) – 2:43
3. "At My Front Door" (Ewart B. Abner, John C. Moore) – 2:40
4. Count Downe meets Merlin and Amber (Buckmaster) – 2:10
5. "The Moonbeam Song" (Nilsson) – 3:20
6. Perhaps this is all a dream (Buckmaster) – :47
7. "Remember" (Nilsson) – 4:09
8. Intro, "Without You" (Pete Ham, Tom Evans) – 3:47
9. The Count's vulnerability (Buckmaster) – 2:10
10. "Down" (Nilsson) – 3:07
11. Frankenstein, Merlin and the operation (Taverner) – 3:20
12. "Jump into the Fire" (Nilsson) – 3:16
13. The abdication of Count Downe (Buckmaster) – 1:10
14. The end (Moonbeam) – :49
Wikipedia
Friday, August 12, 2011
Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is a 1973 documentary and concert movie by D.A. Pennebaker. It features David Bowie and his backing group The Spiders from Mars performing at the Hammersmith Odeon, July 3, 1973. The DVD release was later retitled Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: The Motion Picture.
Pennebaker had been asked to come to London and film just a few songs but when he saw the first of the two London shows he realized that "there was a full-length film here asking to be made." Though he had only scant knowledge of Bowie's music, apart from Space Oddity, he was impressed by the star's onstage charisma and the range of his songs and quickly prepared to shoot the entire second gig, without knowing that it would include a dramatic final coup. Jeff Beck participated on three songs (two of them forming a medley) midway through the concert but was edited out from the final cut at his own wish. The expanded version of "The Width of a Circle" was shortened by a few minutes for the soundtrack on vinyl and CD.
The film was shown a few times at festivals in late 1973 and provoked strong interest and favourable reactions, but then disappeared from view until 1983, when it was released on home video accompanied by a soundtrack double album. Evidently it became a casualty first of Bowie's rapid image changes which left Ziggy and glam rock behind and then of the rupture between Bowie and MainMan in early 1975; after that point Bowie was reluctant to release or promote any new recordings dating from before Young Americans as he would have to give half the income from any such recordings to MainMan up to the end of 1982.
Only in recent years has the film become available for regular cinema presentations; for many years it was a home video exclusive.
Bowie had taken the stage persona of "Ziggy Stardust", a science fiction based, theatrical, enigmatic, androgynous character and produced two albums during this period. The evening of July 3 was the last show in the English concert tour promoting Bowie's 1973 album Aladdin Sane and the 60th gig in a tour of Britain that started on May 12, though an American tour was already being booked for the autumn. Very few in Bowie's entourage knew of his decision to drop the Ziggy persona and cancel performing for a while; in the band only Mick Ronson had been told a few days before the final night.
At the end of the evening, aptly just before the song "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide", Bowie announced that, Not only is this the last show of the tour, but it's the last show that we'll ever do. The phrasing was deliberately ambiguous, but most of the audience and many London newspapers and magazines took it to mean that Bowie was retiring from music. In fact, he had killed off his Ziggy persona but not his music career.
Track listing
30th Anniversary DVD
1. Opening Credits/Intro - Incorporating Beethoven's Ninth Symphony arranged and performed by Wendy Carlos
2. "Hang On to Yourself" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
3. "Ziggy Stardust" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
4. "Watch That Man" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
5. "Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud" (Bowie) from the album Space Oddity
6. "All the Young Dudes" (Bowie) originally penned for Mott the Hoople
7. "Oh! You Pretty Things" (Bowie) from the album Hunky Dory
8. "Moonage Daydream" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
9. "Changes" (Bowie) from the album Hunky Dory
10. "Space Oddity" (Bowie) from the album Space Oddity
11. "My Death" (Jacques Brel, Mort Shuman) - originally written by Brel as "La Mort" and translated into English by Shuman and Eric Blau. From the Brel album La Valse à Mille Temps
12. "Cracked Actor" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
13. "Time" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
14. "The Width of a Circle" (Bowie) from the album The Man Who Sold the World
15. Band introduction - spoken word
16. "Let's Spend the Night Together" (Mick Jagger, /Keith Richards) from the Bowie album Aladdin Sane' originally performed by The Rolling Stones
17. "Suffragette City" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
18. "White Light/White Heat" (Lou Reed) from the album White Light/White Heat by the Velvet Underground
19. Farewell Speech - spoken word
20. "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
21. End Credits - incorporating Pomp and Circumstance by Edward Elgar
Cast
* David Bowie – Himself / "Ziggy Stardust"
* Mick Ronson – Himself
* Trevor Bolder – Himself
* Mick 'Woody' Woodmansey – Himself
* Angela Bowie – Herself
* Ringo Starr - Himself
Sound recording (original film, soundtrack album and DVD) mixed by Tony Visconti.
Wikipedia
Pennebaker had been asked to come to London and film just a few songs but when he saw the first of the two London shows he realized that "there was a full-length film here asking to be made." Though he had only scant knowledge of Bowie's music, apart from Space Oddity, he was impressed by the star's onstage charisma and the range of his songs and quickly prepared to shoot the entire second gig, without knowing that it would include a dramatic final coup. Jeff Beck participated on three songs (two of them forming a medley) midway through the concert but was edited out from the final cut at his own wish. The expanded version of "The Width of a Circle" was shortened by a few minutes for the soundtrack on vinyl and CD.
