The magnificent Liverpool Four in the early 60s raised the whole world to the ears, but no noisy glory can be compared with the real test of time: at first the Beatles showed that their success was not a short-term phenomenon at all, and then ... they simply changed the world of music and rock culture, becoming one of the most significant and influential groups of the 20th century.

History of creation

In 1956, a simple Liverpool guy named John Lennon heard the song "Heartbreak Hotel" by Elvis Presley and instantly fell ill with modern music. Along with the king of rock and roll, other pioneers of the genre - American singers of the 50s Bill Haley and Buddy Holly - also became his favorites. The 16-year-old energetic young man simply needed to throw out his energy somewhere - in the same year, with his school friends, he organized the Quarrymen skiffle group (that is, "the guys from the Quarry Bank school").

In the images of the then popular teddy fights, they performed at parties for a year, and in July 1957, at one of the concerts, Lennon met Paul McCartney. The skinny, shy guy just amazed John with his knowledge of guitar skills - he not only played well, but knew the chords and could tune the guitar! For the self-taught Lennon, who played the banjo, harmonica and guitar rather weakly, it was almost like the art of the gods. He even doubted whether such a strong musician would take away his leadership, but two weeks later he invited Paul to the role of rhythm guitarist in The Quarrymen.

In character, Paul and John were like mirror images of each other: the first is an excellent student and a good boy from a prosperous family, the second is a local bully and truant, who was abandoned by his mother in early childhood and then raised by his aunt.

Perhaps largely due to their dissimilarity, the guys were able to make one of the most successful musical duets in the world. From the very beginning of cooperation, they became both partners and rivals. And if Paul began to compose music from the moment he took up the guitar, then for John this activity initially became a challenge from his talented partner.

In 1958, guitarist George Harrison, who at that time was only 15 years old, joined the band. Later, Lennon's classmate Stuart Sutcliffe also joined the group - initially this quartet was the main line-up of the group, while John's school friends soon forgot about their musical passion.

Having changed from a dozen different names, in the end, the Liverpool settled on The Beatles- John Lennon wanted the word to be multi-valued and contain some play. And if in Russia it was first of all translated as “Beetles” (although another spelling is correct in English - “beetles”), then for the band members the name also referred to the Buddy Holly group The Crickets (“Crickets”) that influenced them and the word “the beat", that is, "rhythm".

The main stages of creativity

For a while, the Beatles imitated their American idols, increasingly acquiring an international sound. Having written more than 100 compositions in two years, they have accumulated material for several years to come. It was then that McCartney and Lennon agreed to indicate the dual authorship of songs, regardless of who contributed what to the work.

It's funny that until the summer of 1960, the Beatles did not have a permanent drummer - and sometimes there were problems with the equipment and installations for performances. Everything was decided by an invitation to perform in Hamburg, which the guys received, one might say, by a lucky chance. Then they urgently invited drummer Paul Best, who plays in another band. After an exhausting tour, where the Beatles played so far only covers or improvised right on stage, they returned to England as more experienced, “mature” musicians.

Meeting with Brian Epstein and George Martin

The success of The Beatles was made up of all the main components necessary for popularity, where, in addition to talent, perseverance and charisma, one cannot do without competent production and promotion. One might even say that at the beginning of his creative way The Beatles became the first pop group on a global scale, however, the principles of promotion at that time were in many ways different from modern ones.

The fate of the Beatles' popularity was decided by the owner of the record store, a true enthusiast of his business, Brian Epstein, who in 1962 became the official manager of the group. If before Epstein the Beatles performed on stage shaggy and even, as he said, “dirty”, then under the leadership of Brian they changed into their famous suits, put on ties and made trendy haircuts “under the pot”. After working on the image, quite a natural work on the musical material followed.

Epstein sent a demo of their first songs to George Martin of the Parlophone recording studio - at a meeting with the Beatles that followed soon after, Martin praised them but advised them to change drummers. Soon everyone unanimously (Epstein and Martin always consulted with the group) chose the charming and energetic Ringo Starr from the then popular band Rory Storm and the Hurricanes for this role.

Crazy Success: The Beatles World Tour

In September 1962, the "seizure of the world" began: the Beatles released their first single "Love me Do", which instantly became the leader of the British charts. Soon all the members of the group moved to London and in February 1963 in one day (!) Completely recorded their first album Please, Please me with groovy hits She Loves You, I Saw Her Standing There and Twist and Shout.

The Beatles

The record was overflowing with joy, lyricism and, of course, rhythmic rock and roll, and the charming members of the Beatles became the personification of youth and sincerity for fans around the world. Success was cemented by the album With the Beatles that followed the same year. "Beetles" were one of the first musicians to simply and a little naively sing about love, relationships and true romance.

It was then that the concept of "Beatlemania" arose - first it swept the UK, and then stepped into other countries and across the ocean. At Beatles concerts, fans went into a frenzy just seeing their pretty idols. The girls squealed so that the musicians sometimes did not even hear what they were singing. Their success in America in 1963-1966 could be compared to a triumphal procession. Footage of The Beatles performing on the then-popular Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 became legendary: frenzied screams, imperturbable musicians, voiceovers.

The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show (1964)

The albums A Hard Day's Night (1964) and Help! (1965) not only contained wonderful and already truly "Beatle" songs, but were also presented to the audience with parallel musical films that became gifts for real fans. , then to "Help!" has already been invented artistic plot, and the Beatles tried on new comical images.

The legendary song "Yesterday" by Paul McCartney from the album "Help!" official version, was first recorded without the participation of other Beatles, but with the help of a string quartet. This composition, along with "Michelle" and "Girl", entered the collection of the group's best lyrical songs and is known to everyone who has never even closely acquainted with the work of the Liverpool Four.

After exhausting world tours (sometimes concerts were given every day), the musicians moved on to studio work in the famous Abbey Road Studios. At the same time, the sound of The Beatles began to change more and more. For example, the album Rubber Soul (1965) featured the first sitar, played by George Harrison for the song "Norwegian Wood". By the way, by this time the band members had already become virtuoso multi-instrumentalists.

The Revolver (1966) and Magical Mystery Tour (1967) records, with the songs "Eleanor Rigby", "Yellow Submarine" and "All You Need Is Love", provided an exquisite bridge to the grandiose "Sgt. Pepper "s Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1967), which finally lifted the group to a new level. The Beatles not only became the standard in the world of music, but "sneaked" into the just emerging world of psychedelic and progressive rock, once again reflecting and simultaneously creating In fact, the Beatles became a symbol of the hippie era with their anti-war protests, experiments with drugs and propaganda of free love to some extent.

The Beatles

At that time, the Beatles had already completely transformed from a group that collects stadiums into a chamber group recording half experimental, half acoustic albums. At Wembley Stadium in 1966, the Beatles said goodbye to their past: loud fans included. This decision helped to continue developing musically, without being distracted by any hype or promotions.

Breakup of the Beatles

At the same time, contradictions within the band grew more and more - George Harrison and Ringo Starr literally had to write to the table: most of their compositions, according to them, were simply not accepted for consideration by Paul and John. In August 1967, 32-year-old Brian Epstein, who, along with George Martin, was the “fifth Beatle” in the group, died suddenly from an overdose of sleeping pills.

