Rating: 
Summary: Reliving 1964... for the first time
Review: I am old enough to claim that the Beatles were still technically a group when I was born. But I wasn't one of the millions upon millions of people who saw these shows when they were originally broadcast. Considering so many people (listeners, fans, musicians, journalists) all agree that this was a pinnacle moment for them, the shows themselves had been pretty much hidden from public view since they aired. I had seen the clips of them playing in the "Anthology" and other documentaries. I thought their performances were fun, but I never had a feeling of how they fit in with contemporary 1964 culture and why it was all such a big deal.
Until now.
The two-set DVD has the four Ed Sullivan shows, complete with commercials, from February, 1964 and September, 1965. All I can say is... wow. The shows themselves feature a variety of acts, but they all share one thing in common: they are all totally lame compared to the Beatles. Mitzi Gaynor singing "It's Too Darn Hot"? Yikes! The comedy musings of Dave Barry? Oh dear. I can commiserate all too well with the Anacin commerical as it intones, "pain... pain... pain..."
Okay, maybe I'm being a little harsh here. I did enjoy Tessie O'Shea. She's not cool and she's not trying to be. She's just having fun and it's infectious as she belts her way through a bunch of old standards. The bit from "Oliver!" was cute (see the young Davy Jones, later of Monkees fame) and it was historically amusing to see Sonny Liston take a bow as the "heavyweight champion of the world"... when we know he will be knocked out by Cassius Clay the following week.
You begin to understand how much of a shock the Beatles were to the national psyche. Long hair? Maybe not from today's standards, but look at what everyone else looks like on these shows! Music? Well, today Beatles music is all mixed up on the radio, played against songs made some 10 - 20 years after their debut. Here, you can see what they were up against at the moment... and they just blow the doors off of everyone including Cilla Black, one of their contemporaries.
The video is clearest on the clips that feature the Beatles (as you would imagine). The rest varies. Some looks a bit blurred and there are some analog tracking issues. Well, the videotape is 40 years old, in a format that has been dead for at least 20 years. It's probably a miracle that the shows look as clean as they do. The sound is pretty good, but keep in mind that these were live performances. And "TV" and "hi-fidelity" didn't exactly go hand in hand in 1964. The second show in "Myamuh Beach" has some serious audio defects, but that how it sounded then. I enjoyed the live performances, warts and all. Unlike a lot of shows from the 1960's, the performances on Ed Sullivan were live rather than lip-synched.
DVD extras? Not a one. The shows themselves are the extras. There's no documentaries necessary, no secondary audio channel needed to explain the phenomenon, it's just, "Ladies and Gentlemen... the Beatles".
And really, that's all you need in the end.
Rating:
Summary: Great value for your money!
Review: I bought this collection when it was an Internet and television-only special offer through the official Ed Sullivan site. It was twice the cost of what it's going for now, but was still a bargain. This is a wonderful time capsule of four hours of network television from 1964 and 1965. I can't believe that some other reviewers are complaining about the inclusion of all the other Sullivan acts and the commercials. First, did they even READ the Amazon.com description of the product?? ["A great concept: The Beatles appeared four times on CBS' The Ed Sullivan Show, and while one is tempted to skip through this collection to watch only the Fab Four's 20 performances, there is historic value in seeing Sullivan's complete programs."] Second, if you're a die-hard Beatles fan THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT. Every single live Beatles performance aired from the stages of the Ed Sullivan show, placed within the context of the original airings. And none of the performances truncated, as they are on many other collections and in subsequent television airings. And, guess what? With the wonderful state-of-the-art, cutting-edge technology of DVD, if you don't like the other performances you can go right to the Beatles songs directly from the menu. No fast forwarding! ISN'T TECHNOLOGY WONDERFUL?? Hey, hey! Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!!! A few words of advice: Buy it. Now. The Beatles, unlike the people running the Elvis Presley enterprise, are notorious for being concerned about the amount of product on the market. You never know when something of theirs will go out of print, or how long it will take to come back into print. (Remember the long-gone "Rock and Roll Music" and "Love Songs" albums ... or the many years that "Live at the BBC" was out of print?) Yes, I know it's a SOFA production and not Apple, but who knows how much Apple's blessing had to do with this DVD's appearance on the market? And just what have some people got against Soupy Sales doing "The Mouse" anyway???"
Rating:
Summary: Pure Excitement!
Review: I bought this DVD thinking it would be "interesting" to see the Beatles on the Sullivan show, since the Beatles were raw and energetic then, and Sullivan was a goof. But as I watched these shows I couldn't believe the excitement and energy the Beatles generated! Sure, some of the younger members in the audience went overboard with their reactions, but this was heady stuff. Even though I saw these performances when they originally happened, I was even more bowled over watching them again on this DVD. The Beatles were having fun, the audience was having fun, and there's no name-calling, insults, or smut. What a concept. I can't recommend this DVD highly enough. Even my 19-year daughter with an attitude thought this was cool.
Rating: 
Summary: Neat set, but could have been better
Review: I bought this set a year ago when it first came out. Amazon has a great price. I paid almost twice as much. It's a must have for a any Beatles fan. But, the set isn't exactly as advertised. It claims to have all four shows in full-length format with all the original commercials intact. All the cigarette commercials were left out and few seconds here and there of the show itself were omitted, as well. The menu is also flawed. But, what the heck, we bought the set for one reason only and that's to see the Fabs!!
