We idolized the Beatles, except for those of us who idolized the Rolling Stones, who in those days still had many of their original teeth.

These days, the Rolling Stones still have an edge, but that fangs-out ferocity has mellowed considerably.

The Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Phil Spector. Those were my idols.

...it was not simply a matter of musical taste; whether you preferred the Beatles or [the Rolling] Stones said much about your personality and character. People who were happy, intelligent, well-adjusted, popular, clean, decent and punctual tended to be Beatles fans. Those who were evil, cretinous, scabby, drug-ridden, filthy, criminal perverts liked the Stones.
As for your author, I personally take no side in the controversy, remaining strictly neutral.

I have been a gigantic Rolling Stones fan since approximately the Spanish-American War.

While other girls swooned over The Beatles and the Rolling Stones, I worshipped Rudolf Nureyev and Isadora Duncan.