The film was shown a few times at festivals in late 1973 and provoked strong interest and favourable reactions, but then disappeared from view until 1983, when it was released on home video accompanied by a soundtrack double album. Evidently it became a casualty first of Bowie's rapid image changes which left Ziggy and glam rock behind and then of the rupture between Bowie and MainMan in early 1975; after that point Bowie was reluctant to release or promote any new recordings dating from before Young Americans as he would have to give half the income from any such recordings to MainMan up to the end of 1982.
Only in recent years has the film become available for regular cinema presentations; for many years it was a home video exclusive.
Bowie had taken the stage persona of "Ziggy Stardust", a science fiction based, theatrical, enigmatic, androgynous character and produced two albums during this period. The evening of July 3 was the last show in the English concert tour promoting Bowie's 1973 album Aladdin Sane and the 60th gig in a tour of Britain that started on May 12, though an American tour was already being booked for the autumn. Very few in Bowie's entourage knew of his decision to drop the Ziggy persona and cancel performing for a while; in the band only Mick Ronson had been told a few days before the final night.
At the end of the evening, aptly just before the song "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide", Bowie announced that, Not only is this the last show of the tour, but it's the last show that we'll ever do. The phrasing was deliberately ambiguous, but most of the audience and many London newspapers and magazines took it to mean that Bowie was retiring from music. In fact, he had killed off his Ziggy persona but not his music career.
Track listing
30th Anniversary DVD
1. Opening Credits/Intro - Incorporating Beethoven's Ninth Symphony arranged and performed by Wendy Carlos
2. "Hang On to Yourself" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
3. "Ziggy Stardust" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
4. "Watch That Man" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
5. "Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud" (Bowie) from the album Space Oddity
6. "All the Young Dudes" (Bowie) originally penned for Mott the Hoople
7. "Oh! You Pretty Things" (Bowie) from the album Hunky Dory
8. "Moonage Daydream" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
9. "Changes" (Bowie) from the album Hunky Dory
10. "Space Oddity" (Bowie) from the album Space Oddity
11. "My Death" (Jacques Brel, Mort Shuman) - originally written by Brel as "La Mort" and translated into English by Shuman and Eric Blau. From the Brel album La Valse à Mille Temps
12. "Cracked Actor" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
13. "Time" (Bowie) from the album Aladdin Sane
14. "The Width of a Circle" (Bowie) from the album The Man Who Sold the World
15. Band introduction - spoken word
16. "Let's Spend the Night Together" (Mick Jagger, /Keith Richards) from the Bowie album Aladdin Sane' originally performed by The Rolling Stones
17. "Suffragette City" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
18. "White Light/White Heat" (Lou Reed) from the album White Light/White Heat by the Velvet Underground
19. Farewell Speech - spoken word
20. "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" (Bowie) from the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
21. End Credits - incorporating Pomp and Circumstance by Edward Elgar
Cast
* David Bowie – Himself / "Ziggy Stardust"
* Mick Ronson – Himself
* Trevor Bolder – Himself
* Mick 'Woody' Woodmansey – Himself
* Angela Bowie – Herself
* Ringo Starr - Himself
Sound recording (original film, soundtrack album and DVD) mixed by Tony Visconti.
Wikipedia
Friday, August 05, 2011
That'll Be the Day
That'll Be the Day is a 1973 British film starring David Essex and Ringo Starr, written by Ray Connolly and directed by Claude Whatham. It is set in the late '50s/early '60s and was partially filmed on the Isle of Wight.
Plot summary
Abandoned by his father as a child, suburban school dropout Jim MacLaine (David Essex) leaves home and drifts through a succession of dead-end jobs until he finds an outlet for his frustration in rock 'n' roll. Tossing away the chance of a college education much to the consternation of his mother, alienated MacLaine becomes a lowly deckchair attendant before streetwise friend Mike (Ringo Starr) gets him a job firstly as a barman and then with the fun fair. The initially shy MacLaine quickly becomes a heartless fairground romeo leaving a trail of broken hearts in his wake. Eventually the prodigal son returns home to run the family store and marry his girlfriend, but despite the birth of a son, restless Jim feels the lure of rock’n’roll again.
Characters
The film was praised at the time for its gritty realism. Many of the characters were played by musicians who had lived through the era portrayed in the film including Ringo Starr, The Who's Keith Moon, John Hawken of The Nashville Teens and Billy Fury.
The film was produced by David Puttnam and is loosely based on the Harry Nilsson song "1941." A sequel, Stardust, was released in 1974.
Cast
* David Essex . . . Jim Maclaine
* Rosemary Leach . . . Mary Maclaine
* James Booth . . . Mr. Maclaine
* Ringo Starr . . . Mike
* Robert Lindsay . . . Terry Sutcliffe
* Rosalind Ayres . . . Jeanette Sutcliffe
* Billy Fury . . . Stormy Tempest
* Tony Rayment . . . Jive Dancer
* Keith Moon . . . J.D. Clover
* Deborah Watling . . . Sandra
* Karl Howman . . . Johnny Swinburne
* Beth Morris . . . Jean
* Sacha Puttnam . . . young Jim Maclaine
Soundtrack
Both That'll Be the Day & the sequel Stardust
Neil Sedaka - Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen
Maxine Brown - Oh No Not My Baby
Bobby Vee - Take Good Care Of My Baby
Del Shannon - Hats Off To Larry
The Zombies - She's Not There
Bobby Darin - Dream Lover
Billy J Kramer & Dakotas - Do You want To Know A Secret
Dave Edmunds & The Electricians - Da Do Ron Ron
The Beach Boys - I Get Around
The Drifters - Up On The Roof
Diana Ross & Supremes - Baby Love
The Chiffons - One Fine Day
Little Eva - The Locomotion
Tommy Roe - Dizzy
The Fortunes - You've Got Your Troubles
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Dancing In The Street
Carole King - It Might As Well Rain Until September
Little Stevie Wonder - Uptight
Jan & Dean - Surf City
Cat Stevens - Matthew & Son
Barbara Lewis - Baby I'm Yours
Barbara Lewis - Make Me Your baby
Jimmy Ruffin - What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
The Shirelles - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
The Box Tops - The Letter
Mamas & The Papa's - Monday Monday
Lovin' Spoonful - Summer In The City
Award Nominations
BAFTA Best Supporting Actress: Rosemary Leach.
