This Saturday night is the night! If you're a fan of the Beatles like me, I think we are in for a special treat!

1964 has been named "the best Beatles tribute on Earth" by Rolling Stone Magazine, and it's coming to Texarkana this Saturday night!

As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, yes I'm a HUGE Beatles fan! So much so that I turned a childhood friend into a huge Beatles fan too! I met English in fifth grade and asked her over to spend the night. I played all my Beatles records for her and by the time she went home the next day...she was a bona fide Beatles fan!

We had the chance to go to Europe on a choir trip the summer before our senior year in high school. When we found out there was a two-day stop in London, well, our lives were going to be complete. Our bus got to our hotel late in the afternoon. I remember we had a choir meeting to line out our stay. To our dismay, our tour guide announced  that the next day was packed things to do and see starting with the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace.

What? We've come all this way and no time to do the Beatles things we had imagined and planned for six years?  Abbey Road Studios was so close!

That evening we dragged my sister, who was there as a chaperon and another friend, Amy, off to The Tube (London's huge subway system)  to find Abbey Road Studios in the St. John's Wood area of the city! We found it, but there were two leather-clad punk rocker girls sitting on the steps. One with bright fire-engine red spiked hair and the other with electric blue spiked hair! We cautiously walked up to them and said "Hi, so this is Abbey Road Studios!!" Their reply, "Yeah, what of it."

Alrightly then! Time to leave before they beat us up!

On our way back, I remember crossing Abbey Road, yes the same crosswalk pictured on the Abbey Road album, I looked back at English and she was on the ground! Smack dab in the middle of the crosswalk kissing the pavement with cars off in the distance! I ran back laughing and dragged her away.

Lisa Lindsey/Townsquare media
Lisa Lindsey/Townsquare media
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The next day, yes we did go see the Changing of the Guard, but we had more Beatles missions to tend to! We got up super early, caught the Tube again and stood outside Abbey Road Studios in awe as we looked at it. An older man came out, handed us a flyer and said the studios would be open to the public for the first time ever starting next week. We told him we were leaving the next day, but thanked him for letting us know. Then we asked him where Paul McCartney's old house was? He said it was just down the street somewhere. We asked loads of people as they walked to work for directions, but no one really had a clue. The wonderful thing about the British, they will stop everything to give you directions..even if they are wrong :)

Went to the Changing of the Guard...yada yada yada...(just kidding, it was very cool!)

Then our choir director and tour guide suggested we go to Piccadilly Circus. Everyone did, but us. Yes, back on the Tube and off to Abbey Road Studios again! This time, as we were walking up to the doors, we decided "Let's just get our foot in the door! That way we can say, Yes! We have been inside Abbey Road Studios!" As we walked in the already wide open door, the man that we had talked to earlier that morning was in an office and looked up at us. "Excuse me, can I help you?" We froze! Then we asked if we could just look around? He was talking to another man and all of a sudden said.."I'll walk these girls around and get back with you." Yes! We scored!! The man was wonderful and showed us the studios, the instruments and equipment that was all going to be on display for the public the next week!

Lisa Lindsey/Townsquare media
Lisa Lindsey/Townsquare media
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Of course, here is where my lovely luck comes in. These pictures were taken with my trusty old 110 camera. The next picture as you can see...bad, but it's me! It's proof I was at Abbey Road Studios!!!

English Atkins
English Atkins
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We did finally see Paul's old house...but that's for another time!

No, I'm not a big Beatles fan...nope, not at all ;)

For those of us who were too young to experience the Beatles, seeing 1964 will be such treat! Mark your calendars and get your Beatlemania mood on for 1964:The Tribute Saturday, July 20 at the Perot Theatre.

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