Project performing Saturday

Tony Burlingame’s family was one of the first on his block to get cable TV.

He recalls the movie “A Hard Day’s Night” being on when he was in about the fifth grade.

He wasn’t allowed to watch. He had homework to do.

The moment only fueled his desire to emulate the band that produced both the film and the song of the same name.

“I’ve always wanted to be a Beatle,” Burlingame said.

Four decades later, he is, in a way. Burlingame embodies Paul McCartney as the front man for The McCartney Project, a Beatles tribute band that will perform Saturday in Portland in the latest concert offering from Jay County Music Foundation.

The show is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Hudson Family Park. In case of inclement weather, it will be moved to the Jay County High School auditorium.

Burlingame, 52, of Columbus, Ohio, came by his love of music through his family. His father, Nick, was a singing drummer in the 1950s and his older brother, John, played guitar.

“I traded my microscope and my chemistry set to a kid down the street for my first electric guitar,” Burlingame said. “I just never looked back.”

He has had careers in the medical field and managing music stores, but in 2013 a Hollywood-based Beatles tribute band — The Fab Four — saw a video of him and asked to train him as a fill-in for the group. He went to California, learned the act and has been impersonating McCartney in acts ever since.

The McCartney Project is an amalgam of some of those efforts, with a pared down band that uses a keyboard to help fill in additional instruments and allow all the music to be played live without a backing track. In addition to Burlingame, it includes Sara Reat (vocals, keyboard and percussion), who serves as the band’s version of Linda McCartney, Robb Anagnostis (guitar, keyboard and vocals), Lar Wolkan (guitar, bass, keyboard) and Phil Stearns (drums, vocals).

The band typically works with two set lists — one that includes more of The Beatles’ rock songs for outdoor venues and another that focuses more on acoustic pieces and ballads for indoor sites.

Saturday’s plan is to play the outdoor set, but Burlingame said if the show is moved indoors it will take advantage of the flexibility to mix up the two song lists.

“Musically, we love doing this because all these songs hold a memory for people,” he said. “They associate something with it — graduation, or weddings, or when they went to school. It seems like it’s music that never goes away, and every generation that comes up discovers The Beatles like it’s all brand new.

“The biggest challenge is … what to choose and how to get them all in one evening.  There’s just not enough time. … The challenge is playing everyone’s favorite.”

The show in Portland — tickets are $15 for general admission and $20 for VIP and are available at http://jaycountymusic.com — is part of the band’s Life Goes On Tour, with its most recent stop April 22 being in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, on the east side of Pittsburgh. It played four dates in Florida in March, and will perform May 12 in Auburn after the visit to Jay County.

Burlingame said the band’s goal is simply to pay respect to the music of The Beatles, from their early pop classics to their more thoughtful later albums. And the 74-year-old McCartney, who is still touring, continues to be an inspiration.

“I plan on doing it as least as long as Paul is doing it. As long as Paul keeps adding tour dates, that’s how long I want to tribute Paul. As long as Paul is doing it, I’m going to be right there.”