Beatlemania was no stranger to Japan. The Beatles one and only tour to Japan occurred in 1966, where they performed 5 concerts at the Budokan Arena in Tokyo. They arrived on Japan Airlines wearing Happi coats (pictured), and were guided through the airport by a large amount of security officers.

The arena itself was only used for martial arts matches until then, with the Beatles being the first to perform music there. The concerts all sold out attracting 25, 000 fans, and now the arena is considered sacred ground for rock music in Japan.

The Beatle “hurricane” (as they just missed a hurricane the day before their arrival) swept across Japan, inspiring would be musical artists to pick up their guitar picks and practice their music. They were – and still are – so highly idolized by their Japanese fans that many a tribute or cover band has been made. There is even a venue in Tokyo named Abbey Road where some of these groups perform. Of course it is not the only such venue in Japan, or so I am led to believe.

We thought we would show a couple of the tribute/cover bands we’ve found (there are heaps of them!) via the magic of Youtube, so sit back and relax while enjoying the tunes of The Parrots,  and the BeaTrips!

The Parrots singing “Drive My Car”

The BeaTrips singing “Let It Be”

The BeaTrips will also be featured at “Beatles Fest West” in San Francisco from October 9th to the 11th, 2009. They join tribute bands from other countries to celebrate all that is “The Beatles”.