Getting So Much Better:I'm currently watching
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band on Encore Love Stories. And, even though I'm currently listening to it on the little 3" speaker of my Toshiba TV, I heard (and watched) this film at the cinema when it was new (1978, as I recall). And, with all due respect to Peter Frampton, the Bee Gees, and the whole vast array of talent which went into creating this film, what a freaking disappointment.
E-Freaking-Gad!!! We are talking about the album that launched the prog rock era (yes, yes, I know - without
Pet Sounds, there would have been no
Sgt. Pepper's, but still). This movie didn't do the album justice.
And I know, the critics derided the film at the time, as disjointed and nonsensical. But couldn't you say the same about
Yellow Submarine, or
Help?
More importantly, in my mind, this film was such an aural disappointment. The mix was so flat, it wasn't to be forgotten until Boston's second album [
Don't Look Back (1978)], which as I recall, sold mega. But audiophiles like myself, and Tom Scholz himself, derided it.
Oh, but honorable mention to almost unknown Sandy Farina, whose work as Strawberry Fields was pretty f-ing magnificent.
