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The Beatles Are an Opening Band

Brow Beat is  following the Beatles in “real time,”  50 years later, from their first chart-topper to their final rooftop concert. In our latest weekly installment, we check in with the group as they head out on tour, in support of Helen Shapiro.

Still from YouTube.

Fifty years ago this week, the Beatles were an opening band. They were about to set out on what would become a grueling year of touring, and, on their first tour, they were listed dead-last on a six-band bill. The headliner was the far more popular Helen Shapiro, who was only 16 or 17 years old. The response to their early shows was often tepid, but they were eager for whatever exposure they could get. “Someone saying he was called Brian Epstein was ringing from Liverpool,” promoter Arthur Howes later recalled. “ He said he had a great group, was there anything I could fit them into? ” Howes remembers them as just “another group with a funny name,” but he booked them with the simple hope of turning a profit.

The English countryside was a bit dull for the band just back from their wild days in Hamburg . During the long bus rides, Lennon and McCartney would move to the back of the bus to work on new songs, often in hopes of selling those songs to Shapiro and others. But Ringo still recalls that they were happy to be there. “ Helen was the star ,” Starr said. “She had the telly in her dressing room and we didn’t have one. We had to ask her if we could watch hers. We weren’t getting packed houses, but we were on the boards, man.” You can get a sense of what the tour was like from this 1963 clip from Ready, Steady, Go! While the clip is from the following fall, it’s still Shapiro who takes center stage for the performance, as she serenades Lennon, Starr, and Harrison in turn. (Paul apparently lost the coin toss but can be spotted in the background.) The Beatles display a characteristically mischievous sense of humor, but Shapiro is unquestionably the star:

When the Beatles finally hit No. 1 with “ Please Please Me ,” in the middle of the tour, things began to change. Soon they were getting as much applause as the headliner—and this created some tension. “All the people coming to the show were just waiting for The Beatles,” Harrison later remembered. “ It was embarrassing, because she was a very nice person .” This is characteristic of the Beatles’ relationship with Shapiro. They liked her, and she even had a crush on John (who was secretly a married man), but he dismissed her music as “ mush .” A few months later they toured with one of their heroes, Roy Orbison. They shared top billing. Previously in Blogging the Beatles Where’s Yoko? On John Cage’s Piano Edition How a Black Label Brought the Beatles to America The Beatles Say Goodbye to Hamburg The Beatles Hit the Airwaves The Beatles Rise Up the Charts The Beatles Record Their First No. 1

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The Beatles 1963 – Where It All Began & The Start Of Beatlemania

1963 was the year the Beatles exploded onto the mainstream music scene in the UK. In this year they released their debut LP titled ‘Please, Please, Me’, delivered a Royal command performance, as well as several high profile television appearances to name just a few high points. The year ended with their launch into superstardom when Beatlemania really kicked off with the release of their second album and two more legendary singles which also set them up to take America by storm too.

Read on to find out more about the songs, performances and highlights that shaped The Beatles and their success in the year of 1963.  

March 1963 – The Start Of Something Big 

‘Please Please Me’ was the debut studio album released by the fab four. It came out in the UK on the 22 March 1963, was produced by George Martin, and the album really paved the way for the start of something big.

Tracklist For Please Please Me Side 1 

• I Saw Her Standing There
• Anna (Go To Him)
• Please Please Me 

Tracklist For Please Please Me Side 2

• P.S I Love You 
• Baby It’s You
• Do You Want To Know A Secret
• A Taste Of Honey
• There’s A Place
• Twist And Shout 

The first two singles released from the record were ‘Love Me Do’ which debuted on 5th October 1962 and ‘Please Please Me’ which was released on 11th Jan 1963. The songs reached number 17 and number 2 respectively. 

‘Love Me Do’ was written by Paul McCartney several years before it was recorded and before the Beatles had even formed. It was later recorded by the band three times at the Abbey Road studios in London featuring a different drummer each time. 

‘Please Please Me’ was written by Lennon and McCartney and was the Beatles first single to reach number 1 in the new musical express and melody maker charts, but as it only reached number 2 on the record retailer chart, which later evolved to become the UK singles chart as we know it today, it’s not usually classified as their first official number 1. 

Read about The Beatles in 1964 – the year they cracked America and the British Invasion officially began.

Their number one debut album stayed at number 1 for 30 weeks, which was unheard of for a pop album at the time. It has since been released in 12 different formats including vinyl, digital download, C.D and cassette.

Touring With The Band 

The band’s first UK tour, ‘The Beatles Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour’ kicked off on 2nd February this year. It ran for a total of 14 performances which finished on the 3rd March with a break in the middle of the dates. For this touring run, The Beatles were part of an eleven act bill headlined by Helen Shapiro, and the tour was played in cinema and theatre venues largely in the North of England, but with a few performances further South. 

The tour took the Beatles to towns in; Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, Bedfordshire, Tyne & Wear, Somerset, York, Merseyside, and Shropshire. During the second part of the tour, on the coach on the way to the Shrewsbury gig, John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote the single, ‘From Me To You’. This was later released as their third single the following month of April to become their first official UK number one single. 

