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Probably the most popular, influential and enduring rock group of all time, the Beatles almost single-handedly reshaped rock 'n' roll from a genre of throwaway singles by faceless stars to an artistic medium with recognizable images and idols. The Beatles placed the emphasis on a group, rather than a single individual. They also set an example for all rock acts to follow with their strong sense of self-determination, going against their record company and management on many issues, even refusing to tour at the height of their popularity. Of course, their countless hit singles have become modern-day folk songs, covered by hundreds of individuals and groups and inspiring countless more, and have sold more copies than those of any other band in history.
The roots of the Beatles date back to Liverpool, England in the late 1950 s. Inspired by the growing British skiffle craze, John Lennon bought a guitar in March 1957 and formed a skiffle group called the Quarrymen, named after his high school, Quarry Bank. The lineup changed frequently, but by October 1959 it consisted of Lennon, his younger classmate Paul McCartney, George Harrison and drummer Colin Hanson. By March of 1960, Lennon's art school classmate Stuart Sutcliffe joined the band on bass and suggested the name the Beetles, a response to Buddy Holly's group the Crickets. By that August, they decided on the Beatles, after Lennon had a dream that a man in a flaming pie came to him and said, you shall be the Beatles with an A.
That month the Beatles departed for Hamburg, West Germany, with their new drummer Pete Best, to try to establish themselves in Europe. The band became a popular local act, performing at various clubs until they were expelled from the country in November because George Harrison was underage. Meanwhile Sutcliffe had left the band to pursue his art career, with McCartney taking over on bass; Sutcliffe died of a brain hemorrhage the following year. Throughout 1961 the Beatles played clubs in Britain, becoming an underground sensation; they were particularly famous at the Cavern Club in their native city of Liverpool.
Though they played mostly covers, Lennon and McCartney began writing original songs together, agreeing to forever share songwriting credits, even though they only co-wrote a handful of tunes during their entire career as the Beatles. By the end the year, Liverpool record store owner Brian Epstein had become the band's manager, and quickly began trying to find them a record contract. On January 1, 1962 the Beatles auditioned for Decca Records. The group was rejected, however, and told that "guitar groups are on the way out. " Undaunted, Epstein got the group an audition at Parlophone, an EMI subsidiary, with producer George Martin, who signed the Beatles on May 9, 1962.
After one recording session, Martin suggested that drummer Pete Best be replaced, and the Beatles brought in Ringo Starr (born Richard Starkey), a well-known local drummer, as his replacement. By October 1962 their first single, "Love Me Do" backed with "P. S. I Love You, " was a U.
K. Top 20 hit. The band began regular guests on the BBC, performing over fifty times between 1962 and 1964. In February of 1963 the Beatles returned to the studio to record 10 songs (in one day! ) for their first album, Please Please Please Me, which was released the following month. It became an instant hit, staying at No. 1 in Britain for 30 weeks and by October, female fans were screaming at their performances -- the start of "Beatlemania. " Following an early November performance before the royal family, Parlophone released a second Beatles album, With The Beatles. By the end of the year the group had sold over 2. 5 million albums in Britain, and had a string of million-selling singles.
Naturally, word about this amazing new act soon spread to America. In January of 1964 Capitol released their first U. S. Beatles LP, Meet the Beatles, containing remixed material from their two British albums.
Following a landmark three- weekend stint on the Ed Sullivan show in February of 1964 (viewed by over 73 million people), the Beatles was the biggest band in America -- "Beatlemania" had taken hold of the U. S. , also paving the way for other "British Invasion" groups. To capitalize on their incredible popularity, the Fab Four were made the stars of a comedy film, A Hard Days Night, which spawned a hit soundtrack album. Following the release of the movie in July, the band embarked on their first North American tour, performing 25 stadium dates in the U. S. and Canada.
By the end of the year Beatles For Sale was in British stores, while their previous albums and singles still clogged the U. S. and U. K Top 10. In 1965, the band appeared in a second movie, the James Bond spoof Help! , which also spawned a soundtrack album.
Another huge U. S. tour followed. Not content with their unprecedented commercial success, the Beatles began to take their music more seriously, shifting from covers and upbeat pop love songs to more introspective, experimental material, highlighted on December 1965 's Rubber Soul. The next U. S.
Beatles album, Yesterday... And Today, was released on June 15, 1966 and featured a shocking cover featuring the handsome Beatles surrounded by raw meat and butchered baby dolls, a protest against Capitol's "butchery" of their albums in the U. S. market. Complaints from retailers immediately rolled in, and the album was withdrawn, reissued the following week with a new, mundane cover. Further controversy plagued the group when John Lennon claimed in a newspaper interview that the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus. " Many radio stations stopped playing their songs, and protesters appeared outside their concerts.
Meanwhile the group was increasingly under the influence of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an Indian guru; this flirtation with Eastern religion soon became common among ' 60 s rock stars. The band also began using copious amounts of psychedelic drugs, foreshadowing the "flower children" of the next few years. Following the release of Revolver, in August 1966, the Beatles embarked on their final U. S. tour, playing their last live show at San Francisco's Candlestick Park on August 29 th. Henceforth, the band announced, they were going to stop live performances...
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