Beatles fans: What you need to know about the "other" Abbey Road
(CBS News) For Beatles fans, there is only one Abbey Road. But now, when some tourists try to find that famous location, they end up on the wrong side of London.
And then, they need a little help to get back.
Legend has it, it was Paul McCartney's idea to shoot the cover for the 1969 album "Abbey Road" on the crosswalk right outside the studio where the album was recorded: all four members of the band strolling across the street, simple, and convenient.
But when that band is the biggest band in the world, every decision, no matter how trivial, goes down in history. For the thousands of Beatles fans heading to London each year, there is nowhere like Abbey Road.
Unless you end up at the wrong Abbey Road.
Tourists are getting lost.
The other Abbey Road takes its name from the unfortunately titled street in East London it's on. It's a new train station that was opened just last year to bear some of the burden of crowds during the summer Olympics.
But the station's name has obviously caused confusion for bamboozled Beatles fans hoping to walk the walk on rock's most famous real estate.
One fan, asked what he would say if he knew he was an hour-and-a-half away from the site the Beatles made famous, said, "I would wonder why they named the station Abbey Road. Pretty crazy."
Instead of the tree-lined avenues and mansions in one of the most expensive parts of London, visitors are met with a train depot, industrial parks, and run-down neighborhoods.
With all due respect to that Abbey Road, it is a world away from the other one. And disappointed tourists that find their way to the wrong Abbey Road realize just how far apart those two worlds are. A long subway ride awaits for those looking for the correct Abbey Road. Changing trains three times, taking well over an hour if the trains run on time, it's a detour that would test the most ardent fans of any band.
St. John's Wood station is the one you want -- not that you'd know unless you knew.
To paraphrase the Beatles, all London transport officials will say is: '"You can work it out." There are no plans to change the name of Abbey Road train station. But if you've made it that far, you may as well go all the way.