69 Fun Facts About British Invasion

At which New York baseball stadium did the Beatles play an unprecedented rock concert in 1965?

Shea Stadium was booked by promoter Sid Bernstein after his first Beatles concerts in New York sold out amid huge demand for tickets.

Which song did the Beatles open with on their first Ed Sullivan Show broadcast in February 1964?

All My Loving opened the set; during the next song, Till There Was You, a caption under one Beatle read 'Sorry girls, he's married'.

Which series finale broke the US TV audience record set by the Beatles' Ed Sullivan debut three years earlier?

The Fugitive's two-part finale broke the record in August 1967, the night Dr. Richard Kimble was finally cleared.

Two days after the Sullivan show, the Beatles played their first US concert at which venue?

Washington Coliseum hosted the show, and decades later the old arena where the Beatles first played America reopened as an REI outdoor store.

With which boxer, then training for his first title fight, did the Beatles pose in Miami Beach in 1964?

Cassius Clay, an 8-1 underdog, upset Sonny Liston a week later and soon afterwards became known as Muhammad Ali.

The day after their first US concert, the Beatles played two shows at which New York hall?

Carnegie Hall was booked by promoter Sid Bernstein, who signed up the Beatles in 1963 without ever having heard their music.

Which US record label kept passing on the Beatles' singles before finally rushing out 'I Want to Hold Your Hand'?

Capitol Records passed on earlier singles, which small labels put out instead, and by April 1964 the Beatles held the Hot 100's entire top five.

Which jazz great ended the Beatles' 14-week run at number one on the Hot 100 in May 1964?

Louis Armstrong knocked them off with 'Hello, Dolly!', and later that year Lyndon B. Johnson's campaign turned the tune into 'Hello, Lyndon!'

Which singer followed the Beatles onto the Hot 100 a week later with 'I Only Want to Be with You'?

Dusty Springfield had just left the folk-pop trio the Springfields, and this was her debut solo single.

Whose 'Glad All Over' knocked the Beatles off UK number one in January 1964?

The Dave Clark Five's hit led headlines to hail a 'Tottenham sound' as a rival to the Beatles' Liverpool sound.

Which Newcastle band took "The House of the Rising Sun" to number one in the UK and US in 1964?

The Animals' version credited its arrangement to organist Alan Price alone, a credit that has caused years of disputes.

Petula Clark's 1964 hit 'Downtown' was written and produced by whom?

Tony Hatch got the melody walking down Broadway on his first visit to New York, and Clark asked to record it before he had finished the lyrics.

Which band was banned from touring the United States for years after its troubled 1965 tour?

The Kinks were shut out of America by a musicians' union dispute until 1969, while their songs turned to wry portraits of English life.

Despite a rumour crediting a session player, who actually played the guitar solo on "You Really Got Me"?

Dave Davies got the song's snarling guitar tone by slashing his amplifier's speaker cone with a razor blade; the rumour had credited Jimmy Page.

Which American band released a cover of 'You Really Got Me' as its first single in 1978?

Van Halen's producer rushed the cover out as a single because a rival band, Angel, was recording its own version; it peaked at number 36 on the Hot 100.

Which royal reportedly had Pete Townshend's Packard hearse moved off his street, inspiring 'My Generation'?

The Queen Mother's run-in was one of several slights; Townshend said being looked down on by wealthy people in Belgravia, where he lived, fed the song's line about growing old.

Herman's Hermits were fronted by which singer?

Peter Noone launched his solo career in 1971 with David Bowie's song 'Oh! You Pretty Things', and Bowie himself played piano on it.

Which Vicar of Dibley actor wrote Herman's Hermits' hit 'Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter'?

Trevor Peacock wrote it for Tom Courtenay to sing in the 1963 TV play The Lads; Herman's Hermits took it to US number one but never issued it as a UK single.

Which record producer was behind Herman's Hermits' 1960s hits?

Mickie Most produced the Hermits' debut, a cover of Earl-Jean's minor US hit 'I'm into Something Good', which became their only UK number one.

Freddie and the Dreamers were usually lumped in with Merseybeat, but which city were they actually from?

Manchester was home, and the band's comic stage dance, the Freddie, became a short-lived American fad after they performed it on US TV.

The Zombies' debut single 'She's Not There' was written by which member of the band?

Rod Argent borrowed the song's opening words from the title of John Lee Hooker's 'No One Told Me', and the single reached number two in the US.

Which album did the Zombies release in 1968, after they had already split?

Odessey and Oracle sold poorly at first, but its single 'Time of the Season' became a surprise US hit in 1969.

Where in Hertfordshire did the Zombies form?

St Albans was home, and winning a 1964 beat-group contest led to the Zombies' Decca contract and their first hit, 'She's Not There'.

