the breakup of the Beatles back in 1969 was a
significant event for those who grew up with their
music, and their influence on our culture

over the years, the memory of that event has stayed
with us; and for many, it has come to symbolize the
dissolution of valued things that have been lost

in the video below, John Lennon gives his account
of the events surrounding the breakup

Monopoly is the the world’s best-selling board game;
it is produced in 26 languages and sold in 80
countries

Monopoly has been played by over three quarters of
a billion people; making it the most played commercial
board game in history

the origin of this game is recounted in the video
below

the soundtrack of the above video is an excerpt from
a Present At The Creation podcast, produced by
National Public Radio (NPR); it can be heard in full
here

Elvis Presley’s recording of Hound Dog is #19 on
Rolling Stone’s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of
All Time

the song was orignally written in 1952 by the
legendary team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller;
two white teenagers who went on to write hits
such as Yakety Yak, Charlie Brown, Poison Ivy and
Jailhouse Rock

Leiber and Stoller originally wrote Hound Dog for
Blues and R&B singer Big Mama Thornton; and for
seven weeks in 1952, her recording of the song
was #1 on the Billboard R&B charts

four years later, Elvis saw Hound Dog performed in
Las Vegas by Freddie Bell and the Bellboys; he was
impressed by the song and their arrangement

within two weeks Elvis added it to his act; and
two months later, he recorded it at RCA Studios
in New York

check out the video below for more on the origin
of Elvis’s Hound Dog

the soundtrack of the above video is a brief excerpt
of a program in the NPR’s 100 series, which can be
heard here

Bob Dylan’s struggle against the expectations
of fans is a theme that is sounded often in his
autobiography, Chronicles, Volume 1

fans expected Dylan retain in his acoustic,
Woody Guthrie-like style,

later, he was expected to be a leader of the 1960s
anti-war movement and THE spokesman for his
generation

Dylan’s interest was his music, his goal was
to evolve as an artist, and he pursued his goal

public reaction was ugly when he refused
to conform to expectations that would limit his
development

recently, i recalled Dylan’s struggle against
expectations

i was reading that in May of this year, one of
Paul McCartney’s classical compositions,
Ecce Cor Meum, won Album of the Year in the
Classical BRIT Awards

i realized that although a big fan of the Beatles
and of classical music, i had never heard
McCartney’s classical music

i loved Paul the Beatle, but had absolutely no
interest in Sir Paul the classical composer

was this another instance of what Dylan objected to -
fans labeling artists and “putting them in a box” ?

i decided to give Ecce Cor Meum a listen

check out the soundtrack video below and
see what you think

in the clip below, John Lennon speaks out against
“John & Yoko bashing”, telling fans -

“if you think you have some part of me because of
the music . . . then screw you . . . I am not here for
you. I am here for me and her . . . i don’t think anybody
should be that interested in every detail of my life . . .”

Lennon lashed out back in 1970s, but one can
imagine his words being spoken by some of today’s
mega celebrities

people like Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Lindsay
Lohan, Tom Cruise etc.

people who have disappointed fans, been closely
scrutinized and widely criticized

was Lennon’s anger justified?
do his concerns pertain to today’s celebrities?
and if so, what can be done about it?

the soundtrack of the video above is from
Westwood One’s The Lost Lennon Tapes