The Beatles: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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'''The Beatles''' were an English [[Rock music|rock]] band formed in [[Liverpool]] in 1960. ~~who~~They became the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed act in the history of popular music.{{sfn|Unterberger|2009a}} Their best-known lineup consisted of [[John Lennon]], [[Paul McCartney]], [[George Harrison]], and [[Ringo Starr]]. Rooted in [[skiffle]] and 1950s [[rock and roll]], they later utilised several [[music genre|genres]], ranging from [[Pop music|pop]] [[ballad]]s to [[psychedelic rock]], often incorporating [[classical music|classical]] and other elements in innovative ways. In the early 1960s, their enormous popularity first emerged as "[[Beatlemania]]", but as their songwriting grew in sophistication, they came to be perceived by many fans and cultural observers as an embodiment of the ideals shared by the [[Counterculture of the 1960s|era's sociocultural revolutions]].

~~The Beatles~~They built their reputation playing clubs in Liverpool and [[Hamburg]] over a three-year period from 1960. Manager [[Brian Epstein]] moulded them into a professional act and producer [[George Martin]] enhanced their musical potential. They gained popularity in the United Kingdom after their first single, "[[Love Me Do]]", became a modest hit in late 1962. They acquired the nickname the "Fab Four" as Beatlemania grew in Britain over the following year, and by early 1964 they had become international stars, leading the "[[British Invasion]]" into the United States pop market. From 1965 on, ~~they~~the Beatles produced what many critics consider their finest material, including the innovative and widely influential albums ''[[Rubber Soul]]'' (1965), ''[[Revolver (album)|Revolver]]'' (1966), ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band|Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (1967), ''[[The Beatles (album)|The Beatles]]'' (1968), and ''[[Abbey Road]]'' (1969). After their [[The Beatles' break-up|break-up]] in 1970, the ex-Beatles each enjoyed successful musical careers. Lennon died in 1980 after [[Death of John Lennon|having been shot]] by a deranged fan, and Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. McCartney and Starr remain active.

The Beatles have had more number-one albums on the British charts and sold more singles in the UK than any other act. According to the [[Recording Industry Association of America|RIAA]], as of 2012 they have sold 177 million units in the US, more than any other artist. In 2008, they topped ''Billboard'' magazine's list of the all-time most successful "[[Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists|Hot 100]]" artists. As of 2012, they hold the record for most number-one hits on the Hot 100 chart with 20. They have received 7 [[Grammy Award]]s from the American [[National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]], an [[Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Music (Scoring)#1970s|Best Original Song Score]] and 15 [[Ivor Novello Awards]] from the [[British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors]]. Collectively included in ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine's compilation of [[Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century|the 20th century's 100 most influential people]], they are the [[List of best-selling music artists|best-selling band]] in history, with [[EMI Records]] estimating sales of over one billion units.{{sfn|Guinness|2012}}

== {{anchor|Formation}} ~~Formation~~1957–62: formation, Hamburg, and UK popularity ~~(1957–62)~~ ==

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In December 1962, the band concluded their fifth and final Hamburg residency.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=62, 86}} By 1963, the Beatles had agreed that all four members would contribute vocals to their albums—including Starr, despite his restricted vocal range, to validate his standing in the group.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=191}} Lennon and McCartney had established a songwriting partnership, and as the band's success grew, their dominant collaboration limited Harrison's opportunities as a lead vocalist.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=494}} Epstein, in an effort to maximize the Beatles' commercial potential, encouraged them to adopt a professional approach to performing.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=128, 133–134}} Lennon recalled him saying, "Look, if you really want to get in these bigger places, you're going to have to change—stop eating on stage, stop swearing, stop smoking".{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=67}} Lennon said, "We used to dress how we liked, on and off stage. He'd tell us that jeans were not particularly smart and could we possibly manage to wear proper trousers, but he didn't want us suddenly looking square. He'd let us have our own sense of individuality".{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=67}}

