beatles 66 tour

The Beatles' 1966 US tour

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The Beatles staged their third and final concert tour of North America in August 1966. It consisted of 18 performances, with 16 shows in United States venues and two in Canada. The tour was plagued with backlash regarding the controversy of John Lennon's remark about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus", death threats, and the band's own dissatisfaction with the noise levels and their ability to perform live. Their speaking out against the Vietnam War added further controversy to the visit. The band played to large audiences in open-air stadiums throughout the tour, but ticket sales were hindered by the "Jesus" controversy. The US press reported a less frenzied response from the group's fans and speculated on the end of Beatlemania. Having already decided to retire from live performances at the end of the year, the 1966 US tour was the last series of commercial concerts undertaken by the Beatles. Thereafter, they continued as a studio-only band and focused exclusively on record production.

1 Background
2 Escalation of the "Jesus" controversy
3 Repertoire and tour personnel
4.1 Lennon's apology
4.2 Crowd control
4.3 Memphis stopover
4.4 Opposition to Vietnam War
5 Final concert
6 Reception

Background [ ]

Brian Epstein, the Beatles' manager, announced the band's intention to tour the United States in early March 1966 while in New York. Taking place in August, it was the band's third annual summer tour of the US. The shows formed the second leg of a world tour, following concerts in June and July in West Germany, Japan and the Philippines.

When in Tokyo, the Beatles received death threats and, aside from their professional engagements, were confined to their hotel suite. In Manila, they were manhandled by citizens and military personnel for a perceived slight to Filipino First Lady Imelda Marcos. Believing that their tours had grown too large and complex for Epstein to manage, the band decided to abandon touring following the upcoming US concerts. When asked what the group planned to do after their ordeal in Manila, George Harrison said: "We're going to have a couple of weeks to recuperate before we go and get beaten up by the Americans."

Escalation of the "Jesus" controversy [ ]

Plans for the tour were jeopardised in late July by the reaction to John Lennon's comments that the Beatles had become "more popular than Jesus". Lennon made the remark to Maureen Cleave of the London Evening Standard in February, during his interview for the newspaper's "How Does a Beatle Live?" series. Cleave noted Lennon's interest in Christianity and religions, to which he replied:

Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I'll 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 all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me.

His comments caused no concern in the UK nor in the US, initially. On 29 July, however, the US teen magazine Datebook reproduced Cleave's article, with the "I don't know which will go first – rock 'n' roll or Christianity!" remark placed prominently on the cover, provoking outrage among Christian fundamentalists, particularly in the US South. Led by WAQY in Birmingham, Alabama, several radio stations there organised bonfires where listeners were invited to burn their Beatles records and merchandise, and programmers initiated a ban on the band's music.

In an attempt to quell the furore, Epstein flew to New York and gave a press conference on 5 August. The controversy followed that surrounding the butcher cover originally used in June for the Beatles' North American LP Yesterday and Today . Soon withdrawn by Capitol Records, the cover was said to convey the band's opposition to the Vietnam War. The publication of Paul McCartney's comment, from a 1 August radio interview, that Americans were obsessed with money furthered the mood of disquiet surrounding the Beatles. In his press conference, Epstein said that he was prepared to cancel shows if any American promoter wished to back out, but that all the individuals were keen for the tour to go ahead. According to Beatles road manager Neil Aspinall, none of the promoters chose to cancel their events.

Early August was also marked by race riots in Atlanta, Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha and Philadelphia, and by news of a killing spree in Texas carried out by Charles Whitman, a former US Marine. Derek Taylor, the band's former press officer and a music publicist in California, wrote in his column for Disc and Music Echo that "America is not too settled at the moment and I don't think it is any time for the Beatles to be here." Reporting in London for The Village Voice , Richard Goldstein stated that Revolver , the Beatles' new album, was ubiquitous around the city, as if Londoners were uniting behind the band in response to the bad press emanating from the US. He said there was a "genuine anxiety" among fans for the group's safety and quoted one, a New Yorker, as saying, "If anything happens to them, man, it's World War III."

Repertoire and tour personnel [ ]

The US shows were in the package-tour format typical of the 1960s. The support acts throughout the tour were the Ronettes, the Cyrkle, Bobby Hebb and the Remains. The latter also served as the backing group for the Ronettes and Hebb.

The Beatles' set lasted around 30 minutes and was almost identical to that performed in their June–July concerts. The sole difference was that "Long Tall Sally" replaced "I'm Down" as the closing number. None of the tracks from Revolver were included due to the difficulty in reproducing their sophisticated studio sounds and arrangements in a concert setting. "Paperback Writer" was therefore the only 1966 recording represented in the set. In the altered release schedules imposed by Capitol for North America, however, "Nowhere Man" and the Yesterday and Today track "If I Needed Someone" were also first issued in 1966, having been part of the December 1965 LP Rubber Soul in other markets.

A handpicked press corps accompanied the Beatles, travelling with the band members and filing reports for their organisations. Among these were British disc jockeys Kenny Everett, Ron O'Quinn and Jerry Leighton; TeenSet editor Judith Sims, representatives from Teen Life magazine and Hearst Newspapers, and Datebook editor Art Unger; and a group of American DJs that included Jim Stagg and George Klein.

Incidents and further controversy [ ]

Lennon's apology [ ].

When the band arrived in Chicago on 11 August for the start of the tour, Epstein and press officer Tony Barrow arranged a press conference at the Astor Tower Hotel to address the controversy and for Lennon to explain himself. Lennon stated that he was only commenting on the decline among churchgoers, that he made a mistake in using the Beatles' following in comparison with that of organised religion, and that he "never meant it as a lousy anti-religious thing". Parts of the press conference were broadcast on all the major US television networks and by ITV in the UK.

In a private meeting with Art Unger, Epstein asked him to surrender his press pass for the tour, to avoid accusations that Datebook and the Beatles' management had orchestrated the controversy as a publicity stunt. Unger refused and, in his account, received Lennon's full support when he later discussed the meeting with him.

The apology placated many of those offended by the Datebook article; WAQY called off its Beatle bonfire, planned for 19 August, and some stations lifted their radio bans. The controversy nevertheless hung over the entire tour and overshadowed the US release of Revolver and its accompanying single, "Eleanor Rigby" / "Yellow Submarine". Lennon continued to be asked about the topic in subsequent press conferences, often visibly exasperating not only him, but his bandmates as well.

Crowd control [ ]

The first serious crowd disturbance occurred at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium, where the Beatles performed to nearly 30,000 on 14 August. As they started to play "Day Tripper", over 2,000 fans broke through the security barriers separating the audience from the area housing the elevated stage, causing the Beatles to stop the performance and shelter backstage. Thirty minutes passed before security was restored and the show resumed. Commentators likened the episode to the race riots that had taken place in the east of Cleveland shortly beforehand, and substantial damage was done to the stadium.

Following their concert at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on 28 August, the Beatles were unable to leave the venue for about two hours. Around 100 private security personnel had been assigned to control the crowd of 45,000 fans, 7,000 of whom broke through the fencing and thwarted the band's exit in an armoured van. The Beatles remained trapped in a dressing room until, after two unsuccessful attempts to fool the crowd using decoy vehicles, they were able to escape with assistance from the local police. Some fans were injured and others arrested in clashes with the police.

Memphis stopover [ ]

The tour's only stopover in the Bible Belt was Memphis, Tennessee, where two shows were scheduled at the Mid-South Coliseum for 19 August. The city council there voted to cancel the afternoon and evening concerts rather than have "municipal facilities be used as a forum to ridicule anyone's religion". The Ku Klux Klan nailed a Beatles LP to a wooden cross, vowing "vengeance", and conservative groups staged further public burnings of Beatles records. Epstein nevertheless went ahead with the shows, which were preceded by further threats to the group. Members of the Ku Klux Klan demonstrated outside the venue on 19 August, and around 8,000 locals took part in an anti-Beatles rally elsewhere in the city.

Although no problems took place during the afternoon show, an audience member threw a lit firecracker onstage that did not hit any of the members, but the band believed that somebody had tried to shoot them. When the firecracker went off, Barrow recalled that "everybody, all of us at the side of the stage, including the three Beatles on stage, all looked immediately at John Lennon. We would not at that moment have been surprised to see that guy go down. John had half-heartedly joked about the Memphis concert in an earlier press conference, and when we got there everything seemed to be controlled and calm, but underneath somehow, there was this nasty atmosphere. It was a very tense and pressured kind of day."

Opposition to Vietnam War [ ]

Lennon and Harrison had warned Epstein that they were no longer prepared to stay silent about pressing political issues such as the Vietnam War. The controversy surrounding Lennon's "Jesus" remarks reinforced their determination to speak out and furthered the Beatles' standing in the emerging counterculture. At the time, 90 per cent of Americans still supported their country's involvement in the conflict.

Having first voiced the group's opposition to the Vietnam War during their stay in Tokyo, Lennon caused further controversy during the band's press conference in Toronto on 17 August when he stated his support for American draft-dodgers escaping to Canada. When the band arrived in New York on 22 August, Lennon again criticised US participation in the war. All four Beatles publicly denounced the war as "wrong". At Shea Stadium the following day, the pre-show press conference descended into an argument between members of the media over the Beatles' opposition to the war.

Final concert [ ]

The Beatles' final paid concert of their career took place on 29 August at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California. The band played to an audience of 25,000, leaving 7,000 tickets unsold. A local company called Tempo Productions was in charge of the arrangements. Due to the reduced ticket sales and the expense of paying the Beatles their prearranged $50,000 performance fee, in addition to having to hire an orchestra to satisfy the local musicians union, the concert resulted in a loss for the company. At 9:27 pm, the Beatles took the stage and proceeded to play their eleven-song set.

McCune Sound Services of San Francisco provided the sound system for the concert. The company's log-book entry for the job includes the note: "Bring everything you can find!" Mort Field, who mixed the sound from a dugout at the venue, recalled that the Beatles were unconcerned about sound quality. At one point, Ringo Starr sang into the counterweight of the boom stand microphone set up at his drum kit, rather than the microphone itself.

Knowing that this would be their last concert, members of the band took measures of their own to capture their last moments on stage. Each brought a camera and McCartney asked Barrow to make a rough audio tape recording from the field. The recording of this final concert is now widely circulated on bootlegs. "Long Tall Sally" on the bootlegs is not complete, due to Barrow not flipping the tape over during the show. Barrow gave the original tape of the Candlestick Park concert to McCartney. He also made a single copy, which was kept in a locked drawer in Barrow's office desk.

After the show, the Beatles were quickly taken to the airport in an armoured car. They flew from San Francisco to Los Angeles, arriving at 12:50 am. During the flight, Harrison was heard to say: "That's it, then. I'm not a Beatle anymore." The first band member to tire of Beatlemania, Harrison later said of the group's decision to quit touring: "We'd been through every race riot, and every city we went to there was some kind of a jam going on, and police control, and people threatening to do this and that ... and [us] being confined to a little room or a plane or a car. We all had each other to dilute the stress, and the sense of humour was very important ... But there was a point where enough was enough."

Author Jonathan Gould comments on the significance of the Beatles ending their careers as live performers in San Francisco, since the city was the location for the first Human Be-In in January 1967. This and similar events were sponsored by the Family Dog collective, whose vision was to make San Francisco "America's Liverpool".

