Beatles
FORMED: 1960, Liverpool, England
DISBANDED: 1970
So much has been said and written about the Beatles -- and their story is
so mythic in its sweep -- that it's difficult to summarize their career without
restating cliches that have already been digested by tens of millions of
rock fans. To start with the obvious, they were the greatest and most influential
act of the rock era, and introduced more innovations into popular music than
any other rock band of the 20th century. Moreover, they were among the few
artists of any discipline that were simultaneously the best at what they
did, and the most popular at what they did. Relentlessly imaginative and
experimental, the Beatles grabbed ahold of the international mass consciousness
in 1964 and never let go for the next six years, always staying ahead of
the pack in terms of creativity, but never losing their ability to communicate
their increasingly sophisticated ideas to a mass audience. Their supremacy
as rock icons remains unchallenged to this day, decades after their breakup
in 1970.
Even when couching praise in specific terms, it's hard to convey the scope
of the Beatles' achievements in a mere paragraph or two. They synthesized
all that was good about early rock & roll, and changed it into something
original and even more exciting. They established the prototype for the self-contained
rock group that wrote and performed their own material. As composers, their
craft and melodic inventiveness were second to none, and key to the evolution
of rock from its blues/R&B-based forms into a style that was far more
eclectic, but equally visceral. As singers, both John Lennon and Paul McCartney
were among the best and most expressive vocalists in rock; the group's harmonies
were intricate and exhilarating. As performers, they were (at least until
touring had ground them down) exciting and photogenic; when they retreated
into the studio, they were instrumental in pioneering advanced techniques
and multi-layered arrangements. They were also the first British rock group
to achieve worldwide prominence, launching a British Invasion that made rock
truly an international phenomenon.
More than any other top group, the Beatles' success was very much a case
of the sum being greater than the parts. Their phenomenal cohesion was due
in large degree to most of the group having known each other and played together
in Liverpool for about five years before they began to have hit records.
Guitarist and teenage rebel John Lennon got hooked on rock 'n' roll in the
mid-1950s, and formed a band, the Quarrymen, at his high school. Around mid-1957,
the Quarrymen were joined by another guitarist, Paul McCartney, nearly two
years Lennon's junior. A bit later they were joined by another guitarist,
George Harrison, a friend of McCartney's. The Quarrymen would change lineups
constantly in the late '50s, eventually reducing to the core trio of guitarists,
who'd proven themselves to be the best musicians and most personally compatible
individuals within the band.
The Quarrymen changed their name to the Silver Beatles in 1960, quickly dropping
the "Silver" to become just the Beatles. Lennon's art college friend Stuart
Sutcliffe joined on bass, but finding a permanent drummer was a vexing problem
until Pete Best joined in the summer of 1960. He successfully auditioned
for the combo just before they left for a several-month stint in Hamburg,
Germany.
Hamburg was the Beatles' baptism by fire. Playing grueling sessions for hours
on end in one of the most notorious red-light districts in the world, the
group were forced to expand their repertoire, tighten up their chops, and
invest their show with enough manic energy to keep the rowdy crowds satisfied.
When they returned to Liverpool at the end of 1960, the band -- formerly
also-rans on the exploding Liverpudlian "beat" scene -- were suddenly the
most exciting act on the local circuit. They consolidated their following
in 1961 with constant gigging in the Merseyside area, most often at the legendary
Cavern Club, the incubator of the Merseybeat sound.
They also returned for engagements in Hamburg during 1961, although Sutcliffe
dropped out of the band that year to concentrate on his art school studies
there. McCartney took over on bass, Harrison settled in as lead guitarist,
and Lennon had rhythm guitar; everyone sang. In mid-1961 the Beatles (minus
Sutcliffe) made their first recordings in Germany, as a backup group to a
British rock guitarist-singer based in Hamburg, Tony Sheridan. The Beatles
hadn't fully developed at this point, and these recordings -- many of which
(including a couple of Sheridan-less tracks) were issued only after the band's
rise to fame -- found their talents in a most embryonic state. The Hamburg
stint was also notable for gaining the Beatles sophisticated, artistic fans
such as Sutcliffe's girlfriend, Astrid Kirchherr, who influenced all of them
(except Best) to restyle their quiffs in the moptops that gave the musicians
their most distinctive visual trademark. (Sutcliffe, tragically, would die
of a brain hemorrhage in April 1962).
