The Beatles biography
The Beatles, also known as The Fab Four, were an English rock band from Liverpool who formed in 1960 and became one of the biggest and most critically acclaimed groups in the world. 40 years on and their timeless tracks are still flying off the shelves, with new generations of music fans firmly under their spell.
How it all began
The Beatles started out as a five piece in 1960, but a couple of years later and after some changes, consisted of the Fab Four we all know today; John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and drummer Ringo Starr. John, Paul and George played in a previous band together, so were already friends before Ringo teamed up with them. Before he did, The Beatles quintet began to carve out a fan base after playing gigs across Liverpool and Hamburg in Germany. During one of their many performances at The Cavern Club in Liverpool, The Beatles met local record shop owner Brian Epstein, who became their manager in early 1962. Soon afterwards, the now legendary producer and so-called 'fifth Beatle,' George Martin, signed them to EMI's Parlophone label. So, with the new gang of four now firmly in place, things were about to change for the young lads, forever.
Abbey Road
Abbey Road studios are famous for providing the home of where most of The Beatles albums were recorded and in fact one of their most iconic albums, and their final one before they split up, was named after the EMI building. The cover, a photograph of the band walking in single file along the zebra crossing outside, has become legendary and imitated on numerous occasions, with fans the world over still flocking to the site to this day.
Their first experience of Abbey Road under the influence of George Martin was in the summer of 1962. A few months later, they had their first taste of mainstream success when debut single 'Love Me Do' went to number seventeen in the UK charts. The Beatles second single 'Please Please Me' did even better, reaching number two, while their debut album of the same name topped the charts, becoming the catalyst that would propel the Fab Four into superstardom status. Most of the songs were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, which saw the start of what would become a long and tempestuous songwriting partnership.
Beatlemania
The Beatles popularity continued to grow and during various UK tours, the band would overshadow the very acts they were hired to support. Hoards of screaming young girls would follow their every move with police protection becoming a necessity in order to keep what was dubbed 'Beatlemania,' under control. Please Please Me was still top of the album charts and stayed at the summit for thirty weeks, an incredible achievement for a relatively new band. It was only knocked off the top spot by their follow up album With The Beatles which itself was a number one for twenty one weeks.
The British invasion
After The Beatles phenomenal success in their home country, they flew to America in early 1964 for another attempt at making it big there after a few previous releases flopped. Shortly before they were waved off by their expanding followers at Heathrow, their track 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' was released. It was in response to a sudden burst of interest from American audiences following a TV report about them ahead of their eagerly awaited arrival.
The track gave them their first number one in America and launched their so called 'British Invasion,' of arguably the most difficult market to break. They played to packed crowds at various venues across the States, with the band having twelve hits on the US charts at one point, including the top five. The Beatles huge success across the pond helped to open the doors for other British artists wanting to follow in their footsteps. Their once mocked hairdos also became the latest fashion craze among fans and they soon embarked on international tours, as they began to conquer the world.
Film Stars
It was only a matter of time before The Beatles became movie stars, with the release of third album A Hard Day's Night later that year, providing the soundtrack to their comedy mock documentary of the same name. It gave their fans a glimpse of what everyday life was like for them. Their second film Help was described as a Bond spoof, with the band yet again providing the soundtrack. Help!, their fifth UK studio album was released in 1965 and spawned the massive self titled hit and others including 'Ticket to Ride' and 'Yesterday.'
The big split
After Help, The Beatles went on to release another six successful albums before they went their separate ways in 1970, including Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was another number one worldwide success for the group and in 2003, it topped a list of the 500 greatest albums of all time in Rolling Stone magazine.
There was no one specific reason for the break up, instead a cauldron of conflicts bubbled away and finally erupted like a geyser in Yellowstone, after both George Harrison and Ringo Starr briefly walked out during the last few years of The Beatles. Artistic differences also played their part, with John Lennon and Paul McCartney's song writing partnership well documented to be a stormy affair. The group were also at a loss following the death of manager and good friend Brian Epstein.
The Beatles embarked on solo projects before John Lennon was famously shot dead outside his New York home by crazed fan Mark Chapman in 1980, while George Harrison died of cancer in 2001. Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney continue to release albums and in 2010, it was announced that Macca would headline the Isle of Wight Festival and Hard Rock Calling in June.
In November 2006, the Grammy Award winning remix album of Beatles songs, Love, the soundtrack for the Las Vegas Cirque du Soleil stage show of the same name, was released. It was produced by so called 'fifth Beatle,' George Martin, and his son Giles, who claimed the record would give fans another chance to re-live the Beatles music, in a new way.
In October 2008, Ringo announced he was giving fans until the 20th of that month to write to him, saying after that he would throw anything sent to him away, as he claimed he had 'too much to do.'
The Beatles on iTunes
In November 2010, the long running dispute between Apple Inc and The Beatles came to an end after they agreed a deal for the Fab Four to make their music available for download via the iTunes store. Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr welcomed the move, with Macca saying it was 'fantastic to see the songs we originally released on vinyl, receive as much love in the digital world as they did first time around.'