Here’s a part of the show I’m talking about:
I saw this when it was shown around the country on closed circuit television on the weekend of March 14 in 1964. There have been incomplete bootleg kinescopes of the concert around for years but recently a complete version on video surfaced and that’s what I was watching the other day, when a question occurred to me.
I don’t know how large the Washington Coliseum was (is) but the only sound equipment apparent from watching the video is three Vox amplifiers for John and George’s guitars and Paul’s bass. Presumably the microphones are running through the Washington Coliseum’s sound system. So I wonder how much of the instrumentation those attending could hear above all the crowd noise.
But that’s not my question. What I’m really wondering about is how WE can hear the music. The amplifiers aren’t miked. Ringo’s drums aren’t miked, yet we can hear music. Not great, but at least it’s there.
I’ve read that the video was produced by a company that provided closed circuit coverage of boxing matches from the Washington Coliseum (and, indeed, The Beatles appear to be standing in the boxing ring without the ropes around it) so I wonder if maybe there is one or more of those microphones that they lowered down for the announcer to read boxer’s stats into hanging overhead picking up drums, amps, crowd and singing.
I guess it’s all just speculation at this point unless someone knows of a reference with particulars about this show. Anyway, I thought I’d throw it out there.