The identity of the “Fifth Beatle” is part of the mythos surrounding the Beatles. Of course, the Fab Four was just that: the ubiquitous Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison—four men whose faces, hair, clothing and accessories, even their silhouettes are imprinted Warhol-like on the brains of generations who haven’t heard their songs. The obsession with the “Fifth Beatle” continues because of the individuals who worked closely with the Beatles, whether as musicians, producers, publicists or managers; the significance of their contributions to the Beatles is what prompted the category of “fifth Beatle.” The eight most frequently nominated for the role are Brian Epstein, George Martin, Derek Taylor, Neil Aspinall, Murray the K, Pete Best, Stuart Sutcliffe and Billy Preston.

Another candidate for the Fifth Beatle walks among us, within our very own Sounds Good Choir community. Richard Sladek, our longtime accompanist, plays keyboards with American English, the longest running Beatles tribute band in the United States and as of 2022, ranked No. 5 among the world’s best Beatles tribute bands to experience. Of course, the Beatles didn’t have a permanent or official band member who played keys. This is one of the reasons why Billy Preston is on the list, as he played on the Rooftop Concert, the “Let It Be” Sessions and most of the keyboards for the band’s studio work.

At this point it’s critical to distinguish between a cover band and a tribute band. A cover band plays the songs of other artists or groups, interpreting the songs through their own creative vision and stylings. A tribute band, on the other hand, is devoted to reproducing as authentically as possible the sound and experience of the original work as intended and/or recorded or performed by the artist.

Take a beat and consider for a moment that the Beatles are renowned for musical experimentation. They did things with, to and for music that had never been done. The work and skill that goes into researching, finding, and recreating the nuances of a single song are also time-consuming and demanding. Doing the same for the range of unusual, sometimes downright goofy, sounds woven into the music and you have—at least—a hard day’s night ahead of you. This is Rick Sladek’s role as the fifth Beatle. Costumes are the last thing Rick and his bandmates worry about—although “I have a plethora of psychodelic shirts I wear for performances, so I never wear the same shirt twice.”

It was a no-brainer to ask for Rick’s contribution to our Summer Rocks ’26 Playlist. He gladly shared his favorite Beatles and summertime songs, and more. You can find Rick’s playlist here: “Curious and Curiouser: The Beatles’ Unimaginably Different Styles in Six Songs.”