More and more factors separating musicians appeared. At the beginning of 1968, they decided to spend time together in India with the Maharishi meditation teacher - this experience affected everyone in different ways, but the Beatles returned to England without having established mutual understanding with each other.

Having released the double-sided disc "The White Album" in 1968, the group continued their experiments - the disc contained various compositions, in some of which the musicians continued to work on the sound. At that time, in the Abbey Road studios, the Beatles were constantly accompanied by the future wife of John Lennon, the artist Yoko Ono, who terribly annoyed all the musicians with her antics - the atmosphere became more and more tense.

Despite all the controversy, the group was able to get together in the studio to release three more albums - "Yellow Submarine" (1968) with music for a psychedelic cartoon, "Abbey Road" and "Let it Be" (1970). "Abbey Road" with the legendary cover, where the four cross the street of the same name, was recognized by critics as one of the quartet's most perfect records. At that time, George and John had already recorded their first albums, and the recording of some songs was carried out by the group outside in full force. In 1970, Paul McCartney, without waiting for the release of "Let it Be", released his debut disc and published an official letter about the breakup of the group, which caused a flurry of indignation among fans.

Scandals

On June 12, 1965, many members of the Order of the British Empire were dissatisfied with the presentation of an honorary award to The Beatles "for their contribution to the development of British culture and its popularization around the world." Prior to this, no pop musician had received an award from the Queen. True, four years later John Lennon refused the award - thus he opposed the British intervention in the outcome civil war in Nigeria.

The Beatles are more popular than Jesus

After the scandal on tour in the Philippines in 1966 (the group came into conflict with the very first lady), in America they were outraged by John Lennon's words that the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus" and the recognition that the musician was disappointed in Christianity because of his "stupid and ordinary" followers. None of the band members could have expected that these words would cause mass burning of Beatles records in the southern states and even protests by the Ku Klux Klan. Then Brian Epstein had to cancel the planned tour in the United States, and Lennon had to make a public apology.

Discography

• "Please Please Me" (1963)
• "With The Beatles" (1963)
• "A Hard Day's Night" (1964)
• Beatles For Sale (1964)
• Help! (1965)
• "Rubber Soul" (1965)
• "Revolver" (1966)
• "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1967)
• "Magical Mystery Tour" (1967)
• The Beatles (also known as the White Album) (1968)
• "Yellow Submarine" (1968)
• Abbey Road (1969)
• "Let It Be" (1970)

Films about the Beatles

• "A Hard Day's Night" (1964)
• Help! (1965)
• "Yellow Submarine" (1968)
• "Let It Be" (1970)
• "Imagine: John Lennon" (1988)
• "Becoming John Lennon" (2009)
• "George Harrison: Living in the Material World" (2011)
• "The Beatles: Eight Days a Week" (2016)

Solo projects of The Beatles members

Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney released his first solo album even before the breakup of The Beatles, modestly calling it "McCartney" (1970). Despite the fact that the gap between the participants legendary band at that time was already obvious, for McCartney it became a source of serious feelings. After some seclusion, the musician released the album "Ram" (1971), the composition of which was awarded the Grammy. At the same time, Paul's early creations were smashed by both critics and his former partner, John Lennon.

Feeling insecure about being a soloist, McCartney created The Wings, with whom he released 7 albums from 1971 to 1979. Solo Sir Paul recorded 16 studio albums, many of which went platinum. Last on this moment ex-Beatle record - "New" 2013. World stars, such as Natalie Portman and Johnny Depp, have repeatedly starred in McCartney's videos.

John Lennon

Perhaps the brightest and at the same time fleeting former members The Beatles became John Lennon's solo career. It seems that it could not be otherwise - John has always been distinguished not only by a complex character, but also by the desire to create something categorically new and sometimes avant-garde. No less significant for him was the expression of a political position through creativity. Together with his second wife, Yoko Ono, he staged various performances, the most famous of which was the "bed interview" Give Peace a Chance (Give this world a chance) in 1969.

For a conditional 10 years of a solo career (Lennon was shot dead on December 8, 1980 at the entrance to his house), the legendary Beatle released 9 studio albums, many of which were recorded in collaboration with Ringo Starr, George Harrison, Phil Spector and Yoko Ono. After the tragic death of the musician, through the efforts of his relatives, several more discs with previously unreleased songs were published.

John Lennon – Imagine

Lennon's work had a huge impact on culture, music, people's views both during his lifetime and after the death of the musician. His most successful records are Imagine (1971) and Double Fantasy (1980).

Ringo Starr

Ringo Starr, like George Harrison, during the existence of the Beatles, of course, was in the shadow of Paul and John. Although he, like the rest of the members, composed a lot of music, his compositions were practically not involved in the group's repertoire. Not everyone also knew that it was Ringo who sang the most popular song Yellow Submarine. However, after the breakup of the group, Starr immediately continued his solo career.

By 2018, Ringo had already released 19 records, many of which went platinum. Throughout his career, Starr has continued to collaborate with ex-Beatles, for example, Paul McCartney took part in the recording of his latest album “Give More Love” (2017).

In 2012, Ringo Starr was named the richest drummer in the world - his fortune at that time was already about $ 300 million.

George Harrison

Guitarist George Harrison, who is not very noticeable in the group, also did not often receive "white light" for the use of his compositions in the group, however, some of them belong to his authorship. best songs their later work "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", "Something" and "Here Comes the Sun".

In Harrison's solo work, no one could slow down: for example, he recorded 10 studio albums in total, the best of which is the triple disc “All Things Must Pass” (1970), among the compositions of which the song of the same name and the song “My Sweet Lord” are especially noted. Harrison, who converted to Hinduism in the late 60s, was strongly influenced by Indian sacred music and religious texts in his work. The musician died of lung cancer in November 2001.

The Beatles are a British rock band. She is originally from Liverpool. The Beatles existed from 1960 to 1970. Its composition was not formed immediately, the name also changed several times. All this, as well as the success story of this world's greatest musical group, we will tell in detail below.

The Rise of The Blackjack and The Quarrymen

John Lennon (1940-1980), having learned to play the guitar, founded a group with his comrades, which they called The Blackjack. A week later, however, the name changed to The Quarrymen (the school where the guys studied was called Quarry Bank). The group performed skiffle, a special British style of rock and roll.

Formation of The Quarrymen

John Lennon (pictured below) in the summer of 1957, after performing at a concert, met another future member of the band - Paul McCartney.

He surprised John with his knowledge of the words and chords of the latest in the world of music. They were joined in the autumn of 1958 by George Harrison, a friend of Paul. George, Paul and John became the main ones in the group, for the other members of The Quarrymen this group was only a temporary hobby, and they soon left the band. The musicians played in episodes at various events, weddings, parties, but it didn’t get to recordings and concerts.

The group broke up several times. George Harrison had his own group. And Paul McCartney and Lennon began to write songs, sing and play together, inspired by Buddy Holly, who was his own producer and played his own songs. The group at the end of 1959 included Stuart Sutcliffe. John Lennon knew him in college. His playing skills were not distinguished, which often irritated Paul McCartney, a demanding musician. The group in this composition was practically formed: vocals and rhythm guitar - Lennon, vocals, rhythm guitar and piano - McCartney (his photo is presented below), lead guitar - George Harrison, bass guitar - Stuart Sutcliffe. However, the problem of the musicians was the lack of a permanent drummer.

