Liverpool International Beatle Week 2003 Programme

'62

We're very pleased to welcome '62, a five-piece band from Wyoming who pride themselves in performing some of the lesser-known Beatles tunes. '62 will be playing quite a few shows during the weekend where audiences can expect to hear songs such as Three Cool Cats, Cry For A Shadow, Anna and You've Really Got A Hold On Me, among others.

The band have only been together for a year, but in this short time they've played in front of an 18,000 strong crowd during halftime of a football game at Denver's Pepsi Center, and helped celebrate the launch of both the Hard Day's Night and Anthology DVD's at a major music store. Dave Pal is the group's 'John' and also the Morning Show Host and Program Director for the rock radio station 'King FM'. Andy Reinacher (Paul) ensures the band get a better diet than The Beatles had in '62… he's the manager of an Italian eatery while Mark Langer (Stu Sutcliffe) is a manager of a manufacturing corporation and Chris Chimick (Pete Best/ Ringo) works at a heat treatment plant. The guys all originally hail from New York, except for British born lead guitarist Scott Turner, who is a music instructor by day.

'62 are thrilled to be playing Liverpool for the first time, and will achieve one of their ultimate ambitions by playing on Mathew Street - where their heroes started out all those years ago. They are looking forward to meeting fellow Beatlefans and musicians from all over the world, so if you see them wandering around the city be sure to go and say hello!!

The Absurds

The Absurds. They sound nothing like the Beatles and look nothing like the Beatles. They don't try to be the Beatles and don't try not to be the Beatles. You will never witness a performance so unpolished and so crazy as The Absurds! They might not know all the words, or all the chords; in fact you never really know what they know.

This year the lads are taking their show to new levels, a three-part show in true Beatles Humour.

Show One: The audio adventure of The Beatles Mouth Organ. The Beatles were big fans of the Goons and this adventure really hits the spot.

Show Two: Comedy; And Now This. The lads relive some great British comedy.

Show Three: Music; Unplugged and Not Working. This is where they Absurd up some classic Beatle Tracks and some of their new songs too. Where The Absurds pay tribute to tributes paying tribute to the Beatles. Confused? Then you are in the right place.

If you are planning to see one great Beatle band go and see another band! But if it's that cheeky Beatle fun you're after, you can't get much closer than The Absurds.

Contrary to popular belief, The Absurds will be appearing in the American Bar…

Australian Beatals

Making their third consecutive appearance at Beatleweek, The Beatals (or The Aussie Beatals as they are known while they're here, to save confusion!) have firmly established themselves as one of the conventions major acts. Topping off another astounding Merseyside weekend with a show at the Rhyl Pavilion last year, the Beatals won over another group of Beatlefans in North Wales with their gusto and interminable attention to detail. Two songs 'Norwegian Wood' and 'Tomorrow Never Knows' stood out in their repertoire at their shows last year - not only because they are slightly off the usual Beatles tribute band track, but because The Beatals utilise the unusual talents of guitarist Gary Isaacs with a Sitar solo on the former, and Jaiya Rassip, a didgeridoo player who provided the exact ambience required for Lennon's 'Tibetan Book of the Dead' inspired song.

Hailing from Adelaide, South Australia, The Beatals have played countless shows in both the southern and northern hemisphere's, while the groups 'John Lennon', Max Fredericks considers their show to a full-house at the Sydney Opera House one of their career highlights… that, and playing for you all on Merseyside for a third consecutive year, of course!

Sadly they will be didgeridoo-less this year, but Max, Gary, Peter 'Paul' Martin and Monty 'Ringo' Ruggiero will no doubt have other treats in store at their shows. They will be performing songs from the Yellow Submarine movie at our Reel Years Concert on Saturday night, so you can expect to hear some lesser-heard gems there, and you can catch their own celebrated show on Convention day, at The Mathew Street Festival, the VIP party and in the Cavern on Tuesday.

Banned on the Run

Hands up if you saw Macca on tour since the last Beatleweek? We did! In fact, he even came and played in our front room… well just about anyway! As you'll have seen in the introduction, we were honoured to be asked by Paul McCartney's offices to close the Cavern Club for one Friday night, in order that Paul and his fabulous band and crew could celebrate the end of the European Tour in true style. European fans had waited ten years for this tour, and many conventioneers will have been among the hundreds of thousands who attended the shows. One such fan was Bob Bartey, who saw the UK leg of the tour kick off at Sheffield and conclude in Liverpool. A lifelong Macca fan, Bob has been coming to Liverpool with various bands since the early 80's, and always puts on neat, quality shows. He's not a Paulie impersonator, per se, but he does sound a lot like the man, and he has a real passion for the music he plays. No doubt Macca's recent shows will have inspired Bob to delve through his record collection again, and he and the semi-legendary Banned on the Run will have a few surprises ready to impress as usual!

As well as usual band mates Marcus Mowforth, Kev and Sean Fitzpatrick, Bob will be joined on Friday by a number of people who have played with Paul over the years. The Royal Court Theatre is the venue for Macca Over Merseyside, an event celebrating the plentiful greatest hits of the Paul McCartney's post-Beatles projects, which will feature five musicians who have worked with Paul from 1971 right through to 1999.

Bob will be performing a solo acoustic set in the American Bar late on Saturday night (sounds like one of the traditional Beatleweek sing-a-long's to me!) and then again at the Cavern Club on Sunday afternoon. You can catch him with Banned on the Run again at the Mathew Street Festival too on Sunday at Chavasse Park, and Monday on the Beatles Stage.

Don't be late… we're going to a Rockshow!!

The Beatalls

The Beatalls are happy and proud to be invited back to Liverpool's fabulous Beatleweek for the fourth consecutive year!

Since last year's successful Liverpool Convention, The Beatalls have continued on their exciting journey through the Beatle tribute world. The year brought many new achievements and appearances across the UK including a memorable performance at Bath Pavilion where the real Beatles had played, a whirlwind programme of re-recording loads of Beatle songs in the studio, the continued success of their website www.thebeatalls.com, some new suits and the addition of many new and treasured Beatle instruments! In November 2002 the band were lucky enough to be invited to Buenos Aires, Argentina for the 2nd Latin-American Beatle Convention where they played a string of exciting shows at the Cavern Club - Buenos Aires and won many new South American friends and fans, they have been invited to return for 2003! They also headlined the 2002 Convention hosted in their hometown of Nottingham. The year has continued to see The Beatalls band members gaining credit standing in for other Beatle Tribute bands including Ian playing some shows with Johnny and The Silver Beatles in a German Musical Production called 'She Loves You…' The Beatalls have also featured prominently in the fantastic Beatles tribute fanzine Bent Back Tulips! Finally, this year has brought the start of a new and outrageous idea of progressively switching the bass playing from right to left-handed!

The Beatalls hope to be performing a selection of songs from the 'Live at the BBC' album this year, recreating the excitement, energy and passion that The Beatles had for their rock'n'roll. The Beatalls have made many new friends over the last three convention years in other Beatleweek bands and fans alike and hope to continue this in the true spirit of Beatleweek. Look out for their performances and go and say 'hello', have a dance, have a photo taken with the band, join them wherever and whenever you can; they'd love to see you there! Andy (John), Ian (Paul), Mel (George) and Steve (Ringo) say: "Enjoy your Beatleweek 2003 and remember to leave us a message on our website!"

The Beatle-Maniacs

32 years after the original Fab Four split, it's hard to think that 4 young lads from the North-East of England, who weren't even born when The Beatles were on the go, met by chance and are now recreating the magic of the music. The Beatle-Maniacs appeared at last year's festival, and consider playing the Cavern Club as one of the highlights of their, albeit so far, short career.

Intent on recapturing the atmosphere of those early Beatles performances, The Beatle-Maniacs use the early singles, b-sides and rocking album tracks to entertain their audiences both young and old. This energetic show is delivered with the style and humour of the groups' heroes and is the ultimate early Beatles experience with a repertoire of classics ranging from Love Me Do and She Loves You, to A Hard Days Night and I Feel Fine. There are a few lesser-known album tracks slipped in here and there, but whether you're a die-hard Beatles fan or just someone who enjoys the music, there's something in the show for everyone.

Brothers James and Rich Jordan handle drums and rhythm guitar, while Chris Johnson is the group's bassist. A newcomer to the group since last Beatleweek, Greg Alderson completes the Geordie four as lead guitarist.

The Beatles Revival

Here's a new band that we think will really impress you! Making their British debut at Beatleweek, The Beatles Revival have played over 650 gigs all over Europe since their inception in 1996. They take pride in their fastidious approach to detail - Zbynek is a left-handed bassist, their instruments are all authentic replica's of The Beatles and of course, they have custom-made 'boots and suits'.

