Saturday, August 21, 2021

"He say I know you, you know me"

This is the once-upon-a-time Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota. The Mall of America now rests atop the former location of the "Old Met." This is how it looked the evening of August 21, 1965, during the only Minnesota appearance by The Beatles. The stage, you might gather, is sort of in the middle of the frame on the left side and the almost-visible, miniscule black dots on it (listed according to my preferences) are none other than John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney. The photograph came from the Minnesota Historical Society.

The night the "Fab Four" came to town

Had you driven by Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota, 56 years ago this evening, you might have thought by the measure of the noise emanating from the "Old Met" that the Minnesota Twins baseball team was massacring (metaphorically) the New York Yankees.

In fact, the Twins' locker room was occupied the evening of August 21, 1965, by four individuals more familiar with "football" (soccer) and cricket than with baseball.  Although The Beatles toured the United States three times between 1964 and 1966, this was the only stop by the "Fab Four" in Minnesota. An estimated 25,000 to 30,000 fans were at the event, something less than the nearly 46,000 seating capacity by the time of the concert.

Other than the performance itself, the highlights of the appearance were a press conference by "the lads," the presentation to George Harrison of a new Rickenbacker 360-12, an electric 12-string guitar in a Fireglo red sunburst finish, and the apparent after-midnight presence of a young lady in Paul McCartney's room at the Leamington Motor Inn. The other three Beatles reportedly had gone to bed (and right to sleep) after the concert.

For those who keep score, the guitar was used on "If I Needed Someone" on 1965's Rubber Soul album.

I suppose it is noteworthy to also mention that prior to the concert, all four took saunas for the first time, according to the stadium clubhouse manager Ray Crump, and played roulette with Brian Epstein for the proceeds of the souvenir programs. Tickets for the concert were priced at $2.50, $3.50, $4.50 and $5.50, and The Beatles were paid $50,000.

The setlist that evening featured 11 songs: "She's A Woman" / "I Feel Fine" / "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" / "Ticket To Ride" / "Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby" / "Can't Buy Me Love" / "Baby's In Black" / "I Wanna Be Your Man" / "A Hard Day's Night" / "Help!" / "I'm Down" ....

"Come Together" was not among the tunes performed that night, but it is here today in two renditions, one by The Beatles, acting goofy and having fun, and the other a cover by Sershen&Zaritskaya, who almost always are acting goofy and having fun.

In case you are curious, no, I was not in attendance at the concert .... but, would love to have been had it been possible .... "and it's too late, baby," as Carole King sang, to ever witness The Beatles perform any song live ....



8 comments:

Kelly said...

Even though I'm not one for live music, I can imagine this was a good concert. I'm not sure how I would have listed them in 1965, but in later years it would be: Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison.

On a side note... we buried another dog this morning. Jed. The one who's been dealing with prostate cancer the past year.

Fram Actual said...

It never gets any easier, does it? Saying goodbye to a dog, I mean. My sincere condolences regarding Jed ....

August 18 marked the fifth year since Buddy moved in with me, and it was estimated he was about three then. I cannot help but periodically think about his eventual departure ....

My ranking of the Beatles comes from looking at their history over the decades and trying to measure their talents and life styles against one another. This probably shows as much (or more) about me as it does about them.

By the way, under the category of incidental trivia, are you aware that George has a sister, Louise, who has lived in the U.S. since forever and played a few songs with a local band when he and a brother, Peter, visited her in 1963 in Benton, Illinois?

Thank you, Kelly, for coming and for commenting .... take care / stay safe / long live rock 'n' roll ....

Kelly said...

I did not know that, but then George is the one I know the least about.

This is the fourth dog in less than two years. The remaining six are 13, 11, 9, 7, 7, and whatever Pat is. I'm guessing he's around 3-4. Even when it's a blessing, it's sad for those who loved them.

Fram Actual said...

When you put together the number of recent losses with the numbers of the ages of those remaining in your pack, Kelly, the sum amounts to sorrowful times.

I can empathize with you because we had five go within about two and one/half years -- which were all we had at the time other than a pair of temporary "house guests" -- and that was tough to handle. What helped to a degree was that the kids had become adults and were "sort of" out on their own when it was happening.

Among my worries is that I will go sometime before my dog does and he might face an uncertain future, which could translate into an intolerable future. I think that is what might have happened to Buddy for a three-year-old dog to have been "on his own." As a veterinarian put it, "you two were lucky to find each other." We really were ....

So, Kelly, thank you, for your return visit and comment .... be calm and cool and collected and create good times for you and your pack ....

Rajani Rehana said...

Great blog

Anita said...

wow what a sexy lady in the sec video!And the music compared to the old one of Beatles i think is better!But may be the girl is to sexy for that music but what do I know..I have never heard of the band..great picture of your town with the concert..
I have just discovered that there are two more books from Giants in the earth ..Peder Victorious and Their Fathers God.Ohh I love these books! I just finished Peder Seier (Peder Victorious) and what a book Btw two of my uncles also is called Viktor It is fascinating reading! I thought he was such a nice boy this Peder born with the victory hat, but then he messes everything up !! Poor Beret! She had a lot of remorse with this pastoral stuff of Hans Ola which led to Per Holm (Per Hansa)'s death .. (found in a hay stack with his skiis on in the summer) Rølvaag writes so truly I feel I am standing there and looking when Beret will try to light the youth center.. I have to get hold of the last book in a second-hand shop !! This time it is Rølvaag himself who writes, not translated into English, which is a much better language (Norwegian) than the English translation. Let's talk once upon a time in the autumm Have a good time in America .Sorry ,bad ,bad google translator

Fram Actual said...

I do not necessarily aim to please, Rajani Rehana, but I try to give readers something to think about ....

Fram Actual said...

Actually, Anita, I use videos of Sergey Sershen and Daria Zaritskaya periodically, so they should not be strangers to you. They are Ukrainian and do many covers of once-popular songs. They are terrific and Sershen, in particular, is a master of the guitar. Everyone who performs with them is a bit "loopy," I think, and I especially enjoy the antics of the drummer, who seems to be drunk much of the time.

"Giants in the Earth" is the first book of a trilogy, and the best story of the three, I think. From one of my posts, published on March 13, 2019:

"A man filled with blind ambition, perhaps, describes Per Hansa best. At the end of the novel, he ventures out into a blizzard on skis to find help for his dying friend, but he never quits thinking about taking more land and fulfilling his ambitions. Per Hansa stops to rest along the way and freezes to death. His body is found in the spring by a group of boys:

"'To the boys, it looked as though the man were sitting there resting while he waited for better skiing .... His face was ashen and drawn. His eyes were set toward the west.'"

I admire you for taking on all three novels. Together they form perhaps the premiere illustration of the immigrant experience during the late Nineteenth Century.

Glad to see you found your way here and wrote a comment for me, Bergen girl .... I hope all is well and fine for you .... take care and try to stay out of mischief ....

Something special ....