Scottish Beatles tours 1963

Short Beatles interview 1962: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIKlcfEtgyM The Beatles were constantly touring in 1963 beginning with a few gigs in the north of Scotland. They had done a New Year’s Eve gig in Hamburg before a first show in Elgin which was during one of the coldest winters in the UK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5nARZKS-AY Early repertoire included various covers besides their own tunes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MnuNvzyfI4. Though they were still honing skills as performers and song writers in the beginning of 1963, the Beatles had come a long way since this audition in January 1962: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTMlZxHk938

The Beatles first performed with Ringo Starr in Scotland on 3 Jan 1963 at Two Red Shoes, Elgin followed by another 21 shows around the country between 1963-64: http://www.dermon.com/Beatles/details/tours.htm

Beginning with a short tour in the north of Scotland, 1963 was an eventful year for the Beatles who performed nearly every day traveling around the Before Ringo joined the band, they performed around England besides their Hamburg gigs and a single show in Wales [1962] though finished 1962 in Hamburg before the early Scottish tour. Note: Because of snowy conditions in Scotland, the Beatles missed there New Year’s Dance [Jan 2, 1963] and their roadie had to drive their equipment up from Edinburgh [about 6 hour drive back then]. John Lennon who flew into Aberdeen, decided to fly down to Liverpool for a day since the instruments were missing. He got back an hour or so just as the band was to go on stage in Elgin’s TRS hall. https://scotbeat.wordpress.com/2016/09/09/beatles-tour-scotland/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JhKYwHyoYUhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_Beatles%27_live_performances.html https://www.setlist.fm/stats/average-setlist/the-beatles-23d6a88b.html?tour=UK+Tour+1963 UK. In 1963, they were touring Europe and even traveled to Australia http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/how-the-beatles-came-on-tour-to-australia-nearly-50-years-ago/news-story/571427b9d29ede616eefa514be1f4337

Though enduring a grueling schedule of performances in 1963, the Beatles seemed like an overnight sensations having gone from working for pennies in small clubs and halls in the beginning of 1963 to performing at the Royal Variety Show [BBC] by November. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4baimYICibY Later that month, people in the USA caught a glimpse of the Beatles a couple of months before they captured the imagination of Americans from their appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. ” Note: CBS News were the first to tell a national audience about the phenomenon of Beatlemania then sweeping England. 22Nov63″ “The CBS Morning News with Mike Wallace” profiled the Beatles in a segment that was scheduled to be repeated on the nightly news show hosted by Walter Cronkite. But when President Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas that day, every other topic went onto the back burner.” http://articles.latimes.com/2013/nov/22/entertainment/la-et-ms-beatles-kennedy-assassination-nov-22-1963-20131122

Meanwhile, back in Scotland, promoter Albert Bonici who hired the band for a few quid at the beginning of the year, found himself negotiating to get the group back for what seemed a lot of money for an act at the time. Jack Fallon – 6 February, 1963: ‘”Dear Albert, This is just a recap letter on some of the points we are discussing. “THE BEETLES”. As you will see by the charts, this group are in the charts in three places, jumping in at number 9 with their latest record. He [Brian Epstein] is asking £100 for a period in April, £150 for a period in May, available May 11th – 15th; let me know.” Note: Brian Epstein replied to Albert’s response through Jack at Cana Variety 6 March. Mr. Epstein’s correspondence is currently missing from the Bonici Archives. In an interview with Jim Wilke [published in Blue Suede Brogans] Mr. Bonici said that The Beatles were paid £300 per night for shows in 1963 and £1000 per night in 1964 though document below eludes to Brian Epstein asking for £200. According to co-promoter Andy Lothian who announced the Beatles in Dundee said Albert Bonici paid a record £500 for shows [unverified]. In any case, Albert Bonici [with an exclusive contract later renegotiated] stepped up to the plate to sponsor the Beatles October mini-tours in Scotland after having performed in Glasgow’s Odeon Theatre in June* with Roy Orbison. Though a large sum in those days, it was a calculated risk as he wanted exclusive rights whenever the Beatles played in Scotland. Unfortunately for fans, Albert was not confident that young beat music fans would be willing to pay a large ticket price in the north of Scotland so the group didn’t make a second appearance in Aberdeen.  Note: The Beatles were paid £42 a night in the January tour and the Aberdeen Beatles appearance cost 6 shillings a ticket during that first tour of Scotland 1963 [less than £1]. * Note: Before their evening gig in Glasgow they appeared live on “Round-Up” television show though lip-syncing “With Love From Me To You” and the word spread… https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/concert/1963-06-07/ Setlist in Glasgow 7 June 1963: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/the-beatles/1963/odeon-theatre-glasgow-scotland-3dad107.html

