It Was 55 Years Ago Today, February 7, 1964

Mark’s thoughts about this day and month, 55 years ago:

Most fans know the general history of The Beatles arrival in America, The famous airport Press Conference where they totally won the press over, the jam packed streets outside the NYC Plaza Hotel, George had a fever and his sister Louise helped get him ready for the Sunday Ed Sullivan Shows, The photo jaunt through Central Park on Saturday, etc, etc. However, The Beatles had the Top two songs (I Want To Hold Your Hand & She Loves You and the Top 2 albums (Meet The Beatles and Introducing The Beatles) pretty much by the time they took the stage on February 9th. I was examining the Billboard Top 100 Charts from early 1964 and found quite a few not so well known tidbits. By the end of February, there were the earliest signs of the British Invasion to come – The Searchers (incl former FEST Guest Mike Pender) with Needle and Pins, Dave Clark 5 with Glad All Over and The Swinging Blue Jeans (incl former FEST guest Terry Sylvester) with Hippy Hippy Shake. However, it took a Lennon/McCartney penned tune – World Without Love by Peter & Gordon (many time FEST guests) to make it all the way to #1 by a Brit group other than The Beatles. It was in June, 1964. By mid March, there were 7 Beatles songs in the charts including My Bonnie with Tony Sheridan, which peaked at #26. #86 was a song by the Swans called The Boy With The Beatle Haircut. #87 was a different song called My Boyfriend Got a Beatles Haircut by Donna Lynn. The next week, The Four Preps had A Letter to The Beatles hit the charts at #87 , while The Carefrees (featuring Cher!!) saw their song We Love You Beatles entered at #73. We all know The Beatles had the Top 5 songs the first week in April, but they also had the Top 4 songs the week before! I found an unknown oddity the week of March 14. The Supremes had the #100 song with Run, Run, Run and it peaked at #94. This was 4 months BEFORE Where Did Our Love Go starting its climb to #1 that summer!

On the album side, Meet The Beatles was #1 by the time they hit the stage on Feb 9th. By the time their third Sullivan show aired, they had the top 2 albums (Introducing The Beatles). That remained #2 for 9 weeks behind, you guessed it – Meet The Beatles. The Beatles spent 30 weeks in 1964 at the top of the Billboard Top 200 Charts (11 weeks for Meet, 5 weeks for 2nd Album and 14 weeks for A Hard Day’s Night). In February, Peter, Paul & Mary had 3 albums in the top 20, but folk music peaked and the British Invasion began its amazing run. Newcomer Barbara Streisand had her first two albums in the Top 10 and thus, began her historic career at the same moment in time The Beatles did, in the U.S.

So, as Top 40 radio was playing a Beatles song every other song, all over the country, another historic event happened. It also took place in Miami Beach the same time The Beatles were there. U.S. Olympic Boxing Gold Medalist in 1960, Cassius Clay stunned the boxing world by knocking out heavyweight champion Sonny Liston. Of course, the world would come to know him as Muhammad Ali. The Beatles became the most famous people in the world for the rest of the decade and WAY beyond, even 55 years later. Muhammad Ali was right behind them in world celebrity. 1964 was the year! I remember it well.

Peace and Love,
Mark Lapidos

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It Was 55 Years Ago Today January 6, 1964!

Happy New Year, Fellow Beatles Fans,

I know I have told this story in the past, but it’s been 5 years, so I thought I should dust it off and add a little more to it.

It was 55 years ago today, January 6, 1964 that I first heard I Want To Hold Your Hand. It was a moment that forever changed my life and I remember it like it was yesterday. It was the first day back from the two week Christmas/New Year’s vacation where I had no access to radio. I was listening to WABC on the Scott Muni Show (shown above with John). I was doing my homework and the song came on the radio. I got so excited. I never heard ANYTHING that sounded like that before. I wanted to know who it was. I was hooked before the song was over. Scottso came on and said that it was by a group from England called The Beatles. My first thought was ‘What a strange name!’ The very next day, Tuesday, was new survey day and I came home from school and it was #1. It was still #1 when they appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show almost five weeks later.

