"Hey Jude" in concert - Friday, February 7

Marking the 50th Anniversary of Arrival of The Beatles in NYC

On February 7, 1964, Pan Am Yankee Clipper flight 101 bound from London’s Heathrow Airport arrived at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. The flight was met by thousands of screaming fans, many of them in tears - Beatlemania had begun.

To mark the 50th anniversary of one of the most iconic events in rock and roll history, the University Club of Albany Foundation will present a concert by “Hey Jude,” an authentic Beatles tribute band. The event will take place on Friday, February 7, from 8:00 – 10:00 p.m., at the National Register-listed University Club of Albany, 141 Washington Avenue at Dove Street. Tickets for the concert are $20, seating is limited and reservations are required. Call the University Club at 518-463-1151 or reserve online with a credit card or PayPal. Ticket-holders are also invited to reserve seats for a la carte pre-show dinner in the Grille Room.

The band members are: Tom Raider (John Lennon), Brad Jarvis (Paul McCartney), Rick Bedrosian (George Harrison), Don Ackerman (Ringo Starr) and Rich Coogan (keyboards and percussion). Tom Raider has portrayed Lennon all over the world since 2001, and Rick Bedrosian is also the leader of the Celtic Music powerhouse, Hair Of The Dog.

A Hey Jude concert is first and foremost, a bona fide performance of classic Beatles songs, but it’s also an engaging theatrical experience.  The band members dress in a variety of Beatles costumes and bring a wealth of Scouse humor, history and hubris to their stage show. Hey Jude is detail oriented too; from their hair, to their Rickenbacker, Gretsch, Hofner and Epiphone guitars, Vox amps and Ludwig drums, their tailored suits (stitched by renowned Beatles costumer Russ Lease) and imported (from Liverpool) boots.

The band concentrates on the early songs from 1963 and 1964 (tunes like “She Loves You,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand” and “A Hard Day's Night”) but Hey Jude’s repertoire also includes hits from later albums such as “Help!,” “Rubber Soul,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “White Album” and “Abbey Road.”

This concert is presented by the University Club of Albany Foundation, Inc., formed to recognize and maintain the unique historic and architectural significance of the University Club building and property, its neighborhood and the city of Albany, where it has been located since its inception in 1901. One need not be a member of the University Club to attend. Support for educational programming presented by the University Club Foundation is provided by AT&T.