Imagine the Beatles Migration Project Overview
Imagine The Beatles are one of the UK’s best-known tribute bands, performing across the country every week. When their original website became completely inaccessible; with outdated gigs and no way to make updates, I stepped in to help them regain control. The project began as a restoration: rebuilding their legacy site from scratch while keeping its original look and feel intact. Later, we expanded it further, introducing a custom lightweight content management system so the band could handle all gig updates themselves. What started as a rescue turned into a long-term digital transformation, bringing a static, abandoned site back to life and evolving it into a simple platform that brought autonomy back to ITB.
Rob Simpson
Entertainment
I found Joe very helpful and clearly knows his stuff. He's been absolutely charming right from the start and very good at what he does. I would thoroughly recommend.
Strategy & Outcomes for HTML Imagine The Beatles Static Netlify Migration Project
Phase 1: Website Recovery & Migration
The Challenge
The band’s old website had been built many years ago, and no one had the login credentials, hosting access, or original files. Outdated gig listings confused fans, and rebuilding from scratch risked losing the nostalgic aesthetic they wanted to keep.
The Solution
I reverse-engineered the live site, extracted its HTML and assets, and rebuilt it by hand. Every detail; typography, layout, imagery was preserved, while the codebase was modernised for stability and easier maintenance.
Once rebuilt, I deployed the site to Netlify, ensuring faster load times, no hosting overhead, and a clean update path for the future.
Key Outcomes
The legacy design was preserved almost perfectly.
The band regained full control of their site.
Gig information could now be updated quickly and reliably.
The new setup required almost zero maintenance.
Phase 2: Building a Lightweight CMS
The Challenge
After the rebuild, updating the gigs page still required manual HTML edits. The goal was to let the client make changes themselves without breaking the layout or touching any code.
The Solution
I built a custom JSON-based CMS using Decap CMS, Netlify Identity, and a small JavaScript renderer.
This setup allowed the client to log in via /admin, edit a single structured file (content/gigs.json), and publish new gigs in minutes.
Every change triggers a Git commit, automatically redeploying the live site. No databases, no plugins, and no risk of layout issues, just clean automation.
Key Features:
Custom admin panel tailored to the gigs structure (months → items).
Secure login via Netlify Identity.
Git-backed publishing with full version history.
Non-destructive rendering using existing CSS classes.
Outcome:
Updates now take seconds instead of hours.
The site stays consistent and on-brand.
Zero developer intervention needed for ongoing edits.
Lasting Value
This project evolved from a one-off rebuild into a maintainable long-term solution. By layering a lightweight CMS onto a static site, I gave the client all the control of a WordPress-style backend without the bloat or risk.
It’s a great example of how small, targeted improvements can turn a legacy project into a living, self-sustaining system preserving the brand’s personality while using modern web practices behind the scenes.
Designing Success