The 4 Complete Ed Sullivan Shows Starring The Beatles (2-DVDs)

Awesome DVD! Has all of the Ed Sullivan shows which the Beatles appeared in, in their entirety. Even including all the commercials of the day. It was quite interesting seeing all those old commercials. The video played quite nicely and did not have any issues with it. I highly recommend this for all Beatles fans.

They sound great !! Wish I had sent them at that time

Since I was in England when these shows were recorded, it was interesting to me to see what the full shows looked like. I'd seen the performances of The Beatles many times, but not the context in which they were set. There were several things that were surprising to me.First, I hadn't realised how minimal the staging was. Not only were there no fancy sets, there were hardly any sets at all. Most of the acts just came out and performed in front of curtains. Coupled with that was the low-key nature of the presentation, exemplified by the style of Mr. Sullivan himself. These days it seems that presenters don't feel that they've done their job unless they scream their introductions. Ed Sullivan simply said a few words and then allowed the acts to speak for themselves.Second, an area which has improved considerably is the lighting of the stage. Evidently at that time lights were very bright and very hot, with the result that the performers were visibly drenched in sweat after the first couple of minutes. Paul was glistening like a marathon runner and poor Mitzi Gaynor was actually dripping. I found it quite distracting, as obviously did Ms. Gaynor.Third, if indeed these are the full shows, I was surprised by how limited the commercial interruptions were. There was generally only one or at the most two advertisements between each act and The Beatles and Mitzi Gaynor, as the biggest stars on view, were able to perform several numbers without commercial interruptions. The commercials themselves were rather endearing in their earnestness, striving to show what good quality the products were. Only cosmetics and medical products appear to have that as their primary objective now, most of the others being either humorous or appealing to the desire for status.I'm not a believer that everything was better in the good old days, and a program like this would have to be considerably reworked to get any kind of an audience now. However, it is commendable that these shows are still available to allow people like myself to see what America was watching in 1964. The British TV companies, alas, didn't do nearly as good a job at retaining archival material and much of what was broadcast in Britain at that time has been lost forever.Well worth purchasing for fans of The Beatles, Ed Sullivan and the early 1960s period.

Smooth transaction product arrived as described

Its like going back to 1964 in time machine with the commercials lifestyle and attitude 0f1964

This is new SOFA "revised" release of the Beatles on Ed Sullivan.(I have the original 2006 SOFA release, also)-On this "revised" release please be aware of various issues:-Particular significance of the 2nd "Eddy Show" from Miami Beach on this "new" 2010 edition from SOFA shows a MAJOR improvement over what you see here verses the previous 2006 earlier SOFA release of the same. -I suspect an earlier/better quality generation master CBS video tape was used for this 2010 released video to DVD transfer and that substantial digital work was done during remastering. They've really done wonders in both sound and video improvements (most notable in the consecutive 2nd "Beatles Show" from the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach.) -Bravo here! Curiously also the Sullivan 1964 trio "Beatles Shows" (No. 1 and 3) of the 1964 consecutive appearance trio on this presentation show several beginning broadcast seconds that were mysteriously "edited out" of the original 2006 SOFA edition!-But, let's not stop. The bonus material shown here is really terrific. I well remember Ed's interview in London he conducted on film of the Beatles just after they had completed "A Hard Day's Night" in May/June 1964. It's now here to see and latter Eddy Shows of various 1966 and 1967 Beatles appearances that were filmed in England for a global audience are shown (on the "Bonus Section" in this 2010 twin DVD package. Ed's intros are there but, the 1966/1967 Beatles' appearances are not. -May be due to an unresolved "rights" issue.-I was 13 years old at that time point in 1964 and watched it all happening. Yes indeed! Extremely exciting real-time back live back then as it happened in a far more innocent yet much, much better world.BUY IT!

I know folks today have to have everything crisp and in latest formats. This dvd is good enough quality for me. I don't have a bluray player yet, and could care less. I am enjoying going back to the past, and reliving, when I saw these clips on old 25 inch tv's, or smaller. Remembering and reliving the skits on the show, along with the old commercials. It is just like sitting in the living rooom and watching it as a teen again. I have ordered 2 dvds more for my friends who loved the beatles. My one friend took his dad's motion camera and filmed it off the tv, as they were watching it. Years later it was so cool to see it when he played it on a projector screen. Now it is here to enjoy again. I don't care if it is not the best format or sound. It is just fun to see them again. You can go to the songs and skip the shows if you want as well on this dvd. I have almost finished the "all the songs" beatle book, so this is an added pleasure, on top of reading who wrote the songs, and what instruments, and who sat out on a song. Then to see them play live again is icing on the cake.

A rare and truly fascinating slice of classic 60s American TV. I bought these shows mainly for The Beatles and they do not disappoint. Most intriguing to hear so many screaming girls in the audience clearly infatuated by the Fab Four in their youthful, energetic prime - love it! Yes all part of 'the British invasion'. I wonder if any of the Beatles have watched this release themselves? It is pleasing to know that half of them are still with us, God bless them. This solid slice of the sixties, and the Fab Four is worth re-watching to rekindle unique and happy 60s memories and atmospheres which, I fear, may never be repeated. These shows must have originally been mastered on NTSC format VT but the restoration and conversion to PAL is impressive. Watch out too for the moment when John appears to have problems with his mic and has to share a mic with Paul with a rather sheepish smile - but you'll have to be observant as, professional as they were (and are), the Beatles covered it up well. Live moments like this are classic! Recorded shows are too rehearsed, too 'smug' ("professional" I am sure the broadcasters would argue, but they'd be missing the point). Perhaps we should have more live television in the UK!Why four stars? Good question! These are good shows, very good even, but outstanding? I'm not too sure. But buy the DVD - if you're a Beatles fan you won't be disappointed. Also included in one of the shows is an incredibly young looking Cilla Black - probably before she had the nose job. Just like travelling back in time...

Great sound quality though 5.1 surround wasn't all that impressive and though picture quality is very good for that period in time. The menu was good you can switch between watching ALL the shows as they were or just the Beatles parts. I did notice a fault with the 5.1 setting it was Mono so had to set it to remastered mono to get 5.1 (whoever made the menu got it mixed up) you also get a free ticket reproduction from the shows. Comes on 2 DVDs. I do love this package despite the error and poor video quality for that period though its black and white it is the best you can get from that period. If your a 60s music lover and Beatles fan you will love this though as I do.

Well what can I possibly say that hasn't been said about the famous appearance of The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show. Well to start with this set shows you how great The Beatles were at performing in front of an audience. Here you get to hear them in full voice and actually here what they were playing without screams all the way through. On here the band come across as four genuine guys with good humour and really likeable. It's not hard to see why they call it the 'Night that changed America'. Also really like the old tv adverts in between performers. I did buy this just for The Beatles performances but I must say I did enjoy seeing the other performers on the show. This DVD is a great way of getting you close to Beatlemania, The 60's and a different time in the world.Can't recommend this more highly, for any Beatles fan this is a must have to your collection!

Great performances from the Beatles and you can actually hear them unlike the night I saw them at the Finsbury Park Astoria! Good quality and 4 hours of entertainment on 2 discs. Much of the non-Beatles material is pretty poor but worth buying just for the Beatles performances. You may want to consider The Beatles - The First U.S. Visit instead as it has three of the Ed Sullivan shows on it too, but personally, if you're a Beatles Fan you will want both anyway. Great stuff.

This is a "must have" DVD for anyone interested in early Beatles. More on the discs than the Fab Four which is really good......despite Mr. Sullivan's "Liptons Tea" adverts which themselves are very amusing. Go for it, well worth the small cost for a piece of music history.