Their professionalism has resulted in them being hired as the opening act for many famous names including Joe Cocker, The Rubettes, The Animals and The Smokie, as well as many appearances on European Television. They arrive in Liverpool on the back of a second consecutive appearance at the annual Estrel Beatles Festival in, where last year, they were runners up of the Battle of the Bands contest.

As with several other bands we have had here over the years, brothers play the parts of John and Paul - it must be some kind of natural musical rivalry! The Beatles Revival brothers are Ludek and Zbynek Maulis, while Petr Lux is the bands Quiet One and Jiri Tomisin holds them altogether with the steady backbeat of his drums!

The Beatles Revival are thrilled to be playing in Liverpool and are especially eager to meet the many special guests we have in attendance on Sunday, especially a man they consider to be the most important person in the Beatles lives alongside Brian Epstein in 1960 - Alistair Taylor. No doubt Alistair will be delighted to meet Beatles Revival too!

The Beatless

Regular visitors to Beatleweek will know that we're rather fond of facts and figures, and following last years record of the furthest distance travelled by a Beatles Tribute band to attend Convention (The Zeatles: 11582 miles) we are this year, delighted to present the worlds most northernmost Beatles Tribute band, from Alta, Norway - The Beatless!

Beatlefans since childhood, the four members of The Beatless have only been playing together since October 2002 but have already played at the Norwegian Beatles Festival in Trondheim, the Bourges Festival in France and a variety of other musical events in Norway. Featuring Bjørn Conrad Berg as John, Kjetil Linnes as Paul, Håvard Pedersen as George and Kai Henning Skimelid as Ringo, The Beatless show spans the Beatles entire recording career with songs ranging from She Loves You to Helter Skelter, I Feel Fine to Something. On stage they wear replica Shea Stadium jackets, play instruments by Rickenbacker, Gibson, Hofner, Gretsch and Ludwig and Kjetil has even been teaching himself to play his violin bass left-handed to ensure that The Beatless are as authentic as they can possibly be.

The BeaTrips

One thing we love about our job is that it enables us to make peoples dreams come true. The BeaTrips are a band from the Osaka/Kyoto area of Japan who have spent much of their 3 year career to date playing at replica venues including the Kyoto Cavern Club and the Beatles-themed Studio 909, and imagining what it would be like to play in the birthplace of The Beatles, so many thousands of miles away. Well as you can imagine, they are ecstatic to be offered that chance this year, and consider the moment when they were told the good news to be one of their career highlights!

Formed as The Red Roads in 1999 by tribute band veterans Takao Kawabata (Paul) and Seiichi Matsumoto (John), the pair changed their name to The BeaTrips and recruited Takayuki Hojo (George), a newcomer to Beatles Tribute Bands and Takashi Yoshioka (Ringo) who was a locally-renowned drummer. The BeaTrips took up a monthly residency at Kyoto's Studio 909, owned by fellow Beatles enthusiast Takashi Kimura who built it when the old Kyoto Cavern went out of business. Mr. Kimura has been instrumental in guiding the band. With absolutely no thought to making money, he has nurtured the BeaTrips from the start, providing free rehearsal space/time (at a premium in Japan), as well as promoting their performances and even supplying them with "authentic" instruments and equipment. Mr. Kimura is in fact financing the trip to Liverpool in 2003-simply out of his love of Beatles' music.

The BeaTrips appreciate every era of the Beatles - from Hamburg right through to the latest solo releases, and this is illustrated in their varied and ambitious repertoire. They have recently added Magical Mystery Tour, Woman is the Nigger of the World and Driving Rain to their ever-growing selection.

As any discerning Beatles tribute band fan will agree, The BeaTrips consider the music to be the most important aspect, and with their painstaking approach to perfecting live performances, there is little doubt that The BeaTrips will leave Liverpool, dreams fulfilled and with a great deal more admirers.

Beso Negro & The Fabs

These two bands were selected to come to Liverpool for the Convention, after they won a contest at the 2nd Latin American Beatleweek held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in November 2002. Beso Negro (literal translation: 'Black Kiss') are three incredibly talented Peruvian musicians who all share a deep love for Beatles music that they soon began to include their arrangements of Beatles songs as part of their own performances. Lucho Nuñez is Beso Negro's young guitarist, born in Huacho, a small village north of Lima; he is a seasoned professional musician both in Peru and Internationally. José Wherrems is considered to be the best drummer in Peru, while Ernesto Samamé is best known for his work with the group We All Together, who are considered to be one of the chief advocates of Beatlesque music in the early 70's. The band is still going strong and they continue to release new material.

The Fabs are from Argentina, where the Latin American Beatles Week is held. The Beatles never played in Argentina, and yet there are so many fans of their wonderful music in South America; it's no wonder The Fabs have toured their home country since they formed in 1997, playing to packed houses, and appearing on many television shows. Octavio Cavalli (John), Bernardo Rappallini (George), Bernardo Criscuolo (Paul) and Lucas Fiorentino (Ringo) are thrilled to have been awarded the opportunity to be a part of the biggest Beatles party in the world and can't wait to meet their fellow Beatlefans!

Black Olives

Regular Beatleweek attendees will know Black Olives by their former name The Flying Postmen. Bassist Andrei Nicula is a graduate of Paul McCartney's LIPA University and along with fellow Moldovans Emil Bojescu and Mircea Sturza has performed at Beatleweek since 1998 where they played at LIPA, Strawberry Fields, the Adelphi Night Club and the Cavern Club - which led to a six month residency at the club - followed by gigs at Liverpool's Lomax and Ronnie Scott's in Birmingham. Among the festivalgoers that year was comedian Tony Hawks who quickly became a Flying Postmen fan, seeking the band's assistance for the follow-up to his first travel adventure "Round Ireland With A Fridge". This time the intrepid gambler was heading for Moldova and the band's extensive contacts helped smooth the way as Tony explains in his best-selling book "Playing The Moldovans At Tennis". He also invited the band to play at the book launch in 2000.

As well as the name change, the last twelve months has seen the addition of a new lead guitarist; Tom Jaworski and the recording and release of the group's second original album, How About. Containing 13 self-penned songs, the CD is a prime example of Black Olives astounding talent and dedication to writing great music. They have a strong following in London where they play regularly at various venues and are currently working on a new website: www.blackolivesmusic.com

The Bootleg Beatles

When the Beatles decided to 'Let It Be' back in 1970, you can guarantee they never expected to still be one of the most popular bands on the planet over thirty years later. According to the Beatles tribute website, The Word Is Love, there are currently over four hundred Beatle related acts all over the world, keeping music of the Fab Four alive, playing venues from pubs to theatres and arenas. And no matter where they are, they always play to enthusiastic audiences of Beatle fans who know every word to every song; even when that song isn't even sang in their own language. That's quite a legacy to leave behind. One such band that has been entertaining appreciative audiences for over twenty years are The Bootleg Beatles, who are probably the best known covers band in the United Kingdom. Last year they bought their all-new, multimedia show to the Royal Court and gave a truly stunning performance. This year, Neil, David, Andre and Hugo will be Veritable Impressive Performers at our VIP Party in the Adelphi on Monday night, where we can expect the usual professional, polished act the band has honed over the last 23 years.

They made history in 2000 participating in the last ever concert at the illustrious Wembley Stadium, playing alongside Sir Elton John, Jools Holland and Lesley Garrett and Chris De Burgh at the event, which also featured Pele scoring the last goal before the famous twin towers were bulldozed to make way for a new national stadium.

In the last twelve months The Bootlegs enjoyed continuing success on their crowd-pleasing Christmas tour, where they visited practically every major city on the British Isles, including a fantastic show at London's prestigious Royal Albert Hall. This years Christmas tour promises to be their best yet and you can find all the details at the bands website.

In June 2003 they were privileged to play at Buckingham Palace as part of the Queens Golden Jubilee celebrations preceding the evenings 'Party at the Palace' concert, which as we all know, also featured a certain Sir Paul McCartney!

Next January they are off on a short tour of Denmark, where they have previously appeared as part of the Roskilde and Midtyfins Festivals, and worked with the 52-piece Danish Radio Concert Orchestra and where they have made many fans.

They continue to thrill audiences from Copenhagen to Croydon, St Petersburg to St Albans and from the Albert Hall to the Adelphi Hotel!!

