RAIN – A Tribute to The Beatles

Rain
Rain at Pabst Theater, Milwaukee, 2016 From left to right: Paul Curatolo (Paul), Alastar McNeil (George), Aaron Chiazza (Ringo), Steve Landes (John)
Background information
Also known as	Reign
Origin	Laguna Beach, California
Genres	Rock and Roll Beatles tribute
Years active	1975–present
Labels	None
Website	RainTribute.com
Members	Mark Lewis Steve Landes Joe Bithorn Joey Curatolo Paul Curatolo Jimmy Irizarry Ian B. Garcia Alastar McNeil Jimmy Pou Ralph Castelli Aaron Chiazza Douglas Cox Mark Beyer Chris Smallwood
Past members	Eddie Lineberry Chuck Coffey Bill Connearney Steve Wight Grant Belotti Jim Riddle Victor J Campanaro
Notable instruments
guitar, drums, keyboard

Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles, styled RAIN, is a Beatles tribute and later a theatrical production. Rain gives audiences the experience of seeing Beatles' songs performed live that were never done so by the band itself. The longest-running Beatles tribute act, it predates the popular Broadway show Beatlemania by several years.Rain has played Broadway, and toured for years.

The show takes the form of a roughly chronological history of The Beatles via their music. About 30 songs are performed during the show. Other than some onstage banter, there is very little dialogue during the production, which consists mostly of exact re-enactments of the Beatles' music. The multimedia production uses high-definition backdrops that feature psychedelic effects, vintage television commercials, and video footage of Rain cast members recreating iconic Beatle moments. For legal reasons, Rain never calls its performers the names of the actual members of The Beatles.

Each production of Rain features two performers for each member of the Beatles, who alternate shows; plus an off-stage keyboardist to replicate the studio sounds familiar from later Beatles records.

Rain began in 1975 as Reign, a Laguna Beach, California, band that played both original music and Beatles covers. Founding members were Mark Lewis, Eddie Lineberry, Bill Connearney, Grant Belotti, Chuck Coffey, and Steve Wight. (Connearney, Belotti, Lineberry, and Alan Hawley had been members of a prior band known as Lucky Dogs.) The name of the band, "Reign/Rain," is a reference to the 1966 Beatles single "Rain," the B-side of "Paperback Writer."

Co-founder and keyboardist Mark Lewis managed the band, became its lead arranger, and found Rain a regular weekly gig doing Beatles covers at the Mine Shaft in Calabasas, California, Before long Rain had a following of Beatles fans around the Los Angeles/Orange County area, and soon extended up the West Coast as far as Seattle.