The Villages - July 2019 - 25

hey pack a room with big smiles
and band shirts. They are Villagers from all walks of life, but
a singular passion brings them
together, as focused as a pinpoint on the
goal: fun. The Beatlemaniacs is a club of
individual bands, musicians and super fans
who simply love the Beatles. Together they
reminisce and revive the magic of beloved
songs. As the sound ramps up in the room,
nostalgia ripples through the crowd.
Village of Silver Lake resident Jim Fraser
founded the club seven years ago, shortly
after moving to The Villages.
"I'd always been a musician and a Beatles fan," he explained. It started outside of
Boston in a town called Revere, where Fraser grew up.
"A friend began playing the snare drum
and he joined the marching band, so I started taking music lessons," he said. "I was 9
and I had a good aptitude for it. When I saw
the Beatles on television in 1964, Ringo
was up there with his drum set, shaking
his hair and all the girls were screaming. I
said, 'Whoa, that's way cooler than what
I do. I want to be him.' So I joined a couple
of bands throughout the years - some of

them were fairly successful and we traveled around and recorded
an album. But they fell apart like so many bands do."
Eventually, Fraser got married and pursued a career, leaving his
band days behind. But the music kept reeling him back - Beatles
tunes he couldn't shake. So he played.
"I fiddled with the guitar and got together with
friends to do Beatles songs," he said. Jam sessions
led to local gigs and soon he was back on the scene.
"We played here and there and I was working
as a PGA golf professional and ended up getting
injured and retiring early," he said.
Around 2012, he unpacked his enthusiasm in
The Villages. The Beatlemaniacs began with Fraser and 25 likeminded members.
"We have maybe 500 to 600 right now," Fraser
said. Friday meetings at Odell Recreation Center
begin with a bit of history -what happened this
week in Beatles news. Then, members discuss
what's happening now: Paul and Ringo are
touring, movies are being made and memorabilia
is up for sale - vintage Beatles board games, wingding sneakers, miniature busts, a McCartney doll.
There is chatter and laughter and color - a
MAGAZINE

The Villages - July 2019

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