On this day in 2010, Abbey Road studios were heritage listed by the British Government

A week earlier, rumours had circulated that EMI were considering selling the building, a rumour that was quickly confirmed to be false, and within days the building received a Grade II heritage listing. 

Abbey Road was made famous as the studios where much of The Beatles material was recorded, and in return was immortalised as the name of their eleventh album. Abbey Road‘s iconic cover featured a photo of the band walking across the pedestrian crossing outside the building. This shot led to a noticeable increase to tourism in the area as fans started to visit to recreate the famous shot, a trend that continues today. 

The announcement of the buildings listing stated that “the building possessed huge cultural importance and a remarkable and inspiring association with music making”. The buildings are now protected from significant change by the listing, which was extended to include the famous crossing. Today, the building is no longer owned by EMI but continues to operate as a recording studio.

On this day in 1964, The Beatles returned to the Ed Sullivan show, just one week after their first performance

 Following the immense success of their first appearance, which saw the show pull close to 70 million, The Beatles were swiftly rebooked for the next week. 

In between the shows the band played several concerts, one in Washington D.C. and one in New York, before flying to Miami Beach where they would meet Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammad Ali  who they would pose for photos with several days later on the 18th of February. Following this meeting they set about rehearsing for their next appearance in the basement of the Hotel Deauville, the broadcast location for the show where the band also stayed.

On the evening of the performance, the band saw the usual massive crowds of fans, and one crush of people nearly prevented the group from making it onstage, and police were needed to direct the crowds. Making it to the stage with only seconds to spare, the band launched into their hit “She Loves You” followed by “This Boy” and “All My Loving”, then returned to close the show with  “I Saw Her Standing There”, “From Me to You” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand.”

The Beatles once again managed to draw an audience of close to 70 million, and ensured their return to the show.  

On this day in 1964, The Beatles made their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show

As Beatlemania took hold of the world, the band were eager for more appearances, and they agreed to a spot on American variety show, The Ed Sullivan Show. The band arrived in New York for the first time on the 7th of February, where they were met by around 5,000 screaming fans.

Programmer CBS saw massive levels of anticipation for The Beatles’ appearance, with over 50,000 ticket requests flooding in for the performance, which was held at Studio 50, which could seat 728. Several celebrities joined the audience, including Richard Nixon’s daughters and an Olympic gold-medal winning speed skater.

Sullivan introduced the band with an anecdote of Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker sending them a telegram wishing them success in the US before welcoming the group to the stage. The Beatles then performed “All My Loving”, “Till There Was You”, and “She Loves You”. 

Despite the band’s mixed reactions on the production value of their performances, the appearance is considered a milestone in American pop culture and in the group’s career. 

On this day in 1963, The Beatles set off on their first tour of the UK

The group, still relatively unknown, were asked to join Helen Shapiro on a short one month tour of the UK. They were paid approximately £30 per night and appeared fourth on an eleven act bill, though they still gladly accepted the opportunity. 

It was during this tour that the band were able to focus on recording, and laid down ten songs that would all appear on their debut album, Please Please Me. This album would be released just after the tour, giving the band  a chance to practice their live performances and to gain some new fans in time for the release.

The Beatles also created their first logo to coincide with the tour, to be featured on Ringo Starr’s bass drum. Paul McCartney drew initial sketches that features the bands name in cursive writing with a stylised set of insect antennae on the ‘B’. These sketches were taken to a Liverpool signwriter named Tex O’Hara who finalised the design, which was then printed onto a piece of linen and stretched across the drum during the band’s set.

On this day in 1963, The Beatles made their first major television appearance

Thank Your Lucky Stars was a British  pop music television show, produced by ABC Television for the ITV network. Artists were often given performances on the show where they would have the opportunity to mime their latest 45 single releases in front of a live studio audience and the cameras.

The Beatles’ episode was actually recorded on the 13th of January, and the group appeared at the bottom of a seven act bill. They were only provided with time for one song, Please Please Me, previewing the first single for their upcoming album to be released in the following weeks. 

Though their start was at the bottom of the bill, appearing on Thank Your Lucky Stars was seen as a big opportunity for the band, and their first major television appearance, despite appearing on a children’s program the year before. The Beatles would return to the program several times until its eventual cancellation in 1966, growing massively in popularity between each appearance.

On this day in 1990, Bob Dylan played the longest show of his career

Dylan was booked to play a regular show at a popular club called Toad’s Place in New Haven, Connecticut. The show was expected to be a big attraction as the 750 tickets sold out in just 18 minutes, with promoters and patrons alike anticipating that Dylan would play his usual hour long set.

Dylan appeared on stage at 8:45pm, and as expected played an hour long set to an adoring crowd, coming off stage at 9:40pm. However instead of packing up, he approached Toad’s Place owner, Brian Phelps, and asked if he could play another set, a request Phelps gladly accepted. After another hour he returned and asked to play a third set, and then an hour later, a fourth. Finally, after 4 hours and 20 minutes, Dylan threw his harmonica into the crowd and left the stage for the final time at 2:20am.

