15. That's how old I was when Abbey Road, the album, was released in 1969. Of course, by then, I was already hopelessly afflicted with Beatlemania - a very real and documentable disease.
I had been a fan since before the Beatles appeared on Ed Sullivan. My sisters get credit for bringing them to my attention. I was also a very early entrepreneur. Seeing how my sisters and their friends would go ga ga over anything Beatles, I realized that if I spent 25 cents on a magazine, I could cut out the 20 or so large photos and sell them for a nickel apiece... a tidy profit! (Wish I could make that kind of return today). Finally seeing them perform on Ed Sullivan made me realize that keeping the magazines intact meant more to me than the money.
Starting with Introducing The Beatles, I was in line to get every new record the day it was released. Woolworths sold the mono albums for $3.47 and the singles for 99 cents, and was only a mile or so from my house. Stereo albums, a dollar more, were to come en masse later when I realized that I actually had a collection to maintain.
The release of the Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields single in early 1967 was a turning point for me. Those incredible new sounds were absolutely exciting. I began to follow the progress of the recording of the Sergeant Pepper album, tracking down every tidbit I could find in the media. I found and began to frequent a store called Worldwide News, which carried magazines from around the world - to point, magazines from England. Through New Musical Express, Melody Maker, Beat and Rave, as well as American books such as Teen Datebook (which published excerpts from The Beatles Monthly magazine), Teen Set and even 16 Magazine, I was able to chart almost daily progress on Sgt Pepper.
The thing that really began to pique my interest was the side story - the bits about the studio and how it worked. How 4-tracks could be stacked to combine 4 cohesive performances. How vocals could be double tracked to let two John Lennons be on the same recording! How tracks could be processed to have that phase shifted or flanged sound. Little did I realize that these guys were making all this stuff up as they went!
By the time Abbey Road, the album, came out, I pretty well knew Abbey Road, the studio, vicariously. I knew about the 8-track recorder coming in. I knew about the Beatles failed attempt to build a good studio in the Apple building (and their subsequent return to Abbey Road). I knew about George Martin and Geoff Emerick's production and engineering techniques. And I dreamt that one day I'd get to record at Abbey Road.
53. That's how old I am now. Thanks to Tim's midlife crisis, it appears that dream is becoming a reality. I can't think of a better partner in this quest. We played together for the first time this past fall, and it was as if we'd always been doing it. Just like the Beatles, we have studio time booked to record our next single. All we have to do is write it. Just like the Beatles...
We can do this...
Bob