Tour Dates For The Winter Tour

• 2nd Feb 1963 – Gaumont, Bradford
• 5th Feb 1963 – Gaumont, Doncaster
• 6th Feb 1963 – Grenada, Bedford
• 7th Feb 1963 – ABC Cinema, Wakefield
• 8th Feb 1963 – Regal, Carlisle 
• 23rd Feb 1963 – Granada, Mansfield
• 24th Feb 1963 – Coventry Theatre, Coventry 
• 26th Feb 1963 – Gaumont, Taunton
• 27th Feb 1963 – Rialto, York 
• 28th Feb 1963 – Grenada, Shrewsbury 
• 1st Mar 1963 – Odeon, Southport
• 2nd Mar 1963 – Sheffield City Hall, Sheffield
• 3rd March 1963 – Gaumont, Hanley 

Joining the band on the tour were the following 11 acts in order of appearance on the bill: 

• Red Price Band
• The Beatles
• Danny Williams
• The Kestrels
• Kenny Lynch
• Helen Shapiro

When The Beatles hit the stage for their set, they typically performed four songs but had two alternatives ready to perform too. 

Typical Set List For The 1963 Winter Tour 

• Chains, sung by George Harrison
• Keep Your Hands Off My Baby, sung by John Lennon
• A taste of honey, sung by Paul McCartney
• Please Please Me, sung by Lennon and McCartney

With Love Me Do and Beautiful Dreamer prepared as alternatives ready to go if needed. 

The Tommy Roe/Chris Montez Tour 

Less than a week after the end of the Helen Shapiro tour closed, The Beatles were now second on the bill for the Tommy Roe and Chris Montez Tour alongside other support acts including The Viscounts, Debbie Liee, The Terry Young Combo and Tony Marsh. 

This 21 date tour ran from the 9th March through to the 31st March which spanned the time of the re-release of their debut album Please Please Me on the 22nd March. 

Find out more about the best early Beatles songs here

On the 15th night, at the Empire in their hometown of Liverpool, the headliner Chris Montez let the band close the show. Sadly for Chris, they did such a good job, and were so popular that the change was made permanent by the tour management for the rest of the run. 

The Stage Got Bigger With De Montfort Hall 

On the last day of March and the last night of the Tommy Roe/Chris Montex Tour, the Beatles performed at De Montfort Hall in Leicester, England. This was the largest music venue in the town with a capacity of around 3000 and was one of the bigger venues the band had played together to date.

This concert was the first of three times that the band played live at the venue with their performances in March 63, Dec 63 and Oct 64. Although the platform was more impressive, this first performance in the spring of this year was fairly muted and had much less fanfare than the December performance later this year. By the December concert, the band were awarded with a packed out hall, filled with screaming fans desperate to see the fab four in the midst of Beatlemania at the end of their breakout year, we’ll cover later on this page. 

From Me To You & Eleven Consecutive Number Ones

Following the success of their first two singles, ‘Love Me Do’ and ‘Please Please Me’, on April 11th of this year The Beatles released their third UK single, ‘From Me To You’ with the B side ‘Thank You Girl’. The song was the band’s first number 1 on what later became the official UK singles chart but their second after ‘Please Please Me’ on most other singles charts at the time. 

From Me To You was recorded on the 5th March at EMI studios and just nine days later it began its twenty-one week run in the UK charts. From here, it eventually went on to reach number one on the 4th May and then stayed there for seven weeks running! It was also the first of 11 consecutive number 1’s for the band! 

Breaking In The BBC 

Another notable performance for the band this year comes in the shape of the BBC Light Programme concert, ‘Swingin Sounds 63’ which was performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London on the 18th April to a capacity audience of over 5,000 people. The light programme preceded BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 1 and was the home of mainstream entertainment and music between 1945 and 1967. It provided a great boost to the band’s rising popularity and it was also soon after this performance that Paul met his soon-to-be girlfriend Jane Asher, who attended the concert as a reporter for the Radio Times.

The Roy Orbison/The Beatles Tour

The Band’s third collaborative tour of the UK ran from the 18th May to the 9th June 1963 with over 21 shows played.

By now the band was growing in popularity and caused such a stir that they were bumped up the bill to become co-headliners with Roy Orbison, who was originally supposed to be the headline act. This promotion was due to the reaction of the audience on the tour and led to them taking the headline closing spot for the remaining dates.

Their set list included the following songs which gave them a larger spot on the bill than they held on previous tours. 

• “Some Other Guy” (John Lennon)
• “Do You Want to Know a Secret?” (George Harrison)
• “Love Me Do” or “A Taste Of Honey” (Paul McCartney)
• “From Me To You” (John Lennon)
• “Please Please Me” (John Lennon)
• “I Saw Her Standing There” (Paul McCartney)
• “Twist and Shout” (John Lennon) or “Long Tall Sally” (Paul McCartney)

The 20 date tour ran from 18th May 1963 to the 9th June 1963 with the stops in the following venues and cities: 

• 18th May – Adelphi, Slough
• 19th May – Gaumont, Hanley
• 20th May – Gaumont, Southampton 
• 22nd May – Gaumont, Ipswich
• 23rd May – Odeon, Nottingham 
• 24th May – Granada, Walthamstow
• 25th May – City Hall, Sheffield 
• 26th May – Empire, Liverpool
• 28th May – Gaumont, Worcester 
• 29th May – Rialto, York 
• 30th May – Odeon, Manchester 
• 31st May – Odeon, South-end-on-Sea
• 1st June – Granada, Tooting
• 2nd June – Hippodrome, Brighton
• 3rd June – Granada, Woolwich
• 4th June – Town Hall, Birmingham 
• 5th June – Odeon, Leeds 
• 7th June – Odeon, Glasgow
• 8th June – City Hall, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• 9th June – King George’s Hall, Blackburn 

The Band’s First EP, (Extended Play) 

Following a busy couple of months of touring, ‘Twist And Shout’ was the first UK extended play (EP) released by the band. Accompanying the song on the record was ‘Do You Want To Know A Secret’, ‘A Taste Of Honey’ and ‘There’s A Place’ which were all from The Beatles’ debut album, ‘Please Please Me’. 

