Original subtitles

? What would you do if I sang out of tune? ?

? Would you stand up and walk out on me? ?

? Lend me your ears, and I'll sing you a song ?

? I will try not to sing out of key, yeah ?

? Oh, baby, I get by ? ? By with a little help from my friends ?

? All I need is my buddies ?

? High with a little help from my friends ?

? I'm sayin' I'm gonna get higher ? -? Try with a little help from my friends ?

? Whoa-oa-oa-oa ?

? Oh, oh, oh, oh ?

? Somebody who knows quite sure ?

? Baby ?

? By with a little help from my friends ?

? Said I'm gonna make it with my friends ?

? Try with a little help from my friends ?

? Oh, I'm gonna keep on trying ?

? High with a little help from my friends ?

? I'm gonna keep on trying now, baby ?

? Ooh, ooh, ooh ?

[ Crickets chirping ]

On February 9, 1964,

Something happened that changed the course of American history.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles!

[ Cheers and applause ]

? Oh, yeah, I'll tell you something ?

? I think you'll understand ?

? When I... ?

73 million people sat in front of their TV sets

And looked into the future.

? I want to hold your hand ?

It was wild. It was exciting.

We'd never seen anything like it.

? Oh, please say to me ?

? You'll let me be your man ?

? And please say to me ?

? You'll let me hold your hand ?

Of course, I was only 8 years old at the time.

But in those flickering images,

I sensed a new era had been born.

A seed had been planted,

A dream that would someday lead me

From John, Paul, George, and Ringo to...

That guy.

The first time I laid eyes on Larry Bee man,

I knew I was looking at someone... Different.

Hey, what's happenin'?

Nothing much.

Sure, he was weird, but he was also kind of...

Interesting.

You, there!

Not always the best thing to be in junior high school.

What's going on here?

Me?

What's your name, mister?

Bee man. Larry Bee man.

You're new here.

Just moved from Frisco.

Well, Mr. Bee man from San Francisco,

Let me acquaint you with our rules.

Hey, that's cool.

Specifically, pertaining to the playing

Of musical instruments...

In school.

It's not permissible.

Now, this was technically none of my business.

Crushing individual spirit was the vice principal's job,

And he took it seriously.

Still...

Mr. Diperna?

Arnold.

Is it permissible to play musical instruments

Outside the school?

What are you getting at?

Well, technically speaking, sir, we are outside.

I mean, this is a courtyard.

Anything in the rules about courtyards?

You're new here. Don't let it happen again.

Thanks, man.

I owe you one.

[ Guitar plays ]

- So you really play that thing? - Sure.

- Like in bands and stuff? - Sure.

Matter of fact, I'm thinking of putting together a band here.

You play?

Oh, not exactly.

You ought to try it.

Yeah, but don't you have to practice a lot?

Hey, it's rock 'n' roll, man.

All you need to know is like three chords.

Tell you what.

I could teach you.

You could?

It's great, man... the music, the babes.

Nothing like it.

You interested?

Interested? Of course I was interested.

Still...

No. I don't think so.

Think about it.

Sure.

But there wasn't much to think about.

Not really.

After all, I was a child of the suburbs.

I'd grown up on peanut butter and station wagons and tang.

The whole idea of me playing rock-'n'-roll guitar was...

Well, it just wasn't me.

[ guitar playing loudly, dog barks ]

Which may be why the next day,

I found myself in Larry's garage.

How's it feel, man?

Fine.

Still, standing there actually holding that guitar,

I knew I'd made a mistake.

Okay, man.

Who was I kidding? I felt... Foolish.

Go ahead. Play it.

I felt square.

I felt...

[ chord plays ]

I felt 40 billion volts of power run through my body.

Play it.

[ Chord plays ]

6 trillion megawatts of pure energy seared my brain.

Let me turn up the juice.

Let 'er go.

[ Chord plays loudly ]

In the lingering echoes of that wall of sound,

I realized a new door had been opened.

It was...

Rock 'n' roll, man.

Rock 'n' roll.

Whoo!

And so I knew what I had to do.

At least theoretically.

Dad, I need a guitar.

Great... I'd just made an announcement

That would shape a generation, and what was I getting?

More potatoes, honey?

What do you want a guitar for?

Well... I was thinking about joining a rock-'n'-roll band.

[ laughing ]

[ Chuckles ]

Something amusing here?

[ laughing continues ]

Look, I just need to borrow the money, okay?

But you're not serious, are you, honey?

Well, I mean, you paid for my piano lessons.

Honey, that was different.

Why? Why was that different?

There.

I had her stumped.

That was... Real music.

