Song «"I Want to Hold Your Hand"» , written John Lennon и Paul McCartney , was a response to Capitol Records' request to write a song that would appeal to the American market. At the time, the duo was working in the basement of the house where McCartney's then-girlfriend grew up. They composed the song, and Lennon recalled:
«We wrote a lot of stuff together, one-on-one, face-to-face. For example, on „I Want to Hold Your Hand,“ I remember finding the chord that made the song so memorable. We were in Jane Asher’s house, down in the basement, playing piano at the same time. And we were like, „Oh, you… you’ve got something…“ And Paul hits this chord, and I turn to him and say, „There it is!“ I say, „Do it again!“ That’s really how we wrote music in those days—both playing, like we were playing each other’s language.».
In 1963, the Fab Four recorded the song using four-track technology, making 17 different takes. Demand for the single was high, with over a million advance orders. Released at the height of Beatlemania, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" received an overwhelming response. Within a week of entering the charts, it knocked another Beatles song, "She Loves Me," off the top spot in the UK. It became the number one Christmas song of that year.
In the United States, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" was released in early December 1963. The song was originally scheduled for release in the United States in January 1964 to coincide with her performance on The Ed Sullivan Show , but a 14-year-old Beatles fan named Marsha Albert asked to play it on the radio a month earlier, which started the "Beatlemania" phenomenon in the US and forced the record company to change its plans.
Demand for the song in the US was unprecedented for the time: just three days after its initial release, 10,000 copies were selling every hour in New York City. In America alone, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" sold approximately five million copies, becoming The Beatles' first number-one single in the US.
According to data Billboard , "I Want to Hold Your Hand" ranks 48th on the list of all-time greatest hits in music history. It became The Beatles' best-selling single in their entire catalog, selling over 12 million copies worldwide.
The song is credited with "electrifying American pop music.". Time magazine included it in the list of the 100 best songs of all time, and Rolling Stone ranked it number 16 on his iconic list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
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See also: The last album of the "most famous band in history" was released 56 years ago.
This article was originally published by Parade on June 7, 2026, in the Entertainment section. Add Parade to your list of recommended sources by clicking here.