They've arrived… and to prove it they're here! We are truly honoured to welcome back to Beatle Week two of the Prefab Four, Ron Nasty and Barry Wom aka Neil Innes and John Halsey. The Rutles have almost become a part of the Beatles story; if you love the Beatles, you probably love The Rutles too! George Harrison certainly loved The Rutles: he had a cameo in the 1978 film; a position Neil Innes had actually been in 10 years earlier when he appeared with the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band in a scene in The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour film.
Neil Innes was the musical force behind the Rutles. The songs he wrote for the Rutles are often mistaken as Beatles songs appearing on bootleg CDs as lost recordings! Neil's amazing Beatles song parodies alongside Eric Idle's wonderful script created the hilarious movie The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash, which led to a soundtrack album and, following the Beatles own reunion in the 90s, the release in 1996 of a further Archaeology album featuring new and previously unreleased songs. John Halsey played the part of Barrington Womble in the Rutles movie - the drummer Nasty and Dirk found hiding in their van, whom they persuaded to change his name to save time and his haircut to save Brylcreem. He became simply Barry Wom. John now runs a very successful pub in Cambridge with his wife Elaine, but continues to work with Neil; recording the Archaeology album and now touring with The Rutles show.
Both Dirk McQuickly and Stig O'Hara or Eric Idle and Rikki Fataar as they are better known are now working on other projects, and Ollie Halsall; the original Rutles guitarist sadly died in 1992, but Neil and John have found four great musicians to complete the band: Mark 'Griff' Griffiths on bass, J.J. Jones provides percussion, Californian Ken Thornton on guitar and Mickey Simmonds on keyboards.
They're not exactly a tribute band - in fact, Neil points out that they never were a real band in the first place so they're a kind of recollection of a band that never existed. However unreal the Rutles are, they have plenty of real fans - the band has been touring the UK this summer, but the tour ends here in Liverpool with the final Rutles gig here at Beatle Week. Let it Rot!