So, what's rock 'n' roll?

Noise.

Noise?

Noise?!

Okay, maybe that was true.

But I wasn't gonna be derailed by simple logic.

I was determined.

So, Dad, can I have a guitar?

Here it came.

There was only one answer I'd accept.

No.

[ Toilet flushes ] what do you mean your parents won't let you have a guitar?

I was gonna have to educate Larry

About the complexity of interpersonal family dynamics.

My Dad said no.

Man, you're hopeless.

You think Jimi Hendrix asked his Dad for a guitar?

So, what are you saying?

Are you saying I should go by myself and just buy a guitar?

[ Scoffs ]

[ The Who's "My Generation" plays ]

? People try to put us d-down ?

? Talkin' 'bout my generation ?

? Just because we get around ?

? Talkin' 'bout my generation ?

And so I handed over the proceeds

From a summer spent mowing lawns.

? Talkin' 'bout my generation ?

? I hope I die before... ?

It was time to declare a little independence.

It was time to put the older generation on notice

And take what was rightfully mine.

I bought my first used electric guitar and amp

For $38 and change.

? Don't try and dig what we all s-s-say ?

And the moment of truth arrived.

? ...Cause a big s-s-sensation ?

? Talkin' 'bout my generation ?

? I'm just talkin' 'bout my g-g-g-generation ?

As I strapped on that guitar, I felt awed

To be in the presence of a rich musical tradition

That was as old... As I was.

I knew something was about to happen...

Something extraordinary.

[ electricity crackling ]

[ "My generation" continues intermittently ]

[ Dogs barking in distance ]

Kevin!

And so, from the humble beginnings

Of Larry Beeman's garage,

A new musical force was born.

And what a band it was.

On drums... our foundation, our support...

[ drums play ]

[ Echoing ] ...Mark Bernstein!

[ crowd cheering ]

On bass guitar... to know him is to love him...

[ bass plays ]

Neal Rhodes!

[ crowd cheering ]

On lead guitar...

[ guitar plays ]

Larry Bee man!

And on rhythm guitar,

A man who needs no introduction...

[ chord plays ]

Yours truly.

[ crowd cheering ]

Okay, we had our equipment. We knew our three chords.

It was official.

We were a rock-'n'-roll band.

Okay, let's get going.

Let's play "Sunshine of Your Love."

I don't know "Sunshine of Your Love."

That's cool. Cool.

What do you know?

Um... "Satisfaction"?

No, no. I don't know "Satisfaction."

How about... "Louie, Louie"?

How's that go?

Okay, so it wasn't an auspicious beginning.

But it wasn't gonna stop Larry.

Why don't we just jam?

That's the spirit.

Rock 'n' roll.

Let it all hang out.

One, two, three, four!

[ Off-key music plays ]

[ Music stops ]

Hmm.

So, what are we gonna call ourselves?

The Electric Shoes?

Yeah.

The Electric Shoes?

Yes The Electric Shoes!

We're called The Electric Shoes, okay?

Why?

Because w...

What difference does it make?

Well, it just doesn't make any sense.

Boy, talk about a couple of stick in the muds.

Paul, does "Strawberry Alarm Clock" make any sense?

Does "Vanilla Fudge" make any sense?

[ Sighs ]

[ Scoffs ]

So, you any good?

Look, Paul, we've practiced once, right?

Do you think the Beatles sounded so great

The first time they played?

I just hope you don't make a complete fool out of yourself.

I don't know.

I guess I could see Kevin as a musician.

Well, well, well. What have we here?

Potential groupie material?

You know, I think he kind of looks like Paul McCartney.

He does?

Yeah.

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Pfeiffer!

Actually...

He looks more like Donny Osmond.

- Huh? - Huh?

I just hope you don't make a complete fool out of yourself.

Ah, who needed friends, anyway?

I had a band.

One, two, three, four!

? So you want to be a rock-'n'-roll star? ?

? Then listen now to what I say ?

? Just get an electric guitar ?

? Then take some time and learn how to play ?

? And with your hair... ?

For the next two weeks,

The electric shoes practiced day and night.

Well... Day, anyway.

? Where the agent man won't let you down ?

We explored new rhythms.

We found our sound.

But mostly, we just had fun.

? And in a week or two, if you make the charts ?

? The girls'll tear you apart ?

[ Women screaming, cheering ]

And pretty soon...

We'd actually gotten better.

[ off-key music plays ]

Whoo! Yeah!

- All right! - Yeah, man.

In a manner of speaking.

Okay, so we were lousy.

But who cared?

No one had to listen to us, so what difference did it make?

Guys, I meant to tell you... I got us a gig.

