You Can’t Always Get What You Want…

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee

Yes, in life you can’t always get what you want. Perhaps it is not good for the psyche if we get all we wanted, but if anyone who has persevered and succeeded over a period of 50 or more years, then they have earned the right to celebrate. And this include nations too. The year 2012 has been a year of celebrations for the British people. They have hosted a successful Summer Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee of their monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. Even James Bond has staked his claim to celebrate his 5oth anniversary.

The Rolling Stones In O2 Concert

2012 is also the 50th anniversary of the Beatles‘ first hit “Love Me Do.” And for the other evergreen British rock group, the Rolling Stones, they celebrated their milestone with an opening concert at the voluminous London O2 arena in London last Sunday, to be followed by another on 29th November. Their US fans will have two concerts in December at the Prudential Center in Newark.

Rock concert tickets don’t come cheap, even when the artistes have passed their prime or their working peers’ retirement age. The Rolling Stones enduring survival reminds me of the painted-on-the-wall Johnny Walker billboard that I saw each day when on my way to senior school years ago : “Born 1870, Still Going Strong.” The standard ticket prices for the Stones concert cost between 106 sterling pounds (USD 170 ) to 406 sterling pounds (USD 650). A VIP-ticket that allows you to stand right in the front sets you back a staggering 1,140 sterling pounds (USD 1830). Apparently, all the tickets were snapped up in 7 minutes – just like one of their hit song “It’s All Over Now.” And so for the legions of the Stones fans, you can’t always get what you want too. High ticket prices apart, the concert received favourable reviews. Now that’s strong brand equity.

Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant

You can’t always get what you want. Yes, even for the British monarchy. Heavy rain and cold weather did not spare the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant where a maritime parade of 1,000 boats from around the Commonwealth sailed the River Thames. That’s not really important. The important thing is for human kind to celebrate milestones and anniversaries with high spirits and to keep going.