The Beatles, a British rock band, was the brightest phenomenon of world culture in the 60s of the XX century. It was founded in the spring of 1956 by 15-year-old John Lennon. It was originally called The Quarrymen.
The “golden” lineup of the British rock band included:
- John Lennon (piano, rhythm guitar, vocals),
- Paul McCartney (bass guitar, vocals, piano),
- Ringo Starr (drums and vocals),
- George Harrison (vocals and lead guitar).
Brief information about the Beatles
The Beatles or, as it was originally called, The Quarrymen, consisted exclusively of amateur musicians. None of them was a professional musician. The founder of the group, John Lennon, had been singing in a church choir since childhood and knew how to play a few tunes on the harmonica.
In 1957, Paul McCartney met John Lennon in the garden of St. Peter’s Church in Liverpool. A week later, he was already in the band, playing guitar. On McCartney’s advice, 15-year-old guitarist George Harrison joined the band in 1958. The band was renamed Jonny and The Moondogs. They mostly played rock and roll, performing songs composed by Lennon and McCartney, as well as American hits.
The band’s lineup changed frequently, except for Paul, John and George. Soon Stuart Sutcliffe joined them on bass. In November 1959, the band was renamed again to “The Silver Beatles”, after which it was simply “The Beatles”. A year later, the Beatles began looking for a new drummer, and Pete Best joined the band. This lineup was more or less stable for some time. After a successful tour in Hamburg, in 1961, the band recorded their first studio recording.
In May 1962, they found a producer, George Martin, with whom they signed a contract. For unknown reasons, Pete Best leaves this year, and Ringo Starr takes his place.
The first successful record of the British rock band was “Love Me Do”. After its release, the Beatles were recognized as the best band in Liverpool. After the album “Please, Please Me”, in October 1963, a real mania began – “Beatlemania”. But the band began to conquer the musical peak in Sweden. In January 1964, the Beatles toured Paris. The world was conquered, and Beatlemania often turned into popular hysteria.
The last time the band performed was on August 29, 1966. Later, there was only studio work. The last record was “Let it be”. The Beatles broke up in 1970. Each member of the musical project began his or her solo career. The death of John Lennon in 1980, or rather his murder, finally destroyed all hopes for the reunion of the legendary four. But, despite all this, the band did not lose its popularity and love of listeners.
Albums by the Beatles
During their existence, the Beatles sold more than 1 billion CDs and cassettes, they were the authors of 18 albums (13 official studio albums). The most popular of them: “Revolver”, “Magical Mystery Tour”, “Let It Be”, “Help!”, “With The Beatles”, “Yellow Submarine”, “Beatles for Sale”.