From three-minute pop classics to the psychedelic extravaganza of “Sgt. Pepper,” his songs sound like the sixties. They were the largest group in history. They probably always will be.
The Beatles were just phenomenal. They changed lives; they changed pop music; they changed the world. By writing their own hits, they established a pattern that would free popular music from its Tin Pan Alley roots and pave the way for greater self-expression for subsequent generations.
Although people think of the Beatles as John, Paul, George, and Ringo, their musical history began in 1957 when Liverpool schoolboy John Lennon invited 15-year-old Paul McCartney to join his skiffle group, the Quarrymen. .
In August 1960, when they started playing in Hamburg clubs like the Beatles, they were joined by guitarist George Harrison, bassist Stuart Sutcliffe and drummer Pete Beast (Sutcliffe stayed in Hamburg and guitarist McCartney took over bass) . Brian Epstein, the owner of a Liverpool record store, became his manager and did a lot to improve his image. Pete Best was replaced in August 1962 by Ringo Starr of Rory Storme & the Hurricanes and the Beatles, now signed to EMI / Parlophone, recorded their first blues single, “Love Me DO”, with producer George Martin.
Her upcoming single “Please Please Me” topped three of the UK music charts and a national tour, with Helen Shapiro providing backing, expanded her following. A series of 12 UK # 1 singles followed: the melodic “From Me To You”, “She Loves You” with its trademark “woo woo” in which the long-haired quartet waved their “moptops”) and ” I Want To Hold Your Hand, “whose pre-orders were so high that it entered the charts at No. 1.
“Beatlomania”, as the newspapers called it, was widespread, with the band’s live performances and personal appearances accompanied by hitherto invisible hordes of screaming fans: The Beatles were the greatest teenage idols in UK history.
Their early albums, “Please Please Me” and “With The Beatles” (both from 1963), combined covers of American pop-soul songs with Lennon and McCartney’s own compositions, but as the duo’s association flourished, they were able to write not just entire albums, but the scores for your own movies. The witty and inventive “A Hard Day’s Night,” directed by Richard Lester, accurately reflected the Beatles’ own story and the hysteria they encountered from their fans. “To help!” it was more upbeat, but still way ahead of other pop movies of the time.
After appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964, the Beatles became the first UK act to experience huge success in America. Because his first American singles had been released on different labels, various companies were promoting his work and, at one point, the Beatles took the top 5 spots on the American charts, a feat that will never be repeated. “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “A Hard Day’s Night,” “I Feel Fine,” and “Ticket To Ride” were all top-flight on the transatlantic charts at this time, while the Beatles’ success in the US. It sowed the seeds of the Byrds and many other future stars of the sixties.
The Beatles received MBE in the Queen’s birthday honors in 1965, the youngest recipients in peacetime history. The album ‘Rubber Soul’, released the same year, saw Lennon’s lyrics move away from a ‘yes, yes, yes’: the philosophical ‘In My Life’ contrasted with ‘Norwegian Wood’, which spoke of an adventure that had kept. from his wife, Cynthia. Meanwhile, George Harrison was developing as a writer, and his sitar was adding an innovative “raga” sound to some tracks. Although they are still recognized as a couple, Lennon and McCartney were now writing separately.
The Beatles stopped traveling after a concert at Candlestick Park, San Francisco in August 1966, to focus on more creative studio work with producer George Martin.
“Revolver”, considered by many to be the best Beatles album, preceded their iconic double-sided single, McCartney’s vibrant “Penny Lane”, backed by Lennon’s psychedelic “Strawberry Fields Forever.”
Often regarded as rock’s first concept album, 1967’s “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” was a rock landmark. His eclectic mix of styles (from the music hall psychedelia of “When I’m 64”) and sounds (a carnival calliope to the insane orchestral climax of “A Day In The Life”), had it all, right down to the mesmerizing pop art collage cover. Then came the anthem “All You Need Is Love,” broadcast live to 200 million viewers on a historic worldwide link. Meanwhile, the Beatles were exploring Eastern religion with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. When Brian Epstein died of a drug overdose in 1967, the quartet continued without a manager, but their film Magical Mystery Tour, aired that Christmas, was derided by critics as self-indulgent. The tide was beginning to turn.
In 1968, the Beatles established their own record company, Apple Corps, and released “Hey Jude”; it became his best-selling single with over six million copies sold. It was replaced at number 1 by the label’s second release, Paul McCartney’s production of “Those Were The Days” for Mary Hopkin. But the Beatles had neither the time nor the will to run the company properly, and Apple turned out to be an administrative and financial disaster.
The Beatles’ third film release was a full-length cartoon, “Yellow Submarine,” inspired by the track “Revolver” of that name. It was followed by “The Beatles”, (known as “The White Album”) which included “Back In The USSR”, “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da”, “Blackbird” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” Harrison’s “, with Eric Clapton. Although it was a successful album, it highlighted the divisions in the band, many of the tracks were recorded with one or more of the Beatles missing from the studio.
With Apple falling apart, the Beatles quickly followed suit: Lennon, Harrison, and Starr chose an American, Allen Klein, to be their manager, while McCartney favored his father-in-law, John Eastman. Lawsuits would soon follow. In an effort to end the story on a high note, George Martin persuaded them to make a final album. Named after their preferred London recording studio, “Abbey Road” had a more cooperative vibe, with highlights like Harrison’s “Something”, Lennon’s “Come Together” and an extended cycle of McCartney songs, but “Abbey Road” was not the last Beatles album. The Fab Four’s last word was “Let It Be,” a somewhat intentional movie soundtrack overproduced by Phil Spector but still containing two McCartney classics in the title track and “The Long And Winding Road.”
Although the Beatles association ended in 1970 amid lawsuits and acrimony, their reputation has endured. The CD revolution saw his albums re-enter the charts around the world, while the 20th anniversary of “Sgt Pepper” in 1987 saw him reach number 3 in the UK almost alone in CD sales. Although the death of John Lennon in 1980 ruled out a full reunion, the effect of the Beatles on popular music remains indelible and undeniable.
The Cavern Club on Mathew Street, Liverpool, is one of the most famous rock venues in the world. The Beatles made their debut there in March 1961 and are said to have played the Cavern 292 times, graduating from lunchtime sessions to late-night events after their time in Hamburg. A modern equivalent of The Cavern opened in 1977 across the street, providing a home for whom the Beatles were just a memory.