M.L. Liebler
Hundreds upon hundreds of books have tackled the question about why the Beatles were able to capture the imagination of America. Wayne State University Professor and Poet M.L. Liebler who has taught a class on the Beatles’ impact on America and leads a summer-abroad session to London and their Liverpool hometown, believes to a great extent it had to do with the Kennedy assassination which took place just 79 days prior to their Sullivan appearance.
“We were really down in the dumps,” he said.
Liebler comes by his love of the Beatles in an unusual way and has written the poem “Rock ‘n’Roll” acclaiming his grandmother for her role in introducing him to music.
“Because of my grandmother, I was aware of Elvis when I was four. I loved Elvis, especially that raw hound dog Elvis, but then music got real lame and seemed plastic to me,” he said.
Then in late 1963, Liebler heard “I Want to Hold Your Hand” broadcast from nearby Windsor on CKLW. Although, “I Want to Hold Your Hand” was number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in February of 1964 it didn’t reach the top slot on CKLW until later in February. In early February the Four Seasons were still at number one and there was quite an eclectic selection of songs in the “Top 10″.
CKLW Top Hits
February 4, 1964
1 Dawn - Four Seasons
2 She Loves You - Beatles
3 I Want To Hold Your Hand - Beatles
4 Rip Van Winkle - Devotions
5 Women Love and a Man - Tony Clarke
6 Out of this World - Gino Washington
7 Funny Little Clown - Bobby Goldsboro
8 Hey Little Cobra - Rip Cords
9 What’s Easy for Two - Mary Wells
10 Leavin Here - Eddie Holland
“I was infatuated with it and the sound was like, wow,” he said
“When I heard that the Beatles were going to be on the Ed Sullivan show, I began counting the hours, minutes and days from Christmas.
I remember watching them flash their names below them on the screen. I didn’t know who was who at the time and at first Ringo was my favorite, his name so different,” Liebler said.
Later, Lennon would become his “go to”, attracted by the sound of his voice and the Rickenbacker guitar.
“My grandparents at first never warmed to the Beatles, but when they heard them sing “Til There Was You” from “The Music Man”, well, when they heard that, they were not so bad,” Liebler said.
