This February marks a time in American history that forever changed its peoples’ lives. From ‘across the pond’ in the British Isles came yet another British invasion force, consisting not of thousands of men, but just four, landing in a jet as opposed to a sailing ship. Instead of firing muskets, they blasted music into America’s hearts and ears that transformed the American culture. This February marks the month fifty years ago when the ‘Fab’ four man band conquered the Unites States: The Beatles.
Greeted by four thousand fans at John F. Kennedy Airport on February 7th, 1964, The Beatles kicked off their brief American stay with their first live television broadcast in the U.S. on The Ed Sullivan Show two days later. Two fifths of the nation tuned into The Beatles performance of songs such as “She Loves You” and “All My Loving” with a background of ear-splitting screams from the female audience. The Fab Four followed up with performances at Washington Coliseum, Carnegie Hall, and another The Ed Sullivan Show appearance. John, Paul, George, and Ringo returned to the U.S. in the same year for the month of August and continued on across America to 23 cities, even making future trips back in ’65 and ’66.
However The Beatles brought with them more than just themselves, a few Rickenbackers, and the ‘Mop Top’.
They carried with them new origins of music into the unknown frontier of America, much different from England, or so they thought. But it turned out that no band in the US compared to the success of the Beatles at the time. They were the first on the American beachhead, who laid the groundwork for the rest of the ‘invasion’ to follow, such as The Who, the Kinks, and the Rolling Stones.
The Beatles gave the young US population a familiar, but yet foreign style of can’t-help-but-sing-a-long pop and rock music that intrigued almost everyone who turned on the radio and television. And there’s no doubt that the American public couldn’t get enough of what they heard, especially the youth.
‘Beatlemania’ spread like wildfire throughout the teens of the mid-sixties, who had recently been coping with the loss of a significant facet of their lives: their beloved President John F. Kennedy. But they now were captivated by the energy and aura of the new sights and sounds of The Fab Four. The Beatles youthfulness and talent instantly ignited a spark in America’s youth, creating an unbelievably large and dedicated fan base.
And The Beatles’ music that was introduced to the Unites States in the 60’s has stuck with us. In fact, it’s coming back stronger than ever. The two remaining Beatles, Paul and Ringo, recently teamed together at the 2014 Grammy Awards to perform “Queenie Eye”. McCartney took home the best rock song of the year and best music film, while he and Starr shared the Lifetime Achievement Award. On iTunes, a collection of all their American tracks has also been released.
Since the Beatles stepped foot off of the Pan Am plane onto American soil, the musical stage in the US has been reformed. Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr changed the culture of the American sound, influencing many US singer/songwriters and bands right up to today. The Beatles can be considered one of, if not the greatest bands of the 20th century, and on the 50th anniversary of their landing in the US, a great milestone has been reached; a milestone of the changing times, but also one of nostalgic remembrance of the Fab Four.