BR 69

The youngest band to play at this year's event, BR 69 are a band of 16 year old students and surfers from Rio de Janeiro. The band convened in 2001, one of their first rehearsals significantly being on 29th November; the day that George Harrison died. The bands line-up has changed since they started, now consisting of founding members Luiz, who plays bass and lists Bob Marley and Sublime amongst his favourite artists and Felipe, the lead guitarist whose enthusiasm for the music of The Beatles led BR 69 to develop from a fun school band into the tribute band they have become. In fact, Felipe introduced the bands two newest members, drummer Pedro and singer/rhythm guitarist Xande to the music of the Fabs, and their admiration quickly grew. Their repertoire has grown so quickly they now have difficulty choosing songs for their set-lists from the extensive selection!

It's quite an achievement for such a young band to come and play in Liverpool so early into what will no doubt be a long career in Beatledom. Congratulations boys! It's great to have you here!

British Export

Over the past few years several young newcomers to the festival have grabbed our attention… British Export came to our notice in 2001 after they were awarded the 'Top Beatles Tribute Band' prize at both the Chicago and New York Beatlefests, and they were rewarded with several prime slots at that years Convention. Also invited to make their debut were a local band who had been creating a racket at the bar just round the corner from our office; The Blue Meanies. Both bands caused quite a stir! At the end of last year, British Export invited the Meanies excellent guitarist Gav Pring to join them on a tour of South Korea. The new line-up was so successful that the band offered Gav the position of George full-time, and so he flew his Liverpool nest and headed for Illinois! In the past few months British Export made another line-up change and are delighted to introduce John Graham to Liverpool this year, playing the role of John Lennon. John has had plenty of experience fronting various bands in the Chicago area; he's been Roger Daltrey in A Who band called Amazing Journey, Jon Anderson in a Yes recreation and can impersonate other vocalists from groups as varied as Pink Floyd, Roy Orbison and Pearl Jam. As a lifelong Beatles fan, John feels that he has achieved the ultimate ambition by joining British Export as Lennon. Not only that, he has provided British Export with the unique distinction of being the only Beatles Tribute Band that is actually fronted by John and Paul, since Paul Lynch portrays McCartney!

British Export are Gavin Pring as George, Paul Lynch as Paul, John Graham as John and Jim Martin as Ringo.

Chantal

This group of classically trained musicians play the most unique instruments that are just about as far from the usual Beatleweek back-line of Rickenbacker, Hofner, Gretsch and Ludwig as you could possibly get! As well as the more traditional acoustic guitar and bass, drums, violin and flute, Chantal specialise in playing ancient musical instruments ranging from the Celtic Mandocello, Mediaeval Cornamuse and Krumhorn to the 'Streichpsalter', which looks like a cross between a harp and piano.

Chantal visited the Cavern Club in February where their show was recorded for German television. They also spent a day in the hallowed Abbey Road Studios, where they recorded an album, 'Beatles Strictly Instrumental Vol II', which Chantal will officially launch at their Royal Court concert on Monday.

Chantal's remarkable interpretations of Beatles tunes will certainly be one of the most inspiring and fascinating highlights of the festival. Typically Beatles. Typically Chantal.

Chantal are: Michael Hofmann, Dr. Gabriele von der Weiden, Norma Lukoschek, Petra Erdtmann-Weigand, Jeanine Krause, Jan Mischlich, Lilly Palm, Ralf Gauck and Peter Götzmann.

Clube Big Beatles

Ah Clube Big Beatles… it really wouldn't be Beatleweek without them, would it? This year sees their ninth consecutive appearance at the festival and every year their shows just get better and better. Recall last year's poignant yet joyous tribute to George Harrison at the Adelphi. It was a true celebration of George's music, and as you would expect of Clube Big Beatles, every song was note perfect and the band looked as if they were truly enjoying the show themselves!

Clube Big Beatles were formed by Edu Henning, a massive Beatlefan himself, who having presented the longest running Beatles radio show in Brazil since 1978, decided to put together a band to play the songs of his heroes live. He contacted Babi Vaccari, who invited Saulo Simonassi, who requested Mark Hernandez, who called Léo Teixeira… all five shared the same passion for The Beatles. The band plays at many special events in Brazil and over the years have helped to raise much-needed funds and aid for charity. The cost of entry to these charity events is to bring along your donation, for example to attend the party celebrating the 30th anniversary of the release of Love Me Do at which Clube Big Beatles performed the soundtrack from Yellow Submarine, guests had to bring along a book - the event received more than five thousand books which were donated to the Espírito Santo Public Library. Other events have involved bringing a kilo of food as entry, raising several tonnes of food that was then donated to underprivileged people in the area.

Not only are Clube Big Beatles generous, caring and nice guys, they are a talented bunch of musicians too. You can't help but love Clube Big Beatles!

Det Betales

Celebrating their twenty-first anniversary this year, Det Betales are still pleasing audiences across Scandinavia with The Norwegian Beatles Tribute Show. Over the course of their career Det Betales have created their own sound and style, and like to play the fabs music in their won way, while remaining respectful to the original recordings. Despite the fact that Det Betales go by rather daft pseudonyms while in Liverpool (Bingo Stærk is really Rolf Øyvind Hæg, Paul McEplecarth is occasionally known as Magne Frydenlund, Dag Svartskuren prefers the snappier George Harryseth while Tor Olsen… well he IS John Ramon, isn't he?!) they really have a no-nonsense attitude when it comes to the music of The Beatles.

On one of their many tours of Europe, Det Betales played with Tony Sheridan, who is of course one of our special guests this weekend.

They released their Beatles Medley CD in 2000, and in 2001, followed it up with a self-penned tribute to Lennon entitled 'Dear John', which is a great song and a wonderful homage to John Lennon.

Det Betales have played at Beatleweek so many times now we've lost count, but what we haven't forgotten is the reason we love these guys so much. They are truly fantastic musicians and completely devoted Beatles fans and they delight audiences every time they come to the Festival. Happy 21st guys!!

Dylanesque

Joining Hare Georgeson on Saturday for the Live Peace in Chavasse Park recreation of the Concert for Bangla Desh, is the world's foremost Bob Dylan tribute; Dylanesque.

Recognised by Bob Dylan as his official tribute band, Dylanesque consider themselves more as a performing fan club. 'Bootleg Bob', or Mick Crimmins as he's better known, will be joining Rick Alan and the band to perform some of Dylan's best-loved songs, including we suspect, Mr Tambourine Man, Just Like a Woman and Blowin' In The Wind. You can also catch Dylanesque doing their own Dylan thing on Sunday at Chavasse Park as part of the Mathew Street Festival.

The Fab Faux

With their energetic shows, zest for life, passion for The Beatles and fabulous musicianship, The Fab Faux are one of the most popular acts to have ever played Beatleweek. For anyone who doesn't know The Faux; the band consists of five highly talented and sought-after musicians - Will Lee, best-known for being the bass player in the Late Show with David Letterman house band, has worked with George, Ringo and Paul on various occasions. Jimmy Vivino, guitarist extraordinaire and band member of the other New York based chat-show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Jack Petruzzelli, keyboard player and member of Joan Osborne's band, Frank Agnello, guitarist and serious Beatlefan who has played in a number of Broadway shows and drummer, Rich Pagano who as well as running his own studios finds time to tour with a variety of artists including, most recently, Roseanne Cash. Every member of The Fab Faux also sings which gives them a far greater range when recreating Beatles songs from the various aspects of their career.

They last performed in Liverpool in August 2001 and just a couple of weeks after the festival New York City was devastated by the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. As part of the Paul Shaffer CBS Orchestra, Will performed with a star-studded line-up which included David Bowie, The Who, Mick Jagger & Keith Richards and Eric Clapton in the Concert for New York City. Paul McCartney closed the concert and Will joined him becoming a member of his band for the evening, playing bass and providing backing vocals.

In December 2001 Jimmy and his Conan band colleagues; The Max Weinberg 7 joined Bruce Springsteen to play a series of benefit concerts in The Boss's home state New Jersey. Jack has recently completed a 2-month tour of the US with Joan Osborne, supporting the Dixie Chicks, and then there is the strange occurrence of a Beatle impersonating a member of The Fab Faux… Ian Hunter, the Mott The Hoople front man, recorded his latest album 'Rant' at Rich Pagano's New Calcutta Studios. Co-produced by long-time friend and occasional Faux member Andy York, Rich engineered and played drums on a track entitled 'I Still Love Rock and Roll'. Ian Hunter then joined Ringo for his last All-Starr Tour and sang that song as part of his spot, backed by Ringo playing Rich's drum part!

