ROCK’S IN MY HEAD:Chapter 9-The British Invasion

The first wave of the BRITISH INVASION: The arrival of THE BEATLES.

What ELVIS did for our older brothers and sisters, a newer group did it for us younger folks. The Beatles on Ed Sullivan changed everything.

Ask anyone who remembers seeing/hearing/experiencing “it”. Overnight the vocal groups, the Doo Wop street corner guys, the girl groups, the lounge acts, virtually disappeared as they were no longer en vogue.

From that fateful February Sunday evening, we, the youngsters of ‘64 had The British Invasion groups bombarding our radio airwaves and appearing on all the variety shows, whether their hosts wanted the bands or not. Teens, mostly those who had little if any understanding of ELVIS, had something to stick “our” teeth into. Within a few weeks, The Beatles three appearances on The Sullivan Show had changed the course of our world. No longer were “we” revolving around the Sun (records) but rather on a NEW path, a new orbit, one we had chosen and that orbit was The Fab Four.

As the weeks progressed we discovered other “planets”; The Rolling Stones (on The Hollywood Palace), The Animals, The KinKs and more, oh, so much more.  Radio playlists changed immediately as The Beatles and those other BRITISH INVADERS took over the POP charts.

Some say it was the Assassination of our beloved President JOHN FITZGERALD KENNEDY which surrounded the Nation in a national funk that somehow brought THE BEATLES to stardom in the U.S.

Some say we needed an escape, a diversion, and these four lads from Liverpool were the escape. Yet, I’m not buying it. My reasoning is simple. First,we, the American record buying public came many months late to the BEATLES party, having not accepted their first few records, these same records which were huge hits across the pond.

Secondly, the time was ripe for a new (television) hero for the “youngsters” as Ed Sullivan would call us. The biggest show on TV at that time was the BEVERLY HILLBILLIES, a preposterous show which made a ratings killing week after week, and that show having their biggest week just prior to The Beatles first appearance. Americans were enamored with television. And Ed Sullivan was considered a religious experience every Sunday night. Like Sunday morning mass in a Catholic household, one couldn’t miss Sullivan on Sunday nights, it would be sinful.

So here goes my thesis:

Prior to Sullivan (one year before) The BEATLES had 3 releases in States, all which were misses, that is NO HITS, no charting…zero.

Those records were

PLEASE PLEASE ME- February 1963(VEEJAY RECORDS)

FROM ME TO YOU-May 1963(VEEJAY RECORDS)

SHE LOVES YOU-September 1963(SWAN RECORDS)which had limited if any airplay.

In early November 1963 after Sullivan witnessed the impact of the lads in their home turf England, and how their audiences responded, BRIAN EPSTEIN,The BEATLES manager, persuades Mr. Sunday Night Television ED SULLIVAN to have THE BEATLES do three consecutive weekly performance on Sullivan’s top rated American CBS television show.

Never before had any act accomplished three consecutive appearance on Sullivan, let alone an “unknown” act. CAPITOL RECORDS (US) smelling something good is happening picks up the BEATLES EMI option just as The CBS Morning News (Sullivan’s network) aired a segment on BEATLEMANIA, the morning of November 22, 1963, which they have ready to repeat it on their nationally syndicated CBS NIGHTLY NEWS.

However, regular programming was cancelled as JFK was assassinated that day and THE BEATLES piece did NOT air that evening.

THE BEATLES and their manager become very anxious as they await their coming to America in a few months for three consecutive weeks no less without a hit record. This could mean a disaster for the band. Some in The Beatles camp and a few others considered canceling their performances.

The BEATLEMANIA segment was finally re-broadcast on CBS NIGHTLY NEWS the evening of December 10, 1963. Immediately airplay for THE BEATLES was requested on radio stations across the nation and CAPITOL RECORDS rushed out I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND, the boys newest single on December 26, 1963. That record sold one million copies in the first ten days, selling with one and a half million copies by three weeks time,  AND….just in time for the SULLIVAN appearance.

THE BEATLES have the Number 1 hit in the land AND are appearing on one of the top rated television shows, for three consecutive weeks. BEATLEMANIA has arrived.

April 5,1964 BILLBOARD Magazine

#1: Can’t Buy Me Love (jumped 27 spots):THE BEATLES

#2: Twist And Shout:THE BEATLES

#3:She Loves You:THE BEATLES

#4:I Want To Hold Your Hand:THE BEATLES

#5:Please Please Me:THE BEATLES

See you next time…..Chapter 10:THE BRITISH ARE COMING 1964-1966 . Comments? jazzbus@gmail.com

ROCK’S IN MY HEAD:Chapter 8-Before The Beatles

Previously, I discussed THE MELTING POT of our democracy and the cultural impact it had on the development of American music . We also touched upon the technological advances specifically the birth of the radio networks which in time broadcasted this “American Music” to the masses.

Following up on that let’s look at how the radio and television championed rock music, at least for me it did. I mentioned how in 1964 my black and white single speaker television became stereophonic and in living color. This happened metaphorically as my TV didn’t change but what it showed changed my life.

It started with the BEATLES February of 1964 on Ed Sullivan and then other shows like Shindig, Hullabaloo, Where The Action Is, American Bandstand, Upbeat, Lloyd Thaxton, Clay Cole,  and acts such as The Shindogs (aka The Wrecking Crew), The Blossoms, The Animals, James Brown, Roy Head, The Yardbirds, the Zombies, and The Kinks all changed my world.

