Sometimes, things just fall apart. Flawed marriages, beloved cars, once-indomitable empires. We are shaken by unthinkable demises. These are serious matters. Nobody, by contrast, cares very much when a pop group falls apart, because they were never built to last. Even the greatest pop group of them all was always sharply aware of its own ephemerality. “Obviously we can’t keep playing the same sort of music until we are about 40,” said Paul McCartney in a 1963 television documentary when asked about the longevity of The Beatles. “I’ve always fancied having a ladies’ hairdressing salon,” added Ringo Starr, the funny one, as he looked deep into his own future. “Trotting around in me stripes and tails.”
Source: ft.com