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Tracklisting & More Information
Just months after completing their first feature film, A Hard Day's Night, The Beatles toured Australia for the first and only time in June 1964. Just like the film, Beatlemania was at its height, giving all concerned little time for rest - a blur of planes, cars, hotel rooms, interviews, crowds, screams and concerts.
Having completed shows in Denmark, Holland and Hong Kong, The Beatles' 27-day whistle-stop world tour headed for Australia without Ringo who remained in a London hospital.
Ringo's place on the this first part of the tour was taken by session drummer Jimmy Nichol, who had already sat in for the Scandinavian / Hong Kong leg.
They arrived in Sydney at 7:43 AM on Thursday June 11th to a greeting from 1000 screaming fans, 100 journalists & torrential rain!
They finally manage to get to their hotel at 9:30aM for a brief sleep before a press conference at 4:30 PM. When Paul is asked the insightful question 'What do you expect to find in Australia?', John replies 'Australians'.
Only Jimmy Nichol managed to escape the hotel that night, playing drums in a local nightclub, while the rest of the band stayed in to 'further international relations' with some female fans.
Typical of the North-South-East-West tour planning of the time, their Sydney gigs were later, so the next morning they flew to Adelaide and performed four shows - two that night & two the following night.
They played I Saw Her Standing There, I Want To Hold Your Hand, All My Loving, She Loves You, Till There Was You, Roll Over Beethoven, Can't Buy Me Love, This Boy, Long Tall Sally & Twist And Shout.
The set was identical to that performed immediately prior to the Australian tour at shows in Denmark, the Netherlands and Hong Kong.
In exchange for a healthy fee, NEMS permitted one of the two shows on 12th June to be recorded for radio transmission. The broadcast, titled The Beatles Show and sponsored by the manufacturers of Surf washing powder, was transmitted the following Monday evening, 15 June.
Sunday June 14th was eventful. The band flew to Melbourne for a three night, six show, stint & were re-united with Ringo.
On Monday 15th at 8AM, Brian Epstein accompanied Jimmy Nichol to the airport, gave him a cheque for £500 and a gold watch and sent him home to obscurity.
Television cameras were given permission to tape the sixth and last concert here, turning the footage into an hour-long programme, The Beatles Sing For Shell (Shell, the petroleum company, being the sponsors of the broadcast). The programme aired 7.30-8.30pm on Wednesday 1 July.
The Melbourne shows & the subsequent six show in Sydney all featured the repaired Ringo.
On Sunday June 21st they flew to New Zealand for seven days before returning back to Australia for four concerts in Brisbane before flying back to Sydney, then to London, finally arriving home at 11:10AM on July 2nd.
TOUR PROGRAMME
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