Reception [ ]

Typically of the era, newspaper coverage of the concerts focused on the size of the audiences, the volume of the fans' screams, and box office takings, rather than attempting to review each event or discuss the music. Throughout the tour, the US press seized on the opportunity to predict the end of Beatlemania and remarked on the absence of the usual crowds of screaming fans at the airports on their itinerary. The high-pitched screaming synonymous with Beatlemania was reduced, but most of the shows were still marked by wild crowd behaviour. In their comments during the tour, Lennon and Harrison each said that their American audiences included more young males than before, a development that Harrison welcomed as a reason for the reduced screaming and attributed to the band's musical growth on Rubber Soul and Revolver . The Beatles' ability to appeal to both sexes in this way helped codify a new youth movement in the US, which sought expression in student demonstrations at Berkeley from late 1966 onwards.

The tour was affected by the prevailing mood of controversy and there were rows of empty seats at some venues. The Beatles held a second successful concert at New York's Shea Stadium, following the world-record attendance they set there in August 1965, although ticket sales were down to 45,000, around 10,000 below the previous year. Author Nicholas Schaffner later wrote that although the numbers at Shea fell short of the 1965 total, the Beatles' ability to sell as many tickets as they did in 1966 was still "a feat nobody else at the time could have come near to duplicating".

On 28 August, the day of the band's penultimate concert, Epstein issued a press release in response to claims that some of the shows had been poorly attended:

This tour compares phenomenally well with last year's. It's much better all round this year, from the point of view of increased interest and we are actually playing to bigger audiences. Here in Los Angeles, for example, 36,000 people saw the Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl [in August 1965]. Today's concert at Dodger Stadium is attracting 10,000 more. People have been saying things about diminishing popularity, but all one can go by is attendances, which are absolutely huge. By the time we leave, 400,000 people will have seen this series of shows ...

Set list [ ]

Lasting around 30 minutes, the Beatles' set list for the tour was as follows (lead singers appear in parentheses):

"Rock and Roll Music" (John Lennon)
"She's a Woman" (Paul McCartney)
"If I Needed Someone" (George Harrison)
"Day Tripper" (Lennon and McCartney)
"Baby's in Black" (Lennon and McCartney)
"I Feel Fine" (Lennon)
"Yesterday" (McCartney)
"I Wanna Be Your Man" (Ringo Starr)
"Nowhere Man" (Lennon with McCartney and Harrison)
"Paperback Writer" (McCartney)
"Long Tall Sally" (McCartney)
1 Jim McCartney
2 The Silver Beetles
3 The Long One

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Remembering Beatles’ Final Concert

By Jordan Runtagh

Jordan Runtagh

Touring was killing the Beatles by 1966. Perhaps not literally, but that seemed like less of a guarantee with each passing day. A trip to Asia that July ended with a frightening incident in the Philippines, when an inadvertent snub of the dictatorial first family provoked a nationwide turn against the foursome. Their entire police detail was suddenly withdrawn and the Beatles were left to defend themselves against a hoard of angry nationalists who manhandled them all the way to the airport. Only after being stripped of concert proceeds were they permitted to leave the country.

Following the harrowing ordeal, no one was particularly thrilled about having to hit the road again for a U.S. tour the following month. “We’re going to have a couple of weeks to recuperate before we go and get beaten up by the Americans,” George Harrison cracked with more than a touch of resentment. The off-the-cuff joke turned to a horrifying reality when a supposedly anti-religious statement made my John Lennon ignited a firestorm among Bible-toting zealots south of the Mason-Dixon line. They torched Beatles albums, boycotted songs and unleashed a torrent of death threats. Fresh bullet holes on the fuselage of the band’s plane cleared up any doubts: They were in harm’s way.

But it wasn’t just the physical danger. The Beatles were dying as musicians. Playing for a crowd had once been their lifeblood, but fame had robbed them of everything that made it joyful and fulfilling. The sporting arenas were too big and the screams of an adoring audience were too loud for the 100-watt Vox amplifiers to manage. Stadium rock was in its infancy, and even basic equipment like foldback speakers had yet to be invented. Unable to hear themselves, their musicianship began to atrophy.

“In 1966 the road was getting pretty boring,” Ringo Starr recalled in the Beatles Anthology documentary. “It was coming to the end for me. Nobody was listening at the shows. That was OK at the beginning, but we were playing really bad.” Perched in the back on his drum kit, he was reduced to following the three wiggling backsides at the front of the stage just to determine where they were in the song.

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At least the audience couldn’t hear how ragged they had become – not that they would have cared. “The sound at our concerts was always bad. We would be joking with each other on stage just to keep ourselves amused,” remembered Harrison in the Anthology . Lennon took particular delight in making vaguely obscene alterations to their song lyrics (“I Wanna Hold Your Gland”), knowing full well that no one had any clue what he was saying. “It was just a sort of a freak show,” he later said. “The Beatles were the show, and the music had nothing to do with it.”

The boredom of playing the same dozen songs each day also began to grate on the group’s notoriously short attention span. Making matters worse, most of the tunes were several years old. Much of their recent work was enhanced by backing musicians and innovative studio techniques, making it simply too challenging to perform given the technical limitations of a live setting. In fact, the Beatles would never play a single track off of their latest album, Revolver , released just days before they kicked off their dates.

Neither they nor the audience could hear anything, they weren’t improving their skills, they weren’t promoting their new music, and they weren’t enjoying themselves. They certainly didn’t need the money, so why were they doing this?

The question was on everyone’s mind during the 1966 U.S. tour, a cursed excursion beset by a string of unmitigated disasters. The Klu Klux Klan, still outraged over Lennon’s “bigger than Jesus” comment, picketed some gigs, while other shows competed with nearby race riots. A firecracker exploded during their Memphis concert, causing the band to momentarily believe that a gunman finally made good on the assassination threats.

Biblical rains at an open-air concert in Cincinnati put the band in the unenviable position of either canceling the show and potentially instigating a riot among the 35,000 expectant fans, or performing as scheduled amid the very real risk of electrocution. “It was really scary,” Nat Weiss, the band’s attorney, told author Philip Norman. “The crowd kept screaming, ‘We want the Beatles!’ and Paul grew so upset at the prospect of going out there that he was sick. The strain was too great. And he threw up in the dressing room.” After roadie Mal Evans received a shock severe enough to throw him across the stage, the show was postponed until the next day. “The only gig we ever missed!” noted a proud Harrison.

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After playing the makeup show that afternoon, the Beatles flew to St. Louis, where they were confronted with another rainy catastrophe. The makeshift shelter hastily constructed in the open-air Busch Stadium did little to guard against the elements. “They put bits of corrugated iron over the stage, so it felt like the worst little gig we’d ever played at even before we’d started as a band,” remembered Paul McCartney . “We were having to worry about the rain getting in the amps and this took us right back to the Cavern days. It was worse than those early days.”

There are few roles more thankless than an opening act at a Beatles concert in 1966, but the support bands struggled mightily to be heard against the fierce gusts of wind that blew in from San Francisco Bay, stirring up miniature dust storms across the infield. “It was not the sort of night you’d like to turn out for an outdoor concert,” observed Barrow. “Emperor” Nelson concurred. “As any Giants fans will know, Candlestick Park in August, at night, was cold, foggy and windy.”

The Remains were the first to take the stage. “A wild sea wind was blowing in every direction,” wrote Tashian. “The audience was about 200 feet away – much farther than usual. It made us feel extremely isolated from the audience.” According to Marshall, the setting was a long way off from today’s flashy pyrotechnics and Jumbotron extravaganzas. “The sound was pretty primitive and the lighting was just baseball lights.”

After the Remains finished their set, they stayed on the field to back Bobby Hebb, who sang his recent hit “Sunny” into the bitter cold and fog. Then came the Cyrkle, a band represented by the Beatles’ own manager, Brian Epstein. They were riding high in the charts with “Red Rubber Ball,” a tune co-written by Paul Simon. And finally there were the Ronettes, who had been friends with the Beatles since before their first trip to America. Although they hadn’t had a Top 20 hit in three years, the two bands enjoyed each other’s company and the Beatles brought them along. Lead singer Veronica Bennett was barred from the tour by her increasingly jealous boyfriend (and future Beatles producer) Phil Spector, who was paranoid that she would revive her dormant fling with Lennon. Bennett’s cousin Elaine Mayes took her place.

The Beatles kept the pre-show reverie going in their dressing room, but Tony Barrow detected something different in the air as they changed into their dark green Edwardian suits and silk floral shirts. He’d spent many years in their inner circle – in fact, it was he who coined the “Fab Four” moniker – but this was something he’d never felt before. “There was a sort of end-of-term spirit thing going on,” he said decades later. “And there was also this kind of feeling amongst all of us around the Beatles, that this might just be the last concert that they will ever do.”

His suspicions were confirmed when McCartney sidled up to him just before show time. “I remember Paul, casually, at the very last minute saying, ‘Have you got your cassette recorder with you?’ I said, ‘Yes, of course.’ Paul then said, ‘Tape it, will you? Tape the show.'” That had certainly never happened before.

At 9:27, after the Ronettes had finished, four tiny figures bounded out of the Giants dugout and across the baseball diamond. They ushered in a wave of screams that an attending Joan Baez later described as “like clouds bursting.” The Beatles were surrounded by a 200-member police guard, as well as a Loomis armored car, which was kept running behind the stage in case they had to make a quick get-away. They clutched cameras as well as guitars and drumsticks, snapping pictures of the grandstand for posterity.

The elevated stage had been constructed at the edge of the infield over second base. As an added security measure, a chain-link fence surrounded the perimeter of the stage. Fittingly, the Beatles would quite literally play their 11-song, 33-minute set in a cage.

As they plugged in their guitars and did a quick tune-up, Barrow got in position by the stage and held his tape recorder aloft. “Although I didn’t fancy my chances of making a brilliant recording of the concert, one thing in my favor was the great distance between the stage and the stands at this particular venue,” he explained. “Because of this, I guessed I might be able to capture sound from the stage without picking up too much of the nonstop screams and shouts of the fans coming from the stands.”

A quick shouted hello and the band were off into an abbreviated version of Chuck Berry’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll Music,” a mainstay of their set since their days (or rather, nights) as a club band playing the red-light Reeperbahn district of Hamburg, Germany, at the beginning of their career. Though lacking the energy they had then – they couldn’t possibly be that hungry again – the Beatles attacked the old favorite with a bite that had largely been absent on the tour. Just this last time, they resolved to make an effort.

Without stopping they launched into their funky B side, “She’s a Woman,” allowing McCartney to go into his finest soul-shouter routine before pausing to deliver one of his charmingly halting stage greetings. “Hello, good evening. We’d like to carry on with a song, not surprisingly, by, er, written by George. And this song was on our Rubber Soul LP. And the song is called ‘If I Needed, er, Someone!'”

Beyond contending with the wind, the band fought to be heard above their familiar nemesis: screams. It was like standing on a crowded runway with jets taking off on all sides. Along with guns, security guards had been issued cotton balls to stick in their ears in an attempt to ward off headaches. One concert attendee, Ellie Segal, watched a pair of clearly annoyed adults ask a shrieking teen if she’d like to be quiet and actually listen to the music. “She looked at them disdainfully and said, ‘If I wanted to hear them I would buy their album.'” Another fan recalled seeing reporters ask a young girl why she was sobbing. “Because I love Paul and I can’t tell him.”

beatles last show candlestick park san francisco john lennon paul mccartney

The mania swelled as the show progressed. Five boys rushed the stage in the middle of “Baby’s in Black,” and more fans followed during “Nowhere Man.” Still more invaded the stadium by climbing the enormously high centerfield fence. Clearly annoyed, the band eyed the armored truck. Just in case.