Some other group names

The Quarrymen actively tried to fit into the club and concert life of Liverpool. Talent competitions were held one after another, but the group was not lucky. She needed to think about changing her name. No one had anything to do with Quarry Bank school anymore. At a local television competition held in December 1959, this group performed under a different name - Johnny and the Moondogs.

History of the name The Beatles

In 1960, in April, the participants came up with this name. Its authors, according to the memoirs of members of the group, are Stuart Sutcliffe and John Lennon. They dreamed of a name that had a double meaning. For example, B. Holly's group was called The Crickets, that is, "crickets". However, for the British there is another meaning - "the game of cricket." As John Lennon said, this name came to him during sleep. He saw a man engulfed in flames, who advised them to name the group the Beetles (beetles). However, this word has only one meaning. Therefore, it was decided to replace the letter "e" with "a". A second meaning appeared - "bit", for example, in rock and roll music. Thus the Beatles were born. At first, the musicians were forced to change the name somewhat, since the promoters considered it to be very short. At various times, the group performed under such names as The Silver Beatles, Long John and The Beatles.

First tour

The musical skill of the band members grew very quickly. They were increasingly invited to perform in small clubs and pubs. The Beatles went on their first tour in April 1960. It was a tour of Scotland, and they performed as an accompanying group. At this time, they have not yet received much fame.

Band play in Hamburg

The Beatles, whose lineup had not yet been finalized, were invited to play in Hamburg in the middle of 1960. Already at that time, several professional rock and roll bands from Liverpool played here. Therefore, the musicians from the Beatles decided to urgently look for a drummer. The composition of the group needed to be replenished in order to comply with the contract and be at the level of professionals. They chose Pete Best, who played very well. The history of the Beatles continued with the fact that in 1960, on August 17, the first concert took place in Hamburg, at the Indra club. Here the group played until October under a contract, and then, until the end of November, they performed at the Kaiserkeller. The schedule of performances was very tough, the participants had to crowd into one room. A lot of material had to be played on stage besides rock and roll: rhythm and blues, blues, old jazz and pop numbers, folk songs. The Beatles had not yet performed their own songs, as they believed that in the surrounding modern music there was a lot of material suitable for them, and there was also no necessary incentive for this. It was the daily hard work and the ability to perform different styles of music, mixing them, that became one of the main factors in the formation of the group.

The Beatles become famous in Liverpool

The Beatles returned to Liverpool in December 1960. Here they turned out to be one of the most active groups, competing with each other in terms of the number of fans, repertoire and sound. The leaders among them were Rory Storm, who played the best clubs Hamburg and Liverpool. At this time, musicians from the Beatles met and quickly became friends with the drummer of this group, R. Starr. The composition of the group will be replenished with them a little later.

Second tour in Hamburg

The group in April 1960 went back to Hamburg for a second tour. Now they were playing in Top Ten. It was in this city that The Beatles made their first professional recording, performing as an accompanying ensemble for singer T. Sheridan. The Beatles were also allowed to make some of their own compositions. Sutcliffe decided to leave the band at the end of the tour and stay in Hamburg. Paul McCartney had to play the bass guitar. And a year later, in 1962 (April 10), Sutcliffe (pictured below) died of a brain hemorrhage.

Performances in Liverpool in 1961

The Beatles since August 1961 began performing at the Liverpool club (the name of the club is Cavern). They performed 262 times in a year. The following year, on July 27, the musicians gave their concert at Litherland Town Hall. The concert in this hall was a great success, after which the press dubbed this group the best in Liverpool.

Acquaintance with George Martin

The Beatles' manager, Brian Epstein, met with George Martin, a producer from the Parlophone label. George became interested in the young band and wanted to see it perform at Abbey Road Studios (London). The recordings of the group did not impress George Martin, but he fell in love with the musicians themselves, attractive, cheerful and a little arrogant guys. When J. Martin asked if they liked everything in the studio, Harrison replied that he did not like Martin's tie. The producer appreciated this joke and invited the group to sign a contract. It was from the tie story that the Beatles' direct, blunt, and witty responses to interviews and press conferences became their signature style.

Ringo Starr Becomes a Drummer

Only Pete Best did not like George Martin. He believed that Best was not up to the level of the group, and suggested that Epstein replace the drummer. In addition, Pete defended his own individuality and did not want, like other members of the Beatles, to make a signature hairstyle to match the overall style of the group. As a result, in 1962, on August 16, Pete Best leaves the group, which is officially announced by Brian Epstein. Starr (pictured below), who played in the Rory Storm band, was taken in without hesitation.

First singles and first album

Soon the members of the Beatles began studio work. The first recording did not bring any results. The Beatles released their first single, Love Me Do, in October 1962, which reached No. 17 on the charts. It was a pretty good result for the young Beatles. In the same year, on October 17, the first concert of this group on television took place in Manchester broadcast (People and Places program). Then the Beatles recorded a new single, Please Please Me, which took first place in the charts. In 1963, on March 22, the group finally released their first album with the same name. In just 12 hours, the material for it was created. This album topped the national hit parade for six months, bringing great success to the Beatles. The hits of this group became popular throughout the country.

Resounding success

Beatlemania's birthday is October 3, 1963. The group was deafeningly popular. Its participants gave a concert in the Palladium Hall in London, from where the Beatles were broadcast throughout the UK. The group's hits were listened to by approximately 15 million viewers. Many fans filled the streets near the concert hall, eager to see the Beatles live. On November 4, 1963, the band played a concert at the Prince of Wales Theatre. The Queen herself, Lord Snowdon and Princess Margaret attended, and the Queen admired the game. The Beatles released their second album, With The Beatles, on November 22. Over a million copies of this record had been sold by 1965.

Brian Epstein signed a US contract with Vee Jay, which released the singles From Me To You and Please Please Me, as well as the album Introducing The Beatles. However, they did not bring success in the US and did not even hit the regional charts. In the United States at the end of 1963, the single I Want To Hold Your Hand appeared, which changed the situation. The very next year, on January 18, he was in first place in the table of the American magazine Cash Box and in third place in the table of the weekly called Billboard. US label Capitol released Meet the Beatles' gold album on February 3rd.

Thus, Beatlemania crossed the ocean. In 1964, on February 7, the band members landed at the New York airport. They were met by about 4 thousand fans. The group played three concerts: one at the Coliseum (Washington) and two at Carnegie Hall (New York). The Beatles also performed twice on television on The Ed Sullivan Show, which was watched by 73 million viewers - a record in the history of television! The Beatles in free time communicated with journalists and various musical groups. They returned to their homeland on February 22.

The group after a trip to the US began recording new songs, as well as filming the first musical film (A Hard Day's Night). The single titled Can't Buy Me Love on March 20 attracted a lot of pre-orders - about 3 million.

First major tour

On the first major tour through Holland, Denmark, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia the group departed on June 4, 1964. The Beatles tour was a resounding success. In Adelaide, for example, a crowd of 300,000 met the musicians at the airport. On July 2, the Beatles returned to London. And three days later there was the premiere of A Hard Day's Night, after which the album of the same name was released.

