D. “It Was Twenty Years Ago Today…”
So began the first track on the first side of what is considered by many to be the best pop music album of the 1960s and possible the most original rock album of all time
Everything about this album or L.P. (Long Playing Record) as we called them in the U.K. at that time was revolutionary and innovative.From its record sleeve design and packaging to the songs themselves each of which was original and bridged the cultural divide between popular music and high art while reflecting the interests of contemporary youth and the counterculture.
When it was released in May 1967 the effect was one of the defining moments in pop culture heralding in the ‘Album Era’ and the 1967 ‘Summer of Love’.
And what amazed everyone, including myself who was there at the time, was just how far the four young musicians behind the album had travelled in less than five years from their home city on the banks of the River Mersey…
RnR001 ‘Four Lads From Liverpool’
In the cold, wet winter month of February 1963 I was 14 years old and delivering newspapers early each morning before I went to school.
In among the newspapers would occasionally be one of the weekly comics or magazines that might appeal to the younger sons or daughters of the people getting their daily newspaper delivered.
Being always inquisitive I would flick through the pages of these comics or
‘mags’ to see if anything interested me.
On this particular occasion I came across a
‘wall poster’ insert featuring a group of four young guys from Liverpool called
‘The Beatles’. I remembered I had heard their first record
‘Love Me Do’ a few months before…
Not a great record, I thought, but not bad for a first attempt.
A couple of weeks later,
The Beatles released their second .45 record
“Please, Please Me” and like millions of other British kids I was bowled over and it went straight to
#1. From that day until today I am still a Beatles fan and will be until my dying day!
Throughout my teenage years The Beatles were the sound track of one of the most exciting decades in British history.
The Beatles changed everything… how we looked, how we spoke, what we liked, who we listened to and, importantly, when to seize opportunities when and if they ever happened.
This unique little set, inspired by the
Sgt. Pepper album cover, is myself and K&C’s tribute to these four lads from relatively modest, working class backgrounds in Liverpool who rose to the highest heights of fame and fortune…
and changed the world!
AVAILABLE: Mid September