Years after, both Paul McCartney and John Lennon had returned to Scotland. John had pleasant childhood memories of visiting kin in Durness and Paul and Linda briefly lived in the north-west of Scotland where Paul recorded his first solo album “McCartney”. Ken McNab who authored Beatles In Scotland shared a few antidotes in this interview. http://abbeyrd.best.vwh.net/beatlesinscotland.html Other early Beatles posts at: https://scotbeat.wordpress.com/2014/02/21/beatles-ad-12-12-62/

Fans in Inverness to Aberdeen wanted the Beatles to do a return engagement but their career called for larger venues with a high ticket price. Promoter Bonici offered transportation to get fans down south to Glasgow and Edinburgh for special performances besides a limited amount of free tickets for some who were attended other AA Bonici events.

AA Bonici

The Beatles and Billy J Kramer – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ckUPFoCUFk “Their music is wild, pungent, hard-hitting, uninhibited, and personal.” From THE BEATLES [1963]: “Background  Stories” at end of Beatles program [selected from promotional materials]. Note: Macolm Clarke and the Crester’s drummer was Johnny Casson [not Caffen].  Promoter Andi Lothian Jr., who was one of the presenters at the Dundee show, claims to have introduced The Beatles to Scotland though Albert Bonici was firmly at the helm. https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/scottish-news/256514/we-track-down-the-scots-fans-who-enjoyed-the-beatles-magical-mystery-tour-50-years-on/

“No curtain, all the lights were put out while the equipment was being placed on stage, hush of anticipation, click, click, click as the amps (bright red lights) were switched on, possibly by the Beatles themselves, the hush then turns into the loudest rustling you’ve ever heard! …………… the engineers somehow (I still don’t know how they managed to do it!) turn the lights on at the exact same moment the Beatles strum the intro to their first song ………………… well, you can imagine and wonder how the roof of the Caird Hall didn’t ‘take off’ that night!

We were told at the beginning of the show that the Beatles wouldn’t be making any kind of appearance between the performances but instead would remain in the theatre. After the show (1st session) we got onto the pavement next to the theatre (Crichton Street I think?) and on our left coming out of the underground park was this big black limousine, we were still in very high spirits at this time and waved the vehicle passed ………………. as it drew level we looked down to see John and Paul smiling and waving back at us! (George and Ringo were on the other side) indeed, they had fooled us all and were being chauffeured around the city on a quick tour! I can’t remember much more about the evening (no memorabilia or posters and why didn’t I have a camera along with me??) except that the supporting acts would have been brilliant as the bands in those days all were. I remember going to many ‘live’ concerts way back then ………. Johnny Kidd and the Pirates, Bert Weedon, Shane Fenton and the Fentones, Billy Fury, Gerry and the Pacemakers and more. The early sixties was an era (musically speaking) that no-one had ever experienced before and we were the first generation to be ‘misunderstood’ by our elders ………. but then again, we knew what it was all about and they didn’t!” (Two sessions, sold out) Iain Le Poer Trench) who attended first session in Dundee’s Caird Hall 7 October 1963 Note: Though on the road most of 1963, the Beatles continued to update their act with new songs http://www.pophistorydig.com/topics/tag/beatles-songs-1963/   I’ll Get You: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=129&v=wanRCB0Pwfk