For one introduction, McCartney took a playful, and un-PC, jab at Brian Epstein. “We’d like to do the next number now, which is a special request from all the backroom boys on this tour … ‘I Wanna Be Your Man!'” (“Backroom boy” was slang for “gay man,” which Epstein was.) The band was likely unaware that their manager was still in Los Angeles at that very moment dealing with a major personal crisis: An ex-lover had stolen his briefcase filled with legally questionable pills, explicit homosexual love letters, steamy Polaroid photos of his young male friends and more than $20,000 in cash skimmed from concert proceeds to be handed out as a bonus to the band. If news of any one of these items leaked to the press, it would be more than enough to torpedo his reputation. So, to his lasting regret, the man who discovered the Beatles in a dank Liverpool cellar five years earlier missed what he knew would be their final show.

The Beatles knew it too, and they decided to memorialize the occasion with a kind of graduation photo. “We placed our cameras on the amplifiers and put them on a timer,” says Harrison. “We stopped between tunes, Ringo got down off the drums, and we stood facing the amplifiers with our back to the audience and took photographs. We knew: ‘This is it – we’re not going to do this again. This is the last concert.’ It was a unanimous decision.”

As the final notes from “Paperback Writer” drifted past the crowd and into the bay, McCartney blurted out his final stage announcement with the mechanical mumble of a man who just turned in his notice. He doesn’t even bother with the title. “We’d like to ask you to join in and, er, clap, sing, talk, do anything. Anyway, the song is … good night.”

No one was listening, so they played the last number for themselves. It was a song that had made the journey with them from teenage social clubs to stadiums: Little Richard’s “Long Tall Sally.” It was their showpiece, remaining in their set list almost constantly throughout their career. It had been their opening song when they played the Litherland Town Hall in December 1960, later enshrined as ground zero for Beatlemania. Nearly six years later, it would bookend their touring life.

They held nothing back. They had no reason to. McCartney begins the song with an otherworldly shriek in an upper register usually reserved for later verses. This night he started in high gear, and there was nowhere to go but up. In his voice you could hear traces of a teenage boy bewitched by the sound of flamboyant pianist from Macon, Georgia. You could hear traces of the long nights in Hamburg. You could hear the weariness of years on the road. It was probably a performance for the ages.

But we’ll never be sure, because Barrow’s tape cut out. Cassettes contained 30 minutes per side in 1966, and he was unable to flip it over to catch the end. Though devastating for Beatle fans not to have the final live song preserved in entirety, it’s oddly poetic – like a cinematic cutaway that spares us the hero’s final fall. It’s best to remember them still playing.

The song eventually ended and they were free. It was over. But the end of their touring career didn’t offer the unbridled ecstasy they had anticipated. In fact, it was undeniably sad. Playing music for people was something the Beatles loved. It was what had brought them together all those years ago. Long before they became studio pioneers, performance was the band’s ultimate joy. And now it was gone, taken from them by their fame.

Lennon, the most vocal about quitting all this touring nonsense, paused on the stage for a moment, taking it all in. Those who were there that night insist they heard him play the delicate guitar riff from “In My Life,” the introspective ballad about all he’d experienced and loved in his incredibly young life. The moment passed, and he ducked into the armored car bound for the airport, where the band was to fly back to Los Angeles. They had been in San Francisco for a grand total of five hours that day.

“Right – that’s it, I’m not a Beatle anymore!” George Harrison was heard to gleefully exclaim as he sank into his airplane seat and tossed back a well-deserved drink. “I didn’t really project into the future,” he recalled of his mindset three decades later. “I was just thinking, ‘This is going to be such a relief – not to have to go through this madness anymore.'”

McCartney was a little sunnier in his outlook. While speaking to Teen Set reporter Judy Sims, he outlined what he saw as the band’s future. “We’re not very good performers, actually. We’re better in a recording studio where we can control things and work on it until it’s right. With performing there’s so much that can go wrong, and you can’t go back over it and do it right.” Their next release, 1967’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band , took five months to record. It was the longest they had ever spent on a project – but they got it right.

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As the Beatles’ plane soared into the night sky, McCartney popped his head over the back of Tony Barrow’s seat. “Did you get anything on tape?” he asked. Barrow handed him the cassette. “I got the lot, except that the tape ran out in the middle of ‘Long Tall Sally.'” The Cute One was unconcerned. “Paul was clearly chuffed to have such a unique souvenir of what would prove to be an historic evening,” said Barrow.

“Back in London I kept the concert cassette under lock and key in a drawer of my office desk, making a single copy for my personal collection and passing the original to Paul for him to keep. Years later my Candlestick Park recording re-appeared in public as a bootleg album. If you hear a bootleg version of the final concert that finishes during ‘Long Tall Sally’ it must have come either from Paul’s copy or mine, but we never did identify the music thief!”

Barrow died in May 2016, just a few months before the 50th anniversary of the Candlestick Park concert. Thanks to his efforts, everyone can enjoy this historic show. It’s guaranteed to raise a smile, and well worth the price of admission.

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The Beatles' 1966 US tour

Escalation of the "Jesus" controversy

Repertoire and tour personnel, incidents and further controversy, lennon's apology, crowd control, memphis stopover, opposition to vietnam war, final concert, external links.

The band played to large audiences in open-air stadiums throughout the tour, but ticket sales were hindered by the "Jesus" controversy. The US press reported a less frenzied response from the group's fans and speculated on the end of Beatlemania . Having already decided to retire from live performances at the end of the year, the 1966 US tour was the last series of commercial concerts undertaken by the Beatles. Thereafter, they continued as a studio-only band and focused exclusively on record production.

Brian Epstein , the Beatles ' manager, announced the band's intention to tour the United States in early March 1966 while in New York. [1] [2] Taking place in August, it was the band's third annual summer tour of the US. [3] The shows formed the second leg of a world tour, following concerts in June and July in West Germany, Japan and the Philippines . [4]

When in Tokyo, the Beatles received death threats and, aside from their professional engagements, were confined to their hotel suite. In Manila, they were manhandled by citizens and military personnel for a perceived slight to Filipino First Lady Imelda Marcos . Believing that their tours had grown too large and complex for Epstein to manage, the band decided to abandon touring following the upcoming US concerts. [5] [nb 1] When asked what the group planned to do after their ordeal in Manila, George Harrison said: "We're going to have a couple of weeks to recuperate before we go and get beaten up by the Americans." [7]

Plans for the tour were jeopardised in late July by the reaction to John Lennon 's comments that the Beatles had become " more popular than Jesus ". [8] [9] Lennon made the remark to Maureen Cleave of the London Evening Standard in February, [10] during his interview for the newspaper's "How Does a Beatle Live?" series. [11] Cleave noted Lennon's interest in Christianity and religions, to which he replied:

Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I'll 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 all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me. [12]

His comments caused no concern in the UK [1] nor in the US, initially. [13] [14] On 29 July, however, the US teen magazine Datebook reproduced Cleave's article, with the "I don't know which will go first – rock 'n' roll or Christianity!" remark placed prominently on the cover, [15] [16] provoking outrage among Christian fundamentalists, particularly in the US South. [17] Led by WAQY in Birmingham, Alabama , [18] several radio stations there organised bonfires where listeners were invited to burn their Beatles records and merchandise, and programmers initiated a ban on the band's music. [19]

In an attempt to quell the furore, Epstein flew to New York [20] and gave a press conference on 5 August. [21] The controversy followed that surrounding the butcher cover originally used in June for the Beatles' North American LP Yesterday and Today . Soon withdrawn by Capitol Records , the cover was said to convey the band's opposition to the Vietnam War . [10] The publication of Paul McCartney 's comment, from a 1 August radio interview, that Americans were obsessed with money furthered the mood of disquiet surrounding the Beatles. [22] [nb 2] In his press conference, Epstein said that he was prepared to cancel shows if any American promoter wished to back out, but that all the individuals were keen for the tour to go ahead. [24] According to Beatles road manager Neil Aspinall , none of the promoters chose to cancel their events. [25]

Early August was also marked by race riots in Atlanta, Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha and Philadelphia, and by news of a killing spree in Texas carried out by Charles Whitman , a former US Marine. [26] Derek Taylor , the band's former press officer and a music publicist in California, wrote in his column for Disc and Music Echo that "America is not too settled at the moment and I don't think it is any time for the Beatles to be here." [27] Reporting in London for The Village Voice , Richard Goldstein stated that Revolver , the Beatles' new album, was ubiquitous around the city, as if Londoners were uniting behind the band in response to the bad press emanating from the US. He said there was a "genuine anxiety" among fans for the group's safety and quoted one, a New Yorker, as saying, "If anything happens to them, man, it's World War III." [28] [nb 3]

The US shows were in the package-tour format typical of the 1960s. The support acts throughout the tour were the Ronettes , the Cyrkle , Bobby Hebb and the Remains . [1] [29] The latter also served as the backing group for the Ronettes and Hebb. [29]

The Beatles' set lasted around 30 minutes [30] and was almost identical to that performed in their June–July concerts. [31] The sole difference was that " Long Tall Sally " replaced " I'm Down " as the closing number. [31] None of the tracks from Revolver were included due to the difficulty in reproducing their sophisticated studio sounds and arrangements in a concert setting. [31] [32] " Paperback Writer " was therefore the only 1966 recording represented in the set. [33] In the altered release schedules imposed by Capitol for North America, however, " Nowhere Man " and the Yesterday and Today track " If I Needed Someone " were also first issued in 1966, [34] having been part of the December 1965 LP Rubber Soul in other markets. [35]

A handpicked press corps accompanied the Beatles, travelling with the band members and filing reports for their organisations. Among these were British disc jockeys Kenny Everett , Ron O'Quinn and Jerry Leighton; TeenSet editor Judith Sims , representatives from Teen Life magazine and Hearst Newspapers , and Datebook editor Art Unger ; and a group of American DJs that included Jim Stagg and George Klein . [36]

When the band arrived in Chicago on 11 August for the start of the tour, Epstein and press officer Tony Barrow arranged a press conference at the Astor Tower Hotel to address the controversy and for Lennon to explain himself. [37] Lennon stated that he was only commenting on the decline among churchgoers, that he made a mistake in using the Beatles' following in comparison with that of organised religion, and that he "never meant it as a lousy anti-religious thing". [38] Parts of the press conference were broadcast on all the major US television networks and by ITV in the UK. [39]

In a private meeting with Art Unger, Epstein asked him to surrender his press pass for the tour, to avoid accusations that Datebook and the Beatles' management had orchestrated the controversy as a publicity stunt. [40] Unger refused and, in his account, received Lennon's full support when he later discussed the meeting with him. [41]

The apology placated many of those offended by the Datebook article; WAQY called off its Beatle bonfire, planned for 19 August, [42] and some stations lifted their radio bans. [43] The controversy nevertheless hung over the entire tour [44] and overshadowed the US release of Revolver and its accompanying single, " Eleanor Rigby " / " Yellow Submarine ". [45] [46] Lennon continued to be asked about the topic in subsequent press conferences, often visibly exasperating not only him, but his bandmates as well. [ citation needed ]

The first serious crowd disturbance occurred at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium , [47] where the Beatles performed to nearly 30,000 on 14 August. [48] As they started to play " Day Tripper ", over 2,000 fans broke through the security barriers separating the audience from the area housing the elevated stage, [49] causing the Beatles to stop the performance and shelter backstage. [50] Thirty minutes passed before security was restored and the show resumed. [47] Commentators likened the episode to the race riots that had taken place in the east of Cleveland shortly beforehand, [51] and substantial damage was done to the stadium. [52] [nb 4]

Following their concert at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on 28 August, the Beatles were unable to leave the venue for about two hours. [53] Around 100 private security personnel had been assigned to control the crowd of 45,000 fans, [54] 7,000 of whom broke through the fencing [55] and thwarted the band's exit in an armoured van. [53] The Beatles remained trapped in a dressing room until, after two unsuccessful attempts to fool the crowd using decoy vehicles, they were able to escape with assistance from the local police. [53] Some fans were injured and others arrested in clashes with the police. [54]

