1) The Beatles in Hamburg, 1960 ( Photograph by Astrid Kirchherr / Courtesy Ginzburg Fine Arts )
2) The Beatles beginning their takeoff, August 16, 1960; at far left, a bespectacled John Lennon (.Photograph by Barry Chang )
3) The Beatles at the Indra, Hamburg. August 17, 1960.
4) A watercolor of John Lennon playing guitar, by Stuart Sutcliffe, from around 1960. (Art work courtesy Stuart Sutcliffe Estate )
On August 17, 1960, five young Britons were approaching the stage of a small night club in Hamburg (Germany), about to play music in that city for the first time. To reach the stage, they had come an almost unimaginable distance. From their home, in Liverpool, they had driven in a cream-and-green minibus to the port of Harwich.. They were “ The Beatles “
The musicians slept on benches as the ferry churned across the North Sea toward the Hook of Holland. From there, they drove to the West German border, where they told officials that they were students, bringing their guitars for “sing-songs” with friends. They were young enough to encourage the ruse—during the long ride, their manager had recited “The Wind in the Willows” to entertain them. Four of the five were teen-agers: John Lennon, nineteen; Paul McCartney and Pete Best, eighteen; George Harrison, seventeen. The fifth, Stuart Sutcliffe, was twenty, barely.
The band set up their gear in a tiny club, at No. 64, that offered a “daily international program” with lingerie shows. Its marquee included a name, Indra, that came from a Hindu deity, a friend to weary travellers and poets. That seemed appropriate. John Lennon took out a pen and crossed out the word “Silver” from the band’s name. From now on, they were simply Beatles.
