I recently found “The Beatles ‘64” documentary on Disney+. Since I am a Beatles Fan, I was very excited and decided to check it out and, boy oh boy, was I amazed. With new B-roll and some never-seen-before Beatles clips from live concerts and off-stage, which makes it fresh. The production crew did a great job. 

“The Beatles ‘64” documentary takes us through their U.S. debut in 1964. We watch as they attract over 73 million views on the Ed Sullivan show, go through their rise in the United States. and attract fans and haters alike. As a Beatles fan, this documentary is everything I could have hoped for and more. 

The first two minutes are clips of a speech and B-roll of former U.S President John F. Kennedy. Once we get into the meat of the documentary, The Beatles B-roll footage begins. It starts with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr on a train to America. The documentary does a great job of combining interviews with never-before-seen  B-roll of The Beatles behind the scenes of the Ed Sullivan show. I do wish they could have included some unseen clips of Brian Epstien, who managed the Beatles from 1961 until his tragic death in 1967. It would have been cool to hear his point of view of The Beatles coming to America. 

Next, we see the Beatles 1963-64 exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum that Sir Paul McCartney opened two years ago, along with a clip of Ringo Starr looking at some outfits he wore during The Beatles days. I liked how the filmmakers included pictures from when the Beatles were in America and Ringo’s suits from the Beatles days. However, I really wish they would have shown some suits or guitars that both John Lennon and George Harrison had from the earlyBeatles days. Even photos of them would have been nice.

The documentary was directed  by David Tedeschi and  also included interviews with other musicians and writers, such as Smokey Robinson, Jamie Bernstien (Daughter of Lenard Bernstien), Jack Douglas, David Lynch, Ronald Isley, Joe Queenan, Martin Scorsese, Terence Trent D’arby, Jane Tompkins,  Harry Benson, and Vickie Brenna-Costa who was a fan at The Plaza Hotel which played a significant role in the Beatles First American Tour in 1964. 

 I thought it was interesting hearing some musicians and writers talk about when The Beatles started to exist and how they impacted the world and their life. While John Lennon and George Harrison died in 1980 and 2001, it was nice to see they used the interview clips from both of the deceased band members. 

John Lennon’s 1975 interview from The Tomorrow Show was used along with two audio interview clips from another Lennon interview. They used George Harrison interview clips from 1995 and clips when he and Ringo Starr did one with Aspel in 1989. It would have been nice to have heard from both Harrison and Lennon on how performing live felt. 

It was strange that only one of the two remaining Beatles was allowed to state what they would have said to their missing members. Only Paul was asked what he would have said to John and George if they were still alive today. The fact that Ringo either wasn’t asked, or his answer wasn’t published, is a shame. It would have helped the documentary feel more balanced.

Overall, I really enjoyed the documentary. It was heartwarming, fun and had some very interesting angles and interviews. It was also a classic to hear Beatles songs that they wrote during the early ‘60s with hits such as “Please Please Me,” “Twist and Shout,” “I Saw Her Standing There” and countless others. Beatles fans, this will touch your hearts, and you will not be disappointed.