Which Liverpool group was the first act to have its first three singles all reach number one in the UK?

Gerry and the Pacemakers' first number one, 'How Do You Do It?', was the song George Martin had wanted as the Beatles' debut before 'Love Me Do'.

'You'll Never Walk Alone', later adopted by Liverpool FC, was originally from which musical?

In Carousel, Nettie sings it to comfort Julie after her husband's death, and the title now appears on Liverpool FC's crest.

Which group named after its keyboard player topped the charts in 1964 with 'Do Wah Diddy Diddy'?

Manfred Mann added a second 'Diddy' to the Exciters' original, 'Do-Wah-Diddy', and took the song to number one in Britain and America.

Which band had Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page as its lead guitarists in turn?

The Yardbirds lost Eric Clapton because he found their hit 'For Your Love' too commercial, and Jeff Beck replaced him.

Which Hollies co-founder left in late 1968 to join David Crosby and Stephen Stills?

Graham Nash quit after the Hollies rejected songs such as 'Marrakesh Express', which became a hit for his new trio with Crosby and Stills.

The Troggs' 'Wild Thing' was written by which American songwriter?

Chip Taylor, brother of actor Jon Voight, saw a New York band, the Wild Ones, flop with the song in 1965 before the Troggs took it to US number one.

Which Donovan single topped the Billboard Hot 100 for one week in September 1966?

Sunshine Superman reached America months before Britain, because a contract dispute with Donovan's British label, Pye, held up its UK release.

Donovan was born in which city?

Glasgow-born Donovan was billed as Britain's answer to Bob Dylan, and in the film Dont Look Back he plays Dylan a song in a London hotel suite.

Who sang the theme song for the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball?

Tom Jones got the song after United Artists scrapped the first theme, 'Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang', and wanted the film's title in the lyrics.

Whose title song from the film 'To Sir, with Love' was Billboard's number one single of 1967?

Lulu's song spent five weeks at number one in America, yet in Britain it came out only as the B-side of 'Let's Pretend'.

Who wrote and sang 'Gloria', the 1964 garage-rock standard by the Belfast band Them?

Van Morrison's 'Gloria' began as the B-side of Them's 'Baby, Please Don't Go', and the Shadows of Knight's 1966 cover reached the US top ten.

Which future Traffic frontman sang and played organ in the Spencer Davis Group?

Steve Winwood was the star, but the band took Spencer Davis's name because, Muff Winwood said, Davis was the only one who enjoyed interviews.

Cream consisted of Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and which bassist?

Jack Bruce came up with the riff of 'Sunshine of Your Love' after a Jimi Hendrix concert, Eric Clapton recalled, as a tribute to Hendrix.

Brian Jones took the Rolling Stones' name from a track on an LP by which bluesman?

Muddy Waters's LP was lying on the floor when Brian Jones phoned the paper Jazz News to advertise a gig and was asked for the band's name.

Which London venue hosted the Rolling Stones' debut gig, billed as 'the Rollin' Stones', on 12 July 1962?

The Marquee Club was the Thursday home of Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated, and the Rollin' Stones got the date by filling in while that band played a BBC radio broadcast.

Which Rolling Stones song, whose riff Keith Richards dreamed up in his sleep, was their first US number one?

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction began as a riff Keith Richards taped in the night, and the rest of the tape caught him snoring.

The Beatles' 1964 film 'A Hard Day's Night' was directed by whom?

Richard Lester vetoed 'I'll Cry Instead' for a key sequence and used the more upbeat 'Can't Buy Me Love' instead.

Which word described the 1840s fan frenzy around a virtuoso, long before Beatlemania?

Lisztomania described the hysteria at Franz Liszt's concerts; 'Beatlemania' spread through British papers after the band's October 1963 London Palladium TV show.

Which Cilla Black single was a cover of a Dionne Warwick original?

Anyone Who Had a Heart by Cilla Black reached number one in Britain, while Dionne Warwick's original stalled at number 42 there.

Sandie Shaw became the first UK act to win the Eurovision Song Contest, in 1967, with which song?

Puppet on a String was Sandie Shaw's least favourite of the five songs she showcased, yet it won and gave her a third UK number one.

Sandie Shaw returned to the UK Top 40 in 1984 with a cover of which band's song?

The Smiths' own 'Hand in Glove' had missed the UK chart as their debut single, but with the band backing her, Sandie Shaw took it to number 27.

What was Chad & Jeremy's biggest US hit?

A Summer Song reached number seven in America, while in Britain Chad & Jeremy's only chart hit was 'Yesterday's Gone'.

Which single, sung by Denny Laine, gave the Moody Blues a UK number one?

Go Now had been an obscure soul single for Bessie Banks before the Moody Blues' version reached number one in Britain and the US top ten.

Wayne Fontana took half his stage name from a drummer who played for which star?

