Coulda Woulda Shoulda: How our world would be different had something on this day in history not happened; or maybe just the mad theoretical ravings of a history-obsessed college student.
1963: “I wanna hold your hand” – The Beatles
2009: “Have a baby by me baby, be a millionaire”—50 Cent
My oh my how courtship in music has changed over the decades, considering the Beatles were thought of as “rebellious.”
Today in 1964 saw 3,000 screaming fans gathered outside of Kennedy Airport to welcome John, Paul, Ringo and George for their first North American tour. What’s more, the police had to cordon off the streets during the group’s performance at Carnegie Hall a few days later due to hordes of admirers.
We all know the Beatles have had, and continue to have, a huge impact on Western history. But what, Beatle maniacs of the blogosphere, would have happened in the U.S. without this tour?
Well, we may all be hippies.
From what I’ve read on cultural expression, the 50s sounded like they were kind of… meh. This, coupled with the raging teenage hormones emanated by a tidal wave of baby boomers, made for trouble. How would a nation of maturing youngsters take out their frustrations with conservative America?
Enter the fab four. In a time where extreme loyalty to everything America set the standard, the Beatles provided America’s youth with two things: relatable music to their changing feelings and an international outlet for their American angst.
Of course looking back, the Beatles music was lyrically tame and it did not call for any radical revolt. This constructed a podium of comfortable transition from dull 50s culture, and many young people were satisfied enough with this outlet. Without it, a more extreme and widespread form of adolescent uprising may have occurred, resulting in a hippie movement that extended further than California. Remnants of this revolution would have stronger vestiges in our lives, and the Grateful Dead might have national monument.
So, thanks to the boys from Liverpool, the spark for progressivism was lit. Regardless of whether or not you like their music, the Beatles’ first U.S. tour gave our parents a different mindset to think and talk about, perhaps even affecting how they met and related to each other. I know I can’t complain…I’m here, and I believe both of my parents are Beatles fans.
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