The Fab Faux have managed to fit a few gigs into their busy schedule's and having grown too big for the Bowery Ballroom have now moved to a larger venue, Irving Plaza, which continues to sell-out despite holding 1200 people. Any discerning music fan in New York knows of the band and they have attracted many Beatle-related followers including May Pang, Sid Bernstein and recently George Martin's son Gregg who was highly impressed by the performance. The Faux are well on their way to achieve the unique record of having played every one of The Beatles original LP's live. Most memorably for Beatleweeker's they showcased Abbey Road in 2000, while in New York they have recreated Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and, the album they will perform on Monday night at The Royal Court; The White Album, which is probably the album least attempted by Beatles Tribute Bands.

The band are thrilled to be returning to Liverpool this year. Say's Will, "We love playing to the Beatle audience; they know and love the music and are delighted when we can deliver every detail! The Beatles were so inspired and innovative, they created a treasure chest of music & sound, thought & emotion, images & dreams that really let the imagination soar. To see the looks on people's faces when The Fab Faux plays is really our greatest motivator. Without the fans, it's just a rehearsal! Of course, the fans in Liverpool at Beatle Week are the crème de la crème and we can't wait to play BW 2003. Thanks Everybody!"

Their attention to detail is amazing! Yes, they have keyboards, and three guitarists which is an obvious advantage in recreating the heavily produced Beatles songs over their Mop-Top era colleagues, but their musicianship, charisma, harmonies and the obvious love for the music makes them one of the best live bands you'll ever see. The fact that the music they are playing is the best in the world, simply adds to the attraction!

Gavin Pring

"You're a star, Gavin!" so said Mike Byrne at Beatle Week 2002. What prompted the comment? A very nervous Gavin Pring had just performed an unrehearsed solo tribute to George Harrison in front of a packed Adelphi Ballroom on convention day, to fill in a vacant slot in the programme that arose.

Well this year he's back playing a grand total of 13 gigs at Beatle Week 2003 in three very different guises:

He will be joining British Export to portray George, a role he took on permanently in May this year, after touring Korea with the band in November 2002.

Gav will also be performing as part of an acoustic duo with a friend Geoff Metcalfe. They astounded fans at a charity gig in The Grapes just before Christmas and Gav says that you can expect a mixture of Beatles and George solo songs with maybe one or two surprises.

Finally, as if the last year hasn't been busy enough, he has put together his own band called George Harry's Son - inspired by a photograph Gav saw of George with his dad. Gav will be joined by Ritchie on drums, Dave Finley on keyboards, Nick Robinson on bass (who some might recognise from Instant Karma), Richard Smith on lead guitar (Richard also plays in his own band Row Z), Geoff Metcalfe on second rhythm guitar and last but by no means least Kate Cave on backing vocals. Together they will perform at 'Live Peace in Chavasse Park' presenting a set based on those performed by George Harrison during his 'Rock Legends' tour of Japan with Eric Clapton in 1991.

The core of the band Gav, Geoff and Richard performed at The Cavern Club back in February following only one rehearsal and they gave a brilliant performance helping fans celebrate what would have been George Harrison's 60th Birthday in style.

When he isn't busy playing with one of his bands, Gav writes and records his own songs just for fun. He has also portrayed George in an as yet unreleased film. Gav is a friendly sort and has that wonderful wit that Liverpudlians are so famous for, so pop over and say hello when you see him out and about during the week.

To find out more about him check out his official website at www.our-gav.com

Hal Bruce

Another performer this year to be appearing at both Beatleweek and the Abbey Road on the River in Cleveland… the organisers of that festival obviously have impeccable taste in musicians!

Hailing from Nova Scotia, Hal has worked all over Canada, the United States and has 6 albums, 9 awards, and 2 videos to his credit. He recently completed a major musical project - the recording of a 16-song acoustic Beatles tribute CD called 'In My Life…', on which he not only sang all the vocals parts, but also played every instrumental guitar and bass part. The album has received much acclaim, and deservedly so as Hal is certainly one of the best solo-acoustic performers we've ever seen.

Hal Bruce will be opening for The Fab Faux at the Royal Court on Monday, and will be playing numerous other venues including the American Bar and the Cavern Club during the festival. Don't miss him!

Hamburg Daze

Hamburg Daze are here for their first ever Beatleweek. Hailing from the Isle of Man where they are the only Beatles tribute band, I expect the many Beatles clones around Liverpool may be quite a culture shock for the band, who played the Cavern Club for the first time a short while ago. The band have been around for over ten years having evolved from the Irish-based band The Beatless. Featuring Bren Tallon (guitar), Dave MacDonald (guitar), Nigel 'Good Dog' Williams (bass) and Paul Tonks (drums) they will be playing at the Cavern Pub and Club throughout the weekend.

Haré Georgeson

What a show Haré Georgeson gave us last year at the Royal Court! The entire festival was dedicated to the memory of George Harrison, and Haré Georgeson's show headlining our Solo Years Concert was definitely one of the highlights of the week.

Earlier in 2002 the band had given an unforgettable performance at the George Tribute Concert at the Liverpool Empire, where Paul McCartney joined them for the onstage finale, and in November, Rick and Bill Heckle witnessed what was surely the show of the year at the Royal Albert Hall, as a host of Harrison's friends and family, including Paul, Ringo, Eric Clapton and the remaining Traveling Wilbury's celebrated 'the quiet one's' life with 'A Concert for George'.

This year, at Chavasse Park, Haré Georgeson will be recreating the first ever All-Star Charity Concert that was held at Madison Square Garden in 1971, as they perform songs from 'The Concert for Bangla Desh'. Dylanesque's very own 'Bob', as well as the wonderful Indian musicians Shalil Shankar and Movinder Singh will join them onstage.

Haré Georgeson will also be appearing in Friday's Bar at the Adelphi, on Saturday night (playing… not just drinking!) and at Chavasse Park again on Sunday. You can also catch each band member in other guises throughout the weekend: Rick Alan organises the Mathew Street Festival, and this year looks set to be the best ever. He'll be running around making sure everything runs smoothly while Roy Hitchen and Pete Muldoon don flowery shirts and long wigs for Led Zed (Liverpool Stage, Monday), The Amazing Paul Kappa plays at both the Cavern Pub and Club as part of Beatleweek and Mike Neary will be playing at the Havana Bar.

Heyah

We thought these were the Allan Willams Tribute Band; "Hey-yah!" Or the Miss Piggy Appreciation Society, but it seems we were somewhat off the mark. According to the band, Heyah means "energy, a sort of shout when a person liberates and transforms bad into good energy", although we're hoping that Heyah can still shout without the bad energy... you can't help but radiate positive vibes here at Beatleweek!

Bandleader Valderílio Azeuedo (aka Doctor Val) has previously appeared at the convention with Machine Guns or Metralhas Beatles Again, as they were known in Brazil, but for Sérgio Lopes, Paulo Passold and Luiz Mende this will be their Beatleweek debut.

Paulo is an astounding guitarist and gives an energetic stage performance, playing his Gretsch Country Classic. Bassist Sérgio is a fan of most music from the 60's and 70's, and when he's not playing with Heyah, he's a plastic surgeon and university professor, while Doctor Val is also a medic - specialising in the treatment of rheumatism (we'll all be needing his help by Tuesday!), meanwhile Luiz, their highly talented drummer, achieved national recognition with his band 'Marca Registrada'.

Heyah play a variety of great songs from the last 50 years, including hits by acts including Creedence Clearwater Revival, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC. Cream, Eric Clapton as well as some band called The Beatles!

Instant Karma

Fronted by Liverpool actor, musician and restaurateur Jon Keats, Instant Karma are one of the greatest John Lennon tribute acts you're ever likely to see. This year's appearance at Beatleweek is their thirteenth, and although 13 may be unlucky for some, it's not so for Jon - his wife is expecting their first child on Monday! If the baby arrives on that day and is a boy, we suggest they name it Mathew, in honour of the street festival. Mind you, based on that theory, fingers crossed it doesn't arrive early cos we don't think 'Chavasse' is especially catchy! Joking aside, we want to take this opportunity to wish them both our love and best wishes for their imminent arrival.

Of course, with Jon being on alert all weekend, the band have nervously agreed to play just one day, and so they will give only two performances on Saturday - as part of the Live Peace in Liverpool show at Chavasse Park, and then in the American Bar at The Adelphi where Jon will perform a solo Lennon set. Last year's Plastic Ono Band show was amazing, so give Live Peace a chance… don't go Cold Turkey on Instant Karma!

Itchycoo Park

Itchycoo Park made their first appearance in Liverpool at the festival in 1998, where, under the name The Bootleg Rutles, they accompanied 'actual' Rutles, Neil Innes and John Halsey in the traditional Beatleweek-concluding Cavern Shows. It's not often that you find a tribute, tribute band, supporting a tribute band! (Well, apart from The Bootleg Beatles opening for Oasis, I guess!).