Difficulties faced by the group

The North American tour started on August 19 of the same year. The Beatles covered 36 thousand kilometers in 32 days and visited 24 cities, playing 31 concerts. About 30 thousand dollars (today it is equivalent to about 300 thousand dollars) they received for one concert. However, the musicians were not worried about the money, but about the fact that they became prisoners, completely isolated from the rest of society. Around the clock, the hotels where the group stayed were besieged by the crowd.

At that time, the equipment on which the musicians played in huge stadiums would not satisfy even a seedy restaurant ensemble. Technique for a long time lagged behind in development from the pace set by the Beatles. Due to the deafening roar of the people in the stands, the musicians often did not hear themselves. They lost their rhythm, they lost their tonality in the vocal parts, but this was not noticed by the audience, which also practically did not hear anything. The Beatles in such conditions could not progress and experiment on stage. Only behind the scenes in the studio could they create something new and develop.

Continued success

Returning to London on September 21, the musicians immediately began recording a new album - Beatles For Sale. Many styles of music, ranging from rock and roll to country and western, were presented on this record. Already on December 4, 1964, on the first day of release, it sold 700,000 copies and soon topped the English hit parade.

In 1965, on July 29, the premiere of the film Help! in London, and an album of the same name was released in August. The Beatles embarked on a tour of the United States on August 13. They visited Elvis Presley himself, where they not only talked, but also played, recording several songs on tape recorders. Unfortunately, these recordings were never published, because they were not found, despite all the efforts made. Millions of dollars are worth today.

Rock and rock 'n' roll in the middle of 1965 turned from entertainment and dance music into a serious art. Many bands that emerged at that time, such as the Rolling Stones and The Byrds, made The Beatles serious competition. The Beatles in October of the same year began recording a new album - Rubber Soul. He showed the whole world growing up Beatles. Again, all competitors were far behind. On the day the recording began, October 12, the musicians did not have a single finished song, and already on December 3, 1965, this album was on store shelves. Elements of surrealism and mysticism appeared in the songs, which were subsequently included in many Beatles songs.

State awards

Members of the group in 1965, October 26, were awarded state awards at Buckingham Palace. They received the Order of the British Empire. Some other holders of this order, military heroes, were outraged by the presentation of the award to the musicians. In protest, they returned the orders, as they, in their opinion, depreciated. However, no one paid much attention to the protesters.

Conflicts and proceedings

The Beatles were in serious trouble in 1966. Due to a conflict with the first lady of the Philippines during the tour, the musicians refused to come to an official reception at the presidential palace. The angry mob almost tore the Beatles apart, they barely managed to get their feet out of this country. After the group's return to England, there was a big buzz in the US due to Lennon's statements that the Beatles were now more popular than Jesus. In the UK, this was soon forgotten, but in America, protests swept against the musicians - they burned their portraits, records on which the songs of the Beatles were recorded ... The musicians themselves perceived this with humor. However, under pressure from the press, John Lennon was nevertheless forced to publicly apologize for his remarks. It happened in Chicago in 1966, on August 11th.

New breakthrough, termination of concert activity

The musicians, despite these trials, released at that time one of their best albums called Revolver. Since very complex studio effects were used, the Beatles' music did not involve stage performance.

The Beatles became a studio band. Tired of touring, the musicians decided to stop concert performances. In 1966, on May 1, their last performance took place in the hall of Wembley Stadium (London). Here they participated in a gala concert and appeared for only 15 minutes. The last tour took place in the USA in the same year, where the Beatles made their last appearance on stage in San Francisco on August 29. Meanwhile, Revolver was leading the world charts. It was praised by critics as the culmination of all the work of this group. Many newspapers believed that the group decided to stop on this high note, but this did not occur to the musicians themselves.

Latest albums

In the same year, on November 24, they began recording another album. Recording it lasted 129 days, and it became the greatest album in the history of rock music. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was released in 1967, on May 26. It was a phenomenal success and lasted 88 weeks at the top of various charts.

In the same year, on December 8, the band released their 9th album called Magical Mystery Tour. On June 25, 1967, the Beatles became the first band in history to have their performance broadcast worldwide. It was watched by 400 million people. However, despite this success, the Beatles' business began to decline. Brian Epstein died on August 27 from an overdose of sleeping pills. The Beatles at the end of 1967 began to receive negative reviews about their work.

The group spent early 1968 in Rishikesh where they studied meditation. McCartney and Lennon, after returning to the UK, announced the creation of a corporation called Apple. They started releasing records under this label. The Beatles released the film Yellow Submarine in January 1968. On August 30, the Hey Jude single went on sale, and by the end of the year, sales of the record reached 6 million. The White Album is a double album released in 1968, November 22. Relations between the musicians during his recording deteriorated greatly. Ringo Starr left the band for a while. Because of this, McCartney played the drums on several songs. Harrison (his photo is presented below) and Lennon, in addition, began to release solo records. The inevitable breakup of the group was approaching. Later came the albums Abbey Road and Let it be - the last one released in 1970.

Death of John Lennon and George Harrison

John Lennon was assassinated on December 8, 1980 by Mark Chapman, a US citizen, in New York. On the day of his death, he gave an interview to journalists, and then approached the house with his wife. Chapman fired 5 shots into his back. Now Mark Chapman is in prison, where he is serving a life sentence.

George Harrison died on November 29, 2001 from a brain tumor. He was treated for a long time, but it was not possible to save the musician. Paul McCartney is still alive, he is 73 years old today.

The Beatles are a phenomenal group without which modern music would be completely different. Every second musician today claims that he was influenced by the work of the Beatles, regardless of which country he lives in. The group's total sales of records, cassettes and discs exceeded 1 billion copies. The style of the Beatles cannot be confused with anyone - you can not listen to them, but it is impossible not to know.

History of creation and composition

The history of the group began in Britain in the 50s, during the era of the general boom of musical groups. Anyone who could play the guitar, drums or banjo at least a little, aspired to get into the "band".

When school was left behind and it was necessary to decide what to do next, all three chose music without hesitation. The members agreed that the band needed a new name. There were a lot of options: "Rainbows", "Johnny and Moon Dogs"," Beetles "- The Beetles. The latter option formed the basis of the original name.

There is a legend that Lennon saw the word beatles in a dream - supposedly a man in flames appeared to him and dictated the name of the band. According to a simpler version, the word was chosen because it had the root beat, meaning a rhythmic beat or drum beat.

In January 1960, Stuart Sutcliffe joined the musicians, becoming a bass player, although he had to learn to play literally “on the go”. At this time, the group performed in their native Liverpool and occasionally toured the UK. In the summer, the Beatles were invited to concerts in Hamburg. To accept the invitation and appear on stage as a classic beat band, they had to urgently find a drummer. They became Pete Best, who had previously performed in the Liverpool ensemble The Blackjacks.

The first foreign tours took place in conditions close to extreme: they had to work a lot, the pay was low, there were problems with documents, because of which the musicians were eventually deported from the country. Despite this, a year later, the Beatles soloists, having received a second invitation to Hamburg, agreed, and this time everything went much calmer.

In Germany, the musicians met Astrid Kirchherr, a student art college who began an affair with Sutcliffe. It was she who organized the first professional photo session for the group and came up with an original image for them: new hairstyles, instead of the previous concert leather jackets - jackets without collars and lapels.

