Beatlemania revived 40 years after Japan concerts

TOKYO, July 2 (Reuters) The Beatles visited Japan only once as a band, but the country is commemorating the 40th anniversary of their concerts as if the Fab Four had never left the stage.

Japanese media are lost in Beatlemania, and the hotel where they last stayed in 1966 is offering a special last viewing of their suite before the hotel's demolition.

''We have done our best to restore the presidential suite to how it looked when the Beatles stayed,'' Michael Miyauchi, of the Capitol Tokyu Hotel, said as lines of fans queued for a viewing. The hotel was the Tokyo Hilton in 1966.

''We expected to see mainly 50- and 60- year-olds but all generations have been turning up.'' Beatles cover bands are battling to be voted the best and, in Tokyo's glitzy Ginza district, thousands of fans have visited an exhibition of photos taken during their three days of concerts.

Although they only stayed for a short time, the Beatles' visit had a huge cultural impact.

''They exuded a new approach that we Japanese had never experienced before,'' said 65-year-old Keiko Iwai. ''Their hairstyle was so popular, their fashion sense. I remember watching the movies, too.'' REUTERS SB RN1216