It’s been 40 years since The Beatles performed on the rooftop of the Apple building in London. Prior to that, the legendary band’s last real live concert was at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park in 1966.

The band recorded the Abbey Road album during the summer of 1969 and the end of the album’s recording was the last time George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr were ever in the studio together. And because of that, fans of the band often wonder what concerts of the indelible group’s later years might be like.

Well you just might get a feel for it Saturday night, Feb. 28, at Kirk Avenue Music Hall in Roanoke as the group Abbey Road LIVE! comes together to take Beatles fans on a magical mystery tour.

Unlike some of the other Beatles tribute bands that don the mop-tops and matching suits, the guys in Abbey Road LIVE! focus more on the music rather than trying to look like the Fab Four.

The band’s lineup consists of veterans of the Athens, Georgia, music scene and includes Tim Conley (guitar, vocals), Dave Domizi (bass, vocals), Andrew Hanmer (drums, vocals), and Michael Wegner (keyboards, guitar, clarinet, vocals).

Wegner said the Beatles tribute act really started as a fluke. Wegner recalled being in the band Fuzzy Sprouts in the mid to late 1990s and the guys decided to simply challenge themselves and learn the entire Abbey Road album. Once they learned it, they decided to play it publicly.

“It was a lot of fun,” Wegner said. “People loved it, and the current band grew out of that. We just started to get more requests and offers to play the Beatles stuff.

The guys in the group aren’t only dedicated to playing the Abbey Road gigs. “We all like a variety of music, so each of us play in two or three other bands,” Wegner said.

He also added that the band is not a stranger to this area. “We did play at 202 Market [in Roanoke] earlier and in Harrisonburg and Blacksburg,” Wegner said. “We love it up there. Being in a traveling band, it’s always nice to get up into the mountains.”

So the group already has a bit of a fan base established in the area, but in its Saturday show the guys are hoping to bring in some newcomers as well. Wegner said he feels confident that Beatles fans will appreciate a full night of the band’s music.

The band typically performs the full Abbey Road album for the first set and then spends another hour to hour and a half for a second set. For the second set, Wegner said that the band will usually do a mix of songs, but generally focus on the later years. He also added that the band’s song list has about 100 tunes and the group is always open to requests.

And while the guys in the band do have their other musical interests, Wegner said that he thinks Abbey Road LIVE! will continue to play together for many years to come. “The Beatles, it’s something we’ve all loved since we were kids,” Wegner said. The audience loves it. In my mind it’s some of the best music ever written.”

Wegner did add that the band does offer itself some creativity in the arrangements, but they really try to guess what a Beatles show would have sounded like 40 years ago.

You, too, can get a feel for what a Beatles show sounded like 40 years ago if you attend Saturday night’s show, which is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m at Kirk Avenue Music Hall at 22 Kirk Ave. in Roanoke. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the show.

Also performing at Kirk Avenue Music Hall this week is the Ryan Montbleau Band tonight and Gibson Brothers on Thursday.

Tim W. Jackson is a longtime Beatles fan and is Editor of the New River Voice.