Hairstyles and costumes of The Beatles

The Beatles returned home as a quartet: the bass player decided to stay in Germany with Astrid. There Stuart became famous as a talented artist, but his creative biography turned out to be very short: at the age of 21, the young man died of a cerebral hemorrhage.

For the next 2 years, the musicians regularly performed in their hometown, at the Cavern Club. During 1961-1963 they played 262 concerts there. The group's popularity grew, although at that time their repertoire consisted mainly of foreign musical works. The author's duet of Paul and John created new songs, but preferred to put them "on the table", not hoping for success. The works saw the light only when the Beatles found a producer - Brian Epstein.

Prior to this, Epstein had no professional experience in promoting: before meeting the musicians, he traded records, but the work of the young Beatles seemed promising to Brian. Most labels did not share his enthusiasm, but he managed to get a contract with EMI on the condition that the guys write at least 4 more singles.

“He spelled out in the most accurate way what we were supposed to do, and it all seemed more real,” Lennon recalled. “Until Brian showed up, we were living in a dream.”

Before recording the first album, Pete Best left the band. The favorite of the girls and the most attractive member, he did not cope with the studio work, which turned out to be much more difficult than the live one, and was forced to leave the group. On August 16, 1962, he joined The Beatles.

Music

In 1963, the Beatles' debut album, Please Please Me, was released. The material was collected at an accelerated pace and managed in almost a day. In addition to other people's hits, it included author's songs by Lennon and McCartney. The musicians agreed in advance that they would sign the compositions with exactly two names, and kept this tradition to the end, even though the last songs were written separately.

Love Me Do by The Beatles

In the same year, the Beatles' discography was replenished with the second album With the Beatles, which became the beginning of the "Beatlemania" in the homeland of the musicians. The scale of the hobby, dubbed “national hysteria” by the media, turned out to be extraordinary: whole crowds came to the performances, the audience densely packed not only the halls, but also the adjacent streets, they were ready to stand on the street for hours to hear at least echoes of the concert. Applause and enthusiasm sometimes became so stormy that the musicians at the performance did not hear themselves.

She Loves You by The Beatles

In 1964, the Beatlemania epidemic took over the United States. For the next 2 years, the musicians live according to a schedule scheduled to the minute: tours, concerts, work from the studio, TV appearances, radio broadcasts and filming did not give the slightest respite. During this time, the British rock band from Liverpool recorded 5 albums and 2 videos - Paperback Writer and Rain.

Despite the crazy work schedule, the musicians found time for their personal lives, trying, however, to hide it from fans. John Lennon was the first to marry in 1962. The marriage, in which the son Julian was soon born, lasted 6 years and broke up when the musician met. An extravagant Japanese woman changed Lennon's whole life and actively interfered in the affairs of the group, for which the rest of the musicians disliked her. It was to her that Lennon dedicated the ballad Don't Let Me Down.

Don't Let Me Down by The Beatles

Ringo Starr was the second to marry - they lived with Maureen Cox for 10 years and gave birth to three children. George Harrison married Patti Boyd in 1966, but in 1974 his wife left him for. Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman in 1968, with whom he lived until the end of her life.

In 1965, the group received the Order of the British Empire for their contribution to the development of culture, which caused a big scandal. Previously, there were no musicians among the owners of such a high award, and some gentlemen declared their unwillingness to stand in the same row with pop idols. 4 years later, Lennon protested against the British intervention in the Biafro-Nigerian war and returned the Order.

Cinema

For the first time, the Liverpool Four acted in films in 1964. A Hard Day's Evening was created in the feature film genre and produced in just 8 weeks. The musicians did not need any special acting work: it was a movie about Everyday life groups - concerts, fans, tours. The film was a success among fans and was twice nominated for an Oscar, and the soundtrack was released as a separate album.

Song Yesterday by The Beatles

The following year, the tape "Help!" featuring the Beatles. For the first time, the famous Yesterday appeared on the record with music for it, which entered the Guinness Book of Records in terms of the number of arrangements and interpretations (today more than 2 thousand are known)

Yellow Submarine song by The Beatles

In 1968, the musicians became the heroes of the Yellow Submarine cartoon. Prior to this, the band members tried to create their own movie, but the picture Magical Mystery Tour received rather low ratings from both the public and critics.

Decay

In 1966, the group ceased to give "live" concerts and went headlong into studio work. A year later, the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which many consider the best in the history of the band. Meanwhile, the musicians' relationship is cracking. The Beatles, tired of fame, announced their desire to do personal projects.

Song Come Together by The Beatles

In 1967, Brian Epstein suddenly died of an overdose of sleeping pills. They could not find a full-fledged replacement for him, but, having joined forces, the Beatles recorded 3 more records: White Album (1968), Abbey Road (1968) and Let it be (1970), as well as the single Come Together (1969).

Soon after, Paul McCartney's first solo album was released. In an interview, he actually draws a line under the history of The Beatles. Latest photos the team in full force was made on August 22, 1969 near the estate of John Lennon, in Tittenhurst Park.

After the collapse, a series of lawsuits began over copyrights to the notes, lyrics and the band's logo, the results of which are still conflicting on the Web.

10 years later, the musicians began to think about the revival, but these plans were not destined to come true. In 1980, John Lennon was killed by a mentally unstable fan. Together with his death, the hope for the restoration of the group also died. So the great Beatles finally became a thing of the past.

George Harrison died in 2001 from a brain tumor.

The Beatles now

Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney remain on stage. In January 2014, they received an honorary Grammy Award for their contribution to the development of the music of the 20th century.

The career of former drummer Pete Best was not easy. He changed several bands and tried to do solo work, but unsuccessfully.

In 1968, he decided to quit music and entered the civil service, but 20 years later he began to appear in public again and created his own group, The Pete Best Band, which now regularly performs with concerts in the United States.

Discography

• 1963 – Please Please Me
• 1963 - With The Beatles
• 1964 - A Hard Day's Night
• 1964 - The Beatles For Sale
• 1965 Help!
• 1965 - Rubber Soul
• 1966 - Revolver
• 1967 - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
• 1967 Magical Mystery Tour
• 1968 - The Beatles ("White Album")
• 1969 - Yellow Submarine
• 1969 Abbey Road
• 1970 - Let It Be

Clips

• 1963 – Please Please Me
• 1964 - I Should Have Known Better
• 1996 – I Wanna Hold Your Hand
• 1967 – Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
• 1969 - Don't Let Me Down
• 1969 - Get Back
• 1968 - Glass Onion
• 1968 – All Together Now
• 1968 - Lady Madonna
• 1970 - The Long And Winding Road
• 1973 - You "ve Got To Hide Your Love Away

The popular group the Beatles, it is far from being short biography, the composition of The Beatles and the history of the group over the decades since its collapse do not lose their relevance. New reports about the Beatles appear briefly or extensively at frequent intervals. There is a short message about the Beatles on the net and vice versa, we tried to combine all the available information about The Beatles into one, short and informative.

Absolutely everyone has heard about the Beatles, even if only summary. This team of 4 guys has become so firmly merged into the history of mankind that it still provides food for research for everyone who cares about music, be it a music lover or a critic.

The magnitude of popularity, which still makes itself felt today, a deep love for creativity, is really difficult to explain, but the fact remains that in the sixties the four turned the whole world upside down.

