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The Beatles are the greatest popular group of all-time. They are among the most influential popular music artists of the second half of the 20th century. Their influences on popular culture extended far beyond their roles as recording artists, as they branched out into film and even semi-willingly became spokesmen for their generation.
John Lennon, James Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Richard Starkey (also known as Ringo Starr) were born during the 1940s in Liverpool, England. John Lennon met Paul McCartney when they were both performing in Skiffle Groups, which were homespun bands that played a combination of folk, rock and jazz.
John was in a group called The Quarrymen, which later became John and the Quarrymen. Paul introduced John to George Harrison, who was two years younger but showed extraordinary talent. John, Paul and George, with the addition of John's Friend from art college, Stu Sutcliffe and a guitarist named Pete Best, set out to work in German clubs, where musicians were able to make a paltry living playing strip clubs and low end establishments. Ringo was performing in many of the same establishments with the group Rory Storm and the Hurricanes.
They played a wide variety of musical instruments. Initially the Beatles were a guitars and drums band. In the course of their career every member became a multi-instrumentalist. George Harrison played the lead guitar and also introduced such exotic instruments as ukulele, Indian sitars, flutes, tabla, darbouka, and tampur drums. John Lennon played a variety of guitars, keyboards, harmonicas and horns. Paul McCartney played bass guitar, acoustic and electric guitars, piano and keyboards, as well as over 40 other musical instruments.
In July of 1957, in Liverpool, Paul McCartney met John Lennon and joined his group,The Quarrymen. George Harrison joined them in February of 1958.In 1959 they played regular gigs at a club called The Casbah. The Beatles recorded their first full length album, live in the studio, on February 11, 1963 in one 12 hour session.
On June 25, 1967, The Beatles made history becoming the first band globally transmitted on TV to an estimated 400 million people worldwide. Beatles created over 240 songs, they recorded many singles and albums, made films and TV shows.
In 1994, "The Beatles Live At The BBC," a double CD of BBC sessions from the early and mid-'60s, was officially released. On October 5, 2000, "The Beatles Anthology" book was finally published worldwide. It contains 340,000 words and over 1,300 images, including unseen photographs and personal memorabilia.
The Beatles are the only artist to have back-to-back-to-back number one singles on Billboard's Hot 100. Boyz II Men and Elvis Presley have succeeded themselves on the chart, but the Beatles are the only artist to three-peat.
The Beatles’ "Yesterday" is the most covered song in history, appearing in the Guinness Book of Records with over 3000 recorded versions.The Beatles broke television ratings records in the U.S. with their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show.
The Numero Uno English group, Beatles, have most singles and albums that have enjoyed the number one position than any other artist. They are associated with whooping sales of upto over one billion records worldwide, in a single year! The Beatles are internationally acclaimed the 'Greatest Artists of All Time' and their innovative music and impact on youth culture is evident even today.
John Lennon was asked by a news reporter in 1964 "How long do you think the Beatles will last?" Lennon answered "About five years." The Beatles began to break up in 1969.