== 1963–66: Beatlemania and touring years ~~(1963–66)~~ ==

=== ''Please Please Me'' and ''With ~~The~~the Beatles'' ===

Martin originally considered recording ~~their~~the Beatles' debut LP live at the Cavern Club, but after deciding that the building's acoustics were inadequate, he elected to simulate a "live" album with minimal production in "a single marathon session at Abbey Road".{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=147}} They recorded ten songs for ''[[Please Please Me]]'', supplemented by the four tracks already released on their first two singles.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=147}} After the moderate success of "Love Me Do", "Please Please Me" met with a more emphatic reception. Released in January 1963, it reached number one on every national chart except ''Record Retailer'', where it stalled at number two.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=88, 351}} Recalling how the band "rushed to deliver a debut album, bashing out ''Please Please Me'' in a day", [[Allmusic]]'s [[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] comments, "Decades after its release, the album still sounds fresh, precisely because of its intense origins."{{sfn|Erlewine|2009a}} Lennon said little thought went into composition at the time; he and McCartney were "just writing songs ''à la'' [[The Everly Brothers|Everly Brothers]], ''à la'' [[Buddy Holly]], pop songs with no more thought of them than that—to create a sound. And the words were almost irrelevant."{{sfn|Sheff|1981|p=129}}

[[File:Beatles logo.svg|thumb|alt=The words 'The Beatles', rendered with large letters B and T in the second word|upright|Their logo was based on an impromptu sketch by instrument retailer and designer Ivor Arbiter.{{sfn|Womack|2007|p=76}}]]

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In late October, the Beatles began a five-day tour of Sweden, their first time abroad since the final Hamburg engagement of December 1962.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=1088}} Upon their return to the UK on the 31 December, "several hundred screaming fans" greeted them in heavy rain at [[London Heathrow Airport|Heathrow Airport]] wrote Lewisohn. Around fifty to a hundred journalists and photographers as well as representatives from the [[BBC Television|BBC]] also joined the airport reception, the first of more than one hundred such events.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=92–93}} The next day, they began their fourth tour of Britain within nine months, this one scheduled for six weeks.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=127–133}} In mid-November, as Beatlemania intensified, police resorted to using high-pressure water hoses to control the crowd before a concert in Plymouth.{{sfn|Davies|1968|pp=184–85}}

''Please Please Me'' maintained the top position on the ''Record Retailer'' chart for thirty weeks, only to be displaced by their follow-up, ''[[With ~~The~~the Beatles]]'', which EMI delayed the release of until sales of ''Please Please Me'' had subsided.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=90, 92, 100}} In late November, EMI released ''With ~~The~~the Beatles'' to record advance orders of 270,000 copies, and the LP topped a half-million albums sold in one week.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=93}} It held the top spot for twenty-one weeks with a chart life of 40 weeks.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=1161}} Recorded between July and October, the album made better use of studio production techniques than its "deliberately primitive" predecessor.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=187}} Erlewine describes ''With ~~The~~the Beatles'' as "a sequel of the highest order—one that betters the original".{{sfn|Erlewine|2009b}} In a reversal of then standard practice, EMI released the album ahead of the impending single "[[I Want to Hold Your Hand]]", with the song excluded in order to maximize the single's sales.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=187–88}} ''With The Beatles'' caught the attention of ''[[The Times]]''{{'}} music critic [[William Mann (critic)|William Mann]], who suggested that Lennon and McCartney were "the outstanding English composers of 1963".{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=187}} The newspaper published a series of articles in which Mann offered detailed analyses of the music, lending it respectability.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=1162}} ''With ~~The~~the Beatles'' became the second album in UK chart history to sell a million copies, a figure previously reached only by the 1958 ''[[South Pacific (musical)|South Pacific]]'' soundtrack.{{sfn|Harry|2000b|p=978}} In writing the sleeve notes for the album, the band's press officer, [[Tony Barrow]] used the superlative the "fabulous foursome", which the media widely adopted as the "Fab Four".{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=402}}

=== "British Invasion" ===

{{listen | filename = Iwanttoholdyourhandsample.ogg | title = "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | description = Sample of the single "[[I Want to Hold Your Hand]]" (1963) which secured the band's international success when it achieved enormous US popularity a few weeks before their debut in the country}}

