Upcoming movie documents the Beatles' trip to India
The Beatles' famous 1968 trip to study transcendental meditation in Rishikesh, India is the focus of an upcoming movie. The still-untitled film, which will blend archival footage with newly shot scenes and interviews, is being directed by Mira Nair, who is best known for her 2004 film Vanity Fair.
The film promises to cast new light on the group's time spent in the foothills of the Himalayas under the tutelage of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Nair told The Times Of India that, "Some of the best loved Beatles numbers, including ones from The White Album and Abbey Road, were inspired by the time they spent in India and the experiences they had. The idea is to explore and examine, through these fascinating musicians, the broader theme of artistic inspiration and how it comes about."
The group's 1968 double-record set The Beatles (commonly known as "The White Album"), featured many songs written while the group was studying in Rishikesh, including "Back In The U.S.S.R.," "Yer Blues," "I Will," "The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill," "Rocky Raccoon," "I'm So Tired," "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da," "Dear Prudence," "Mother Nature's Son," and several songs which turned up on later solo albums, such as "Junk" which Paul McCartney released on his 1970 solo debut McCartney, and "Child Of Nature" which John Lennon rewrote as "Jealous Guy" for his 1971 album Imagine.
There has been no release date set for the film.
Filmmaker Paul Saltzman documented his time in Rishikesh studying transcendental meditation with the group in his photo book The Beatles In India, and told us that they were always friendly and approachable: "John looked up at me, and he was two feet away from me, and I said, 'May I join you?' and John said, 'Sure mate, pull up a chair.' And Paul said, 'Come and sit here' -- he pulled next to him and I sat down. At that moment John turns to me, 'cause they had finished their conversation, and he says, 'So you're American then?,' in his sort of teasing way. And I said, 'No, Canadian,' and he turns to the group and says, 'Ah, he's from one of the colonies!' And everyone breaks up (in laughter)."
In other Beatles-related news:
Wings co-founder Denny Laine's former wife, singer Jo-Jo Laine, died on Monday (October 30th) after falling down a flight of stairs, at age 53. The Daily Mail reported that Jo-Jo, who met Denny backstage at an early '70s Wings show, was in a week-long coma after the fall, and had also been battling liver cancer.
Before her accident, Jo-Jo commented on the allegations that Paul McCartney physically abused his estranged wife Heather Mills and used illegal drugs during their marriage, stating that that, "This is not the Paul I know. He would never raise his hand to a woman and always refused cocaine when it was offered to him on tour. These allegations are all rubbish."
Submit the above story to:
Del.icio.us
Digg
reddit
StumbleUpon
Facebook
The film promises to cast new light on the group's time spent in the foothills of the Himalayas under the tutelage of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Nair told The Times Of India that, "Some of the best loved Beatles numbers, including ones from The White Album and Abbey Road, were inspired by the time they spent in India and the experiences they had. The idea is to explore and examine, through these fascinating musicians, the broader theme of artistic inspiration and how it comes about."
The group's 1968 double-record set The Beatles (commonly known as "The White Album"), featured many songs written while the group was studying in Rishikesh, including "Back In The U.S.S.R.," "Yer Blues," "I Will," "The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill," "Rocky Raccoon," "I'm So Tired," "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da," "Dear Prudence," "Mother Nature's Son," and several songs which turned up on later solo albums, such as "Junk" which Paul McCartney released on his 1970 solo debut McCartney, and "Child Of Nature" which John Lennon rewrote as "Jealous Guy" for his 1971 album Imagine.
There has been no release date set for the film.
Filmmaker Paul Saltzman documented his time in Rishikesh studying transcendental meditation with the group in his photo book The Beatles In India, and told us that they were always friendly and approachable: "John looked up at me, and he was two feet away from me, and I said, 'May I join you?' and John said, 'Sure mate, pull up a chair.' And Paul said, 'Come and sit here' -- he pulled next to him and I sat down. At that moment John turns to me, 'cause they had finished their conversation, and he says, 'So you're American then?,' in his sort of teasing way. And I said, 'No, Canadian,' and he turns to the group and says, 'Ah, he's from one of the colonies!' And everyone breaks up (in laughter)."
In other Beatles-related news:
Wings co-founder Denny Laine's former wife, singer Jo-Jo Laine, died on Monday (October 30th) after falling down a flight of stairs, at age 53. The Daily Mail reported that Jo-Jo, who met Denny backstage at an early '70s Wings show, was in a week-long coma after the fall, and had also been battling liver cancer.
Before her accident, Jo-Jo commented on the allegations that Paul McCartney physically abused his estranged wife Heather Mills and used illegal drugs during their marriage, stating that that, "This is not the Paul I know. He would never raise his hand to a woman and always refused cocaine when it was offered to him on tour. These allegations are all rubbish."
Submit the above story to:
Del.icio.us
Digg
reddit
StumbleUpon
Facebook
The Rock Radio online