Just this past week, a friend showed me a signed copy of Introducing The Beatles, after cleaning out a family member’s storage unit. Not being a hard core Beatles fan, he had no idea if the signatures were real or not. Of course, they weren’t. The strange thing is, I too, signed the cover of that album that my brother bought for my birthday two week later. I do not know why I signed it (BTW, I had the names wrong originally – it was difficult to tell them apart in those VERY early days!). I never signed another album by anybody, ever again – it was a one time thing which I cannot explain! Did any of you reading this have a similar experience?

Peace and Love,
Mark

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October 9, 2018 – John’s Birthday

Today we celebrate the life of a true game changer. John Lennon would have turned 78 today. His massive contribution to this society cannot be underestimated. We can only imagine what the world would look like today had he not succumbed to an assassin’s bullets 38 years ago. His loss will NEVER stop hurting. We must go forward and try to live our lives with the spirit and enthusiasm John lived by. Here is a quick test: Off the top of your head, name 10 influential people from pre 20th century…

I can almost guarantee some of these people you will mention are artists – Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Michelangelo, Shakespeare, Van Gogh, Renoir, Brahms, Shelley, Keats, Tchaikovsky, Da Vinci, Rembrandt, Emerson, Dickinson, Plato. Artists and their work are remembered and appreciated by society. Museums honor their achievements. We tend to remember them more than most of the world leaders from the past.

What John, with The Beatles and as a solo artist, has given this culture, will be remembered hundreds of years from now. It is a comfort to know we have lived in the same time on this planet as he did. All of our lives have been enriched beyond words by the music and art of John Lennon. Thank you for being the catalyst. Thank you for liking and approving my idea for a 10th Anniversary Beatles fans convention in 1974 I love you and will always miss you.

We also want to wish Sean a very happy birthday on this day he shares with his father. He is 43 today. On a personal note, this day was also shared with my father, Danny, who was certainly my biggest musical influence growing up, before 1964 came along.

All you need is love,
Mark Lapidos

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John Lennon: Why We Still Care – By Jude Southerland Kessler

Over three and a half decades after his passing…and still we pause on 9 October, celebrating the life of John Lennon, looking back not with misty-eyed nostalgia but with clear-headed vision that embraces both his many strengths and his many weaknesses.

John Lennon was no saint…that’s for sure. He never – not even as a teen – suffered fools lightly, and when the press (in 1963-66) asked him ridiculous questions such as “What do you do with all that hair while you sleep?” he, often as not, presented a jaw-clinched, disgusted visage and a sharp retort. He admitted that he had “a chip on [his] shoulder bigger than [his] feet,” and so his anger often flared, whereas Paul was always able to discover some politically-correct and charming response. And yes, John was often jealous and sharp-tongued. And yes, he was infrequently physical with Cynthia.

But despite the faults that his latter-day detractors have hurled at him, he is still one of the most exceptional individuals I’ve ever known. John Lennon endured a string of life tragedies that none of us could weather, and ultimately, he used them for good. He used them to create beautiful, haunting, lasting lyrics and compositions…he gave us the soundtrack of our lives.

Look, John had every reason to be bitter. At age five, his parents (for very complicated reasons) surrendered him to his Aunt Mimi and Uncle George to rear – and although George Toogood Smith was truly “too good” (exceptionally kind and loving), Mimi was not. She was the soul of decorum and discipline. And when six-year-old John – begging for love – would ask her, “Mimi, why are you here every day when I come home from school?” she would only respond, “Because it’s my duty to do so.” Mimi taught John many important things: to study, go to church, mind his manners, to behave…but she never taught to him to love.

As John grew into his preteen years, John “found out” that his mother, Julia, lived only about a mile from Mimi’s house. And he began to visit her frequently, getting to know his two half-sisters, Julia and Jacqui. It was a bond John cherished, but the knowledge that his mother didn’t “despise children,” after all – that she wanted her two girls and not him – was a heavy cross to bear. Alone in his bed at Mendips, it hurt. He wondered what he’d done to make her push him aside.

