1963 was the breakout year for The Beatles – the year Beatlemania was born – the year they went from pub band to become the FAB FOUR. Just one year earlier they had been turned down for a record deal with Decca, with Brian Epstein later claiming that Decca told him they thought “Guitar groups are on the way out Mr Epstein.” Decca instead chose to sign Brian Poole and the Tremeloes. January also brought their first national TV appearance, on Thank Your Lucky Stars filmed at ATV studios in Aston, Birmingham. It was to become a lucky place for them. They appeared three more times on the show that year – constantly getting higher billing and more air time. Like many ‘overnight successes’ The Beatles had worked non- stop for years to get their break. 63 was the year things started moving, and they threw themselves into every gig and appearance they could get. They were booked to support Roy Orbison on tour, and travelling on the tour bus were impressed with the way Roy used this down time to write new material. The song he played them on that bus was ‘Pretty Woman’. Brian Epstein had booked studio time for their next recording session and they needed another song to record, so in a hotel room in Newcastle they began to write ‘She Loves You’ partly out of necessity, and partly out of competition with Orbison. The song took shape in the back of vans and tour buses, in hotel

rooms, dressing rooms, and living rooms.. The Beatles recorded ‘She Loves You’ five days after it was written, during a five-hour session in Abbey Road’s studio two. ‘She Loves You’ was the song that elevated The Beatles out of the one hit wonder category that would plague so many new bands in the new era of pop. It remains their best selling single of all time.