BAFTA Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles: David Essex.
Wikipedia
Plot summary
Abandoned by his father as a child, suburban school dropout Jim MacLaine (David Essex) leaves home and drifts through a succession of dead-end jobs until he finds an outlet for his frustration in rock 'n' roll. Tossing away the chance of a college education much to the consternation of his mother, alienated MacLaine becomes a lowly deckchair attendant before streetwise friend Mike (Ringo Starr) gets him a job firstly as a barman and then with the fun fair. The initially shy MacLaine quickly becomes a heartless fairground romeo leaving a trail of broken hearts in his wake. Eventually the prodigal son returns home to run the family store and marry his girlfriend, but despite the birth of a son, restless Jim feels the lure of rock’n’roll again.
Characters
The film was praised at the time for its gritty realism. Many of the characters were played by musicians who had lived through the era portrayed in the film including Ringo Starr, The Who's Keith Moon, John Hawken of The Nashville Teens and Billy Fury.
The film was produced by David Puttnam and is loosely based on the Harry Nilsson song "1941." A sequel, Stardust, was released in 1974.
Cast
* David Essex . . . Jim Maclaine
* Rosemary Leach . . . Mary Maclaine
* James Booth . . . Mr. Maclaine
* Ringo Starr . . . Mike
* Robert Lindsay . . . Terry Sutcliffe
* Rosalind Ayres . . . Jeanette Sutcliffe
* Billy Fury . . . Stormy Tempest
* Tony Rayment . . . Jive Dancer
* Keith Moon . . . J.D. Clover
* Deborah Watling . . . Sandra
* Karl Howman . . . Johnny Swinburne
* Beth Morris . . . Jean
* Sacha Puttnam . . . young Jim Maclaine
Soundtrack
Both That'll Be the Day & the sequel Stardust
Neil Sedaka - Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen
Maxine Brown - Oh No Not My Baby
Bobby Vee - Take Good Care Of My Baby
Del Shannon - Hats Off To Larry
The Zombies - She's Not There
Bobby Darin - Dream Lover
Billy J Kramer & Dakotas - Do You want To Know A Secret
Dave Edmunds & The Electricians - Da Do Ron Ron
The Beach Boys - I Get Around
The Drifters - Up On The Roof
Diana Ross & Supremes - Baby Love
The Chiffons - One Fine Day
Little Eva - The Locomotion
Tommy Roe - Dizzy
The Fortunes - You've Got Your Troubles
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Dancing In The Street
Carole King - It Might As Well Rain Until September
Little Stevie Wonder - Uptight
Jan & Dean - Surf City
Cat Stevens - Matthew & Son
Barbara Lewis - Baby I'm Yours
Barbara Lewis - Make Me Your baby
Jimmy Ruffin - What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
The Shirelles - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
The Box Tops - The Letter
Mamas & The Papa's - Monday Monday
Lovin' Spoonful - Summer In The City
Award Nominations
BAFTA Best Supporting Actress: Rosemary Leach.
BAFTA Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles: David Essex.
Wikipedia
Friday, July 29, 2011
Born to Boogie
Born to Boogie is a 1972 concert film based around a concert at Wembley Empire Pool starring Marc Bolan and T. Rex. Directed by Ringo Starr, the movie was released on The Beatles' Apple Films label. Born to Boogie consists of concert footage; recording studio scenes with guest stars Ringo Starr and Elton John, filmed at the Apple Studios in Savile Row, London; and various vignettes reminiscent of The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour, shot at Denham and Tittenhurst Park, Sunninghill. The Tea Party sequence was filmed at John Lennon's estate in the same spots as Lennon's "Imagine" video was filmed. The UK premiere was held at Oscar’s Cinema in Brewer Street, Soho on 14 December 1972, attended by T. Rex, Ringo Starr and Elton John. The film was re-released on DVD in 2005 with many extras including features presented by Bolan's son, Rolan Bolan. There is no appearance on the extra material from director Ringo Starr. The cover & DVD animations were designed & produced by Bose Collins.
Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Friday, July 22, 2011
The Concert for Bangladesh
The Concert For Bangladesh was the event title for two benefit concerts organized by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar, held at noon and at 7:00 p.m. on August 1, 1971, playing to a total of 40,000 people at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Organized for the relief of refugees from East Pakistan (now independent Bangladesh) after the 1970 Bhola cyclone and during the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities and Bangladesh Liberation War, the event was the first benefit concert of this magnitude in world history. It featured an all-star supergroup of performers that included Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Badfinger, and Ringo Starr.
An album was released later in 1971 and a concert film was released in 1972, with later releases for home video. In 2005, the film was re-issued on DVD accompanied by a new documentary.
The concert raised US$243,418.51 for Bangladesh relief, which was administered by UNICEF. Sales of the album and DVD continue to benefit the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF.