But that doubt must have been dispelled somewhat when, after the loss of John’s beloved Uncle George (when John was almost 15…a time when he needed a “father” most), Julia came back into his life as his best friend. For two years, his mother and he bonded. Julia encouraged John to skip school and hang out with her. She taught him to play the banjo, told him he “had music in his bones,” played her rock’n’roll records for him, and helped him form a skiffle band, The Quarrymen. She invited the fledgling band to practice in her acoustically excellent bathroom, and many times she banged on pots and pans, their drummer. Julia was beloved by them all, part of their group. However, on 15 July 1958, she was hit by a drunk driver and instantly killed. And once again, John had lost her. This time forever, to death.

If this had been John’s last tragedy, he would have been completely justified in being angry at the world. Even at this juncture, had every reason to give up and quit – to become a delinquent, a criminal, a bitter hermit, withdrawn from society. And many (including Dave Bennion, the “Head Boy” at Quarry Bank Grammar) thought Lennon would do just that.

But instead of surrendering to a life of sorrow, John began to write songs born of the pain. And over the next five years, he wailed at the microphones of Merseyside and then Hamburg and then the United Kingdom and finally, the world, for Julia. He told us all, “If she’s gone, I can’t go on, feelin’ two foot small.” And, “I’m a loser, and I’m not what I appear to be,” and “I’ve got every reason on earth to be mad, ’cause I just lost the only girl I had. If I could get my way, I’d give myself right up today, but I can’t, so I cry instead.” And using his loss to weave beauty, John Lennon created The Beatles and relentlessly pushed them (when on many occasions, they gave up) to achieve, to conquer, to succeed.

In his life, John did many great things. He was a talented writer, penning two award-winning books of wry, satirical poetry and prose. He was a gifted single-line artist whose gallery still tours the world to critical acclaim. He was a global advocate for peace. He was a fighter for Irish independence, writing two songs for the cause and leading the New York City march on BOAC on behalf of the Irish people. John had myriad talents.

But today, we remember him most because he left us the example of a life well-lived. He left us an example of a man who never surrendered to the lashing that the world can dole out. John never let the unending tragedies that tried to crush him snuff out his soul.

After the loss of his mother, John went on to endure the death of his soul mate, Stu Sutcliffe. John also suffered at the hands of an unfeeling press when a remark he’d made to a close journalist friend, Maureen Cleave, was lifted by Datebook magazine, taken out of context, and used to generate a hate campaign against John and The Beatles…and for months, John was vilified by the world. In later life, he suffered a messy divorce from a girl he had once loved deeply. And in his last decade, he and his second wife lost several children to late-term miscarriages. Even his career was rocky:  John’s music was banned by the BBC for his support of Ireland. Life for John Lennon was never ever easy.

But he never surrendered. And when on certain days, I feel down or depressed or hurt or angry, and I threaten to throw up my hands and walk away…I think of John. I think of his resolve and his “toppermost of the poppermost” attitude and his unflinching determination. And on those occasions, I repeat about John Winston Lennon the very best compliment that I could ever give  anyone: he never gave up.

And that…that is why we still care.

  

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Celebrating the Golden of the White Album

Here is Jude Southerland Kessler’s latest Blog:

The Beatles’ THE WHITE ALBUM: An International Symposium Conference

 

One of the joys of writing this blog is sharing with you the biggest events around us in The Beatles World. It’s even more rewarding when those special events involve members of our own close-knit Fest family, as well as those we’ve been fortunate to highlight through the years as Honored Guests at the Fest.

 

Such an event is now on the horizon. It will take place November 8-11, 2018, at Monmouth University, located in West Long Branch, New Jersey…only a good “Stones throw” (try Mick, he’s light) from our own New Jersey Fest location. The Beatles’ THE WHITE ALBUM: An International Symposium – a virtual collection of Beatles’ “Who’s Who” from all over the globe – will take place in association with the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music on lovely Monmouth University Campus. And what a landmark event it promises to be!

