# Get Back 11.25 \[Beatles Documentary\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** disney-hulu, documentary-bio, music\ **Created:** [November 20, 2021, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651 "2021-11-20T02:06:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2021, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/161 "2021-12-08T05:38:04Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > Overall it was really interesting to see the process of them writing songs. I don’t write songs, so I’m curious if the way they seemed to do it is common. They’d get a base idea of a song and then build a melody/arrangement with nonsense words/notes and fill it in later. _Yesterday_ famously started off as, “Scrambled eggs/Oh my baby how I love your legs/Not as much as I love scrambled eggs”. ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2021, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/162 "2021-12-08T05:52:18Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > One of my favorite moments was at the beginning of part 3. Ringo is noodling around with a new song he wrote, Octopus’s Garden. George immediately starts to give him notes on the melody, helping to give it structure. John jumps behind the drum set to give it a beat, and pronounces the song “very strong.” They didn’t respect Ringo? Coulda fooled me. Just to add on, I loved this moment as well, but the topper was when George Martin walks over to listen. I don’t know why, but him showing interest in the song really made me smile. It _was_ respect for a catchy tune. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2021, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/163 "2021-12-08T07:45:22Z")
> [@caligulathegod](#): > > _Yesterday_ famously started off as, “Scrambled eggs/Oh my baby how I love your legs/Not as much as I love scrambled eggs”. Waffle fries / Oh my baby how I love your thighs But not as much as I love waffle fries / Oh we should have some waffle fries ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2021, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/164 "2021-12-19T19:27:41Z")
We finished it two days ago and KEEP talking about it. We’re both around 60, and so a bit young to be original fans. We both loved the entire thing. Found it quite touching that there were moments of raw emotion and quiet glances, all captured, that hint at, well, 10+ years of intense 4-way relationships. The creative bolts are just so humbling. The in-real-time emerging of brilliant bits. Just a treat. The painful bits are, well, sad and expected by that point in the arc of their lives. One of the most telling moments: When Paul is expounding upon Yoko and says, “ If he was going to chose between The Beatles and Yoko, it’d be Yoko. No question. They just want to be together. I get that. “. NO way of knowing if that was for the ever-present cameras or not, but an astute and honest read of the moment. Nothing exists in a vacuum. As a documentary cameraman, I know all too well exactly how the process I was watching unfolded. Additional and unseen moments influence what the editors chose to make use of. I respect the choices. Jackson as crafted something balanced, exciting, sad and enduring. Well done, I say. The Wiki bit that made me re-think some of the moments in this film VERY hard is the plain fact that both John Lennon and Yoko Ono were deeply involved in heroin use while this project was unfolding. Knowing that colors what I’ve seen. I am glad I read that the day AFTER we finished watching the last film segment. For all of John’s screwing around vocally and with his guitar work while Paul was trying to work through a bit, watching him quietly listening and playing with George ( I think late in the 3rd segment ) was 180º away from the other shenanigans. John’s body language, facial focus, way of gently working along with George. All spoke of 100% involvement in furthering the bits George was working on in the moment. It spoke of respect and support. A real Yin/ Yang to his endless crapping about over Paul’s efforts. But then again, George stood apart and Paul was John’s spouse in the band. Fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2021, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/165 "2021-12-19T19:49:44Z")
I found it endearing and utterly real. If you go and watch that segment again, you will see the OTHER adults in the room being indulgent and not looking pissed about it. Especially Mal, laying on the floor next to her and just talking, etc. I LOVED the moments when Ringo gave her brushes and she set right to doing what he showed her to do- and we got to hear that mix. Amusing when, I think it was John, tossed a quick comment to Ringo right then about how he was playing and he just smiled. Realizing that NOBODY could see the girl over the sound-baffling wall panels. Very sweet, very real. I’ve been in enough rehearsal and recording / filming situations in the last 43 years that I can attest to the fact that sometimes, spouses and children ARE GOOD to have in the room. People breathe a bit. The cloistered air of ONLY THE BAND slides away a bit. Yeah, sometimes having someone’s kid on set is a train wreck. That does not last long. Shit needs to get done. But…… this segment was sweet and loving. I don’t read anything snarky or manipulative or bad about it. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2021, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/166 "2021-12-19T19:59:48Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Technical question: I trust that Peter Jackson has synched the video and the audio, especially when it comes to conversations in the studio. But there are times when we hear the audio but it doesn’t look like their mouths are moving properly. > > Is this just because the original 16 mm film didn’t have enough detail? I can address this last part directly. I’ve shot with the same 16mm Arriflex BL cameras as were used in this film. We sometimes see a person in the studio, rolling 1/4” audio tape on a Nagra reel to reel recorder. And once we heard that recordist hit the Synch button on the Nagra, which generates a 50 hZ cycle “boop” tone on the tape. All by way of saying, the 16mm cameras were in Synch because they had onboard built-in 50hZ crystal Synch motors and the Nagra also had a crystal built-in. Using a slate allows the image and sound to be synchronized later. The issues with the project here have nothing to do with the resolution of the 16mm film stock or the cameras/ Nagra being used. They have to do with the fact that sometimes there are shots that Jackson clearly deemed precious enough to include but for which he has no Synch sound track. There may have been sound being rolled by Alan Parsons ( !!! ), the identified Tape Operator at Abbey Road studios. But this was music recording tape, and lacked a clear Synch method. That’s why some shots are not in Synch. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/167 "2021-12-19T22:39:21Z")