Background
As East Pakistan struggled to become the separate state of Bangladesh during the Bangladesh Liberation War, the tremendous political and military turmoil and the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities led to a massive refugee problem in India. This problem was compounded by the 1970 Bhola cyclone, bringing torrential rains causing devastating floods and threatening a humanitarian disaster.
Bengali musician Ravi Shankar consulted his friend George Harrison regarding a means of providing help to the situation. Harrison recorded the single "Bangla Desh" to raise awareness and pushed Apple Records to release Shankar's single "Joi Bangla" in a dual-pronged effort to raise funds.
Shankar also asked Harrison's advice regarding a small fund-raising concert in the United States. Harrison took the idea and started calling his friends, persuading them to join him in a large concert at Madison Square Garden. The event was organised within five weeks.
Harrison first asked his fellow Beatles to appear. John Lennon agreed to take part in the concert, however Harrison stipulated that Lennon's wife Yoko Ono not perform with him. Lennon agreed, but left New York two days before the event following an argument with Ono regarding his and Harrison's agreement that she not participate.
Paul McCartney declined because of the bad feelings caused by The Beatles' legal problems on their break-up. "George came up and asked if I wanted to play Bangla Desh and I thought, blimey, what's the point? We're just broken up and we're joining up again? It just seemed a bit crazy," McCartney told Rolling Stone years later. Ringo Starr, however, appeared.
Concert programme
Ravi Shankar and the sarodist Ali Akbar Khan opened the concert with recital of Indian music consisting of the dhun, "Bangla Dhun".
Except for back-up roles in support of both the Delaney & Bonnie Blues Band and John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, it was the first live appearance for George Harrison since the breakup of The Beatles. Eric Clapton made his first public appearance since the end of the five-month Derek and the Dominos tour the previous December. Clapton was still in the grip of a heroin addiction, and had been unable to attend any rehearsals until the final soundcheck. This was the first live performance of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and may have been the first time the general public was made aware that it was Clapton who played the solo on The Beatles' recording.
Musical help was also on hand from Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Klaus Voormann, Jim Keltner, Badfinger, a large horn section put together by Jim Horn and other musicians, including Carl Radle, Jesse Ed Davis, Don Preston and a host of backing singers organized by Don Nix.
Bob Dylan made his first stage appearance since the Isle of Wight Festival in August 1969. Apart from sitting in for a few numbers with The Band on New Year 1972 and an unannounced appearance backing John Prine on harmonica at a Greenwich Village club, he did not play live again until January 1974.
The songs played and their sequence differ slightly between the afternoon and evening show.
Afternoon show
* "Wah-Wah"
* "Something"
* "Awaiting On You All"
* "That's The Way God Planned It"
* "It Don't Come Easy"
* "Beware Of Darkness"
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"
* "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes The Sun"
* "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall"
* "Blowin' In The Wind"
* "It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Love Minus Zero/No Limit"
* "Just Like A Woman"
* "Hear Me Lord"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "Bangla Desh"
Evening show
* "Wah-Wah"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "That's The Way God Planned It"
* "It Don't Come Easy"
* "Beware Of Darkness"
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"
* "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes The Sun"
* "Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall"
* "It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Blowin' In The Wind"
* "Mr. Tambourine Man"
* "Just Like A Woman"
* "Something"
* "Bangla Desh"
The film
Both the afternoon and evening shows were filmed and recorded for an album, with Phil Spector overseeing the sound recording. The film, released in 1972, combined images from both shows with George Harrison's preference of the performances of the songs.
Harrison later complained that half the camera operators appeared to have been indulging in illegal substances, which left the focus of some shots rather soft.
The opening of the film features footage from a press conference to announce the concert with Harrison and Shankar. Harrison is asked by a reporter: "With all the enormous problems in the world, how did you happen to choose this one to do something about?"
"Because I was asked by a friend if I would help, you know, that's all," was Harrison's reply.
The scene then shifts to outside Madison Square Garden, and news coverage by WABC-TV reporter Geraldo Rivera, who interviews fans who have camped out for tickets to the shows.
The concert begins with a performance by Ravi Shankar and Ali Akbar Khan. Harrison introduces the set and both he and Shankar attempt to convey the intricacies of Indian classical music to the audience. Shankar additionally asked the audience not to smoke during the performance. Shankar and Khan then proceed to tune their instruments and then stop after about 90 seconds. The audience, apparently believing they had heard an entire piece, respond with enthusiastic applause, to which Shankar replies: "Thank you, if you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you will enjoy the playing more." They then launch into a 17-minute rāga.
After an interlude of footage from backstage, showing Spector, Harrison and other performers making their way to the stage, Harrison starts off the rock portion with a string of songs from his hit album, All Things Must Pass.
He is backed by a large band, including two drummers, Ringo Starr and Jim Keltner matching strokes, pianist Leon Russell, organist Billy Preston, two lead guitarists, Eric Clapton and Jesse Ed Davis, Badfinger on rhythm guitars, a horn section and a small choir of backing vocalists, many of whom are also playing tambourines. He then turns the concert over to his friends.
Towards the end of Billy Preston's song, "That's the Way God Planned It", Preston gets up from his bench and dances across the stage and back again. This footage is taken during the evening performance. Starr sings his hit song "It Don't Come Easy" and appears flustered as he forgets some of the words. Russell offers a rock and roll medley and Harrison performs some of the hits he wrote with The Beatles. Bob Dylan appears for a semi-acoustic set of his songs, and the film is capped off with two more songs, closing with Harrison's song, "Bangla Desh".