 

In fact, our own fearless leader, Mark Lapidos, will be front and center! And the impressive cast of distinguished lecturers and authors around him include people whom Mark has hand-selected, through the years, to keynote at the Fest as well as familiar faces from our own Fest family! These include:

 

* the over-awing Beatles Guru himself, author, Mark Lewisohn

 

* the former U.S Manager of Apple Records and author, Ken Mansfield

 

* GRAMMY award-winning engineer (who graced the Chicago Fest this year), Geoff Emerick

 

* noted Beatles music theorist and author, Walter Everett

 

*the most respected name in Beatles discography, author Bruce Spizer

 

* award-winning Beatles music author and host of the “Something About The Beatles” podcast, Robert Rodriguez

 

* historian and author of the 9-volume John Lennon Series, Jude Southerland Kessler

 

* author and rock myth-buster, a.k.a. The Rock’n’Roll Detective, Jim Berkenstadt

 

* author of The Recipe Records Series and co-host of the “She Said She Said” podcast, Lanea Stagg

 

* author, associate editor of Beatlefan magazine, and host of the “Bottomless Soul” show, Dr. Kit O’Toole

 

* author and Executive Editor for Beatlefan magazine, Al Sussman

 

Indeed, there are so many distinguished writers who will be attending this conference that it’s almost overwhelming! And we are extremely proud to have so many from the Fest in attendance.

 

There is also a plethora of Beatles experts slated to speak who have been joyfully included for their stellar research and unique, outstanding roles in the music world. These include:

 

* Allan Kozinn, immensely-respected music writer for The New York Times, High Fidelity, and the New York Observer and co-host of the “Things We Said Today” podcast

 

* Scott Freiman, whose “Deconstructing The Beatles” programs are highly-sought-after

 

* renowned record producer, Chris Thomas, who worked with Sir George Martin at AIR and was part of the production team of The White Album

 

* author Richard Buskin and Eric Taros who co-host the “Swinging Through the Sixties” podcast

 

* author and Beatles music expert, Tim Riley

 

* author and contributing editor to Rolling Stone, Rob Sheffield

 

And, of course, we are especially proud of….drum roll, please…the man who conceived this once-in-a-lifetime gathering of Beatles greats and brought it to life: author of the highly-acclaimed biographies of Sir George Martin (Vol. 1, Maximum Volume and Vol. 2, Sound Pictures), Dean of the Wayne D. McMurray School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Monmouth University, and long-time friend of the Fest, Dr. Kenneth Womack.

 

Ken has planned a weekend for symposium attendees that will be unlike any other symposium to date. “We look forward to welcoming so many music fans and Beatles scholars to Monmouth University, where we will be celebrating the landmark recording and release of The White Album,” said Ken. “West Long Branch, New Jersey, will be the place to be for Beatlemaniacs in November!”

 

On Tuesday, 6 November, area fans will be happy to join Ken and Mark Lewisohn for Monmouth University’s “Tuesday Night Record Club.” And you guessed it: that month’s LP will be none other than The White Album. Then, on Thursday, 8 November, there is a pre-conference bus tour of famous rock’n’roll sites along the Jersey Shore led by authors Jean Mikle and Stan Goldstein. Attendees will get to see Asbury Park’s Stone Pony and Paramount Theater…and will, of course, zip over to Belmar for a rare photo op at 10th Avenue and E Street. Classic!

 

Also on the 8th, The Weeklings will perform, with several very special tributes to The White Album. And throughout the weekend, iconic films such as Paul Saltzman’s The Beatles in India and Jerry Zolten and Dick Boak’s Ballad of the Dreadnaught (the history of Martin acoustic guitars) will be shown.

 

In addition to all of the great talks from Beatles experts and scholars, Monmouth University will also be hosting music and recording demonstration rooms where attendees can learn more about how the bandmates and their production team performed and recorded some of the songs on The White Album.

 

If attendees can find a wee smidgen of spare time in between the incredible presentations, films, bands, and tours, they will also want to spend some time browsing through the Bruce Springsteen Archives. This collection of 35,000 items from 47 countries across the globe is truly mind-boggling! Besides honoring native son, Springsteen, the archive also houses memorabilia from Frank Sinatra, Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson, and Hank Williams.

