CARLTON FLETCHER: Magic of The Beatles transcends decades of time passage

It’s been a hard day’s night, and I’ve been working like a dog.

— The Beatles

Renee Zellwegger told Tom Cruise “You had me at hello” in the movie “Jerry McGuire.” I say to John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr “you had me at the unforgettable opening chord” to the Beatles’ classic “A Hard Day’s Night.”

And that magical chord is the first sound you hear at the start of the Fab Four’s first film of the same name, which was released in 1964.

I saw “Hard Day’s Night” back then, when I was 8 years old, and I was enthralled then as only one caught up in the madness of Beatlemania could have been.

And while I’ve listened to Beatles tracks easily a million times or so over the years since that magical movie event at that long-since-shuttered theater in downtown Ocilla, I’d never had the opportunity to see a second screening of “Hard Day’s Night.”

Until Tuesday of this week.

Tara and I typically watch TV when we first call it a night – usually it’s a second or third viewing of a “Curb Your Enthusiasm” episode, a fourth-time run-through of the 15 seasons of “Gold Rush” or (and I never thought I’d say this, given my disdain for cooking shows on TV and hearing British people speak) the newest season of the “Great British Baking Show.”

But when I turned on the TV Tuesday, there among the list of apps and available shows was “A Hard Day’s Night.” I let out a little yelp of surprise that gave Tara a start, but she quickly caught on when I said, “A Hard Day’s Night!”

So we watched it. I was enthralled. I knew I’d enjoyed the film when I watched it decades ago, but really all I cared about back then was the music. Watching the band lip sync many of their great tunes was enough for the kid in me, and the mostly slapstick humor and puns was over my head back then anyway.

Watching the movie Tuesday, I found myself alternately laughing out loud and groaning at some of the jokes that came at you a mile a minute. Tara and I discussed the “meaning” of the movie, but it turns out this was really nothing more than a day (or two) in the life of the world’s most popular band.

Just as I was taken with the music in my first viewing of “A Hard Day’s Night,” I re-fell in love with those classic songs a second time.

The title song, “I’ll Cry Instead,” “I’m Happy Just to Dance With You,” “Tell Me Why,” “And I Love Her,” “I Should Have KNown Better,” “If I Fell” and “Can’t Buy Me Love” were among the songs that had me singing along – off-key, but still – as I reveled again in the magic of these four lads’ musical genius.

Oh, and I had to do a little digging to understand that magical opening chord. Turns out it was created when both Lennon and Harrison simultaneously strummed their respective guitars, McCartney hit a bass note, and genius producer George Martin played a note on the piano.

And, yes, I know it seems a little fanatic-ish to place so much emphasis on a single musical chord, but that’s just the way The Beatles impacted music. Can you imagine any kind of dissertation on any one note Beyonce Knowles produced? Taylor Swift? Me neither.

I can’t imagine how many times over the years since 1964 that I’ve wished I could once again see “A Hard Day’s Night.” At long last, I’ve had that wish realized. Now, if somebody’s got an airing of “Help!” planned …

Email Carlton Fletcher at [email protected].