Performers
* Ravi Shankar, sitar and Ali Akbar Khan, sarod
o Backed by Alla Rakha, tabla, and Kamala Chakravarty, Tanpura
* George Harrison – Vocals, guitars
* Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, tambourine
* Leon Russell – Vocals, piano, bass guitar
* Billy Preston – Vocals, organ
* Eric Clapton – Lead guitar
* Bob Dylan – Vocals, guitar, harmonica
* Klaus Voorman - Bass guitar
* Jim Keltner – Drums
* Badfinger – Rhythm guitars, backing vocals
o Pete Ham, Tom Evans, Joey Molland and Mike Gibbins (percussion)
* Jesse Ed Davis – Lead guitar
* Don Preston – Lead guitar, vocals
* Carl Radle – Bass guitar
* The Hollywood Horns: Jim Horn, Allan Beutler, Chuck Findley, Jackie Kelso, Lou McCreary, Ollie Mitchell
* Backing vocalists: Don Nix, Jo Green, Jeanie Greene, Marlin Greene, Dolores Hall, Claudia Linnear
Performances in the film
All songs composed and performed by George Harrison, unless otherwise noted.
Ravi Shankar
* "Bangla Dhun" – traditional raga, performed by Ravi Shankar, sitar; Ali Akbar Khan, sarod; Alla Rakha, tabla; Kamala Chakravarty, tamboura
George Harrison and band
* "Wah-Wah"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "Awaiting On You All"
* "That's The Way God Planned It" – Composed and performed by Billy Preston
* "It Don't Come Easy" – Composed and performed by Ringo Starr
* "Beware of Darkness" – Featuring Leon Russell on guest vocals
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" – Featuring Eric Clapton on lead guitar
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"/"Young Blood" – Composed by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards/Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller and Doc Pomus; performed by Leon Russell, with additional vocals by George Harrison and Don Preston on "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes the Sun" – Featuring Pete Ham
Bob Dylan
All songs written and performed by Bob Dylan, with George Harrison on Fender Stratocaster, Leon Russell on Klaus Voormann's custom-painted Fender Precision Bass and Ringo Starr on tambourine.
* "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall"
* "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Blowin' in the Wind"
* "Just Like A Woman"
Encore
Songs composed and performed by George Harrison and band.
* "Something"
* "Bangla Desh"
Songs not in film
* "Mr. Tambourine Man" – written and performed by Bob Dylan; from the concert and included only on the album, The Concert for Bangla Desh.
* "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" – written and performed by Bob Dylan; recorded in the afternoon show and included as an extra in the 2005 DVD.
* "If Not for You" – written and performed by Bob Dylan with George Harrison on harmony vocals and steel-string acoustic guitar with Klaus Voormann on electric bass; for a soundcheck and included as an extra on the 2005 DVD.
* "Come on in My Kitchen" – composed by Robert Johnson and performed by Leon Russell, vocals and piano; George Harrison on backing vocals and lead guitar; Billy Preston on organ, Ringo Starr and Jim Keltner on drums and Eric Clapton, rhythm guitar; performed during a sound check and included as an extra in the 2005 DVD.
2005 DVD issue
A two-disc special edition DVD of The Concert for Bangladesh was issued in 2005, with the concert on disc one and a 2005 documentary, The Concert for Bangladesh Revisited with George Harrison and Friends, on the second disc.
Performers interviewed for the documentary include Ravi Shankar, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Jim Keltner, Jim Horn, Leon Russell and Klaus Voormann, who offer their recollections of the concert. George Harrison talks about organizing the concert in voiceovers only. Other interviews are with Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner and Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof, who talk of the historic importance of the event, as well as Apple Corps executive Neil Aspinall.
The documentary reveals how quickly the concert came together, with Harrison working the phone during June and July 1971 to ask his friends to join the show. Madison Square Garden was booked for August 1 because it was the only open date available. Musicians began gathering in New York about a week beforehand for rehearsals.
Notably absent from the preparations was Clapton, who was in the grips of heroin addiction. Harrison says in the documentary that Clapton was booked on every airline flight from London to New York City for a week before the show. With Clapton still absent (according to his recently released autobiography, due to a cold turkey provoked by bad quality heroin that Harrison provided him as a condition for playing the concert), lead guitarists started "hanging around", hoping to be asked to join. Harrison tapped Jesse Ed Davis, who had played in Taj Mahal's band, and bassist Klaus Voormann volunteered to work with Davis in rehearsals. Another musician, Don Preston from Leon Russell's band, joined on lead guitar as well. Organizers then Telexed Clapton, telling him he did not have to come, but Clapton insisted he would play and finally showed up a day before the concert. He performed without benefit of rehearsal, and "he was brilliant," Harrison said.
Clapton, for his part, recalls the time as a period of "retirement" and that "I really made it hard for myself" in the concert, choosing to play a hollow-body Gibson Byrdland guitar for the bulk of the songs, including his solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", when a solid-body electric guitar (such as a Fender Stratocaster or Gibson Les Paul) would have been more appropriate.
There are also short features on the making of the film, the release of the album and the artwork and concert photography. Along with the extensive collection of still photos for the album package, stills photographer Barry Feinstein reveals that the photo used on the cover of Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II was taken by him during the concert.
Album release
An album of the concerts was released as a triple-LP box set (later a 2-CD set), produced by Harrison and Phil Spector, and recorded by Gary Kellgren. This record was Dylan's first official live release.
While the LP was issued on Apple Records (distributed by Capitol Records in the US and EMI worldwide), tape distribution (cassette and 8-track cartridge) was given to Columbia Records, Bob Dylan's label, in exchange for being allowed to include his set as part of the package. When the album was reissued on CD in 1992, Columbia (now owned by Sony Music) in turn reissued the cassette version.
