| It’s about time I wrote a post about one of my favorite people, John Lennon. I’ve been a fan of the greatest band of all time, The Beatles, since 1964, when my wonderful father bought me their first album, “Introducing …The Beatles,” released on Vee-Jay Records. Although I liked Paul, George, and Ringo, it was John who captured my attention. I like every “version” of John, from the early mop top days, to his peace activist days, to his final years, when he was mostly out of the public eye. In my neighborhood group of friends, I was always John, Tara was always Paul, Chris was always George, and of course, Roger, a drummer in real life, was always Ringo. A lot of girls I knew wanted to be the girlfriend of one of the Beatles. Not me. I wanted to be John Lennon. When I had to start wearing glasses, because I, like John Lennon, am near sighted, I wanted to wear glasses with wire rimmed frames just like his. When he sang, “Power to the People,” I sang “Right on” along with the record. I always bought singles and albums as soon as they were released. My dad made sure of this, even though he didn’t like The Beatles too much! I wore Beatles boots, took my lunch to school in a Beatles lunch box, and tried to be as cool as John Lennon. My mom, who liked Paul McCartney the best of all The Beatles, said John wasn’t handsome, couldn’t sing as well as Paul, and in any event, John, along with his bandmates, was merely part of a passing fad that I would soon outgrow. Mom was right about a lot of things, but she was wrong about my lifelong love of The Beatles and their band leader, John Lennon. I wear a necklace, given to me by my dear mother-in-law, Carole, with a charm that says “Imagine” and alongside it, a smaller charm that has John’s face, as he drew it, etched in. As I am typing this post, I am wearing one of my many John Lennon t-shirts. When David calls my cell phone, my ring tone is “Whatever Gets You Through the Night,” a song by John Lennon. Going to John’s childhood home in Liverpool, with the opportunity to stand inside his bedroom, was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. One of the first things I do upon every arrival to New York City is to visit Strawberry Fields, in Central Park, near The Dakota, where he was murdered by someone so evil that I do not speak his name. Then there is my music room, filled with memorabilia of The Beatles and John Lennon. I could go on, but suffice it to say that, after almost 60 years, I still love The Beatles and I still love John Lennon the most of all! |
I was poorly prepared for the world of The Beatles and John Lennon when I met Melissa. I was not familiar with rabid Beatles fanatics, or as they are sometimes called, Beatles Freaks. It took me some time to comprehend Melissa’s lifelong love of The Beatles and John Lennon. I mean, I knew who the 4 Beatles were, but I had no understanding of each of their roles, their history, their interpersonal relationships, their individual roles in the music, and their own music. I undertook a crash course when Melissa and I started spending time together and that education continues today with frequent quizzes which include, “who wrote this one?”. Or, “which Beatle is singing lead on this song?” I have improved over time, but sometimes they are trick questions. Melissa’s love affair with The Beatles has been a theme of much of our travel. We’ve visited many London “Beatles destinations,” and others in Liverpool, New York (Strawberry Fields is a mecca like place), Miami (The Deauville Hotel), and perhaps the most unusual one, Gibralter, to the government office where John and Yoko were married. It is still Melissa’s “thing,” as explained in our posts about visiting Abbey Road Studio (https://magnusinsights.com/2020/12/international-beatles-week/) but I have been along for the magical mystery tour all these years and will admit to enjoying it. And, to being impressed with how much The Beatles influenced the world, musically, culturally, and perhaps politically.
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