Shake It Up, Baby!

The Rise of Beatlemania and the Mayhem of 1963

Ken McNab

A vivid, captivating account of the Beatles’s musical transformation throughout the pivotal year of 1963, as the world became caught up in the maelstrom of Beatlemania and its far-reaching cultural impact.

The Beatles broke up more than half a century ago, yet millions around the globe are still drawn to the legacy of four lads from Liverpool. From the carefree innocence of "A Hard Day's Night" to the experimental psychedelia of "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,” their message of love, peace, and hope still resonates.

In Shake It Up, Baby! we go back to the start—to 1963, when they went from playing in small clubs in the remote Scottish Highlands to four number one singles, two number one albums, three national tours, and being besieged by thousands of fans at gigs all over Britain.

Ken McNab tells the story through gripping, exclusive eye-witness accounts from those who were there: the Beatlemaniacs, the journalists, broadcasters, and television producers who were scrambling to make sense of it all—and the other bands who could only watch in awe as the Beatles went from bottom of the bill to headline act to the biggest band on the planet, forever transforming musical history.

Ken McNab is a journalist with the Scottish Daily Mail and the author of And in the End: The Last Days of The Beatles. Ken lives in Scotland.

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Endorsements & Reviews

"A gritty account of the Beatles’ rise to fame. McNab breaks down the Beatles’ concerts, business deals, sleepless nights, and bloody fights month by month during the transitional year of 1963. Shake It Up, Baby! is essential as it details one crucial year in the Beatles saga." PopMatters

"McNab takes readers on an exuberant roller-coaster ride through 1963, during the Beatles’ journey into stratospheric musical success. An absolute must-read for music and Beatles fans." Library Journal (starred)

"A chronicle of perhaps the most important year in the life of the Fab Four. The year 1963 opened with the Beatles playing gigs in tiny halls in the Scottish Highlands in a sleety, frozen January. It closed with hit songs and ambitious plans to bring the band to the U.S. It really began bar by bar, town by town, mile by mile, a success won by endless work. A trove for Beatles completists." Kirkus Reviews

Praise for And in the End: The Last Days of The Beatles:

"A great, wildly engrossing read about amazingly talented people.” Forbes

"A new book about The Beatles’ final days reveals the REAL reasons they split up." The Daily Mail

"McNab’s detailing of the demise of the Beatles will appeal to die-hard Beatles’ fans who thrive on the nitty-gritty." Publishers Weekly

"McNab focuses engagingly, and insightfully, on the band’s final year . . . and neatly conveys the hazards of fame and the enduring value of youth, talent, and a touch of madness.” The Wall Street Journal

"In this valuable addition to the Beatles bookshelf, author Ken McNab takes a detailed and deep dive into the last year of the band’s existence, and manages to uncover some choice new info about the most written-about band in the history of music." Houston Press