The EP was released by Parolphone on the 12th July in the UK, and later in Germany, Spain, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina. 

The title song, ‘Twist And Shout’ was a cover of the Isley Brothers version of the song and was far more popular under The Beatles’ release than its previous editions, including the original version recorded by The Top Notes, an American R&B group in 1961. 

‘Twist And Shout’ showcased the band at their ‘rock n roll’ best and became a firm fan favourite, with the band continuing to perform it until the end of their August 1965 tour. It was also used as the closing number for their stand out live performances of this glorious year on their ‘Sunday Night At The London Palladium’ appearance in October 63 and ‘The Royal Variety Show’ in November this year. 

Read more about The Beatles in 1965 – a year when the band delivered their most critically acclaimed music

Breaking Records With ‘She Loves You’ 

‘She Loves You’ was the fourth single to be released from the band’s first album and was again written by the powerhouse duo, John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded on 1st July 1963. When it was released on the 23rd August 1963, the song set, and broke many records at the time and more than any other song, it was the breakthrough that led to their international success. 

Even today, it remains the foursome’s best-selling single in the UK and the top-selling single of the entire sixties decade by any artist. It hit the number one spot twice in 1963, the first time on September 4th and the again on November 20th. 

EP Number Two 

‘The Beatles’ Hits’ was the band’s second EP and it was released in the UK on the 6th September 1963. The record featured four songs; ‘From Me To You’, ‘Thankyou Girl’, ‘Please, Please, Me’ and ‘Love Me Do’. It entered the charts on the 21st September spending three weeks at number one from the 2nd November before spending a further 43 weeks in the UK charts. It also spent 18 weeks in the singles chart peaking at number 14. 

Two More Tours & The London Palladium

October was another busy month in the year of 1963 for The Beatles. They toured twice, once with a mini tour of Scotland and once abroad in Sweden. It was also their debut on the ever popular and career escalating show, ‘’Tonight at the London Palladium’. This televised musical variety show is credited for really kicking off the phenomenon that was Beatlemania in the UK. 

The Mini Tour Of Scotland 

Spanning just three dates, The Beatles’ whistle top October tour of Scotland saw them perform at Concert Hall. Glasgow on the 5th, The Carlton in Kirkcaldy on the 6th and Caird Hall in Dundee on the 7th. It was just a week after this last show that the band appeared on ‘Sunday Night At The London Palladium. 

Sunday Night At The London Palladium 

It’s fair to say that The Beatles popularity has been steadily building throughout 1963 but it was their appearance at The London Palladium on Sunday 13th October that really catapulted them into the attention of mainstream media who then coined the phrase ‘Beatlemania’ to describe the hoards of screaming fans the band attracted. 

‘Sunday Night At The London Palladium’ was the pinnacle of TV entertainment at the time. The Sunday slot regularly commanded up to 15 million viewers each week and topped the TV ratings to provide the hot topics of conversation for the workplace the following Monday morning. 

The foursome’s debut performance on ‘Sunday Night At The Palladium’ couldn’t have been more well received. They closed the show with performances of ‘From Me To You’, ‘I’ll Get You’, ‘She Loves You’, and rounded off the night with their latest single at the time, ‘Twist And Shout’. 

The Beatles in 1966 was a life changing year for the boys, found out more here

After their appearance on the show they were featured on ITN news the following day and newspapers were filled with praise for the band and quickly jumped on to sharing stories of the mass of screaming fans they attracted everywhere they went. This extended cover signified the start of press and airwave domination of several for years to come. 

Beatlemania Hits 

Beatlemania was a phrase coined by the British press to describe the raucous, intense and dedicated fanbase surrounding The Beatles and their actions. The band’s frenzied and loyal fans bordered on obsessive, with girls planning their weddings to the fab four and screaming hysterically at concerts they played. Beatlemania was undeniable with adulation, screaming fans and hysteria following the band wherever they went and building to fever pitch for their world tours in 1964.

The Beatles Tour Of Sweden, 1963

The Beatles Tour Of Sweden was the band’s second whistle stop tour of October 1963 but the first that saw them venture overseas. The five night tour running from the 25th – 29th October took them to a new army of fans in Stockholm, Goteborg, Karlstad, Boras and Eskilstuna. 

The Royal Variety Show 

Being asked to perform at the annual Royal Variety Show in the UK is an honour for any artist, and it was one that was bestowed to The Beatles on the 4th November 1963. At this time, the y were already huge stars in the making and in the midst of the Beatlemania movement, but it was this show that afforded them an even bigger leap towards superstardom – strange to think they were unknown to the public just a year earlier! 

The show was broadcast by ITV from the Prince of Wales Theatre near Leicester Square in London and it pulled in ITV’s most viewed show of all time at the time with a record 21.2 million people tuning in. The Queen herself was unable to attend this year as she was pregnant, but the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret were in the audience to see the band’s performance. 

The band’s closing number was the ever popular ‘Twist And Shout’ and just a few days after the broadcast, The Beatles went on to secure their fourth British number one single with ‘I Wanna Hold Your Hand’. 

