From Merseyside to the furthest corners of the Earth, the music of The Beatles was a global phenomenon. In particular, though, the Fab Four had a pretty unique relationship with the United States. Harbingers of the British invasion period, the band were greeted with legions of adoring fans when they first touched down on US soil, yet they were also subject to intense harassment and criticism in the States. Either way, the success of the group in America formed an important part of their history, and it all started back in 1964.
By the time they travelled across the Atlantic, The Beatles were no strangers to playing for international audiences. After all, their early years had largely been spent in Hamburg, developing a captivating live performance playing for sailors, dock workers, and local gangsters. In their native United Kingdom, Liverpool’s favourite sons found immediate success with their first releases in 1962, and over the next few years, they would quickly rise the ranks to become the most well-known group on the face of the planet.
Nowadays, when English bands travel to America, they are forced to reckon with the fact that they are much less known in the States than in their homeland. When The Beatles arrived, in contrast, American audiences were already well aware of their music and notoriety. Touching down at JFK Airport in New York in February 1964, the band were greeted with the peak of Beatlemania, and the ensuing tour would be punctuated by obsessive fan frenzies and chaos.
Nevertheless, the band’s arrival in the United States was certainly successful in spreading their influence across North America. Over the course of their career, they would visit the States numerous times, often playing their largest and most iconic shows on US soil. In fact, when the band made the decision to step away from touring, resigning themselves to studio work, their final-ever official public performance occurred in 1966 at Candlestick Park in Washington, a long way from their origins in Allerton, Liverpool.
Washington might have provided the final chapter of The Beatles’ live relationship with the United States, but back in 1964, it also provided the band with their first-ever concert that side of the Atlantic. On February 11th, 1964, the Fab Four performed at the Washington Coliseum, marking their first public performance in the USA, happening less than 48 hours after their iconic performance on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Reportedly, the owner of the venue, Harry Lynn, had never heard of the band when he agreed to book them for the show. It must have come as a shock, therefore, when some 8,000 tickets for the show – which cost $2 – sold out in a matter of days. Even the heavy snowfall that plagued the area during that time could not stop dedicated fans of The Beatles arriving in their droves to witness this culturally significant milestone event.
Performing a modest 40-minute set, the gig included cover songs like ‘Roll Over Beethoven’, ‘Long Tall Sally’, and ‘Twist and Shout’, in addition to a range of Beatles originals from their early years – the likes of ‘She Loves You’, ‘Please Please Me’, ‘From Me To You’, and ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’. In the traditions of Beatlemania, these songs were often drowned out by the voices of the 8000-strong audience screaming the words back at the band.
Luckily, some bright spark at CBS recognised the historical importance of this show, and video taped proceedings – the same cannot be said, unfortunately, for their Candlestick Park gig two years later. The filmed footage from the concert captures an incredibly important moment in the history of The Beatles, marking their arrival in the United States and representing just how out-of-control the hysteria surrounding the group had become in a relatively short space of time.
Why did The Beatles stop performing live?
When The Beatles played their final public concert in 1966, their decision to resign themselves to the studio was controversial. After all, this was the biggest band on the planet, and their tours generated an unbelievable amount of revenue both for the members themselves and the local economies of the places they visited. Ultimately, the band’s decision to step back from the stage came as a result of fatigue. The four musicians were exhausted after years of tireless touring, encountering screaming fans being chased out of countries by angry dictators.
So, after their disastrous 1966 world tour, where they received death threats in Japan and riots in Germany, the band decided to call it a day, instead focusing their efforts on studio work. The decision might have been disappointing to fans, but their studio experimentation that was reflected on later records like Revolver certainly suggests that their refusal to tour was worth it.
