The BEST episodes directed by Bob Smeaton
#1 - July '68 to The End
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 8
All things must pass. The music holds out till the end and the Beatles, having worked through the White album, Let It Be, Hey Jude and Revolution, two weddings, two busts on the rooftop concert equal Gilbert and Sullivan in the level of acrimony and the heightened quality of the work that was done through it and despite it all. The Beatles have survived their success and survived their era to remain modern, timeless and supreme against all comers.
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#2 - June '67 to July '68
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 7
It is the summer of Love, and the Beatles sing "All You Need is Love" on black and white television on the first world satellite television programme. The death of Brian Epstein precedes the four visiting Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and the Magical Mystery Tour. Apple Corps is formed. Those Were the Days, sings Mary Hopkin.
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#3 - July '66 to June '67
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 6
John suggests they are more important than Jesus resulting in public burnings of their work. The Beatles retire from touring and go into the studio which brings an amazed world the might whirligig of Sgt. Pepper, Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. They sing Baby You're A Rich Man, and they all are, but they don't buy an island in Greece.
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#4 - August '64 to August '65
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 4
Beatlemania sweeps America drawing tens of thousands to airports for the merest glimpse. Paul's new song diverges from the Rock'N'Roll genre. Individual traits become clear, and the band reflects on marijuana use and political recognition. They go to Buckingham Palace to receive medals from the Queen.
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#5 - August '65 to July '66
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 5
The Beatles meet Elvis and the four are never more musical, confident, fluent or assured. They perform at Shea Stadium and travel to Japan. Experimenting with drug use reflects in their Rubber Soul and Revolver albums.
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#6 - Nirvana: Nevermind
Classic Albums - Season 6 - Episode 2
In 1991 Nirvana’s Nevermind, with the songs of Kurt Cobain, changed the music business without compromise, record company hype or media overkill. The album replaced Michael Jackson at the top of the American charts and so began a rapid rise to international superstardom for the band. This is the story of how Nirvana came to record Nevermind and the effect the record had on the music world and on the band themselves. It offers an insight into the songwriting genius of Kurt Cobain and reveals why Nevermind remains a milestone in rock history.
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#7 - February '64 to July '64
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 3
Beatlemania sweeps America, Europe, the Far East and Australia. George would say many years later that the world used them as an excuse to go mad and then blamed it on the Beatles.
Watch Now:Amazon#8 - The Beatles on Record
BBC Documentaries - Season 2009 - Episode 117
In 1962 an unknown group from Liverpool entered Abbey Road Studios to record their debut single. During the next eight years they created what is arguably regarded as the greatest collection of studio recordings of the 20th century. This film charts how The Beatles developed as musicians, matured as songwriters and created a body of work that sounds as fresh now as the time it was recorded.
#9 - July '40 to March '63
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 1
The Beatles childhoods and early musical influences from Rock'N'Roll and R&B. How they met, their time in Hamburg, and their early recordings with Brian Epstein and George Martin. Discover how the Beatles became the Beatles.
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#10 - March '63 to February '64
The Beatles Anthology - Season 1 - Episode 2
The Beatles tour and appear on television for the first time in the UK. They play the Palladium, the Royal Albert Hall, The Royal Variety Show, sing Moonlight Bay with Morecambe and Wise, give a spare hit to the Rolling Stones, and record I Want to Hold Your Hand.
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#11 - Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train a Comin'
American Masters - Season 27 - Episode 5
The documentary unveils previously unseen performance footage and home movies while sourcing an extensive archive to provide new insight into the musician's personality and genius with interviews with those closest to him. The film details the meteoric rise of the Experience, the creation of his groundbreaking music, the building of Electric Lady Studios, and concludes with his final performance in Germany in September 1970, just 12 days before his death at age 27. Directed by Bob Smeaton.
#12 - Meat Loaf: Bat Out Of Hell
Classic Albums - Season 2 - Episode 3
In 1977, Marvin Lee Aday, aka Meat Loaf, shocked the music world by releasing this 30 million-selling blockbuster. Previously little-known as an actor and singer , he hooked up with writer Jim Steinman, producer Todd Rundgren, and vocalists Ellen Foley and Carla Devito, to create one of the top five sellers of all time. Kasim Sultan and Max Weinberg, who also played on the album are heard from, and Todd isolates some of the masters to show how the sounds were created.
#13 - Lulu - Something to Shout About
BBC Documentaries - Season 2011 - Episode 296
Lulu arrived on Top Of The Pops in 1964 with her raucous, belting rendition of Shout when she was just 15 years old. She is the only female artist who has had a UK Top 20 hit in every one of the last five decades. It's been almost 50 years since her first public performance as a schoolgirl in Scotland, named Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie. Since then, she's notched up 66 singles and 21 albums. She's enjoyed No.1 hits on both sides of the Atlantic, and also won a Eurovision Song Contest. Now 62 years old, Lulu opens the doors to her life - looking back across five decades at her remarkable career. This is also very much the story of Lulu now - following her into the studio with Jools Holland; rehearsing for shows; choreographing new dance routines; and exclusive access as Lulu prepares and performs for a huge concert on the banks of the River Clyde in her old home town of Glasgow. Featuring contributions from Elton John, Kylie Minogue, Cliff Richard, Robin Gibb, Barry Manilow, Bobby Womack and Jools Holland, along with family members, such as Lulu's brother and sister.