One More Single, EP And The Much Awaited Second Album 

By November, the year may have been drawing to a close but The Beatles were just getting started on their journey to super stardom, showing no signs of slowing down. In November alone the band released a single, an EP, and their hotly anticipated second album. 

A Third EP 

The Beatles (No.1) was the third and final EP released this year in the UK on 1st November 1963. It was only released in mono and contains songs from ‘Please Please Me’ including:

• ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ 
• ‘Anna (Go To Him)’

The record entered the charts on the 9th November before staying there for 29 weeks, reaching its highest position of number 2. 

I Wanna Hold Your Hand 

‘I Wanna Hold Your Hand’ became something of an iconic song for The Beatles, attracting over 1 million advanced orders in the UK alone. Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, it was the last single to be released in their inaugural year of 1963, on 29th November. It was recorded the previous month on the 17th October 1963 and was the Beatles first record to be made using four-track equipment. 

The single stayed in the charts for 21 weeks in total and would have gone straight to the number one spot but it was blocked by their own song, ‘She Loves You’. ‘She Loves You’, originally released earlier this year in August, was back at the top of the charts at the time following the intense media coverage the band attracted following their recent performances at The Royal Variety and ‘Sunday Night At The Palladium’. After two weeks in the charts at number 2, it finally took the top spot and stayed there for five weeks. 

The Beatles and The Rolling Stones – which band is top trumps?

This catchy song was also the bands first American number one hit and sold more than 12 million copies worldwide. In 2018, Billboard magazine named it the 48th biggest hit of all time and was the second highest selling single of the entire 60’s behind ‘She Loves You’. 

The Second Studio Album 

‘With The Beatles’ was the much awaited second studio album from The Beatles. Released by the rock band on 22nd November 1963, exactly eight months after their debut album, it was once again produced by George Martin. This time around, they attracted the skills of fashion photographer Robert Freeman to take the now infamous cover shot which has since become something of an iconic image mimicked by many artists that followed. 

In contrast to their first album which was recorded mostly in a single day, this offering was put together over three months in seven sessions between July and October 63, and none of the 14 tracks were released as singles. 

The tracks included eight brand new compositions, George Harrison’s first recorded solo composition, and six covers. 

Track Listing Side 1

• ‘It Wont’ Be Long’
• ‘All I’ve Got To Do’
• ‘All My Loving’
• ‘Don’t Bother Me’
• ‘Little Child’
• ‘Till There Was You’
• ‘Please Mr Postman’

Track Listing Side 2

• ‘Roll Over Beethoven’
• ‘Hold Me Tight’
• ‘You Really Got A Hold On Me’
• ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’
• ‘Devil In Her Heart’
• ‘Not A Second Time’
• ‘Money (That’s What I Want)

De Montfort Take Two 

In the final leg of the year and run up to Christmas, the band played for the second time at De Montfort hall in Leicester. It was a night that goes down in the event venue’s history and a gig that will stay with those lucky enough to get a ticket forevermore.

On December 1st 1963 The Beatles, the biggest band in the UK at the time, played 10 songs which kept them onstage for around 30 minutes and performed to a packed out crowd of hysterical screaming teenage fans.

The gig was the hottest ticket in town, with fans bubbling with excitement weeks in anticipation and queuing all night in sleeping bags on the street when tickets went on sale.

The Beatles 1961 – read about the year that set the boys out on the path to global phenomenon.

We’ve taken you through some of the most defining performances, appearances, albums, and tracks that shaped 1963 for the Beatles and it’s fair to say that this was the year that the Beatles really found their voice.

It is a year that will always be remembered for The Beatles, and their ability to create rare TV moments that got the whole nation glued to their screens and talking of nothing else. The rise of Beatlemania afforded the fab four an army of screaming fans that followed their every move and sent their records to the top of the charts, as the classic rock era really took off. 

© Mathewstreet.co.uk

1963: The Year the Beatles Found Their Voice

Listening to a young band rapidly assimilating and remixing genres it would soon transcend

Having spent entirely too much of my life studying all matters Beatles-related, I sometimes like to play a parlor game with other fans. I ask them which year was the band’s best, before offering an answer of my own. Many people stump for 1967, when Sgt. Pepper came out, recasting the pop-culture zeitgeist. Others opt for 1964, the first year of stateside Beatlemania. A dark horse sometimes gets a vote, like 1965, the year the Beatles produced their first mature masterwork in Rubber Soul . But when I provide my answer—1963, all the way—I’m usually met with puzzled looks. It’s no wonder. Fifty years have passed since that magical and formative year for the band, yet most of the music the Beatles recorded throughout it remains commercially unavailable. But 1963 is the band’s annus mirabilis .

In 1963, the Beatles were exploding in England. Their debut LP, Please Please Me , came out in March, followed by their megahit single “She Loves You” in August. Their second album, With the Beatles , and another hit single, “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” followed in the fall. Screaming girls, throngs of fans, bushels of albums being sold—this was when it all started. But the Beatles were also a veritable human jukebox that year. One of their many commitments was to turn up semi-regularly at the BBC, horse around on air, read requests, make fun of each other, make fun of the presenter, and play live versions of whatever people wanted to hear, whether that was their own material or a vast range of covers: Elvis Presley numbers; obscure rhythm-and-blues songs by lost-to-time bands like the Jodimars; Broadway show tunes; Americana; vamps on Buddy Holly, Carl Perkins, Chuck Berry; rearrangements of girl-group cuts; torch songs. If you wanted to hear what made the Beatles the Beatles, here is where you would want to start.