 

So…right now… STOP whatever you are doing and say this into your computer/phone/Alexa calendar app: “Attend THE WHITE ALBUM Symposium Conference, Monmouth University, Nov. 8-11.” Then hesitate no more. Go to https://www.monmouth.edu/the-white-album/#details for more details about hotels and travel. On September 21st, individual pay passes and tickets to the keynote addresses will be available for non-presenters. So be sure to check back on the 21st to book your ticket to ride at the conference!

 

This IS a “reeeeally big shooow,” an event that you mustn’t miss. Don’t pass it by (don’t make me cry, don’t make me blue…). Be there! It will be a weekend you’ll talk about for years to come!

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Hey Jude Released 50 Years Ago Today

Apple Records was an experiment of idealism in 1968. On this date, Monday, August 26, 1968, Apple released its “First Four” Singles – Hey Jude/Revolution, Those Were The Days by Mary Hopkin, Sour Milk Sea by Jackie Lomax, and Thingumybob. A major record company could release hundreds of songs in a year and not have the success of this new upstart company. Three of these songs are true standards and truly loved by everyone. Derek Taylor even predicted Mary Hopkin’s vocal gem would become a standard at weddings forever!

But I wanted to write about Hey Jude today. I was a waiter at Kutsher’s Country Club, Monticello, NY, and usually napped after breakfast (with my radio on, of course). I was half asleep when the song came on. It was a Twilight Zone moment. I was in and out of sleep and the song seemed like it was going for an hour! I could barely get my head around what I had just heard. I knew it was a new Beatles song of course, but how long was it on for? After lunch I rushed back to wait for it again (did not have to wait long at all!) It really hit me like a ton of bricks. I was totally amazed and knocked out by it. Two weeks later, it shot right up to #2 on WABC in NYC. Cousin Brucie said the switchboard was overloaded with fans yelling why it wasn’t #1. He apologized on air for it. It was Number One for the next two months, knocked out of the top slot by…you guessed it… Those Were The Days. To me it was much more than a single. It was like an entire album in one song. I was late to many of my classes in my senior year at Adelphi U. I just couldn’t turn the song off the radio while Hey Jude played, even thought I had the single on my turntable until the White Album came out 3 months later. And the ‘b side’ (Revolution) was not too shabby. Paul and John were at the height of their creativity. Hey Jude is my favorite song of all time and it usually ends up at #2 in the Classic rock fan voting for Greatest Song Ever (Stairway to Heaven has that honor, but not in my book). 50 years later, I still never, ever get tired of hearing it. I imagine I never will…na na na nanana na.

Peace and Love,
Mark

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WHY We Fest…

WHY We Fest…

 

By Jude Southerland Kessler

https://www.johnlennonseries.com

 

A decade ago or more, it seemed as if ages and ages crawled by between Fests. The span of time between the New Jersey and Chicago events dragged on forever! But now, the days seem to fly by, and I’ve barely unpacked before it’s time to find my Beatles sweatshirts, buttons, hats, and paraphernalia…and head right back again.

“You’re going to another Fest?” my hairdresser said (as I asked her to “put the fire back in those locks!”).

“Yep, as fast as my car can drive me!” I smiled.

“But…I mean…don’t you get tired of…it’s just…you go all the time, it seems like.”

“Well,” I really thought about it for a moment, “I know it seems that way to an outsider, but to those of us in what we call ‘The Fest Family,’ there can never be too many in a year. It’s never enough…”

Why?” She skeptically closed one eye at me. “What’s so special? Why do you…um, fest?”

And just like that, the question was on the table.

I mumbled my pat answer – I said that the Fest was like Thanksgiving for all of us. But, over the next few days, I really began mulling her question over. I thought about it as I mowed the yard, planned my book release party, drove to the grocery store, and worked on my Chicago presentations. And the answer finally came to me one night as I was running…a direct answer, in fact, – not from our own Liddypool boys – but from the Eagles!

They sang the answer into my earbuds…those haunting, beautifully immortal words from “Hotel California: “Some dance to remember…some dance to forget.” Yes, that was it! Dead right!