The tour's only stopover in the Bible Belt was Memphis, Tennessee, [56] where two shows were scheduled at the Mid-South Coliseum for 19 August. [57] The city council there voted to cancel the afternoon and evening concerts rather than have "municipal facilities be used as a forum to ridicule anyone's religion". The Ku Klux Klan nailed a Beatles LP to a wooden cross, vowing "vengeance", and conservative groups staged further public burnings of Beatles records. [58] Epstein nevertheless went ahead with the shows, which were preceded by further threats to the group. [59] Members of the Ku Klux Klan demonstrated outside the venue on 19 August, and around 8,000 locals took part in an anti-Beatles rally elsewhere in the city. [60]

Although no problems took place during the afternoon show, an audience member threw a lit firecracker onstage that did not hit any of the members, but the band believed that somebody had tried to shoot them. [59] When the firecracker went off, Barrow recalled that "everybody, all of us at the side of the stage, including the three Beatles on stage, all looked immediately at John Lennon. We would not at that moment have been surprised to see that guy go down. John had half-heartedly joked about the Memphis concert in an earlier press conference, and when we got there everything seemed to be controlled and calm, but underneath somehow, there was this nasty atmosphere. It was a very tense and pressured kind of day." [61]

Lennon and Harrison had warned Epstein that they were no longer prepared to stay silent about pressing political issues such as the Vietnam War. [62] The controversy surrounding Lennon's "Jesus" remarks reinforced their determination to speak out and furthered the Beatles' standing in the emerging counterculture. [63] At the time, 90 per cent of Americans still supported their country's involvement in the conflict . [64]

Having first voiced the group's opposition to the Vietnam War during their stay in Tokyo, [65] [66] Lennon caused further controversy during the band's press conference in Toronto on 17 August when he stated his support for American draft-dodgers escaping to Canada. [67] When the band arrived in New York on 22 August, Lennon again criticised US participation in the war. [67] All four Beatles publicly denounced the war as "wrong". [64] [68] At Shea Stadium the following day, the pre-show press conference descended into an argument between members of the media over the Beatles' opposition to the war. [69]

The Beatles' final paid concert of their career took place on 29 August 1966 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California. The band played to an audience of 25,000, [54] leaving 7,000 tickets unsold. [70] A local company called Tempo Productions was in charge of the arrangements. Due to the reduced ticket sales and the expense of paying the Beatles their prearranged $50,000 performance fee, in addition to having to hire an orchestra to satisfy the local musicians union, the concert resulted in a loss for the company. [71] At 9:27 pm, the Beatles took the stage and proceeded to play their eleven-song set.

McCune Sound Services of San Francisco provided the sound system for the concert. The company's log-book entry for the job includes the note: "Bring everything you can find!" [72] Mort Field, who mixed the sound from a dugout at the venue, recalled that the Beatles were unconcerned about sound quality. At one point, Ringo Starr sang into the counterweight of the boom stand microphone set up at his drum kit, rather than the microphone itself. [73]

After the show, the Beatles were quickly taken to the airport in an armoured car. They flew from San Francisco to Los Angeles, arriving at 12:50 am. During the flight, Harrison was heard to say: "That's it, then. I'm not a Beatle anymore." [74] The first band member to tire of Beatlemania , [75] Harrison later said of the group's decision to quit touring: "We'd been through every race riot, and every city we went to there was some kind of a jam going on, and police control, and people threatening to do this and that ... and [us] being confined to a little room or a plane or a car. We all had each other to dilute the stress, and the sense of humour was very important ... But there was a point where enough was enough." [76]

Typically of the era, newspaper coverage of the concerts focused on the size of the audiences, the volume of the fans' screams, and box office takings, rather than attempting to review each event or discuss the music. [43] Throughout the tour, the US press seized on the opportunity to predict the end of Beatlemania and remarked on the absence of the usual crowds of screaming fans at the airports on their itinerary. [78] The high-pitched screaming synonymous with Beatlemania was reduced, [64] but most of the shows were still marked by wild crowd behaviour. [79] In their comments during the tour, Lennon and Harrison each said that their American audiences included more young males than before, a development that Harrison welcomed as a reason for the reduced screaming and attributed to the band's musical growth on Rubber Soul and Revolver . [80] The Beatles' ability to appeal to both sexes in this way helped codify a new youth movement in the US, which sought expression in student demonstrations at Berkeley from late 1966 onwards. [81]

The tour was affected by the prevailing mood of controversy and there were rows of empty seats at some venues. [77] The Beatles held a second successful concert at New York's Shea Stadium, following the world-record attendance they set there in August 1965, although ticket sales were down to 45,000, around 10,000 below the previous year. [82] Author Nicholas Schaffner later wrote that although the numbers at Shea fell short of the 1965 total, the Beatles' ability to sell as many tickets as they did in 1966 was still "a feat nobody else at the time could have come near to duplicating". [64] [nb 5]

On 28 August, the day of the band's penultimate concert, Epstein issued a press release in response to claims that some of the shows had been poorly attended:

This tour compares phenomenally well with last year's. It's much better all round this year, from the point of view of increased interest and we are actually playing to bigger audiences. Here in Los Angeles, for example, 36,000 people saw the Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl [in August 1965]. Today's concert at Dodger Stadium is attracting 10,000 more. People have been saying things about diminishing popularity, but all one can go by is attendances, which are absolutely huge. By the time we leave, 400,000 people will have seen this series of shows ... [54]

Lasting around 30 minutes, the Beatles' set list for the tour was as follows (lead singers appear in parentheses):

" Rock and Roll Music " (John Lennon)
" She's a Woman " ( Paul McCartney )
" If I Needed Someone " ( George Harrison )
" Day Tripper " (Lennon and McCartney)
" Baby's in Black " (Lennon and McCartney)
" I Feel Fine " (Lennon)
" Yesterday " (McCartney)
" I Wanna Be Your Man " ( Ringo Starr )
" Nowhere Man " (Lennon with McCartney and Harrison)
" Paperback Writer " (McCartney)
" Long Tall Sally " (McCartney)
List of the Beatles' live performances
↑ Alone among the Beatles, Paul McCartney continued to thrive on live performance. He recalled finally coming around to his bandmates' perspective following the show in St. Louis on 21 August. [6]
↑ Datebook had placed another McCartney quote, in which he derided the US as "a lousy country where anyone black is a dirty nigger!", on the cover of the same issue of the magazine, beside Lennon's comment, but this had not provoked a response. [23]
↑ Goldstein also cited reports from "Austin, Chicago, Newark, New Haven, or wherever the most recent mass-murder has taken place" as other sources of concern. [28]
↑ In his mid-tour report for Melody Maker , Kenny Everett wrote that a similar fan riot was expected the following day when the Beatles played to around 30,000 at the District of Columbia Stadium in Washington. This was averted through the presence of "almost as many policemen", who vigilantly kept guard inside the large area between the stands and the stage. [51]
↑ In a radio interview he gave in Philadelphia on 16 August, McCartney commented that audience sizes had only diminished relative to the band's own record-breaking achievements, and that the Beatles were still performing to larger crowds than any other act. [83]
↑ The Cincinnati show had been scheduled for 20 August but was postponed due to rain. [67]

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"The idea of making promotional films for ‘Paperback Writer’ and ‘Rain’ was that we didn’t have to go out. We felt it was a great idea to send the film out there. I don’t think we even thought of calling them ‘videos’. There were just going to be on TV." Ringo

"Rubber Soul, as it was building up it was getting more experimental. The songs were getting better. More interesting... So that's where we were going." Ringo

Timeline article

"I really think the Queen believes in it all. She must. I do't believe in John Lennon, Beatle, being any different from anyone else, because I know he's not. I'm just a fella." John

"BEATLES' GREATEST U.S. SHOW TO BE FILMED "British fans may see the Beatles' most important concert ever - on television. The group will appear before nearly 60,000 fans at the Shea Stadium in New York on August 15 at the start of their second American tour." NME Friday, March 12, 1965

"It was good to make Help! and it's a nice film. It's funny. It's a very period film now. We just took it all very lightly, we'd had a laugh - and in the snow, all the snow scenes were cos the lads wanted a holiday, they were fed up working." - Paul

The Beatles live: Busch Stadium, St Louis

After performing their postponed concert in Cincinnati at midday, The Beatles flew 341 miles to St Louis, Missouri, where they performed one show at 8.30pm.

Ticket for The Beatles at Busch Stadium, St Louis, 21 August 1966

The concert took place at the Busch Stadium, and was seen by 23,000 people. The support acts were The Del-Rays, The Remains, Bobby Hebb, The Cyrkle and The Ronettes.

The show took place in heavy rain, with a makeshift shelter over the stage to protect the musicians, although water still dripped onto the amplifiers. It was this incident which finally convinced Paul McCartney that The Beatles should cease touring.

It rained quite heavily, and they put bits of corrugated iron over the stage, so it felt like the worst little gig we’d ever played at even before we’d started as a band. We were having to worry about the rain getting in the amps and this took us right back to the Cavern days – it was worse than those early days. And I don’t even think the house was full. After the gig I remember us getting in a big, empty steel-lined wagon, like a removal van. There was no furniture in there – nothing. We were sliding around trying to hold on to something, and at that moment everyone said, ‘Oh, this bloody touring lark – I’ve had it up to here, man.’ I finally agreed. I’d been trying to say, ‘Ah, touring’s good and it keeps us sharp. We need touring, and musicians need to play. Keep music live.’ I had held on that attitude when there were doubts, but finally I agreed with them. George and John were the ones most against touring; they got particularly fed up. So we agreed to say nothing, but never to tour again. We thought we’d get into recording, and say nothing until some journalist asked, ‘Are you going out on tour?’ – ‘Not yet.’ We wouldn’t make The Big Announcement that we’d finished touring forever, but it would gradually dawn on people: ‘They don’t appear to be going on tour, do they? How long was that? Ten years? Maybe they’ve given it up.’ That was the main point: we’d always tried to keep some fun in it for ourselves. In anything you do you have to do that, and we’d been pretty good at it. But now even America was beginning to pall because of the conditions of touring and because we’d done it so many times.

Due to the torrential rain the running order for the show was changed. The Beatles appeared after The Del-Rays, The Remains, and Bobby Hebb, and the show closed with The Cyrkle and The Ronettes.

The Beatles’ standard set during their final tour consisted of 11 songs: ‘Rock And Roll Music’ , ‘She’s A Woman’ , ‘If I Needed Someone’ , ‘Day Tripper’ , ‘Baby’s In Black’ , ‘I Feel Fine’ , ‘Yesterday’ , ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’ , ‘Nowhere Man’ , ‘Paperback Writer’ , and ‘I’m Down’ . During the tour they occasionally substituted the final song with ‘Long Tall Sally’ .

Following the St Louis concert The Beatles flew to New York, where they arrived at 3.50am the following morning.

Paul McCartney performed solo shows at Busch Stadium on 29 April 1993 and 13 August 2016 .

Also on this day...

2003: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: Horseshoe Casino Tunica, Robinsonville
2000: Album release: Liverpool Sound Collage by Paul McCartney
1998: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London
1992: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: Freedom Hall, Louisville
1972: Wings live: Congresgebouw, The Hague
1969: Mixing, editing: The End, You Never Give Me Your Money, Sun King, Mean Mr Mustard
1968: Recording, mixing: Sexy Sadie
1968: George and Pattie Harrison return to England from Greece
1966: The Beatles live: Crosley Field, Cincinnati
1965: The Beatles live: Metropolitan Stadium, Minneapolis
1964: The Beatles live: Coliseum, Seattle
1963: The Beatles live: Gaumont Cinema, Bournemouth
1963: Editing, mixing: With The Beatles
1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (lunchtime)
1960: The Beatles live: Indra Club, Hamburg

Want more? Visit the Beatles history section .