Near the end of 1961, the Beatles' exploding local popularity caught the
attention of local record store manager Brian Epstein, who was soon managing
the band as well. He used his contacts to swiftly acquire a January 1, 1962
audition at Decca Records that has been heavily bootlegged (some tracks were
officially released in 1995). After weeks of deliberation, Decca turned them
down, as did several other British labels. Epstein's perseverance was finally
rewarded with an audition for producer George Martin at Parlophone, an EMI
subsidiary; Martin signed the Beatles in mid-1962. By this time Epstein was
assiduously grooming his charges for national success by influencing them
to smarten up their appearance, dispensing with their leather jackets and
trousers in favor of tailored suits and ties.
One more major change was in the offing before the Beatles made their Parlophone
debut. In August 1962, drummer Pete Best was kicked out of the group, a controversial
decision that has been the cause of much speculation since. There is still
no solid consensus as to whether it was because of his solitary, moody nature,
the other Beatles' jealousy of his popularity with the fans, his musical
shortcomings (George Martin had already told Epstein that Best wasn't good
enough to drum on recordings), or his refusal to wear his hair in bangs.
What seems most likely was that the Beatles simply found his personality
incompatible, preferring to enlist Ringo Starr (born Richard Starkey), drummer
with another popular Merseyside outfit, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. Starr
had been in the Beatles for a few weeks when they recorded their first single,
"Love Me Do"/"P.S. I Love You," in September 1962. Both sides of the 45 were
Lennon-McCartney originals, and the songwriting team would be credited with
most of the group's material throughout the Beatles' career.
The single, a promising but fairly rudimentary effort, hovered around the
lower reaches of the British Top 20. The Beatles phenomenon didn't truly
kick in until "Please Please Me," which topped the British charts in early
1963. This was the prototype British Invasion single -- an infectious melody,
charging guitars, and positively exuberant harmonies. The same traits were
evident on their third 45, "From Me to You" (a British number one), and their
debut LP, Please Please Me. Although it was mostly recorded in a single day,
Please Please Me topped the British charts for an astonishing 30 weeks, establishing
the group as the most popular rock & roll act ever seen in the U.K.
What the Beatles had done was to take the best elements of the rock and pop
they loved and make them their own. Since the Quarrymen days, they had been
steeped in the classic early rock of Elvis, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Little
Richard, Carl Perkins, and the Everly Brothers; they'd also kept an ear open
to the early '60s sounds of Motown, Phil Spector, and the girl groups. What
they added was an unmatched songwriting savvy (inspired by Brill Building
teams such as Gerry Goffin and Carole King), a brash guitar-oriented attack,
wildly enthusiastic vocals, and the embodiment of the youthful flair of their
generation, ready to dispense with post-war austerity and claim a culture
of their own. They were also unsurpassed in their eclecticism, willing to
borrow from blues, popular standards, gospel, folk, or whatever seemed suitable
for their musical vision. Producer George Martin was the perfect foil for
the group, refining their ideas without tinkering with their cores; during
the last half of their career, he was indispensable for his ability to translate
their concepts into arrangements that required complex orchestration, innovative
applications of recording technology, and an ever-widening array of instruments.
Just as crucially, the Beatles were never ones to stand still and milk formulas.
All of their subsequent albums and singles would show remarkable artistic
progression (though never at the expense of a damn catchy tune). Even on
their second LP, With the Beatles (1963), it was evident that their talents
as composers and instrumentalists were expanding furiously, as they devised
ever more inventive melodies and harmonies, and boosted the fullness of their
arrangements. "She Loves You" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand" established
the group not just as a popular music act, but as a phenomenon never before
seen in the British entertainment business, as each single sold over a million
copies in the U.K. After some celebrated national TV appearances, Beatlemania
broke out across the British Isles in late 1963, the group generating screams
and hysteria at all of their public appearances, musical or otherwise.
Capitol, which had first refusal of the Beatles' recordings in the United
States, had declined to issue the group's first few singles, which ended
up appearing on relatively small American independents. Capitol took up its
option on "I Want to Hold Your Hand," which stormed to the top of the U.S.
charts within weeks of its release on December 26, 1963. The Beatles' television
appearances on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in February of 1964 launched Beatlemania
(and the entire British Invasion) on an even bigger scale than it had reached
in Britain. In the first week of April 1964, the Beatles had the top five
best-selling singles in the U.S.; they also had the first two slots on the
album charts, as well as other entries throughout the Billboard Top 100.