Elvis Presley's drummer D. J. Fontana lent Glyn Ellis his surname; after 'The Game of Love', the singer reportedly walked off stage mid-concert and quit the Mindbenders.

Billy J. Kramer's 1963 UK number one 'Bad to Me' is credited to which songwriters?

John Lennon and Paul McCartney share the credit, though Lennon later said he wrote the song for Kramer on his own while on holiday in Spain.

Which duo's first single, 'A World Without Love', was a US and UK number one in 1964?

Peter and Gordon's Peter Asher later signed an unknown James Taylor to the Beatles' Apple label and became his manager.

The Searchers took their name from a 1956 western directed by whom?

John Ford's western The Searchers also inspired Buddy Holly, who built 'That'll Be the Day' on John Wayne's repeated line in the film.

Who founded the Liverpool music paper Mersey Beat in 1961?

Bill Harry's paper carried Brian Epstein's record column, and when Epstein asked, Harry arranged for him to watch the Beatles perform.

Which British singer had a 1952 US number one with 'Auf Wiederseh'n, Sweetheart'?

Vera Lynn is said to have heard the German original sung in Swiss beer halls on holiday, and she recorded it with a chorus of British servicemen.

Which song gave Cliff Richard his only US Top 40 hit of the 1950s?

Living Doll began as an up-tempo rock song Cliff Richard didn't want to record, until one of his backing musicians suggested doing it like a country song.

Which folk-pop group had US top-five hits with 'I'll Never Find Another You' and 'Georgy Girl'?

The Seekers sailed from Australia to Britain in 1964 as a ship's entertainers, planning to stay ten weeks, and stayed on after bookings poured in.

Before fronting the Dreamers, what job did Freddie Garrity do?

Freddie Garrity, a former milkman, later starred in the children's TV series Little Big Time with Dreamers bassist Pete Birrell.

At which Liverpool club did Brian Epstein first watch the Beatles play, in November 1961?

The Cavern Club show was a lunchtime set, and Epstein, a record-shop manager with no management experience, soon became the Beatles' manager.

Which CBS anchor said 'The British Invasion this time goes by the code name Beatlemania' in February 1964?

Cronkite had re-run a shelved Beatlemania report in December, looking for something positive after the Kennedy assassination.

Which skiffle star took 'Rock Island Line' into the US top ten, years before the British Invasion?

Lonnie Donegan's do-it-yourself skiffle, played on cheap guitars and washboards, set British teenagers forming bands of their own.

Which 1962 instrumental by the Tornados was a US number one before the Beatles arrived?

Telstar was named after the communications satellite launched that July, but a plagiarism suit kept producer Joe Meek from its royalties until after his death.

Which 1966 Rolling Stones single topped the Billboard Hot 100?

Paint It Black was shaped by Brian Jones's sitar, yet only Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were credited as its writers.

Which term was later applied to hard-edged 1960s mod bands such as the Creation and the Action?

Freakbeat bands' obscure mid-1960s records were reissued in the 1980s on compilations such as Phil Smee's Rubble series.

Which British spy series was retitled Secret Agent for American broadcast?

Danger Man got a new US theme when it aired as Secret Agent, and Johnny Rivers' 'Secret Agent Man' became a hit in its own right.

Which 1969 hit by The Guess Who is credited with starting a 'Canadian Invasion' of the US charts?

These Eyes landed the Guess Who a US record deal with RCA and became their first American top-ten hit.

Which US band responded to the Invasion by performing in Revolutionary War uniforms?

Gary Puckett & the Union Gap went one better with Civil War uniforms.

Which Australian band drawing on the Invasion sound had a 1967 US hit with 'Friday on My Mind'?

The Easybeats met at a Sydney migrant hostel, and George Young, older brother of AC/DC's Malcolm and Angus, later produced AC/DC's early albums.

Which Philadelphia label, home of Chubby Checker's 'The Twist', went into steep decline in 1964?

Cameo Parkway lost its TV showcase when American Bandstand left Philadelphia for Los Angeles in February 1964, the same week the Beatles arrived.

Roger Miller's 1965 hit tribute to Britain's traditional way of life was titled what?

England Swings was Roger Miller's, and he later wrote and sang 'Oo-De-Lally' as the rooster minstrel in Disney's Robin Hood.

Which 1964 film won British star Julie Andrews the Best Actress Oscar?

Mary Poppins won Julie Andrews the Oscar on the night My Fair Lady, which gave her Broadway role of Eliza to Audrey Hepburn, took Best Picture.

Which 1968 British musical film won Best Picture, the last musical to do so until Chicago in 2002?

Oliver! came from Lionel Bart's stage musical, but Bart sold his rights to Max Bygraves for £350, and Bygraves made a fortune reselling them.