Meeting the Beatles

While we were in England, one of our "must-do" items was going to Liverpool to see the Beatles sights there.  Roger is a hardcore Beatles fan from way back, and I was happy to see what there was to see.  For Beatles fans, Liverpool is pretty much Beatle Mecca.

So off we went to Mathew Street, an alley of a bunch of small bars and pubs and clubs. Here, at The Cavern, was where the Beatles first played regularly and were "discovered."  By the way, I think I took this shot at about noon.  By 4pm, there was music blaring out of most doorways, the strong smell of beer permeating the place, people spilling out of every doorway with drinks in hand and cigarette smoke clouds above their heads, and mobs of people passing through.

Here's the entrance to the actual Cavern --

but wait, we learn that it has been rebuilt, albeit with the ORIGINAL Beatles-soaked bricks.

Everywhere you look on that street has a Beatles reference.

 

There were some funky artistic tributes...

And of course there were shops for Beatles merchandise...

(Disclosure:  Certain T-shirts may have been purchased.)

Around the corner, out of the alley, was The Hard Day's Night Hotel which took the Beatles theme from funky/seedy to posh and expensive.  We roamed through, looking at the photograph-covered walls inside, but to my mind the best thing about that place was its logo:

It was said to be an image of the guitar frets and finger positions for the first, great chord of "Hard Day's Night" AND also the position that the Beatles stood in when performing.  (That'd be Ringo, back there.)  A clean and appealing logo, don't you think?  Not obviously Beatlesy but referential nonetheless. 

Our day in Liverpool inspired my response to the current Twelve by Twelve challenge, which is "Orange."  It will be revealed on Thursday, Sept. 1 on that blog, so you'll have to pop over there to see how!