No one had ever dominated the market for popular music so heavily; it's doubtful
than anyone ever will again. The Beatles themselves would continue to reach
number one with most of their singles and albums until their 1970 breakup.
Hard as it may be to believe today, the Beatles were often dismissed by cultural
commentators of the time as nothing more than a fad that would vanish within
months as the novelty wore off. The group ensured this wouldn't happen by
making A Hard Day's Night in early 1964, a cinema verite-style motion picture
comedy/musical that cemented their image as the Fab Four -- happy-go-lucky,
individualistic, cheeky, funny lads with nonstop energy. The soundtrack was
also a triumph, consisting entirely of Lennon-McCartney tunes, including
such standards as the title tune, "And I Love Her," "If I Fell," "Can't Buy
Me Love," and "Things We Said Today." George Harrison's resonant 12-string
electric guitar leads were hugely influential; the movie helped persuade
the Byrds, then folk singers, to plunge all-out into rock & roll, and
the Beatles (along with Bob Dylan) would be hugely influential on the folk-rock
explosion of 1965. The Beatles' success, too, had begun to open the U.S.
market for fellow Brits like the Rolling Stones, Animals, and Kinks, and
inspired young American groups like the Beau Brummels, Lovin' Spoonful, and
others to mount a challenge of their own with self-penned material that owed
a great debt to Lennon-McCartney.
Between riotous international tours in 1964 and 1965, the Beatles continued
to squeeze out more chart-topping albums and singles. (Until 1967, the group's
British albums were often truncated for release in the States; when their
catalog was transferred to CD, the albums were released worldwide in their
British configurations.) In retrospect, critics have judged Beatles for Sale
(late 1964) and Help! (mid-1965) as the band's least impressive efforts.
To some degree, that's true. Touring and an insatiable market placed heavy
demands upon their songwriting, and some of the originals and covers on these
records, while brilliant by many group's standards, were filler in the context
of the Beatles' best work.
But when at the top of their game, the group was continuing to push forward.
"I Feel Fine" had feedback and brilliant guitar leads; "Ticket to Ride" showed
the band beginning to incorporate the ringing, metallic, circular guitar
lines that would be appropriated by bands like the Byrds; "Help!" was their
first burst of confessional lyricism; "Yesterday" employed a string quartet.
John Lennon in particular was beginning to exhibit a Dylanesque influence
in his songwriting on such folky, downbeat numbers as "I'm a Loser" and "You've
Got to Hide Your Love Away." And tracks like "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party"
and "I've Just Seen a Face" had a strong country flavor.
Although the Beatles' second film, Help!, was a much sillier and less sophisticated
affair than their first feature, it too was a huge commercial success. By
this time, though, the Beatles had nothing to prove in commercial terms;
the remaining frontiers were artistic challenges that could only be met in
the studio. They rose to the occasion at the end of 1965 with Rubber Soul,
one of the classic folk-rock records. Lyrically, Lennon, McCartney, and even
Harrison (who was now writing some tunes on his own) were evolving beyond
boy-girl scenarios into complex, personal feelings. They were also pushing
the limits of studio rock by devising new guitar and bass textures, experimenting
with distortion and multi-tracking, and using unconventional (for rock) instruments
like the sitar.
As much of a progression as Rubber Soul was relative to their previous records,
it was but a taster for the boundary-shattering outings of the next few years.
The "Paperback Writer"/"Rain" single found the group abandoning romantic
themes entirely, boosting the bass to previously unknown levels, and fooling
around with psychedelic imagery and backwards tapes on the B-side. Drugs
(psychedelic and otherwise) were fueling their already fertile imaginations,
but they felt creatively hindered by their touring obligations. Revolver,
released in the summer of 1966, proved what the group could be capable of
when allotted months of time in the studio. Hazy hard guitars and thicker
vocal arrangements formed the bed of these increasingly imagistic, ambitious
lyrics; the group's eclecticism now encompassed everything from singalong
novelties ("Yellow Submarine") and string quartet-backed character sketches
("Eleanor Rigby") to Indian-influenced swirls of echo and backwards tapes
("Tomorrow Never Knows"). Some would complain that the Beatles had abandoned
the earthy rock of their roots for clever mannerism. But Revolver, like virtually
all of the group's singles and albums from "She Loves You" on, would be a
worldwide chart-topper.
