A fitting tribute to the Beatles

I generally don’t go to see tribute bands.

Watching an impersonation of a legendary act — whether it’s The Doors, Aerosmith, AC/DC or The Rolling Stones — is no substitute for the real thing, and I can’t get no satisfaction from it.

But an exception is 1964 The Tribute, which has been re-creating the early Beatles concert experience (pre-“Sgt. Pepper’s”) for a few decades now and has earned a solid reputation worldwide. 1964 played at Stambaugh Auditorium on Sunday.

The Beatles and Elvis Presley are probably the two most impersonated acts of all time, and for good reason. Each one stirred up a cultural change that transcended pop music, and their impact is still felt today. Elvis (before the rhinestone-jumpsuit era that has unfortunately become his enduring image) was the swivel-hipped “Hound Dog” sex symbol. And the Beatles are practically the founding fathers of the Modern Rock era.

Both were totally fresh when they first hit, and they drove young girls (and their parents) crazy. But the rest of the music world soon caught up. They retained their following, of course, but you can make a first impression only once.

Therefore, 1964 The Tribute is wise to focus on the early days. Why bother with the Beatles’ later years when they were no longer so far ahead of the pack?

To understand what made the band such a game-changer, one must see them through the eyes of a teenager in the early ’60s. That’s what 1964 succeeds in doing, and it’s also why their show is more than just a tribute. It’s a piece of living history.

The Beatles came to America in 1964, part of the British Invasion wave of bands. Backed by a line of amplifiers, they cranked out power-pop songs that included jangly electric-guitar solos, screaming vocals and crashing drums.

1964 The Tribute sounds exactly like the Beatles, and the four members also look a good bit like John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

They also capture each band member’s personality in their stage banter.

“It’s good to be in Pittsburgh,” a dry-witted John Lennon [played by Mark Benson] told the crowd at Sunday’s show. After a momentary gasp from the Stambaugh audience, he corrected himself with perfect timing and a British accent: “Oh, sorry. ... I meant East Liverpool.”

Paul McCartney (Gary Grimes, playing a true-to-life left-handed bass) playfully referred to America as “the colonies,” while George Harrison (Tom Work) wielded a 12-string guitar and talked with the same cadence as “the quiet Beatle.”

Ringo (Terry Manfredi) shared his namesake’s bemused sense of fun, especially while singing “Yellow Submarine.”

Sunday’s concert was the last in the 2009-10 Monday Musical Club series, which had a 1960s theme. The series also included Herman’s Hermits and the Lovin’ Spoonful.

For 2010-11, Monday Musical will get more current. The season opens Oct. 15 with Texas blues-rockers Los Lonely Boys (“How Far Is Heaven”); goes back to the 1960s with The Buckinghams (“Don’t You Care,” “Hey Baby,” “Kind of a Drag”) on March 18, 2011; then finishes up with vocal-harmony group Rockapella on April 15, 2011.