Yet although these sessions (including some from ’62 and ’64, and one from ’65, but mostly from ’63) would fill about 10 CDs, only a double-disc set has been commercially released. Live at the BBC —as Capitol Records titled that package back in 1994—is fine; you can’t go especially wrong with it. But its songs are plucked from their context, and context is the best reason to listen to the Beatles’ BBC shows. This is not music meant to be heard in piecemeal fashion, with a few cuts cherry-picked from one session here, another there. Each of the 40 BBC sessions from ’63 has a specific, homegrown feel, like it’s a mini-album unto itself, and the sequence of sessions as a whole shows the band’s startlingly rapid evolution.

No official archive of the BBC sessions exists, and the original tapes appear to be long gone. But over time—and particularly as the Internet has gained reach and speed—partial, homemade recordings from the original broadcasts have surfaced, and been stitched together into increasingly complete compilations. Earnest seekers can find the most complete version of the sessions, courtesy of a bootleg label called Purple Chick, on the Web; from start to finish, it is an absolute wonder.

If you ever asked yourself whether the Beatles, as people, were as funny as their biographies make them out to be, here is your proof. They ride each other hard, in between playing and reading out mailed-in song requests from former band rivals, kids in the hospital, “Jeff the greengrocer.” One schoolgirl, standing in as the spokesperson for her gaggle, begins her request with “Dear Messrs. Beatles,” prompting a short, knowing laugh from Paul McCartney. It’s a confident laugh, appreciative that the band’s audience was beginning to pick up on the band’s humor—riffing off it, in a way, just as the Beatles were riffing off the music that had come before them and, increasingly, finding ways to transcend it.

At one of the key sessions, on July 16, the band recorded 17 tracks, and we find the quartet adroitly working its way through covers with the same bucolic grace—and hard-won realism—that would later flower into the songwriting on the band’s mid-career masterpieces. From another blue-collar Merseyside act, a cover of “To Know Him Is to Love Him” might sound fey. The number was written by Phil Spector (the title comes from his father’s headstone) and was a hit for his Teddy Bears. John Lennon changes Him to Her , and his vocal unfurls over a lush patch of backing harmonies, his whoa-hoa s linking one line to the next. A nakedness is at play here, as the macho Lennon musically denudes himself with each plush declaration of love, the minor key couching his voice in something somber, autumnal. This is utter vulnerability, an invocation of feelings not normally spoken (and altogether absent from the Teddy Bears’ original version), now shared with anyone who happens to listen. Casual listeners might think it’s a long way from the Lennon of this session to the Lennon of Rubber Soul —a high point of his songwriting career—but the sensibility of this performance is the same sensibility we find in “Girl” and “In My Life.” Rubber Soul may have been released in December 1965, but it was taking some kind of form in July 1963.

The same session featured the band’s attempt at Ann-Margret’s “I Just Don’t Understand.” Here, Lennon’s vocal possesses an R&B swing, but the ensemble-playing is in a country-western mode, albeit one that comes off as dark, like an outtake from a John Ford Western. This is the Beatles, as Dylan would say, mixing up the medicine. At their compositional zenith—which is to say, during their mid-career run of Rubber Soul , Revolver , and Sgt. Pepper —the Beatles were master collagists. You listen to “I Just Don’t Understand,” and in Lennon’s vocal you hear the same ragged howl from the abyss that dominates “Tomorrow Never Knows,” from 1966’s Revolver ; the countrified electric strut of “What Goes On,” from Rubber Soul ; the blanched, plain-sung blues of “She’s Leaving Home,” from Sgt. Pepper .

The quick session from July 2 is a tour de force of range, with the Beatles pulling from the past and again experimenting with different elements from different genres—the band a veritable musical Cuisinart. A take on Elvis Presley’s “That’s All Right” gets us started, with McCartney bucking against the traditions set down by his hero. The song is given a pronounced Liverpudlian inflection, as though the Beatles are claiming it for the north of England, George Harrison’s licks providing tart commentary. A stomp through their own “There’s a Place”—their most mature composition to date—follows, and rock and roll is fleshed out with introspection, the foundation for most of the band’s best work going forward. A lithe rendition of Chuck Berry’s “Carol” is next, before the group gets into what may be the best BBC cut of all. Arthur Alexander sang rhythm and blues harder than anyone in the States. For a group of early 20‑something white kids to think they could lay claim to his best number, “Soldier of Love,” was either hubristic folly or burgeoning self-awareness; for the Beatles, on this date, it was the latter. For the first time, we hear that full, almost violent Beatles swing, a propulsive, churning attack that was reimagined the following year in “A Hard Day’s Night.” By then, the Beatles had upped the tempo, but this has that same rhythmic chassis. Covers of Carl Perkins’s “Lend Me Your Comb” and the Jodimars’ super-obscure R&B number “Clarabella” follow, and you get the sense that there wasn’t anything they couldn’t take on and improve. But improvement was clearly no longer the point. The Beatles were getting on with the creation of something else altogether.

To be a good songwriter, you need to be a good listener. And what you really hear in the ’63 BBC sessions is the Beatles listening to themselves, beginning a dialogue and moving toward a future that was less and less inchoate as that year, and the BBC sessions, wore on. It’s almost as if the version of the band that we all got to know owed this earlier iteration a “Dear Messrs. Beatles” note of gratitude.

