10 Greatest Music Gigs You Wish You Could Have Been At
6. The Beatles - Shea Stadium
The Beatles saw to stake their claim as the biggest band the world had ever seen during the mid-60s. They'd conquered every territory in the world and completely blown the American charts apart with hit after hit.Their appearance at Shea Stadium in front of 55,000 fans was the biggest show they'd ever played - and was an early example of the stadium gigs we take for granted today.
The technology of 1965 wasn't up to the demands of a venue like Shea Stadium, and with the band's vocals being piped through the stadium's in-house sports announcement PA, the sound quality was poor. The amplification they used would have rendered most of what they played inaudible. Yet none of that mattered. This was history in the making, the fans were there to scream at their idols, not listen to the music!
Fortunately, the event was filmed, and the music was recorded in a quality that far outstripped what would have been heard. It shows The Beatles in their prime: tight, effervescent, rocking and totally on top of their game. Everything was still exciting for them and their music conveyed it; the downside of the success hadn't hit home yet and they were loving every minute.