The Beatles - The First U.S. Visit - * * * 1/2

There was a time when the Beatles hadn't set foot in America. This is a documentary of that first visit, and is an interesting window into the Beatles phenomenon.

Here are the lads from Liverpool invading the U.S. -- and they practically look like kids. In this documentary, you get a front row seat on the Ed Sullivan show -- in New York and in Florida. You get to see the girls screaming. You get to see how charming the lads are.

They get to spend a lot of time in a hotel suite, watching themselves on TV, looking out the window to adoring fans, and sometimes looking bored. This is a different time, when there was only one phone in the room, and whenever someone calls, the lads (yes, they answer the phone themselves) tell the person on the other end that they're blocking the line.

It's fascinating to watch the Beatles taking public transportation (a train) between gigs. They mingle with everyday passengers, talking to whomever wanted to talk to them. It's a far cry from the private jets and motorcades of today.

I was also surprised at how aware the Beatles were of their record sales. I could see their manager Brian Epstein being on top of this, but it seems like all the Beatles know how many units they're moving on any particular day.

This is a fascinating piece of history that all fans of the Beatles and music should watch.

The Beatles - The First U.S. Visit (1991) DVD