Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)

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Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the name of a 1978 musical film featuring new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. It is mostly remembered as one of the most expensive flops in the history of the music industry. The plot is based more on a previous stage version of the 1967 album than the album itself and tells the loosely-constructed story of a band and their wrangles with the music industry, attempts to battle evil forces bent on stealing their instruments and corrupting their home town of Heartland. The film is presented in the form of a rock opera with the Beatles' songs providing "dialogue" to carry the story (although co-star George Burns performs the only actual spoken dialogue in the entire film). The film's tagline is "A splendid time is guaranteed for all".

Billy Preston as Sgt. Pepper

Conceived in the wake of the huge success of Saturday Night Fever and produced by Robert Stigwood (who had also produced Fever as well as Grease), Pepper's was one of a number of musical films to be released in 1978 and pulled together several music stars at the height of their popularity including the Bee Gees (whose music had been integral to Fever), Peter Frampton (whose album Frampton Comes Alive! had been one of the biggest rock hits in recent years) and Aerosmith along with well-known actors including George Burns, Steve Martin and Donald Pleasence. This combination of talent with the hugely popular music of The Beatles seemed like a sure recipe for success but the film and soundtrack were critical disasters and the production failed to make back a significant portion of its expenses. Many of the principals involved (including the Bee Gees) continue to reference the film as an embarrassment and a low point in their careers. It has appeared on IMDB's Bottom 100 list of movie flops.

The film was nearly universally panned by critics who noted the wooden acting of Frampton and the Bee Gees (who despite thick Australian accents were playing American musicians), the insubstantial and juvenile plot and strained attempts at hipness which were undercut by the presence of old-guard actors like Burns.

The soundtrack album was rejected both by Bee Gees and Beatles fans and mainstream buyers. Whereas the latter objected to the awkward treatment of classic songs such as Martin's comedic take on "Maxwell's Silver Hammer", the former, while buying soundtracks featuring disco and pop hits in droves, had no interest in an Alice Cooper version of "Because" or hearing unknown actress Sandy Farina's competent vocal work on "Strawberry Fields Forever". Nonetheless, Earth Wind & Fire's version of "Got To Get You Into My Life" became a Top Ten single. Aerosmith's version of "Come Together" also reached the charts and later appeared on the Armageddon soundtrack. While the double-LP shipped enough copies to retailers to reach the top 5 on the US album charts, most of these were eventually returned without selling and the album was still a cut-out bin staple years later. The ensuing financial fallout all but destroyed Robert Stigwood's record label RSO.

Like many films that originally flopped, the film has become popular in the cult circuit thanks to a DVD release of the film and a CD release of the album. The DVD has even gained a few five-star reviews.

Soundtrack album track listing

Disc 1

1. Introducing Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band: (4:42)
2. #Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1:56) — performed by the Bee Gees and Paul Nicholas
3. #With A Little Help From My Friends (2:46) — performed by Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees
4. Here Comes the Sun (3:05) — performed by Sandy Farina
5. Getting Better (2:46) — performed by Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees
6. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (3:41) — performed by Dianne Steinberg and Stargard
7. I Want You (She's So Heavy) (6:31) — music performed by George Martin, Peter Frampton and Toto, vocals performed by Donald Pleasance, Dianne Steinberg, Paul Nicholas, The Bee Gees and Stargard
8. Good Morning Good Morning (1:58) — performed by Paul Nicholas, Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees
9. She's Leaving Home (2:40) — performed by Steven Tyler, The Bee Gees, Jay MacIntosh and John Wheeler
10. You Never Give Me Your Money (3:07) — performed by Paul Nicholas and Dianne Steinberg
11. Oh! Darling (3:29) — performed by Robin Gibb
12. Maxwell's Silver Hammer (4:00) — performed by Steve Martin and the vocal chorus
13. Rise To Stardom Suite: (5:11)
14. #Polythene Pam (:38) — performed by The Bee Gees
15. #She Came in Through the Bathroom Window (1:46) — performed by Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees
16. #Nowhere Man (1:14) — performed by The Bee Gees
17. #Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise) (1:33) — performed by Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees

1. Got To Get You Into My Life (3:36) — performed by Earth, Wind and Fire (reached #9 on the U.S. Billboard charts)
2. Strawberry Fields Forever (3:31) — performed by Sandy Farina
3. When I'm Sixty-Four (2:40) — performed by Frankie Howerd and Sandy Farina
4. Mean Mr. Mustard (2:46) — performance credited to Frankie Howerd, actually performed by Steven Tyler, The Bee Gees and Frankie Howerd
5. Fixing a Hole (2:25) — performed by George Burns
6. Because (2:45) — performed by Alice Cooper
7. The Death of Strawberry: (3:24)
8. #Golden Slumbers (1:39) — performed by Peter Frampton
9. #Carry That Weight (1:45) — performed by The Bee Gees
10. Come Together (3:46) — performed by Aerosmith
11. Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite (3:12) — performed by Maurice Gibb, Peter Frampton, The Bee Gees and George Burns
12. The Long and Winding Road (3:40) — music performed by Paul McCartney and Toto, vocals performed by Peter Frampton
13. A Day In The Life (5:11) — performed by Barry Gibb and The Bee Gees
14. Get Back (2:56) — performed by Billy Preston
15. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band [Finale] (2:13) — performed by the cast

External links

• [The Original Unofficial Motion Picture Homepage, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]
• [}}}] at Rotten Tomatoes

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