I agree with all the positive accolades posted up-thread. _Get Back_ is a treat for casual Beatles fans and a precious gift for serious ones. I’ve been a serious fan since the Beatles first set foot on American soil. Seeing Lennon and McCartney collaborating on the fly, spinning gold from thin air was something I’ve longed to see for a long time. I was not disappointed. But, the part that choked me up most was seeing John come alive during the rooftop performance. I figured, since they stopped touring in ‘66, the Beatles, John, in particular, had grown blasé about live performance. But, there is no mistaking the sheer joy on John’s face from the very first note. He was transformed. Of course, knowing of their soon-to-come breakup, and mere 11 years left for Lennon to live, watching _Get Back_ was a bittersweet experience. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2021, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/168 "2021-12-21T20:09:00Z")
I watched it and, loving the Beatles as I do, still found it dragged quite a bit and was boring at times. But it was fun to see songs like “Get Back” and “The Long and Winding Road” take shape, and to see the lads clowning about and having a good time together. I particularly liked John and Paul singing “Two of Us” through gritted teeth, then in clipped RP, broad Scottish and Indian accents. It was good to see a very young and intense Alan Parsons in the control booth. The passive-aggressive bullshit and simmering tensions were no fun, but very much a part of the group dynamics by then, from what I’ve read. > [@Rilchiam](#): > > …Paul needed a Del Paxton\* to tell him, “Can’t keep a band together. Bands come and go.” … > > \*That Thing You Do! See it! Of course, if you’re a Beatles fan, you probably already have. Ha! We just saw it, as it happens. A good movie for any fan of Sixties music. > [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > Yeah they seemed a bit lost without an outsider to give them direction. And they seemed to know it (as you say, Paul openly said it). All the others on the periphery didn’t seem to have the standing or be in the position to take on that role. And when Paul tried to lead he just ended up making George more disgruntled. The chronically late John Lennon seemed ok to just go along with whatever was happening. Yes, I thought it probably would have been better for George Martin (or someone else) to be The Designated Grownup - but getting all four lads to agree on who that should be would, at that time in their careers, be pretty tough. I understand genius doesn’t punch a time-card and inspiration doesn’t arrive on demand, but the indiscipline of the group would’ve been maddening to me if I were trying to manage them. > [@JRDelirious](#): > > _“Fifty years from now they’ll be saying they broke up because Yoko sat on an amp!”_ Moment of prescient clarity from Paul, conscious or not – that the end was closing in, and that the public would look for some facile excuse rather than that this collaboration had run its course… Yes, definitely. I expected to see Yoko as much more of a malign presence. > [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > John and Yoko were on heroin by the time of the Get Back/Let It Be sessions. I was surprised to read that, here and elsewhere. I thought it was just John being puckish and/or goofy. > [@JRDelirious](#): > > …After that cluster-f, they got back together with George Martin and the decision was made, never mind that still-ongoing boondoggle, let’s now just properly Make. An. Album. with nobody being on our case that we need to have a live public performance in the can by a date certain – resulting in the superior _Abbey Road_. Yes, although I always wondered why they didn’t book a smallish theater under an assumed name for some future date. Then ask their most-beloved 500-or-so hardcore fans, after swearing them to secrecy, to show up at a park across town (to avoid the world at large finding out about it, and averting a mob scene) that day, load them onto buses and take them to the theatre, and put on a concert for them there. It would have been a nice thank-you to the fans, and a manageable crowd scene (something they most definitely did _not_ have in their last pre-rooftop concerts). > [@Llama\_Llogophile](#): > > …what’s making me laugh is the interaction with the police. The patience and restraint they show is unbelievable. The receptionist and doorman seem to have been instructed to act as politely dumb as possible as a delaying action… Yes, the bobbies were far more patient than I expected - in part, I suspect, because they didn’t want their names splashed across the papers the next day as “the heartless thugs who shut down the last Beatles concert.” > [@Shoeless](#): > > Remember that “Hands Across America” charity thing they did back in the 80s? I remember David Letterman talking about it in his monologue, about all the people gathered down in Battery Park, and how there was such an overwhelming feeling of goodwill and camaraderie afterwards that nobody wanted to go home. “So the police asked Yoko if she’d get up on stage and sing a couple of songs.” 😅 Love it!!! > [@Chad\_Sudan](#): > > …On another note: sure, it was a bit risky, the idea of holding the last-ever Beatles concert at a Roman amphitheater in Libya. But under the right circumstances, it could have been spectacular! I agree. They could have pulled it off, I bet, but I can understand why they didn’t want to try. > [@Cartooniverse](#): > > I found it endearing and utterly real [to have Paul’s little girl in the studio]. If you go and watch that segment again, you will see the OTHER adults in the room being indulgent and not looking pissed about it. > > Especially Mal, laying on the floor next to her and just talking, etc. I LOVED the moments when Ringo gave her brushes and she set right to doing what he showed her to do- and we got to hear that mix. Amusing when, I think it was John, tossed a quick comment to Ringo right then about how he was playing and he just smiled. Realizing that NOBODY could see the girl over the sound-baffling wall panels… Yes, that was a very cute moment. ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/169 "2021-12-22T01:42:03Z")