The two-CD set was re-released in 2001, and Harrison had been working on a remastered and expanded deluxe edition prior to his death. It was released in October 2005 by Apple and Rhino Entertainment along with the film on a special edition two-DVD set.
Funds and controversy
The concert raised US$243,418.50, which was given to UNICEF to administer. Sales of the DVDs and CDs of the concert continue to benefit the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF.
However, there were complaints about the high price of the album and allegations that there were delays in money from the album sales being sent to help the Bangladesh refugees. Allen Klein, then an executive at Apple Corps insisted the company made no money from the album or film and was only recovering its advertising and production costs. However New York magazine reported in 1972 that some of the proceeds remained unaccounted for. Klein denied it and sued the magazine for $150 million in damages.
According to a June 2, 1985 article in the Los Angeles Times, by 1985 nearly $12 million had been sent to Bangladesh for relief. However, the money was tied up in an Internal Revenue Service escrow account for 11 years because the concert organisers had not applied for tax-exempt status.
In a 1980 interview John Lennon (who did not participate in the concert) opined that benefits are "always rip-offs" and regarding the question where the money from the Bangladesh concert went, commented: "I can't even talk about it, because it's still a problem. You'll have to check with Mother [Yoko], because she knows the ins and outs of it, I don't. But it's all a rip-off."
In popular culture
The Concert for Bangladesh was satirized in two episodes of The Simpsons, "Like Father, Like Clown", and "I'm with Cupid". In the former, Krusty plays it while a visitor at the Simpsons household, and in the latter, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has in his record collection, the Concert Against Bangladesh, with a picture of a mushroom cloud on the cover, reflecting the popular perception of Hindu-Muslim rivalry in the region. In reality, India supported Bangladesh during its struggle for independence.
Crowd noises from this film were put into Aerosmith's cover of "Train Kept A-Rollin'" by producer Jack Douglas.
Wikipedia
An album was released later in 1971 and a concert film was released in 1972, with later releases for home video. In 2005, the film was re-issued on DVD accompanied by a new documentary.
The concert raised US$243,418.51 for Bangladesh relief, which was administered by UNICEF. Sales of the album and DVD continue to benefit the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF.
Background
As East Pakistan struggled to become the separate state of Bangladesh during the Bangladesh Liberation War, the tremendous political and military turmoil and the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities led to a massive refugee problem in India. This problem was compounded by the 1970 Bhola cyclone, bringing torrential rains causing devastating floods and threatening a humanitarian disaster.
Bengali musician Ravi Shankar consulted his friend George Harrison regarding a means of providing help to the situation. Harrison recorded the single "Bangla Desh" to raise awareness and pushed Apple Records to release Shankar's single "Joi Bangla" in a dual-pronged effort to raise funds.
Shankar also asked Harrison's advice regarding a small fund-raising concert in the United States. Harrison took the idea and started calling his friends, persuading them to join him in a large concert at Madison Square Garden. The event was organised within five weeks.
Harrison first asked his fellow Beatles to appear. John Lennon agreed to take part in the concert, however Harrison stipulated that Lennon's wife Yoko Ono not perform with him. Lennon agreed, but left New York two days before the event following an argument with Ono regarding his and Harrison's agreement that she not participate.
Paul McCartney declined because of the bad feelings caused by The Beatles' legal problems on their break-up. "George came up and asked if I wanted to play Bangla Desh and I thought, blimey, what's the point? We're just broken up and we're joining up again? It just seemed a bit crazy," McCartney told Rolling Stone years later. Ringo Starr, however, appeared.
Concert programme
Ravi Shankar and the sarodist Ali Akbar Khan opened the concert with recital of Indian music consisting of the dhun, "Bangla Dhun".
Except for back-up roles in support of both the Delaney & Bonnie Blues Band and John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, it was the first live appearance for George Harrison since the breakup of The Beatles. Eric Clapton made his first public appearance since the end of the five-month Derek and the Dominos tour the previous December. Clapton was still in the grip of a heroin addiction, and had been unable to attend any rehearsals until the final soundcheck. This was the first live performance of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and may have been the first time the general public was made aware that it was Clapton who played the solo on The Beatles' recording.
Musical help was also on hand from Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Klaus Voormann, Jim Keltner, Badfinger, a large horn section put together by Jim Horn and other musicians, including Carl Radle, Jesse Ed Davis, Don Preston and a host of backing singers organized by Don Nix.
Bob Dylan made his first stage appearance since the Isle of Wight Festival in August 1969. Apart from sitting in for a few numbers with The Band on New Year 1972 and an unannounced appearance backing John Prine on harmonica at a Greenwich Village club, he did not play live again until January 1974.
The songs played and their sequence differ slightly between the afternoon and evening show.
Afternoon show
* "Wah-Wah"
* "Something"
* "Awaiting On You All"
* "That's The Way God Planned It"
* "It Don't Come Easy"
* "Beware Of Darkness"
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"
* "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes The Sun"
* "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall"
* "Blowin' In The Wind"
* "It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Love Minus Zero/No Limit"
* "Just Like A Woman"
* "Hear Me Lord"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "Bangla Desh"
Evening show
* "Wah-Wah"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "That's The Way God Planned It"
* "It Don't Come Easy"
* "Beware Of Darkness"
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"
* "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes The Sun"
* "Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall"
* "It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Blowin' In The Wind"
* "Mr. Tambourine Man"
* "Just Like A Woman"
* "Something"
* "Bangla Desh"
The film
Both the afternoon and evening shows were filmed and recorded for an album, with Phil Spector overseeing the sound recording. The film, released in 1972, combined images from both shows with George Harrison's preference of the performances of the songs.
