The Beatles Come to America

When did the Beatles first appear on television in the United States? Most would say February 9, 1964, on the Ed Sullivan Show. But that's wrong! That was their first live performance, but not their first appearance. Their first musical performance on American television came on the Jack Paar Show--in a filmed clip, during which this late-night talk show host mocked them and their British fans--on January 3, 1964:



What a difference three years make! Here are the Beatles performing "Hello Goodbye" in a filmed performance, shown on the Ed Sullivan Show in early 1967:

Get Ready for Beatles Day in the State of Washington

I wonder if any other states have an official Beatles Day:

The anniversary of the Beatles legendary rooftop concert will be celebrated this Friday January 29, 2010, with former U.S. manager of Apple Records, Ken Mansfield, and Beatles cover band Crème Tangerine at Pike Place Market in Seattle at Pike Place Market.

In 2009, Crème Tangerine gave a blockbuster performance as thousands of fans filled the streets of Pike Place Market during their lunch hour. Seattle fans were the only city in the world to experience an actual rooftop tribute in honor of the 40th anniversary, which was January 30, 1969.

This year’s performance will be at the same place, on the rooftop balcony of the Copacabana Café in the Pike Place Market in Seattle at noon. They will perform the songs from that famous concert, such as “Get Back”, and John Lennon’s “Don’t Let Me Down”, and “One After 909.”

Here's my favorite snippet from the original concert, John forgetting the words to "Don't Let Me Down" (at 2:20):



Very tasty electric piano by Billy Preston throughout.

How the Beatles Knocked Down the Iron Curtain

I told this story in the Epilogue of my book, The Long and Winding Road from Blake to the Beatles, so it's nice to see the Beatles' role in ending communist rule in Russia getting broader play in a new documentary that recently aired in Canada:



The filmmaker, Leslie Woodhead, shot the famous Cavern Club footage of the Beatles performing "Some Other Guy" in 1962:

The Beatles Video Blog!

Great collection of video treasures here, including this gem:



From the February 11, 1964 concert at the Washington Coliseum--the Beatles at their rockin' finest. Watch this, and you know what all the excitement was about.