1961
April: On a return trip to Hamburg, the Beatles record as backup to Tony Sheridan, including “Ain’t She Sweet,” with vocal by John Lennon. The tune is released on a single in the U.S.
Oct. 28: According to legend, a Liverpool youth named Raymond Jones walks into the NEMS record store and asks manager Brian Epstein for “My Bonnie” by the Beatles. Epstein says he’d never heard of the record, but in the interest of pleasing the customer, sets out to order it. In recent years, Alistair Taylor has revealed this story was a fantasy.