[.ca] The Beatles With Tony Sheridan

A "must have" for students of Beatles history:
This DVD documentary from Universal is another "must have" for students of Beatles history. What might at first appear as another cheesy DVD cashing in on The Beatles' continuing popularity and 40th anniversary of the Beatles first visit to the U.S., this DVD was a pleasant surprise. While this DVD does not contain any filmed footage from the Beatles' performances in Hamburg in their early career, it does include a variety of photographs from the Hamburg days accompanied by their recordings with Tony Sheridan. Many of the photographs are from the collection of Astrid Kirchher. Kirchher was a member of the Beatles' inner circle in Hamburg and girlfriend of Stuart Sutcliffe. The documentary includes interviews with recollections by Tony Sheridan, Astrid Kirchher, Klaus Voorman, Horst Fascher and Allan Williams. The interviews are all presented in sepia-tone rather than color or black and white, which gives this documentary an artsy appearance. Songs included in this DVD all feature an introduction by Tony Sheridan: Ain't She Sweet When The Saints Go Marching In Why If You Love Me, Baby Sweet Georgia Brown Nobody's Child My Bonnie (English intro) Ruby Baby Let's Dance What'd I Say Ready Teddy Ya Ya Kansas City Skinnie Minny Swanee River My Bonnie (German intro) I definitely recommend this for all Beatles DVD completists and fans interested in the pre-Beatlemania period.

Should be called Tony Sheridan's Greatest Hits:
Good production but only a few Beatles tidbits. A few photos which are used over and over again. Tracks that were made without any Beatle involvement are listed as having Beatles play on them. There's no "Cry for a Shadow" and that says it all if this was this was really supposed to be about the Beatles Hamburg recordings. You pay for a nice "Ain't She Sweet". That's in the first five minutes. Then you can turn it off.

Not very impressed:
I was pretty hesitant to buy this DVD in the first place, but when I watched it, I was quite disappointed. It does have a lot of info, but the consistently brown coloring throughout the interviews got on my nerves. I expected more pictures of the early Beatles, but the photos shown in this documentary were used again and again. I must admit, the packaging is very attractive, but that's about it. I did like Astrid's chapter on the DVD in which she talks about the Beatles personally(She should have her own DVD), but other than that, I wasn't blown away by this DVD. View at your own risk.

Missing a key track:
Be aware that the USA edition of this DVD omits a key track from the Sheridan sessions, the Lennon & Harrison penned instrumental "Cry For A Shadow." If you're looking for a source for all of The Beatles' Hamburg studio recordings, you'll either need to find an imported copy, or stick with the standard CD versions of the Sheridan tapes.

A "must have" for students of Beatles history:
This DVD documentary from Universal is another "must have" for students of Beatles history. What might at first appear as another cheesy DVD cashing in on The Beatles' continuing popularity and 40th anniversary of the Beatles first visit to the U.S., this DVD was a pleasant surprise. While this DVD does not contain any filmed footage from the Beatles' performances in Hamburg in their early career, it does include a variety of photographs from the Hamburg days accompanied by their recordings with Tony Sheridan. Many of the photographs are from the collection of Astrid Kirchher. Kirchher was a member of the Beatles' inner circle in Hamburg and girlfriend of Stuart Sutcliffe. The documentary includes interviews with recollections by Tony Sheridan, Astrid Kirchher, Klaus Voorman, Horst Fascher and Allan Williams. The interviews are all presented in sepia-tone rather than color or black and white, which gives this documentary an artsy appearance. Songs included in this DVD all feature an introduction by Tony Sheridan: Ain't She Sweet When The Saints Go Marching In Why If You Love Me, Baby Sweet Georgia Brown Nobody's Child My Bonnie (English intro) Ruby Baby Let's Dance What'd I Say Ready Teddy Ya Ya Kansas City Skinnie Minny Swanee River My Bonnie (German intro) The packaging on this product is also very well done and it includes a nice booklet as well as several postcards of photos from the Hamburg era. I definitely recommend this for all Beatles DVD completists and fans interested in the pre-Beatlemania period.