Number nine...number nine...

When I was little, my parents dragged us to the Ontario Place Forum to see a Beatles tribute band. The band represented their mop-top phase and were spot-on in their mimicry, right down to Paul McCartney”s left-handed playing. I remember I was bored most of the time and kept myself amused by listening to the bass line in all their songs.

So it was with nostalgic amusement that I took up an offer to go see the Classic Albums Live play the Beatles’ White Album at a surprisingly packed Phoenix last night. We’re talking the entire White Album, in order, including all the Yoko Ono parts (sung by the female cellist) and avant-garde sound collage “Revolution 9.”

I’ve always been skeptical of tribute bands, but it struck me that this was like going to the symphony. These were professional musicians performing works of the great masters as they were meant to be played, and they may not have dressed up or acted like the Fab Four, but the music was the same. What’s more, the band really rawked and looked like they were having fun, which is all I ask for in a concert. Because, shockingly, I'm unfamiliar with the Beatles' later work and I didn't care about how accurately they recreated the White Album. I was just hoping for a good show, which I got in spades.

For an encore, they played Rubber Soul -- yes, the whole record -- complete with sitar player for “Norwegian Wood.” When was the last time a band played an album as an encore? (When was the last time a band brought on a sitar player, for that matter?) The closest I can think of was the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at the Kool Haus in April, whose offstage time was really more of an intermission so that Karen O could change outfits.

On December 17 they’ll be back at the Phoenix, playing through the entire Beatles discography. They start at noon and finish when they’re finished. I don’t know if I can stand up for that long, but I might try. My parents would be proud.

Classic Albums Live website
Classic Albums Live on MySpace
White Album on Wikipedia