We can work it out Video

[Valis]

I found out that there are two different versions of the WCWIO video, from december 1965.
The first one is a very plain studioperformance, not much happening except from an extremely enjoyable performance from the band.

The second version is recorded in the same setting with some very weird relics and behaviour added.

It starts off with a very quick outside shot of John with a chrysanthemum on his eye.
According to a lot of sites a white chrysanthemum means "TRUTH".



In the first studioshot there is a big poster hanging behind John with 5 antiquelooking men on it, 4 of them with a moustache.
On the bottom of the poster are the words "Bonne Annee", which is French for "(have a) Good Year".





Throughout the whole video John is pulling faces to the camera







Then comes one very quick shot of what is on John's sheetmusicstand, The Joker laughs at you.



John gives a very quick thumbs up to Paul



At the end Paul and John go totally crazy playing fools, like they are pulling off a big trick.The thaetre is starting.









I still have to think really hard about what to make of it all, but this whole video gives me the feel of the introduction of a theatreplay, The Show is about to begin.

All Love Jan

[Valis]

My theory,

In a way I think that by the time of this video the Beatles already had some doubles to help them get safely into concerts, they didn't need any talent except for looking their part running through a screaming crowd.
John must have noticed how easy it was to fool the people.

There are also stories going around of the Beatles knowing about earlier replacements.

Maybe it all started at the end of 65 to relieve James Paul a bit and also set up a theatre play to eventually show the people what is really going on.
A thought that is very much strengthened by the plot of the "Yellow Submarine"movie.

Some sinister forces did not like what was going on:the surfacing awareness of the band, shown thru lyrics and controversial speeches, and especially the game they were playing with doubles.
To me the Paul in the Paperback Writer and Rain videos is not James Paul, neither is it Beatle Bill or Keith Allison, but it's not JamesPaul.
In a way WCWIO/Day Tripper was the end of James Paul in videoclipland, I do believe JP did the 66 concerts, it would be too hard to use a stand in for that.
So when it went all too much for some people James Paul was accidented in september 66

All Love Jan

[TotalInformation]

Very interesting. I checked the date filmed, it's November 1965. This, again, is of a piece with the DORIS DAY revelation of Aug 65 being the catalyst for the theater play.

"I'm looking through you."

In a way I think that by the time of this video the Beatles already had some doubles to help them get safely into concerts, they didn't need any talent except for looking their part running through a screaming crowd.
John must have noticed how easy it was to fool the people.

There are also stories going around of the Beatles knowing about earlier replacements.

Maybe it all started at the end of 65 to relieve James Paul a bit and also set up a theatre play to
eventually show the people what is really going on.
A thought that is very much strengthened by the plot of the "Yellow Submarine"movie.

Agreed.

Some sinister forces did not like what was going on:the surfacing awareness of the band, shown thru lyrics and controversial speeches, and especially the game they were playing with doubles.

It's a game been going on since they slayed Marlowe over the Shake-speare (aka Shepherd William) scam; something else James Paul was on to.

[JoJo]

I was watching the Anthology version, and without having access to both versions, (or even knowing there ARE two versions) you might think this was one video. But Anth. cuts back and forth between the "black suit" "straight" video, and the "white suit" "joke" version. Maybe both were filmed at the same time, and the purpose was serious perhaps, but of course they were having a good laugh as well. The joker on the piano music stand, umm hmm...

Ok, the serious one is done, now you do what he did Mr X....

Later on, John and Paul intend to say: see how easy it was to fool you, and btw, here's some other facts you may have been unaware of..

Just a possibility of course.

[TotalInformation]

The french is interesting too. Maybe JPM was introducing or at least foreshadowing the theatreplay of the first faux SYLVIE.

[madtitan125]

Just wondering if the fellow in this video is indeed the real JPM.

[Doc]

madtitan125 said:

Just wondering if the fellow in this video is indeed the real JPM.

IMO it is Sir Paul.

[TotalInformation]

ridiculous, docrob. he had his face cut up to look like himself again and then had more to look like jpm again? this is from late 65.

seriously, think these things through people

[lili]

I don't like to contradict Jan. I have an immense amount of respect for him. However, I have to say that I disagree with what he said concerning the Rain & Paperback Writer Videos. The man in those videos looks unhappy & unwell. In some of the photos, you can see that his tooth is still chipped. I believe that it is JPM. However, it has been hypothesized that maybe the videos have been tampered with to make him better resemble Faul.
As far as the We Can Work it Out videos, can't it just be a couple of guys having a good time ? I really don't see that any of it has to have any deep meaning. Maybe the poster was already there from a past performance. Maybe John found the Joker thing around the set & decided to place it on his music stand for a lark.
All I'm saying is that I find it very hard to believe that everything around these guys was purposely contrived. If it had been after Pauls' death, I might be more open to it. But before anything had even happened yet ? Sometimes I feel that by scrutinizing every little thing, we're belittling the bigger more important clues.
Just my opinion of course.

[LOVELYRITA]

Maybe the faces first posted, the antiquated one, is Sgt. Pepper's original band.......Or the inspiration.....

Who knows?

[Doc]

totalinformation said:

ridiculous, docrob. he had his face cut up to look like himself again and then had more to look like jpm again? this is from late 65.

seriously, think these things through people

No, that's not what I mean. Yes, that is a ridiculous idea. How did you come up with that? It is because you can't believe that we could ever get misled about dates? IMO, that footage didn't come from 1965 or 1966.

Again, IMO, by the time those frames came to be, JPM was long cold underground.