That first show at the Cavern was especially memorable for Jim Logie, Jim McNaught, Ronnie Davidson and Alex Fairley, and they recall working out the set list before the show with Neil and John and a brief acoustic rehearsal in the Cavern's kitchen!

Itchycoo Park have played at Beatleweek every year since that appearance, with the exception of 2001 when, as part of the first Dundee Beatles Festival, they trod in the footsteps of The Beatles and gave a show in Caird Hall, where forty years earlier the four virtually unknown guys from Liverpool had played. Within a week of the show their pictures would be on the front page of every newspaper, under the headline 'Beatlemania'.

As well as performing a variety of 60's hits, including their namesake Small Faces song, the band have released a CD of original material under the name The Colors, entitled 'dayglo'. One song from it was voted one of the top forty tracks of 2002 on a web-based radio station, after only two weeks release. You can learn more about The Colors at their website: www.thecolors.co.uk

Last year Itchycoo Park really helped us out, fulfilling the unenviable task of playing three consecutive sets in the infamously warm Cavern Pub, filling in for absent bands. Their original allotted time of 45 minutes became three and a half hours and yet the band carried on.

And as Jim Logie says, "You never know when a gig is going to become a concert in Liverpool!"

Jackie Lomax

Jackie Lomax began his musical career in Liverpool in 1961, when his group, Dee and the Dynamites were just one of many Merseybeat bands which included, of course, The Beatles. In 1962, he joined The Undertakers, one of the more successful Liverpool groups at the time, as lead vocalist/bass player. The Undertakers were known as the hard rockers of Merseybeat and played soul covers, including their most popular number, '(Do The) Mashed Potatoes' originally by Nat Kendrick and The Swans. They also often backed Beryl Marsden and The Chants.

In July 1962 the group went to Hamburg which was where many Liverpool groups were getting big breaks, but The Undertakers made the mistake of rejecting Brian Epstein's offer to manage them, choosing instead Ralph Webster who kept them in constant live work in Liverpool. They signed to Pye Records in 1963 under Tony Hatch but their four singles failed to achieve chart success. They left the label and moved to America but fame and fortune did not find them there, and the group soon disbanded. Jackie formed another group, 'The Lomax Alliance' and in 1967 they were bought back to London by Brian Epstein to play at his Saville Theatre. They were signed to CBS records and an album deal was agreed, but Epstein's death in August 67 left the group in pieces. The album was never completed, and Jackie returned to America where he met John Lennon, who told him to contact Apple Publishing with his demos. George Harrison heard the demos and liked them. He offered to produce an album for Jackie, on his return from India. And so Jackie Lomax became the first artist to sign for Apple Records, and George Harrison wrote and produced his debut single. Sour Milk Sea featured Jackie, George Harrison, and Eric Clapton on guitars, Paul McCartney on bass, Ringo Starr on drums, and Nicky Hopkins on piano. Bearing the catalogue number 'Apple 3', it was released on 6th September 1968 and despite the superstar line-up it failed to chart. Jackie recorded more tracks with George and LA session musicians, and his first solo album 'Is This What You Want?' was released in March 1969. The Encyclopedia of Popular Music says of the album: '…featured contributions from a host of star names including Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Eric Clapton. The artist's stylish compositions and superb voice were equal to such esteemed company.'

However, the album was promoted and despite the eminence of the musicians who contributed to the album, it still did not sell enough copies feature in either the British or American charts.

In April 1969, Jackie wrote and produced a song called New Day that featured another Beatleweek guest, Billy Kinsley of The Merseybeats on bass. The song was released as Jackie Lomax's second single, his final Apple single being How The Web Was Woven; another Harrison produced song which was recorded in October 1969.

The Beatles broke-up and Jackie went back to the States where he spent the next few years working with various bands and still pursuing a successful solo career. The Beatles featured briefly again in his life in 1977 when Klaus Voormann designed the cover for his album 'Did You Ever Have That Feeling?'.

Jackie moved to California where he still lives, and although he has continued to write and perform music, little of it has never been released. In 2001 he recorded his first solo album in many years, entitled 'The Ballad of Liverpool Slim', which is available via the mp3.com website. We are delighted to have Jackie Lomax joining us as a special guest this year.

Johnny Silver & Lennon Revival

Johnny Silver hails from Osnabruck, Germany and is the founder of two Beatle-related bands - The Silver Beatles and The Lennon Revival, who travel with him for this, his 6th appearance at Liverpool Beatleweek. His uncanny resemblance to John Lennon and his remarkably similar voice has gained him worldwide recognition as one of the greatest Lennon impersonators. He has recently been touring with the musical show 'She Loves You', where he was also joined Ian Watts of the UK based band The Beatalls, after the two became friends here at Beatleweek.

Johnny's next project is a Lennon anthology called 'A Day In The Life', which is expected to begin touring later this year.

Johnny Silver & the Lennon Revival perform some of Lennon's greatest Beatle-era tunes, as well as the hits from his solo career, and they incorporate John's way of thinking into their shows with performance art. Last year saw Johnny, Mike Doring, Andy Sindt, Rick Pohlman and Chris Alexander being joined by two female artists who proceeded to re-decorate the Chavasse Park stage with their paint-flinging antics. How on earth are they going to top that one? Make sure you catch their shows to find out!

Kappa

Are you ready to rock? Kappa certainly are and you'd better hold on tight if you want to join them for a ride through some of the best rock and roll to come out of Liverpool in many years. Known as 'The Amazing Kappa', there is no doubting the validity of this moniker after you've witnessed their show. Fronted by Haré Georgeson guitar supremo Paul Kappa, the band perform his original songs and currently have a residency at the Cavern Club. Bass player Martin Byrne and Drummer Tony O'Keeffe have both worked with other local bands, and together they provide fantastic backing for Paul's songs, showcased perfectly on the bands debut album 'Living @ The End Of The World', which range from country style folk-ballads to mid-seventies all-out rock, suggesting influences including Free, Led Zeppelin, the Stones, The Byrds and even The White Stripes. There is absolutely no doubt that Paul Kappa is an amazing guitarist and his fingers are liked greased lighting on the fretboard of his beautiful Gretsch White Falcon. With rave reviews of their first album, success is surely just around the corner. Catch them at The Cavern, while you can!

The Kazakhstan Beatles

We're delighted to welcome to Liverpool for the very first time The Kazakhstan Beatles, for whom this trip to the birthplace of The Beatles is a dream come true. Kazakhstan was a republic of the former Soviet Union, finally gaining its independence in 1991. Growing up in a Socialist regime was very restricting to the members of the band, "When we were little we used to have to listen to Soviet composers. The first time I heard them, one of my teachers put on a Beatles record. When I heard it, I thought: 'Wow, does this sort of music really exist!' It turned everything upside down, and then boom, I only moved forward and that's all we played. It is a dream for me to go to Liverpool. To go down Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields. We'd love to see it all with our own eyes, to feel it, and of course to play there. That's our dream."

The Kazakhstan Beatles will be feature in a BBC television series about Central Asia this autumn, and producer Will Daws and his crew will be following them as they finally realise their dream and play at the Cavern Club and see all those famous Liverpool landmarks.

Welcome to Liverpool, guys!!

Lawrence Gilmour

Having spent the last few years astounding audiences in America with his likeness to Mr McCartney, LawrenceMacca, as he is known in his adopted home across the pond, is elated to be back in Liverpool this year.

Lawrence turns heads everywhere he goes, such is the similarity to Paul, and no doubt he will attract quite a bit of attention over the weekend. In October 1999, he attracted the attention of McCartney himself and was subsequently requested to 'double' for Paul in the promotional video for No Other Baby. He spent two days filming on location and even had a 'jam session' with the man himself. So next time you see that video, pay extra attention on the long-shots and you might spot LawrenceMacca!

Along with another great band on this years programme, British Export, Lawrence will be arriving at Beatleweek direct from the Abbey Road on the River Beatles Festival in Ohio, where he has built up quite a fan base since his performance last year. And deservedly so! Not only does Lawrence bear a striking resemblance to the former-Beatle, he really has that Macca sound. He's a genuinely nice guy and always has time to chat with Beatlefans, so don't be shy!

Lawrence has been a fan of The Beatles since childhood, and made his Macca singing debut when he got up in a club for a laugh in the late 70's and sang the current number one - 'Mull of Kintyre'. He made his first official public appearance as a Paul McCartney impersonator in 1993 on the television show 'Stars in their Eyes', which changed his life. He spent several years touring with a Lennon impersonator Gary Gibson, and as the Anthology of the Beatles, the pair performed at Beatleweek several times.

