Beatlemania lives

And a Sutcliffes fan is sending the band to Nirvana, a.k.a. the Cavern

By Adrian Chamberlain, from The Times Colonist, Saturday, June 09, 2009.

Until lately, the Sutcliffes -- a fine Beatles tribute band -- played the Fernwood Inn every single Wednesday night. And for the past 18 months, Superfan Dave has attended every show. Well, almost. He did reluctantly miss one night when he was called out of town. Taking into account the odd week off here and there, that's about 70 shows.

Superfan Dave is crazy about the Sutcliffes. He never gets bored. "You can tell they do it for the joy of doing it. They believe it," the 46-year-old said. "They're a gas. There's never a bad time. If you have a s----y day, you think, well, at least there's the Sutcliffes."
He said this with some zeal, in the manner of a body-painted dude cheering on his favourite football team.

Superfan Dave -- sporting gold earrings in both lobes and a foot-long chin beard -- always sits at the Table 45 in the Fernwood Inn. It's the best seat in the house, right at the back by a window.

Does the pub reserve this table for him?

"I just call them when I'm not coming," he said. I expected him to pump both fists into the air. But Superfan Dave, if stirred by such an urge, contained it.

These are the kinds of followers bands dream about. They're the die-hards, the ultra-loyalists, the breast-beating aficionados, the (insert band name here)-heads. Aside from helping jam the joint, such fans can be tremendously helpful. For example, Superfan Dave -- whose full name is Dave Copeman -- is the chief fundraiser and primary strategist in the Sutcliffes' bid to play Liverpool this August.

They're booked to perform for five nights at the famed Cavern Club (or at least, the facsimile Cavern Club), an early venue for the Beatles before they became the Biggest Thing in Pop. The Sutcliffes' shows are part of Liverpool's International Beatles Festival, hosting performances from top Beatles bands from around the globe.

Playing the Cavern is more about glory than cash. That's because there is no cash. The Sutcliffes and about 60 other acts (including an Argentinean outfit playing exclusively Beatles music from 1969) play for free and pay their own way. Here's where Superfan Dave comes in. On his own dime, he's purchased Sutcliffes souvenir merchandise to raise money for the trip. There's Sutcliffes hoodies, T-shirts, hats, tank-tops and lighters. It's raised $1,500 so far.

On June 13, the Sutcliffes will crank their fundraising efforts to 11. For $25, fans can see one of three consecutive shows at the Fernwood Inn, starting at 3 p.m. As well as a concert, patrons will eventually receive a recording compiled from the afternoon, to be titled Live at the Fernwood Vol. II. Superfan Dave's home company, Fathead Productions, is recording it for free. With luck, the event will gross $4,500.

Sutcliffes guitarist Chuck Simms says Superfan Dave is a godsend, given that musicians tend to be "very lazy people." As well as the merchandise, Dave booked and made all the arrangements for the Liverpool trip.

"My two requirements are: Can I trust a guy, and does he get things done? Dave does both these things," Simms said.

Superfan Dave looked pleased at this. He got hooked on the Sutcliffes almost by accident. He lives just "a drunken stumble" away from the Fernwood Inn. "I was walking by one night, minding my own business. And I heard the Beatles."

The early Beatles, to be precise. The Sutcliffes specialize in songs the Beatles performed in the early '60s, when they played Hamburg's red-light district. Back then, the Fab Four wore leather jackets and gobbled amphetamines to survive shows lasting up to eight hours. It was rougher music, more rock'n'roll. None of that cutesy Maxwell's Silver Hammer stuff.

It's that rawness and energy that the Sutcliffes aim to capture. "We play it like our lives depend on it," said Simms.

Because the Sutcliffes' lead singer recently had a child, the band was recently forced to cut back to playing every second Wednesday. These bi-monthly gigs are now so popular, patrons are advised to reserve two weeks in advance.

Naturally, the Sutcliffes are thrilled to be playing the Cavern. If you're a Beatles band, it's like the holy grail. True, the original club was bulldozed in the '70s. But the new one, erected in 1984, is a duplicate built partly on the original site. It even uses some of the original bricks. Oasis and the Arctic Monkeys have played it. So did Paul McCartney ... which in Beatles-land, is akin to receiving the Pope's blessing.

So ... is Superfan Dave is coming to Liverpool with the Sutcliffes?

Is he ever!

"Absolutely," he said. "It's gonna be a riot."

Note: Tickets for the Sutcliffes' June 13 fundraising shows are available from Long & McQuade, 756 Hillside Ave.