The Beatles Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour

The Beatles ' first English tour lasted from 2 February 1963 until 3 March 1963. The Beatles were fourth on an eleven-act bill headed by 16-year-old Londoner, Helen Shapiro . Other acts on the tour were the Red Price Band, The Kestrels , The Honeys (UK) , Dave Allen , Kenny Lynch and Danny Williams . [1] They were also joined briefly by Billie Davis during the latter part of the tour. [2]

Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour dates

Instruments and equipment.

The tour was organised by the Arthur Howes Agency . This was the first time that the Beatles had worked with Howes. [3]

The programme for the tour [1] was:

• Red Price Band
• The Beatles
• Danny Williams
• The Kestrels
• Kenny Lynch
• Helen Shapiro

The Beatles typical set list [1] for the shows was as follows (with lead singers noted): [4]

• " Chains " ( George Harrison )
• " Keep Your Hands Off My Baby " ( John Lennon )
• " A Taste of Honey " (Paul McCartney)
• " Please Please Me " (John Lennon / Paul McCartney)

Two other songs were used as prepared alternatives during the tour:

• " Love Me Do " (Paul McCartney / John Lennon)
• " Beautiful Dreamer " (Paul McCartney)

The Shapiro tour was split into two parts.

The first part lasted from 2 to 10 February, although the Beatles did not play on the 10th, as they needed to be in London early on the 11th. The Beatles played two dates at the Cavern Club , Liverpool on 3 and 4 February, before joining the Shapiro tour again on the 5th.

All dates from Lewisohn [5]

On 11 February, the Beatles recorded the ten tracks that, together with their two previously released singles, formed their debut album, Please Please Me . From 12 to 22 February, they played a number of dates on their own, before joining the Shapiro tour again on the 23.

The second part lasted from 23 February until 3 March. Travelling to Shrewsbury on 28 February 1963, Lennon and McCartney wrote the next Beatles single, " From Me To You ".

Instruments The Beatles had on the tour, shown here for each member of the group. [6]

John Lennon

• 1958 Rickenbacker 325 electric guitar
• 1962 [7] Gibson J-160E electro-acoustic guitar (used as backup)
• 1962 [8] Vox AC-30 amplifier

Paul McCartney

• 1961 Höfner 500/1 hollowbody Violin bass
• Quad II/22 Amp modified by Adrian Barber
• 1962 Adrian Barber "Coffin" speaker cabinet [9]

George Harrison

• 1957 [10] Gretsch Duo Jet hollowbody electric guitar

Ringo Starr

• 20×17" bass drum
• 12×8" rack tom
• 16×16" floor tom
• 14×4" Premier Royal Ace wood-shell snare drum
• List of the Beatles' live performances

Related Research Articles

Please Please Me is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released in the UK on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963. The album is 14 songs in length, and contains a mixture of cover songs and original material written by the partnership of the band's John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Beatles for Sale is the fourth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on 4 December 1964 in the United Kingdom on EMI's Parlophone label. The album marked a departure from the upbeat tone that had characterised the Beatles' previous work, partly due to the band's exhaustion after a series of tours that had established them as a worldwide phenomenon in 1964. Beatles for Sale was not widely available in the US until 1987, when the Beatles' catalogue was standardised for release on CD. Instead, eight of the album's fourteen tracks appeared on Capitol Records' concurrent release, Beatles '65 , issued in North America only.

" From Me to You " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in April 1963 as their third single. It was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. The song was the Beatles' first number 1 hit on what became the official UK singles chart but the second, after "Please Please Me", on most of the other singles charts published in the UK at the time. "From Me to You" failed to make an impact in the United States at the time of its initial release. Instead, a 1963 cover version released by Del Shannon resulted in the song becoming the first Lennon–McCartney tune to enter the US pop charts. The Beatles' original was rereleased in the US in January 1964 as the b-side to "Please Please Me", and reached number 41.

" Love Me Do " is the official debut single by the English rock band the Beatles, backed by "P.S. I Love You". When the single was originally released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1962, it peaked at number 17. It was released in the United States in 1964, where it became a number one hit. Re-released in 1982 as part of EMI's Beatles 20th anniversary, it re-entered the UK charts and peaked at number 4.

" I'm Only Sleeping " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 studio album Revolver . In the United States and Canada, it was one of the three tracks that Capitol Records cut from the album and instead included on Yesterday and Today , released two months before Revolver . Credited as a Lennon–McCartney song, it was written primarily by John Lennon. The track includes a backwards lead guitar part played by George Harrison, the first time such a technique was used on a pop recording.

" Please Please Me " is a song released by the English rock band the Beatles. It was their second single in the United Kingdom, and their first in the United States. It is also the title track of their first LP, which was recorded to capitalise on the success of the single. It is a John Lennon composition, although its ultimate form was significantly influenced by producer George Martin.

" Dear Prudence " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album The Beatles . The song was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. Written in Rishikesh during the group's trip to India in early 1968, it was inspired by actress Mia Farrow's sister, Prudence Farrow, who became obsessive about meditating while practising with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Her designated partners on the meditation course, Lennon and George Harrison, attempted to coax Farrow out of her seclusion, which led to Lennon writing the song.

" And I Love Her " is a song recorded by English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It is the fifth track of their third UK album A Hard Day's Night and was released 20 July 1964, along with "If I Fell", as a single release by Capitol Records in the United States, reaching No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 .

" I Saw Her Standing There " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It is the opening track on the band's 1963 debut UK album Please Please Me and their debut US album Introducing... The Beatles .

" Misery " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 debut album Please Please Me . It was co-written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. According to Lennon, "It was kind of a John song more than a Paul song, but it was written together." McCartney was to say: "I don't think either one of us dominated on that one, it was just a hacking job."