Now he's back where he belongs… he's armed with an acoustic guitar and that famous thumbs-up sign, and he knows how to use them!! LawrenceMacca has come to rock you this weekend!

Lenny Pane

Still one of the greatest bands we've ever had playing at Beatleweek, Lenny Pane were among the first bands to break the 'suits and boots' rule and incorporate more obscure songs into their sets. They have appeared at the convention on 9 occasions and have performed many memorable shows. Most notably they were the first band to play the entire Abbey Road album as part of their 1996 concert at the Philharmonic Hall, accompanied by an orchestra and in 1998 they gave a fabulous 'Past Masters Concert' at the Royal Court, which included numbers rarely performed live, even at Beatles Conventions including 'When I'm 64', 'Long Long Long' and 'Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite'.

They are all very gifted, classically trained musicians and their performances clearly showcase their extraordinary talents. The band: Micke Isacson, Goran Irhfelt, Johan Stromberg and Benny Karlsson, pay particular attention to every detail of the Beatles music and regularly bring in other musicians to recreate the exact sound. One of the best examples of this was in 1999 when, following the premiere of the digitally re-mastered Yellow Submarine film at the 'Phil', Lenny Pane recreated the songs of the film (the Yellow Submarine Songbook album had not yet been released) with a little help from a string quartet, brass and woodwind sections, some Indian musicians and Gary Gibson who added the Lennon touch to 'Hey Bulldog' and 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds'. It was a truly fabulous night!

This year they will once again demonstrate their unique talents to the Royal Court Theatre with the music from the Magical Mystery Tour film as part of the Reel Years Show. The Magical Lenny Pane Tour is coming to take you away…

Liverpool

So did you buy 'Why Don't We Do It In Abbey Road' yet? What do you mean, "No!"? Get yourself down to the Adelphi foyer and make sure you don't leave Beatleweek without this fantastic CD!! Even though it took us the same number of months from recording to release as it took the Beatles to record and release every album from Please Please Me to Sgt Pepper... we reckon it was well worth the wait! Every track is an original composition by a Beatleweek band, and the album illustrates the amazing talent these bands possess.

Liverpool were one of the bands to contribute to the CD, recording the track 'Humans' in Abbey Road Studio 2 in August 2001. The song is very 'John', the lyrics capture Lennon's politics and sentiments and Olle Nilsson's vocal similarity demonstrates why he won Sweden's equivalent of the Stars in their Eyes TV programme with his John Lennon impersonation.

Liverpool are one of the most highly-acclaimed tribute bands in Sweden and have been performing together for almost 25 years and have appeared at Beatleweek many times before. As well as touring with Liverpool, Olle Nilsson also plays solo gigs and has recorded several original solo albums. Co-founding member Kent Szwonder plays drums and also sings Ringo's parts.

Bassist Ronnie Roos scores the groups orchestral arrangements and has his own recording studio, while the newest member of Liverpool, Sebastian Roos (Ronnie's son) is the groups guitarist and sings Paul´s vocal parts. He has previously been in a variety of rock groups and has also appeared in stage musicals.

They have recently recorded an album of original material entitled 'Love Is All' which features the song of the same name, which was Liverpool's contribution to Sweden's nominated entries for the Eurovision Song Contest.

Lock and Load

Here's a band to blow away the cobwebs! You don't often see classic heavy rock bands playing Beatles songs, but this band are certainly far more than just a heavy rock band. Between them they have over 40 years of experience with more than twenty bands, playing many different styles of music. Their own live set usually consists of memorable rock songs from acts such as Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest, Queen, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple to name but a few, but following a performance at the Cavern Club last November, they were inspired to add some Beatles numbers to their repertoire. In fact, I think we've converted them because they now have enough songs for a whole set!! All they need to complete their new image are Beatle suits and boots… oh and a haircut!

Lock and Load are Ron (drums), Luc (lead guitar), Eric (bass & vocals) and Francis (guitar & vocals). Rock on!

Los Escarabajos

Los Escarabajos (meaning beetles in Spanish), made their debut at the 1993 Spanish Beatles Convention in Seville, going on to appear at the festival many times and this year participated in the first Valencia Beatle Fest, where they shared the bill with Pete Best and Neil Innes.

In 1995 they entertained a crowd of 30,000 prior to the annual Valencia festival 'Las Fallas', when huge papier-mâché statues are made and set ablaze all over the city. That same year Los Escarabajos were joined by a brass section and were able to include some of the more complicated numbers such as Got To Get You Into My Life and Savoy Truffle into their set.

The band released an album comprising of Beatles covers and original songs entitled 'By The Beetles' in 1997, and contributed their version of 'It's All Too Much' to a Spanish CD honouring the songs of George Harrison called 'Harrisongs'. Their latest recording project, 'Lennonphile' comprises of the unfinished songs which John Lennon was never able to release, including the ironically poignantly titled 'Life Begins at Forty', 'The Happy Rishikesh Song' and 'Serve Yourself'.

Los Escarabajos are founding member Enrique Sánchez (guitar), Jesús Beades (bass), Bernardo Jiménez (keyboards), Luis Abad (guitar) and José Luis Blanco (drums).

Denny Seiwell & Henry McCullough

Denny Seiwell was the first drummer in Wings, joining the band in 1971 although he had already worked with Paul McCartney as the session drummer hired for Ram. Henry McCullough had been working with Joe Cocker and his legendary Grease Band when he auditioned to join McCartney's new band.

Denny and Henry appeared on the first Wings album 'Wings Wild Life', and 1973's 'Red Rose Speedway'. They toured with Paul and Linda and Denny Laine on the bands' debut tour in February 1972, which consisted of 11 dates at various universities around England, famously beginning in Nottingham, where the student union were amazed when Paul McCartney turned up in a van asking to play there!

The subsequent European Tour in the summer of 72 was on a far grander scale and following the recording of 'My Love', for which Henry recorded probably his most acclaimed guitar solo, 'Red Rose Speedway' and 'Live and Let Die', and two short UK tours in 1973, Denny Seiwell and Henry McCullough decided to leave Wings.

As well as his time with Macca, Denny has worked with Joe Cocker, Donovan and The Who with the London Symphony Orchestra on the Rock Opera 'Tommy'.

Henry continued to work with various artists including Ronnie Lane, Donovan, Marianne Faithfull and Eric Burdon until an accident in the early 80's damaged the tendons in his hand. It took several years of rehabilitation but in the late 80's he began to play again, working with various bands in Ireland. He continues to tour with his own band and this year will present a series of 'An Evening with Henry McCullough' shows, to commemorate his 60th birthday.

Steve Holley

Steve Holley joined Wings in 1978, along with Laurence Juber following the departure of Jimmy McCulloch and Joe English, during sessions for the Back to the Egg album at Paul's farm in Scotland. In October that year the band were joined by Pete Townshend, Kenny Jones, Hank Marvin, Ray Cooper, Dave Gilmour, John Paul Jones, John Bonham, Gary Brooker and Ronnie Lane for the recording of Rockestra and So Glad To See You Here.

In November 1979 they commenced a tour of the UK beginning with rehearsals at Paul's old school; the Liverpool Institute (now LIPA) and kicked-off with four dates at the Royal Court Theatre. These concerts were held in order to raise funds for the struggling theatre and Paul donated all the money raised to the cause, effectively saving the theatre from closure.

In December that year they performed the benefit concert for the People of Kampuchea at the Hammersmith Odeon, London.

Steve Holley and Laurence Juber left Wings in February 1981 and an official announcement that Wings are no more was made in April.

Steve moved to the States and has continued as a session drummer, working with many artists, including most recently Ian Hunter on his album 'Rant' (with whom he also toured the UK last year), Popa Chubby, Jennifer Taylor, Arthur Nielson, Dan Driscoll, John Oates and Dar Williams, with whom he just completed a US tour. He has been working in New York with Will Schillinger, who produced CCT's 'Why Don't We Do It In Abbey Road' CD, and has co-produced Steve's new album of original material entitled 'The Reluctant Dog'.