Harrison later complained that half the camera operators appeared to have been indulging in illegal substances, which left the focus of some shots rather soft.
The opening of the film features footage from a press conference to announce the concert with Harrison and Shankar. Harrison is asked by a reporter: "With all the enormous problems in the world, how did you happen to choose this one to do something about?"
"Because I was asked by a friend if I would help, you know, that's all," was Harrison's reply.
The scene then shifts to outside Madison Square Garden, and news coverage by WABC-TV reporter Geraldo Rivera, who interviews fans who have camped out for tickets to the shows.
The concert begins with a performance by Ravi Shankar and Ali Akbar Khan. Harrison introduces the set and both he and Shankar attempt to convey the intricacies of Indian classical music to the audience. Shankar additionally asked the audience not to smoke during the performance. Shankar and Khan then proceed to tune their instruments and then stop after about 90 seconds. The audience, apparently believing they had heard an entire piece, respond with enthusiastic applause, to which Shankar replies: "Thank you, if you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you will enjoy the playing more." They then launch into a 17-minute rāga.
After an interlude of footage from backstage, showing Spector, Harrison and other performers making their way to the stage, Harrison starts off the rock portion with a string of songs from his hit album, All Things Must Pass.
He is backed by a large band, including two drummers, Ringo Starr and Jim Keltner matching strokes, pianist Leon Russell, organist Billy Preston, two lead guitarists, Eric Clapton and Jesse Ed Davis, Badfinger on rhythm guitars, a horn section and a small choir of backing vocalists, many of whom are also playing tambourines. He then turns the concert over to his friends.
Towards the end of Billy Preston's song, "That's the Way God Planned It", Preston gets up from his bench and dances across the stage and back again. This footage is taken during the evening performance. Starr sings his hit song "It Don't Come Easy" and appears flustered as he forgets some of the words. Russell offers a rock and roll medley and Harrison performs some of the hits he wrote with The Beatles. Bob Dylan appears for a semi-acoustic set of his songs, and the film is capped off with two more songs, closing with Harrison's song, "Bangla Desh".
Performers
* Ravi Shankar, sitar and Ali Akbar Khan, sarod
o Backed by Alla Rakha, tabla, and Kamala Chakravarty, Tanpura
* George Harrison – Vocals, guitars
* Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, tambourine
* Leon Russell – Vocals, piano, bass guitar
* Billy Preston – Vocals, organ
* Eric Clapton – Lead guitar
* Bob Dylan – Vocals, guitar, harmonica
* Klaus Voorman - Bass guitar
* Jim Keltner – Drums
* Badfinger – Rhythm guitars, backing vocals
o Pete Ham, Tom Evans, Joey Molland and Mike Gibbins (percussion)
* Jesse Ed Davis – Lead guitar
* Don Preston – Lead guitar, vocals
* Carl Radle – Bass guitar
* The Hollywood Horns: Jim Horn, Allan Beutler, Chuck Findley, Jackie Kelso, Lou McCreary, Ollie Mitchell
* Backing vocalists: Don Nix, Jo Green, Jeanie Greene, Marlin Greene, Dolores Hall, Claudia Linnear
Performances in the film
All songs composed and performed by George Harrison, unless otherwise noted.
Ravi Shankar
* "Bangla Dhun" – traditional raga, performed by Ravi Shankar, sitar; Ali Akbar Khan, sarod; Alla Rakha, tabla; Kamala Chakravarty, tamboura
George Harrison and band
* "Wah-Wah"
* "My Sweet Lord"
* "Awaiting On You All"
* "That's The Way God Planned It" – Composed and performed by Billy Preston
* "It Don't Come Easy" – Composed and performed by Ringo Starr
* "Beware of Darkness" – Featuring Leon Russell on guest vocals
* "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" – Featuring Eric Clapton on lead guitar
* "Jumpin' Jack Flash"/"Young Blood" – Composed by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards/Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller and Doc Pomus; performed by Leon Russell, with additional vocals by George Harrison and Don Preston on "Youngblood"
* "Here Comes the Sun" – Featuring Pete Ham
Bob Dylan
All songs written and performed by Bob Dylan, with George Harrison on Fender Stratocaster, Leon Russell on Klaus Voormann's custom-painted Fender Precision Bass and Ringo Starr on tambourine.
* "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall"
* "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"
* "Blowin' in the Wind"
* "Just Like A Woman"
Encore
Songs composed and performed by George Harrison and band.
* "Something"
* "Bangla Desh"
Songs not in film
* "Mr. Tambourine Man" – written and performed by Bob Dylan; from the concert and included only on the album, The Concert for Bangla Desh.
* "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" – written and performed by Bob Dylan; recorded in the afternoon show and included as an extra in the 2005 DVD.
* "If Not for You" – written and performed by Bob Dylan with George Harrison on harmony vocals and steel-string acoustic guitar with Klaus Voormann on electric bass; for a soundcheck and included as an extra on the 2005 DVD.
* "Come on in My Kitchen" – composed by Robert Johnson and performed by Leon Russell, vocals and piano; George Harrison on backing vocals and lead guitar; Billy Preston on organ, Ringo Starr and Jim Keltner on drums and Eric Clapton, rhythm guitar; performed during a sound check and included as an extra in the 2005 DVD.