At times, we go to the Fest for Beatles Fans to remember…to recall the night we sat glued to our parents’ enormous black’n’white TV set while Ed Sullivan swept his arm across his body and shouted, “The Beatles!” We Fest to remember how it felt to see John, Paul, George, and Ringo scamper quickly off the concert stage after what we presumed (though no one could hear a note) was “Long Tall Sally.” We Fest to conjure up that rush we felt when the needle hit the first groove of Sgt. Pepper….to relive those Christmas mornings when even the shiny foil paper and full satin bows failed to disguise the latest Capitol album from our Fab Four.

We Fest to remember who we are…not grandparents or businesspeople or mothers or fathers or husbands or wives…but our truest selves: that young man proudly wearing the pale grey, pocketless jacket, Cuban heels, and “long hair” of his heroes; the giddy girl skipping school to trek out to JFK; the frightened but determined school reporter penning the essay defending John Lennon against the out-of-context Datebook quote…and ending up in the principal’s office for being so “disappointingly radical.” At The Fest, we are still the young, bright-eyed Sam Goody employee counting the seconds ’til the stroke of midnight when the next Parlophone LP will finally be released! We are the still young mother singing a “No Reply” lullaby to her child or the scared young dad pacing with his baby in the dark and weakly crooning, “Beautiful Boy.”

At the Fest, we return to who we are. We cross the barrier of time and age. We become US again.

A few years ago, I was crossing the Chicago lobby when someone shouted at me, “Hey Lennon Chick!” I chuckled. I wasn’t offended…or insulted or diminished or threatened. Instead, I smiled to know that someone saw me for who I was…not a studious author buried in research, manuscripts, and conference presentations…but a fan who loved John Lennon and wasn’t afraid to let the world know it.

Indeed, we Fest to remember.

But just as importantly, we Fest to forget.

“The world is too much with us, late and soon,” wrote British poet, William Wordsworth. Indeed, day after bitter day, we are being pummeled by the world…by politics, divisiveness, anger, and hatred. There are dark accusations lurking around every corner and enough suspicion and blame to make even Kent State look tame. Our world is madly enraged.

And so, we Fest to retreat from it all. We need to hear, “Give Peace a Chance” and “Love is All You Need.” We need to “Come Together” and “Let it Be.” We need to find common ground instead of fault. We need to hug our friends on both sides of the aisle and find in each other’s eyes a bond and not a barrier. We Fest to forget…if only for one weekend.

In many ways, I think, the quick, pat answer that I tossed out to my hairdresser was accurate. The Fest is my Thanksgiving (and yours) – a chance to sit down and share deep dish pizza at Giordano’s with a loud, rowdy group of people we love. It’s our chance to catch up on their lives and to tell stories of our own. We Fest to cry on each other’s shoulders and share the photos in our phones and stay up too late and tell too many corny jokes and secrets. Without a doubt, the Fest is our Thanksgiving.

But more than that, it’s the place at the end of the long and winding road where we are happy just to dance…some to remember, some to forget.

I hope to see you in Chicago. You can wear your favorite jeans or bell-bottoms. I’ll wear those same, old be-jeweled flip-flops that enable me to stand for 11 hours in my booth. I know you’ll still believe that Paul is the genius. And I’ll believe it’s John…and secretly, we’ll both agree that it took “two to tango.” But we’ll never admit that out loud. We’ll stick to our guns, because we’ll be at the Fest. And at the Fest, we aren’t grandparents or businesspeople or mothers or fathers or husbands or wives. We are BEATLES FANS…and that, dear friends, is what calls us to the dance.

 

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Old Friends, Bookends… Today I Turn 70

Woke up, Fell out of bed and decided to write this stream of consciousness as I celebrate this wonderful occasion of what it is like to be 70. I don’t know how long this will be, and I may ramble, but so be it. It occurred to me that it turns out that music has been at the center of my life from the beginning. My father, Danny, was a musician (sax player) and band leader. From my earliest days I loved music. My first records were 78 RPM at the birth of rock and roll. Listening to the top 40 stations we got a sprinkling of all the music that was popular at the time. Having the opportunity to see the popular artists of the time live on stage at Kutsher’s Country Club in the Catskills from 1957 where Dad would be the bandleader for the next 41 years. His only music idol was Louis Armstrong. I can remember when he played there in the summer of 1958.  There was Dad leading the band for this icon who later was named the greatest American musician of the 20thCentury. Meeting him backstage after the show was a moment that still hangs on my wall at home. My father and Louis shaking hands. His expression is one of pure joy. I must have felt something at that moment because it would happen to me in another 6 years.

