60 years ago on 7th February 1964, The Beatles landed at JFK Airport in New York, USA. Their arrival signalled the beginning of a new era in American culture as the British Invasion began to captivate American teens, and Beatlemania was born. Throughout the whole of February 2024, we’re celebrating 60 years since The Beatles made it big in the US with first hand personal accounts and opportunities for you to get involved.
‘The Beatles in the USA’ exhibit at The Beatles Story Museum, Liverpool, perfectly captures this time in history – with elaborate sets that transport you back in time, and fascinating pieces of original memorabilia from days gone by. Read more…
Click to read Exhibit Spotlight: The Beatles in the USA
Explore our timeline below of key events during The Beatles’ time in the USA in 1964, complete with links to personal accounts.
Timeline of The Beatles in the USA, 1964.
10th January 1964 – The Beatles release their first US album ‘Introducing… The Beatles.’
18th January 1964 – The Beatles made their US chart debut when ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ entered the chart at No.45 just ten days after its release, making it the fastest-breaking and the fastest selling single in Capitol Records history.
Merle Frimark, who heads her own international marketing and public relations company based in New York, began her career as a teen working in The Beatles’ New York office. From first hearing ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ and the rise of Beatlemania, to the beginning of her career alongside The Beatles – discover Merle’s story here.
Click to read Beatlemania: 60 Years Since They Landed In the USA, a Look Back by Merle Frimark
20th January 1964 – Meet The Beatles!, the band’s second album release in the USA, was released.
25th January 1964 – The Beatles scored their first No.1 in the US when ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ reached the top of the Cash Box Magazine music chart. The Fab Four would eventually achieve 25 No.1s in America.
27th January 1964 – Credited to The Beatles with Tony Sheridan, the single ‘My Bonnie’/‘The Saints’ was re-released in America to capitalise on The Beatles’ growing fame.
7th February 1964 – The Beatles land in America. The band disembarking from a Pan Am Boeing 707 at the recently renamed John F. Kennedy airport, and were greeted by thousands of American fans.
9th February 1964 – The Beatles appeared live on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time. This broadcast broke records at the time with 73 million people tuning in, marking a seminal moment in television history.
Jeff Thelen, Beatles collector and lender to The Beatles Story, details in his guest blog how the band’s Ed Sullivan Show appearance and subsequent British Invasion shaped his life. To read Jeff’s account and delve into the stories of his memorabilia on display at The Beatles Story Museum, Liverpool, click here.
Click to read My Beatles Collection by Jeff Thelen
11th February 1964 – The Beatles made their live concert debut in the USA at the Washington Coliseum. The set list was ‘Roll Over Beethoven’, ‘From Me to You’, ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, ‘This Boy’, ‘All My Loving’, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, ‘Please Please Me’, ‘She Loves You’, ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’, ‘Twist and Shout’, and ‘Long Tall Sally.’
12th February 1964 – The Beatles returned to New York City by train from Washington, D.C. for two performances at Carnegie Hall. Extra seating was arranged around the stage due to excess demand. Tickets ranged from $1.65 to $5.50.
16th February 1964 – The Beatles appear live on The Ed Sullivan Show for the second time.
23rd February 1964 – The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show for the third time. This appearance was pre-recorded before the first live show on the 9th January.
23rd March 1964 – ‘Souvenir of Their Visit to America’ was released in the US.
10th April 1964 – The Beatles’ third US album release, and the second of their Capitol records albums, was called ‘The Beatles’ Second Album’ and was released in the USA on 10th April 1964.
26th June 1964 – A Hard Day’s Night was released in the USA – this was the band’s fourth album release in the United States.
19th August 1964 – The Beatles begin their first North American tour in Daly City.
11th September 1964 – The Beatles play at the Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville to an unsegregated audience.
Dr. Kitty Oliver is a US author, TV and radio producer, scholar and oral historian on Race and Change experiences internationally. Discover her first hand account of the Gator Bowl concert here.
Click to read The Beatles, Race and Segregation by Dr Kitty Oliver.
20th September 1964 – The Beatles complete their first North American tour at the Paramount Theater in New York City.
How can you get involved?
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of The Beatles landing in America in 1964, in The Discovery Zone you’ll find colouring-in pages, inspired by the original 1960s Official Beatles Colouring Book on display in our museum. The book was created in America at the height of Beatlemania, so come down and imagine you’re living in America in the 1960s when The Beatles visited, and colour in the pages for yourself like young fans did back then!