SILVER BEATLES: Members of the Beatles, hottest British group, receive their two silver LP awards from EMI chairman Sir Joseph Lockwood for sales well over the 250,000 mark on each of their albums “Please, Please Me” and “With The Beatles.” The latter was given two weeks ahead of the release of the LP. Advance orders stood at an unprecedented 345,000. At the same ceremony the group was given a miniature silver EP to mark sales of 400,000 for their first EP “Twist And Shout.” The boys have racked up a total sale of over four million on the sum total of all singles, EP’s and LP’s. (Billboard photo; December 7, 1963).
One Million Pre-Sales Prior November 29 in England
England’s The Beatles(click on image for larger view)
HOLLYWOOD — Capitol Records here in the United States has completed negotiations with EMI for exclusive distribution of future recordings by the Beatles, internationally known (Europe) British rock and roll group.
The British band is coming to the U.S. for television appearances in 1964 and Capitol will release the single, “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” in mid-January. This single was originally released in England on November 29 and had over one million pre-sales orders, EMI Music claims. END.
(Information and news source: Billboard; December 14, 1963).
“STRAWBERRY FIELDS FOREVER” * The Beatles * CAPITOL Records (MONO; 1967)
BEATLES 1967 FLASHBACK: LOS ANGELES — The Record Industry Association of America (RIAA) has given gold record certification to the Beatles’ newest Capitol single “Strawberry Fields Forever / “Penny Lane.” The award is the 22nd given the British foursome during the past three years. — Billboard Magazine; April 8, 1967
‘BEATLES ’65’ GOES FROM 98 TO NO. 1 ON BILLBOARD CHARTS
NEW YORK — The recently released “Beatles ’65” on Capitol which was No. 98 on Billboard’s LP charts two weeks ago, soared to top position in the album charts last week. No album in the history of Billboard’s charts has ever scored such an advance in a single week. The LP has just been certified by RIAA as a million-selling LP. “The Beatles Story,” on Capitol, also was certified. Their current single is a winner on the singles chart, as well.
To solidify their position in the pop record field, the Beatles also are holding down the top spot in the singles charts for the second consecutive week with “I Fell Fine.”
This isn’t the first time an album hit the top spot within a week after getting on the chart. “The Beatles Second Album” hit at No. 16 and jumped to No. 1 the following week. Another Beatles’ album, the United Artists “Hard Days Night” album soundtrack, hit at No. 12 and topped the list a week later.
And in 1962, “The First Family” (JFK parody LP; Vaughn Meader) made its debut at No. 11 and was No. 1 seven days later.
The Beatles now have six albums on the charts, three in the top 10. Five of the six disks are on the Capitol label; one is on United Artists. During 1964, the Beatles held the top album position for 30 of 52 weeks. “A Hard Day’s Night” held the top position 14 of these weeks, and “Meet The Beatles” led for 11 weeks. “The Beatles Second Album” was No. 1 for five weeks.
The album charts showed relatively few changes in the top positions. Only eight LP’s during the course of the year held the No. 1 position overall.
In addition o the Beatles’ album, other top LP’s were the “Hello Dolly” original cast version on RCA Victor, Louis Armstrong’s “Hello Dolly” on Kapp Records, Barbara Streisand’s “People” on Columbia,“The Beach Boy’s Concert” on Capitol, and “The Singing Nun” on the Philips label. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; January 16, 1965)
LONDON — From songwriting alone, Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney earned around $4,000,000 last year, their publisher Dick James has confirmed. Thirty of their compositions were published in 1964, of which they recorded 22 themselves.
James has added to his fast growing organization the talents of Dennis Berger who quit his job as assistant to Philips recording manager Johnny Franz at the end of 1964.
According to James, Berger will be seeking out songwriters and artists for the company’s small roster, but it is generally expected that he will handle independent production or records for the publisher. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; January 16, 1965)
Beatles songwriting team Lennon and McCartney earned millions from their hits in 1964.
ANTICIPATED NEW RELEASE GETS INITIAL PRESSING OF MILLION
NEW YORK — An initial pressing of 1 million albums, reportedly the largest single order in the history of the business, is in the works for “Help!” the Beatles album scheduled to be released by Capitol Records when the United Artists film of the same name opens Wednesday (August 11).
A previous Beatles album, “Beatles VI,” had an initial pressing order of 500,000 albums slated for its scheduled release.
The film will be accompanied by a publicity barrage calculated to blast the American public out of its homes and into the movies houses across the country.
WINS-AMMurray The K 1965
In New York, Murray the K will introduce the British group on his hour-long Channel TV show on Saturday, August 14. The show will be televised in 40 major markets.
The evening after the telecast, the Beatles made their much-heralded appearance in New York’s Shea Stadium.
