The Beatles
...d in a hundred years. On January 12, ABC-TV showed the Beatles performing Please Please Me. Soon afterwards, the song hit number one in England. People noticed that the Beatles were different in the way they wore their hair, and the suits they had on. The suits were a very crucial part to the Beatles. The Beatles decided to keep their image straight by wearing these suits so they could focus more on the music than their look. This, however, backfired on them when they realized almost all the British population began transforming into Beatle clones. The Beatles also decided that they needed a symbol that would make them stand out. So they choose to exploit their already overlong hair. The Beatles let it grow longer and bushier, combed it forward and then it was immaculately trimmed. The result was not only eye-catching but evocative. Such hairdos were common in the Middle Ages and the new coiffure suggested the ancient roots of England. This hair cut soon became known as the “Beatles cut” (Lewisohn 14). Every boy and girl in England had a Beatles cut. In fact, almost everything was related to the Beatles in someway - from Beatles boots to Beatle slang. If they wore a particular coat or shirt, grew a moustache, openly accepted the use of drugs or questioned religion, the whole of the rock world would do the same (Lewisohn 17). However, the main part that people noticed about the Beatles were their contagious smiles, wit, and good humor. This trait is what separated them from all the other pop stars of the day. Soon enough, their producer, George Martin, was helping them to release a quality first LP to capitalize on the success of the single. They recorded this LP in thirteen hours, with some original material like I Saw Her Standing There, and covers of American Rock ‘n Roll tunes such as Twist and Shout. On November 4, the Beatles were playing for the Queen, and John Lennon uttered his famous “…those upstairs, just rattle your jewelry…” phrase which people actually found pretty funny (The Beatles’ History). All in all, the British reaction to the group was quite positive, even to the point that PM Alec Douglas-Home and the Queen herself complimented them in interviews. Beatlemania, as it was known, was now in full swing in England; all that was left to accomplish was the conquest of America (The Beatles’ History). The Beatles made their way to America on February 7, 1964 in a quest of winning the hearts of the American people. Despite the Beatles light hearted jokes and smiles, they were quite nervous about entering American territory. People back home told them that the idea of having a hit record there was ridiculous. It was just unheard of. As George Harrison put it, “they've got everything over there, what do they want us for?” (The Beatles’ History) However, they would soon learn that their fame in Europe was small in proportion to that which they experienced in America. The country was in quite a disheartened disposition though, because on November 22, 1963, 77 days before the Beatles appeared, American President John F. Kennedy was hit by a sniper’s bullets in Dallas and died. The American nation was in profound shock, and an eerie bleakness seemed to fill the air. The stage was, in a way, set for a dose of good humor and distraction - such as what the Beatles could provide. A great amount of hype surrounded the Beatles landing at Kennedy Airport in America. People announced this time as “Beatle time,” and news flashes built up. Their skyrocketing popularity led to their famous appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show on February 9, 1964. Over 73 million people witnessed the birth of Beatlemania that night. They sang five songs: All My Loving, Till There Was You, She Loves You, I Saw Her Standing There, and I Want To Hold Your Hand, and the impact of their performance resonated across America (The Beatles’ Albums). From then on, teenagers were caught up in a fan frenzy that sometimes included hysteria, with female fans fainting during performances. Their first released single, Love Me Do, reached number 17 on the Top 40 Chart. Please Please Me, their second single, went straight to number one and stayed on top of the charts for 30 weeks; it dropped off of the top position only when Meet the Beatles, their second album, was released. However, as much as teens loved the Beatles, many parents and religious leaders feared their influence. In particular was the controversy over John Lennon’s mistaken remark that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus. This resulted in some record burning and protests and the Beatles lost some of their sweet media image. But this didn’t stop them from encouraging Rock (Strokes 29-34). Maybe it was their lyrics that contributed to the States’ recovery. Every song the Beatles wrote was meaningful and uplifting. Such as the hit I Want to Hold Your Hand. "Oh yeah I'll/Tell you something/I think you'll understand/When I'll/Say that something/I want to hold your HAAAANDDD!" (The Beatles’ Albums). The message in this song is very simple yet very insightful at the same time. These small and touching messages were exactly what America needed at the time. Their songs also seemed to be inspired by blues melodies which naturally occurred in songs influenced by early blues songs. John Lennon’s most dominate song which seemed inspired by the blues the most was All I’ve Got to Do (Schaffner 22-23). The Beatles also influenced the music industry by the use of the instruments that they chose. Most of the instruments that they used were conventional instruments like the harmonica, guitars both rhythm and bass, the keyboard and drums. They also used the tenor banjo and other rhythm and percussion instruments. One of the non-conventional instruments used was a washtub bass, which was made from a piece of heavy twin attached to a stick and anchored to an upside down washtub. The tabla, drums originating from India, and a montage of sounds, especially from the day were also use. Other non-conventional instruments included a Kazoo, cigar-box guitar, the sitar, again from India, and entertaining electronic noises. These original instruments opened the doors for hundreds of artists to this day. The Beatles helped us see that music comes from the soul, not the instument (Strokes 40-43). Music was not the Beatles only stroke to stardom, for soon they were introduced on the big screen. The group had been signed the year before to do a movie and, thanks to a lot of good luck, they were turned over to producer Walter Shenson, director Richard Lester, and screenwriter Alun Owen. Together created A Hard Day's Night, probably the best Rock’n’Roll movie ever made. This film, a black-and-white, documentary-style, fictionalized account of the fishbowl lives that the Beatles were leading during the first wave of Beatlemania, was popular with parents as well as their teenage children, and critics loved it too (The Beatles History). The mix of the four personalities — St...