The Hippy Hippy Shake:
The Beatles' arrival in America displaced current rock icons
Before The Beatles and their revolutionary style hit the Rock 'N' Roll scene in America in the 1960's, Elvis Presley, Fats Domino and Little Richard came as Rock 'N' Roll predecessors.
Of those four, Elvis was the most popular. It's estimated that one billion of his record units were sold worldwide, more than anyone in the record industry's history (Overview). Elvis' singles spent a total of 80 weeks at number one. This all changed when the Beatles came to America. Soon, Elvis' 80 total weeks at number one turned into the Beatles total of 175 weeks at the number one spot on the top 100 Billboard charts of America (Calkins). Written in a New York Times paper in 1964, "Aurally suggested [the Beatles are] a Presley multiplied by four" (Gould 1). Elvis and other musical groups of America were put on the back burner while the Beatles took the stage in 1964. |