Let It Be: Fest for Beatles Fans takes place this weekend

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The Beatles have been gone — officially — for 53 years. Two of the four Beatles have gone to the great sellout concert in the sky.

But Beatlemania has never died.

Want proof? Check out the 49th annual Fest for Beatles Fans, created in 1974 by Montvale resident Mark Lapidos, and carrying on this evening, Saturday and Sunday.

"The Beatles opened a bolted, locked door to the infinite possibilities of what music could do, especially rock 'n' roll music," Lapidos told The Record in 2017.

After a two-year hiatus, The Fest For Beatles Fans returned in 2022. Shown above, a group plays Beatles songs requested by attendees.
After a two-year hiatus, The Fest For Beatles Fans returned in 2022. Shown above, a group plays Beatles songs requested by attendees.

Tribute bands, trivia events, jam sessions, panel discussions, meet & greets, and — not least — rooms full of merch and collectables are just some of what you can expect at Hyatt Regency Jersey City on the Hudson this weekend.

Anybody, or anything, Beatle-adjacent is fair game. Though in these latter days, such prodigies are as rare as they are precious.

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Among this year's special guests: Peter Asher(Peter and Gordon, Apple Records producer, and brother of Jane Asher, Paul McCartney's '60s girlfriend); Pattie Boyd(the famous '60s model who married George Harrison and Eric Clapton, and inspired Harrison's "I Need You" and Clapton's "Layla"); British Invasion figures Terry Sylvester(The Swinging Blue Jeans, The Hollies) and Joey Molland(Badfinger); and Beatles historian and author Mark Lewisohn.

Among the artists who will be providing the weekend's soundtrack: Liverpool, Cellophane Flowers, The Black Ties, Magical Mystery Girls, Blac Rabbit, The Wag, Annie Trezza, Scott Erickson and Jacqui Armbruster.

Go: Hyatt Regency Jersey City On The Hudson, 2 Exchange Place, Jersey City, Friday (beginning at 5 p.m.) Saturday and Sunday (beginning at noon), at-the-door tickets range from $70, to $99 daily, or $140 to $220 for combo tickets; 866-THE-FEST or thefest.com.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Fest For Beatles Fans returns to Jersey City NJ