Music History

Ricky Nelson began his concert career with a performance at Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Over two days, his concerts set an attendance record for the venue, drawing 44,221 people. His fee was $10,000, and the opening acts were comedian Henny Youngman and The Four Preps.

The Quarry Men, consisting of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ken Brown, performed in front of approximately 300 teenagers at the grand opening of the Casbah Coffee Club in the basement of Mona Best's house in Liverpool. It was the first of seven consecutive Saturdays on which The Quarry Men performed there. The group still had no drummer and used a single microphone connected to a home sound system. Pete Best did not play that night, but the performance brought him into the band's inner circle, and exactly one year later he became the group's permanent drummer. The group was supposed to receive 15 shillings for each performance.

Cobo Arena, with a capacity of 12,000, opened in Detroit. It later became a major venue for concerts and live album recordings, hosting artists including Kiss, J. Geils Band and Bob Seger.

The Beatles performed under this name for the first time at the Indra Club on Grosse Freiheit in Hamburg. It was the first of a total of 48 nights during their first Hamburg engagement. Club owner Bruno Koschmider demanded “Mach Shau”, meaning a proper show, which led to their wild stage performances.

The Beatles gave their first public performance at the Indra club in Hamburg.

The Beatles performed at the Cavern Club in Liverpool in the afternoon and then played on the riverboat M.V. Royal Iris on the River Mersey as the support act for Acker Bilk and his Paramount Jazz Band. It was one of four “riverboat shuffles” in which the group participated.

The Rolling Stones played the first of 22 consecutive weekly shows at the Ealing Jazz Club in London. During this period, they performed under the name The Rollin' Stones.

After being informed of his dismissal, Brian Epstein asked Pete Best to perform with The Beatles that evening at the Riverpark Ballroom in Chester. Best did not appear, and Johnny Hutchinson of The Big Three temporarily replaced him.

Ringo Starr performed with The Beatles for the first time at a dance at the Horticultural Society in Hulme Hall in Port Sunlight, Birkenhead, England, following a two-hour rehearsal. It was the first performance by the Beatles lineup of John, Paul, George and Ringo, two days after their previous drummer Pete Best was dismissed.

The Beatles played their first official concert with new drummer Ringo Starr at the Cavern Club in Liverpool after Pete Best was dismissed.

Ringo Starr performed with The Beatles for the first time as their new drummer at the Horticultural Society Dance in Birkenhead, England.

The Beatles performed at lunchtime at the Cavern Club in Liverpool and in the evening at the Riverpark Ballroom in Chester with Gerry & the Pacemakers.

The Beatles played their final concert at Liverpool’s Cavern Club. They had previously performed at the club 292 times. Tickets sold out within 30 minutes, and manager Brian Epstein limited attendance to 500 for safety reasons.

The Beatles performed at the Queen's Theatre in Blackpool. Because of the crowds of fans, they had to enter the theater through a construction site, climb scaffolding onto the roof, and were then lowered through an opening in the roof.

The Beatles arrived on the island of Guernsey, where they performed two concerts at Candie Gardens. They flew there from Jersey in a twelve-seat aircraft and were to receive £1,000 for both concerts.

Acker Bilk, Chris Barber, Ronnie Ross, Cyril Davies, Long John Baldry and The Rolling Stones performed at the third Richmond Jazz Festival in Richmond, England. The festival took place over two days, and a weekend ticket cost 20 shillings.

The Rolling Stones performed at the 3rd National Jazz Festival in Richmond, Surrey. The festival's headliners were Mr. Acker Bilk And His Paramount Jazz Band.

The duo The Louvin Brothers, consisting of brothers Ira Lonnie and Charlie Elzer Loudermilk, performed together for the last time. Both then began solo careers.

Peter, Paul and Mary sang “Blowin’ in the Wind” to participants in the civil rights march in Washington, D.C., who had gathered to hear Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech.

Peter, Paul and Mary performed “Blowin' in the Wind” for participants in the March on Washington for civil rights, who had gathered to hear Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Before his speech, they performed their hit version of Bob Dylan’s “Blowin' in the Wind”. The same program also featured Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Mahalia Jackson, Marian Anderson, and Odetta, who performed in support of equal rights.

The Beatles performed at the Gaumont Cinema in Bournemouth on August 2, 1964. One of the supporting acts was The Kinks, then still described as a “new and unknown London group.”

The Rolling Stones, Ronnie Scott, Tubby Hayes, Manfred Mann, The Yardbirds a Mose Allison vystoupili na čtvrtém ročníku Richmond Jazz Festivalu v anglickém Richmondu.

The Rolling Stones performed at the New Elizabeth Ballroom at Belle Vue in Manchester. Two police officers fainted and another was taken to hospital with broken ribs while trying to control more than 3,000 screaming teenagers.

Bob Dylan and Joan Baez performed together on stage for the first time, singing “With God On Our Side” at the Newport Folk Festival.

