In the summer of 1967, the Beatles became the definitive cultural phenomenon, as "Sergeant Pepper" spun on turntables everywhere. The four men beneath the album cover, however, felt trapped within a gilded cage they themselves constructed.

Growing up, my world revolved not around sheet music, but around fields and tractors. Raised on a farm in a small rural town, my early life was more John Deere than John Lennon. Music wasn't a family affair; it found its way into my heart, almost as if it skipped a few generations.