EMI's American subsidiary, [[Capitol Records]], hindered the Beatles' releases in the United States for ~~over~~more than a year by initially declining to issue their music, including their first three singles. Concurrent negotiations with the independent US labels [[Vee-Jay]] and [[Swan Records|Swan]] led to the release of the songs in 1963,{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=350}} but legal issues with royalties and publishing rights proved an obstacle to the successful marketing of the group in the US.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|pp=225–226, 228, 1118–1122}} Exercising complete control over format, Capitol began to issue the material in December 1963,{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=350}} compiling distinct US albums from the band's recordings and issuing songs of their choosing as singles.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=295–96}} American chart success began after Epstein arranged for a $40,000 US marketing campaign and secured the support of disk jockey Carrol James, who first played the band's records in mid-December 1963, initiating their music's spread across US radio. This caused an increase in demand, leading Capitol to rush-release "I Want to Hold Your Hand" later that month.{{sfn|Everett|2001|p=206}} Released 26 December 1963, with the band's previously scheduled debut there just weeks away, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" sold a million copies, becoming a number one hit in the US by mid-January.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=136, 350}}

[[File:The Beatles in America.JPG|thumb|alt=The Beatles are standing in front of a crowd of people at the bottom of an aeroplane staircase.|The Beatles arrive at John F. Kennedy International Airport, 7 February 1964]]

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[[File:Paul, George & John.png|thumb|alt=Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and John Lennon playing guitars and wearing matching grey suits.|McCartney, Harrison and Lennon perform on Dutch television in 1964]]

~~The Beatles toured~~Touring internationally in June and July., the Beatles ~~Staging~~staged thirty-seven shows over twenty-seven days in Denmark, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=161–165}} Starr was briefly hospitalised after a [[tonsillectomy]], and [[Jimmie Nicol]] sat in on drums for the first five dates.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=160–161, 163}} In August they returned to the US, with a thirty-concert tour of twenty-three cities.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=249}} Generating intense interest once again, the month-long tour attracted between ten and twenty thousand fans to each thirty-minute performance in cities from San Francisco to New York.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=249}}

In August, journalist [[Al Aronowitz]] arranged for the group to meet [[Bob Dylan]].{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=252}} Visiting the band in their New York hotel suite, Dylan introduced them to [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]].{{sfn|Miles|1997|p=185}} Biographer Jonathan Gould points out the musical and cultural significance of this meeting, before which the musicians' respective fanbases were "perceived as inhabiting two separate subcultural worlds": Dylan's audience of "college kids with artistic or intellectual leanings, a dawning political and social idealism, and a mildly bohemian style" contrasted with their fans, "veritable '[[teenybopper]]s'—kids in high school or grade school whose lives were totally wrapped up in the commercialized popular culture of television, radio, pop records, fan magazines, and teen fashion. They were seen as idolaters, not idealists."{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=252–53}} Within six months of the meeting, "Lennon would be making records on which he openly imitated Dylan's nasal drone, brittle strum, and introspective vocal persona", wrote Gould.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=252–53}} Within a year, Dylan would "proceed, with the help of [[Electric Dylan controversy|a five-piece group and a Fender Stratocaster electric guitar]], to shake the monkey of folk authenticity permanently off his back ... the distinctions between the folk and rock audiences would have nearly evaporated [and the group's] audience ... [was] showing signs of growing up."{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=252–53}} In September the Beatles refused to play a show in Florida until the local promoter assured them that the audience would not be [[racial segregation in the United States|racially segregated]].{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=171}}

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While many of ''Rubber Soul''{{'}}s more notable songs were the product of Lennon and McCartney's collaborative songwriting,{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=584–92}} it also featured distinct compositions from each,{{sfn|Miles|1997|pp=268, 276, 278–79}} though they continued to share official credit. The song "[[In My Life]]", of which each later claimed lead authorship, is considered a highlight of the entire Lennon–McCartney catalogue.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=587}} Harrison called ''Rubber Soul'' his "favorite album"{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=194}} and Starr referred to it as "the departure record".{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=591}} McCartney said, "We'd had our cute period, and now it was time to expand."{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=197}} However, recording engineer [[Norman Smith (record producer)|Norman Smith]] later stated that the studio sessions revealed signs of growing conflict within the group—"the clash between John and Paul was becoming obvious", he wrote, and "as far as Paul was concerned, George could do no right".{{sfn|Harry|2000b|p=780}} In 2003, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' ranked ''Rubber Soul'' fifth among "[[The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time]]",{{sfn|Rolling Stone|2003}} and Allmusic's [[Richie Unterberger]] describes it as "one of the classic [[folk rock|folk-rock]] records."{{sfn|Unterberger|2009a}}

== ~~Controversy~~1966–70: controversy, studio years and break-up ~~(1966–70)~~ ==

