The British Invasion

This year in February marks the 50th anniversary of The British Invasion! The British Invasion was a phenomenon that took place in the mid 1960s. It was a time when America had opened its doors to British music talent and culture. Bands like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Dave Clark Five, and much more were part of the spreading of british life style and music. "It was a sweet surrender, as millions of kids (and not few adults) succumbed to the sound of guitar- weilding, mop-topped redcoats playing rock and roll that was fresh, exotically foreign, and full of the vitality of a new age in the making." -Rolling Stone. It's no secret that the Beatles were most responsible for this music phenomenon. It began with the Beatles releasing their first U.S. single, "Please Please Me" and in the same year an outburst of enthusiasm for the Beatles in England and the U.S. marked the beginning of Beatlemania. On January 25th "I Want to Hold Your Hand" appeared on the Billboard's Top Forty chart and on February 7th the band came to America. Soon the boys of America dreamed of musical fame and the girls fell head over heals in love with the Beatles members.

On February 9th The Beatles make an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show and atracted an estimated audience of 70 million viewers. The biggest turnout in history. After that "I Want to Hold Your Hand" topped the singles charts for seven weeks and by March the Beatles first album for Capitol Records , "Meet the Beatles", had shipped 3.6 million copies making it the largest selling LP in history. Also, breaking Elvis's record, "Can't Buy Me Love" was the third consecutive Beatles single to top the charts. In the first week of April the Beatles occupied twelve spots Top 100 and EVERY spot in Top 5. Merchandise "from lunchboxes to dolls" accounted for an estimated $50 million in retail business in just 1964 alone and the Beatles became the leading cultural export in Britain.

The biggest competition for the Beatles was the Dave Clark Five from London's northern suburb f Tottenham. They were a poor second to the Beatles, but they took seventeen spots in the Top Forty Chart between 1964-1967 (more than any other british band during those years.)DC5's single "Gland All Over" moved "I Want to Hold Your Hand" from it's spot at the top of the British charts and by the end of the 60s they had sold 70 million records world wide. DC5 was assumed to be "neck and neck" with the Beatles, but they couldn't keep up with the transitition of pop stars to poetry like the Beatles. DC5 was a sigles band and one of the best dance bands.

The Rolling Stones remain the most "tangible" link to the British Invasion. They brought the raunch back into rock and roll and made parents a little uneasy. The Stones didn't approach smiling and with manners like the Beatles. They were a little late to the invasion because it wasn't until 1965 they popped up in the U.S. They had a few spots on the Top Ten list with "Time is On My Side" and "The Last Time". They brought down the house with "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" which remains one of the most popular Rolling Stones songs. Then, soon ater the Stones released hits "Get Off My Cloud", "19th Century Breakdown" and "Paint it Black". The Beatles were the exact opposite of the Beatles. They were angry and edgy.

The Beatles still reigned in the second half of he 60s, but it was apparent that the British Invasion ran it's course by 1967. It may have ended, but it will forever be marked as an important time in history that inspired true rock and roll and exposed it to not only the U.S. but the whole world.

Source: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/the-british-invasion-from-the-beatles-to-the-stones-the-sixties-belonged-to-britain-19880714