Remember When: The Beatles Advanced the Outdoor Concert with Their 1964 Hollywood
On August 23, 1964, The Beatles performed for the first time at the Hollywood Bowl. With that legendary performance, they unwittingly advanced the now-familiar outdoor concert. A gig John Lennon called “marvelous.”
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Martin Lewis, a renowned Beatles historian, told Variety the 1964 Hollywood Bowl show was the first of three concerts The Beatles performed at the venue. The following year, they played two more. “Obviously it not only was a big deal for The Beatles, but I think it really kicked off the outdoor rock concert. By the next year, it was stadiums and beyond,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lewis examined the period leading up to their debut at the Hollywood Bowl. He views The Beatles’ rising popularity in the United States as a pre-internet version of going viral. Said Lewis, “On Christmas Day ’63, no one had heard of them. But from then till February 9th (of 1964), in those 45 days, they’d become the biggest thing ever.” A reported 73 million people watched The Beatles perform on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Tickets for the first show went on sale in April 1964 and sold out in less than four hours. Because fans had to purchase tickets in person, hundreds camped on Highland Avenue in Los Angeles. The line of fans stretched nearly a mile, close to Hollywood Boulevard.
Like most concerts during Beatlemania, chaos ensued during the gig. The frenzied crowd of 18,700 screamed louder than the band’s amplifiers, making it hard to hear John, Paul, George, and Ringo perform.
Source: Thom Donovan/americansongwriter.com