Rating:
Summary: PILSBURY PUSH BUTTON CAKE DECORATOR !
Review: I give it 5 stars just for the ads alone! I'd already seen the Beatle footage over the years, most of the other acts were very ordinary with the exceptions of Soupy Sales, Morecombe and Wise, Cab Calloway, and Acker Bilk. The ads make the buying of this DVD worthwhile. My favorites were the silly 1965 Lipton Ice Tea ad with George Fenneman in the little boat, the Stepfordish 1964 Lipton ad with the wife making her husband a cup of tea in the creepiest looking kitchen I've seen, and of course the cute "Pilsbury Push Button Cake Decorator" ad from the second show. If Pilsbury made and sold products in Australia I would have bought one just because I like the old commercial so much. Who said old advertising doesn't work? But seriously, that's what I personally like about this set, buy it yourself, even if you don't like ads or whatever. You can always skip thru them, they couldn't back in the 60's.
Rating:
Summary: ED SULLIVAN FEATURING THE BEATLES!
Review: I previously purchased this DVD months ago and although I paid much more for it thinking it was a limited edition, It still is worth every penny! This is a "must have" for any Beatles collector on your list. Even though it is very high quality, there are still glitches on the dvd because the master was 1960's black and white grade. You will also notice a slight scene cut when Ed introduces John Lennon which was probably cut from the master tape or was broken. It still is incredible to watch. I especially liked the idea that the shows were presented in their entirety including all those vintage commercials. Just those alone will bring you back in time.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, the complete broadcasts!!
Review: I remember when this set was released via television ads in late 2002. All I could think about was, 'FINALLY - someone was smart enough to release ALL of these performances in their entirety!!'. I purchased the set at that time which sold for $45 - it was worth it; it now sells for half that price....so buy an extra one to give to a friend (!). Seriously, these shows represent the strongest images of the early Beatles ingrained in everyone's mind: the black and white 'moptops' in clear-as-day video. Prior to this release, these classic performances have been edited and chopped up in every way imaginable. The complete performances have only been previously available on bootlegged videos and DVDs. The joy of the performances coupled with the other acts and commercials make for a 'must-own' nostalgic DVD. Compare this DVD with what passed for 'talent' at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show and you'll see why the Beatles are still so loved today. NOW, I'm waiting for a DVD release of both 1966 Budokan performances in color and stereo.....and I'm running out of patience!
Rating:
Summary: I wish we could give 6 stars - "a really big shoe"
Review: I taped these performances on my old monaural reel-to-reel back in 1964. The recorder and tapes are long gone, but the memories of a time when four "twenty-something" guys in suits could be considered revolutionaries still stands out in my mind as a golden age. Like it was yesterday, I remember John wrestling with his microphone, Ed admonishing the audience about their behavior, I even remember the other acts we had to sit through to get to the Fab Four. What a time capsule! The image quality and sound will blow you away - much better than what we ever received over the air back in the day. You even get a choice of monaural or surround sound - sharp. This CD set is a great treat for anyone over a certain age (the break point may be 50 years old/young, I imagine). Kids today may find it difficult to understand how one band could generate this much excitement and energy but if you were around in '64 and you saw them live you know! Buy this with confidence and throw in the DVD of a Hard Day's Night - both are a must have for any Beatles fan. Now if I could only fit into my old Neru jacket, life would be perfect.
Rating:
Summary: I wish we could give 6 stars - "a really big shoe"
Review: I taped these performances on my old monural reel-to-reel back in 1964. The recorder and tapes are long gone, but the memories of a time when four "twenty-something" guys in suits could be considered revolutionaries still stands out in my mind as a golden age. Like it was yesterday, I remember John wrestling with his microphone, Ed admonishing the audience about their behavior, I even remember the other acts we had to sit through to get to the Fab Four. What a time capsule! The image quality and sound will blow you away - much better than what we ever received over the air back in the day. You even get a choice of monural or surround sound - sharp. This CD set is a great treat for anyone over a certain age (the break point may be 50 years old/young, I imagine). Kids today may find it difficult to understand how one band could generate this much excitement and energy but if you were around in '64 and you saw them live you know! Buy this with confidence and throw in the DVD of a Hard Day's Night - both are a must have for any Beatles fan. Now if I could only fit into my old Neru jacket, life would be perfect.
Rating:
Summary: I wish we could give 6 stars - "a really big shoe"
Review: I taped these performances on my old monural reel-to-reel back in 1964. The recorder and tapes are long gone, but the memories of a time when four "twenty-something" guys in suits could be considered revolutionaries still stands out in my mind as a golden age. Like it was yesterday, I remember John wrestling with his microphone, Ed admonishing the audience about their behavior, I even remember the other acts we had to sit through to get to the Fab Four. What a time capsule! The image quality and sound will blow you away - much better than what we ever received over the air back in the day. You even get a choice of monural or surround sound - sharp. This CD set is a great treat for anyone over a certain age (the break point may be 50 years old/young, I imagine). Kids today may find it difficult to understand how one band could generate this much excitement and energy but if you were around in '64 and you saw them live you know! Buy this with confidence and throw in the DVD of a Hard Day's Night - both are a must have for any Beatles fan. Now if I could only fit into my old Neru jacket, life would be perfect.
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