Wednesday 19 August 2015

THE BEATLES: THE LAST SHOW IN BOSTON

The Fab Four took the stage for the last time in Boston at Suffolk Downs on August 18, 1966.

Beatlemania swept over Boston for the final time 49 years ago.

Much like the band’s first trip to the city in 1964, 25,000 screaming fans showed up to Suffolk Downs for a chance to see the Fab Four in person on August 18, 1966.

The energy at the racetrack was electric, to say the least, as The Beatles were in the middle of their last commercial tour and rumors were swirling that the legendary rock band was on the verge of breaking up.
While there was a ton of build-up for the event, The Beatles only ended up playing a total of 11 songs for around 30 minutes, according to a review by the Boston Globe’s Sara Davidson.
As was the case with most of the band’s concerts during that era, the Suffolk Downs crowd was so loud that it was nearly impossible to hear any of the music. The audience, which Davidson claimed was made up of “90 percent” girls, screamed and cheered for over five hours, breaking out into a frenzy at the mere possibility of a Beatles sighting.

When the band finally took the stage, things apparently got so bad that children sitting in the front row had to be evacuated by police lest they be overrun by the mob of crazed fans.
Surprisingly, a Kennedy was in the audience that day.
The Beatles waved to screaming fans en route to the airport in Boston on August 12, 1966.
Thirteen-year-old Joe Kennedy, the son of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, drove up from Hyannis Port with 34 friends and family members.
The young Kennedy told Davidson that he thought John Lennon was the best Beatle.
“He looks suave and debonair, and I like his hair,” Kennedy said. “I don’t think my parents would let me grow mine very long.”

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