John, Paul, George and Ringo (plus one) visited Kingwood last Saturday night, packing the streets at Kings Harbor with an estimated 2,500 people. The popular Beatles tribute band The Fab 5 was the grand finale of the Fall Festival at Kings Harbor, presented by Campbell Chiropractic and the agents at Keller Williams Realty Northeast.
The Fab 5 performed under a moonlit sky on one of the first cool fall evenings of this year. It was a good thing that the temperatures had dropped, because the group opened their show, buttoned up in dress shirts and suits reminiscent of the early Beatles. (Their black suits fit right in with the high school crowd that stopped by the Harbor before the homecoming dance that night.)
The Fab 5 kicked off their show with Beatles hits: “Got to Get You Into my Life” and “I Need You.” Although there wasn’t much room to dance, that didn’t deter the audience. Many people simply stood in place to dance to the third song: “All My Loving.”
Lead vocalist and guitarist Joe Baiardi performed a dead-on imitation of Paul McCartney, including the British accent. The crowd sung along to his rendition of “I Saw Her Standing There,” echoing the refrain of “whooh” and throwing their hands up in the air like on a roller coaster ride.
The audience got even more animated when the band did a rousing “Twist and Shout.” Everyone had so much fun with the song that Ringo (drummer Rod Robert) asked if they could play it again. He did not get his wish, but the next song was just as enjoyable. A girl did cartwheels in front of the stage and the crowd clapped along to “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” as two little boys with guitars strummed along.
Now that The Fab 5 was warmed up, they began to poke fun at some of their fans in the audience. John Lennon’s look-a-like Chuck Essick, a Kingwood resident, gave shouts out to his friends and neighbors throughout the show. He began by singing the next song “Nowhere Man” in honor of a buddy named Jerry and later dedicated “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” to concert regulars Tony and Chris Spearink. The band got a little help from its friends when the audience joined in for a sing-a-long to “Yellow Submarine.”
As the band put their vintage instruments aside for a break, Keller Williams’ Master of Ceremonies Roland Duhon introduced the guest charity: Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi. Angie Hilben from Regnum Christi explained that the proceeds from the all-day Festival benefited the non-profit Christian outreach program for young women. She thanked Keller Williams and Campbell Chiropractic’s Scott Pagano for organizing the event and then proceeded to pull the winning tickets from the charity raffle.
The Fab 5 came back on stage looking like they had just stepped off of the Beatle’s “Sergeant Pepper” album cover, wearing brightly colored military jackets embellished with fringe and medallions. They sang “Magical Mystery Tour” followed by “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band.” “It makes me feel like home,” exclaimed Keller Williams’ agent and British expat Pauline Symon as she listened to the concert.
Essick with his uncanny mannerisms akin to the real John Lennon slowed down the tempo singing “Strawberry Fields” and keeping the beat with a maraca. As the song finished, he gave “high fives” to the young groupies lining the stage. Baiardi picked up the pace by singing one Beatle’s hit after another, including: “Getting Better,” “Day Tripper” and “Penny Lane.”
Band member John Lassen (a.k.a. Beatle George Harrison) got into the act during “We Can Work It Out.” He played the tambourine and pretended like he was in a fight with Essick, who sang the lead vocals. However, it was the whimsical song “I am the Walrus” which had the most memorable animation. Essick put down his guitar and used hand jesters to mimic the song’s words as he sang them. Keyboardist Scott Bland backed him up with amazing sound effects bringing the song to life. Essick excused the group for a second break saying, “The Walrus has called…”
The crowd was so captivated by strolling down memory lane with The Fab 5 that almost everyone stayed on for the final set. They were not disappointed, as the band took the stage in their third set of costumes. The band members all wore colorful, psychedelic shirts except for Essick who sported an all-white suit and the trademark John Lennon wire-rimmed glasses.
Baiardi started out the third set singing “Blackbird” and playing unaccompanied on the acoustic guitar. The music then took a more modern turn in fitting with the band’s “mod threads.” They picked up their electric guitars and started jamming to “Get Back,” “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “Revolution” until the crowd responded with an “all right, all right.”
Essick gave one more plug for Fall Festival sponsors, Campbell Chiropractic and Keller Williams, before turning it over to Baiardi for what was supposed to be the last song: “Hey Jude.” The audience grabbed their cell phones and waved them above their heads, while they sung along with the refrain of “nanana.”
The crowd knew that the magical night was nearing an end when the band sang the line from Sergeant Pepper: “We hope you have enjoyed the show. Sorry, but it’s time to go.” The crowd wanted more, however, and gave The Fab 5 a standing ovation. While still on their feet, they were rewarded with one of Lennon’s most-famous solo songs, “Imagine,” concluding a fabulous Fall Festival at Kings Harbor.