Introduction

The question of Merseyside's importance in the history of the development of pop music in the UK in the 1960s has been pondered many times. Why did such unprecedented developments occur in Liverpool and the surrounding areas, rather than in Southampton or Sheffield? Although other areas of the country had their own beat groups, some of which eventually came to national prominence, those from Merseyside were the ground-breakers. However, groups such as the Beatles, the Searchers and Gerry and the Pacemakers did not suddenly emerge ‘out of nowhere’. Rather, Mersey Beat, as with many popular culture explosions, occurred in a period of experimentation and development, in its case dating back to earlier developments in pop music and the beginnings of rock ‘n’ roll in Britain in the mid-1950s.

This chapter will analyse some of the socioeconomic and cultural factors that need to be taken into account when considering the origins of the Merseyside groups. It will argue that these influences were not just localised around the grey waters of the River Mersey, but were effecting change, particularly on youngsters, throughout the length and breadth of the country. Factors that will be considered include the changes in social life in post-war Britain and the ‘US effect’, as well as circumstances that can be identified within the Merseyside conurbation.

There's a Place

Merseyside is an amalgamation of a number of towns and cities surrounding the Mersey estuary on the west coast of England. The region was, until the boundary changes of 1974, set partially in Lancashire and partially in Cheshire, with the largest areas being Liverpool and Birkenhead on opposite banks of the river. According to the 1961 census, Liverpool was a city of some three-quarters of a million people. Liverpool was the second most important seaport in Britain after London, with connections to all parts of the world, but dealing particularly – in both human and commercial cargo – with the US.

Liverpool was a key place of embarkation for Eastern European immigrants who, having left their homeland, were travelling to a new life in the US. This was not just one-way traffic; Liverpool had, since the middle of the nineteenth century, been a port of embarkation for Irish immigrants wanting to travel in the same direction.