4 Songs From 1964 That Every Baby Boomer Knows by Heart

The year 1964 feels like a lifetime away now, but many a baby boomer today still remembers the songs that came to define that era, decades later. Let’s dive into just a handful of smash hits from 1964 that are probably still burned into your brain if you were around when they first hit the airwaves.

“Bread And Butter” by The Newbeats from ‘Bread & Butter’

Remember this surprise megahit on the Billboard Hot 100? “Bread And Butter” by The Newbeats dropped in the summer of that year and was a smash hit on the charts, peaking at No. 2 on the Hot 100. The name might not be super familiar, but once that pop-rock intro kicks in, you’ll be transported back to summer vacation in 1964. Larry Henley’s falsetto vocals are insanely memorable.

“Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying” by Gerry And The Pacemakers from ‘Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying’

The British Invasion had taken over the charts in 1964, and that included the Merseybeat stylings of many a British pop band. Gerry And The Pacemakers had such a hit that year with “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying”, which made it all the way to No. 4 on the Hot 100.

“Love Me Do” by The Beatles from ‘Please Please Me’

This classic Beatles tune originally dropped in 1962 but didn’t make it to our side of the pond until 1964. And I just couldn’t put together a list of baby boomer-beloved songs from 1964 without including this jam. “Love Me Do” was a hit in England and, likewise, a hit in the US. It topped the charts in the UK and reached No. 5 on the Hot 100 chart. It remains one of the most memorable hits from the early Fab Four record, Please Please Me. Beatlemania was already in full swing when this song dropped, and it only furthered the band’s reach as the biggest band of the 1960s.

“Have I The Right?” by The Honeycombs

The Honeycombs deserved way more fame than they got, in my opinion. Not many outfits in the pop space featured the talents of a woman on percussion, and that was just one of many elements that made The Honeycombs so good. Their biggest song, the proto-post-punk “Have I The Right?”, resonated with audiences in a big way. It peaked at No. 5 on the Hot 100 chart.

(Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)