Beatles Essay, Research Paper

Beatlemania in the 1960s

The Beatles were a mystical happening that many people still

don’t understand. Phenomenoligists had a ball in 1964 with

Beatlemania, a generally harmless form of madness which

came from

Britain in 1963. The sole cause of Beatlemania is a quartet of

young

Englishmen known as the Beatles. In the less than one year

that they

achieved popularity in England to the time they came to

America, The

Beatles achieved a popularity and following that is

unprecedented in

the history of show business in England. They became the first

recording artists anywhere in the world to have a record

become a

million-seller before it’s release. They became the target of

such

adoration by their fans that they had to cancel all one-night

bookings

because of riots in early 1964. Beatlemania had reached

unbelievable

proportions in England, it became a form of reverse lend-lease

and

spread to the United States. Capitol records followed the

Beatles’

single record with the release of an album, “Meet the Beatles,”

in

late January of 1964. That event was followed by the Beatles

themselves, who arrived in New York February 8, 1964 for

three

appearances with Ed Sullivan. The first show was scheduled

for Sunday,

February 9, the second was telecast from Miami a week later,

and the

third pre-taped for an airing in March. These concerts were

the most

watched television programs ever (70 million viewers) until

recently.

The Beatles’ arrival in the United States was presaged by a

deluge of

advance publicity. Newsweek, Time, and Life have chronicled

Beatlemania, UPI, and the AP(Associated Press) had done

their part for

the cause (including an AP wirephoto of J. Paul Getty sporting

a

Beatle wig), and even Vogue shoved high fashion aside

momentarily in

it’s January, 1964 issue and carried a full-page photo of the

group.

Baltimore’s respected Evening Sun took notice of the coming

of the

Beatles on it’s editorial page at that time. Said the Sun: “The

Beatles are coming. Those four words are said to be enough

to jelly

the spine of the most courageous police captain in Britain…

Since,

in this case, the Beatles are coming to America, America had

better

take thought as to how it will deal with the invasion… Indeed, a

restrained ‘Beatles, go home,’ might be just the thing.”

Precisely

how, when, and where Beatlemania got started nobody- not

even their

late manager Brian Epstein(who died of a drug overdose in

1967) can

say for sure. The Beatles are a product of Liverpool, which

had a

population of some 300 rock and roll bands( or “beat groups,”

as

Liverpudlians are wont to call them). The beat groups hawked

their

musical wares in countless small cellar clubs, old stores and

movie

houses, even in a converted church, nearly all of which are in

proximity to the Mersey River. Out of all these groups came,

somehow,

the Beatles. And they had to go to Germany to do it. In order

to

better their Liverpool take-home pay of around $15. per week

apiece,

John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo

(so called

because of his penchant for wearing at least four rings) Starr

took a

tramp steamer to Hamburg and a job which moved them up a

bit

financially, if not in class. There, in a raucous and rowdy strip

joint, the Indra Club, the Beatles became the first entertainers

to

play louder than the audience. There, too, they were

“discovered” by

English promoter and talent agent, Brian Epstein, who has

since become

deservedly known as “the fifth Beatle.” Under Epstein’s

shrewd

guidance, the Beatles soon found themselves signing a contract

with

Britain’s giant Electric & Musical Industries, Ltd., the largest

recording organization in the world and major stockholder in

Capitol

Records, Inc.; headlining concerts throughout Britain; and

appearing

on television. Their first recording, “Love Me Do,” was issued

by

EMI’s Parlophone label in October, 1962. It sold a

respectable 100,000

copies, and it was the last time a Beatle single sold less than

half

million copies. The first million-seller, “She Loves You,” came

out in

the spring of 1963. It was followed by two albums, “Please,

Please Me”