Simply, I believe the footage from which those frames come was shot in 1968 or later. This from proportion, IMO. Again, IMO, the proportion of the head is the indicator. And, really, something intuitive about John causes me to fell, and I know this is subjective and just my opinion, that when you see John cutting up this way, going so far, he is "indicating" which video footage is not original with the times it appears to represent. He is "marking" the
"remakes" that I feel that the Beatles would have had produced in order to smooth over the transition to Sir Paul. So, it is John's way, IMO, of "stamping" the footage. When Brian was alive, I suspect that he would have
been present at video shoots, and kept the boys from going overboard.
After Brian died, and I imagine there were reshoots after that time, there was no one to "manage" John's clowning antics.

The other version that was mentioned above, the more "staid" one, where they aren't cutting up, etc., is the original WCWIO video, which IMO was shot at the time of the release of WCWIO, and IMO has been subjected to a little bit of CGI and whatever analog frame altering techniques that may have existed decades ago.

[il ras]

Doc, even if I can agree that we must look at the Paul of this video paying attention, at the opposite, John seems to be IMO the 65/66 one.

[TotalInformation]

they actually shot three videos for this song at the time. one aired on ITV, one on BBC, the third...?

eg from USENET:

-------------------------
1965
The Beatles, at Twickenham Film Studios, shoot 10 black and white
promo films for 5 songs (9 of which will eventually be broadcast on
television), miming to "We Can Work It Out", "Day Tripper",
"Help!", "Ticket to Ride", and "I Feel Fine". Three versions of
"We Can Work It Out" are filmed, all featuring John sitting at an
organ, one opening with a photo of John with a sunflower over one
eye, and one with The Beatles wearing their "Shea Stadium" suits.
Three versions of "Day Tripper" are shot, while one version each of
"Help!" and "Ticket to Ride" are filmed. Two versions of "I Feel
Fine" are done. Many of the promo clips will be broadcast on "Top
of the Pops" and "Thank Your Lucky Stars" in the UK, and one film
each of "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper" will be shown on the
US television program "Hullabaloo" (January 3, 1966). (2440)
-------------------------------


without knowing the pprovenance of the jojo's film, it is possible it was faulized with cgi.


does anyone think this was shot with neither faulguy nor JPM?

[beatlies]

does anyone think this was shot with neither faulguy nor JPM?

I think it could be a JPM double, one of the pre-Faul JPM doubles.

[noodles]

Why do you guys think this is a JPM double? He looks exactly like Paul, acts like Paul, is very comfortable in front of the camera and there are numberous close ups of him in this and the Daytripper video (I don't have the others).

[plastic paul]

I agree he looks paulish and comfortable.

IMO it's the JPM

[Doc]

totalinformation said:

they actually shot three videos for this song at the time. one aired on ITV, one on BBC, the third...?

eg from USENET:

-------------------------
1965
The Beatles, at Twickenham Film Studios, shoot 10 black and white
promo films for 5 songs (9 of which will eventually be broadcast on
television), miming to "We Can Work It Out", "Day Tripper",
"Help!", "Ticket to Ride", and "I Feel Fine". Three versions of
"We Can Work It Out" are filmed, all featuring John sitting at an
organ, one opening with a photo of John with a sunflower over one
eye, and one with The Beatles wearing their "Shea Stadium" suits.
Three versions of "Day Tripper" are shot, while one version each of
"Help!" and "Ticket to Ride" are filmed. Two versions of "I Feel
Fine" are done. Many of the promo clips will be broadcast on "Top
of the Pops" and "Thank Your Lucky Stars" in the UK, and one film
each of "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper" will be shown on the
US television program "Hullabaloo" (January 3, 1966). (2440)
-------------------------------


without knowing the pprovenance of the jojo's film, it is possible it was faulized with cgi.


does anyone think this was shot with neither faulguy nor JPM?

Ok, I see. Well, alright thanks TI for the details.

I'm just more confused now.

Well, OK, i agree that this version of WCWIT, as per the photos above starting with Sunflower-eyed John, yes, it does look like James Paul, i.e., the full, cheeky grin, the nose and so forth, yes, it seems to be JPM but I just think that Paul's head was a shorter type, a rounder type, with less vertical, a little less anyway. Not tons and tons as 60IF used to portray "faul" as having the longest head in the world, etc, well, that's simply not true; nonsense, an exageration.
The difference is more subtle than that. I think its a case of Paul having a relatively rounder, shorter face than Sir Paul.

And somehow, the Paul in those frames seems to be a little broader in chest than I thought Paul was, but then, the kinescope quality of those images makes me wonder about aspect ratio, etc.

I don't know.

Mabe that is James Paul and there has been a tiny bit of CGI put on it. It does not have a tampered quality, though, it doesn't look like its been messed with. That is also why I thought it must be William; one would want to "alter" James Paul toward Wiliam's look; but leave William's look in "Paul drag" alone to start replacing and reinforcing William's look as the real Paul.

Plus, John is going overboard on it, really. John's clowning seemed to get worse thru the years. The earliest vids, John is well-behaved, almost cold with the camera. Almost like Brian was there behind the camera, scolding the lads for any lapse of "professionalism" on film.........

There was still an air of stodginess in the initial Beatle years at EMI, Abbey Road, etc. It was still the time of stuffy grown-up Brit businessmen in grey suits, white shirts, and no nonsense ties.


IMO, in this video, John appears ready to leave rock and roll and join "Monty Python's Flying Circus". Wouldn't have been a bad idea, really.

[lili]

Doc, John would've fit right in with Monty Python
He could be one REALLY silly dude when he wanted to be ! ;D