On Sunday evening, the sounds of the Beatles could be hear over the roar of trains in the Times Square subway station. It wasn’t a recording, though: it was a performance by The Meetles. “They’re my favorite subway performer,” said fan Lisa, 22. “Sometimes I go out of my way to see them perform, they sound so good.”
The Meetles are a Beatles and 1960’s tribute band who play in the 34th Street and Times Square subway stations every weekend. Since their debut last year, they’ve garnered a following with their energetic and fun covers of popular songs. Fans and commuters alike often dance to the music in the busy stations.
Unlike the famous foursome, The Meetles has a long list of members: Danny on vocals, Naomi on vocals and bass, Rob on keyboard and guitar, Maggy, Yusuke, and Steve on guitar and vocals, Barry on guitar, Tarun on harmonium and trumpet, and Eric on drums. That’s not even counting guest musicians, who often play with the group.
The group’s unique name was chosen in a poll on the New York City Beatles Meetup website. The Meetles was voted winner with 54% over names like “The Rubber Soulmates” and “Eric Pollen & the Bumblebeats.”
The Meetles are a member of MUNY, or Music Under New York, a division of the MTA’s Arts for Transit program. The program, created in 1985, allows “official” subway musicians to perform in designated spaces at designated times.
To become a part of MUNY, musicians must apply for an audition. The MTA then chooses sixty applicants to audition before a panel of music industry reps, MTA station operators, and other musicians in Grand Central Terminal. The performers are graded on their quality, variety, and if they are fitting for the subway scene.
Thanks to MUNY, fans can find out where The Meetles are playing every weekend on their Twitter and Facebook pages.
Fans can show their pride by buying I Heart The Meetles buttons. The Meetles also have four albums featuring their music available.
The Meetles perform above ground, too: they have played at Strawberry Fields in Central Park on John Lennon’s birthday and The Fest for Beatles Fans (formerly Beatlefest) at the Crowne Plaza Meadowlands Hotel in New Jersey.
Photo Credit: BrooklynParrots
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Very cool - much better than the music that the store at the Times Square subway blasts out, or the obnoxious videos they screen in the store's windows!
ReplyDeleteI've never seen these guys in the subway, but I like a lot of the musicians in the subway. Did you ever see the 'Saw Lady' - http://www.sawlady.com/blog ? I usually see her at the GCS shuttle in the afternoons. She plays classical music on a saw! Thanks to the Music Under NY program we get exposed to amazing musicians. Makes you want to take the subway :)
The Saw Lady really swings - she's fantastic. I often see her at 14th Street.
ReplyDeleteThanks for writing up this account - great press for us! We also have a YouTube channel - MeetlesVideos (from which the above She Loves You clip comes - btw, Andy shot that) and we have a Twitterfeed by the same name.
ReplyDeleteI live in NYC and run across this band from time to time..... People, they are doing a public service for riders and NYC. Support the Arts and Support the Artists. They help make this place the city we love.
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