Chynna's Pearls: A Complete Review of RAIN (Part 2)

I’ve been a huge Beatle fan my entire life, thanks to my mother. She actually saw them on the Ed Sullivan and took awesome black and white pictures with her brand new camera. I could sing every word to every one of their songs by the time I was Jaimie’s age. And by the time I reached my teen years, I had quite a huge Beatles collection. I couldn’t tell you for sure why I was so fascinated (Okay, obsessed) with those four cool dudes from Liverpool. Sometimes, as I tuned the world around me out, listening to them on my Walkman (remember those?), I often wondered what it would be like to sit among the hundreds of screaming girls, listening to them play. Then, three years ago, I finally got my chance. Well….sort of.


Three years ago, a friend of mine sent me an email with a link to a Beatle Tribute Band called RAIN. He knew how much I loved the Beatles (especially John) and told me that this was THE tribute band to see.

Why on earth would I spend money to go see a fake Beatle band? I thought. That’s like going to see Elvis impersonators in Vegas. No matter how much they sound like them or look like them, it just wouldn’t be the same. But I really needed that connection and after ‘Googling’ these RAIN guys, I was curious. It proved to be one of the best decisions I ever made.

RAIN is not some cover band just trying to keep the Beatles alive. You know the bands I mean: Up there on the stage, clenching tightly onto their dream of being a rock star by playing popular songs from the past. These guys ROCK. And they rock because they care enough to put 110% into every show. They want to give their fans the kind of show they would want to see if they were sitting in the audience.

Some of you may have read my post about my first experience with RAIN (scroll to near the bottom). This time I was able to enjoy the show so much more, not just because I wasn’t bawling through the last half of the show (LOL!) but also because I was with a friend, sitting beside a couple who are huge Beatle fans and I was there to have fun. And those guys didn’t disappoint.

OUR RAIN EXPERIENCE: For those of you lucky enough to have seen the ‘real’ Beatles, this has to be the next closest thing. I’ve seen many, many reels of concert footage and these guys are spot on. Believe me, I was the biggest critic of impressionist bands but not anymore.

If you arrive earlier to the show, they have Beatle trivia up on the big screens both to pick your brain as well as to get you revved up for the concert. (I actually learned a few things I didn’t know!) Then, without warning, the lights go off and an announcer comes on to introduce RAIN. (The best part is when he says, “No cameras, video or audio and, please, no smoking…ANYTHING!”)

After that, Ed Sullivan comes up on the big screens talking about how we’ll be twice entertained by these young guys from Liverpool—you all remember that infamous introduction, right? Then Ed says, “…and here they are: RAIN!”

The lights go on.

Then the room flooded with the infamous guitar intro to “A Hard Day’s Night.”

There they were: ‘Paul’ (Joey Curatolo), ‘Ringo’ (Ralph Castelli--first concert I saw Ralph, this last time it was Joseph Bologna...=D) ‘John’ (Steve Landes) and ‘George’ (Joe Bithorn). I think the first time I saw them, my jaw hit the floor and I most likely stayed that way for the first entire song. (GAWD I hope they couldn’t see me. LOL!) It isn’t just because they looked just like them (‘Mop Top’ wigs, costumes, guitars, etc.) but they sounded like them. Exactly like them. When I closed my eyes, I thought I was listening to my favorite, worn out CD of “A Hard Day’s Night.” Not only that but the little mannerisms—those little…’things’ that made the original guys so cool in their own ways…(eg: Ringo’s head bopping, John’s hunched over guitar stance, the way Paul moved his head and face when he sang and how George got so into his groove when he played) was all right on. That’s when they won me over.