Gary Stevens (formerly WKNR-AM Detroit) WMCA disk jockey, is conducting a “Beatles Stakes” contest, with tickets to the Shea Stadium concert as prizes. Here’s how it works:
From 7 to 11 p.m., during the Gary Stevens Show, fans telephone WMCA and tell Stevens by guessing which Beatle will be talking to them next. Those lucky enough to make the correct guess answered will get a pair of tickets to the Shea concert, Sunday evening, August 15. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; August 14, 1965)
Beatles’ Help! photograph signed by the Fab Four, while filming, 1965.
Ed Sullivan backstage with the Beatles during a dress rehearsal, February, 1964. The Beatles video segment above was from their first (of four) scheduled Sunday night appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show.February 9, 1964New York, February 10 — “Seventy-million American televiewers saw the Beatles last night in action and heard the shrieks of an excited studio audience . . . . “— New York Daily NewsThe Beatles’ televised appearance that Sunday night was dated on this VIP admission ticket for the Ed Sullivan Show.
NEW YORK – The Beatles have topped themselves – again – their latest Capitol album sold 1,200,000 copies in its first nine days on the market. This, according to Capitol Records, breaks every sales record previously held by the Beatles.
Capitol reports that the album has been selling at a clip of about 140,000 copies a day ever since its release on December 6, 1965. The new Beatles LP picked up its heaviest sales in the New York area, selling over 200,000 copies in nine days. In at least four other areas, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco, sales figures total well over 100,000 for the same period.
Capitol initial allocation on “Rubber Soul” of two million units is also its largest ever, on any album. As of mid-month (December figures), 60 per cent of that allocation sold.
The album was formally certified by the RIAA as a million seller last week. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; January 1, 1966)
MCRFB Addendum
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From the MCRFB aircheck librarylisten herewhen WKNR’s Bob Green debuted also, for the very first time on his show a track from the newly-released ‘Rubber Soul’ LP on Keener 13 in December, 1965 . . . “. . . And this one is showing up on the Top 3 plus 1 voting nightly on the Scott Regen Show.”
LENNON COMMENTSREGARDING ‘JESUS AND CHRISTIANITY’SPARKSOUTRAGE, GROUP’S MUSIC AIRPLAY BAN ACROSS U. S.
NEW YORK — The radio ban against playing Beatles’ records, which was begun last week by Tommy Charles and Doug Layton, WAQY, Birmingham, Alabama, has spread across the country, with dozens of stations refusing to program or play recordings by the British group.
British magazine Datebook July 29, 1966 issue with the controversial “Jesus” Lennon comment which fueled universal outrage around the world.
Cause of the controversy is a statement published in a British magazine, Datebook, dated July 29, 1966 and attributed to John Lennon. The statement follows:
“Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn’t argue about that: I’m right and I will be proved right. We’re more popular than Jesus now; I don’t know which will go first, rock ‘n’ roll or Christianity. Jesus was right, but his disciples were thick and ordinary.”
At a press conference held here late Friday, August 5, Brian Epstein, Beatles’ manager, said the statement was taken out of context. Epstein explained that Lennon meant “in the last 50 years the Church of England and, therefore Christ, had suffered a decline in interest.”
While the statement, confirmed by a Beatles spokesman, went virtually unnoticed in England, the reaction in this country was immediate.
In the aftermath of Lennon’s comments, Beatles records were banned from radio airplay by dozens of stations, sparked by B. J. Williams, seen here, a deejay from KSWO, Lawton, Oklahoma. (Click on image for larger view).
Greater impact has been in the so-called “Bible Belt” which is mainly in the southeast portion of the United States. But the ban has extended to other sections of the country. New York’s WABC has reportedly put Beatles records on the verboten list, but, at press time, the switchboard operator at the station said that not one of the station’s staff members could be reached.
B. J. Williams, deejay at KSWO, Lawton, Oklahoma, called for a Beatles “bonfire” and broke the Beatles’ latest record while on the air.
In Milwaukee, WOKY music director King Kbornik said he would not ban the record until he had seen Lennon’s remarks in print.
The extent of the ban is not known, but a majority of the nation’s radio stations will continue to program Beatles records. The group is scheduled to perform a concert at New York’s Shea Stadium August 23.
A spokesperson for Capitol Records, which issues Beatles recordings under it’s logo in the United States, said Lennon’s remarks were “quoted out of context and misconstrued.”END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; August 13, 1966)
SILVER BEATLES: Members of the Beatles, hottest British group, receive their two silver LP awards from EMI chairman Sir Joseph Lockwood for sales well over the 250,000 mark on each of their albums “Please, Please Me” and “With The Beatles.” The latter was given two weeks ahead of the release of the LP. Advance orders stood at an unprecedented 345,000. At the same ceremony the group was given a miniature silver EP to mark sales of 400,000 for their first EP “Twist And Shout.” The boys have racked up a total sale of over four million on the sum total of all singles, EP’s and LP’s. (Billboard photo; December 7, 1963). 