While the audience enjoyed the show, Dylan himself had to come up with a 50 song set, which he achieved with a number of covers, including some outside of his usual repertoire. One such song  was Bruce Springsteen’s Dancing in the Dark, believed to be the only Springsteen song covered by Dylan. Other featured artists amongst the covers included Muddy Waters, Glen Glenn, Kris Kristofferson. Songs from The Band and The Traveling Wilbury’s also appeared.

On this day in 1979, Prince made his live debut as a solo artist

Prince had been working on music since 1975 and secured a recording deal with Warner Bros. Records. An album was made and released in 1978, with one of its songs, Soft and Wet, reaching number 12 on the Hot Soul Singles chart and 92 on the Billboard Hot 100. To capitalise on the songs success, a 3 day residency was booked for Prince and his band at the Capri Theatre in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

The singer conducted several interviews throughout the day, wherein he spoke of his nerves about his first live show. He went on to state he had been nervous playing for his band the first time before building his confidence, and felt that his relationship with the crowd would be similar after a few songs. 

By all reports, the debut performance was a massive success. The band played both songs from the album and some unreleased material, and Prince’s charisma and antics on stage clearly impressed the crowd. Several Warner Bros. Records representatives attended the concert and claimed they were blown away, but ultimately decided to wait for a sophomore album before sending the group on tour. 

On this day in 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono met with Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau

After a busy year that included  his marriage to Yoko Ono, staging the two bed-ins in Amsterdam and Montreal, appearing at the Toronto Rock’N’Roll Revival festival with a new band and unveiling the War Is Over! poster campaign earlier in the month, Lennon headed to Ottawa for the meeting. He was joined by Ritchie Yorke, then working for the Globe and Mail newspaper in Toronto.

In a meeting that was scheduled for 15 minutes but stretched to 50, Canadian PM Pierre Trudeau, John Lennon and Yoko Ono primarily discussed the Cold War and beginning peaceful diplomatic relations. Afterwards they met with Health Minister John Munro to discuss the location and planning of a proposed music festival to be held in Canada. Lennon told media at a press conference afterwards that the experience had been a positive one and that “if all politicians were like Mr Trudeau, there would be peace”.

Lennon’s peace campaign continued for the next two years, largely with a musical direction, using several songs to spread his ideas about achieving peace, culminating with “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” in December of 1971.

On this day in 1969, the UNICEF Peace & Love for Christmas Concert was held in London

Organised as a charity event, the cancer featured performances from the likes of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Billy Preston and a brief appearance from Keith Moon. Tickets for this extraordinary line-up sold for £1 each and drew an impressive crowd.

The event marked Lennon and Harrison’s first scheduled performance since 1966 and they were joined by Eric Clapton, performing under a giant “War is over” banner previewing the idea of John and Yoko’s subsequent Christmas single. The group performed the Plastic Ono Band’s then current single “Cold Turkey” and its B-side “Don’t Worry Kyoko (Mummy’s Only Looking For Her Hand In The Snow)”, both with extended performances. 

The UNICEF Peace & Love for Christmas Concert was not only a memorable show for it’s performances, but also as John Lennon’s final UK live appearance as he moved to the United States shortly after.

On this day in 1980, John Lennon was tragically murdered in an act of senseless violence

Lennon left his residence at the Dakota for a recording session early in the evening, signing a copy of Double Fantasy for a fan on the way. As he returned later in the night, the same fan, a man by the name of Mark David Chapman, approached Lennon and Yoko Ono and fired five shots, four of them hitting Lennon in the back.

After  the incident, Lennon staggered into the lobby where he was comforted by a porter while waiting for an ambulance, and Chapman pulled out a copy of The Catcher in the Rye and read until the police arrived to arrest him. He later claimed to be inspired by a character in the book, Holden Caufield, a “phony-killer” who hated hypocrisy. Other stated motives included his anger at Lennon’s comment that The Beatles were bigger than Jesus and envy of Lennon’s lavish lifestyle and fame. Chapman received a 20 years to life sentence for his crime and has been denied parole 12 times since his eligibility in 2000.

Fans around the world were shocked by the horrific act and the loss of an inspiring, creative musician who constantly called for peace. Yoko Ono announced that in lieu of a funeral, there would be 10  minutes of silence arranged for people around the world to be able to participate. For those 10 minutes, every radio station in New York went off air as a sign of respect. Lennon’s body was cremated and his ashes were scattered in New York’s Central Park.

Every December 8th, numerous remembrance celebrations still take place around the world, including a ceremony in front of the Capitol Records building in California and the lighting of the Imagine Peace Tower in Iceland from 9th October (Lennon’s birthday) through to the 8th of December. A memorial garden was also constructed in Central Park in his honour.

John Lennon left behind an incredible legacy, inspiring countless musicians to use their talents to help make the changes they want to see in the world. His incredible focus on world peace has led many others to dedicate their lives to the same goal and taught us that anyone can take action.