" Ask Me Why " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles originally released in the United Kingdom as the B-side of their single "Please Please Me". It was also included on their 1963 debut album Please Please Me . It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership.

" There's a Place " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their debut album, Please Please Me , released in March 1963. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to McCartney–Lennon. In the United States, the song was released in July 1963 on the group's first US LP, Introducing... The Beatles , later reissued in January 1964 as Beatlemania surged there. It was also issued as a non-album single in the US, in March 1964, as the B-side to "Twist and Shout", reaching number 74 in the Billboard Hot 100 .

" Old Brown Shoe " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. Written by George Harrison, the group's lead guitarist, it was released on a non-album single in May 1969, as the B-side to "The Ballad of John and Yoko". The song was subsequently included on the band's compilation albums Hey Jude , 1967–1970 and Past Masters, Volume Two . Although "Old Brown Shoe" remains a relatively obscure song in the band's catalogue, several music critics view it as one of Harrison's best compositions from the Beatles era and especially admire his guitar solo on the track.

" I'm Down " is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on a non-album single as the B-side to "Help!" in July 1965. The song originated in McCartney's attempt to write a song in the style of Little Richard, whose song "Long Tall Sally" the band regularly covered.

The Beatles staged their second concert tour of the United States in the late summer of 1965. At the peak of American Beatlemania, they played a mixture of outdoor stadiums and indoor arenas, with historic concerts at Shea Stadium in New York and the Hollywood Bowl. Typically of the era, the tour was a "package" presentation, with several artists on the bill. The Beatles played for just 30 minutes at each show, following sets by support acts such as Brenda Holloway and the King Curtis Band, Cannibal & the Headhunters, and Sounds Incorporated.

Sir James Paul McCartney is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One of the most successful composers and performers of all time, McCartney is known for his melodic approach to bass-playing, versatile and wide tenor vocal range, and musical eclecticism, exploring genres ranging from pre–rock and roll pop to classical, ballads, and electronica. His songwriting partnership with Lennon remains the most successful in history.

During 1965, the Beatles toured Europe.

The Roy Orbison/The Beatles Tour was a 1963 concert tour of the United Kingdom by Roy Orbison and the Beatles. Other acts on the tour included Gerry and the Pacemakers, David MacBeth, Louise Cordet, Tony Marsh, Terry Young Six, Erkey Grant, and Ian Crawford. It was Orbison's first, and the Beatles' third nationwide tour of the UK. Although Orbison was originally intended to be the headlining act, the reaction to the Beatles on the tour caused them to be promoted to co-headliners, with the Beatles closing the set in the traditional headlining spot.

• 1 2 3 Lewisohn 1996 , p.   98.
• ↑ Lewisohn 1996 , p.   101.
• ↑ The Beatles 2000 , p.   89.
• ↑ Lewisohn 1996 , pp.   361–365.
• 1 2 Lewisohn 1996 , pp.   98–102.
• ↑ Babiuk 2002 , p.   81.
• 1 2 Babiuk 2002 , p.   72.
• 1 2 Babiuk 2002 , p.   67.
• ↑ Babiuk 2002 , p.   64.
• ↑ Babiuk 2002 , p.   53.
• ↑ Babiuk 2002 , p.   70.
• The Beatles (2000). The Beatles Anthology . San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN   0-8118-2684-8 .
• Babiuk, Andy (2002). Beatles Gear . San Francisco: Backbeat Books . ISBN   0-87930-731-5 .
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• " From Me to You "
• " Thank You Girl "
• " How Do You Do It? "
• " Tip of My Tongue "
• " Hold Me Tight "
• " Bésame Mucho "
• " One After 909 "
• " What Goes On "
• Twist and Shout
• The Beatles (No. 1)
• Souvenir of Their Visit to America
• Introducing... The Beatles
• The Early Beatles
• Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour
• 1963 Tour with Roy Orbison
• The Beatles discography
• Please Please Me
• With the Beatles
• A Hard Day's Night
• Beatles for Sale
• Rubber Soul
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
• Magical Mystery Tour
• The Beatles (White Album)
• Yellow Submarine

Spring 1963 Tommy Roe / Chris Montez Tour

Winter 1963 Helen Shapiro Tour

Spring 1963 UK Tour

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Last updated on March 13, 2023

21 concerts • 1 country

United Kingdom • Leicester • De Montfort Hall

Mar 31, 1963

United Kingdom • Portsmouth • Guildhall

Mar 30, 1963

United Kingdom • Lewisham • Odeon Cinema

Mar 29, 1963

United Kingdom • Exeter • ABC Cinema

Mar 28, 1963

United Kingdom • Northampton • ABC Cinema

Mar 27, 1963

United Kingdom • Mansfield • Granada Cinema

Mar 26, 1963

United Kingdom • Liverpool • Empire Theatre

Mar 24, 1963

United Kingdom • Newcastle upon Tyne • Newcastle City Hall

Mar 23, 1963

United Kingdom • Doncaster • Gaumont Cinema

Mar 22, 1963

United Kingdom • Croydon • ABC Cinema

Mar 21, 1963

United Kingdom • Romford • ABC Cinema

Mar 20, 1963

United Kingdom • Cambridge • Regal Cinema

Mar 19, 1963

United Kingdom • Gloucester • Regal Cinema

Mar 18, 1963

United Kingdom • Peterborough • Embassy Cinema

Mar 17, 1963

United Kingdom • Sheffield • Sheffield City Hall

Mar 16, 1963

United Kingdom • Bristol • Colston Hall

Mar 15, 1963

United Kingdom • Wolverhampton • Gaumont Cinema

Mar 14, 1963

United Kingdom • York • Rialto Theatre

Mar 13, 1963

United Kingdom • Bedford • Granada Cinema

Mar 12, 1963

United Kingdom • Birmingham • Hippodrome

Mar 10, 1963

United Kingdom • East Ham • Granada Cinema

Mar 09, 1963

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First concert I ever attended and still have the original ticket.

