The Fifth beetle?

I was walking through the newsroom yesterday and noticed a very old photo of John Lennon and Paul McCartney on Entertainment Weekly magazine. At the Meriden mall later in the day, the Beatles seemed to be everywhere. Displays of the Fab Four were prominent at the book store, game store and music store. When I left the mall and returned to my vehicle, I immediately started my latest audio book, “John” by Lennon’s first wife Cynthia. It is a very detailed account of their life from the late 1950s to the late 1960s.

The Beatles version of the video game Rock Band seems to have spurred yet another renaissance for a group that arrived in America less than three months after I was born. Because I was just a baby, I don’t remember the initial Beatlemania. I did, however, become aware of the Beatles at a very young age, around 3, thanks to an uncle who called me “beetle.” I wondered why he was calling me that because they only beetles I knew were bugs and Beetle Bailey, a comic strip my father liked. At some point, I clearly remember asking why my uncle was referring to me as a bug. My grandmother, my uncle’s mother, got one of my recent pictures and then when into my uncle’s room and got a record album. On the cover, were four young men who also didn’t like haircuts. My bangs were down to my eyebrows and my hair covered my ears and collar. My grandmother held my photo next to the album cover and explained my uncle didn’t think I resembled a bug. I reminded him of his favorite band. Later, my mother would say that I hated getting my haircut so much she let it grow. A few years earlier, it wouldn’t have worked. But thanks to the Beatles some kids didn’t have to get haircuts as often.

My mom loved Elvis. She also liked the Beach Boys and the Everly Brothers. Dad liked Johnny Cash. Growing up, I don’t remember much music by the Beatles on our turntable. When I got old enough to make my own music choices, I liked The Doors, Led Zepplin, the Stones and Jimi Hendrix a lot more than the Beatles. I did think John Lennon’s solo work was cool. I thought Paul McCartney was very uncool.

About 10 years ago, my oldest son asked me why my uncle thought I was a bug. I explained it was a reference to an old, but famous rock band. He had no idea who the Beatles were until he was about 13and he downloaded a greatest hits collection on onto his i-Pod.

I started combing my hair back when I was about 12. But as I write this blog, I can easily push my bangs over my eyebrows. My hair covers my ears and is down below my collar. I wrote “haircut” in my datebook two weeks ago and never went. I put it down for Friday and then erased and replaced it with some other task.

Let me know what you think.