How it all began

For almost twenty years, the Beatles were considered the standard of musicians. The Beatles spawned a huge wave of imitation - both among ordinary fans and among other bands. The band's music inspired entire generations. It is she who is responsible for the fact that the movement for peace, for love and freedom actively flourished in Europe.

It is impossible to fully appreciate the importance The Beatles played in the culture of mankind, and hardly anyone from the team fully understood where the joint work would lead.

Liverpool, the city that was home to the founders of the team, was in fact for the musicians of England interesting place. It was here that fresh ideas were brewed, which inspired Paul and John to study music.

In 1957, Paul McCartney met Lennon for the first time. John was already considered the leader of the Quarrymen, even though he was only seventeen. The style of creativity belonged to the British version of rock and roll - skiffle. McCartney charmed a new acquaintance because he turned out to be a multi-instrumentalist - trumpet, piano and guitar, and besides, he was oriented in the chords and lyrics of all greatest hits that time. But besides that, Paul showed John the first compositions, and John also wanted to create his own songs. The competitive spirit made them both work hard. They became close later as a result of tragic events - the death of their mothers.

In less than a few months, they not only played together, but also took to the stage. Helped them in this Harrison, George was a close friend of Paul. A little later, Stuart Sutcliffe, who studied with Harrison at the same college, joined the team that had just appeared.

It should be noted that the parents practically did not know what their sons were doing. They were really convinced that they wanted to get a working specialty. However, all the members of the foursome were too keen musical theme. Only Harrison's mother was warm to their studies.

What would you name the boat

A number of successful performances led the musicians to the idea that it was time to choose a suitable name. The ambitions of all members of the team were great, and even if it was difficult to call all their appearances on stage concerts, and no one would offer to record their music, they were still full of enthusiasm.

To do this, I had to join the Liverpool club life. Speaking under the name Quarrymen, they tried their hand at creative competitions over and over again, but nothing like success came of it. As a result, we had to think about which version of the name would better describe their approach to creativity.

Reflections led to The Beatles, and today there are disputes about how it appeared. Members of the team have repeatedly mentioned that the name was invented by Stuart and John. It occurred to them to create a name with a double meaning. Taking off from beetles, they changed the letter to make a reference to beat, because this particular style of music was especially popular.

Whether the name was responsible for the fact that the Beatles were noticed among others, no one can say for sure, but young people really began to be approached for performances.

The 1960s had barely begun when the group was called on a brief tour of the cities of Scotland, and this became the starting point that helped to rise above the numerous bands that performed similar music in Liverpool. The team was supposed to work on the same stage with Johnny Gentle, a popular singer at that time.

Unfortunately, the Scottish tour brought not only positive impressions. During the concerts, the team quarreled with the manager, did not receive payment on time. They returned to their hometown earlier than expected by the agreement. The drummer, who received a concussion on the tour, left the team.

big start

From the summer of 1960 The Beatles received an invitation to a concert in Hamburg. For all the members of the Beatles, this was a great chance to demonstrate themselves outside their native country, to enter Europe, as they would say today. The most curious thing is that in fact such a choice was quite strange. The group did not have a permanent drummer, which made it difficult to work, and she was not particularly known to anyone. However, it so happened that at that time the more popular bands could not go on a long tour, and Allan Williams managed to push the beginners forward. Before the tour, a long search for a drummer led Pete Best to the team - almost by accident.

Of course, it was not without difficulties - the tour to Germany was a big test. For almost seven months abroad, the Beatles performed at the Indra and Kaiserkeller clubs. The schedule of concerts turned out to be very busy, because the concerts then went on non-stop, and in no case was it possible to lose face. Leaving their own compositions for a more convenient occasion, the team hit on the performance of variations, improvisations and arrangements.

It was impossible to relax. The Beatles played blues, processed folk songs, performed blues, rock and roll, selected and sang pop songs. It turned out to be a good experience: in the seven months of the tour, the skill has grown noticeably.

The return of the team was also appreciated in familiar clubs. The Beatles sounded different.

However, not only this trace was left by the first tour in the history of the team. Stuart Sutcliffe met and started a relationship with Astrid Kirchherr. She owns a photo shoot in the Hamburg Park. And it was she who suggested that the team choose a new image.

Stylish new hairstyles and neat jackets without collars and lapels from Cardin have become an updated image of the team. We can assume that the German girl acted as an image maker.

Epstein era

Back in Liverpool, the team began playing regularly at the Cavern. More experienced musicians quickly moved forward, and the city became known quite widely. However, they also had competitors, such as Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. Ringo Starr sat on drums in this very popular group at that time.

Everyone managed to get acquainted with the Beatles team on the same German tour. With these guys, they jointly recorded a record - playing along as session players. However, in the end it was a fateful event.

By the way, remembering in Hamburg, the Beatles went there for the second time in 1961. This time the tour took three months. Germany gave the band the opportunity to record in the studio for the first time, as they performed with Tony Sheridan. On the record, the band was referred to as The Beat Brothers.

In Cavern, the team was noticed by Brian Epstein, who worked in one of the record stores. He was so enthusiastic that he began negotiations with record companies, but received many rejections, until finally Parlophone decided to sign a contract with a group that few had heard of.

George Martin, who was the studio's producer, said it wasn't the quality of the music or the craftsmanship that attracted him. "The Beatles" took wit, openness and even a little arrogance. They so fascinated Martin that he opened the way for them to Abbey Road, the famous London studio.

By mid-autumn 1962, Love Me Do appeared. No one can say whether the single would have sold worse if Epstein had not personally bought 10,000 records, which caused a buzz around rising stars.

This brought the team to TV screens, and, of course, the number of fans began to grow at an unprecedented rate. Now singles appeared, concerts were organized, and yet the first album saw the light of day. This was also a wonderful event: Please Please Me rose to the top of the national charts and did not leave the top lines for six months.

We can say that in 1963 a new phenomenon appeared - Beatlemania.

The next record, called With The Beatles, appeared a little later and brought a new record. Only pre-orders for this album collected 300 thousand. Over a million records were sold within a year!

Greatest Composers

Great Britain adored the four, but in America no one has yet heard of it. The hit re-releases that Epstein tried to negotiate didn't happen. However, when I Want To Hold Your Hand was recorded, Richard Buckle spoke about it in the very popular The Sunday Times. Speaking about the work of musicians, he expressed the opinion that the names of McCartney, Lennon will rise in the history of music immediately after the name of Beethoven. Such praise aroused interest, and so the songs of the Beatles sounded in the United States.

Not much time passed, as the first five compositions of the national hit parade of America belonged to them.

Albums continued to be recorded, and the team even made films. When Help! appeared, the whole world unanimously recognized Yesterday as the most magnificent composition. Covers sounded from all over, and today there are at least two thousand variations.

Studio work

In 1965, rock 'n' roll experienced a renaissance and turned from entertainment music into something new. The Beatles led the wave with Rubber Soul. A year later, they released Revolver, which had so many effects that it would have been impossible to perform the compositions live.

So the tour went into the background, and the team began to work seriously in the studios. In 1966 the recording of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which lasted almost 130 days.

This album is still considered the evolution of the genre, a musical triumph. However, things got worse after that.

Epstein died of an overdose of sleeping pills in 1967.

