Remembering The Beatles’ most intimate gig
Despite being the most influential band of all time, The Beatles were not the biggest fans of performing live, at least in the latter half of their career. While they honed their craft during their early years through live shows in Hamburg, the band decided to quit touring in 1966. They were too tired and found live shows too overwhelming. After all, they created mass hysteria everywhere they went, and you only have to watch 1964’s A Hard Day’s Night to understand how intense being a member of The Beatles would’ve been.
However, the Beatles might not have become such incredible musicians without the many live shows they played in the early half of their tenure. While they were still in their infancy, the band often performed in clubs around Liverpool, most notably, the famous Cavern Club. The club was opened by Alan Sytner, who was inspired by Parisian jazz clubs such as Le Caveau de la Huchette. However, the venue soon became a popular rock and roll club, with The Beatles becoming regular performers.
Here, the band made a name for themselves in the live music circuit, becoming one of the most well-known bands in Liverpool. Their first gig took place on February 9th, 1961, with Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe and Pete Best forming the lineup. By November, they’d been discovered at the venue by Brian Epstein, who soon became their manager.
During this early period, the band rarely ventured out of their hometown. However, in 1961, they took a trip to the south of England for a gig in Aldershot. Unfortunately, the band found themselves playing to a crowd of just 18 people. Little did these lucky people know they were witnessing a performance by a band that would soon dominate the world, spawning a crazy phenomenon known as Beatlemania.
According to the book The Beatles: The Biography, the band’s then-manager failed to secure an advertisement for the gig in a newspaper due to a miscommunication about the advert needing to be paid in cash rather than by cheque. Subsequently, few people knew about the gig, resulting in a sparse turnout.
Terry McCann, a friend of the band’s who drove them to the gig, said, “The Beatles were pretty fed up of course, but they played on. They would have done their usual stuff – Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis all of that, and Eddie Cochran. George knew all the intros to the Chuck Berry stuff so it was always done. Paul would probably have sung ‘Till There Was You’ because he always insisted on doing that – even though everybody hated it.”
However, the band appeared to make the most of the situation and tried to have fun. Best, later replaced by Ringo Starr, once shared a story about the gig. He said: “Halfway through one number, George and Paul put on their overcoats and took to the floor to dance a foxtrot together while the rest of us struggled along, making enough music for them and the handful of spectators.”
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