The Beatles

I've often said that if you remember the '60s you probably weren't there. Thankfully, an army of scholars, musicologists, cultural historians and other experts have endlessly analyzed the most enduring symbol of that tumultuous era — the Beatles — for those of us who were in fact there, helping us remember the musical, political, cultural and deeply personal chords the Beatles struck across their life as a band and well after.

But as I think back on those days, I don't find myself dwelling only on the extraordinary talents of John, Paul, George and Ringo, and the way...