Correction Appended July 11, 2012
It’s Beatles’ Day! Even if you can’t be in Liverpool or Hamburg for the big celebrations, take a moment to relive the biggest music sensation of all time with a jog back to when it all began: check out TIME’s first ever story on the Fab Four.
The story, published before the Beatles’ music had even been released in the U.S., covers the rise of “Beatlemania” in Britain and describes the night when the fresh-faced four played “Twist and Shout” for the Queen Mother herself.
As TIME said of the performance: “their songs consist mainly of “Yeh!” screamed to the accompaniment of three guitars and a thunderous drum.”
(PHOTOS: Happy Birthday, Paul McCartney: 70 Iconic Images for 70 Years)
Here’s a video of that royal performance:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXlvhEjDbxE]
MORE: Happy Birthday Paul McCartney: TIME Remembers the Day He Met John Lennon
MORE: That Old Feeling: Meet the Beatles
A previous version of this story stated that July 10 was Global Beatles Day. Global Beatles is an unaffiliated holiday occurring June 25.