For the past couple of years, live performance had become a rote exercise
for the group, tired of competing with thousands of screaming fans that drowned
out most of their voices and instruments. A 1966 summer worldwide tour was
particularly grueling: the group's entourage was physically attacked in the
Philipines after a perceived snub of the country's queen, and a casual remark
by John Lennon about the Beatles being bigger than Jesus Christ was picked
up in the States, resulting in the burning of Beatle records in the Bible
belt and demands for a repentant apology. Their final concert of that American
tour (in San Francisco on August 29, 1966) would be their last in front of
a paying audience, as the group decided to stop playing live in order to
concentrate on their studio recordings.
This was a radical (indeed, unprecedented) step in 1966, and the media was
rife with speculation that the act was breaking up, especially after all
four spent late 1966 engaged in separate personal and artistic pursuits.
The appearance of the "Penny Lane"/"Strawberry Fields Forever" single in
February 1967 squelched these concerns. Frequently cited as the strongest
double-A-side ever, the Beatles were now pushing forward into unabashedly
psychedelic territory in their use of orchestral arrangements and Mellotron,
without abandoning their grasp of memorable melody and immediately accessible
lyrical messages.
Sgt. Pepper, released in June 1967 as the Summer of Love dawned, was the
definitive psychedelic soundtrack. Or, at least, so it was perceived at the
time: subsequent critics have painted the album as an uneven affair, given
a conceptual unity via its brilliant multi-tracked overdubs, singalong melodies,
and fairytale-ish lyrics. Others remain convinced, as millions did at the
time, that it represented pop's greatest triumph, or indeed an evolution
of pop into art with a capital A. In addition to mining all manner of roots
influences, the musicians were also picking up vibes from Indian music, avant-garde
electronics, classical, music hall, and more. When the Beatles premiered
their hippie anthem "All You Need Is Love" as part of a worldwide TV broadcast,
they had been truly anointed as spokespersons for their generation (a role
they had not actively sought), and it seemed they could do no wrong.
Musically, that would usually continue to be the case, but the group's strength
began to unravel at a surprisingly quick pace. In August 1967, Brian Epstein
-- prone to suicidal depression over the past year -- died of a drug overdose,
leaving them without a manager. The group pressed on with their next film
project, Magical Mystery Tour, directed by themselves; lacking focus or even
basic professionalism, the picture bombed when it was premiered on BBC television
in December 1967, giving the media the first real chance they'd ever had
to roast the Beatles over a flame. (Another film, the animated feature Yellow
Submarine, would appear in 1968, although the Beatles had little involvement
with the project, either in terms of the movie or the soundtrack.) In early
1968, the Beatles decamped to India for a course in transcendental meditation
with the Maharishi; this too became something of a media embarrassment, as
each of the four would eventually depart the course before its completion.
The Beatles did use their unaccustomed peace in India to compose a wealth
of new material. Judged solely on musical merit, The White Album, a double
LP released in late 1968, was a triumph. While largely abandoning their psychedelic
instruments to return to guitar-based rock, they maintained their whimsical
eclecticism, proving themselves masters of everything from blues rock to
vaudeville. As individual songwriters, too, it contains some of their finest
work (as does the brilliant non-LP single from this era, "Hey Jude"/"Revolution").
The problem, at least in terms of the group's long-term health, was that
these were very much individual songs, as opposed to collective ones. Lennon
and McCartney had long composed most of their tunes separately (you can almost
always tell the composer by the lead vocalist). But they had always fed off
of each other not only to supply missing bits and pieces that would bring
a song to completion, but to provide a competitive edge that would bring
out the best in the other. McCartney's romantic melodicism and Lennon's more
acidic, gritty wit were perfect complements for one another. By the White
Album, it was clear (if only in retrospect) that each member was more concerned
with his own expression than that of the collective group: a natural impulse,
but one that was bound to lead to difficulties.
