Anyone of a certain age–and that pretty much covers pre-teens to octogenarians–most likely will recognize the words in the headline above as belonging to a famous lyric that has been all but incorporated into America’s musical DNA.
It’s “She Loves You,” of course, one of five tunes the Beatles sang on “The Ed Sullivan Show” 40 years ago in their first U.S. television appearance.
Wait just a minute. Forty years ago? How can that possibly be? That’s half a lifetime. How can so much time have gone by when the Baby Boom generation is still so young and happenin’, man?
The Fab Four shocked this country back in 1964 with their then-outrageous floppy hair, tight dark suits and all that bouncy, innocent energy. Beatlemania erupted and, virtually overnight, the band came to define rock and roll and the youth culture in a decade that was about to explode. The Beatles and their fans traveled this tumultuous road together over the years, influencing and being influenced by each other.
With each album they turned the wheel, taking music–and society–to an unexplored place. Just follow the progression: “Rubber Soul,” “Revolver,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” the White Album (officially “The Beatles”), “Yellow Submarine,” “Abbey Road,” “Let It Be.” Their music defines an era but also transcends it in a way that is remarkable. The group split up more than 30 years ago, yet a compilation of Beatles music released in 2000 topped the charts. Worldwide sales of the CD “1” have surged past 25 million.
Baby Boomers rightfully claim the Beatles as their own–they grew up and grew older together. But it’s a claim they have to share with at least some of their parents, their children, grandchildren and with legions of fans not yet born.
