CP3.  An Excellent Beatles and Roy Orbison Tour Signed Concert Program

On Saturday, May 18, 1963, The Beatles embarked on their third nationwide tour of Britain, supporting American singer-songwriter and rock pioneer Roy Orbison. Though Orbison began the tour as headliner, audience demand quickly necessitated a change in billing and The Beatles assumed the top spot. By the time the tour ended on June 9, 1963, the band had played twenty dates with “The Big O”.

Here is a program from that very tour which has been autographed beautifully by The Beatles. Each member has signed on the left hand side page of their 'bio spread', near their respective head shot photo, with Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison signing in blue ballpoint pen. Ringo Starr has used a red ballpoint to sign and has also added "XX". These signatures are excellent representative examples and date precisely from the time of this tour, which was an exciting time period in many ways for The Beatles, as they were fast gaining momentum while touring throughout Great Britain.

Consider this: The Beatles went out on their first national tour with ’16-year-old-singing-sensation’ Helen Shapiro between the dates of February 2, 1963 and March 3, 1963. On this tour they were, believe it or not, the opening act for Shapiro. A mere 3 months later, they were again out on the road - this time with Roy Orbison, who was known worldwide for his powerful, impassioned voice. The Beatles were huge fans of his and admired him greatly, as he had several Top Ten hits on the charts in the U.K.

All things considered, this tour represents one of several tangible, critical turning points in 1963 as The Beatles navigated their course with destiny. By the end of the year, they would be the biggest thing in Great Britain. Mere weeks later, they would be the hottest act in America and, by mid-1964, the most popular band in the world.

This is an extraordinary signed program, in excellent overall condition, which has been nicely framed with an opening on the back for additional viewing of the front and back covers…..$20,000

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