The Beatles themselves were greatly influenced by the early rock ‘n roll stars from America such as Elvis Presley, Fats Domino, Buddy Holly, Gene Vincent and others. During the band’s infancy they spent a considerable amount of time listening and copying the styles of these great 1950’s rock ‘n roll heroes.
It’s fair to say that the music style adopted by the Beatles has in roots in 1950’s American rock ‘n roll.
The Beatles dawned on the music scene in the very early 1960’s and by 1963 had established themselves as the premiere rock ‘n roll band in all of England. Frenzied crowds greeted the Beatles wherever they appeared throughout all of England. Beatlemania was born. The America music scene had all but ignored what was transpiring in England. But by January 1964, after the release of the Beatles second album in England, America could not longer resist the onslaught of these four loveable guys with mop-top haircuts. They stormed onto the American music scene in February 1964 with their historic performances in Washington DC, Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium. Their music, coupled with their first class humor and personalities, firmly established them as the rock ‘n roll kings for an entire generation. Their popularity, both yesterday and today, still remains unequaled by any other rock ‘n roll artist.
The memorabilia licensed by The Beatles is vast and seemingly endless. No other group in history generated more public thirst for merchandise than did The Beatles. Today’s serious Beatles collectors concentrate on the early 1960’s licensed Beatles as well as the Yellow Submarine wave of memorabilia produced in 1968. North End Music Stores, NEMS, granted merchandising licenses to hundreds of companies around the world to manufacture ‘official’ Beatles memorabilia. These items have become ‘better than money in the bank’ as prices and demand for Beatles memorabilia continues to skyrocket. For example a mint condition metal Beatles lunchbox in 1970 sold for $20; in 1980 $100; in 1990 $300 and as we enter the millennium, prices are upwards of $1,000+.
The Beatles are the most collected and celebrated group in rock ‘n roll history.
The Yellow Submarine...
‘We all live in a Yellow Submarine’… Surely everyone, young and old, recognizes this line from one of the Beatles most famous songs. This full-length feature movie, which premiered in London in July of 1968, represented a technological breakthrough for the movie industry of the 1960’s. Real life imagery integrated with animated artistry plus the addition of Beatles music made this film a classic for all time. The film coincided with the psychedelic era of the 1960’s and the counterculture movement plus with it’s vivid colors coupled with it’s ‘good vs. evil’ theme, it remains a constant reminder to us of that special decade we now refer to as 'the sixties'.
The Yellow Submarine artistry has the brainchild of German artist Heinz Edelmann not American artist Peter Max as many believe. Peter Max had nothing to do with the Yellow Submarine period!! Heinz Edelmann's remarkable talents are evident in his creative interpretations of each Beatle and the multitude of characters he created for the film.
The Yellow Submarine represented the second rush of Beatles merchandising efforts in late 1968. Following a very successful 1964-1966 merchandising campaign, NEMS Enterprises Ltd. in conjunction with SUBA Films Ltd. produced a plethora of licensed merchandise ranging from simple items like children's lunchboxes and toys to more limited production items like in-store promotional displays like that and this, original art animation production cels used in the movie and hand-painted figurine sets by the world renowned Goebel corporation of West Germany. Another hard to find Yellow Submarine licensed item is the American made Desk Set mfg in New York City 1968 by A&M Leatherlines Inc. A&M Leatherline also made a set of five rare pinback buttons in 1968, the only vintage, licensed set made in the USA.
These artifacts have since become very prized collectibles. The movie lends itself to be perfect for a merchandising effort: seemingly limitless items could be manufactured utilizing extremely colorful vivid scenery from the film. Many licensees produced official Yellow Submarine memorabilia from late 1968 throughout 1969. Many of these products have been catalogued but there are still collectors today that uncover previously unknown licensed pieces. Many collectors have begun concentrating on Yellow Submarine merchandise, favoring it over earlier Beatles memorabilia because of it’s vibrant, eye-catching appeal and the wide variety of products that were produced.
Source link: http://www.beatlebay.com/The_Beatles.htm
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