This Russian blog includes several photos of the Beatles on holiday besides various tour dates including Glasgow.                https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&u=http://beatles-chronology.ru/category/history/page/15/&prev=search                                                                                                                                           The Beatles, who hadn’t been in Scotland since January 9th after appearing on Round-Up in Glasgow’s STV studio, returned on June 7 for an engagement at Glasgow’s Odeon Theatre. They also performed again for the television show though lip-synced. “That second show was recorded just a few hours before the band were due to play their first gig in Glasgow…With the band’s popularity soaring on the back of their chart-topping calling card ‘Please Please Me’, the No.1 follow-up ‘From Me To You’ and their first No.1 album, pockets of screaming teenagers had already gathered at the front entrance of the STV studios at the top of Hope Street.” The Beatles In Scotland [Ken McNab]                                                     In October ’63 they returned for a three city tour which included: The Caravelles, Malcolm Clarke and The Cresters,  Johnny Hudson and The Teenbeats with Dundee’s Tony Vincent [formerly Tony Vincent and The Giants] Houston Wells and His Marksmen , Overlanders, and Andy Ross and His Showband https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/lifestyle/fifes-greatest-gigs-no-1-beatles-kirkcaldy-1140636 On June 7th, 1963 there was a crowd in front of the Odeon Cinema, Glasgow though it was a sell out performance. https://www.beatlesbible.com/1963/06/07/live-odeon-cinema-glasgow/ When The Beatles returned later that year for a three city tour in Scotland [Oct-1963], there were screaming girls and jelly-babies being thrown onstage.

Billy J Kramer also played Aberdeen as the headliner in 1964 with The Copy Cats from Buckie as opening act. 

Albert Bonici featured The Copy Cats [aka My Dear Watson] with other popular acts of the day. They were to share a gig with The Beatles in Keith January 2, 1963 but the Beatles couldn’t manage the New Year’s gig with poor weather conditions.

   

The Cresters who toured with the Beatles in 1963, turned down songs written for them by the Beatles according to the article above.

In the first issue of Scottish Beat February, 1964, an article speaks about the October 1963 Beatles shows in Glasgow, Kirkcaldy, and Dundee [editor Andy Lothian Jr./publisher Malcolm Nixon Agency, Dundee]

Scottish Beat [Dundee] Feb, 1964

Albert Bonici had considered booking the Beatles for a set of gigs in 1964 which included a return to Aberdeen but it didn’t materialize. The Beatles had become the top beat act by then and likely wasn’t willing to pay the large fee to re-book them as they were playing larger venues. Another proposal was to arrange a German tour with Brian Epstein.

Besides a scrapped proposal for another Beatles tour in the north of Scotland [July 6-11-64] Albert Bonici was keen to host a Beatles tour in Germany 1964 though both were not to be. The Beatles had become an international act and played audiences in the US and Australia by then and the Scottish promoter would have needed larger halls to turn a profit. The Beatles manager, Brian Epstein [NEMS], who mantained a friendly re pore with Mr. Bonici, continued to work with Albert Bonici in booking other acts though the Beatles would not be performing in Scotland again.  Note: Gordon Hardie, who promoted music through LCB Agency [Bonici] besides his own “Stag” Agency, booked acts in Aberdeen and small villages and towns in the region. His diary journal, 6 July to Saturday, 11 July 1964, scribbled out “Beatles” as the band performed on “Thank Your Lucky Stars” after attending British premieres of their first film, “Hard Day’s Night” https://www.beatlesbible.com/1964/07/10/liverpool-premiere-hard-days-night/

https://scotbeat.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/the-beatles-1963-advert/ https://scotbeat.wordpress.com/2014/05/10/scottish-beatles-tour-1963/ https://scotbeat.wordpress.com/2016/09/09/beatles-tour-scotland/

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SCOTBEAT and http://bonici.wordpress.com includes photos and documents from the Bonici Archives with permission from the Bonici family [PC Holding Co]. You may contact me at dillsdavid@yahoo.co.uk for consent in using images for media projects. Am currently updating http://djdills.wordpress.com with original new collages. #collageart #beatmusic #popmusic #1960smusic

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Tagged with: Albert Bonici, Scottish beat music, The Beatles, The Cresters
Posted in 1960's pop music