25. April 1967, Rhöndorf near Bonn, Waldfriedhof: It is the day on which the Federal Republic experiences the largest funeral in its history to date. Former Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who blessed the temporal at the age of 91, is buried. But it is not only the deserving statesman who is said goodbye, in retrospect his funeral also symbolizes the end of an epoch - that of reconstruction, the economic miracle and a stuffy restorative social climate.
It's time for something new. And this newness can be seen on the streets, in the pubs, in the dance halls and at the universities of the country. The new is also to be heard. It makes its way loudly into the ear canals of the nation, it is called pop music. The young baby boomer generation can't get enough of it, while their parents demonize booming electric guitars, hammering drums and the extroverted singing style of rock as "Hottentot music". Not to mention the rebellious and narcissistic self-representation of this youth, which is perceived as an affront to the social status quo. At the same time, the contemplative Federal Republic of Germany at that time was at best a secondary theater of war on the mined battlefield of generation conflict. The real music is set in the USA and England.
Let us look at that 25. April to the main protagonists: Jimi Hendrix (24) performs on his first UK tour with Cat Stevens, Engelbert Humperdinck, the Californians and the Quotations at Colston Hall in Bristol; Bob Dylan (25) sits in the basement of a pink painted house in West Saugerties, New York, with friends, and makes house music; at the same time, thousands of teenagers from all parts of the U.S. set out to hitchhike to San Francisco, the drug-drenched center of the new hippie scene; meanwhile, the completely unknown New York band The Velvet Underground is waiting impatiently for their recently released debut album to make the audience sit up and take notice, and 25-year-old Aretha Franklin has no idea that her single "Respect", which will be released in four days, will not only change her life, but Black Music as such. And then there's the Beatles...
I heard the news today, oh boy
They are the most famous pop group in the world. And they have just recorded perhaps the most famous of all long-playing records. As a matter of fact: The last session for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", a reprise of the title track, was recorded by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr on 20 April at EMI Studios on London's Abbey Road. No need to put your hands in your lap now. Just one day later they record a new song with "Only A Northern Song", and after a short breather they meet again on April 25th at the EMI Studios to continue working on the soundtrack for the TV movie "Magical Mystery Tour".
At that time the Beatles were something like the royal family in the manageable scene of the Thames city. It was with them that the pop revolution of Swinging London began almost five years ago. Since then, Lennon/McCartney and their two comrades-in-arms have been regarded as the measure of musical things. With the breathtaking sounds of their 1966 album "Revolver", at the latest, they have shown that they have outgrown the status of teenylieblings by miles and that they are leading the artistic development of young pop music. John, Paul, George and Ringo march - the rest follows.