Or in other words:
Beatlemania!
I found this pic here
Twitter got me thinking (I know, right?) - I have a bunch of tweeps that are new to the Beatle Machine and OBSESSED with any and all things Beatle and at first I was like, "Slow it down my ladies, savor the Beatle flavor" but in all honesty, I am totes prone to a Beatle freak-out at any given time as chronicled here for you in past bloggies of squeedom. And I know this about myself. You all know this about me.
I found this pic here
And I thought back to when I was IN the mania -not that it's ever really left- and what started it, why did it manifest itself into at least a 15 year mental virus that turns everything I look at into deeper Beatle meaning. For example, while in high levels of mania I swore up and down that Jesus Christ Superstar was written about the Beatles break-up....
It's not that far fetched.
Maybe I'm crazy...
So anyway, where was I? OH! The Beatles and me. My parents have always been into The Beatles. My mom more so, though she's a Paul fan so I actually grew up listening to Wings. I knew of the Fab Four, but as I, the very mature 4th grader that I was at the time also knew, The Monkees was were it was at man. The Beatles lost that round. Then something stirred one day in junior high for me. I don't even remember why, but I could not stop singing "Help!". So that afternoon, I got off the bus and ran to my dad's house and dug through his Beatle albums looking desperately for that song. Much to my frustration, my dad only owned 3 Beatles albums. Rubber Soul. The White Album. Abbey Road. "Help!" as you know is not on any of them. But I grabbed Rubber Soul hoping that maybe the song just wasn't called "Help!"
I wore that album down to the skids. To this day, that opening twang of Drive My Car fills me with such peace and easiness and longing. SIGH. I have to keep typing or I will put the album on and that will be the end of it, my friends. So yeah, Rubber Soul is all time FAVORITE Beatles album for me. Hands down. It always will be. The White Album is my #2 and Abbey Road is my #3. You've got excellent taste, dad.
So my appreciation for The Beatles came YEARS before the mania hit me. In 1995 there were whispers of an Anthology greater than the world had ever known (is how I've blown it up in my mind). I couldn't tell you why I was so excited for it because I wasn't a huge fan, I mean, I liked them a lot. But you could feel something brewing in late '95, like a storm this excitement from people around- my mom, radio people, ABeatleC. It was kind of becoming a big deal, this tv special and disc bonanza.
In November of 1995 it happened. I sat down with my mom on the couch and we watched Anthology each night- I think it was broken up into like 5 nights or something. Anyway, I think it was the second night that it happened. I fell head over heels IN LOVE with Paul McCartney as he sang his little 'Please Please Me' parts on Ed Sullivan.
And it was over for me. For the rest of my life, I fear. Beatlemania took my rational thoughts, my love of literature and writing and it, it turned me into a fangirl who stood outside overnight many nights in the freezing December of Colorado Best Buy parking lots in hopes that I could get a free interview disc or free sweatshirt that brandished the Beatle product (check and check!).
But why? What would turn a rational fan into spasmic, overreacting zealot? What band in the history of ever (which I know, there isn't any other) can have that effect on millions? For 56 something years?! Beatlemania first happened to the world in '63-'64. Then again, when it got me in '95-'96 with Anthology and then again in '09 -'10 with the release of Rock Band and the Remasters. It blows my friggin' mind. That's insanity.
That's genius.
So fangirl away, my tweeps for we are powerless to stop it. I'm off to put on my holey (and Holy) free! Best Buy Beatles' sweatshirt, listen to some Rubber Soul on repeat and then probably just do the dishes.
2 comments:
This was the BEST!!!
Aw. Thanks, SL!
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