In addition, George Harrison was becoming a more prolific and skilled composer
as well, imbuing his own melodies (which were nearly the equal of those of
his more celebrated colleagues) with a cosmic lightness. Harrison was beginning
to resent his junior status, and the group began to bicker more openly in
the studio. Ringo, whose solid drumming and good nature could usually be
counted upon (as was evident in his infrequent lead vocals), actually quit
for a couple of weeks in the midst of the White Album sessions (though the
media was unaware of this at the time). Personal interests were coming into
play as well: Lennon's devotion to romantic and artistic pursuits with his
new girlfriend (and soon-to-be-wife) Yoko Ono was diverting his attentions
from the Beatles. Apple Records, started by the group earlier in 1968 as
a sort of utopian commercial enterprise, was becoming a financial and organizational
nightmare.
These weren't the ideal conditions under which to record a new album in January
1969, especially when McCartney was pushing the group to return to live performing,
although none of the others seemed especially keen on the idea. They did
agree to try and record a "back-to-basics," live-in-the-studio-type LP, the
sessions being filmed for a television special. That plan almost blew up
when Harrison, in the midst of tense arguments, left the group for a few
days. Although he returned, the idea of playing live concerts was put on
the back burner; Harrison enlisted American soul keyboardist Billy Preston
as kind of a fifth member on the sessions, both to beef up the arrangements
and to alleviate the uncomfortable atmosphere. Exacerbating the problem was
that the Beatles didn't have a great deal of first-class new songs to work
with, although some were excellent. In order to provide a suitable concert-like
experience for the film, the group did climb the roof of their Apple headquarters
in London to deliver an impromptu performance on January 30, 1969, before
the police stopped it; this was their last live concert of any sort.
Generally dissatisfied with these early-1969 sessions, the album and film
-- at first titled Get Back, and later to emerge as Let It Be -- remained
in the can as the group tried to figure out how the projects should be mixed,
packaged, and distributed. A couple of the best tracks, "Get Back"/"Don't
Let Me Down," were issued as a single in the spring of 1969. By this time,
the Beatles' quarrels were intensifying in a dispute over management: McCartney
wanted their affairs to be handled by his new father-in-law, Lee Eastman,
while the other members of the group favored a tough American businessman,
Allen Klein.
It was something of a miracle, then, that the final album recorded by the
group, Abbey Road, was one of their most unified efforts (even if, by this
time, the musicians were recording many of their parts separately). It certainly
boasted some of their most intricate melodies, harmonies, and instrumental
arrangements; it also heralded the arrival of Harrison as a composer of equal
talent to Lennon and McCartney, as George wrote the album's two most popular
tunes, "Something" and "Here Comes the Sun." The Beatles were still progressing,
but it turned out to be the end of the road, as their business disputes continued
to magnify. Lennon, who had begun releasing solo singles and performing with
friends as the Plastic Ono Band, threatened to resign in late 1969, although
he was dissuaded from making a public announcement.
Most of the early-1969 tapes remained unreleased, partially because the footage
for the planned television broadcast of these sessions was now going to be
produced as a documentary movie. The accompanying soundtrack album, Let It
Be, was delayed so that its release could coincide with that of the film.
Lennon, Harrison, and Allen Klein decided to have celebrated American producer
Phil Spector record some additional instrumentation and do some mixing. Thus
the confusion that persists among most rock listeners to this day: Let It
Be, although the last Beatles album to be released was not the last one to
be recorded. Abbey Road should actually be considered as the Beatles' last
album; most of the material on Let It Be, including the title track (which
would be the last single released while the group was still together), was
recorded several months before the Abbey Road sessions began in earnest,
and a good 15 months or so before its May 1970 release.
By that time, the Beatles were no more. In fact, there had been no recording
done by the group as a unit since August 1969, and each member of the band
had begun to pursue serious outside professional interests independently
via the Plastic Ono Band, Harrison's tour with Delaney and Bonnie, Starr's
starring role in the Magic Christian film, or McCartney's first solo album.
The outside world for the most part remained almost wholly unaware of the
seriousness of the group's friction, making it a devastating shock for much
of the world's youth when McCartney announced that he was leaving the Beatles
on April 10, 1970. (The "announcement" was actually contained in a press
release for his new album, in which his declaration of his intention to work
on his own effectively served as a notice of his departure.)
