Those who say that timing is everything can point to The Beatles as pretty good evidence for the veracity of this theory, at least in terms of their first US visit. Granted, the Fab Four possessed rare talent, and they likely would have found their way to success even without the serendipity of excellent timing.
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But there’s no doubt that the band occasionally benefited from being where they needed to be at a specific moment in history. No time was that truer than when they arrived in the US at almost precisely the same time as they enjoyed their first no. 1 hit in the States.
Coming to America
Beatlemania broke out in Great Britain in 1963, when a series of the band’s smash hit singles and live appearances created a sensation like none before in British music history. During that stretch, Capitol Records, who owned the rights to release the group’s music in America, refused to do so, citing the fact that most successful British musicians had failed to translate upon their arrival in the US.
Several Beatles’ songs were released as singles in the US in 1963, but they came out on small labels that lacked the promotional heft to get them much exposure. The singles struggled to find any footing.
When The Beatles released “She Loves You” as their third UK single, the success was overwhelming. It was finally enough for manager Brian Epstein to convince Capitol that they should release the band’s next single in the US. That’s when an unexpected turn of events sped up the process.
Band of the “Hand”
The next single up for The Beatles was the relentlessly energetic “I Want to Hold Your Hand”. Capitol originally planned to hold back the release until closer to The Beatles’ first visit to the US in February 1964. In that way, they could capitalize on The Beatles’ scheduled appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show to promote it.
A news report changed all that. Broadcast on CBS in December 1963, it talked about The Beatles’ phenomenon in Great Britain and played a clip of them singing “She Loves You”. A Maryland teenager saw it and called her local DJ, asking him if he could play the band’s music.
The station in question was in Washington, D.C., and they arranged for a copy of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” to be played on December 17, 1963. The song was an immediate sensation with listeners, and it was soon being played in other parts of the country.
Just in Time
It didn’t take long for Capitol to realize that the cat was out of the bag. They hustled to arrange an official release of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” in the US on December 26. The song was soon rocketing up the pop charts.
On February 1, the song reached no. 1 in America. At the time, The Beatles were in France as part of their world tour. When they received news about the status of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” in America, the land where their biggest musical influences were located, there was a wild celebration.
Just six days later, The Beatles arrived in New York City for their first US visit amidst hordes of screaming fans. Would the response have been quite as feverish if it weren’t for the earlier release of “I Want To Hold Your Hand”? It’s hard to say. But it’s fair to say that The Beatles’ conquering of America might not have happened quite so quickly if they hadn’t already conquered the charts.
Photo by Daily Mirror/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix via Getty Images
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