 

We meet many people along the way, some become friends for awhile, some for life. Mike Quittman and I met at Kutsher’s that first summer and became friends, very competitive in all games – Ping Pong, Nok Hockey, then golf, the other love of my life. Mike and I used to go to all the shows together, seeing this wide variety of music and other entertainment. We sat at the side of the stage and I was always very proud to see Dad leading the band. Mike also loves music – 50s and 60s rock and roll and still does (though not to the same level). This 60 + year friendship is my oldest and we still get together and still go to concerts. I love you Mike.

 

January 6,1964 – That moment when I am grabbed by music bigtime and it never let go. I first heard I Want To Hold Your Hand. I just wrote about this 13 days ago, so will skip the details now, but I didn’t know at that moment, how one song and one band could truly alter the lives of an entire generation and beyond.

 

September, 1965 Off to Adelphi University. One of the first guys I met was Bob Stirber. He also played guitar, as I (and millions of others) did because of The Beatles. We weren’t roommates, but we certainly bonded quickly and became roommates and best friends by our second year. As our eyes and souls were being opened to a new world, we talked endlessly about everything. In 1969, we graduated and went to Europe for 2 months. First stop was London and 3 Savile Row, Friday, June 13. Now, Bob loved the Beatles but wasn’t in the same hard core fan category I was in. It was our first stop because I wanted to meet the Beatles and this was their office.  John walked out of the office to look at a Fireplace that was in a truck that had just driven up. I said hello, shook his hand, got his autograph, took some photos and had a nice short little conversation with him. Another bigtime life changing moment. I walked around London that evening looking at my hand and saying “ I shook one of god’s hands”. Clearly Bob thought I was overboard. I also said to Bob, I want to work for The Beatles! In Amsterdam, Bob buys a guitar and we spend most evenings playing Beatles music (and others) in parks in every city we visited. Their music was truly universal, wherever we went, even if they didn’t speak our language, they knew the songs. My only professional gig as a musician was with Bob at a school on Long Island. We were paid $20.00 each. Bob and I remained close but time and distance got in the way. He was an early advocate of eating organic foods and how to stay healthy. Bob didn’t make it to 70. He died of cancer almost 3 years ago. I love you and miss you, Bob.

 

August 15-17, 1969 – Woodstock. After returning from Europe a week earlier, in time to be the best man at my brother Howard’s wedding. I love my brother, Ilene and their entire family, but Howard didn’t get Dad’s genes when it comes to music. I did!! (We both got his love of golf, however.) So, I go up to Kutsher’s for the rest of the summer, only to find out that this little music festival was only 13 miles away! I went all three days and was exposed to so many great groups who I only knew their hits from. This was another one of those life changing moments. I decided that I have to work in the music industry. Yes, in 1969, my record collection was just beginning to change from singles to albums. Of course I had all the Beatles albums and some Stones too, but that suddenly changed.

 

October 1, 1969 – Out of College, Money Spent, See No Future, Pay No Rent. I head over to Sam Goody, the large record store chain in the east, to try to find a job. The Beatles got in the way. Abbey Road was released that very day and of course I had to immediately buy it and go home to listen to it, forgoing the job application idea. I am again overwhelmed with their music. My first thought was How did Paul McCartney know my exact situation in life at that exact moment? I don’t know, but he did. Next day I got a job at Sam Goody and found out I loved retail, especially selling music. It was certainly a lifestyle by then and I felt it.

