By John Carlson—
Muncie, IN—For hundreds and hundreds of Muncie folks, making their way to Canan Commons Saturday evening was like time-traveling back to a magical era when all you needed was love and you got by with a little help from your friends.
These fans weren’t hearing the Beatles exactly, but they were hearing the next best thing via the Fab Four tribute band Classical Mystery Tour, accompanied by our very own Muncie Symphony Orchestra.
How was the concert? Extraordinary, and it would have drawn a sellout crowd had tickets been for sale, but they weren’t.
It was FREE.
That’s a perfect segue into one of the undeniably coolest things about our fair city, folks. Between shows like Saturday night’s and those set for this summer’s Three Trails Music Series, which will feature free concerts by acts including the legendary Texas swing band Asleep At The Wheel, Muncie music lovers are treated to an embarrassment of musical riches.
All stages of the Beatles’ extraordinary career were represented Saturday evening. There was “A Hard Day’s Night” and “I Saw Her Standing There,” plus the opener, “Got To Get You Into My Life,” on which the addition of the orchestra absolutely shined.
The enthusiastic audience also grooved along to classics like “Eleanor Rigby,” “Penny Lane,” “I Am the Walrus,” and even “A Day In the Life,” right down to its climactic final chord. All were songs that would have been impossible to fully capture without the MSO’s orchestral help.
At one point a Beatle – I think it was “Paul” – called out, “Can you believe it? Look at us! We’re back together!” For many of us in the crowd, that sweet sentiment undoubtedly served as a reminder of how grateful we were to have been around when the real Beatles blasted their way into America’s public consciousness. Other numbers including “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “Ob-la-di, ob-la-da” and “Come Together” only strengthened those feelings.
For the final number, which came three songs earlier than intended due to the arrival of an inconvenient storm, the bass player took over the keyboard for “The Long and Winding Road.” It was so spot-on, I swear he was channeling the young Paul McCartney in looks and sound.”
Taking a quick glance around at the crowd, which Muncie Journal editor-in-chief Mike Rhodes photographed from high aloft with his drone, my wife Nancy said, “People are smiling! Everywhere people are smiling!”
Was this a surprise?
Not really. The Music of the Beatles and the Muncie Symphony Orchestra tend to do that to you.
