The Beatles
A blog about the Beatles. Really? I feel a little stupid. I’m not special—just one of millions who felt the same love. Here goes anyway...
I’m no Beatles aficionado like Seth Swirsky, Chris Carter or my Facebook friend Paul David Menser...all experts, historians, fanatics. They know so much more than I do—the trivia, the details, the middle names, the chord progressions. That’s okay. I just know how they made me feel.
Sunday mornings from 9am-12pm are my favorite time to work out because Breakfast With The Beatles is on KLOS. I love saying KLOS. And I'm in a good mood because today is Sunday. I slap on that terrestrial AM/FM headband and I slip right into happy because I know I won’t have to fish around the dial for something good. Or think ahead about what to line up on a Spotify playlist. I know I’ll be more than satisfied with every song on Breakfast With The Beatles. They’re all good. Even the ones that Ringo sings. Even the ones I’ve already heard a bazillion times. It’s like I hear them all for the first time. I’m a virgin again.
“Revolution” was the B-Side of “Hey Jude.” That’s ridiculous.
I have a 45 of “Penny Lane” / “Strawberry Fields.” Seriously, I don’t know which is the A-side and which is the B-side. I can’t tell. Is one song great and the other subpar? I don’t think so.
As I muse about my old 45, I smell it (yes, smell it—vinyl kids, yumm). I notice I wrote my name in cursive on the label. Awww. So no one would take it. Like who would have taken it? It was safely stored in this psychedelic record case. (Name on that too.)
Oh look…there’s “Revolution.” Wow. I tagged everything. I must have just wanted to be safe. It took me a long time to save up and buy these 45s. The last thing I wanted to do was lose one. But if I did, there'd be no doubt about who to return it to: Shelly.
Once, I went to a church dance (I’m Jewish) and my (Catholic) girlfriends and I danced to “Revolution” all night long. (“Revolution” at a church dance. That’s kinda funny.) I had on an orange and beige mini skirt and matching orange fish net stockings. I remember my outfit. They say you remember things that have to do with the most impactful times in your life. Well, “Revolution” was the most bad ass song I ever heard and we were fired up. So how could I forget my outfit?
Anyway, I’m sad about the Beatles. I don’t think I was ever as happy listening to music as when I was listening to Beatles. Nothing's changed. Sigh. And I don’t know if I’ll ever feel the same about any other band. Coldplay, Radiohead, Muse, Amy Winehouse. Love them. It’s just that it’s been 40 years and the insanity of my love has not diminished. Check with me in 40 years and let’s see if I’m still into Coldplay. And I adore Coldplay. But you know what I’m saying.
Anyway, coming around the bend this morning, the end of my run was in sync with the end of the broadcast because KLOS played “Let It Be.” I think it’s very significant that Let It Be was the last album the Beatles recorded. It was as if they were trying to tell us something—we needed to let them go. Let them be. They did all they could do for us and now it was time. Little did they know that forty-something years later we’d still be holding on.
"George And John" written by Phil Thornally, David Munday, Shelly Peiken
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