I just watched a video of the Beatles’ first USA performance, a 30-minute show at the Uline Arena in Washington DC. Seeing what these guys went through to play this gig is mind-blowing.
The arena was mainly a venue for small sports events like boxing matches. The audience was seated in rows surrounding and looking down at the small stage in the center. Whoever produced this show had apparently never seen a music concert and certainly didn’t know anything about managing sound! No excuses – in 1964 rock and roll was ten years old and large crowds in big venues were nothing new.
The only accommodation made for playing “in the round” was the circular riser provided for Ringo’s kit. It was oddly heavy and decrepit at the same time – when he kicked the bass drum, the riser would dip precariously forward so that it “rocked” as he played. Before the first song he had to dismount the drums and turn the riser 180 degrees because he was facing away from the rest of the band!
Only one microphone was working, so when George started singing the first song he had to quickly jump from a dead mic to the live one. The “sound system” provided was the overhead speakers for use at boxing and wrestling matches, with no monitors. What a mess!
Surrounded by 8,000 screaming fans the boys were actually behind the speakers of their amps, which were not mic’d to the sound system, most of the time. John, Paul and George would, as often as possible, find Ringo and turn toward him to show him their hands in an effort to help with timing. Ringo’s rhythm was remarkably accurate, without monitors or even much visual contact. George especially struggled, unable to hear his guitar most of the time. He actually started one song in the wrong key, but adjusted quickly, and still got in some very tasty licks over the course of the show. The Vox amplifiers, top-tier equipment at the time, had speaker cabinets mounted on chrome racks above the floor, and some birdbrain put the head units on the floor under the racks, making it really hard for the guys to adjust their sound, and impossible to turn the amps around when they faced a different direction.
After a few songs the Beatles all had sweat running off their faces as there was no a/c. When it came time for Ringo to sing a song, Paul grabbed his straight mic stand (the only one that worked) and handed it back to Ringo who planted it between his legs. Though he sang at the top of his lungs, he could barely be heard. Throughout the show Ringo hit his drums so hard it looked like he might break heads and sticks, with his riser wobbling back and forth and cymbal stands teetering precariously.
It was a musician’s nightmare on their first appearance in America – a really big show, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. They should have been pissed off at least, or performed terribly at best. Professional (or even amateur) musicians today would wilt in all that chaos and heat. But no, the Beatles laughed and joked, and just played and sang their asses off all the way through. No complaints. And the rest is history.
It’s a lesson in humility and perseverance for any of us who play in front of people and try to have everything working right for our audiences.