The High Numbers, later known as The Who, performed at the Railway Hotel in Harrow, England. Just before the show, a fight took place outside the hotel in which singer Roger Daltrey was attacked by a relative. Daltrey returned to the stage after the incident and the band began playing.

The Beatles flew from London to San Francisco with brief stops in Winnipeg and Los Angeles to begin their first full US concert tour. The first concert was scheduled for the following day at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, and they were accompanied by The Righteous Brothers, The Exciters, Jackie DeShannon and Bill Black's Combo. More than 9,000 fans were waiting for them when they arrived in San Francisco, and the protective barriers gave way under the pressure of the crowd. The group escaped only seconds before the barriers collapsed.

The Beatles began their first North American tour at Cow Palace in San Francisco before an audience of 17,130. This took place more than six months after their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, and the tour was scheduled to cover 26 cities. They performed 12 songs that made up their concert repertoire throughout the tour: “Twist and Shout”, “You Can’t Do That”, “All My Loving”, “She Loves You”, “Things We Said Today”, “Roll Over Beethoven”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “If I Fell”, “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, “Boys”, “A Hard Day’s Night” and “Long Tall Sally”. The support acts were The Righteous Brothers, The Bill Black Combo, The Exciters and Jackie DeShannon. The 33-minute concert ended with an escape by ambulance after fans surrounded their limousine; John, Paul, Ringo and George were taken to safety by ambulance. Journalist Ivor Davis travelled with them throughout the tour and later described his experiences in the book “The Beatles and Me on Tour”.

The High Numbers, later known as The Who, performed at The Scene club in London’s Soho.

The Rolling Stones played the second of six concerts at the New Theatre Ballroom on the island of Guernsey in the Channel Islands.

The Beatles performed at Empire Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, before 20,261 fans. The opening acts were The Bill Black Combo, The Exciters, The Righteous Brothers, and Jackie DeShannon. The concert was broadcast locally by CKNW.

The Beatles performed at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, California.

The Beatles performed in front of 14,000 fans at Cincinnati Gardens in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Beatles performed at Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during their US tour. The city had experienced race riots several days before the concert, and The Beatles, who supported the civil rights movement, were shocked that their 13,000-member audience was entirely white.

The Rolling Stones began their first US tour with a concert in San Antonio, Texas.

Sonny & Cher made their UK debut with a performance at the 100 Club in London.

The Animals, The Spencer Davis Group and Long John Baldry closed the three-day National Jazz and Blues Festival in Richmond, Surrey, England.

They opened their third North American tour with a concert at Shea Stadium in New York before 55,600 fans, setting a world record at the time for attendance at a pop concert. The concert grossed $304,000, of which the group received $160,000. The bill also included Brenda Holloway, The King Curtis Band, The Young Rascals and Sounds Incorporated.

The Byrds cancelled their concert at the Guildhall in Portsmouth after only 250 of 4,000 tickets were sold. Their British tour was plagued by problems, including a legal dispute with the British group The Birds over the name.

Canadian band Edward Bear performed as the opening act for Led Zeppelin at the Rock Pile club in Toronto.

The Beatles performed at a stadium in Atlanta before a sold-out crowd of 35,000 people. Tickets cost $5.50.

The Beatles played two concerts at Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston, Texas.

The Who performed at the Palais in Bournemouth during their seventeen-date UK tour.

During their North American tour, The Beatles played two concerts at Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon. Between the performances, Carl Wilson and Mike Love of The Beach Boys visited them in their dressing room.

The Beatles performed at Atlanta Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, before a sold-out audience of 35,000 people. Fans paid $5.50 for the highly sought-after tickets.

The Byrds performed at the Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, California.

Bob Dylan performed the opening night of his 40-date North American tour at Forest Hills Tennis Stadium in New York. He performed the first set solo, while Robbie Robertson, Levon Helm, Harvey Brooks, and Al Kooper accompanied him in the second. Dylan performed an acoustic and an electric set, with the electric set also featuring the premiere of “Desolation Row”. Angry fans threw objects onto the stage, some rushed onto it and attempted to pull Al Kooper and Levon Helm from their stools. Robbie Robertson and Levon Helm appeared here for the first time as members of Dylan’s electric backing group. The hostile reaction continued the controversy that had begun at the Newport Folk Festival.

The Rolling Stones performed at Balboa Stadium in San Diego during their US tour before more than 15,000 fans.

During their US tour, The Beatles performed at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, California. Tickets cost $3. The live album "The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl", released in May 1977, was compiled from two performances at the Hollywood Bowl in 1964 and this 1965 concert.

The Beatles performed two concerts at Cow Palace in San Francisco, California, during their North American tour, before a total audience of 28,700.

Steam Packet with Long John Baldry, Rod Stewart, Julie Driscoll and The Brian Auger Trinity performed at The Marquee club in London.