Latest Comments

I attended the aug.21,1966 concert and remembered seeing five limos drive into the stadium as the beatles were finishing their show, I then walked around the stadium to the other side where I witnessed the beatles run out a door by the ticket stand a jump into a waiting lincoln continental. I jumped out in front of them trying to get a picture. the car almost hit me and swerved around meand as it did, I plainly saw Paul McCartney riding in the front passenger seat and he waived at me. I hope this is true as I read differing accounts of their escape

I was there. I remember it raining but I don’t remember it being a LOT of rain, but enough that some of the opening acts got bumped and all of a sudden The Beatles came out. Lots of flashbulbs. If you went in the Mens room all you could hear was the vocals …as the stadium sound system included speakers in the bathrooms! So you could hear them singing LOUDLY in the bathroom. But we wanted to SEE them so we went back to our seats. Quite a night!

I was there! It is my memory they did the song “Rain”

I was there that night with my brother, and radio friend Marty Markowitz. Marty and I had worked so hard using every angle in the book to get in. I remember there was a black promoter with whom we’d spoken the week before. Marty had a ligitimate radio station, albeit 100 watts. Marty knew all the record and radio people in town,and getting in seemed like a shoe-in. But come Sunday night, no go. I got my brother, along with Marty on the elevator and made it down, to the field level and got off… There was the promoter, and when we asked if we could go in, he shook his head “no”…Everyone from KXOK went in. We three stood there, terribly disappointed… Oh, yea, the other person there that night was a young girl by the name of Susan Busch. 9 years later on November 29th I would marry her. Tomorrow night, we are going to the Paul McCartney concert, and all three of us will be together again.

I was there too! My dad surprised my sister and I with tickets. I remember a lot of rain!

My dad took me and my siblings, along with a friend, to this show. We were among the unlucky few sitting in the upper deck. There were so few people at the show up there, that we were able to move to center section seats. Although I was 11 at the time, we knew all of their material and I was taken by how many older hits they played, give what they were doing in the studio then. I don’t remember it raining all that hard. The sound was horrible, though.

I saw the Beatles at Busch Stadium. I was sixteen when my My mom, a cousin and three freinds made the trip from Madisonville, Kentucky. We had a sign in the back of the car that read: “BEATLES OR BUST” as we drove, and people in passing cars would honk and wave. It was on that trip that we first heard Ringo sing ‘YELLOW SUBMARINE’. from a St. Louis radio station. Ringo was my favorite. There was a misting rain and we couldn’t hear them very well, but we were glad to be there to see a live concert…we knew they were making music history! Now 50 years later I still listen to Beatle music… She love you …Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!

I am writing a book about the Beatles in St. Louis and I would LOVE to include any of your memories. Thank you Beatles Bible for all of the information you provide!

I was there 50 years ago and yes it rained for awhile then stopped. I remember hearing The Beatles singing and saying it didn’t sound like them, my brother said it was because they were live and I was use to hearing them on records. I still have my ticket and my brothers. I remember seeing a bunch of ticket stubs on the ground, I should have picked them up but didn’t. I remember Paul singing Yesterday and you could of heard a pin drop at that point. I screamed so much I was hoarse for a week. What a great time to be had by all and great memories. I have been to all Ringo and Paul’s concert here in St. Louis since. When Paul came Oct 9, 2002 I got a front row seat and he autographed a collage picture I drew I couldn’t believe it when he did that felt like I was in slow motion dream. Can’t wait for August 13th will be seeing him again!!!!

Don’t forget to mention that the Del Ray’s which later became the Guild played prior to the Beatles

I was so excited the night before And the night after I couldn’t sleep! I was 14 and my mom and 13 year old cousin and I rode downtown on the bus from Northland Shopping Center in St.Louis County. I remember the sleeveless hip hugger shift I wore.. I remember the drenching downpour and the crackle of the speakers as we sat perched in the nosebleed seats.. on the edge; electrified with adrenaline and screaming til we were hoarse! I wrote down the playlist in my diary which I had religiously saved until my dog ate the diary…51 years, 4 children and 4 grandchildren later… now 72 and Still playing the Beatles… the St.Louis concert remains a defining Memory of my life!

I was there as well. I was 14 years old and my 24 year old sister in law took me….she was 6 months pregnant!!!!! No one was hurt, and it has been the memory of a lifetim!!

I was there! It rained like crazy, and was hard to hear them clearly, but it was an experience I’ll never forget.

I was there with my best friend Joan. I was 15. I can remember all the screaming and feeling so incredibly happy just to be in their presence and part of the screaming crowd. After the concert, my friend and I actually got down onto the field and I grabbed a handful of grass, which I later kept in a piece of plastic in my Beatles scrapbook. My friend and I were certain this handful of grass had been walked on by our Beatles!! Still to this very day I am a huge Beatles fan – have had the privilege of seeing Paul in concert many times in the past years. Looking forward to seeing him again in St. Louis on August 13 this year !! I am originally from St. Louis, but now happily reside in Liverpool, England !

I had lived and breathed Beatles for over 2 years and my Dad wouldn’t let me go due to Lennon’s comments. Then I won tickets from KXOK contest (won at least 10 of the 100) and we all took a bus to the stadium! We had good seats and even touched Paul’s guitar that a rodie was carrying. Can’t say I heard them because I was screaming and crying so much. Don’t remember rain, except that they played earlier due to weather. We left right after they played to try and see them drive away. We could hear The Cyrcle playing Red Rubber Ball and didn’t care. We saw the decoy limos only. The Beatles set my life from the first song on Sullivan. I got in an all-girl band (Sweet Young Things) and now 50 years later am playing in a classic rock band in WI, called Radio Flyer. I retired on Feb. 7, 2014 with a huge Beatles 50th party. Will party again this Aug. 21 to celebrate the St. Louis anniversary. Still have the ticket and huge trunk of original Beatle memorabilia.

I was there. I heard the contest on KXOK where you had to identify 10 Beatles songs played in about 10 seconds. I sent in answers for me and nine of my friends and won 10 of the 100 tickets that they gave away. Couldn’t hear much with all the screaming girls. I still have the ticket.

I was there too. I was almost seven but a huge fan. I remember the rain and all the rligious nuts that were passing out pamphlets denouncing the Beatles. They only played about 20 minutes but I will treasure that night forever.

I was 15 and hitchhiked from Louisville Ky with my friend Ray Steilberg to St. Louis . I remember being handed a pamphlet that said “ we are more popular than Jesus “ from an adult protester. Tom Raymer

I’ll never forget that night! I was 12 years and my step sister and I went. She had gotten tickets through her job with 7-Up, who was a sponsor for the concert in STL. I was crazy about the Beatles, and my mom got every 45 for me at Walgreens where she worked at the time. My mom was a great seamstress and made a dress for me to wear. It was a very emotional night with the rain mixed in with tears of happiness. The concert seemed to be over before it began with only 11 songs played. It was my first concert and my first time at Busch Stadium, August 21, 1966.

BEATLES/PERSONAL REFLECTION

Beatles7th grade Tulsa Ok…new girlfriend at beginning of Jr high Sept 1964. My friend won tkts to the Dallas, Tx BEATLES concert after last minute switching with her older sister. The BEATLEMANIA Began for us both. Then my younger sister & I had a friend of my moms buy us tkts for BUSCH STADIUM STL 1966 CONCERT. American Airlines went on strike the wk we were to fly & stay with her friend. My dad & Mthr were kind enough to drive us 5 hrs to STL. THE BEST GIFT FROM MY PARENTS THAT I EVER RECD!! And the love affair has continued now thru my 3 grndkids. The BEATLES & Paul have been the SOUNDTRACK OF MY LIFE ???????

Color photos of this gig, the only color shots from the entire tour, have surfaced: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7256365/Only-known-color-photos-Beatles-1966-tour-hammer-time.html

Some friends of mine said that they were offered the opportunity to PLAY in front if The Beatles but they declined because they wanted to WATCH them! Another friend of mine said that he had worked at Busch Stadium and ran across them underneath and got Paul’s autograph and ended up selling it to some girl for a lousy $10!!! I am not sure if either of these occasions concerning my friends happened this night. A neighbor years later worked at the Rodeway Inn hotel by Union Station around 1972 and John and Yoko strolled in walked up to the desk and put his finger to his lips to say, “Please don’t tell anyone” and slipped a $20 bill which in 1972 was a whole days pay back then! One last item- the previous friend mentioned above that had a chance to play in front of The Beatles in the mid-80’s had a small marketing firm in St. Louis and I was working with him. A guy who had just opened a small art gallery downstairs had found out that a crate full of Linda McCartney photos was laying over in St.Louis and somehow had the chance to get those photos and show them – all good but he didn’t have a car so we used my little 82 Ford Escort that was a five-speed and we went up thee and got them although he had to straddle the stick shift to do it since the crate took up all of the space in back! We got a nice thank you card from Linda! That’s all i’ve got

I was at Busch also, with my sister, friend, and my Dad, who was Sales Manager at KMOX-TV at that time. He had some sort of press pass or tickets, my vivid memory is of being just a few feet from the band, as they were waiting to be announced to run out onto the wet field to the stage. Sadly, there was a fence between us, and even sadder I have no photos! I do have #400 of a KXOK Beatles book which documents the tour nicely. As another stated; they’ve been the soundtrack to my life. I cannot put into words the importance they brought to my life, especially as we acknowledge the anniversary of John’s assassination.

I have 6 Unused tickets and photos of all Beatles from 1966 in St. Louis Mo. to sell.

I was there but I do NOT recall any rain. It certainly wasn’t a deluge by any means as described in this story. Fun times! I received 2 tix for my HS graduation from my aunt / Godmother. She had the presidential suite booked at the BelAir Hotel in ST. Louis. It was so CRAZY! My BFF and I could barely contain ourselves. We met kids from Chicago and invited them up to our room. No shenanigans, just pure adrenaline and excitement!

I was there with my older brother Edward Ellis, my name is Kenny Ellis, I was 13 years old and a student at Niper in Kirkwood, I remember everything about the concert like it was yesterday. I’m still a Beatles fan and always will be. I do remember losing my binoculars and camera in all the madness, but so glad to be a part of music history. I want to thank my parents in heaven for buying us tickets and taking us there and picking us up, I love you forever, see you in heaven.

Seems that a lot of the info in this story is incorrect. My husband (who has read probably everything ever printed about the Beatles) said that the “empty steel-lined wagon” exit happened in San Francisco. That is corroborated by the earlier comment on this thread that says he remembers seeing the band get into limos after the concert.

The remains did not play St. Louis. A local band, the Delrays, were an opening act. Also, Ronnie Spector of the Ronettes was not on this tour. Phil Spector was jealous of John Lennon and refused to let her go on the tour. Her cousin, filled in for her.

I was at that concert that night. I am from St. Paul Mn. and had won a trip through our local radio station, WDGY. I was 14 years old then. I had seen them the year before on then same date in Minneapolis at Met Stadium. This was a trip of a lifetime and we flew there and went straight to Busch Stadium and after the show went straight back to Minnesota, quick trip. Wonderful memory!!!

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Beatles '66: The Revolutionary Year Hardcover – October 25, 2016

A riveting look at the transformative year in the lives and careers of the legendary group whose groundbreaking legacy would forever change music and popular culture.

They started off as hysteria-inducing pop stars playing to audiences of screaming teenage fans and ended up as musical sages considered responsible for ushering in a new era.