Chris Hall

Chris Hall's first love is Cajun music. He is a leading authority on the music of the Louisiana Bayou's and started playing in his own band 'R Cajun & the Zydeco Brothers' in the late 70's. In 1999, Paul McCartney asked Chris to lend his talents as an accordion player to a track on the album he was recording: 'Run Devil Run'. Chris went along to Abbey Road where, along with Dave Gilmour, Ian Paice, Pete Wingfield and Mick Green, he recorded Chuck Berry's 'Brown Eyed Handsome Man' with McCartney. TV Appearances promoting the album followed and on December 14 1999, Paul, Chris and the band returned to Liverpool to play the now historic Cavern Show. Immediately after that gig, Chris crossed Mathew Street and came to join the Cavern City Tours Staff Party at the Cavern Pub, joining Ringer onstage to perform 'air-accordion' on 'Brown Eyed Handsome Man'. Chris Hall returned to Liverpool in August where he, Ringer and Bob Bartey and Steve MacDonald played recreated the Run Devil Run Show at the Cavern. We thought it was so good, we've asked him back, but this time he gets to escape the heat of the cellar club as Run Devil Run is being performed on the Cavern Stage as part of the Mathew Street Festival.

Howie Casey

Howie Casey is a true Liverpool legend. His band Derry and the Seniors were the first Mersey Beat group to go to Hamburg and then, as Howie Casey and the Seniors, the first to release a record. Howie learnt to play the saxophone while he was in the army and went on to form The Seniors in 1959. Allan Williams took them to London where Bruno Koschmider booked them for the Kaiserkeller Club in Hamburg, just up the road from the Indra where The Beatles were playing! In 1961, back in Liverpool, they secured a recording contract with Fontana, but their success was limited to the North-West and the Seniors disbanded in 1962.

Howie joined Kingsize Taylor & the Dominoes and returned to Hamburg's Star Club. They continued to play all over Europe, often being hired to back acts such as Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins.

In 1970 he returned to London and worked for T-Rex, Mott The Hoople amongst others. He was working for producer Tony Visconti, who asked Howie to work on Paul McCartney's new album, 'Band On The Run'. Howie recorded sax solos for 'Bluebird' and 'Mrs Vandebilt', and in 1976 Paul asked Howie to join him on Wings world tour. Several more albums followed - 'Wings At The Speed Of Sound', 'Wings Over America' and 'Back To The Egg'. Along with Steve Holley, Howie worked on the Rockestra and Kampuchea projects, and then the final Wings World Tour, which finished, rather abruptly, in Japan when Paul was arrested for possession of marijuana!

Mersey Beat Legends

In 1997 the Cavern Club celebrated its 40th Anniversary with the unveiling of a Wall of Fame commemorating the 1,801 bands that played at the original Cavern Club between 1957 and 1973. One of the bricks in the wall bears the name 'The Seftons', a group who played at The Cavern in 1964. In 2002, former 'Sefton' Yanni Tsamplakos returned to Mathew Street and the Cavern Club, and this year he's back again, with his new band, Mersey Beat Legends. Joining Yanni to pay tribute to the bands whose music defined the sixties, are Paul Cornwell on lead guitar, John Joce on bass and John Cotter on drums. They will be performing hits by many legendary groups including Gerry And The Pacemakers, The Swinging Blue Jeans, The Searchers and, of course, The Beatles. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome, Mersey Beat Legends.

The Mersey Beatles

If you attended any of last years incredible Mathew Street Festival, you'll be aware of The Mersey Beatles - even if you didn't realize it. They were the band responsible for completely filling Dale Street, turning this usually traffic-filled thoroughfare into a huge can of human sardines! I don't think we've seen such a tightly packed crowd since Castle Street on Yellow Submarine Day in 1999! Following the success of last years shows The Mersey Beatles were offered a residency at The Cavern Club and were proud to be asked by Liverpool City Council to represent the city at a cultural event in Cannes.

Formed by school friends Brian Ambrose (Ringo) and Steven Howard (Paul), they were joined by Steven's cousin David Howard (George) and Jay Murray (John), who had previously been in another band with Steven. They have written and performed their own original songs, but realized in order to achieve success they needed to become a covers band - and what better band to chose than The Beatles?! The Mersey Beatles try to sound as much like their heroes as possible and always attempt to bring the sprit of The Beatles to their shows. Of course, being Scouser's they don't have too much trouble with accents and they have been told that their personalities are also similar to The Fab Four - Dave is the quiet one, Brian the noisy one, Jay the funny one with the sharp streak and Steven the PR one, sorting things out and not wanting to upset anyone!

The Mersey Beatles will once again be playing to their home-crowd at the Mathew Street Festival in Chavasse Park on Monday, and they are especially looking forward to playing the music from the movie A Hard Day's Night at our Reels Years concert. Highly acclaimed across Merseyside and the UK, The Mersey Beatles are thrilled to be representing Liverpool at Beatleweek once again!

The Merseybeats

The band started out in 1961 as The Mavericks but changed their name to The Merseybeats in April 1962. They achieved their first big hit in 1963 with 'It's Love That Really Counts' followed in '64 by their million-selling recording 'I Think of You', which provided them with their first gold disc. Many more hits followed throughout the sixties including 'Mr Moonlight', 'Don't Turn Around' and 'Wishin' and Hopin''.

They appeared regularly at the Cavern Club and they hold the distinction of appearing with The Beatles on more occasions than any other band from that era. Their success brought them international recognition; 1964 saw The Merseybeats appearing in Germany, the USA and even having 'The Merseybeats Show' on Italian television. In 1966 The Merseybeats shortened their name to The Merseys for the recording of 'Sorrow' which has become a sixties classic, mentioned as a favourite by many stars. David Bowie even recorded a version as a tribute to 'his favourite band'! Tony Crane (lead guitar & lead vocals), and original member Billy Kinsley (rhythm guitar & lead vocals) can be seen putting their hearts into every live show. Bob Packham (bass & vocals), Tony's son Adrian Crane (keyboard & lead guitar) and Lou Rosenthal on drums make up this award-winning group. The Merseybeats are one of the most powerful and exciting bands playing 'live' music and the band tour extensively with an electrifying stage show, performing in the most prestigious venues in major cities around the world, and still play to capacity audiences everywhere. The Merseybeats dynamic musical versatility allows them to mix their chart hits with a wide range of other material, every number performed to the highest standard, as one would expect with musicians of this calibre.

The Prellies

As Beatleweek surely shows, Beatles Tribute bands come in many different guises. There are lookalikes, soundalikes, solo Beatles tributes, 'boots and suits', acoustic, a cappella, instrumental and avant-garde bands. There was even that punk style band The Punkles a few years back! One of the most popular bands among true Beatles fans are the early years groups, who focus on the Hamburg and Cavern era. These bands play real raw rock and roll, with the same enthusiasm as the Fab Four did when they were first starting out and audiences are swept along with their energy! We have featured several bands of this genre over the years and this year we're proud to introduce a new young band of local lads who have been rocking Liverpool for the last year.

The Prellies (named of course after the speed pills the Beatles were fed in Hamburg to help them 'Mach Shau' for 7 hours!) were formed last year by four friends who were on a Beatles on-line community and realised they shared an interest in the pre-fame era Beatles and an appreciation of the Star Club Recordings.

They originally formed the band with the intention of recreating the mysterious 'Cavern recording' that Paul McCartney purchased at an auction several years ago, which has never been heard by the public. The Prellies made their debut at Live@pool Tours Paul McCartney Day at Pete Best's Casbah Club in June 2002, which guitarist Trev describes as "a childhood dream… the most fantastic place I've ever played and everything I'd imagined it could be." They have continued to trace the footsteps of the heroes with gigs at The Jacaranda and The Cavern Club.

They still haven't recreated the Cavern recording though… maybe they'll surprise us with it at one of their shows over the weekend.

Prepare to be transported back to St Pauli in 1961 with Chris "Toffee Apple" Henderson, Gareth Evans, Trevor Townsend and Julian Heath… The Prellies!

The Repeatles

The Repeatles formed in 1997 when Jan Leonard (guitar) and Arne Brox (bass) teamed up to perform 'In My Life' at a friend's wedding. The two new buddies turned out to be complete Beatlemaniacs and decided to form a band. Pete Beck (guitar) was drafted to what was dubbed Plastic Soul, and a few unplugged gigs followed, but the lack of a proper rhythm section became apparent. The trio needed drums, so Jan asked his old mate from his punk days, Steve Kling, (in 80's Jan was in Strindbergs while Steve drummed in Japop, both great bands with considerable following in Sweden at the time). Anyway, that was it. The new four-piece was re-named The Repeatles and the line-up has never changed.

Rehearsals duly commenced in an abandoned switchboard room at the rear of a public underground garage in the middle of Stockholm. Nobody ever knew they used it, and no one claimed any rent! However, one night the band had to evacuate in a hurry after hearing that the entire block was up for demolition to make room for a shopping mall! Anyway, luck like that can't last forever, and a new HQ was soon found (no freebie this time, unfortunately).

