When the Beatles invaded the American music charts in the 1960’s, they did more than change the musical landscape. They created the rocker-as-fashion-icon, and the fashion statements they made changed as regularly as their styles of music. Girls loved them, and boys wanted to be them. The lads from Liverpool influenced ‘60’s fashion as much as their music influenced the world.

 

The Beatles debuted with slim-cut suits, pointy-toed Chelsea heeled boots, and matching mop-top styled hair cuts. But they didn’t start out that way. Before the American invasion, the band were typical rockers with scruffy jeans and leather jackets. Manager Brian Epstein put them in the hip, tailored clothing and restyled their hair. Designer Pierre Cardin dressed them in sleek, collar-less suits that were unlike anything anyone had seen on musicians before. Fans and the media were overwhelmed, and the resulting craze was dubbed “Beatlemania.”

 

Boys started growing out their hair so it fell over their ears, a big change from the conservative over-the-ears style. If they were too nervous for that, they could always buy a Beatles wig to achieve the look. They also copied the suit look, trading in their tee shirts and jeans for tailored suits with slim legs and Beatles boots. They topped off the look with the fisherman’s cap that John Lennon wore in their 1964 movie, A Hard Day's Night, from Mary Quants' boutique, Bazaar.

 

With 1965’s Rubber Soul album, the band replaced their shirts with turtlenecks and each member developed a more individual and natural style. Their hair followed the hippie direction – longer and messier. 

 

The band took a brand new fashion direction with 1967’s Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band release. They dressed up in day-glo psychedelic band uniforms, and sported old-fashioned mustaches. They continued the look with Yellow Submarine, adding Edwardian ruffles and velvet suits.

 

The band and their look mellowed with their last album, 1969's Abbey Road. The look was pure hippie, with bellbottomed denim, western-style shirts, and wide rawhide belts. Their hair was as long as it had ever been, complimented with wide sideburns. It was big change from the clean-cut, tailored look seen only six years earlier.

 

By 1970, the Beatles were history, and each band member went on to cultivate their own original look. Their rabid audience no longer had the band to look to for fashion advice. But their impact on modern music will be felt indefinitely, and the new idea of musician as fashion template was just beginning.