The year that changed everything for the Beatles was 1966—the year of their last concert and their first album, Revolver, that was created to be listened to rather than performed. This was the year the Beatles risked their popularity by retiring from live performances, recording songs that explored alternative states of consciousness, experimenting with avant-garde ideas, and speaking their minds on issues of politics, war, and religion. It was the year their records were burned in America after John’s explosive claim that the group was "more popular than Jesus," the year they were hounded out of the Philippines for "snubbing" its First Lady, the year John met Yoko Ono, and the year Paul conceived the idea for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

On the fiftieth anniversary of this seminal year, music journalist and Beatles expert Steve Turner slows down the action to investigate in detail the enormous changes that took place in the Beatles’ lives and work during 1966. He looks at the historical events that had an impact on the group, the music they made that in turn profoundly affected the culture around them, and the vision that allowed four young men from Liverpool to transform popular music and serve as pioneers for artists from Coldplay to David Bowie, Jay-Z to U2.

By talking to those close to the group and by drawing on his past interviews with key figures such as George Martin, Timothy Leary, and Ravi Shankar—and the Beatles themselves—Turner gives us the compelling, definitive account of the twelve months that contained everything the Beatles had been and anticipated everything they would still become.

Print length 464 pages
Language English
Publisher Ecco
Publication date October 25, 2016
Dimensions 6 x 1.41 x 9 inches
ISBN-10 0062475487
See all details

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Editorial Reviews

“A pleasing romp through the Beatles’ annus mirabilis...Turner does a nice job of capturing them at their best.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Reading Beatles ‘66, I’m right there-and where else would you want to be if you love music?” — Bono

“1966 was a crucial year in the Beatles’ amazing journey from being the Fab Four to becoming the princes of psychedelia...By concentrating on just this one year, Steve Turner has been able to examine every influence, document every detail, and fit the jigsaw together. An extraordinary achievement.” — Barry Miles, author of Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now and In the Sixties

“1966 was the year of my marriage to George, our first visit to India, and the Beatles’ last concert. It was a really exciting time of innovation and exploration- the world, our oyster. Everything is captured most vividly and in such detail in this book. ” — Pattie Boyd

“A fascinating dissection of these best and worst of times for the Beatles. Steve Turner’s research is impressive.” — Philip Norman, author of Shout! The True Story of the Beatles, John Lennon: The Life, and Paul McCartney: The Biography

“The most comprehensive coverage of Revolver and the events in the Beatles’ lives and times in 1966. Splendid!” — Tony Bramwell, author of Magical Mystery Tours: My Life with the Beatles

“Turner succeeds in creating an illuminating portrait of the Beatles, both as a band and as individual artists.” — Publishers Weekly

“This book guides Beatles fans through that year in an engaging, interesting and compelling way. Beatles ‘66 is a major achievement-for Beatles fans, yes of course, but also for anyone interested in how creativity works and is affected by its surroundings.” — New York Journal of Books

“Turner’s well-researched, in-depth, quote- and photo-filled précis will thrill all Beatles fans.” — Booklist

“What music journalist Turner brings...is fantastic access (the book draws upon his interviews with The Beatles, as well as producer George Martin and George Harrison’s mentor Ravi Shankar) and an extraordinary, Peter Guralnick-like (Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley) attention to detail.” — USA Today

“Turner tackles the year from all angles, incorporating a wealth of source material and new quotes from people involved to shed some fresh light on these incidents . . . This book is the work of an expert, and expertly written at that.” — Paste Magazine

“A wonderfully compelling look into the year that changed everything for the band.” — BookPage

“This is a Beatles book to read many times. An extraordinary book.” — Beatles Magazine

From the Back Cover

The year that changed everything for the Beatles was 1966—the year of their last concert and Revolver, their first album of songs not intended for live performance. This was the year the Beatles risked their popularity by retiring from the tour circuit, recording songs that explored alternative states of consciousness, experimenting with avant-garde ideas, and speaking their minds on issues of politics, war, and religion. It was the year Americans burned their records after John’s explosive claim that the group was “more popular than Jesus,” the year they were hounded out of the Philippines for “snubbing” the country’s first lady, the year John met Yoko Ono, and the year Paul conceived the idea for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

By talking to those closest to the group and by drawing on his past interviews with the Beatles themselves and key figures such as George Martin, Timothy Leary, and Ravi Shankar, Turner gives us the definitive account of the twelve months that encompassed everything the Beatles had been and would yet become.

About the Author

Steve Turner is the author of Trouble Man: The Life and Death of Marvin Gaye, A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles' Song, Hungry for Heaven: Rock and Roll and the Search for Redemption, Jack Kerouac: Angelheaded Hipster, and Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now. His articles have appeared in Rolling Stone, Mojo, Q, and the London Times. He lives in London with his wife and two children.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ecco (October 25, 2016)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062475487
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.49 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.41 x 9 inches
#251 in The Beatles
#2,797 in Rock Band Biographies
#3,335 in Rock Music (Books)

About the author

Steve turner.

Steve Turner is the author of Trouble Man: The Life and Death of Marvin Gaye, A Hard Day's, Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song, Hungry for Heaven: Rock and Roll and the Search for Redemption, Jack Kerouac. Angelbeaded Hipster, and Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now. His articles have appeared in Rolling Stone, Mojo, Q, and the London Times. He lives in London with his wife and two children.

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142 The Beatles 1966 Us Tour Stock Photos & High-Res Pictures

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British rock group the Beatles arrive at London Airport on the 'Clipper Beatles', after their final concert tour of the United States, UK, 31st...

Washington DC • Monday, August 15, 1966

Band members

Paul McCartney

Ringo Starr

John Lennon

George Harrison

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On this day, August 15, 1966, The Beatles flew from Cleveland, where they had performed a concert the day before , to Washington, DC, where they were scheduled to perform at DC Stadium. Throughout the tour, they were accompanied by supporting acts The Remains, Bobby Hebb, The Cyrkle, and The Ronettes.

Before the concert, a group of five individuals who identified themselves as members of the Ku Klux Klan held a parade outside the stadium in protest of John Lennon’s remarks about The Beatles being more popular than Jesus . The Klan members wore robes in red, white, and green, and they were led by the Imperial Grand Wizard of the Maryland clan.

The Beatles held a press conference before the concert , and they addressed the controversy surrounding John’s remarks.

After the concert, The Beatles and their entourage immediately boarded a bus and began the journey to Philadelphia, where they would perform the next day .

The next stop was Washington, D.C., but in many cases the plane rides to and from were just as much fun as the actual concert spot. Three of The Beatles circulated about the plane from time to time, but John usually remained seated. Several people came up to talk to him, which he did easily and pleasantly, but he wasn’t his usual outgoing self, pointed out by others who had been on previous tours. John seemed friendly and attentive when speaking with someone, but he appeared troubled and reflective when he wasn’t busy. I could be wrong, since I can’t claim to be a John Lennon mind reader, but I may have seen more in his attitude than was really there. We (most of the press people) were all aware of John’s difficult position this year; so many people had taken verbal potshots at him that we were all a bit sensitive about anything relating to him. […] The D.C. security in our fair capitol was pretty tight, as there were few people jamming the airport or hotel. In Washington we pulled into the back entrance of the Shoreham Hotel where The Beatles and the rest of us had to trek through the lower depths and ride a creaky freight elevator to the lobby. That is, we went to the lobby for our room keys, but The Beatles don’t have to do that sort of thing. […] The concert there had one of the best sound systems and one of the largest crowds — over 30,000. The only incident, which brought a near heartattack to our security men, occurred when a young boy came out of nowhere and leapt on the stage. He was quickly removed, but the crowd roared its approval anyway. Judith Sims – From TeenSet Magazine – Quoted in “ Ticket To ride – The Extraordinary Diary of The Beatles’ Last Tour ” by Barry Tashian

August 15, 1966 (after midnight) Dear Diary, I saw The Beatles tonight. I couldn’t see their faces very well, but I knew Paul looked adorable as always. He looked over at our section quite a lot. John waved at our section also. All I could do was cry. Sharon would jump up every so often, shaking, then she’d look over at me and sort of feel sorry for me. I suppose. It was very disappointing though. The lighting and sound equipment was terrible. they began with Long Tall Sally and ended with I’m Down [sic: they ended with Long Tall Sally]. That’s how I feel right now, down. Because I could only watch them. They were so close, yet so far away. The next time they come I’ll see them again and it will be different. A boy jumped on stage and almost knocked John off, a policeman had to carry him away. John kept jumping at the mike, Paul would kick and swing his legs out in front of him, George did dances and little Ringo drummed away. Paul took the mike once, walked over to where Ringo was, and then announced his song. You can imagine the screams. Though I cried, my throat was tight and dry and I kept saying over and over, “Paul, oh Paul.” My dream came true that night — I saw them. I knew he’s real. I do know that he is mine. (?) In my own special way, he’ll always be mine. But not in reality. When we entered the stadium it was day, when we left I couldn’t remember if it were day or night. I still can’t. It all seems too much like a dream that you can’t remember too well. A dream that you could be contented to remain in because you would not want to wake. Afterwards, I was in my own world. I kept going over all that happened, keeping very silent, very still. Almost as if in a trance. My father didn’t like this. He said I had just seen The Beatles — I heard that, and I shot back, “That was all!!” If he only knew. To just see them — to be so close and yet so far away. To love them and Paul and not being able to tell them. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); They were beautiful. they were mine for a whole fleeting second. Mine. Hundreds of screaming, happy, loyal, wonderful Beatle fans, and they were mine that evening. The Beatles and Paul — were mine. And I’m sure everyone must have felt the same. My three-year-old sister saw them only a few yards away before the concert, the luck of being a child. She’ll never know what that would have mean to all of us. That you Dear Lord for letting The Beatles be who they are. We love them so. Joan Litherland – From “ McCartney: Luvers and Friends ” fanzine, March 1973 – Meet the Beatles for Real: The Beatles in Concert – Washington D.C.

First time around was August 18, 1965, at Atlanta Stadium. […] Second time around was August 15, 1966, at Washington D.C. at the D.C. Stadium. Our seats were closer this time and we had a great view with binoculars. I couldn’t get over their suits. They were gorgeous. Sort of a cream-camel color with belled pants. The Beatles were Fantabulous! I’ve never seen them with so much energy, you know, moving around and all. Paul danced constantly. George and John did their share of monkeyshines too. They took turns (except Ringo) announcing this time. Funny thing. You know, they, especially John and George, would announce the song then tell what album it’s from; but they always got it wrong. I honestly thought Paul was going to kill himself. He was “here there and everywhere.” All over the stage. He and George waved a lot, George giving out off waves just turning the screams on and off. They were panting and could barely catch enough breath to talk much less sing. When Paul sang “Yesterday” there was really a riot. Several ran to rails but police knocked them about and ushers carried them out. It was beautiful. When Ringo was singing this boy came from nowhere and went flying out to the stage (with police in hot pursuit) and got up on the stage and went for John. IT scared me to death. John dodged and the boy fell off the stage and was dragged, kicking, out by four men. John and to go around the mike three times to get untangled. Then the next thing you know, they were gone. But the main part – we went to the stadium at 3:00 (concert time 8:00) and we were standing there (after walking around the stadium three times trying to find some small space to get inside the thing) at the gate peering in. Suddenly, we began to see members of the other groups. Then we saw two tall figures inside. They came closer. Who was it? It was George. Who was with him? It was Paul. It was Paul and George! Natch we started screaming and frantically waving. They were so sweet. They stopped, smiled, waved and Paul said “Hello.” That was about the most thrilling thing ever! Then they were gone – just like before. Carolyn Hicks, August 1967 – From Meet the Beatles for Real: As I remember…

From Boundary Stones , August 9th, 2016:

