Celebrate New Year's Eve with a Beatles tribute

Brad Armstrong, who portrays George Harrison in "Imagine: Remembering the Fab Four," a Beatles tribute band, said he knows more about Harrison than the Beatles probably did.

"When it comes to the Beatles, the worst chroniclers of their own history are they themselves," Armstrong said with a laugh during an interview with The Park Record. "If you really want to understand the Beatles, you don't read their words. You go research what other people have written."

That's exactly what Armstrong did when he needed to brush up on his Beatles' knowledge. He watched videos and listened to countless recordings. And he lost himself in extensive biographies by friends, his ex-wife Patty Boyd and various music critics.

"I studied whatever I could about George," Armstrong said. "I had to know George like the others guys in the band knew their characters. I mean, we're all Beatle nuts, or better, Beatle nerds. The band is at an extreme level when it comes to Beatle trivia."

Armstrong joined "Imagine" which includes Daniel "Dango" Burt as Ringo Starr, Tom Coburn as John Lennon and Richard Fazzi as Paul McCartney in 2004, some 11 years after its inception.
"I'm pretty sure the idea of the band when it was formed was to have fun," Armstrong said. "And I'm pretty sure the idea is still to have fun."
was played on the radio at the time."I tip my hat to the era we grew up in because it had a lot of good music," he said. "There was such a free spirit to it and it was a lot of fun."
The Beatles, however, captivated Armstrong because there was an element of innocence in their music and their TV and movie appearances.
"They were energetic and they were upbeat," he said. "They were fresh and interesting. There was like a childhood boldness about it all."
At first, Armstrong was drawn to the songwriting and philosophies of John Lennon, before switching to Team Harrison.
"I used to be a John guy for what he did with peace," Armstrong said. "But I think George was more authentic with his life and his dedication to Eastern philosophies. He always seemed to have his life under control."
Armstrong said it is a challenge to play the classic Beatles songs, while acting like the Beatles, because the original band is such an icon in music history.
"It's not only extremely difficult, but I don't know how well we do it," he said with a laugh. "We have to find some kind of balance, because we are ourselves who are trying to carry off other personalities at the same time. And those personalities have been engrained in the public's consciousness for nearly 50 years."
Armstrong said what makes it a bit easier is "Imagine" is strictly a tribute.
"We try not to put our own little touches into the music," he said. "We play the songs like you would hear them on the record. And we always try to keep it fun, because a lot of tribute bands miss the point while playing live and tend to forget the Beatles were fun."
Playing the early Beatles songs is easier than playing the songs the band members recorded in their later years, Armstrong said.
"One of the reasons they quit touring was because their music was difficult to pull off live," he said. "(The compositions) were getting sticky in 1966. 1967, it was pretty much impossible to play their new music live, unless they went on tour with a big supporting cast of choruses and multitude of side musicians.
"These days, it is possible, with all the advanced musical technology, to play songs the Beatles couldn't perform live," Armstrong said. "I mean, it's easy to program the various sounds and samples into a keyboard, which, at the time, they didn't have access to."
"Imagine: Remembering the Fab Four" is still looking at other songs in the Beatles catalog to learn, Armstrong said.
"We like to mix things up a bit, not just for ourselves, but for our audience as well," he said. "We try to add new songs and the original repertoire is so huge, and the hits are so big, that there is no problem of running out of material."
Armstrong's favorite Beatles and Harrison songs change daily.
"I'll tell you which songs I like at this moment," he said. "It's 'Strawberry Fields.' And my favorite George song is his post-Beatles 'Isn't It a Pity,' from his (1970 masterpiece) album 'All Things Must Pass.' But if you ask me the same question tomorrow, you will get different answers."
Although Imagine is fine playing the songs and donning the Beatles period costumes from the early days, "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and the later years, the members still want to find ways of making the show more exciting.
"We have been talking about incorporating more audio-visual stuff into the show," Armstrong said. "It's a quantum leap for us and it will take a lot more effort and time. Plus, you have to come up with a concept to do it right. So that's our next step."
Imagine: Remembering the Fab Four will perform at the Egyptian Theatre, 328 Main Street, Friday through Sunday, Dec. 31 through Jan. 2, Friday and Saturday performances begin at 8 p.m. and Sunday's show will start at 6 p.m. Tickets are $25-$30 in advance and $30-$35 at the door. For more information call (435) 649-9371 or visit www.egyptiantheatrecompany.org