{"id":8965,"date":"2025-01-22T13:26:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-22T18:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/?p=8965"},"modified":"2026-03-11T13:32:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T17:32:00","slug":"the-beatles-were-the-right-thing-at-the-right-time-and-place-in-beatles-64","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-beatles-were-the-right-thing-at-the-right-time-and-place-in-beatles-64\/","title":{"rendered":"The Beatles were the right thing at the right time and place, in Beatles ’64"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As long as The Four Lads From Liverpool LLC Inc. \u00a9 \u2122 remains a commercial entity expected to release new product every year, and the amount of unreleased material in the vaults is approaching zero, it’s easy to dismiss David Tedeschi & Martin Scorsese’s Beatles ’64<\/em> as a cynical attempt to squeeze an entire feature-length movie out of a few scraps of unused footage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But judged on how well it argues its thesis, it does the job: typical American teenagers were lost and disenchanted in the mid-60s, and it just so happens that The Beatles were the right thing at the right time. The film builds empathy for some of these kids in a series of new interviews with them as adults, recollecting what the band meant to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parents and other authority figures didn’t know what to make of their teenage daughters suddenly screaming and crying incoherently, and to an extent, neither do we today. Even Gen X fans like me \u2014 brought into the fold by the 1995 Anthology<\/em> TV documentary series, and fervent enough to have all the albums, in stereo and mono \u2014 often think the mythology is overblown. The evidence is there on film: yes, at least some teenagers really did have episodes that in medieval times might have been deemed possession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beatles ’64<\/em> does help us understand what it might have felt like for 1960s American teens to not have anything to call their own \u2014 not only fashion, hair styles, celebrity sex symbols, and music, but an actual generational identity. These days, a new generation is declared seemingly every few years, to the point where we’ve run out of Roman letters and rolled over into the Greek alphabet. But the nascent generation emerging circa 1964 really did seem to be different, with an especially large amount of suppressed energy. A cultural bomb was primed to go off \u2014 and The Beatles appeared on national television at exactly the right moment to ride the shockwave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whenever I read about or watch documentaries about 60s music, I’m always struck at how much the establishment openly hated young people. Like D. A. Pennebaker’s Don’t Look Back<\/em> did for Bob Dylan, this doc reminds us of the breathtaking condescension and outright contempt The Beatles (and their fans) faced from the media. Today, any outrageous or merely unconventional new musical act is met with a shrug at most. Madonna publishing a pornographic art book, or Lady Gaga wearing a gown of raw beef might raise a few eyebrows for one short news cycle, but in 1964 America, The Beatles were talked about like a disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But some perspective: The Beatles were a great band of four fascinating personalities, that hugely innovated on their inspirations, never stopped growing and evolving, and broke up before it all got stale. But still, they were just a band, and there were (and are) bigger problems in the US than discontented teens. The kids that lost their minds over The Beatles in 1964 were lucky that their primary concerns were not oppression by racism or poverty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As long as The Four Lads From Liverpool LLC Inc. \u00a9 \u2122 remains a commercial entity expected to release new product every year, and the amount of unreleased material in the vaults is approaching zero, it’s easy to dismiss David Tedeschi & Martin Scorsese’s Beatles ’64 as a cynical attempt to squeeze an entire feature-length […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,13],"tags":[2238,2218,1195,2237,27,2235,2236,322,2234],"class_list":["post-8965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movies","category-music","tag-2238","tag-2218","tag-bob-dylan","tag-david-tedeschi","tag-documentary","tag-lady-gaga","tag-madonna","tag-martin-scorsese","tag-the-beatles"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/beatles-64.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa9lhB-2kB","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":636,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/across-the-universe\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":0},"title":"Julie Taymor does The Beatles songbook in Across the Universe","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"February 7, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"I believe I'm in the minority opinion here, but I really liked Across the Universe. Already loving the songs of the Beatles and the films of Julie Taymor, perhaps I'm predisposed. Taymor rounds up all the usual suspects from the Lennon & McCartney oeuvre: Lucy, Jude, Maxwell (as in \"Silver\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "3 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"3 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/3-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/across-the-universe-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/across-the-universe-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/across-the-universe-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/across-the-universe-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/02\/across-the-universe-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":410,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-dork-report-for-september-9-2006\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":1},"title":"The Dork Report for September 9, 2006","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"September 9, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"An Ultimately negative (but insightfully so) piece on Watchmen, gleaned from its Wikipedia entry: \"Fighting Evil, Quoting Nietzsche: Did the comic book really need to grow up?\" by Tom Shone. Quinn [no longer online: simonhaertel.de]: a really fun and really free Tetris falling blocks game for the Mac. Serve with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Dork Report"","block_context":{"text":"The Dork Report","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/dork-report\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Dork Report","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":296,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-dork-report-for-june-26-2006\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":2},"title":"The Dork Report for June 26, 2006","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"June 26, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Look, robots! 1,000 2,000-year-old skeletons (no longer online: news.scotsman.com\/international.cfm?id=916922006). (spotted on Fortean Times) (no longer online: forteantimes.com\/breaking_news\/breaking_news.shtml) The Beatles are taking it to Vegas. But what really interests me is the NY Times reporter's preview of the new Beatles remixes\/remasters. After audio quality, the next detraction to digital music is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Dork Report"","block_context":{"text":"The Dork Report","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/dork-report\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Dork Report","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":840,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/26-albums-im-told-i-should-remove-from-my-collection\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":3},"title":"26 Albums I’m Told I Should Remove From My Collection","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"May 15, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Chalkills, the XTC fansite, wants to help you sift through the detritus of your music collection, pronto: One Hundred Albums You Should Remove from Your Collection Immediately (spotted on DGMLive). I own (or once owned) a whopping 26% of these overrated (so they say) canonical classics! Hey, Chalkhills, what did\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/main-menu\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"100 albums","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/100albums1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":506,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-dork-report-for-november-28-2006\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":4},"title":"The Dork Report for November 28, 2006","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"November 28, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Because the Dork Report loves to quibble with lists of things: sharpen your fangs for Time Magazine's All-TIME 100 albums. The editors attempt to preempt criticism by admitting their exclusion of Pink Floyd, but I'd like to add a few more points: I think the inclusion of so many greatest-hits\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Dork Report"","block_context":{"text":"The Dork Report","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/dork-report\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Dork Report","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/dork-report.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":809,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/im-not-there\/","url_meta":{"origin":8965,"position":5},"title":"Todd Haynes deconstructs Bob Dylan in I’m Not There","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"May 13, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"I always find it interesting to ponder my preconceived notions of a movie after I've actually seen it. The marketing and buzz on I'm Not There mostly centered on two talking points: the quirky device of multiple actors all playing incarnations of Bob Dylan, and Cate Blanchett being just plain\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "4 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"4 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/4-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"I'm Not There","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/im-not-there-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/im-not-there-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/im-not-there-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/im-not-there-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/im-not-there-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8965","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8965"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8965\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8967,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8965\/revisions\/8967"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}