While the Beatles trace their beginning back to 1960, it would be two more years before they scored their first hit, “Love Me Do,” in the Fall of 1962.

Their hometown of Liverpool is making plans to mark the occasion with a series of events running through the latter half of this year. It begins in August, the 50th anniversary of the Beatles’ first show at the Cavern Club. The city’s leading tour operator is organizing International Beatles Week, with bands from more than 20 countries. In addition to concerts, the sponsor plans exhibitions, memorabilia sales, guest speakers, video shows, sightseeing tours and a convention.

The Beatles play the Cavern, late 1962.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic will perform The Two of Us: The Lennon and McCartney Songbook in June, and the city’s Philharmonic Hall hosts a Beatles weekend in December.
In October, the “Love Me Do” weekend at Albert Dock will celebrate the release of the Beatles’ first single.

This is the start of what’s expected to be a wave of events around the world over the next two years, marking the British Invasion’s half century anniversary.

Earlier this month, Paul McCartney revealed the Beatles talked about getting back together while all four members were still living. But McCartney said they ultimately decided against re-forming out of worries they’d destroy their legacy.

McCartney told Rolling Stone magazine magazine that a revival “could have spoiled the whole idea of the Beatles, so wrong that they’d be like, ‘Oh my God, they weren’t any good.’”

The surviving Beatles are releasing albums within days of one another, but Ringo Starr says it's just a coincidence.

Ringo tells Spinner.com he had dinner with Paul McCartney just after Christmas and hadn't even realized Paul was releasing his own LP:

"No, there’s no rivalry. Paul is Paul, Ringo is Ringo and this is what we do. We don’t phone each other and say, ‘You can’t you bring your record out because I’ve got one!’. We live our lives, we make our music and pick a release date. This was the date we picked and that’s just how it is."

Starr’s new release, Ringo 2012, came out earlier this week. It’s believed McCartney’s new record, titled Kisses on the Bottom, will be released next week.

Ringo’s album features nine tracks, with guest performances from Joe Walsh of the Eagles and Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics.
Paul’s latest is a collection of standards that he remembers from childhood, in addition to a couple of original songs. The album includes appearances by Stevie Wonder and Eric Clapton.