All You Need Is Love And To Hold A Hand

In case you haven’t heard, The Beatles Channel launched on Sirius XM this past Thursday, May 18, 2017, at 9:09 A.M.  (If you are a Beatles fan, you will know why that particular time was selected for the launch.)  I was listening with rapt attention, even making a video of the car radio as The Beatles Channel launched.  (I know, I know.)  My instant review:  my life is now complete. 

I have resisted parodying Beatles’ songs on this blog out of a matter of reverence; the songs are all so important in my life that it borders on sacrilege to utilize them for humorous purposes.  I have parodied one Beatles song written by George Harrison, see While My Tee Ball Gently Leaks here. 

But my most important Beatles reference in The Golf Album Blog is not a parody, it is used in an ode to my father who passed away on St. Patrick’s Eve, 2012.   The post is entitled, I Want to Hold Your Hand, Again.  It can be read in its entirety here, but, to the point,  it revolves around a story I read concerning Paul and Ringo’ visit to George when he was dying of cancer (my father died of cancer as well.)  The story in the New York newspaper reported that:

Paul and Ringo went to visit him at the hospital on Staten Island in New York City where he was being treated.  After the visit, Paul and Ringo spoke to reporters.  One of the things that Paul said was that they each held George’s hand as they spoke to him.  Paul observed that it was the first time he could remember that he ever held George’s hand.  

As I wrote then, and still feel today, the story was incredibly poignant to me.  The Fab Four had been through so much, for so many years,  and never held each other's hand.  Not that men do a lot of that, but still.   The story brought a tear to my eye, and I haven’t thought about saying goodbye the same way since.

So, enjoy The Beatles Channel if you are a subscriber to Sirius XM and sign up immediately if you are not.  It is remarkable to hear their music played in one format, together, forever.  The Beatles have not broken up; in one visionary masterstroke  it is now assured that they will live on forever. 

The first song played on The Beatles Channel at 9:09 on March 18, 2017 was “All You Need Is Love”.  (You can look it up.)  It is a message that is timeless, perhaps more important today than when it was recorded 40 years ago.  If I may be allowed a certain liberty, the message from my prior post is important as well:

Paul and Ringo will never hold George’s hand again. I will never hold my father’s hand again.  So, here’s a tribute to the great George Harrison, and the even greater Gene Kelly.  Let’s try to be happy and sing one of the Beatles’ greatest songs, as joy-inspiring as any song ever written, with lyrics which now resonate with new meaning for me, and perhaps for Paul and Ringo, too.   And, please, sometime today, hold the hand of someone that you love, and feel happy inside.

Love You, Geno!

 

AMDG


Copyright R.E. Kelly 2012 - 2021