2005 DVD issue
A two-disc special edition DVD of The Concert for Bangladesh was issued in 2005, with the concert on disc one and a 2005 documentary, The Concert for Bangladesh Revisited with George Harrison and Friends, on the second disc.
Performers interviewed for the documentary include Ravi Shankar, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Jim Keltner, Jim Horn, Leon Russell and Klaus Voormann, who offer their recollections of the concert. George Harrison talks about organizing the concert in voiceovers only. Other interviews are with Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner and Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof, who talk of the historic importance of the event, as well as Apple Corps executive Neil Aspinall.
The documentary reveals how quickly the concert came together, with Harrison working the phone during June and July 1971 to ask his friends to join the show. Madison Square Garden was booked for August 1 because it was the only open date available. Musicians began gathering in New York about a week beforehand for rehearsals.
Notably absent from the preparations was Clapton, who was in the grips of heroin addiction. Harrison says in the documentary that Clapton was booked on every airline flight from London to New York City for a week before the show. With Clapton still absent (according to his recently released autobiography, due to a cold turkey provoked by bad quality heroin that Harrison provided him as a condition for playing the concert), lead guitarists started "hanging around", hoping to be asked to join. Harrison tapped Jesse Ed Davis, who had played in Taj Mahal's band, and bassist Klaus Voormann volunteered to work with Davis in rehearsals. Another musician, Don Preston from Leon Russell's band, joined on lead guitar as well. Organizers then Telexed Clapton, telling him he did not have to come, but Clapton insisted he would play and finally showed up a day before the concert. He performed without benefit of rehearsal, and "he was brilliant," Harrison said.
Clapton, for his part, recalls the time as a period of "retirement" and that "I really made it hard for myself" in the concert, choosing to play a hollow-body Gibson Byrdland guitar for the bulk of the songs, including his solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", when a solid-body electric guitar (such as a Fender Stratocaster or Gibson Les Paul) would have been more appropriate.
There are also short features on the making of the film, the release of the album and the artwork and concert photography. Along with the extensive collection of still photos for the album package, stills photographer Barry Feinstein reveals that the photo used on the cover of Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II was taken by him during the concert.
Album release
An album of the concerts was released as a triple-LP box set (later a 2-CD set), produced by Harrison and Phil Spector, and recorded by Gary Kellgren. This record was Dylan's first official live release.
While the LP was issued on Apple Records (distributed by Capitol Records in the US and EMI worldwide), tape distribution (cassette and 8-track cartridge) was given to Columbia Records, Bob Dylan's label, in exchange for being allowed to include his set as part of the package. When the album was reissued on CD in 1992, Columbia (now owned by Sony Music) in turn reissued the cassette version.
The two-CD set was re-released in 2001, and Harrison had been working on a remastered and expanded deluxe edition prior to his death. It was released in October 2005 by Apple and Rhino Entertainment along with the film on a special edition two-DVD set.
Funds and controversy
The concert raised US$243,418.50, which was given to UNICEF to administer. Sales of the DVDs and CDs of the concert continue to benefit the George Harrison Fund for UNICEF.
However, there were complaints about the high price of the album and allegations that there were delays in money from the album sales being sent to help the Bangladesh refugees. Allen Klein, then an executive at Apple Corps insisted the company made no money from the album or film and was only recovering its advertising and production costs. However New York magazine reported in 1972 that some of the proceeds remained unaccounted for. Klein denied it and sued the magazine for $150 million in damages.
According to a June 2, 1985 article in the Los Angeles Times, by 1985 nearly $12 million had been sent to Bangladesh for relief. However, the money was tied up in an Internal Revenue Service escrow account for 11 years because the concert organisers had not applied for tax-exempt status.
In a 1980 interview John Lennon (who did not participate in the concert) opined that benefits are "always rip-offs" and regarding the question where the money from the Bangladesh concert went, commented: "I can't even talk about it, because it's still a problem. You'll have to check with Mother [Yoko], because she knows the ins and outs of it, I don't. But it's all a rip-off."
In popular culture
The Concert for Bangladesh was satirized in two episodes of The Simpsons, "Like Father, Like Clown", and "I'm with Cupid". In the former, Krusty plays it while a visitor at the Simpsons household, and in the latter, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon has in his record collection, the Concert Against Bangladesh, with a picture of a mushroom cloud on the cover, reflecting the popular perception of Hindu-Muslim rivalry in the region. In reality, India supported Bangladesh during its struggle for independence.
Crowd noises from this film were put into Aerosmith's cover of "Train Kept A-Rollin'" by producer Jack Douglas.
Wikipedia
Friday, July 15, 2011
Did Somebody Drop His Mouse?
Unreleased 1972 documentary filming the making of Harry Nilsson's album Son of Schmilsson in London.
Cast
Harry Nilsson ... Himself / Narrator
Richard Perry ... Himself / Narrator
Ray Cooper ... Himself
Peter Frampton ... Himself
Nicky Hopkins ... Himself
Bobby Keys ... Himself
Henry Krein ... Himself (as Henry Krein Quartet)
Ringo Starr ... Himself
Stepney & Pinner Choir Club No.6 ... Themselves
John Uribe ... Himself
Klaus Voormann ... Himself
Cast
Harry Nilsson ... Himself / Narrator
Richard Perry ... Himself / Narrator
Ray Cooper ... Himself
Peter Frampton ... Himself
Nicky Hopkins ... Himself
Bobby Keys ... Himself
Henry Krein ... Himself (as Henry Krein Quartet)
Ringo Starr ... Himself
Stepney & Pinner Choir Club No.6 ... Themselves
John Uribe ... Himself
Klaus Voormann ... Himself
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