We often take things for granted and only realize their worth when we no longer have them. This must have been on every fans’ mind when they realized that the Beatles concert at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, was actually the last one the iconic band would have.

The final live concert of The Beatles was not met by the usual enthusiasm of fans, because the fans didn’t know it was the last show the band would play. The concert was only able to fill 25,000 seats out of 42,500.

The Candlestick Concert

On April 29, 1966, The Beatles performed at the now-demolished Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The Park was home to baseball team San Francisco Giants, and the stage was set up behind the second base to make sure it was facing the bleachers.

Tempo Productions was the local producer of the concert, and it was known that the company did not earn any revenue for this specific show. The seating capacity of Candlestick Park was about 42,500. Unfortunately, the concert only sold 25,000 tickets. The Beatles’ fee was $90,000, and the producers had to pay the city around 15% of the sales for the usage of the Park.

Around 9:27 PM, the band took the stage. The Beatles played eleven songs, Rock and Roll Music, Long Tall Sally, Paperback Writer, She’s A Woman, Nowhere Man, If I Needed Someone, I Wanna Be Your Man, Day Tripper, Yesterday, Baby’s In Black, and I Feel Fine. Interestingly enough, the songs played during this concert were old songs except for Paperback Writer.

The band knew this was the last time they would be playing a formal concert together. But their fans were not aware of this fact. 

Paul McCartney asked their press officer, Tony Barrow, to tape the concert using a hand-held recorder, which was unusual, especially because McCartney made his request right before they went on stage. According to Barrow, there was nothing spectacular about the show except for a few ad-libs. (Source: Beatles Bible)

Artists Influenced by the Beatles

The Beatles have influenced several artists, both in their generation and in newer ones. Here is a list of a few artists the popular band inspired.

The Beach Boys

The Beatles’ Rubber Soul album inspired the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds album. Beach Boy Brian Wilson was inspired and tried incorporating the different exotic instruments the Beatles used in his album.

Black Sabbath

Frontman Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler claim they were driven to start their careers in music because of the band.

KISS

Gene Simmons first saw the band in the Ed Sullivan Show. The band’s attitude so inspired him that they could create different genres of songs.

Nirvana

Singer Kurt Cobain was a huge fan of John Lennon. He wrote About a Girl after listening to the  Meet the Beatles album for three straight hours. David Grohl learned to play the guitar using the Beatles’ songbook.

Oasis

This band is usually referred to as the best Beatles tribute band. The Beatles’ influence on the Gallagher brothers was strong that when they write songs, they typically compare it to The Beatles.

(Source: Louder Sound)