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When a local radio station gave me tickets to see Rain, a Beatles tribute band, I really didn’t know what to say at first. I mean, I’m a life-long Beatles fan and for me to see a Beatles cover band just felt sort of blasphemous, you know what I mean? Why should I support a band that makes a living off of music that they have absolutely nothing to do with?? Come on, I’d go see Paul or Ringo in a heartbeat but these guys??? I mean, who are these guys? Yes, I understand that Rain is one of the bigger Beatles tribute acts and they even did a stint on broadway. But, I just didn’t feel the need to see some faux-Beatles group.

So, after all of my whining and huffing & puffing, I ended up realizing that I could simply just do this for my ten year old son. Yes, chalking this whole thing up to my kid’s musical education gave me a reason to go to this show.

Anyway, Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles, were scheduled for two performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center this past week. My son and I attended the tuesday night show.

Essentially the show is a live recreation of the Beatles’ musical career from ’62 to ’70. In addition to the band playing and looking like the Beatles, there are elaborate stage setups, synchronized lighting and videos. The goal is to transport the audience back to the ’60′s. They even show TV commercials from the era on the video screens to set the mood.

Honestly, the concert was better than I expected. It all sounds cheesy on paper but the whole show was actually a fun experience. The band did a great job in trying to recreate all the sounds correctly which is a tough feat since most of the audience knows these tunes backwards and forwards. And kudos to the stage and lighting designers. The visuals were very well done and took the show beyond merely just being another run of the mill Beatles tribute night. There were four stage design changes to cover the major eras – “The Ed Sullivan Show” setup, “Shea Stadium”, “Sgt. Peppers” and the “Let it Be/Rooftop” setting.

It wasn’t all perfect though. There were some lyric flubs here and there, and the synths covering the string parts on “Yesterday” and “Eleanor Rigby” were mixed way too loud during the songs. And quite frankly the mimicry including the body movements/mannerisms and the heavy accents when speaking with the audience kinda got old after a while.

A highlight for me was during the “acoustic set” when they played songs like “Girl”, “In My Life” and “I’ve Just Seen a Face”. It felt a bit more natural during this set since it didn’t rely heavily on visuals or mimicry. It felt less constrained and they even did an extended guitar jam during “I’ve Just Seen a Face” which was a nice change of pace when everything else was almost a note for note carbon copy of the records.

All in all, my son and I had a fun night singing along to a bunch of Beatles tunes. Rain did a commendable job in recreating the look and sound of the liverpool lads. Nothing earth shattering here but it’s great to be able to share the experience with your kids.

retroGrade: B

Rain : A Tribute to the Beatles
at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC)
January 17, 2012

the musicians (as far as I can recall from the band introductions at the end of the concert):
Steve Landes, Mac Ruffing, Tom Teeley, Douglas Cox and Chris Smallwood

the setlist at the January 17, 2012 show (again, I didn’t take extensive notes so I might be missing a couple songs…):
I Want To Hold Your Hand
All My Loving
This Boy
I Saw Her Standing There
A Hard Day’s Night
I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
Yesterday
I Feel Fine
Day Tripper
Twist and Shout
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Little Help From My Friends
Eleanor Rigby
Strawberry Fields
When I’m 64
Sgt. Pepper (reprise)
A Day In The Life

(intermission)

Hello Goodbye
I Am The Walrus
Girl
In My Life
Do You Want to Know a Secret
I’ve Just Seen a Face
Come Together
Get Back
Revolution
The End

(encore)
Give Peace A Chance
Let It Be
Hey Jude

2012 Rain tour schedule:
Jan 25, 2012 Wheeling, West Virginia Capitol Music Hall
Jan 26, 2012 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre
Jan 27, 2012 Providence, RI Providence PAC
Jan 28, 2012 Wallingford, CT Oakdale Theatre
Jan 29, 2012 Lowell, MA Lowell Memorial Auditorium
Jan 31, 2012 – Feb 5, 2012 Philadelphia, PA Academy of Music
Feb 8, 2012 – Feb 9, 2012 Flint, MI Whiting Auditorium
Feb 10, 2012 – Feb 11, 2012 Cleveland, OH Palace Theatre
Feb 12, 2012 Grand Rapids, MI DeVos Performing Hall
Feb 14, 2012 – Feb 16, 2012 Rochester, NY Auditorium Theatre
Feb 17, 2012 – Feb 19, 2012 Buffalo, NY Shea’s Performing Arts Center
Feb 21, 2012 Erie, PA Warner Theatre
Feb 22, 2012 – Feb 23, 2012 Elmira, NY Clemens Performing Arts Center
Feb 24, 2012 – Feb 26, 2012 Scranton, PA Scranton Cultural Center
Feb 29, 2012 Sioux Falls, SD Washington Pavilion
Mar 1, 2012 Milwaukee, WI Milwaukee Theatre
Mar 2, 2012 Madison, WI Overture Center
Mar 3, 2012 – Mar 4, 2012 Minneapolis, MN Orpheum Theater
Mar 13, 2012 Bellingham, WA Mount Baker Theatre
Mar 14, 2012 Kennewick, WA Toyota Center
Mar 15, 2012 Medford, OR Ginger Rogers
Mar 16, 2012 – Mar 18, 2012 Reno, NV Pioneer center
Mar 20, 2012 Albuquerque, NM Popejoy Hall
Mar 21, 2012 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak Center
Mar 23, 2012 Boise, ID Morrison Center
Apr 11, 2012 – Apr 13, 2012 Boston, MA Wilbur Theatre
Apr 16, 2012 Charlotte, NC Belk Theatre
Apr 17, 2012 Bethlehem, PA Zoellner Arts Center
Apr 24, 2012 – Apr 29, 2012 Dallas, TX Music Hall at Fair Park
May 1, 2012 – May 6, 2012 Nashville, TN Andrew Jackson Hall
May 10, 2012 – May 12, 2012 Tempe, AZ Gammage Auditorium
May 15, 2012 – May 16, 2012 Des Moines, IA Civic Center of Greater Des Moines
May 17, 2012 Wausau, WI Grand Theatre
May 18, 2012 – May 19, 2012 Appleton, WI Fox Cities PAC
May 20, 2012 Cincinnati, OH Proctor and Gamble Hall

for more information, check out the band’s official website: RainTribute.com

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4. Jeff Beck – Rock & Roll Party – Les Paul Tribute Concert DVD Blu-Ray
5. Asia Concert Review – Raleigh Memorial Auditorium – Omega 2010 Tour

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music, reviews by retroDan