 

Late, 1969 -Roger Berkley is hired as a part time record salesperson. We very quickly become friends. Roger was one of the first people I told of my idea in 1974 about Beatlefest. He was all in on it from day one. He ended up being the auctioneer at the first Fest and the announcer on the documentary we made, called Welcome to Pepperland. Roger and I have remained best of friends ever since. Roger used to live on the upper west side of NYC and would bump into John on numerous occasions. One such time was in 1979 about a week before a Fest, He asked John if he had a message for the fans. He said, Tell them, The Music was the Thing.  Roger is also a golf nut and his family has been part of the shows forever. Today, I am concerned about Roger. He has had a couple of surgeries this week and is in recovery. We all hope for a full recovery. We want the Roger we know and back. We have to be optimistic. I love you Roger.

 

August 17, 1975 – My first date with Carol. I brought my guitar, went out for Chinese food, came back and saw her record collection – Beatles, Concert for Bangladesh, Joni Mitchell, Aztec Two Step, and many others that adorned my own collection. Again it was a musical connection. Our second date was the second Beatlefest. We married in June, 1976. I walked down the aisle to my favorite song, Hey Jude. I played Here Comes The Sun to her during the wedding while in my White tuxedo. We are married 42 years and Carol is the love of my life.  Michelle is now 33 and is recording an album as I am writing this. Jessica turns 30 in a few months and is wise beyond their years. I love my family so much.

 

It just occurred to me yesterday, the words that John sent to us in 1979 Tell them, The Music was the Thing was not just about the Beatles, but in life itself. My longest friendships, my Father, my Mother, my Wife, had music at the core. A love of music is of monumental importance in my life. I remember Dad telling me how lucky he was to be able to play music for a living. He did what he loved the most (other than golf). Dad and John also shared their birthday – October 9th.  So there it is. My life as seen through these 70 year young eyes – my father’s words and John’s words (and of course, The Beatles) led me to a career which I absolutely love. And it is all centered around music! I am a very lucky man.

It has been a great thrill and honor to have personally met John, Paul, George and Ringo and almost everyone involved in the Beatles story. Presenting their friends and family at the conventions for the past 44 years, have given us all insight into just how their ‘team’ was so important to them. The friends we have made at the Fests over the years are much more than friends. Our staff are very much part of our extended family. I love you all very much. It wouldn’t be the same without you.

 

All you need is love,

Mark Lapidos

A baby boomer and very proud of it

 

Written January 19, 2018 5:30AM            

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John approved my FEST idea 41 years ago today!

April 28, 1974. It was a warm Sunday – 81 was the high for the day in New York’s Central Park. Warm enough to wear my new Beatles 10th Anniversary Promotional T-Shirt to listen to John Lennon and Harry Nilsson talk to Cousin Brucie on stage during the first March of Dimes event. (It wasn’t a walkathon the first year but it has been every year since.) I told this story in a very detailed manner at the three FESTS in 2014 and was thrilled and humbled by the response. I will not retell that today. I just wanted to say hi and to let you know it was the greatest non family day in my life. Getting to see John (and it was because of that shirt I was wearing!) that day was an absolute thrill and to actually sit down with him only minutes after his appearance, in his hotel suite to tell him my idea of a Beatles fans’ celebration – well, what could be better. I can still hear him say those words to me – “I’m All For It. I’m a Beatles Fan, Too!”  It was the day that permanently altered my life. It has been a thrill and an honor to be able to have presented 123 National Beatles FESTS all around the country since then. The best thing about the FESTS is the coming together of Beatles fans from all over the world to celebrate our common love for the Beatles. There can no longer be a doubt their music will live forever!

Peace and Love!

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Mark hears I Want To Hold Your Hand – 1st Time 1/6/64

It was fifty years ago today, January 6, 1964 that I first heard I Want To Hold Your Hand. It was a moment that forever changed my life and I remember it like it was yesterday. It was the first day back from the two week Christmas/New Year’s vacation where i had no access to radio. I was listening to WABC on the Scott Muni Show. I was doing my homework and the song came on the radio. I got so excited. I never heard ANYTHING that sounded like that before. I wanted to know who it was. I was hooked before the song was over. Scottso came on and said that it was by a group from England called The Beatles. My first thought was ‘What a strange name!’ The very next day, Tuesday, was new survey day and I came home from school and it was #1. It was still #1 when they appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show almost five weeks later.

Mark Lapidos, January 6, 2014

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