I was born four years after the Beatles broke up. John Lennon was assassinated at a time when I was just grasping the fact that I had to tie my shoes by myself for the rest of my life. I was introduced to Paul McCartney through a duet he sang with a young famous pop singer named Michael Jackson called "Say, Say, Say." Junior high school bands would play downbeat heavy versions of "Eleanor Rigby," and Muzac in malls piped in dozens of Beatles songs. Still, I was not a fan.

I purchased my first Beatles album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, in college. While I listened to it religiously for awhile, I still thought the Beatles were just a boy band of the past that had a really cool drug album. Little by little, Beatles CDs ended up in the used bins of record shops. I picked up Rubber Soul, thinking it might be all right. Soon after, I started paying attention to The Beatles (better known as the White Album), and Help, and Abbey Road, and the Magical Mystery Tour, and Revolver and Let It Be. I began wondering which Beatle I most resembled. When I came to the conclusion that John and I had the biggest connection, I realized that I had become a fan.

Every Beatles fan has dozens of stories about dozens of things that happened while they were listening to dozens of Beatles songs. Their music influenced people of all walks of life, from the most benign (the Maharishi) to the dangerously insane (the Manson). VH1 created a list of the 100 Best Rock n' Roll Albums, and six of the top 12 were from the Beatles. While I think that was a little excessive and unjust to the rest of the Rock n' Roll world, it does prove that the foursome created an immense amount of quality music.

The Beatles were the original boy band. Before N*Sync, the Backstreet Boys, O-Town, Menudo, New Kids On The Block, New Edition or even the Jacksons, there were the four lovely lads from Liverpool. Unlike the newer versions, the Beatles were able to evolve out of their cutesy, catchy beginnings to take pop music into unfathomable directions. All the while, they made songs that appealed to their massive audience. People didn't even mind when Ringo was singing. The boy bands of today have two songs--their upbeat dance song and their break-it-down love song. Sad comparisons of the original.

The Beatles got too big to be a boy band. Too big for Liverpool, too big for Hamburg, too big for the world, too big for Jesus, too big for their own bloody good. The four headed monster became too much to keep going. John met Yoko Ono, and the Beatles were soon history.

This week, George Harrison also became history. After battling cancer for some time, he died in Los Angeles with friends and family around him. He was 58. People said he was the quiet one, or the spiritual one. I always saw him as the guitarist. Harrison lived a healthy life after the Beatles. He was married to model Patti Boyd for eleven years. When they divorced, she married his friend Eric Clapton, and Harrison attended the wedding. That's class. He was the executive producer to one of my favorite movies, Monty Python's Life of Brian. Even after he was stabbed repeatedly a year ago by a madman, he held no grudge and went on as best he could.

By the time I knew who the Beatles were, John Lennon was already dead. Now, a second has joined him in the nether world. I don't really mourn for the loss because it is far too easy to continue to pay tribute for the rest of my life. I have hours and hours of Beatles music to appreciate whenever I wish, and those guys can still put a smile on my face.

If you have never sat down and listened to a Beatles album, I hope this little blurb teaches one thing. It is never too late become a fan. You might even enjoy this world a little bit more by becoming one.

Chris Jungle speaks words of wisdom and then lets it be.