Full Description
More than 50 years after their breakup, the Beatles are still attracting fans from various generations, all while retaining their original fan base from the 1960s. Why have those first-generation fans continued following the Beatles and are now introducing their grandchildren to the group? Why are current teens affected by the band's music? And perhaps most importantly, how and why do the Beatles continue to resonate with successive generations?
Unlike other bands of their era, the Beatles seem permanently frozen in time, having never descended into "nostalgia act" territory. Instead, even after the announcement of the band's breakup in 1970, the group has maintained its cultural and musical relevance. Their timeless quality appeals to younger generations while maintaining the loyalty of older fans. While the Beatles indeed represent a specific time period, their music and words address issues as meaningful today as they were during the Summer of Love: politics, war, sex, drugs, art, and creative liberation. As the first anthology to assess the nature of fan response and the band's enduring appeal, Fandom and the Beatles: The Act You've Known for All These Years defines and explores these unique qualities and the key ways in which this particular pop fusion has inspired such loyalty and multigenerational popularity.
Contents
Preface
Mark Lapidos, The Fest for Beatles Fans
Introduction: The Act You've Known for All These Years
Kit O'Toole and Kenneth Womack, Monmouth University
I. Yesterday
Beatles Fandom: A De Facto Religion
Candy Leonard
The Beatles and Their Fans: Image and the Media, October 1963-February 1964
Michael Frontani
John Lennon as Pop Cultural and Political Icon: Giving Peace a Chance
Punch Shaw, Texas Christian University
II. Today
Magic Circles: The Fansites, Fanzines, and Festivals at the Heart of Beatles Fandom
Kit O'Toole
The Beatles, Gender, and Sexuality: I Am He as You Are He as You Are Me
Katie Kapurch, Texas State University
How Does It Feel To Be: Beatles Tribute Bands and the Fans Who Dream Them
Aviv Kammay, Wingra School
A Hard Day's Write: Beatles Fanfic and the Quantum of Creativity
Mark Duffett, University of Chester
III. Tomorrow
The Beatles: Today ... and Tomorrow
Kenneth L. Campbell, Monmouth University
Anthems of Whose Generation?: The Beatles and the Millennials
Richard Mills, St. Mary's University
Beatles Heritage Tourism in Liverpool: Standing at the Crossroads?
Michael Brocken
Biographical Notes
Abstracts and Keywords
