The development of British rock in the 1960s and early 1970s In late 1950s Britain a flourishing culture of groups began to emerge,
often out of the declining skiffle scene, in major urban centres in the UK
like Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and London. This was particularly
true in Liverpool, where it has been estimated that there were around 350
different bands active, often playing ballrooms, concert halls and clubs.
These beat bands were heavily influenced by American groups of the era,
such as Buddy Holly and the Crickets (from which group The Beatles derived
their name), as well as earlier British groups such as The Shadows.
After the
national success of the Beatles in Britain from 1962, a number of Liverpool
performers were able to follow them into the charts, including Gerry & The
Pacemakers, The Searchers, and Cilla Black. Among the most successful beat
acts from Birmingham were The Spencer Davis Group and The Moody
Blues; The Animals came from Newcastle, and Them, featuring Van
Morrison, from Belfast. From London, the term
Tottenham Sound was largely
based around The Dave Clark Five, but other London bands that benefited
from the beat boom of this era included the Rolling Stones, The
Kinks and The Yard birds. The first non-Liverpool, non-Brian Epstein-
managed band to break through in the UK were Freddie and the Dreamers,
who were based in Manchester,
as were Herman's Hermits and The Hollies.
The beat movement provided most of the bands responsible for the British
invasion of the American pop charts in the period after 1964, and furnished
the model for many important developments in pop and rock music,
particularly through their small group format - typically lead guitar, rhythm
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guitar, bass guitar, drums, and often keyboards, either with a lead singer or
with one of the other musicians taking lead vocals and the others providing
vocal harmonies.