Hi Tony, that is awesome - I would be delighted if you would be keen to send a picture of the original ticket ! All the best.

I can remember seeing the billboard at the Granada Cinema in Harrow for this tour, it is not on this list am I wrong or has this been missed off the list?

As an 17 year old student studying to be a Surveyor at the South West Technical College at Walthamstow one of my fellow students had a pair of tickets to see Tommy Roe, Chris Montez and the Beatles on the 9th March 1963 at the Granada Cinema at nearby East Ham. When l phoned Kaye my girlfriend she was ecstatic and we both attended a great concert that evening That concert stayed in my heart and soul being a great fan of all three, Moving on to December1988 whilst flying on Concorde from London to Barbados my then Norwegian wife Sylvi and L were sat directly across the gangway to Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach, and engaged in conversation the entire flight as they, like ourselves were going on to Mustique. We were going to stay with our friend Basil Charles the owner of Basils Bar Mustique as we had booked the bar on the 6th and 7th January 1989 for an overnight celebration of my wife's 40th birthday party attended also by Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall. Mick and l shared a mutual ltalian architect Mario Spinella who designed my villa on nearby St Vincent as well as Micks. Also attending was our good friend Sir Frederick (Freddy) Ballantyne the Governor General of SVG

WOW, what amazing stories, thanks for sharing those, Roger !

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The Beatles live: Odeon Cinema, Cheltenham

The Beatles’ fourth British tour of 1963 opened on this evening with a performance at the Odeon Cinema in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

This was the group’s first series of concerts as unchallenged headliners. The Beatles topped a bill featuring five other acts: The Rhythm & Blues Quartet, The Vernons Girls, The Brook Brothers, Peter Jay & The Jaywalkers, and The Kestrels. The compere on the tour dates was Frank Berry.

The following day a report in the Daily Mirror newspaper carried the headline: “Beatlemania! It’s happening everywhere.. even in sedate Cheltenham”. This is believed to be the first use of the word in print; by the end of the year it would be widely used.

The Beatles played 10 songs on this and every date of the autumn tour. The setlist was: ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ , ‘From Me To You’ , ‘All My Loving’ , ‘You Really Got A Hold On Me’ , ‘Roll Over Beethoven’ , ‘Boys’ , ‘Till There Was You’ , ‘She Loves You’ , ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’ , and ‘Twist And Shout’ .

This was The Beatles’ only concert in Cheltenham.

Also on this day...

• 2023: Paul McCartney live: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
• 2018: Paul McCartney live: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo
• 2017: Paul McCartney reveals photo inspiration for Lady Madonna
• 2010: Steinway announces John Lennon grand piano
• 2010: Paul McCartney and Wings’ Band On The Run is reissued
• 2005: Paul McCartney live: Pepsi Center, Denver
• 2004: Album release: Acoustic by John Lennon
• 1975: Wings live: Perth Entertainment Centre, Perth
• 1968: George Harrison produces Is This What You Want? by Jackie Lomax
• 1968: UK album release: Wonderwall Music by George Harrison
• 1967: Recording, mixing, editing: Untitled Sound Effects, Hello, Goodbye, The Fool On The Hill
• 1967: Mixing: All You Need Is Love, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
• 1965: Television: The Music Of Lennon & McCartney
• 1964: The Beatles live: Astoria Cinema, Finsbury Park, London
• 1963: UK EP release: The Beatles No. 1
• 1962: The Beatles live: Star-Club, Hamburg
• 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (evening)
• 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (lunchtime)
• 1960: Bruno Koschmider terminates The Beatles’ Kaiserkeller contract
• 1960: The Beatles live: Kaiserkeller, Hamburg

Want more? Visit the Beatles history section .

Latest Comments

I was at Cheltenham Beatle concert 1963 and i am the one returning to my seat on the balcony as i remember the guy filming with handwind ciny.camera The fire Dept were inside pointing their hoses at the screaming audience incase they got out of hand .John stopped the music and shouted “if you stop Fing screaming we have some good songs ” The balcony we were on was shaking with people jumping up and down .Crazy times

The interviewer is Gianni (Paul says at 0:25) Bisiach, italian journalist , that you can see ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi1Q28ztaJI ) when he speaks precisely of this interview to the Beatles.

I was up there on the balcony too. Bunked off from school (Pate’s Grammar School for Girls) to buy the tickets the day they went on sale. But well worth the punishment. What a night! Still etched in my memory as vivid as if it were yesterday and at my age….! The screaming was terrific and yes, sometimes it was difficult to hear the songs. Mortified to find my father waiting across Winchcombe Street when we came out to walk me safely home. Now, with children of my own, I fully understand why he was there. Bless him. 1st November 1963 – one of the days of my life.

Forgive the question, Cynthia, do you remember if it was a rainy day?

Sadly, the venue was demolished in 2014. Another one bit the dust 🙁

The word’ Beatlemania’ appeared in print before this date: on the front page of the Newcastle Evening Chronicle, Friday 25 October 1963.

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