Beatlemania

It was time to choose a song for the important second record. George Martin didn't like any of John and Paul's songs at the time, so he chose a new song. The group said no. They wanted to do one of their songs. Today many bands write their own songs, but at the time this was a brave decision for a new band.

Finally, Martin agreed to record one of John's songs, 'Please Please Me'. At first it was a slow song, but the producer asked them to play it faster. After they recorded it, Martin told them, 'You have just recorded your first number one.' The Beatles worked hard to make this true. They drove all over Britain to concerts. Sometimes they stopped the van to listen to their own song on the radio. Once the van was freezing after the front window broke. The Beatles lay together in the back to keep warm! In March 1963, 'Please Please Me' reached number one. George Martin was right. After that, number one followed number one. Their singles in 1963 were 'From Me to You', 'She Loves You' and 'I Want to Hold Your Hand'. Suddenly, everybody loved the Beatles. When the band played in concert, police had to hold back crowds of screaming fans - mainly girls. One newspaper thought of a new word to describe the country's love of the boys from Liverpool - 'Beatlemania'! Every Beatles single reached number one until 1967.

The band also recorded their first album early in 1963. George Martin asked them to come to the studio and play all the songs from their live show. They did this... in one long day! The album Please Please Me was recorded in about twelve hours. It went to number one, too.