It was forty-four years ago today...

...well, actually it was forty-four years last Wednesday, and I missed it. But picture yourself living still in last Wednesday, two score and four years since the release of my favorite rock album of all time, The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band! Happy Birthday, Sarge! (And Band!)







...and...that's about all I got for comic book homages and parodies of the Sgt. Pepper cover....oh, wait, one more! Here's Daniel Irizarri's Avengerfied take on the World's Most Iconic Album Cover:



Abbey Road is a more frequently-homaged image, of course. But it isn't the only Beatles reference in comic books by a long shot. There are, of course, these references:

• The official Yellow Submarine comic book, featuring segments not seen in the movie
• Roy Thomas's reference to a great Beatle song
• Hank McCoy sings a revised version of "Eleanor Rigby"
• Ben Grimm wears a Beatle wig...
• ...and very nearly meets the Fab Four!
• And here's some other Beatles-oriented comic book covers.

But let's not forget the Where's Wallyesque hunt-and-find at Reed and Sue's wedding. Can you find all four Beatles attending the happy nuptials? Why didn't they sit them together? And where's Rob and Laura Petrie? Oh, Alex Ross, you wacky hero painter, you scamp!

Page from Marvels #2 (February 1994), script by Kurt Busiek, art by Alex Ross, letters by Richard Starkings and John Gaushell
(Click picture to big-event-size)

And speaking of Sergeants, how about a Mighty Marvel Musical Moment with Sgt. Fury's Lonely Club Heart Band?

Two-page spread from Not Brand Ecch #12 (February 1994), written by Gary Friedrich, art by John Verpoorten
(Click picture to WWII-size)

Hey, can you name all the figures standing around Fury and the Howlers? (I can't!) Here's a start with some hints from the letters page of Not Brand Ecch #12, complete with don't-sue-us name changes:



Last but not least, let us never forget...

The Skrull Beatles!

Panels from Wisdom #6 (July 2007), script by Paul Cornell, pencils by Manuel Garcia, inks by Mark Farmer, colors by Guru eFX, letters by Joe Caramagna

So, there's our celebration of and homage to Sgt. Pep..., oh, wait, we need some music to end with!:



Thank you, John, Paul, George, Ringo, and the Other George (Martin) for bringing us one of the great LPs of all time 44 years ago today in the middle of last week. Anything else to add, Skrull John?