The British Invasion at 50: a musical phenomenon, by Craig Morrison

On February 9, 1964, the Beatles performed for the first time on the American TV variety program The Ed Sullivan Show — and changed musical history. The appearance by the rock and roll group from Liverpool, England, sparked what soon became known as the British Invasion, a musical and cultural force so intense that its ramifications are still felt 50 years later.
Already popular overseas, songs by the Beatles — John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr — were first heard on North America radios in 1963. In previous years only a handful of North American hit records came from the United Kingdom, but less than a week before the show, the Beatles received their first gold album and first gold single, for Meet the Beatles! and “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” respectively.
Anticipation to see them on the Sullivan show, a Sunday night ritual for countless families, was extremely high, leading to a huge viewing audience estimated at an unprecedented 73 million. Their performance (and reappearance on the next two shows) brought Beatlemania to North America. By April, the Beatles held all top five places on the United States singles chart, a feat unheard of before and never duplicated.
The adoration for the Beatles may have been even more intense because its euphoria seemed to replace the mourning and bewilderment that lingered after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy less than three months earlier. The Beatles’ cheery songs, unified and unusual look, and charm and humour were a most welcome distraction. Soon, all things British were in vogue.
Other invaders
In the Beatles’ wake, numerous other British acts soon hit the charts. Those based on American R&B had a harder sound and would last longer: the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, the Animals, Manfred Mann and the Dave Clark Five. The Hollies featured an R&B sound too but specialized in group harmony singing, as did the Bachelors, who revived old pop songs.
Harmony duos Peter and Gordon, and Chad and Jeremy played appealing pop songs, as did the solo females Cilla Black, Petula Clark, Lulu, Marianne Faithfull and Dusty Springfield. The Beatles put Liverpool on the map and created a demand for others who featured the Mersey Sound (named after the city’s Mersey River): the Swinging Blue Jeans, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, the Searchers and Gerry and the Pacemakers.
Herman’s Hermits revived R&B songs but also British music hall pieces; the Honeycombs had a female drummer; and the Zombies had sophisticated, jazzy songs.
The invasion continued in 1965, with more acts getting their first North American hits. Some became icons: the Who, the Yardbirds, Them (with Van Morrison), the Moody Blues and Donovan. Others had less spectacular careers: Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames, the Fortunes, Ian Whitcomb, the Silkie, Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders (who hit again in 1966 without Fontana), and Freddie and the Dreamers (who had five hits in six months and no others).
Lasting influence
British Invasion groups’ influence inspired many youngsters — from the large cohort of post-war-born children known as the Baby Boomers — to acquire and learn to play instruments.
The fact that the Beatles wrote most of their songs shifted the emphasis from covers to original compositions. Most of the already-active rock musicians, plus many of the urban folk players, revised their approach. Thousands of new bands copied British styles and affected British sounds, clothes, images and even accents.
The British Invasion shook things up so much on a cultural level that it can be seen as the start of the Sixties as a concept, an era of cultural transformation (as opposed to the 1960s as a decade in time).
The first euphoric musical wave lasted into 1966, until newer sounds — psychedelia, blues rock and the beginnings of progressive rock — and new concerns and societal tensions took center stage.
But by then the Beatles and other Brits had already altered the musical and cultural frontier forever.
I. Answer the following questions with the information given in the text:
1.  Were the Beatles well known in the USA before 1964? (Yes, they were: less than a week before the show, the Beatles received their first gold album and first gold single)
2. Which were their first hits? (Meet the Beatles and I Want to Hold Your Hand)
3. What awesome fact happened in the charts that year? (the Beatles held all top five places on the United States singles chart, a feat unheard of before and never duplicated)
4. Regarding the British invasion, what kind of music survived for a longer time? (Those based on American R&B had a harder sound and would last longer)
5. Something the Beatles used to do inspired many musicians; what was it? (They wrote their own songs)
6. How long did the British invasion last? (From 1964 to 1966)
7. Which music styles came after the British invasion? (Psychedelia, blues rock and progressive rock)

