Budokan Arena
Rare Editions
One print is being offered from the first, sold-out edition of the
Hello, Goodbye - Fine Art Print Series published with Shimpei Asai in 2016. The print is from the publisher's private archive and captures The Beatles on stage at Tokyo's Budokan Arena.
From Led Zeppelin to Queen, to Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan, Tokyo's celebrated Nippon Budokan will be forever associated with rock concerts, but the very first was given by The Beatles. The venue was considered a national shrine to Japan's war dead, and, in 1966, some viewed it as sacrilegious that a rock 'n' roll group should perform there. However, Japan's youth welcomed The Beatles with open arms, and the band played five shows for them over the course of three days, each time for a capacity crowd of 10,000 fans. They performed an 11-song set, the same used throughout their 1966 tour that included hits such as 'Day Tripper', 'Yesterday', 'Nowhere Man', and 'Paperback Writer.' They are seen here during their first show, on 30th June, in the bottle green suits they would go on to wear for their final concert at the tour's conclusion in San Francisco, at Candlestick Park.
'At the Budokan we were shown the old Samurai warriors' costumes, which we marvelled at dutifully in a touristy kind of way: "Very good! Very old!" ... We got into our natty bottle green suits. The thing about suits was that they always made us feel part of a team. When we arrived we were in our civvies, but once we put those on we were The Beatles! - the four-headed monster.' - Paul McCartney
'The four of them naturally showed their personalities like the different instruments they played.' - Shimpei Asai
The framed artwork is one of only 15 prints created (this edition being long since sold out) and will be dispatched with a signed certificate of authenticity. A Hello, Goodbye prospectus will be included, as well as a copy of the Hello, Goodbye - Fine Art Print Series catalogue in which this artwork was first featured.
Edition: 15 numbered prints, signed by Shimpei Asai
Photographer: Shimpei Asai
Print size: 50.8cm x 76.2cm (20" x 30")
Framed size: 58.4cm x 78.7cm (23" x 31")
Method: Archival Giclée using K3 Lightfast inks
Paper: 100% Cotton Hahnemuhle Photo Rag® 320gsm
Certificate: Numbered and signed by the publishers
Frame: White hard wood with acid free mount and UV Perspex
SOLD OUT