How the Beatles' Love Me Do began the transformation of British music | Philip Norman

Fifty years ago a little-known band released a single that, while far from their greatest, heralded the start of a legendary eraIn September 1962, the Beatles went into EMI's Abbey Road studios in north London to record their first single. The A-side was Love Me Do, one of the least original in John Lennon and Paul McCartney's burgeoning songbook. Through it ran a harmonica riff played by Lennon and shamelessly cribbed from Bruce Channel's recent hit, Hey Baby. The lyrics were rudimentary: "Love...

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