Classic Rock Musings, Rants & Raves

In 1976, The Beatles were supposedly offered $100 million to reunite, a mere six years after their breakup. An astronomical amount of cash then and certainly nothing to sneeze at now, the offer was allegedly considered, but, as history shows, passed over. Four years later, any hopes of a full-on Beatles reunion were dashed when John Lennon was murdered in New York City. Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr did eventually come together for the Beatles Anthology project in 1995, but it wasn’t quite the reunion fans and friends had envisioned during the 70s.

The loss of an integral member hasn’t stopped other bands from reuniting. Especially when the promise of big money looms. These days, it’s almost a given that any band, big or small, will reunite to cash in on what’s become a raging phenomenon, and another example of how the past in itself has become a major commodity.

As Boomers age and the world changes, rock and roll is no longer the dominant form of entertainment it once was. Still, there’s this lingering desire to go back to the days of yore when bands like Cream, the Eagles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Police, Genesis, Van Halen and countless others ruled the airwaves. Boomers aren’t the only one shelling out the big bucks for a ride on the time machine; numerous, affluent Generation X’s and Y’s, who heard and read about these legendary performers in their history books, are also flocking to the reunion shows.

Reunions, especially after years of inactivity, can really skew one’s perception of what a band was like in their hey day, and whether or not they can live up to the legacy as an older, crustier version.
Ultimately, what happens more often than not is that a reunited band may be able to pull in enough revenue to take care of the retirement fund, but they stand to tarnish their reputation if they are anything less than spectacular. Of course, as with everything, there are exceptions.

I’ll be revisiting the idea of reunions from time to time, but this is something you can chew on for awhile…