Songs were picked, randomly at first, but a pattern soon emerged; "Wouldn't it be great to do the entire A Hard Days Night album in one go!? How about the Rooftop Concert? Or why not The Hamburg Days Revisited?" When the repertoire consisted of around 50 songs it was show time. Lots of parties and club gigs followed, and have kept coming in ever since. Normally a Repeatles gig is made up of three or four sets in as many hours, depending on the venue.

Today the Repeatles play around 200 songs of which most are British pop from the sixties. That means that the Repeatles - strictly mathematically - could play for some twelve hours without repeating themselves! Best not tell that to Bill Heckle, guys. He's likely to take you up on the challenge!

The Return

One of the most exciting young Beatles bands to come out of America, The Return have achieved national recognition and a loyal following in just a few years. Concentrating mostly on the touring career of the Beatles, The Return's repertoire has been meticulously practised and perfected to provide an exhilarating, professional show. The band are all in their twenties: founding member Michael Fulop portrays George Harrison; while Shane Landers bears a striking resemblance to Paul McCartney in 1964. Completing the foursome, and the two most recent members to join The Return, are Richard Stelling (John) and Jason Cobble (Ringo). The Return certainly have a passion for music and will always enjoy playing the songs of the Fab Four. With their unwavering dedication to ensuring the utmost level of authenticity in their performances, it is not surprising that people are consistently dazzled by their close likeness to the originals. Same energy. Same charisma. Same feeling.

In 2001 The Return were invited to be the official tour band for the 30th Anniversary celebrations of The Hard Rock Café. The band travelled up the east coast of America with The Beatles' original Magical Mystery Tour Bus performing in Orlando, Atlanta, Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston.

The Return have also shared the stage with many legendary performers; Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Monkees, Peter Noone, Chubby Checker, Tommy James, B.J. Thomas, The Association and Johnny Rivers to name but a few, and they are frequent guests on national television and radio shows. Having appeared at hundred of venues from college campuses to cruise ships, at benefits, festival and private functions The Return have acquired many fans right across America, and no doubt will leave Liverpool with quite a few more!

Rocks Off

Rocks Off are Sweden's greatest Rolling Stones tribute and were formed in Gothenburg in 1995. Rocks Off played at Beatleweek for the first time last year to exceptional reviews, performing 7 gigs in 4 days and are only the second Stones act after The Counterfeit Stones to appear at the festival. Front man Tony Johnson moves and sounds just like Mick Jagger, while resembling (so he say's) Mick's much younger twin brother! Roger Mikander is excellent as 'Keef', albeit a blond version, but he certainly can play guitar like Keith Richards! A man who should be suffering from multiple personality disorder is Lars Elf as he portrays the Stones three guitarists; Brian Jones, Mick Taylor and Ronnie Wood, while there is far less confusion for Pär Lilja on drums, as the ever laid-back Mr Cool, Charlie Watts and Torgny Ehrieder holding them all together as Bill Wyman on bass.

The band will be rocking the crowds at Chavasse Park on Sunday and again as part of the Mathew Street Festival on the Marquee Stage in Dale Street on Monday, before really getting the joint jumpin' at our late night VIP party in the Adelphi.

Rocks Off had a terrific time last year and are really looking forward to playing again at this years Beatles Festival.

Rolando's Beat Brothers

Rolando Giambelli and his brother Tristano founded The Beat Brothers in Italy in 1968, as an acoustic duo performing Beatles songs. In 1992, Rolando's son Alessandro joined them as drummer.

Rolando is an old friend of Cavern City Tours, and he runs The Association of Beatle People in Italy, which organises many Beatle-related events. Rolando has appeared at Beatleweek on many occasions; sometimes with Alessandro (when they called themselves 'Two Of Us'), as a trio with his son and his friend from Switzerland, Marco Zappa and even as a quartet with other Italian friends. He has played at almost every Liverpool venue, from Albert Dock to The Grapes and many other places in between, and he considers the Liverpool people (and the visitors who all become adopted citizens for Beatleweek!) to be the warmest people in the world.

We're delighted to have the Giambelli family with us once again! Buon divertimento!

Tony Sheridan

Tony Sheridan was born in Norwich, England in 1940 and grew up in the family home listening to mostly classical music. He attended violin lessons from and early age but later changed his violin for a guitar. He formed a Skiffle group in 1956 and moved to London in 58, becoming a session musician for artists including Conway Twitty, Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran with whom he toured the UK. Tony Sheridan became a regular guest on Jack Goode's massively popular ITV show 'Oh Boy'. Tony and his then band mates Brian Bennett and 'Liquorice' Locking (later to back Cliff Richard as his Shadows) toured again with Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent, but it was during this tour that Cochran died tragically in a car crash.

In 1960 Tony Sheridan went to Hamburg beginning originally at the Kaiserkeller Club but moving on to the Top Ten Club within a short time. He was backed by various groups including Gerry and the Pacemakers, but it was The Beatles whose association with Sheridan would lead to both parties becoming vital components in musical history. John, Paul, George, Stu and Pete became the resident backing band for Tony at the Top Ten, and they all lived together for several months. Tony Sheridan was offered a recording contract by Bert Kaempfert and naturally took his backing band along to accompany him. The recordings they made were subsequently released by Polydor under the name Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers… and of course history was made thanks to that one vinyl disc!

The Beatles returned to England and Ringo Starr briefly joined Tony's band in Hamburg. A reunion with the Beatles (now with Ringo) took place at the opening of the Star-Club in 1962 where Tony and the Beatles appeared on the same bill.

Tony Sheridan continued to work in Hamburg releasing several albums for Polydor. He had a hit with the record 'Skinny Minny' which had been recorded with The Big Six from Glasgow and he and that band went to Australia for a short tour. It was in Sydney that he visited the family of his Scots saxophonist, Alex Young, whose younger brothers plagued Tony to demonstrate his guitar playing, which he was pleased to do - they later became AC/DC!!

In 1967 Tony accepted a two-month gig playing for the US Troops serving in Vietnam… he ended up staying for nearly two years and for his services, Tony Sheridan was made an honorary Captain in the U.S. Army. The experience also influenced Tony's spiritual beliefs and he took an interest in Buddhism.

His musical projects have continued and he recently released a new album entitled 'Vagabond'. He still performs all over the world, the Tony Sheridan Trio now completed by two South American musicians Anthony on drums and Victor on bass.

Two Of Us

Adrie van Osch and Jos Vervoort were teenagers in the Sixties, and both took an interest in music after they heard The Beatles. The two met in the seventies and discovered a shared appreciation of The Beatles music, and in 1975 they began performing the songs of their heroes as a duo. Jos is the lead singer, and also plays the flute and saxophone, while Adrie accompanies him on the guitar and provides backing vocals. Their vast repertoire is comprised entirely of hits from the sixties and includes, naturally, many Beatles songs - the music which bought them together. During their shows you can expect to hear classic songs by bands such as the Mama's and the Papa's, The Kinks, The Small Faces, The Move, Manfred Mann, Billy J Kramer and many, many others.

To celebrate their 25th anniversary as a duo, Two Of Us released a CD called The First, which contains a small selection of the songs they perform.

Two Of Us have played in Holland, Germany, France and Belgium, but Adrie van Osch and Jos Vervoort consider their concerts during the Beatle Week 2001 as the real highlight in their career. They are thrilled to have the opportunity to come back to Liverpool this year and will be joined by a great number of Dutch fans.

Wonderwall

Wonderwall, formerly Clone Farm, generated enthusiasm during Beatle Week 2001 by playing some of the more obscure gems of The Beatles. Sour Milk Sea' definitely got a lot of attention. So inspired was drummer Stan Bullock, that he contacted Jackie Lomax at his website to express how well the song was received. Jackie was also excited and decided it was time to play again in his old hometown. In addition to their own shows this year, Wonderwall will provide musical support for Jackie at the Cavern Club. "We are very honoured and excited at the opportunity," says Stan. And so Marc Diffendal (bass) and Stan Bullock return with two new recruits; Brad Newell (guitar), an established musician and composer of 'renaissance pop' music, has studied at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, the North Carolina School of the Arts, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and has appeared with opening acts for Duran Duran, Donovan, Adrian Belew and Living Colour. Aside from his live appearances and recordings, Brad's talents extend to studio engineer and music instructor. Chuck Martin (guitar), has entertained all over the southeast, opening for Blue Oyster Cult & Black Sabbath, and has also worked as session guitarist for Ray Stevens and co-wrote "The Feeling's Not Right Again". Music from Marc, Stan, and Brad can be accessed at www.neonpie.com while Chuck's music can be heard at www.mp3.com/ChuckMartin

Wonderwall will be performing post-Beatle music as well as many less heard favourites, and are sure to delight all Beatle fans.

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