We_Didnt_Start_the_Fire

Mitchell Parker Mrs. Hart English 10 Honors 6 April 2011 “We Didn’t Start the Fire” In the classic words of Billy Idol in his hit song “We didn’t Start the Fire” he says, “We didn't start the fire/ It was always burning/ Since the world's been turning/ We didn't start the fire/ No we didn't light it/ But we tried to fight it.” Through these few lines of song he poses a very important question. What is the fire' The fire is everything that has made an impact on society. It can be a good thing and it can be a bad thing. The fire was not started by one man, or one group of people, it was started when mankind began fighting for what they believed to be the correct thing to do. People have throughout all of time felt like they can make a difference in everyday life, and they can. People are strong willed creatures just waiting for the opportunity to share their ideals and finally have a voice that can be heard and will be able to influence others to join their cause. The Beatles are a musical group that got their ideas out to the entire world through song like Billy Idol. Another idea that could be added to this song if it was rewritten in modern time is XXXX. Today’s society has been influenced by both The Beatles and XXXX making both of these a large component of our history’s fire. Before there was the Beatles, there was just John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The two happened to cross paths at a concert when they were younger, and immediately became good friends. Unfortunately, two cannot make up a rock band, so they asked Paul’s friend George Harrison to play lead guitar in a band they called The Quarrymen/ eventually renamed the Beatles (Douglas 203). The Beatles were unable to become a musical sensation until they recruited Ringo Starr to play the drums for them in the summer of 1962. The Beatles then proceeded to create their first single “Love Me Do” in October that same year which reached #17 in the British charts (Douglas 203). Just 4 months later in January they released their next single, “Please Please Me” which was an instant hit and reached #1 on the charts (Douglas 203). They were thrilled by this result and launched their first album Please Please Me in March 1963 which also reached the top of the charts. It wasn’t until the Beatles fourth single “She Loves You” released in August 1963 in England and January 1964 in America that “Beatlemania”, what Douglas describes as the name given to the wild form of excitement which the Beatles elicited from their fans, was world wide. (204). Beatlemania was more than just a fan base though, it was a life style. You could hear people singing their classic songs everywhere. It wasn’t just an idea, Beatlemania was a revolution. Music generally influences people, but Beatlemania did that and more. They became the target of such adoration by their fans that they had to cancel all one-night bookings because of riots in early 1964. Beatlemania had reached unbelievable proportions in England; it became a form of reverse lend-lease and spread to the United States. Capitol records followed the Beatles' single record with the release of an album, "Meet the Beatles," in late January of 1964. That event was followed by the Beatles themselves, who arrived in New York February 8, 1964 for three appearances with Ed Sullivan. The first show was scheduled for Sunday, February 9, the second was telecast from Miami a week later, and the third pre-taped for an airing in March. These concerts were the most watched television programs ever (70 million viewers) until recently.