Although their first appearance in Washington D.C. in 1964 was certainly more historic, the Beatles’ last visit in 1966 was nothing if not eventful, and verged on the downright bizarre. In stark contrast to that triumphant first U.S. concert at Washington Coliseum in February 1964, by August 1966 the Beatles were mired in religious controversy, struggling to sell out concerts, no longer a shoo-in for #1 on the pop charts, and creating music too complex to be replicated on stage. To a large extent the 1966 Beatles had outgrown both their lovable moptop image and their legions of delirious teenage fans. They were at the forefront of massive musical, social and cultural change, and a good chunk of America was just not quite ready. The Beatles stealthily arrived at Washington National Airport at 3:30pm on August 15, 1966, for the fourth stop on what would become their final tour. They were scheduled to play D.C. Stadium (i.e. RFK) that night, and according to the Washington Post there were plenty of good tickets still available, priced from $3 to $5 each. Their most pressing concern however was to address the growing firestorm over John Lennon’s remarks on the decline of Christianity and the Beatles’ relative standing in a popularity contest with Jesus Christ. Lennon’s infamous “Bigger than Jesus …” comment had actually been published in the U.K. back in March in the London Evening Standard, after an interview with journalist Maureen Cleeve […] The off-the-cuff remarks elicited scant reaction in England at the time, but when they were republished in the American teen magazine Datebook several months later — on the eve of their upcoming U.S. summer tour — all hell (and some actual fire) broke loose. The outcry exploded mainly in the Southern Bible Belt — with radio stations boycotting Beatles songs, several public burnings of Beatles records and paraphernalia, death threats and other organized protests. The Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein considered cancelling the tour, fearing for the lives of his clients. Lennon had already made an apology of sorts in Chicago on August 11, but this did little to allay the controversy. So the Beatles scheduled another press conference in Washington to address the continuing chaos. Since there was little time between their afternoon arrival and the scheduled concert at 8:00pm, the event was held in the Washington Senators’ locker room at D.C. Stadium. Several of the baseball players’ lockers were hastily cleared out, and the Beatles were seated in front of them. Only fragments of the press conference survive, but the tone of the assembled journalists was much more confrontational than the jovial reception they received back in 1964. One reporter went so far as to theorize that the whole thing was an elaborate publicity stunt timed to drum up ticket sales for their tour […] (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); […] After several warm-up acts, the Beatles appeared on stage for about 30 minutes in total. They raced through a setlist of a mere 11 songs with no encores, which included several songs also performed during their 1964 and 1965 tours. It did not include a single song from their latest album Revolver — a groundbreaking masterpiece often listed in the Top Ten albums of all time, which would have been nearly impossible to reproduce live anyway. For the 32,164 fans in attendance, the Beatles were difficult to see and hear […] After this short, nearly inaudible set, the Beatles were quickly spirited away, traveling immediately to Philadelphia for the next date on this whirlwind tour which would pack 19 shows into just 17 days. As the bus departed, the Fab Four had already moved on, in pretty much every way possible. The 1966 D.C. concert had been a microcosm of all the reasons touring had become more of a threatening burden than a joyous celebration. Though no one outside the band knew it at the time, the Beatles were finished as a live act. Two weeks later, they played their last concert ever at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

From The Washington Post – August 16, 1966 The fabulous Beatles, who include two reluctant theologians since their last appearance here two years ago, practically stole into town yesterday for a concert at D.C. Stadium. […] Their entourage of about 60 whisked from an out-of-the-way corner of National Airport to the service entrance of the Shoreham Hotel in six limousines. most of the party, however, stayed at the Willard Hotel. A dozen young teenage girls, some of whom had been waiting since 7 a.m., mobbed the Beatles’ car at the entrance. But after a brief struggle with two Metropolitan policemen and several Beatle security guards, the screaming, crying teenagers were dispersed. […] Another 150 District police were patroling the outside area and neighboring residential blocks for signs of troublemakers. Members of the Maryland Ku Klux Klan had threatened to picket the group over the remarks on religion. In addition, a 600-foot long snow fences was placed across the stadium itself from foul line pole to foul line pole to prevent youngsters from getting close to their idols. […] On Saturday, Lennon told Washington Post reporter Leroy Aarons in an exclusive interview: “I can’t express myself very well … I’m more of a Christion [sic] now than I ever was. I don’t go along with organized religion and the way it has come about. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us … it’s just that the translations have gone wrong.” The same day Beatle Paul McCartney told a Chicago press conference: “We all deplore the fact” that Christianity “seems to be shrinking, to be losing contact.” From The Washington Post – August 16, 1966 – From When Did the Beatles Play in D.C.? – Ghosts of DC

32,000 GREET THE BEATLES IN WASHINGTON A crowd of more than 32,000 gave the Beatles an enthusiastic welcome in Washington last night. The group was giving a concert in the Washington Senators’ baseball ground. Miss Susan Dobbs, 18, of Virginia, who had solicited support through the personal column of The Daily Telegraph for a petition of welcome for the Beatles, was unable to hand it to them. She failed to penetrate the police cordon. The Ku Klux Klan, taking a different view of the Beatles’ appearance following John Lennon’s remarks about Jesus, picketed the stadium. The small party of robed Klansmen were hardly detectable among the Beatles’ thousands of followers. From The Daily Telegraph – August 17, 1966

32,000 in Capital Hear the Beatles WASHINGTON. (UPI) The Beatles, trailing admirers and apologies behind them, thundered through a one night stand last night before 32,000 fans. The enthusiasm of the crowd at District Stadium belied the need for apologies from the millionaire singers’ outspoken member, John Lennon, who has said the quartet was “more popular than Jesus.” For the most part the crowd was quiet enough to hear the lyrics of the Beatle favorites that were a part of the program. Only with Paul McCartney’s singing of “Yesterday” did the fans erupt in an ovation that drowned out the singer. During the performance four girls and a boy broke through heavy police cordons surrounding the musical group in an effort to reach a stage placed behind second base in the Washington Senators baseball infield. Only the boy was able to reach the stage where, as he raised his clasped hands in a victory sign, he was grabbed by police and hustled away. Five members of the Ku Klux Klan paraded outside the stadium in protest over Lennon’s remarks on the dwindling popularity of Christianity. At a news conference before they sang, they had no comment on the pickets. But Lennon did reiterate the apology he has given ever since the Beatles began their current U.S. tour, and said in response to a question that “… there aren’t as many people upset as I was led to believe.” From The Memphis Press-Scimitar – August 16, 1966

BEATLES STILL LOVED IN AMERICA AND YOU FROM facts supplied by NME correspondents in America, we have compiled a Beatles diary. Below is our impression of how the Beatles themselves might write down their day-to-day events… THURSDAY, August 11 : Thanks for the wonderful send-off from London Airport. Sorry you got so wet. Hope you haven’t got colds. We were questioned, of course. Replies: JOHN: I’m sorry I said it. I’m worried because I caused the bother. I will do anything to put things right. I’ll apologise, without reservations. PAUL: I expect it will be the usual rave-up. GEORGE: I’m worried. We’ve never left for America with this sort of feeling. Girl fans shouted: “Don’t go. You’ll be killed.” Hope not. Flew Pan-Am (our original TWA flight direct London-Chicago was strike cancelled). Touched down at Boston. Sorry for the 500 youngsters who weren’t allowed near us. RINGO (as we stretch legs in silence): At least the weather is warm. Some fans reported to have shouted “John, not Jesus” but we never heard them. Chicago… we’re smuggled through hangar a mile from passenger terminal. At hotel car mobbed. How those girls pounded roof of new limousine. Rooms on 24th floor. We had a Press reception at which JOHN apologised in front of TV cameras and mikes for his remark about “Beatles more popular than Christ” and said he’d be more guarded in what he said in future. He explained he used “Beatles” as he might use “TV” or “cinema,” or anything else that was popular. (Reported fans outside annoyed, and one alleged to say: “John has sold out to adults”). But Alabama disc jockey called off anti-Beatles demonstration. FRIDAY, August 12: Our first two shows on the fourth tour, at the 13,000-capacity Chicago Amphitheatre, were both sell-outs. We enjoyed them. Great audience response… wilder, louder, more joyful if anything. Like PAUL forecast: the usual rave-up! And more American dollars for Britain from the gross of about $140,000. Helping to Mend Britain’s Emergency ! SATURDAY. August 13: Flew to Detroit. Two more successful shows. SUNDAY, August 14: Came on by bus to Cleveland. Played in the Stadium to 24,000. Police precautions inadequate. Seems Mayor refused permission for police to protect us or audience, so concert sponsors hired 90 cops at $10 each, which wasn’t enough. Result was teenagers got over barrier and rushed stage during “ Day Tripper.” About 2,000 got on to baseball pitch. We were rushed off stage to a caravan. Police took 30 minutes to calm crowd and get them off field before we started again. Like PAUL said: “A rave-up !” And no one hurt, we’re glad to say. But we need more police. WASHINGTON, Monday, August 15: Concert went well at the local stadium. Plenty of police to keep order and only a few kids got out of hand. We were apprehensive about picketing by Ku Klux^Klan, but green-robed contingent, forecast as 25 but actually five, got jeers from fans. We read Grand Dragon Bill Sickles hammered out: “Look at all (hat trash going in there — niggers and whites together… we don’t appreciate bringing the anti-Christ over here from England. We have enough of our own.” Sounds like it ! PHILADELPHIA, Tuesday, August 16: Swinging open air show here. Now on to Toronto, Boston racetrack (hope we’ll be winners !) and Memphis ?!? New York ready to greet boys The Beatles are here and their four shaggy heads will roar into New York’s Shea Stadium next Tuesday. As I write the date is not a complete sell-out — but 56,000 seats is one very tall order! NBC, CBS and ABC television got their say on the Beatle matter at about 8 o’clock last Thursday night (11th) in a special telecast, preceding the Chicago Press conference an hour later. Some bonfires have burned, but Beatle excitement still pervades everywhere! For the first time in the history of their American success, the Beatle will hold a High School and Teen Fan Club Press conference in New York, which both Brian Epstein and Tony Barrow are enthusing over. This has been set for Monday afternoon (22nd), and will be held for a total of 150 under-eighteens. some selected by WMCA and WABC radio, and the others from the fan club list, at Warwick Hotel (where the Beatles will be staying). The regular Press conference is two hours later. Both Bernice Young (head of the national fan club and an executive of Nemporer), and Tony Barrow, are looking forward to the conference with mixed emotions. Tony is just a little scared the fans might get out of hand, but Bernice told me they’ve provided a dozen extra guards in addition to the hotel security and police travelling with the Beatles. From New Musical Express – August 19, 1966