BEFORE THE BEATLES

What was life like in America for a preteen (age 12)  BEFORE THE BEATLES? Besides reading for enjoyment there was AM radio, television (with few channels and limited hours of broadcasting) and of course the movies.The television shows of the Fifties mostly depicted the American family as a cohesive (white) unit consisting of a stay at home Mom (always in a dress) accompanied by the head of the household Dad (usually in a tie) who was employed with a non-descript job, and they the parents having two or three kids while happily living in Suburbia aka/ Cul-de -sac America, the place where the kids rode bikes everywhere and never having to lock the bike up, sorta like cowboys of yore slinging a rope to secure their horse knowing the horse would not be stolen. Or the shows featured urban couples without children.

I LOVE LUCY was the most popular show of the day. Here we find The Ricardo’s (the tenants) interacting with The Mertz’s (the landlords) both childless urban apartment dwelling couples. (Lil Ricky was added later) Also, there was FATHER KNOWS BEST a more traditional Mom, Dad, with siblings show, followed by the ever popular Ward and June aka THE CLEAVERS of Leave It To Beaver fame and of course The Honeymooners, again another childless urban dwellers. Rounding television viewing out would be the numerous cowboy shows, and there were many of that genre.

The radio hits I distinctly remember from the fifties were: How High The Moon(Mom and Dad’s favorite Les Paul song),(HOW MUCH IS) THAT DOGGIE IN THE WINDOW, MR. SANDMAN, followed  by  Elvis, Elvis, Elvis  in 1956-58.  Throw in a little Everly Brothers WAKE UP LIL’ SUSIE, Sam Cooke’s YOU SEND ME and who could forget THE PURPLE PEOPLE EATER (1958) and that’s the radio I remember at about 6 years of age.

In 1959 the tunes I remember most were Johnny Horton’s BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS, Bobby Darin MACK THE KNIFE, Lloyd Price MR.PERSONALITY and STAGGER LEE, VENUS by Frankie Avalon,DREAM LOVER by Bobby Darin, and Santo & Johnny’s SLEEP WALK. But as years went on I heard Elvis, Buddy, Fats and Chuck with plenty of DoWop/Blues/ Race Records and of course those lily white artists who were SURFIN’ the USA ,The Beach Boys. Many dance records were played such as THE TWIST, LET’S TWIST AGAIN, MONKEY TIME, THE MASHED POTATO, and The MONSTER MASH. Occasionally one could hear a protest tune or drug referenced song like Puff The Magic Dragon. And most of these hit record recording artists could be seen on television every afternoon for the 1/2 hour show on AMERICAN BANDSTAND.

The movies of the day were CLEOPATRA  with the ever popular and beautiful Elizabeth Taylor, BYE BYE BIRDIE, SOME LIKE IT HOT,and the epic BEN HUR which I saw at RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL.

Alaska was admitted to The Union as the 49th State, followed by HAWAII as the 50th, so new flags were going up everywhere (July 4,1960). And I remember something about Fidel Castro coming to power in CUBA. The MERCURY SEVEN astronauts were announced with a big spread in LIFE magazine. And my folks discussed the value of electing a Catholic as President after viewing on television (Sept 26) for the very first time a live  Presidential Debate between RICHARD NIXON and JOHN KENNEDY.

In November of 1960 the American people elected JOHN  FITZGERALD KENNEDY as the 35th President of THE UNITED STATES.

 

For the next two years the news is filled with stories about racial inequalities, a Russian/ US Space Race, The Cold War, and this place called Vietnam. There was the construction of the BERLIN WALL , weather satellites, a U-2 spy plane being shot down over Russia, Alan Shepard becomes an American hero going into space, and THE BAY OF PIGS invasion which lead to the CUBAN MISSLE CRISIS standoff. James Meredith becomes the first African-American to enroll at the University of Mississippi.

And my radio kept on playing:

1961: I FALL TO PIECES- Patsy Cline, RUNAWAY- Del Shannon, CRYING- Roy Orbison, RUNAROUND SUE- Dion, as well as THE BRISTOL STOMP, QUARTER TO THREE, MAMA SAID, and hits by The Shirelles, The Miracles, Ricky Nelson, Ben E. King, and the ever classic BLUE MOON by The Marcels.

1962: MASHED POTATO TIME- Dee Dee Sharp, THE STRIPPER- David Rose, JOHNNY ANGEL- Shelley Fabres,THE LOCO-MOTION- Little Eva, SOLDIER BOY- The Shirelles, DUKE OF EARL- Gene Chandler, and THE TWIST by Chubby Checker, followed by TWISTIN’ THE NIGHT AWAY by Sam Cooke and The PEPPERMINT TWIST by Joey Dee and The Starlighters (the first album I ever bought).

1963:SUGAR SHACK (one of the first singles I ever bought at WT Grants)- Jimmie Gilmore and The Fireballs, HE’S SO FINE- The Chiffons, MY BOYFRIEND’S Back- The Angels, HEAT WAVE- Martha and The Vandellas, FINGERTIPS- Little Stevie Wonder, BE MY BABY- The Ronettes, and two “strange” records PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON and BLOWIN’ IN THE WIND by Peter, Paul and Mary.

August 28, 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his “I HAVE A DREAM” speech

November 1963- President John F. Kennedy is assassinated.

Locally, the NY Typographical Union walked out shutting down the NY Daily News, the New York Journal -American, the New York Times, the New York World- Telegram & Sun, the New York Daily Mirror, the New York Herald Tribune, the New York Post, the Long Island Sun Journal and the Long Island Daily Press.

Subsequently WABC- FM radio adopted an all news format to keep the folks informed during this strike. Overall, a total of $100 million in advertising and circulation were lost. After the strike some papers doubled their daily rates which affected their readership, others slowly closed shops because some readers never came back from the 114 days hiatus until November 1963 with the assassination of JFK.

This was my life “before The Beatles”.

See you next time… Chapter 9:THE BRITISH INVASION . Comments? jazzbus@gmail.com