Beatlemania!

Today marks fifty years since the release of the Beatles' debut single Love Me Do.  It's hard for those not around at the time to imagine just what an impact the Beatles had on young people once they'd broken through with their early 1963 singles.  The levels of complete hysteria that they induced when playing live or even just being spotted are almost unbelievable; teenagers screaming, crying and fainting at the very sight of their heroes.

At last Sunday's car boot sale I bought a copy of The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl (£5) and was able to get a real sense of the madness that could surround them.

The Beatles - At the Hollywood Bowl (1977)

Released in 1977 to serve the as-yet unsatisfied hunger for a Beatles live recording (bootlegs aside), this LP was painstaking put together by George Martin and engineer Geoff Emerik from recordings made at LA's Hollywood Bowl in 1964 and 1965.  As George says in the sleeve notes, the sound itself is unimpressive due the poor quality of the recordings, but the tapes still managed to capture the "electric atmosphere and raw energy" given off from the band playing live at the height of Beatlemania.

Oh the screaming!  Although the band didn't have on-stage monitors with which to hear themselves, I doubt it would have made much difference.  The sheer volume and incessance of the thousands of screaming fans is incredible; they couldn't have heard a note the boys made!

The album features thirteen songs including Twist & Shout, Dizzy Miss Lizzy, She Loves You, Can't Buy Me Love and Ticket To Ride.

Here's some amateur footage from the 1964 concert - to say that the excitement is palpable would be an understatement; just take a look at the shots of the crowd.