Last night I had the pleasure of having comp tickets to see Strawberry Fields, a Beatles tribute band. If I closed my eyes, they were surprisingly dead on in their sound. It was a fun time. They played chronologically, changing wardrobe a couple of times as things progressed. As with the originals, Paul remains my favorite :) They're cast members from the Broadway show, "Beatlemania", and they just kept on playing after it closed.
Their look is a little less than authentic, but I think that's mostly because they've been playing long enough that they're a little more senior than the Beatles themselves at the time. Once past the mid-sixties, their "George" looked like a shorter version of Alan Rickman's Snape and "John" looked like a thinner version of my brother Patrick (that went away when he put on the longer 70's wig). I just can't get over how much they sounded like the real thing, however. There were several subtle Beatles jokes for superfans I especially enjoyed (like subtle references to Ringo's "acting" debut in "Caveman" that most of the audience seemed to miss while I laughed my head off).
What was especially cool is that they went into the studio and, with today's technology, were able to record tracks (not cheezy backing tracks as you might picture-- I hate that stuff) to enhance their sound during tunes from Magical Mystery Tour-- songs the Beatles themselves didn't ever perform live (with one exception when they performed with a symphony orchestra), as they required so much additional instrumentation. They nailed it.
If you like the Beatles and see them listed in your area, I'd recommend it. They've got a weekly steady gig in NYC at the moment, though, so not sure how much they may play out of town.
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