The final blow, apparently, was the conflict between the release dates of
Let It Be and McCartney's debut solo album. The rest of the group asked Paul
to delay his release until after Let It Be; McCartney refused, and for good
measure, was distressed by Spector's post-production work on Let It Be, particularly
the string overdubs on "The Long and Winding Road," which became a posthumous
Beatles single that spring. Although Paul received much of the blame for
the split, it should be remembered that he had done more than any other member
to keep the group going since Epstein's death, and that each of the other
Beatles had threatened to leave well before McCartney's departure. With hindsight,
the breakup seemed inevitable in view of their serious business disagreements
and the growth of their individual interests.
As bitter as the initial headlines were to swallow, the feuding would grow
much worse over the next few years. At the end of 1970, McCartney sued the
rest of the Beatles in order to dissolve their partnership; the battle dragged
through the courts for years, scotching any prospects of a group reunion.
In any case, each member of the band quickly established viable solo careers.
In fact, at the outset it could have been argued that the artistic effects
of the split were in some ways beneficial, freeing Lennon and Harrison to
make their most uncompromising artistic statements (Plastic Ono Band and
All Things Must Pass). George's individual talents in particular received
acclaim that had always eluded him when he was overshadowed by Lennon-McCartney.
Paul had a much rougher time with the critics, but continued to issue a stream
of hit singles, hitting a commercial and critical jackpot at the end of 1973
with the massively successful Band on the Run. Ringo did not have the songwriting
acumen to compete on the same level as the others, yet he too had quite a
few big hit singles in the early '70s, often benefiting from the assistance
of his former bandmates.
Yet within a short time, it became apparent both that the Beatles were not
going to settle their differences and reunite, and that their solo work could
not compare with what they were capable of creating together. The stereotype
has it that the split allowed each of them to indulge in their worst tendencies
to their extremes: Lennon in agit-prop, Harrison in holier-than-thou-mysticism,
McCartney in cutesy pop, Starr in easy listening rock. There's a good deal
of truth in this, but it's also important to bear in mind that what was most
missing was a sense of group interaction. The critical party line often champions
Lennon as the angry, realist rocker, and McCartney as the melodic balladeer,
but this is a fallacy: each of them were capable, in roughly equal measures,
of ballsy all-out rock and sweet romanticism. What is not in dispute is that
they sparked each other to reach heights that they could not attain on their
own.
Despite periodic rumors of reunions throughout the 1970s, no group projects
came close to materializing. It should be added that the Beatles themselves
continued to feud to some degree, and from all evidence weren't seriously
interested in working together as a unit. Any hopes of a reunion vanished
when Lennon was assassinated in New York City in December 1980. The Beatles
continued their solo careers throughout the 1980s, but their releases became
less frequent, and their commercial success gradually diminished, as listeners
without first-hand memories of the combo created their own idols.
The popularity of the Beatles-as-unit, however, proved eternal. In part,
this is because the group's 1970 split effectively short-circuited the prospects
of artistic decline; the body of work that was preserved was uniformly strong.
However, it's also because, like any great works of art, the Beatles' records
carried an ageless magnificence that continues to captivate new generations
of listeners. So it is that Beatles records continue to be heard on radio
in heavy rotation, continue to sell in massive quantities, and continue to
be covered and quoted by rock and pop artists through the present day.
Legal wrangles at Apple prevented the official issue of previously unreleased
Beatle material for over two decades (although much of it was frequently
bootlegged). The situation finally changed in the 1990s, after McCartney,
Harrison, Starr, and Lennon's widow Yoko Ono settled their principal business
disagreements. In 1994, this resulted in a double CD of BBC sessions from
the early and mid-'60s. The following year, a much more ambitious project
was undertaken: a multi-part film documentary, broadcast on network television
in 1995, and then released (with double the length) for the home video market
in 1996, with the active participation of the surviving Beatles.
