“What if a demon were to creep after you one night and say, ‘This life that you must live must be lived by you once again and innumerable times more; and every pain and joy and thought and sigh must come again to you, all in the same sequence. The eternal hourglass will again and again be turned - and you with it!’ Would you throw yourself down, gnash your teeth and curse that demon? Or would you answer, ‘Never have I learned anything more divine?’” - Nietzsche
I wonder how the remaining members of The Beatles would react to this? To live through Beatlemania again and again, when the world was their oyster, and all the events that followed?
The closest I ever got to The Beatles was my grandmother on my mother’s side of the family.
My grandfather, her husband, worked for the railroad all his short life. He had chronic asthma and died fairly young. They lived in a huge house in Port Hope, Ontario, during their married life. This was the house my mother called home until she married my father. In those days, one of the perks of being married to a railroad man was that my grandmother could travel across the country on a special pass. She took advantage of the ability to travel long after my grandfather passed away. I remember a story she once told me when The Beatles were at their peak and on tour here in Canada.
My grandmother was on the west coast staying in the same hotel they were in. In fact, her room was on the floor just above their suites. She told me of the crowds of fans who gathered outside the hotel, hoping for a glimpse of their idols. My grandmother wasn’t particularly interested in their music, but she admitted she was caught up in the excitement of the moment. After their concert, the Fab Four were off on the next leg of their concert tour. My grandmother was still booked into the hotel for a little while longer. After all the commotion associated with having the world’s most popular band in the hotel died down, she remembers people outside the lobby entrance selling pieces of bed linen that had been cut up into strips. Supposedly, this was the bedding The Beatles slept on. Now, I can’t confirm the story other than to say this is what a grandmother told her wide-eyed grandson who was also caught up in Beatlemania. But it’s a story I’ve never forgotten. That was one trip I wished I had accompanied her on.
We’ve all heard the troubles Paul McCartney has had recently concerning his very public break-up from Heather Mills. In recent photos, he seems to have aged. It’s never an easy thing when people realize that a relationship no longer has any more reason to survive. But when you’re a celebrity, worth millions and millions of dollars, it can be even more difficult trying to keep the public’s very prying eyes out of your personal affairs. Fortunately, most of the proceedings have taken place behind closed doors. We wish them both well, and hope they can get on with their lives when all is said and done.
It was on March 12th, 1969 that Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman, which prompted John Lennon to wed Yoko Ono just eight days later….
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Don Jackson