and “With the Beatles.” Both LP’s sold over 300,000 copies.1

Then,

finally, came the unprecedented success of the newest single

record,

“I Want to Hold Your Hand.” In between there was three

extended play (

a 45 r.p.m. disk containing four tunes) recordings which also

racked

up sales of several hundred thousand apiece. All this resulted

in what

is universally known in Britain as Beatlemania and, as

Newsweek said

of young Liverpudlians, “the sound of their music is one of the

most

persistent noises heard over England since the air-raid sirens

were

dismantled.” Their popularity reached a head of sorts when, in

November of 1963, at the request of the Royal Family, The

Beatles

headlined the annual command performance at the Prince of

Wales

theater. It was a glittering affair and, probably out of deference

to

attending royalty (including the Queen Mother-she found them

“young,

fresh, and vital” – and Princess Margaret), notable for the

absence of

even a small riot. Despite their apparent appointment as

Purveyors of

Rock and Roll to the Crown, the Beatles have taken the whole

thing in

stride. Said Beatle John Lennon to the lords and ladies at the

command

performance: “People in the cheaper seats clap your hands, the

rest of

you just rattle your jewelry.” It was not only their good looks

and

wonderfully unique music that made them so popular with the

young

ladies (and men too!). It was their witty charm that was

reflected in

the quote from the Royal Command Performance. Here is part

of what was

said at LaGuardia airport on February 7, 1964: “Will you sing

for us?”

someone asked. “We need money first,” John Lenin shot back.

“What’s

your message for American teenagers?” “Our message is…buy

some more

Beatle records,” returned Paul McCartney. “What about the

movement in

Detroit to stamp out the Beatles?” “We’re starting a movement

to stamp

out Detroit.” “Do you hope to take anything home with you?”

“Rockefeller Center.” “What do you think of Beethoven?” “I

love him,”

said Ringo Starr. “Especially his poems.” “Don’t you guys ever

get a

haircut?” “I just got one yesterday,” retorted George Harrison.

Added

Ringo: “You should have seen him the day before.” There’s a

little bit

of Beatle history. One could say that they did not just come

out of

nowhere , like many people believe. It took hard, diligent

work to go

where they went. Because of this “Came out of nowhere to

steal the

hearts of young girls” quote that was often used in the 1960’s,

many

psychiatrists felt the need to examine further. Anthony Corbett,

a

noted English psychologist praised the Beatles as having

provided “a

desperately needed release for the inhibitions which exist in all

of

us.”2

Dixon Scott of the London Daily Mirror interviewed a

well-known psychiatrist (unnamed because of medical ethics)

in an

attempt to get to the root of Beatlemania. “We are all chaotic

and

mixed up inside,” the psychiatrist told Scott. “We are anxious

to have

a greater freedom to live. We have a greater feeling of the

need to

express ourselves…in the past we have been controlled

automatons…but you cannot hold nature back forever. All the

parts in

use had to seek an outlet and rhythm is one of these

outlets…then

along came the Beatles with their fresh beat and fresh

innocence.” The

psychiatrist then came to the crux of the problem: “A

revolution is

taking place,” he said. “It amounts to freedom with a sense of

responsibility and honesty. The fans recognize the honesty that

shines

from the Beatles.” “While other pop stars have thought in

artificial

terms of reaching out to their audiences, the Beatles are giving

honestly, as well as receiving.” In a lengthy article in the New

York

Times, Frederick Lewis of that paper’s London bureau,

examined the

sociological implications of Beatlemania and came up with

other

theories. “They (The Beatles) are working class and their roots

and

attitudes are firmly of the north of England. Because of their

success, they can act as spokesman for the new, noisy,

anti-establishment generation which is become a force in

British

life,” Lewis wrote. “The Beatles are part of a strong-flowing

reaction

against the soft, middle class south of England, which has

controlled

popular culture for so long.” Beatlemania has touched all

corners of

English and American life and all types of people. Obviously ,

it had

an enormous effect on America. The proof can be shown in

the millions

upon millions of records they have sold in the last 32 years that

they

have been making records (in the present tense because they

are still

releasing records today). In the first Beatles fanzine in

America, it

shows how crazy America was at this time over the Beatles. It

has life

stories, full page pictures, how to do the Beatle dance, and the

Beatle haircut. The big contest was to win a call from the

Beatles.

And at the end there was some wallet size photos for the girl’s

purses. It is obvious that the Beatles influenced everyone’s

lives.

From the shrieking girls, to the parents of those girls, and the

police officers that tried their best to contain the

uncontrollable(girls). Their popularity diminished after they

stopped

touring in 1966, which was due to the strain and stress of

touring

that they had endured. But their impact was to last forever.

The

wanting of the reunion has been so big that they are reuniting to

collaborate for a new album. It will undoubtedly be a best

seller.

After all these years, people still love them. 1 According to

“The

Beatles”- The first American Beatle Fan-zine. 2 All quotes

courtesy of

“The Beatles”- The First American Beatle Fan-zine.