And suddenly it made a difference.

Yeah!

All right!

What'd you say?

Amy Ermin's birthday party, Friday night...

We're booked.

You're kidding, right?

A real party?

With people?

That we know?

It's gonna be great, man.

Larry, we're not ready!

Hey, we're never gonna know

Unless we get out there and do it.

Yeah, but...

Come on. What are you afraid of?

What was I afraid of?

How about, say, total public humiliation, for starters?

Look, Larry, you've played in bands before.

You know we just can't...

Larry?

You have played in bands before, haven't you?

[ Chuckling ] what difference does that make?

And then it all came clear.

Paul had been right.

There was potential for real disaster here.

Look, Larry, I'm not gonna go out there

And make a complete fool out of myself.

It's up to you, man.

We're gonna be there.

You're either with us or you're out.

What could I say?

I wanted to be with them.

I wanted to take the chance and throw caution to the winds.

I wanted to rock 'n' roll.

But the fact is, I didn't have the guts.

Sorry, guys.

You can count me out.

And so I quit the electric shoes.

Won't you paddle Madeline home?

? 'Cause when I'm paddlin' Madeline... ?

That Friday night, I actually felt relieved.

Or so I told myself.

Don't you want some cookies, honey?

No, thanks.

I mean, playing in Larry's garage was one thing,

But risking my reputation?

That was just dumb.

? ...Paddlin' Madeline home ?

So, Kev, heard you quit the old electric shoes, huh?

Thinking about going solo?

[ Chuckles ]

You're not playing in the band anymore?

No, Mom.

Oh.

That's too bad.

Yeah, I was kind of looking forward

To watching you crash and burn.

Oh, ha ha.

Well, at least you got it out of your system, sweetie.

What's that supposed to mean?!

Well, I just mean that... It wasn't really you.

What?!

It was pretty dumb, Kevin.

- Dumb? - Dumb?

Now, wait a darn minute here!

Who were these people telling me who I was and wasn't?

What did they know?

I don't have to take this!

So what if it was dumb?

What, you've never done anything dumb in your life?

Look, I'll decide what's dumb and what isn't.

And nobody's gonna tell me I can't do something dumb

If I want to do something dumb!

Yep. I was onto something here.

Honey, what are you talking about?

[ Scoffs ] never mind!

But I knew what I meant.

Dumb or not, it all boiled down to one thing.

[ rock music plays ]

I was back.

Yeah! Kevin made it!

Yeah! Right!

I was calm.

I was ready.

I was a man with a mission.

Kevin, is that you?

Yeah.

Heh-heh.

What do you say when finally confronted

By a hero of rock 'n' roll...

In the flesh?

Is that your sister's shirt?

Good luck.

Thanks.

As I stepped up to that patio,

I felt a wildness welling up inside of me.

I understood what Larry had been trying to tell me

All along.

Anything was possible up here.

Anything!

He's cute!

Hey, Larry.

Larry?

Including stone-cold panic.

He's freakin', man.

We've been warming up for like 15 minutes.

[ Feedback blares ]

As he gazed into a sea of eighth-grade faces,

Reality finally caught up with Larry Bee man.

So, are you guys gonna play or what?

[ Indistinct talking ]

What should we do?

It was up to me.

And I made my decision.

I wasn't gonna let this dream die.

If we weren't gonna play good, we were gonna play loud.

Let's do it!

One, two...

One, two, three, four.

[ Rock music plays ]

Boys?

Boys!

You're gonna have to stop.

The neighbors are complaining about the noise.

Daddy!

[ Indistinct talking ]

It was the end of the road.

We'd been shut down... busted.

[ Indistinct talking ]

And then it happened.

Let them play! Come on!

Let them play!

Yeah, let them play!

Let them play! Let them play!

[ Indistinct talking ]

[ Chanting ] let them play! Let them play!

Let them play! Let them play!

Let them play!

I couldn't say exactly why it happened.

Maybe no one there could.

Maybe it was the impatience of youth.

Or maybe it was the times.

It doesn't really matter.

For one brief Moment that night,

Larry Bee man and I lived out a dream.

Rock 'n' roll, man.

Rock 'n' roll.

Let them play! Let them play!

Let them play! Let them play!

The electric shoes broke up a week later.

And for a time, there was talk of a reunion,

But it never happened.

Still, that dream never really died.

What we felt in those years...

The hope, the joy, the possibilities,

The sense that anything might happen,

No matter who we were...

Will always be a part of us.

After all, people said the Beatles would never last.

And they were right.

Except, of course, they did.

? ...Say that something ?

? I want to hold your hand ?

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