Beatles on the roof, for all time
There is something moving about 3 Savile Row -- which staged a final show of brilliance by one of the great musical acts of the 20th century -- being turned into a museum
At lunchtime on January 30, 1969, the Beatles trudged up to the rooftop of Apple Corps, and put on an unannounced concert of material they had cobbled together for a new album. It was, until cops responded to the neighbours’ complaints and pulled the plug, magical — a demonstration of the spontaneity that The Beatles, who would never again perform together, were capable of at their best.
The site of the concert, 3 Savile Row in London, is now set to become the first official Beatles museum, complete with never-seen-before memorabilia and archival material. Perhaps this “museumisation” was only to be expected. Time has a way of absorbing even the most radical acts of art into the establishment. The works by Banksy, the guerilla street artist whose murals have targeted consumer culture and corporate greed, now sell for millions of dollars. The Grateful Dead, whose music and “travelling circus” experience were emblematic of the 1960s counterculture movement, became pioneers of merchandising and branding.
The Beatles have long ceased to belong only to the moment that produced them. Their songs are now streamed in the millions, studied by musicologists and enshrined as cultural artefacts. Yet, there is something moving about 3 Savile Row being turned into a museum. The concert lasted less than an hour, interrupted by policemen running up the stairs. Those same stairs will now be climbed by fans looking for a connection to one of the unforgettable “you had to be there” moments of music history.