Havent read the thread and only just watched a little of the series but the video quality?? Fucking amazing. Like an HD time machine. Also thought it was cool that i instantly recognized ‘Jealous Guy’ as a different song. I guess being their own manager didnt help. No one to tell them, the projexts they are trying to tackle are insane…and its a pity no one could just say, 'Look…lets take a break. Do our own thing and walk away for a bit with no hard feelings. And be SUPPORTIVE of each others solo projects." ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/170 "2021-12-22T03:53:59Z")
It would have been so satisfying if The Beatles put their quibbles behind them and reunited one last time, giving fans closure. They came close, on an [SNL gag](https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-beatles-reunion-snl-saturday-night-live-paul-mccartney/) back in 1976. Heck, I would have _personally_ put up an additional $2000, bringing their fee to a cool $5k, for that reunion to have occurred, but, alas, I didn’t make the offer. I blame myself for the fact The Beatles never played together again. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/171 "2021-12-22T08:29:34Z")
You can split the $3000 anyway you want. If you want to pay Ringo a little less, that’s fine. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/172 "2021-12-22T16:40:32Z")
Didn’t George show up and Lorne had to explain to him why he could only pay him $750? ---
**Author:** ![alovem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/173 "2021-12-22T16:46:42Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > They came close, on an [SNL gag](https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-beatles-reunion-snl-saturday-night-live-paul-mccartney/) back in 1976 I’d heard about that and I enjoyed reading the linked article, but I have to say it’s really poorly edited. I’ve heard another story that I find even more poignant: Paul was in New York and showed up at John’s door with a guitar in hand, but John didn’t want to get together because he was focused on his home life at the time. I heard it in a multi-part McCartney documentary on YouTube and I think John also mentioned it in some interview. So, I think it’s true but would like to know if anyone thinks otherwise. > [@Pavelb1](#): > > I guess being their own manager didnt help. No one to tell them, the projexts they are trying to tackle are insane…and its a pity no one could just say, 'Look…lets take a break. Do our own thing and walk away for a bit with no hard feelings. And be SUPPORTIVE of each others solo projects." I agree with your analysis and share your sentiment, but IMO it might not have been possible because things run their course. Music itself is like that. You play the same tune hundreds of times and you reach a point where all it makes you feel is how tired you are of it. And let’s not forget that it was a popular notion at the time that marriage was an outdated concept. I suspect that they all knew what a great pair John and Paul made but all were done with being The Beatles, and there was no way around that. Just my two cents. I said upthread that some of you know a lot more about them than I do, so feel free to disagree. ---
**Author:** ![LoneRhino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lonerhino/32/1311_2.png) [@LoneRhino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LoneRhino)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2021, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/174 "2021-12-22T22:21:33Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > It would have been so satisfying if The Beatles put their quibbles behind them and reunited one last time, giving fans closure. I thought it at the time and I am still convinced that if John Lennon were alive in 1985 they would have reunited for Live Aid. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2021, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/175 "2021-12-23T06:14:51Z")
I like to think that if Lennon had lived into the ‘90s the Beatles would’ve reunited - under a pseudonym, of course - for The Simpsons. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2021, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/176 "2021-12-23T16:43:09Z")
I took all of yesterday and finally watched it. Good stuff! I’m only in my 40s but thanks to my mom I’ve been a Beatles fan all my life. You’re all right that Yoko didn’t come off too bad in this film. But I do believe Jackson had to get her approval before releasing it? (Along with others) I wonder if that’s why we had to endure some of her warbling “jam sessions”. Also the mention of her talking for John when the band met with George to convince him to come back was infuriating. Shame on John. I really enjoyed the few bits of the band reading about themselves in teen mags and stuff. That was really cute. And the part with Paul singing the article about the band breaking up and hating each other was brilliant! I also liked the hidden microphone on John and Paul’s cafeteria conversation. That was a real gem as well. I think I fell asleep during the part where John is giving George shit about “I, Me, Mine.” Will have to go find it. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2021, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/177 "2021-12-24T01:40:41Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > I like to think that if Lennon had lived into the ‘90s the Beatles would’ve reunited - under a pseudonym, of course - for The Simpsons. Check out “Paperback Writer” by Mark Shipper, which chronicles their ultimate reunion as an opening act for Peter Frampton. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2021, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/178 "2021-12-24T02:37:59Z")
[Paperback Writer](https://www.amazon.ca/Paperback-Writer-Mark-Shipper/dp/0441651232) ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2021, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/179 "2021-12-24T13:56:49Z")
Only one copy left! Get it now for only $67! ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2021, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/180 "2021-12-24T17:29:23Z")
Well, it is a good read! 🤣 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651.md?page=10)