I’m sooo tired, I haven’t slept a wink, I’m sooo tired, my mind is on the blink….

It’s a fact I recently figured out – you either like The Beatles or you don’t. After years of being surrounded by fellow musicians and well-tuned music lovers I found myself face to face with someone who HATED The Beatles. This person is neither a musician nor a music lover – discuss amongst yourselves. I couldn’t believe my ears. How can you possibly HATE The Beatles?!?!? It was a night a few months ago in The Bronx. I sat face to face with one of my oldest friends (20+ years) and was told that she HATED The Beatles. My jaw dropped, Fritz’s jaw dropped, and the entire tri-state area gasped – including the folks who live on West Side of Central Park. Now, we all have a right to our opinion – this is, after all, the person who turned me on to Everything But The Girl oh so many years ago – so she can’t be all that musically illiterate, right? But still. How can you at least not appreciate their contributions to the world of music and song - writing as we know it?

You don’t have to love the wit of John, the romanticism of Paul, the mysticism of George or the fun-loving nature of Ringo – but you can at least realize that without The Beatles most of us would not be musicians, most of us would not be as politically aware, or even humming the likes of Elvis Costello, Badly Drawn Boy, Elliot Smith, Annie Lennox, Aimee Mann, Aqualung, Ben Lee, Everything But The Girl, or ANYONE who has touched a guitar in the last 40 years. Without The Beatles would we be hearing a trumpet in a pop song? Would we be hearing a cello or a sitar played alongside an electric guitar? Or an airplane as background noise? Or a yawn in the middle of a song? Now of course we know a lot of this has to do with the masterful touch of George Martin, but he had to be inspired by what he heard between the lines in order to come up with some of this stuff, right? If you believe that something comes from everything, than you have your answer as to what the world of music would be like if The Beatles had never existed.

As for me, I’m so tired that I’m not sure any of this week’s blog is making sense – so please accept my apologies. The reason I didn’t post this yesterday is because I’d spent Sunday night/Monday morning awake and cleaning up after my beloved cat, Phineas, who has gotten very ill and was puking blood all night. I lay awake keeping an eye on him, tending to him as if he were my child, and holding his large body as he yakked his guts out. As the hours slowly ticked by and we awaited the opening of my vet - for the thought if taking him to an emergency place that doesn’t know him, or us, and likely would tell me to go to my vet anyway after taking large sums of money from me I don’t have made me just as scared as what Phin was going through. Meanwhile he was tough, scared and a real trooper. After surviving a month missing here in West Hollywood in October 2005 (we found him under a house) and the sickness that followed that horrible experience – this is one tough Dude. Cats are amazing creatures and this guy in his 11 years with me has gotten me through some tough times. While we don’t know what’s wrong with him yet, I’m hopeful that this is something a few days at the amazing Laurel Pet Hospital and some meds to follow will cure. In the meantime, send your good vibes in this direction, send cash (kidding – sort of), and keep your fingers crossed! Now, if you’ll pardon me, it’s time for a much needed nap!

Thanks for tuning in….Until next Monday….CHEERS!!!