II. Are these sentences True or False? Justify your answers with the precise words or phrases from the text.

1. The influence of the British invasion didn’t last for a long time. (False (…became known as the British Invasion, a musical and cultural force so intense that its ramifications are still felt 50 years later))
2. The Beatles appeared four times in the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. (False (Their performance (and reappearance on the next two shows) brought Beatlemania))
3. Only the Beatles have had five top five songs at the same time. (True (the Beatles held all top five places on the United States singles chart, a feat unheard of before and never duplicated))
4. The Beatles made it possible that British things were fashionable in America. (True (The Beatles’ cheery songs, unified and unusual look, and charm and humour were a most welcome distraction. Soon, all things British were in vogue))
5. The Zombies used to play simple, easy Rock ‘n’ Roll songs. (False (the Zombies had sophisticated, jazzy songs))
6. Donovan wasn’t a very successful singer in the USA. (False (Some became icons: the Who, the Yardbirds, Them (with Van Morrison), the Moody Blues and Donovan))
7. There was a great influence of British styles on American ones. (True (Thousands of new bands copied British styles and affected British sounds, clothes, images and even accents))

III. Find in the text synonyms for:
1. Numerous (adjective): (Countless)
2. Confusion (noun): (Bewilderment)
3. Mourning (noun): (Grief)
4. Original (adjective): (Unprecedented) 

IV. Find in the text antonyms for:
1. At home (adverb): (Overseas)
2. Ordinary (adjective): (Unusual)

V. Give an ADVERB with the same ROOT as “appearance”. (Apparently)
Give an ADJECTIVE with the same ROOT as “wake”. (Awake)
Give an ADJECTIVE with the same ROOT as “charm”. (Charming)
Give a NOUN with the same ROOT as “euphoric”. (Euphoria)
Give a NOUN with the same ROOT as “societal”. (Society)

VII. Writing.  In 1965 you were the drummer of the Kinks. Write an essay f no less than 120 words with your impressions and feelings when you first visited America.






VERBS
VERBOS
NOUNS
NOMBRES
To alter
Alterar
Approach
Enfoque, Método
To be based on
Estar basado en
Beatlemania
Beatlemanía
To feature
Presenter
Bewilderment
Desconcierto
To hold
Mantener(se), Sostener
Brit
Británico
To inspire
Inspirar
Charm
Encanto
To last
Durar
Cohort
Cohort, Seguidor
To lead to
Llevar a 
Concern
Preocupación
To linger
Persistir
Drummer
El/la bacteria (músico)
To oppose
Oponerse
Euphoria
Euforia
To perform
Representar
Feat
Hazaña, Proeza, Logro
To revise
Repasar, Corregir
Female
Mujer, Hembra
To revive
Revivir
Force
Fuerza
To shake up
Agitar, Sacudir
Frontier
Frontera
To shift
Cambiar
Handful
Puñado
To spark
Desencadenar
Harmony
Armonía
ADJECTIVES
ADJETIVOS
Hit
Éxito
Appealing
Atractivo, Atrayente
In vogue
De moda
Cheery
Alegre, Jovial
Invader
Invasor
Countless
Incontable, Innumerable
Look
Aspect
Duplicated
Duplicado, Repetido
Mourning
Duelo, Luto, Dolor
Euphoric
Eufórico
Performance
Representación
Huge
Enorme, Inmenso
Psychedelia
Psicodelia
Societal
Societal
R&B
Rhythm and Blues
Solo
Solo, En solitario
Ramifications
Ramificaciones
Unheard
Inaudito
Reappearance
Reaparición
Unprecedented
Inaudito
Ritual
Ritual
Unusual
Raro, Poco común
Spark
Chispa
Viewing
Televisiva
Youngster
Joven, Muchacho/a

ADV & PREP.
ADV & PREP.
Extremely
Extremadamente

Forever
Para siempre

Longer
Durante más tiempo

Overseas
Ultramar

Plus
Más, Además

Without
Sin