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BETA
Group. Formed 1957. Disbanded 10 April 1970.
Photo of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, who became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. In their heyday the group consisted of John Lennon (rhythm guitar, vocals), Paul McCartney (bass guitar, vocals), George Harrison (lead guitar, vocals) and Ringo Starr (drums, vocals). Rooted in skiffle and 1950s rock and roll, the group later worked in many genres ranging from folk rock to psychedelic pop, often incorporating classical and other elements in innovative ways. The nature of their enormous popularity, which first emerged as the "Beatlemania" fad, transformed as their songwriting grew in sophistication. The group came to be perceived as the embodiment of progressive ideals, seeing their influence extend into the social and cultural revolutions of the 1960s.
With an early five-piece line-up of Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe (bass) and Pete Best (drums), The Beatles built their reputation in Liverpool and Hamburg clubs over a three-year period from 1960. Sutcliffe left the group in 1961, and Best was replaced by Starr the following year. Moulded into a professional outfit by music store owner Brian Epstein after he offered to act as the group's manager, and with their musical potential enhanced by the hands-on creativity of producer George Martin, The Beatles achieved UK mainstream success in late 1962 with their first single, "Love Me Do". Gaining international popularity over the course of the next year, they toured extensively until 1966, then retreated to the recording studio until their breakup in 1970. Each then found success in an independent musical career. McCartney and Starr remain active; Lennon was shot and killed in 1980, and Harrison died of cancer in 2001.
During their studio years, The Beatles produced what critics consider some of their finest material including the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), widely regarded as a masterpiece. Nearly four decades after their breakup, The Beatles' music continues to be popular. The Beatles have had more number one albums on the UK charts, and held down the top spot longer, than any other musical act. According to RIAA certifications, they have sold more albums in the US than any other artist. In 2008, Billboard magazine released a list of the all-time top-selling Hot 100 artists to celebrate the US singles chart's fiftieth anniversary, with The Beatles at number one. They have been honoured with 7 Grammy Awards, and they have received 15 Ivor Novello Awards from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. The Beatles were collectively included in Time magazine's compilation of the 20th century's 100 most important and influential people.
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Really Simple Syndication
Fri 6 Nov 2009 11:02
EMI wins an injunction against a US website which it claims was selling Beatles songs...
Sat 24 Oct 2009 10:52
Signed Beatles album used to pay bill is auctioned
Mon 28 Sep 2009 16:05
The woman who inspired the Beatles song Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds dies of the...
Really Simple Syndication
It's hard to describe how a building can become an icon. It's just something that...Lewis Carnie
The Beatles started off as a covers band and half the first Beatles' album consists of...Mark Cooper
BBC TV's Beatles Week begins on Saturday 5 September, so all fans of the Fab Four...Nigel Smith
Really Simple Syndication
Love
Reviewed by Peter Marsh
This album is a clever and heartfelt tribute to the most influential and best loved...
Let It Be... Naked
Reviewed by Chris Jones
This new slant on the events is at least a small recompense for all that bad feeling.
Past Masters, Volume One
Reviewed by Mike Diver
A vital, invest-now compilation of non-LP favourites.
Abbey Road
Reviewed by Daryl Easlea
A marvellous set-piece finale for the group.
The Beatles (disc 1)
Reviewed by Daryl Easlea
Perhaps The Beatles’ most ambitious studio album.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Reviewed by Chris Jones
It took 129 days between Autumn 1966 and Spring 1967 and yes, it changed the world.
Revolver
Reviewed by Daryl Easlea
A landmark album that stands up to repeated scrutiny and overexposure.
Rubber Soul
Reviewed by Daryl Easlea
Rubber Soul demonstrates how The Beatles were beginning to exploit the recording studio.
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