The Beatles were an English rock and pop group formed in Liverpool in 1960 who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music.
It was in 1963 , a new phenomenon had just started:The Beatlemania.Whenever the band played in concert ,the influence of their clothes, look and music power was so strong on their fans ( mainly girls) that the police had to hold back them in order to avoid the screaming girls jumping onto the stage to touch their new idols.
Unfortunately for their fans, the group split up in 1970 due to many personal, music and bussiness differences among the group members.
The group consisted of four members: John Lennon ( who was tragically shot in 1980) (rhythm guitar and vocals), Paul McCartney ( bass guitars and vocals) , George Harrison(he died in 2001 after a long illness) ( lead guitar and vocals) and Ringo Starr ( drums and vocals).
The Beatles ruled the music world in the 1960s .They had 22 singles in Britain, and 18 reached number one.Every album of new songs got to number one.In the USA, there were 19 number one singles.Many people think that they were the world´s greatest band of all time.
But the band´s sucess wasn´t only for their musical past. In 1995, the three living Beatles came together to record two new Beatles´ songs Free as a Bird and Real Love.Both songs were by John.The singer recorded them but they weren´t finished.Paul, George and Ringo worked with these recordings as if they were finishing the music for John while he was working on something else.
Fans could buy new Beatles records again!!They also liked the video for Free as Bird.It showed people and places from the band´s past-Stu Sutcliffe(one of John´s art-school friends and first guitar players in the band),the Cavern(The name of the pub where the Beatles used to play), the street outside the Abbey Road Studio.
Studio albums
* 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 ("The White Album") (1968)
* Yellow Submarine (1969)
* Abbey Road (1969)
* Let It Be (1970)
Life after the Beatles
Ringo acted in a few films and he continued to make records.His 1973 album Ringo was a success.Many children know and love Ringo for another reason. He was the voice of a train in a famous children´s TV programme.
George - His 1970 album All things must Pass reached number one around the world.George´s most famous song in the 1970s was My Sweet Lord, but he was taken to court because of it.It was alleged to be a copy from an old song.He also produced film´s like Monty Python´s Life of Brian and Time Bandits. He died in 2001 after an illness.
Paul has had the most succes after the Beatles. In 1971 he started a new band , Wings, with his wife Linda and guitarist Denny Laine.At first, they played in small concerts all over Britain. Band on the Run was Paul´s most successful album.Wings ended in 1981, but Paul continued making records.
John and his new wife moved to New York. Some of John´s most interesting work was on his first two albums John Lennon, Plastic Ono Band and Imagine.He returned to the recording studio in the summer of 1980 to make Double Fantasy with Yoko.One of songs from the album Starting Over was doing well when he was killed.
And now that you know a little bit more about this group, try to do the following quiz.You can check the answers at the bottom of the page.Good Luck and have fun!
If you need some help you may click on the following links :wikipedia the Beatles
the Beatles movies
QUIZ
1) John´ s Lennon first band The Quarry Men was named after a) a church b) his hometown c)school
And finally to end up with this famous group I include you some interesting links and youtube videos if you want to find more about them.
beatlestube
minidocumentaries about the Beatles
THE BEATLES: IN MY LIFE
1) John´ s Lennon first band The Quarry Men was named after a) a church b) his hometown c)school
2) Who was the first group´s drummer? a) Stu Sutcliffe b) Pete Best c) Tony Sheridan
3) Who was the last member to join the band? a) Paul MacCartney b) George Harrison c) Ringo Starr
4) What European city outside Great Britain did the Beatles use to go to play? a) Paris b) Hamburg c) Bonn
5) What was the name of the famous pub where the band used to play? a) the Groove b) the Cavern c) the Castle
6) Who was the band´s manager? a) Pete Best b) Stu Sutcliffe c) Brian Epstein
7) What was John´s first wife´s name? a) Mary b) Yoko Ono c) Cynthia
8) What was the name of the film they made in 1964? a) Yellow Submarine b) A Hard´s night Life c) Help
9) What song did the Beatles play in a live TV programme called Our World? a) Yellow Submarine b) Yesterday c) All You Need is Love
10) What is the name of the Beatles´ last album? a) Abbey Road b) Sergeant Pepper c) Let it Be
And finally to end up with this famous group I include you some interesting links and youtube videos if you want to find more about them.
beatlestube
minidocumentaries about the Beatles
This is a Beatle cartoon called I´M SLEEPING
( Beatles cartoons) From 1967. After reading tales of the Knights of the Round Table, John falls asleep and has a dream — set literally against the pages of the book — of young King Arthur (drawn to resemble a figure from the "Yellow Submarine" movie) and Merlin the Magician, and a giant fire-breathing dragon that is terrorizing the countryside. The only solution: put the monster to sleep with song!
YESTERDAY SONG THE BEATLES: IN MY LIFE