Kenny Everett Reports The Beatles U.S. Tour Washington D.C. Tuesday The group on stage before the Beatles was the Cyrkle — Brian Epstein’s American group that had the big hit with “Red Rubber Ball”. Somebody must have given all the kids rubber balls as a publicity stunt — but they saved them all for the Beatles. When the boys came on stage they were showered with all these small red rubber balls — the sort that are supposed to bounce as high as a house — as well as jelly babies. John Lennon’s much-publicised remarks haven’t caused any incidents so far. When we got to Chicago there was a press conference with everybody from the radio stations and newspapers there. John is very sad about the whole thing and he explained what he meant and everybody seemed satisfied. He is certainly not anti-religious or anything like that. One effect of it all is that we have seen posters and placards saying: “We Love John Lennon And God!” Another unexpected thing — people outside the shows selling badges with “I Love Paul”, “I Love Ringo”, “I Love George” and “I Love John”, say that the “I Love John” ones are outselling the others ten to one. Another surprising incident happened after the Detroit shows. As soon as we got away from the Stadium we pulled up at a little cafe. The Beatles just stood about on the side of the road eating hamburgers while everybody walked past without recognising them. I couldn’t help wondering what would happen if they had suddenly realised the Beatles were just standing right there. I feel sorry for the Beatles in some ways. They are trapped in their hotels and can’t go out. We get into the hotel usually around 3 a.m. and from then until the concert at 5 p.m. the next afternoon they have to stay indoors. Every hotel has been completely surrounded by fans, with radio sets, banners, and all that jazz. They just scream all day. Even if the Beatles wanted to they would not be allowed out by the security men. They have just have to sit around inside all the time. “Tell Lyndon we’ll be late for tea.” That was John Lenon’s laconic comment made as the whole Beatles party were kept hanging around waiting for a plane to Washington at Cleveland airport yesterday. There was little to do but sit and wait. On the planes from date to date everything is informal. The Beatles don’t like flying but they have to, so they do it with good grace. The flight from Cleveland to Washington was spent relaxing and eating. I was having lunch when Paul wandered by I waved a greeting with a knife and he sat down beside me. The Washington concert took place in another huge stadium before about 30,000 fans and it seemed almost as many policemen. The Beatles were separated from the crescent of fans by a large expanse of field patrolled by vigilant police. So the expected riots never happened. Only one male fan made it through the police cordon. He was dressed in a suit and had long hair and the cops mistook him for a member of a supporting group. As far as we can see the much publicised “ban the Beatles movement” has fizzled out. There have been no incidents close to the Beatles although the Ku Klux Klan apparently held a demonstration in another state. It seems that the kids are saying: “So John Lennon said it, so what?” As far as I can see the Beatles still have as many American fans as before — if not more. Radio stations ignore ban on Beatle records WASHINGTON, Tuesday: The Beatles’ entourage arrived at the luxurious Shoreham Hotel late on Monday following an uproarious riot-torn night in Cleveland which some observers compared to the recent racial riots in the city’s East side. Performing for an audience of 25,000 in the giant 80,000-seat stadium on the shores of Lake Erie, the group barely got into its third number when fans rushed the stage. More than 1,000 fans pushed and shoved their way toward the five-foot-high stage and the concert was halted with the Beatles racing to a nearby trailer for protection. Following a 33-minute delay, the concert was continued with the closing number drowned out in the bedlam of another rush on the stage. In the ensuing excitement the chauffeur of one of the Cadillac limousines awaiting the group smashed the side of the car against a wall. It was a frantic scene highlighted by general confusion and security forces that were woefully inadequate. Finally, the group managed to get out of the stadium area and back to their hotel, where they spent much of the rest of the night playing Bob Dylan’s brand new two LP album, “Blonde On Blonde.” Earlier in Chicago the group played to two sellout houses at the giant international amphitheatre indoor stadium. The Windy City visit produced the first of an abbreviated series of press conferences during which John Lennon apologised for the connotation put on his recent remarks about religion. But he stuck to his basic opinion on the alleged decline of Christianity in Britain today. The Saturday night concert at the Olympia Stadium Detroit was described as “almost a full house”, with “inadequate security measures”, although no serious incidents occurred there. It’s understood that some members of the party — not including the Beatles themselves — visited Berry Gordy, president of Tamla Motown Records, while in Detroit. Airport security has been generally good to date, and crowds awaiting the Beatles’ plane arrivals have been smaller than on previous tours. Saleswise however, there seems no decline at all in the Beatles’ power. Their newest Capitol single appears to be another two-sided smash. “Yellow Submarine”, is already in the Top Twenty in its first week of release while the flip “Eleanor Rigby” is close behind. Stations are now reported to be flipping to the “Rigby” side which may be the bigger hit of the two. About 97 per cent of the nation’s pop music stations are playing the current disc, putting the lie to the stories of a mass anti-Beatle movement. The radio station that started the campaign in Birmingham, Alabama, is said to be one of the weakest outlets in its market. Meanwhile, within the group itself George Harrison has become a more intense fan of Indian music than ever. Admittedly a fan of Ravi Shankar and his sitar, Harrison is pursuing his study of the music and is carrying with him a tiny transistorised tape recorder which he’s using to tape as much off-beat material as he can find. One member of the party from the GAC Agency has already arranged to get Harrison a collection of Indian music albums including one LP featuring violinist Yehudi Menuhin. Concert dates this week include Philadelphia, Toronto, Boston, Memphis, and St Louis. The group arrives in New York next Monday and appears at Shea Stadium on Tuesday night. After this, they fly to the West Coast. From Melody Maker – August 20, 1966

Last updated on September 20, 2023

D.C. Stadium

This was the 1st and only concert played at D.C. Stadium.

Setlist for the concert

Rock and Roll Music

Written by Chuck Berry

She's a Woman

Written by Lennon - McCartney

If I Needed Someone

Written by George Harrison

Day Tripper

Baby's in Black

I Feel Fine

I Wanna Be Your Man

Nowhere Man

Paperback Writer

Long Tall Sally

Written by Richard Penniman / Little Richard , Enotris Johnson , Robert Blackwell

See song statistics for “Summer 1966 US tour”

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Rare footage of Beatles’ 1966 Japan tour finally released

By KYOTA TANAKA/ Staff Writer

September 25, 2022 at 17:58 JST

Rare censored footage of the tight security put in place by Tokyo police when the Beatles came to Japan to perform in 1966 has finally reached the public domain.

The nearly 36-minute black and white silent movie shot by the Metropolitan Police Department documents a level of security normally accorded to state guests.

The group was in Japan from June 29 to July 3. It was their first and last tour in Japan as a band.

It shows police meetings to discuss security measures and officers at checkpoints set up around Haneda Airport in the capital for the arrival of the four-member group.

The footage also captures a vehicle displaying a banner that read “Demoralizing Beatles must be driven out” heading in the direction of the cameraman.

The band members--John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr--all feature, too.

Beatles expert Toru Omura labeled the film as “historically significant.”

“The film is stunning for Beatlemania around the world,” he said. “It captures the public mood back then and is historically significant.”

The group gave five performances in all: on the evening of June 30, day and evening shows on July 1 and the same on July 2.

The footage includes the never-before-seen final performance at the Nippon Budokan hall on July 2.

Of the five performances, audiences were at their most frantic during the last show, according to Omura.

He noted that the first show was marred by problems, including Paul’s microphone, which was improperly set on the stand, allowing it to occasionally swing sideways as he sang.

“It shows members of the band waving to their fans as they also waved handkerchiefs during the final concert, giving us a peek into what it was like inside the concert venue,” he said.

The video was disclosed in response to a disclosure request made by a nonprofit group Joho Kokai Shimin Center (Civic center for information disclosure) in 2015.

A representative said the center received a DVD of the video in July. It was shown during an event in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, on Sept. 24.

It came with the faces of people blurred, except for the Beatles. The Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that measures should be taken to protect their privacy as it was possible to identify the individuals shot in the video.

As a result, the faces of fans, police officers--even Brian Epstein, the manager who was known as a fifth Beatle--were blurred.

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BEATLES MAGAZINE: COLOR PHOTOS OF THE BEATLES IN 1966 US TOUR GO UNDER
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On this day in history, August 29, 1966, the Beatles played their last
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The Beatles' 1966 US tour
The Beatles staged their third and final concert tour of North America in August 1966. It consisted of 18 performances, with 16 shows in United States venues and two in Canada.The tour was plagued with backlash regarding the controversy of John Lennon's remark about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus", death threats, and the band's own dissatisfaction with the noise levels and their ...
The Beatles's 1966 Concert & Tour History
The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. With the line-up comprising John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, they are regarded as one of the most influential bands of all time. The group was integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and popular music's recognition as an art form.
The Beatles Complete North American Tour 1966 (Performance ...
All video sources and some press conferences from the last tour of theBeatles, cut off the San Francisco part (Candlestick Park) Because part of it is copyri...
The Beatles' 1966 US tour
The Beatles staged their third and final concert tour of North America in August 1966. It consisted of 18 performances, with 16 shows in United States venues and two in Canada. The tour was plagued with backlash regarding the controversy of John Lennon's remark about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus", death threats, and the band's own dissatisfaction with the noise levels and their ...
List of the Beatles' live performances
The Beatles arriving for concerts in Madrid, July 1965. From 1962 to 1966, the English rock band the Beatles performed all over the Western world. They began performing live as The Beatles on 15 August 1960 at The Jacaranda in Liverpool and continued in various clubs during their visit to Hamburg, West Germany, until 1962, with a line-up of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart ...
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The Beatles took the stage for the last time ever on August 29th, 1966, marking the end of a disastrous final tour. Koh Hasebe/Shinko Music/Getty Images Touring was killing the Beatles by 1966.
The Beatles' 1966 US tour
The Beatles staged their third and final concert tour of North America in August 1966. It consisted of 18 performances, with 16 shows in United States venues and two in Canada.The tour was plagued with backlash regarding the controversy of John Lennon's remark about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus", death threats, and the band's own dissatisfaction with the noise levels and their ...
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Tuesday 16 August 1966 Live 10 Comments. The fifth date of The Beatles' final tour took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where they performed one concert before around 20,000 people at the John F Kennedy Stadium. The concert began at 8pm. The stadium had 60,000 seats available, but by this point in their career The Beatles were only able ...
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The English rock group the Beatles toured West Germany, Japan and the Philippines between 24 June and 4 July 1966. The thirteen concerts comprised the first stage of a world tour that ended with the band's final tour of the United States, in August 1966.The shows in West Germany represented a return to the country where the Beatles had developed as a group before achieving fame in 1963.
Summer 1966 US tour • The Paul McCartney Project
Brian Epstein, the Beatles' manager, announced the band's intention to tour the United States in early March 1966 while in New York. Taking place in August, it was the band's third annual summer tour of the US. The shows formed the second leg of a world tour, following concerts in June and July in West Germany, Japan and the Philippines.
1966 Timeline
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The Beatles live: Circus-Krone-Bau, Munich, Germany
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About. The Beatles flew to New York City on August 22, 1966, after their concert in St. Louis the previous day.They arrived at 3:50 AM and were taken to the Warwick Hotel, where they gave a press conference for journalists.Later that day, they held a second press conference for young fans, which was known as the "Junior Press Conference." On August 23, a little over a year after their ...
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Although the Beatles' '66 tour has been perceived as the group's least successful due to the backlash against Lennon's "Bigger Than Jesus" statement and some patchy attendance at various venues, Gunderson explains that had the public known that it was the Beatles last go 'round as a performing band — the stadiums would've been ...
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The Beatles stealthily arrived at Washington National Airport at 3:30pm on August 15, 1966, for the fourth stop on what would become their final tour. They were scheduled to play D.C. Stadium (i.e. RFK) that night, and according to the Washington Post there were plenty of good tickets still available, priced from $3 to $5 each.
Rare footage of Beatles' 1966 Japan tour finally released
The Beatles perform during what is believed to be the group's final concert in Japan on the evening of July 2, 1966. (Shot by the Metropolitan Police Department in Tokyo and provided by ...
The Beatles
0:00 Intro16:55 Rock And Roll Music18:30 She's A Woman21:45 If I Needed Someone24:38 Day Tripper27:48 Baby's In Black30:28 I Feel Fine33:00 Yesterday35:31 I ...

The Beatles' 1966 US tour

Background [ ]

Escalation of the "Jesus" controversy [ ]

Repertoire and tour personnel [ ]

Incidents and further controversy [ ]

Crowd control [ ]

Memphis stopover [ ]

Opposition to Vietnam War [ ]

Final concert [ ]

Reception [ ]

Set list [ ]

Remembering Beatles’ Final Concert

Jordan Runtagh

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