Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
... because Joy recommended it

1) The Beatles recorded this after they had taken a three-month hiatus from working together as a band. Do you find you're sharp after taking time off? Or does it take you a while to get back into the swing of things in your day-to-day life? I think time off rejuvenates me. When I return to work I'm more enthusiastic, if not sharper.

2) During those three months off, John Lennon made a movie called How I Won the War. What's the last movie you watched? Did you view it at a theater, on TV, or from a device like a computer or tablet? Hitchcock's The Birds. I watched it on TV. I like my TV. I don't want to stream movies onto my Kindle.
 
3) Paul McCartney and George Harrison both used their time off to make new and different music. Paul composed instrumentals for a movie soundtrack while George studied sitar with Ravi Shankar. Ringo Starr spent those three months with his wife and their two little boys. If you had three months to spend doing anything you wanted, and money was no object, would you try something new (like Paul and George) or just kick back and relax (like Ringo)? I'd relax by going somewhere new. I feel like a getaway.

4) Paul recalls what fun it was to dress up in Edwardian-era costumes for the album cover. When did you last attend a costume party? What did you wear? It was easily more than a decade ago. I wore this Minnie Mouse costume. A guy I was crushing on at the time safety pinned a sock to his shirt and went as static cling. I thought that was adorable. (I was so twitterpated.) I wonder whatever happened to him ... I'd Google him if I could recall how to spell his last name.

5) Paul says he came up with the name "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" when Beatle friend Mal Evans told him about this great San Francisco band, Big Brother and the Holding Company. Paul hadn't heard their music yet, but he loved the sound of their six-word band name. Soon everyone would hear of Big Brother. Do you know who Big Brother's famous lead singer was? Yes, I know her. And I shall sing along as I complete my answers.

6) Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band appeared on the Billboard charts for 175 weeks. Is this album in your collection? Yes, but I don't listen to it very often. It's got its moments – that’s why everyone from Rolling Stone to PBS have called it the most influential album of all time -- but I like The White Album so much more.

7) The Beatles are among the top-selling artists of all time in Zimbabwe and Ethiopia. Would you like to visit Africa? Not especially.

8) 50 years ago, when Sgt. Pepper was first released, the average price for gas was 33¢/gallon. When did you last fill up your gas tank? Do you remember how much it cost? No car.

9) Random question: Are most of your married friends happily married? Yes. And it makes me happy, because they've all weathered a great deal. Economic downturns, loss of parents, trouble with kids ... But they came through it all OK. It's really inspirational.