Music journalism, books and more

England was basking in an unseasonably warm and bright afternoon one play last week. Paul McCartney, however, was spending it enveloped by darkness and fog, as he had done for most of the preceding month. Yet the famous ex-Beatle’s mood could hardly have been sunnier. On Soundstage 6 at the Goldcrest Elstree Studio complex north of London, shrouded by dry ice, McCartney enthusiastically kicked into a performance of “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” He was rehearsing for his most significant career move since the breakup of The Beatles in 1970. Buoyed by the critical success of his latest album, Flowers in the Dirt, and excited about the sound of his new band, McCartney is embarki...

Paul McCartney performed outside on a rooftop of sorts to the delight of fans below.  It wasn’t the Apple Corps building on London’s Saville Row, made famous by the Beatles fabled appearance there in 1969, but New York’s Ed Sullivan Theater, at 53rd Street and Broadway, where McCartney was appearing on the Dave Letterman show.  It was July 15, 2009 and Sir Paul McCartney was marking the 45th anniversary of the Beatles' triumphant appearance on Ed Sullivan. For the occasion, he and his band played “Get Back” and “Sing the Changes,” taped for the Late Show broadcast, but then thundered through a mini-set that included through “Coming Up,” “Band On the Run,” “Let Me Roll It,” “Helter ...

They’ve never looked so fab. The Beatles were early adopters of film technology. But now it’s possible to see the group as never before. This DVD/Blu-ray collection offers 50 enhanced promotional films and videos, along with a book and the band’s 27 chart-topping singles, which will amaze even diehard fans. The material ranges from the Beatles performing “She Loves You” before a spellbound Stockholm audience in 1963 to a bittersweet London rooftop performance in 1969 of “Don’t Let Me Down” for what would be their last public performance. Among the many highlights are seeing the eye-popping primary colors in “Hello Goodbye” and the infectious ad-libbing between John Lennon and Paul McCartney ...

1. The Last Waltz The Band’s elegant swansong is the ultimate rock concert movie. Director Martin Scorcese’s discreet camerawork and superb sound captures inspired performances from Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison and others. Scorcese keeps his focus almost exclusively on the stage. Beneath three massive chandeliers, the Band pays tribute to its influences with such friends as Muddy Water (an explosive “Mannish Boy”), Neil Young (a wistful “Helpless”) and Bob Dylan (a stirring group finale on “I Shall Be Released”). But the highlight is “The Weight,” performed with gospel’s Staples family, which ranks among the most exquisite music sequences ever committed to film.     2....