"Give My Regards to Broad Street" (1984)
I suppose most every Beatles fan can remember some formative moment that fully led them down the path of becoming a fan for life. In my case, I can attribute it to a couple of things, starting with my next-door neighbor, Betty Steiner, giving me a copy of 20 Greatest Hits as a gift, but it was the purchase of Nicholas Schaffner’s invaluable tome The Beatles Forever that provided me with the deep dive I needed to become a Beatlemaniac for life. I still remember key moments in my early fandom, like picking up copies of Beatles Monthly a.k.a. The Beatles Book from Electric Smiles Records in Virginia Beach or renting How I Won the War from a local independent video store because it was John Lennon’s only starring role in a motion picture.
Another key moment in that Beatles fandom: Christmas morning, 1984, when I got the cassette of the Give My Regards to Broad Street soundtrack in my stocking.
You can generally tell roughly when someone became a Beatles fan—or a Paul McCartney solo fan—by their reaction when you bring up this soundtrack. For my part, I fell for “No More Lonely Nights” immediately, but having only just begun to explore the Beatles catalog, I was immediately smitten by hearing these sparkling new renditions of songs like “Good Day Sunshine,” “Yesterday,” “Here, There and Everywhere,” “For No One,” and “Eleanor Rigby,” some of which I’d yet to even hear by the Beatles! (Remember, kids, this was before you could just pull up Spotify and listen to any bleeding song in the world…as long as it isn’t by Neil Young or Joni Mitchell.) But some people just can’t resist bashing them because they consider them subpar versions. Well, of course they are when compared to the originals, but when you haven’t heard those versions yet, then they’re a damned fine gateway drug. So, for that matter, were the versions of Beatles song that Paul performed on Wings Over America…but, of course, we’re not here to talk about that album, we’re here to talk about a cinematic endeavor which—highly enjoyable soundtrack aside—isn’t necessarily a high water mark in Sir Paul’s history.
Give My Regards to Broad Street was directed by Peter Webb, and try not to make too much of the fact that it remains to this day the only feature film ever helmed by the man. In truth, the actual look of the film is pretty fantastic, and we’ve already discussed how I feel about the music. The problem is that there’s not much to the plot, a flaw which must be laid at the feet of the man who serves as its leading man, since he also wrote the screenplay.
The film revolves around Paul entrusting the master tapes of his newly-recorded album to Harry, an employee with a less-than-reputable past, only for him to disappear, leaving the record company in the lurch and forcing Paul to go on a quest to find Harry and the tapes by midnight. That’s basically it. There’s an mildly interesting bit involving Harry’s girlfriend, played by Tracey Ullman, who’s put her trust in Harry and is now wondering if she—like Paul—has gotten the shaft, but it’s mostly interesting because, hey, look, it’s Tracey Ullman!
There’s also an extended dream sequence set in some approximation of the Victorian era, plus a scene where Paul’s search for Harry leads him to visit an old friend played by the inestimable Ralph Richardson, who promptly out-acts everyone in the film without so much as breaking a sweat. Otherwise, it’s really just a bunch of performances by Paul and his band…not that I’m complaining about those, mind you.
Plenty of other people did, though. Oof.
For my part, I must admit that I appreciate the film much more as an adult than I did as a teenager. I was a member of the MTV generation and I came into the proceedings looking for the musical performances, so in that initial viewing, I was very much of a singular mindset: “Hurry it along to the next song!” Now I can look at it and enjoy it as an amusing folly that features some solid tunes surrounded by some visually impressive moment that, if nothing else, show that Paul, Linda, Ringo, his wife Barbara (playing a reporter, oddly, rather than his wife), George Martin, Dave Edmunds, Eric Stewart, Chris Spedding, and the rest of the lot are having fun. It might not be substantive, but it’s much more entertaining than I remembered. Maybe you’ll feel the same way, maybe you won’t even bother to revisit it, but if you’re of a mind to do so, now you can…
Last but not least, if you’re a fan of the soundtrack like I am, then you might well enjoy giving a listen to this discovery I found buried in the Internet Archive: a collection of songs from the Give My Regards to Broad Street sessions that includes a number of alternate takes, different mixes, and so forth.
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