Springsteen Archives Plan Symposium To Celebrate 60th Anniversary of The Beatles Coming to America
PHOTO: The Beatles step off the plane in New York saying hello to America for the first time.
The Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University in West Long Branch will celebrate the 60th Anniversary of The Beatles coming to America on February 3. “Get Back…To 1964” will be a day-long event with panels, interviews, book signings and live interpretations of Beatle songs.
Authors Ken Womack (Living The Beatles Legend) and Bruce Spizer (The Beatles Please Please Me) will participate as will SiriusXM radio personalities Dennis Elsas and Tom Frangione plus musician Jim Babjak of The Smithereens (from Carteret in Middlesex County).
Archives Executive Director Robert Santelli: “The arrival of The Beatles in February 1964 profoundly changed the course of American music. They inspired musicians here from New York to San Francisco and brought to rock’n’roll brand new ideas as to how the music could be made.”
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This reporter got swept along with the tide of his generation after seeing The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. At the time, they only had one song on the radio, “I Want To Hold Your Hand.” I distinctly remember not being able to sleep because I was so excited—at 13—the night before their televised stateside debut wondering “what will they look like?” Millions of other American kids wondered the same thing. Once that explosion rocked living rooms across the country, sales of musical instruments ascended and we all wanted to form bands. And did.
Archives Director Eileen Chapman: “The Beatles transformed American music, fashion and culture. Their mop-top hair styles, Beatle boots and mod clothing became an overnight obsession in the 1960s. They encouraged the younger generation to take a deeper look at what was happening in the world.”
Their arrival was like a soothing balm after a traumatized nation lost its beloved president to assassination just months earlier. They even made my mom and grandparents smile, although my grandpa said, “what kind of music is this? They should get haircuts!”
The $64 tickets can be bought here.
Further info can be found here.