The Rutles : I Must Be In Love
On March 22 1978 NBC aired "All You Need Is Cash", a Beatles parody that is one of the first, finest and funniest mockumentaries ever made. Naturally nobody watched. It was the least watched program of the entire week. Monty Python's Eric Idle and Bonzo Dog Band's Neil Innes were the masterminds behind the project which gently spoofs their friends. George Harrison helped produce Monty Python movies and Paul McCartney produced the Bonzo's UK#5 hit "I'm the Urban Spaceman" and featured the band performing "Death Cab for Cutie" in Magical Mystery Tour.
The film is fun but the I've gotten the most pleasure from the soundtrack featuring Innes's Beatlesque tunes. The songs so closely parodied the original source material that Innes was taken to court by the owners of The Beatles' catalogue. Innes had to testify under oath that he had not listened to the songs at all while composing The Rutles' songs, but had created them completely originally based on what he remembered various songs by The Beatles sounding like at different times.
Innes recorded the songs with ex Flames and Beach Boy Ricky Fataar, Ollie Halsall (who sang the Paul McCartney inspired tunes that Eric Idle mimed , John Halseyn( who played the Ringo inspired Barry Wom) and Andy Brown.
I would often play the Rutles on my college radio show, favoring Rutle Soul era songs like "I Must Be In Love", "With a Girl Like You", "Ouch" and "Between Us".
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