January 21st, 2019

At some point, I blogged about how my introduction to music other than classical came from one afternoon of listening to a neighbors new Beatles album. I was immediately captivated by this "new to me" style of music and never looked back.  While I went on to be a big fan of many different artists, the Beatles, as my entree into the world outside of Beethoven, would always be dear to my heart.

I never saw them perform live of course.  But I listened to the albums, I watched the movies and I read, with great fascination all of the teen magazines about them. The movies were silly fun, the magazines were mostly drek, but the music, yup that's where the authenticity was and  I always knew that.  It was always the music that spoke to my heart and soul.

Well that was a very long time ago.  Only two of the Beatles are still around, but their music lives on.  Music is like that.  I mean the really good stuff.  The iconic stuff.  I mean, Ludwig van  Beethoven died in 1827, that's nearly two hundred years ago and we are still listening to his work! I have no reason to believe that it will be any different with the music of the Beatles. Though I do think it will be hard to explain to future generations why 4 young men referred to themselves as misspelled insects.  But I digress.

The original Beachboys, on the other hand, I wasn't a huge fan of.  I was aware of their music of course.  And I liked their nice tight harmonies but I confess that I often confuse their work with other, similiar, artists of the era.  Good stuff,   representational of the time and place, but definitely not in the same category as the Beatles. At least, not to me.

Still, when I found out that there was going to be a tribtue band performance of these two famous bands here on the island, I signed Tim and I up with not a seconds hesitation.

As it turned out our awesome neighbors Joan and Danny were also going to to the show so  we decided to enjoy a lovely dinner together at one of Tims and my favourite local Mexican food places, Plaza Mexico before the show.  There we met up with friends of Joan and Danny's who were the loveliest people and afterwords we all went to the show together.

It was a terrific show.  The performers played and sang their hearts out.  I sang along, of course, I knew I would, but so did a lot of other people.  And in fact, people got so caught up in the music that they were literally dancing in the aisles!

The performers were so committed to their roles that they not only dressed in the appropriate clothing and sang the music, as the original band members did, but they also referred to each other, on stage anyway, as the person they were impersonating.  In fact, during the Beatles performance, I noticed that the gentleman being "George Harrison" even stood like George during the show.  Could be coincidence I suppose, but I don't think so.

I know, I know, it wasn't the real Beachboys and it wasn't the real Beatles.  I couldn't be.  That was then and this is now and I don't have a time machine.  But back then, I wouldn't have actually heard much of the music anyway even if I had gone to any of the shows.  Do you remember how ineffective the sound systems were for rock'n'roll concerts back then?  If you weren't sitting in the front of the venue, you didn't hear a damned thing.  And even if you were lucky enough to nab a front row seat, there was so much other noise!

It was  the screaming!  Those silly girls. Nobody heard anything but the screaming of over-excited young girls losing their minds and their voices, screaming at the top of their lungs throughout the shows.  Yeah, even if I had the opportunity to go, I probably wouldn't have. Even back them I was too cheap to pay that kind of money to see a musical show where I wasn't actually going to be able to hear the music.  I think I was born with extra frugal genes.

But this past Saturday night, there we were, with front row seats for some darned good entertainment!  I still have Surfin' Safari and Yesterday alternately playing in my head.  True I never really was a Beach Boys fan, but I have to admit, their music was kind of "catchy".  I am now, have always been and always will be much more of a Beatles fan, but the Beach Boys stuff was fun too.

Awesome night. Sorry you weren't there with us.  It was Very Very Fun.   You should join us next time. Singing along is not required, although it is recommended.  Dancing in the aisles?  Totally optional.