The Beatles: Only A Northern Song

With a full US tour and the looming Christmas 1964 market as hurdles, the race was on for The Beatles to deliver their fourth studio LP, as well as a brand new single. Listen in as the Fab Four write and record Beatles For Sale - the album which preserved exciting songs from the Beatles' stage act, as well as capturing some Lennon and McCartney classics.

The unprecedented success of their first whirlwind visit to the United States in February 1964 guaranteed The Beatles a return trip in August-September. With The Beatles for the whole tour was Miami newsman, Larry Kane - the journalist who became a reluctant Beatles fan, and dared to ask them the questions the others wouldn't...

By 1964, there could be no doubt that John Lennon and Paul McCartney had – at the ages of 24 and 22 respectively – established themselves as songwriters. Their own records were running off the shelves, and accolades were flowing thick and fast... but they still had plenty of songs to give to other artists.

The Beatles' first feature film and its soundtrack - 'A Hard Day's Night' - received a lot of public attention upon its release in early July 1964... helped along by heavy promotion in the UK and the US. At the same time, John was picking up his pen for a very different reason...
 

 
Despite having a huge and adoring fan-base in the Southern Hemisphere, The Beatles only made it to Australia and New Zealand once. With two drummers and two-hundred-thousand-strong public receptions, this would be a tour that The Beatles - and Australia - would never forget...

The Beatles would achieve a number of firsts in 1964 - including their first film, and their first album completely made up of original songs. In this bumper episode, we listen in on the creation of The Beatles' third studio LP - the soundtrack to their critically-acclaimed motion picture debut.

If 1963 had been a whirlwind year, 1964 would be a hurricane! By February, The Beatles were preparing for their first raid on the most lucrative market in the world – The United States of America. The world would never be the same again...
 

Having completed recording for their second studio album, The Beatles packed their gear for a whirlwind tour of Sweden - their first ever outside of the UK. Days later, they would perform for royalty in a show that would cement their place in British culture...

By the summer of 1963, The Beatles had turned their attention to recording their second album. Touring and media commitments throughout the year meant that they had to snatch whatever time they could to get into the studio to record. Having achieved a number 1 album in Please Please Me, and three number one singles, the pressure was on to produce a follow-up LP which would equal or surpass their highly successful debut. Listen in for outtakes from Studio 2 at Abbey Road...

The Beatles were a very busy band in 1963... with live performances, radio and television appearances and growing media attention, the band moved to London to be closer to the action. The Beatles’ also had to produce two albums and at least two singles every year – an output which would be almost unheard of by today’s standards! Featuring outtakes from recording sessions in EMI Studio 2 at Abbey Road...

From Them To You - More obscurities from The Beatles' appearances on BBC Radio in 1963...

In the days before social media, bands relied heavily on radio exposure to build a national audience, and to promote record sales. The Beatles were no different - and in addition to guest spots on various BBC radio programs - the band were given their own radio show in 1963, in which they showcased their own numbers, as well as songs by their biggest influences. Part 1 of a two-part special...

With four of the fourteen songs needed for their debut album recorded, The Beatles occupied Studio 2 at EMI's Abbey Road Studios for a marathon session on 11 February 1963. Their mission: record ten songs to wrap up the LP for a March release. Tune in to hear rare outtakes from this legendary session.

After their failed audition for Decca, the only way was up for The Beatles. An artiste's test at EMI introduced the band to producer George Martin, and paved the way for one of the most enduring artistic relationships in popular music. This episode explores the very earliest EMI recordings, as well as rehearsals and performances at the legendary Cavern Club.

New Year's Day 1962 was full of promise for The Beatles, who had finally secured an audition with a major record label. This episode takes us into the West Hampstead studios where history was about to be made. How would it turn out? The answer came as a bit of a surprise... 

The Beatles' residencies at Hamburg clubs such as The Star Club, The Indra and the Kaiserkeller consolidated the boys as a group and allowed them to craft the stage presence which would see them rise to the top. Catch a glimpse of the band pre-Beatlemania through rare recordings from the Star Club in 1962... 

Like many Liverpool groups in the early 1960s, The Beatles cut their performance teeth in the seedy clubs of Hamburg - for some of the time, they were backing band for fellow Englishman Tony Sheridan. It was here in 1961 that the group made their first professional studio recordings...

The Beatles - arguably the most famous musical act of all time - emerged from humble beginnings in working-class Liverpool. This episode explores when John, Paul and George met as teenagers: the genesis of the world's greatest group.