John Lennon on his feelings for the only American girl…

The Beatles represent the pinnacle of quintessentially British music and songwriting.

Their intense fame and success helped to wrestle back the rock and roll mantle from the United States and ushered in a new age of British pop, which soon resonated worldwide.

By 1964, the Fab Four could hardly walk outside their houses without being set upon by a swarm of obsessed fans, but, as it turned out, things were just as excessive across the Atlantic, too. On their first tour of America, young fans would throw themselves at the band at virtually every opportunity, much to the apparent annoyance of John Lennon.

As primary songwriters for the band, the vast majority of Beatlemania focused on Lennon and Paul McCartney.

The pair went from childhood friends playing skiffle music together in Liverpool to being globally recognised artists amassing armies of obsessive fans.

In many ways, Beatlemania predicted the later success of boy bands, in which fans – particularly young women and girls – would form an all-encompassing attachment to the musicians.

This scene was intense enough on the shores of England, but the band’s trip to the States took Beatles Mania to entirely new heights.

From the moment the Liverpudlians disembarked on American soil, they did not see a moment’s peace.

Hounded by the press, screamed at by gaggles of teenage girls, and criticised by American leaders fearful of this rebellious new youth culture, The Beatles’ 1964 trip to America was tumultuous, to say the least.

Understandably, the band soon found themselves exhausted by this constant attention, leading to a certain amount of anti-American sentiment among the band members.

Following their first tour of America, the band returned to Blighty in September of 1964, where they were quickly asked to reflect on the experience of touring the States.

Speaking to Playboy in 1964, The Beatles reflected on their fame, with George Harrison saying he could visit most public places, with the caveat that, “Usually it’s only Americans that’ll bother you”. The subsequent conversation focused a lot on the attention the band had amassed in America and the intense fatigue of having to fend off fans at every turn.