Mile High Beatles

In 1964, The Beatles had acclaimed a large amount of fame. Their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9th and release of their LP A Hard Day's Night in July of that year helped make this possible. Their tour of North America lasted barely a month but had many destinations. The one I'd like to discuss today is the fab four’s appearance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison Colorado.

Beatlemania swept the US under its feet with its hypnotizing harmonies and unique sounding instrumentals. A ticket for this performance would cost you only six dollars and sixty cents. What a deal! It hadn’t even sold out leaving Red Rocks the only venue the Beatles didn’t fully sell out according to the Red Rocks Museum near the amphitheater.

Before arriving in Colorado, The Beatles were informed that the air is much thinner due to elevation. They didn’t seem thrown off about it and thought it wouldn’t be too much of a hassle. That is until they played their famous cover of Little Richard’s "Long Tall Sally". Paul McCartney recalled his experience with the altitude change and performing, “I remember singing ‘Long Tall Sally’ and thinking, ‘Hey, this is great, hyperventilation of the highest order! Well, Long Tall Sally, wheeze, wheeze…’ I was sweating, but I got through it. It was an interesting experience, physically. It was a lovely arena. It looked beautiful at night.’’ The Beatles put on an electric performance, even with the altitude difficulties. At the end of the show, the fans pelted The Beatles' with their favorite candy, jelly babies. This was pretty much a ritual at the end of every Beatles concert until they stopped touring in 1967.