White Album today is called the first signal of the breakup of the team.

Unfortunately, at that time tension was growing in the group, the music was not created jointly, but became a reason for competition among themselves. In addition, John had Yoko, and the other members of the team did not like her at all.

Sunset

Lennon has got new project, although he was still listed as part of The Beatles, McCartney hit solo work. By mid-1969, there was no co-creation, but the fans seemed to be unaware of such an unpleasant situation.

When in 1970 McCartney announced that he was leaving the project, everyone was shocked. However, the team broke up safely - each musician found his own path.

Fans also dreamed of a reunion, but Lennon died in 1980, and it became clear that the era of The Beatles had gone unconditionally, which did not affect the scale of popularity at all. And today the band's albums are listened to and known everywhere.

Some facts

Great Britain in 1965 awarded all members of the team with the Order of the British Empire.

Popular magazine among music lovers Rolling Stone called the Beatles the greatest performers of all time. 1st place out of 500 best albums It was the Beatles album that took over.

The performance of The Beatles, which took place in 1967, was watched by 400,000,000 spectators. It was shown in Our World. It was there that All You Need Is Love received a video version.

1969: an unusual format at that time appeared - Yellow Submarine, a full-length cartoon. Many songs sounded in it, especially Hey Jude, which Lennon dedicated to his son Julian, was remembered by everyone.

Ringo and Paul can please fans with new music even today.

The most popular musical group of all time is The Beatles. Today it seems that The Beatles have always been around. Their unusual style cannot be confused with any other band. You can not love and not listen to them, but you cannot not know them.

The Guinness Book of Records claims that the world-famous song Yesterday was the most covered in the history of recording. And how many times it has been performed since the time of its writing, it is difficult to calculate at all. None of the compiled lists of "songs of all times and peoples" is complete without the compositions of The Beatles. In addition, every second musician admits that his work was influenced by the Liverpool Four and its songs. It is impossible to imagine the musical world without the Beatles.

And if you remember all the awards and titles received by the group for almost 10 years of existence, the list will turn out to be long and impressive. However, The Beatles are not the first and not the best. They are unique. In this article, we will tell The history of the Beatles and about how the Liverpool four went to success.

Simple Music of the Yards

The history of the Beatles began in those days when England was literally engulfed in an epidemic of the creation of musical groups. In the late 1950s, skiffle was the most popular and widely accessible style - a bizarre combination of jazz, English folk and American country. In order to get into the group, you had to play the banjo, guitar or harmonica. Well, or in extreme cases - on a washboard, which often replaced drums for musicians. he was able to do all this. However, the Great Elvis was his real idol, and it was the king of rock and roll who inspired the “difficult teenager” to study music. So in 1956, John and his school friends created his first brainchild - The Quarrymen. Of course, they also played skiffle. And at one of the parties, friends introduced them to Paul McCartney. This left-handed guy not only played rock and roll guitar well, but he also knew how to tune it! And he, like Lennon, tried to compose.

Two weeks later, a new acquaintance was invited to the group, and he agreed. Thus was born the unsurpassed author's duo Lennon - McCartney, who was destined to shake the world. However, this happened a little later. Despite the fact that one was a bully and the other a "good boy", they got along well and spent a lot of time together. And soon they were joined by a friend of Paul - George Harrison, who did not just play the guitar. He played it very well. Meanwhile, the “school ensemble” has remained in the past, and it is time to choose a future path in life. All three chose music without hesitation. And they began to look for a new name and a drummer, without which this group could not be.

In search of gold

The name was searched for a long time. It even happened that it changed the very next evening. It was difficult to please the producers: sometimes it turned out too long (for example, "Johnny and the Moondogs"), then too short - "Rainbows". And in 1960, they finally find the final version: The Beatles. At the same time, a fourth member appeared in the group. It was Stuart Sutcliffe. By the way, he was not going to be a musician at all, but he not only had to buy a bass guitar, but also learn how to play it.

The group performed quite successfully in Liverpool, toured the United Kingdom a little, but so far nothing foreshadowed world fame. The first "foreign trip" was an invitation to go to Hamburg, where English rock and roll was in high demand. To do this, urgently had to find a drummer. So Pete Best joined the Beatles. The first tour took place in truly extreme conditions: many hours of work, domestic disorder and, in the end, deportation from the country.

But, despite this, a year later The Beatles again went to Hamburg. This time everything was much better, but they returned to their homeland already as a quartet - Sutcliffe, for personal reasons, preferred to stay in Germany. The next "forge of excellence" for the musicians was the Liverpool club Cavern, on the stage of which they performed 262 times in two years (1961-1963).

Meanwhile, the popularity of The Beatles grew. However, the group during this period performs mostly other people's hits, from rock and roll to folk songs, and the joint work of John and Paul is still accumulating "on the table." The situation changed only when the group finally got their own producer - Brian Epstein.

Beatlemania as an epidemic

Before meeting The Beatles, Epstein was a record dealer. But one day, becoming interested in a new group, he suddenly decided to start promoting it. It was love at first sight. However, the owners of record companies did not share the producer's hopes for the success of his Liverpool protégés. And yet, in 1962, EMI agreed to sign a contract with The Beatles on the condition that they release at least four singles. The serious level of studio work forced the band to change drummers. So in the history of the Beatles ensemble entered and remained forever Ringo Starr.

A year later, the group released their debut album Please Please Me (1963). The material was recorded at the studio in almost one day, and in the list of tracks, along with "foreign" hits, there were songs signed "Lennon - McCartney". By the way, the agreement on a double signature under the created songs was adopted at the very beginning of cooperation and lasted until the very breakup of the group, despite the fact that Lennon and McCartney no longer wrote the last songs in collaboration.

In 1963, the Beatles released their second album, With the Beatles, and found themselves in the epicenter of fame. Again performance on radio and TV, tours and work in the studio. The British Isles were gripped by Beatlemania, which gossips began to be called nothing more than "national hysteria". Crowds of fans filled the concert halls, stadiums and even the streets adjacent to the venue. Those who did not have the opportunity to get to the group's performance were ready to stand for hours just to see the idols at least with one eye.

At concerts, sometimes there was such a noise that the musicians could not hear themselves. But curbing this flurry proved impossible. It remained to wait for the wave to go down on its own. In 1964, the "epidemic" spread across the ocean - The Beatles conquered America.

The next two years passed in a very intense rhythm - a busy tour schedule, the release of albums (as many as 5 were recorded from 1964 to 1966!), Filming and the search for new forms and sounds. At some point, it became clear that things could not continue like this and that something had to be changed.

Family album

The image of the group was thought out impeccably: costumes, hairstyles, temperament and habits - the embodied ideal. And of course, thousands of women around the world were crazy about these guys! On stage, in photographs, in films - always together. Meanwhile, their personal lives were hidden from the eyes of fans as much as possible. However, there were no reasons for scandals and conjectures here, rather everything looked like a quiet feat. It is rather difficult to imagine that with a crazy amount of work, the “bit” had enough time for a family.

John Lennon was the first of the quartet to marry. It happened in 1962, and in April 1963 his son Julian was born. However, this marriage, alas, ended in divorce in 1968. By this time, Lennon was madly in love with the extravagant Japanese woman Yoko Ono, who was destined to become the most famous of the Beatles' wives (in some way she influenced the history of the development of the Beatles group).

