The U.K.
Beatles music
In the late 1950s, 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. Beat bands were heavily influenced by American bands 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. 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 Yardbirds and
the Kinks. 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. The beat movement provided most of the groups 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.