The Beatles Tribute From Hell

And when I say "hell," I mean of course Rolling Stone Magazine's Ten Year Anniversary TV special from 1977. In a musical production number not even befitting of the Academy Awards, Ted "Jesus" Neeley (of the film version of JC Superstar) hosts a medley of Beatles songs which grow more horrifying and hilarious with each awkward transition. You'll marvel as Patti Labelle sings Polythene Pam from inside a giant spider web, you'll gasp as a Kiss imitator band (surely the actual band would've been too smart to sign on to this) performs a musical tribute to 1970's terrorism with Helter Skelter, and you will surely break down and cry (as I did) as the entire mess slips into embarrassing political commentary with Nixon and Kissinger characters singing Back in the USSR and Jimmy Carter crooning Mother Nature's Son. In the big picture of this debacle, Richie Havens weird duet with Yvonne Elliman on Here Comes The Sun triumphantly ascends to being merely bad. An notice how I didn't even mention the dancing strawberries.

At last, there is a music video which rivals Armi and Danny for sheer butt uglyawfulness, and a Beatles spin-off that pre-dates and way out-shlocks 1978's Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band.

Somewhere down there, a special circle of hell is being chiseled out for Jann Wenner.

Download mpeg video, 72 megs, or stream it via google video.

Thank you Bob Brainen!

Comments

[Gavin]

Wow....just, wow. I tried to watch it, but ended up just skipping around to see what the various bits were and whenever I thought it couldn't get worse, they would out do themselves. The bits with Nixon were especially awful. What a suck-fest!

[bartelby]

Is it me or did Patti Labelle end up in a lot of these all star televised tributes? It's kind of sad.
Anyway, as they say "Don't blame me, I voted for the Dave Clark Five."

[Tom]

Well. That just about ruins Christmas.

[Andrew]

After seeing this I long for the subtlety and tastefulness of THE BRADY BUNCH VARIETY HOUR.

[Andrew]

Any truth to the rumor that the ROLLING STONE TENTH YEAR ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL was funded by Creem Magazine?

[David]

On behalf of the United Kingdom I apologise, deeply, for the songs which allowed this monstrosity to be created. Who are all these people, anyway?

[fatty jubbo]

this is great...the Lucy In The Sky with Diamonds/Strawberry Fields segment was particularly excellent. I haven't gotten to the Nixon/Kissenger part yet...I'm sure that will plunge it to hell. If only they created such ridiculous fanfare for TV these days!

[Kenzo (lastever)]

Ahhhhhhhhhhh........the strawberries!!!!!!! At least at that moment, my stomach started hurting and I felt myself grinning manaically.

The Here Comes the Sun duet is positively wonderful compared to the rest of it.

Ken, I've never noticed you mentioning Mr. Show when talking about Jesus Christ Superstar. See "The Greatest Failure in Broadway History."

[jtm]

Holy christ. Made my night.

Jim

[Jeffersonic]

Cheezis K. Reist this hurts. It's positively radioactive....I...er...uunng

[Andrew]

a Beatles spin-off that pre-dates and way out-shlocks 1978's Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band.

Go to IMDb.com and you'll discover that Steve Martin (with Mason "Classical Gas" Williams) cowrote the Rolling Stone Tenth Anniversary special -- he was ALSO Dr. Maxwell Edison in the Sgt. Pepper movie.

[Mike]

What's wrong with you people? I actually liked it. I only got up to the Polythene Pam segment though because the video is freezing up. This was clearly from the era where everyone was on drugs and it was okay to air an anti-establishment civil rioting/Patty Hearst variety dance number. Who cares if it's in the worst possible taste or if Ted Neely's self-righteous song delivery is grating? This was the last dying gasp before we went all Reagan and Kenny G and I salute it.