They got married in 1969, and after another 6 years their son Sean was born. For the sake of his upbringing, John left the stage for 5 years, but, by the way, that's another story - after The Beatles.

The second "married idol" was Ringo Starr. His marriage to Maureen Cox was a happy one. She bore him three children, but here, unfortunately, 10 years later there was a divorce. The drummer's second attempt to find love was also unsuccessful.

George Harrison and Patti Boyd became husband and wife in January 1966. Here, at first, everything was fine, too, but this couple was destined to part. In 1974, Patti left her husband for his friend, the equally famous musician Eric Clapton. George remarried in 1979 to his secretary Olivia Aries, and the marriage was a happy one.

When, in 1967, Paul McCartney and Jane Asher finally announced their engagement to the world, no one expected that in six months the engagement would be canceled at the initiative of the groom. However, a year later, Paul married American Linda Eastman, with whom he lived happily ever after, until death separated them in 1999.

By the way, biographers write that Linda, like Yoko, was not loved by the rest of the Beatles. And all because these women considered it possible to interfere in the affairs of the group, which, according to the musicians, should not have been done at all.

A walk to the movies

The first "feature" film featuring The Beatles was filmed in just 8 weeks and was called A Hard Day's Evening (1964). In fact, the legendary four did not have to invent or play anything - the plot of the film looks like a "peeped episode from life." The tour, going on stage, annoying fans, a little humor and a little bit of philosophy - everything is like in life. However, the film was a success and was even nominated for an Oscar twice.

The following year, it was decided to repeat the experience, and the second film with the participation of superstars, “Help!”, saw the light of day. (1965). As with the first film, a soundtrack album of the same name was released almost immediately that same year. The third experiment of the Beatles in the cinema was drawn - the legendary four became the heroes of a kind, albeit somewhat psychedelic cartoon Yellow Submarine (1968). And by tradition, the soundtrack was released as a separate album, however, a year later.

It was also in the history of the Beatles that they tried to make films on their own, and so the film Magical Mystery Journey (1967) was born. But he did not gain much success with the viewer, however, as well as with criticism.

Hard day's Night

Album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" ("Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"), released in 1967, is considered by critics to be the pinnacle of creativity in The stories Beatles. By this point, the group, tired of concerts and tours, completely switched to studio work - the last "live" concert in England was played in April 1966. The group was in crisis. The Beatles wanted individual projects, a search for something new and, most likely, a break from the burden of fame. The first blow was the sudden death of Brian Epstein in August 1967. It turned out to be impossible to find an equivalent replacement for him, and the group's affairs were getting worse. However, by united efforts, the group still managed to record three more albums: "White Album" (1968), "Abbey Road" (1968) and "Let it be" (1970).

In April 1970, McCartney released his first solo album and immediately after that gave an interview that became in fact a manifesto about the end of history of The Beatles. And after almost 10 years, the musicians again began to think about how to revive their famous group. However, this was not destined to happen - on December 8, 1980, an American psycho shot John Lennon. Together with him, the hope that the history of the Beatles would continue, and the team would again sing on the same stage, was dying. The greatest band of all times and peoples has become a legend. None of those who tried to repeat their success, did not succeed.

Secret dossier: the history of the Beatles of the Russian spill

Entry into the USSR "Beatles" was closed. But their incendiary songs even leaked behind the Iron Curtain.” The Beatles listened at night, writing on X-ray film and reel-to-reel tape recorders. English was taught from their texts. And at the very beginning of the 80s, in one St. Petersburg university (LGITMiK), a “group of comrades” suddenly appeared that wanted to be like The Beatles. By the fall of 1982, they decide on the name - "Secret", and begin to look for a drummer (a small but curious coincidence). The group's birthday is April 20, 1983. Then the "main team" was determined - Maxim Leonidov, Nikolai Fomenko, Andrei Zabludovsky and Alexei Murashov. Like the Beatles, everyone in the band sings except for the drummer.

The development of the beat quartet took place in the Soviet flavor - at that time, most informal musicians, in addition to playing music, certainly had to study or work. So, Leonidov and Fomenko were closely involved in educational performances, Murashov studied at the geofaculty, and Zabludovsky worked at the factory. Immediately there was a place for a feat - novice rockers rehearsed in the morning from 7 to 9 and at lunchtime. In the summer of 1993, "The Secret" joins the Leningrad Rock Club, and ... everything is postponed, because half of the group is taken to the army. Success came to the group on its own - in the form of Leonidov's invitation to LenTV as the host of the "Disks are spinning" program. At this time, a whole "pack" of hits was written: "Sarah Baraboo", "Your dad was right." "My love is on the fifth floor." Of course, they immediately try to call the team "Soviet battles", but this label is only part of the truth. The group is not a "tracing paper" of the famous The Beatles. This is not blind imitation or plagiarism. What “The Secret” does on stage is more like a subtle stylization of the Liverpool Four, an elegant acting game. Yes, there is something in common, and the songs written on the same “eternal themes” are just as simple and melodic. But still, the beat quartet "Secret" succeeds not because of this "common with the greats." They, like the Beatles, are independent and very recognizable.

1985 was a fruitful year for the band. In the summer, as part of the Festival of Youth and Students, a Secret concert took place, and it suddenly became clear that the group was terribly popular. Almost immediately after that, the beat quartet took part in the filming of the first Soviet video film How to Become a Star, and by the autumn there was an unprecedented surge in concert activity. In 1986, fans of the beat quartet were among the first in the country to create an official fan club. For the next five years, the group is at the peak of popularity - albums are being recorded: "Secret" (1987) - the disc became double platinum !; "Leningrad time" (1989), "Orchestra on the way" (1991). In 1990, the composition of the quartet was undergoing changes - Maxim Leonidov left for Israel. But for some time the group does not give up positions. However, it gradually changes under the influence of time and circumstances. And at the same time, “playing the Beatles” is coming to naught. However, even if the group has changed or ceased to exist, the songs written and sung always remain. They are unchanged, and the romantic atmosphere of the 60s is perfectly preserved in them.

• It is said that John Lennon saw the future name in a dream. As if a man appeared to him, engulfed in flames, and ordered to change the letters in the name - The Beetles ("Beetles"), to get The Beatles.
• There is quite large group fans who believe that Paul McCartney died in a car accident in November 1966. And the person who pretends to be a Beatle is his doppelgänger. The proof of their correctness takes more than one page of text - amateur mystics analyze in detail the words, songs and album covers and point to countless "secret signs" indicating that at the time of the release of Paul's albums, Paul was no longer alive, and The Beatles are carefully concealed. Sir McCartney himself refuses to comment on this grandiose hoax.
• In 2008, the Israeli authorities admitted that in the 60s they did not let The Beatles into the country, fearing their "corrupting influence on young people."
• In June 1965, The Beatles were awarded the Order of the British Empire "For their contribution to the development of British culture and its popularization around the world." No other musician had received such a high award before, and this caused a scandal. Many of the cavaliers wished to return their award in order to "not stand on a par with pop idols." After 4 years, Lennon returned his order in protest against British policy during the Vietnam War.
• took place on August 22, 1969 in Tittenhurst Park, in the place where the estate of John Lennon was located.