My Personal Beatles Story

Strange BRU Music

I'm a Beatles fan from the very beginning.  I actually heard the radio announcer introduce the first Beatles song that I ever heard with: "here's a new group from England".  I am also a musician and began figuring out ‘Beatles song’ guitar parts from records back when I was 13 years old.  I’ve been a fan throughout their career and still get a thrill when I hear one of their songs.  I listen to the Beatles all of the time, and recorded my own versions of some of their songs as can be heard on this website.  I was also in a Beatles tribute band for 6 years until 2016.  We played in front of 2000 people at Pennypack Park in Philadelphia. Needless to say I'm into it.  But I grew up with them.  They were from my era. I've had several guitars that the Beatles made famous.   I had a Gretsch Tennessean (sold it for a Les Paul), then I got the famed Beatles "secret weapon" Rickenbacker 12 string V360/12 (the previous reissue of George's guitar), and now I have a Gretsch Country Gentleman reissue, repurchased a Gretsch Tennessean and got a Hofner Icon bass. But w hat is really surprising to me is that their music, decades later, reaches out and still grabs new listeners.  They must really be good (ha ha).  Still it’s easy to understand my attachment, but for all the new followers it’s quite interesting to me how they also like it.

Anyway, I have an interesting story to tell about the Beatles.  I'm from Philadelphia PA, but I was in Atlantic City staying at my aunt's house during the end of the summer of which the Beatles were to perform there the first and only time.  I used to go to the beach everyday and sometimes I would see some of my friends from back home.  Well, one day I was hanging out with one of my best friends and he introduced me to some kid he knew.  This kid said that his father was a policeman and that he was going to let us all in to see the Beatles at Convention hall (in Atlantic city) that night.  All we had to do is show up at 7:00 PM in front of the building.  That was it.  Prior to that, I didn't have any idea about the Beatles playing there that night, (I didn't read the paper or watch any TV when I was staying with my aunt).  So this was blowing my mind. So that night I showed up about 5 minutes late because I wasn't staying near there and the Jitney (bus) took longer than expected to get there.  I looked all around for my friends and there was no sign of them anywhere.  I was very worried that I missed them.  After about 15 minutes I saw some people running in the street at the other end of this huge building which is about a half of a city block long.  I never ran so fast in all my life, because I thought something was up.  I got to the other side of the building and there was more and more people running there.  Somehow I got to the front of where all the people were gathering.  Moments later a black limousine drove up a few feet from me.  By this time the crowd was crazy and police were hitting people in front of me with their sticks.  Then 4 guys in black suits got out and ran in with heads down and covered.  I'd like to think that these were the Beatles.  Of course I'll never know for sure because the crowd was so crazy, and the police were pushing and hitting, and their heads were covered by their arms. Maybe they were decoys.

OK that was crazy.  But now my excitement and desire to see the Beatles grew much more intense.  I ran back to where I was supposed to meet my friends.  They were still not there, and it was getting later and later.  I began to panic.  I was a very shy kid, but something came over me that made me determined to get in no matter what.  I saw this policeman and told him my story about my friend and his policeman father.  I told him how upset I was that I didn't find them.  He said wait here.  Time was going by, it seemed like 15 minutes, but it may only have been 5 minutes.  I don't know, my mind was racing.  Then he shows up with this older man in a suit, not in a police uniform.  The man said “follow me”.  So I did.  He walked up to the ticket booth and the woman at the booth said "hello commissioner".  He said something back to her and we walked into the building.  Yes, I was escorted in to see the Beatles for free by the Atlantic City Commissioner of Police !!!  How absurd ! He turned around and said to me, "I'm going to put you in a seat, just sit there and don't walk around, because you don't have a ticket and they will throw you out".  I sat down, it was about 2/3's back in the auditorium and didn't move from that spot.  I was frozen ! It didn't even seem real.  I was going to see the Beatles !  I was watching the announcer trying to quiet the crowd for the Beatles to come on, but each time he got the crowd to quiet down, he would mention that the Beatles would be on soon, but the instant he mentioned the name "Beatles", the crowd went nuts again for another 10 minutes.  This repeated several times, it seemed like for almost a half hour,  until he finally gave up and the real insanity started.  The Beatles came out, and the place went absolutely crazy, screaming nonstop throughout the whole concert!!  Rows of chairs fell over from kids standing on the top of the back of the chairs.  Fainted girls were being carried out.  It was pandemonium.

I saw the Beatles !! Crazy, very lucky night !! I had no ticket or any idea that I would see the Beatles that day but I saw them.  I will never forget it. Hoped you liked my story.

​Beatles forever,

Bruce

The Beatles tickets I never had (note the price) ! ………….And never needed !!!