3 British Invasion Acts That Followed The Beatles to the Top of the US Charts in 1964

Beatlemania hit the United States in a major way in 1964. The Beatles dominated the US pop charts throughout the year, including six No. 1 singles. But they also cleared the way for their British brethren to start doing damage in America as well. In addition to the Fab Four, three other British Invasion acts went all the way to the top of the American charts in 1964. They set the standard for the British Invasion artists that would shine throughout the rest of the decade.

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“A World Without Love” by Peter And Gordon

Peter Asher and Gordon Waller weren’t even in their 20s yet when their close harmonies began beguiling audiences. And, for their first major hit, they benefited from some family ties. Asher’s sister Jane started dating Paul McCartney not long after Beatlemania hit with full force in England. McCartney even lived with the Ashers for a stretch, during which time he and Peter struck up a friendship. That gave Asher access to songs McCartney was composing, one of which was “World Without Love”. Macca didn’t think that it held much potential as a Beatles song. In fact, the opening line (“Please lock me away”) used to send John Lennon into hysterics. Asher asked if it could become a Peter And Gordon vehicle, and McCartney obliged. The song epitomized an early trend whereby Lennon-McCartney songs that weren’t recorded by The Beatles became hits for others.

“House Of The Rising Sun” by The Animals

The earliest records by British Invasion artists, even The Beatles, were mostly straightforward in a musical sense. A few verses, a middle eight, and a repeated refrain, without much embellishment from the vocalists or the instrumentalists. “House Of The Rising Sun” came along and redefined just what these young musicians were capable of doing. The Animals heard Bob Dylan’s arrangement of the standard, which Dylan himself had pilfered from Dave Von Ronk. But whereas Dylan kept it acoustic and black and white, The Animals brought it into thrilling, electrified color. The wild organ work of Alan Price was a fascinating contrast to Hilton Valentine’s insistent guitar arpeggios. Meanwhile, Eric Burdon brought a feral intensity to his vocals, giving harrowing life to the tale of a “poor boy” brought down low by the titular establishment.

“Do Wah Diddy” by Manfred Mann

Manfred Mann is one of the more fascinating characters in British rock history. As the bandleader, his name was out in front of several different outfits, even though he was never the singer. For example, a version of Manfred Mann managed to go a bit psychedelic when they hit big in 1968 with the Bob Dylan cover “Mighty Quinn”. And then there was their somewhat surreal, prog-leaning cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Blinded By The Light” by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band that made it to No. 1 on the US pop charts in 197t (the only Springsteen-penned song to reach that pinnacle). “Do Wah Diddy”, written by the formidable songwriting duo of Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, had already been recorded once by a group called The Exciters. With Paul Jones belting them out as lead vocalist for Manfred Mann, never have nonsensical pop lyrics ever sounded so profound as they do on this version of “Do Wah Diddy”.

Photo by David Redfern/Redferns