Each show they do is a little bit different with an excellent mix of some of the classic Beatles songs. Usually in the first segment, we see the guys in the traditional outfits they wore when they first came out. The shows I’ve seen have included “I Saw Her Standing There,” “This Boy,” (YAY! RINGO!!!), “Help,” “Yesterday,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” and others. Then as the audience watches some footage from Beatles concerts and what was in the news during the mid-Sixties (including Woodstock and the controversy surrounding the Vietnam War. I loved hearing, “Stop! Children. What’s that sound? Everybody look what’s going down…”), the guys did a quick costume change into their St. Pepper gear. The lights came back on as ‘Paul’ sang the beginning of “Hello, Goodbye”. (Had the spotlight flash right in my face at that point because it was behind ‘Paul’ and I was in the second row right in front of ‘Paul’. I musta looked like a deer in headlights. That must have been hilarious from his and 'Ringo's' perspective.). L-O-V-E-D hearing "I am the Walrus" too.

We got to hear all the great songs from that time like “When I’m Sixty-Four,” “A Day in the Life,” (one of my favs) and, as you remember me talking about last time, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” One of my favorite moments was hearing ‘Ringo’ do “With A Little Help From My Friends. (YAY! RINGO! 'Ringo’--in both RAIN concerts I've seen--is awesome.)

After a short intermission, we came back to see the guys all sitting on stools, in jeans and casual shirts. Each of them had longer hair, ‘George’ had a beard and ‘John’ has his trademark circular glasses/shades. This is where all they have is acoustic guitars and their mikes. The whole show is awesome but this had to be my favorite segment because it’s so intimate—like you’re eavesdropping on a jam session—maybe how it might have been back in Paul’s basement before the guys became The Beatles. All the lights were down low with soft spotlights on the guys. Very cool. (BTW: If you guys are reading this, I’d give anything to hear you sing Blackbird, especially if I can bring Jaimie next time. That’s her ‘calming song’. She’ll even hold up her “I Love Peace, my Mama, Jamie Oliver, Ringo and John,” sign she made. =D)

The final segment of the show was were they sang the songs from near the end of the Beatle years. They sang awesome tunes like, “Come Together,” (WHOO!!) “Get Back,” “Revolution,” and the best version of “Imagine” I’ve heard since John sang it himself (almost made me cry, Steve.) Just when we thought the show was over, the guys came back out on the stage to enjoy their standing ovation and treated us to two last songs: “Let It Be” and “Hey Jude.” (That was after ‘Paul’ sat at the piano asking ‘John’ what they should sing then breaking into a wonderful version of the Lime in the Coconut song. HA!!!) The guys got us all singing and waving our peace signs in the air. It was awesome.

My BFF, Colleen—who was a RAIN virgin—is now a big fan too: “It was great to be at a show where I knew most of the words to the songs! And they sounded just like them! And they looked just like them! And we were on the big screen!” (Okay, I wasn’t thrilled about the screen part. I am one of those girls who’d much rather take the pictures or videos than be in them. Knowing that my face was up there all gynormous and humungous is so painfully embarrassing. =S I had no idea it happened either until the guy sitting next to me—a sweetheart who got to see the guys in Liverpool—said, “We were up on the screen throughout that song, you know.” ACK!! All I could think of was ‘How on EARTH did they fit my entire head and nose up there without blocking anyone else out or causing a screaming riot as people fought to run from the sight of it all? LOL! *cringe*)

We walked outside after the concert and the ground was soaked. Apparently there’d been a thunderstorm during the concert. We walked back to Colleen’s car, Beatles songs and memories echoing in my head, I smiled. I felt lighter, happier and more energized than I had in a long time. There truly is nothing like a good RAIN to breathe life back into the world, our hearts and our souls, don’t you think? ;D

OH! And those pictures my mom took of the Beatles when they were on Ed Sullivan? They’re tucked into a scrapbook I keep in my ‘Beatles Box’ in the basement. I think my mom would have had a great time too.

(Thanks to RAIN for such a great time. Please don’t wait so long to come back again, okay? And everyone be sure to check out RAIN'S Webpage to see pictures, buy merchandise and find out when they'll be playing at a venue near you soon!)