Paul McCartney turned 80 years old yesterday. I was a high school senior, 17 years of age, when I first heard “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” the breakthrough song that an unknown English band brought to America, a song that turned this aspiring guitar player’s world upside down. It was the first on a 12 song tracklist of the album that went into my collection the day it appeared.
“I Want to Hold Your Hand” reached #1 i America in early 1964, and the Beatles made their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show, playing before more than 700 in the audience and over 73,000,000 watching at home.
Some years ago a gallery in Petaluma hosted a traveling show of images taken by Curt Gunther, the lone photographer accompanying the Beatles on their first US tour. Curt’s son is in charge of the negatives and is printing his father’s photographs. About the following image, which I purchased from the gallery at the close of the show, a writer had this to say: “Taken on their first US tour in 1964 by Curt Gunther, this shot of The Beatles' performance in a packed venue in Indianapolis is simply amazing. The angle, the position of the band and the details are perfect. You can see the state troopers lined up around the stage, the crowd high up in the bleachers, the stage lights in the upper left. I just love looking at this photograph. The beautiful Estate Stamped prints are made by Curt Gunther’s son, Steve, a wonderful printer. This is my favorite Curt Gunther image, and one of my favorite performance shots.”
Steve is still printing from his father’s negatives. This image at 11 x14 sells for $900. Mine is framed and is probably five times larger. It’s a testament to the most culturally significant event in my lifetime, the songs of the Beatles. Paul’s genius as a singer and songwriter continues to grow, even now, as he is on tour once again, playing three hour sets as he crosses the US.
But the fact is Paul is now eighty years old. And musical idols, however great they are, tend to lose favor in the generations that follow. Frank Sinatra preceded Elvis Presley who preceded the Beatles who preceded music I despise. And how do future generations view our idols?
Let’s look at these posts from Kanye West dévotees.
The country couldn’t be more divided than it is right now between Trumpers and the sane. And if political differences weren’t enough, musical differences and musical ignorance add the exclamation mark.
I never saw the Beatles in person. Six years ago my three kids gifted Jadyne and me with tickets to see Paul in Sacramento. I was 70. Paul was 75.
I can die happy now.
Happy Birthday, Paul. Lennon would have been 80 this year. Dylan turned 80. Brian Wilson is 80. Never Trust Anyone Over Ninety.