To coincide with the Anthology documentary, three double CDs of previously
unreleased/rare material were issued in 1995 and 1996. Additionally, McCartney,
Harrison, and Starr (with some assistance from Jeff Lynne) embellished a
couple of John Lennon demos from the 1970s with overdubs to create two new
tracks ("Free as a Bird" and "Real Love") that were billed as actual Beatles
recordings. Whether this constitutes the actual long-awaited "reunion" is
the subject of much debate. Certainly these cuts were hardly classics on
par with the music the group made in the 1960s. Some fans, even diehards,
were inclined to view the whole Anthology project as a distinctly 1990s marketing
exercise that maximized the mileage of whatever could be squeezed from the
Beatles' vaults. If nothing else, though, the massive commercial success
of outtakes that had, after all, been recorded 25 to 30 years ago, spoke
volumes about the unabated appeal and fascination the Beatles continue to
exert worldwide. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
British rock 'n' roll group founded in Liverpool during the late 1950s by
John Lennon (guitar) and Paul McCartney (guitar), with George Harrison(guitar),
Stu Sutcliffe (bass), and Pete Best (drums). Although initially a skiffle
band, playing a British variation on American folk music, the band -- which
went under several names before arriving at The Beatles -- incorporated numerous
American rock 'n' roll, rhythm-and-blues, and pop music influences in their
playing and songwriting, most notably the sounds of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry,
Little Richard, and Arthur Alexander, among many others. By the early 1960s,
they'd developed significant popularity in Hamburg, Germany, where dozens
of Liverpool bands were booked into local clubs, and this soon translated
to success in Liverpool, where their mixture of solid American rock 'n roll
and careful music articulation made them unusual among the city's music scene.
Sutcliffe left the band in 1961 and McCartney took over on bass. After taking
on Brian Epstein as their manager, who got them a hearing from George Martin,
the head of EMI Records' tiny Parlophone label, the band was signed to a
recording contract in mid 1962. Ringo Starr replaced Best on drums soon after,
and the group's line-up was complete. By the spring of 1963, their singles
and albums were breaking all previous sales records in England, and they
broke into America in February of 1964 with an appearance on The Ed Sullivan
Show, followed by a whirlwind tour. The group had been signed to do a movie
late in 1963, and through a miracle of good luck, they were turned over to
producer Walter Shenson, director Richard Lester, and screenwriter Alun Owen,
who came up with A Hard Day's Night, probably the best rock 'n' roll movie
ever made. This film, a black-and-white documentary-style fictionalized account
of the fishbowl-lives that the Beatles were leading during the first wave
of Beatlemania, was popular with parents as well as their teenaged children,
and critics loved it as well (Andrew Sarris called it "the Citizen Kane of
juke box movies"). The mix of the four personalities -- Ringo's honest, earthy
clownish presence, George's cutting, funny personality, Paul's pleasant,
engaging presence, and John's snide, sarcastic wit -- won over audiences
around the world.
Their follow-up movie, Help! was made on a much bigger budget, in color,
but it failed to repeat A Hard Day's Night's success, suffering from an unfocused
script and a good but not great selection of songs. The group was generally
as unhappy with the results as everyone else was, although it did make money
and did have some entertaining moments. They tried directing and producing
their own television feature, The Magical Mistery Tour, but the result --
outside of a couple of scenes and a handful of good songs -- were amateurish.
And in 1968 they provided the songs for the psychedelic animated feature
Yellow Submarine, and made a brief on-screen appearance at the movie's conclusion.
Their final break-up in 1969 was chronicled in the documentary Let It Be,
directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, with very impressive results.
The group's exposure to movie-making whetted their appetite for filmmaking
on a variety of levels. John Lennon played an acting role in Richard Lester's
anti-war satire How I Won The War, while Paul McCartney wrote the score for
the John and Roy Boulting comedy The Family Way (1966), and Ringo Starr acted
in the film Candy, while George Harrison produced the soundtrack to the Indian
movie Wonderwall. During the late 1960's and early 1970's, the Beatles' corporate
entity, Apple, acquired the distribution rights to various movies, including
El Topo and La Grande Bouffe, and made various films, most notably benefit
The Concert For Bangladesh by George Harrison and Born To Boogie directed
and produced by Ringo Starr, who also took an occasional acting role, most
notably in the David Puttnam-produced period drama That'll Be The Day. Paul
McCartney did the title song for the 1973 James Bond movie Live And Let Die,
but it was George Harrison who became the most active of the Beatles in filmmaking,
through his company Handmade Films, which helped produce such hit pictures
as Monty Python's The Life of Brian and the fantasy Time Bandits. The end
of the 1970's also saw the lingering mystique of the Beatles parodied by
Monty Python alumnus Eric Idle and Bonzo Dog Band founder Neil Innes in the
film The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash, in which George Harrison appeared.
~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide