Fortress of Testicular Fortitude

It was really nice to see my favourite band immortalised in plastic in 2005.



Paul


George


Ringo


John






I first listened to them over radio as a kid in the eighties, where their early songs such Can't Buy Me Love, She Loves You and I Want To Hold Your Hand were played ad nauseum.

Didn't think much of them for the good first 16 years of my life till a Mancunian band turned me on to this group from Liverpool. Actually, it was after listening to Oasis' rendition of 'I Am the Walrus' and watching Liam Gallagher saluting John Lennon after performing 'Live Forever' that made me wonder "Why the fascination with a boy band from the sixties?"

Why indeed. I thought I'd give their music a go, and my first Beatles albums were Anthology 1 - 3.



The funny thing about this that I was experiencing 'bootlegs' and alternate versions of their songs first, before sampling their official recordings.

Anthology 1 presented familiar songs in a different light, nothing revolutionary. Anthology 3 summarised their fascination with mysticism era and showed how strong their melodies were, as many of the tracks were presented bare-bones without-over orchestration. Anthology 2 stands out as my favourite of the three as the second disc showcased their recording process, their experimental studio years, and to this day, my fave songs from them, A Day In the Life, Across the Universe and Tomorrow Never Knows, all occur on this disc.

I picked up their albums based on the songs that I liked, rather than chronologically. IIRC, the order went something like this, Revolver, Sgt Pepper, White Album, Abbey Road, Let It Be, Magical Mystery Tour, Rubber Soul, Help, Please Please Me. I don't think I ever picked up With The Beatles, Beatles for Sale and Yellow Submarine though.

When listened to chronologically, the evolution of the band was a joy to behold. From their moptop teenybop music, to their drug influenced tunes, their studio experimentation, their flirtation with mysticism and finally their final trudge towards the finish.

I guess the highlight of my love affair with the band came in the form of the Beatles Anthology documentary series.



The documentary was actually aired on local TV in 1995, and I do remember catching glimpses of it and not bothering about it then. In 1997, I paid S$600 for the Anthology on Laser Disc, remember that technology? That amount would get me a Hot Toys Batmobile today, but we all have different priorities at different points in time.

Anyway, having loved the band so much for their music and actually getting to see their visual performance was pure magic. Just thinking of that moment and typing these words sends an electric jolt up my spine. I once watched all nine hours at one shot and replayed the LD repeatedly.

Of course, a few years later, the Anthology documentary was released on DVD, at a quarter of the price and with additional content. Brilliant. I've yet to sit through all the discs, and I do hope it happens some day.

So that's my story with the Beatles. On the toy front, it'd be great if we got them in 1:6 incarnations, moptop to roof-top performance look.

All you need is love.



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toy blog | toy collector | toy collecting | singapore