=== Events leading up to final tour ===

In June 1966, ''[[Yesterday and Today]]''—one of the compilation albums created by Capitol Records for the US market—caused an uproar with its cover, which portrayed the grinning Beatles dressed in butcher's overalls, accompanied by raw meat and mutilated plastic baby dolls. It has been suggested that this was meant as a satirical response to the way Capitol had "butchered" the US versions of their albums.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=1187}} Thousands of copies of the album had a new cover pasted over the original; an unpeeled "first-state" copy fetched $10,500 at a December 2005 auction.{{sfn|Gaffney|2004}} In England, meanwhile, Harrison met sitar maestro [[Ravi Shankar]], who agreed to train him on the instrument.{{sfn|Lavezzoli|2006|p=176}}

During a tour of the Philippines the month after the ''Yesterday and Today'' furore, the ~~group~~Beatles unintentionally snubbed the nation's first lady, [[Imelda Marcos]], who had expected them to attend a breakfast reception at the [[Malacañan Palace|Presidential Palace]].{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=619}} When presented with the invitation, Epstein politely declined on the band members' behalf, as it had never been his policy to accept such official invitations.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=620}} They soon found that the Marcos regime was unaccustomed to taking "no" for an answer. The resulting riots endangered the group and they escaped the country with difficulty.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=623}} Immediately afterward, the band members visited India for the first time.{{sfn|Lavezzoli|2006|p=177}}

Almost as soon as they returned home, they faced a fierce backlash from US religious and social conservatives (as well as the [[Ku Klux Klan]]) over a comment Lennon had made in a March interview with British reporter [[Maureen Cleave]]:{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=212–13}} "Christianity will go," Lennon said. "It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I will be proved right. We're [[more popular than Jesus]] now; I don't know which will go first, rock 'n' roll or Christianity. Jesus was alright but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me."{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=307–9}} The comment went virtually unnoticed in England, but when US teenage fan magazine ''[[Datebook]]'' printed it five months later—on the eve of the group's August US tour—it sparked a controversy with Christians in the American "[[Bible Belt]]".{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=212–213}} The Vatican issued a protest, and bans on Beatles' records were imposed by Spanish and Dutch stations and South Africa's national broadcasting service.{{sfn|Norman|2008|p=449}} Epstein accused ''Datebook'' of having taken Lennon's words out of context; at a press conference Lennon pointed out, "If I'd said television was more popular than Jesus, I might have got away with it."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=346}} Lennon claimed he was referring to how other people viewed their success, but at the prompting of reporters, he concluded, "If you want me to apologise, if that will make you happy, then okay, I'm sorry."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=346}}

As preparations were made for the US tour, the ~~band members~~Beatles knew that their music would hardly be heard. Having originally used [[Vox AC30]] amplifiers, they later acquired more powerful 100-watt amplifiers, specially designed by [[Vox (musical equipment)|Vox]] for the band as they moved into larger venues in 1964, but these were still inadequate. Struggling to compete with the volume of sound generated by screaming fans, the band had grown increasingly bored with the routine of performing live.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=1093}} Recognizing that their shows were no longer about the music, they decided to make the August tour their last.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=210, 230}}

=== ''Revolver'' and ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' ===

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{{listen | filename = Strawberryfields.ogg | title = "Strawberry Fields Forever" | description = Sample of "[[Strawberry Fields Forever]]" (1967), recorded at the beginning of the ''Sgt. Pepper'' sessions. This [[psychedelic rock]] song by Lennon drew on his childhood memories of playing in the garden of a [[Strawberry Field|Salvation Army children's home]]. | filename2 = Beatles_-_Within You Without You.ogg | title2 = "Within You Without You" | description2 = Sample of "[[Within You Without You]]" from ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (1967). This [[raga rock]] song by Harrison demonstrates the influence of [[Indian classical music]] on the band.}}

Freed from the burden of touring, the ~~band~~Beatles embraced an increasingly experimental approach as they recorded ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'', beginning in late November 1966.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=232}} According to engineer [[Geoff Emerick]], the album's recording took over seven hundred hours.{{sfn|Emerick|Massey|2006|p=190}} He recalled the band's insistence "that everything on ''Sgt. Pepper'' had to be different. We had microphones right down in the bells of brass instruments and headphones turned into microphones attached to violins. We used giant primitive oscillators to vary the speed of instruments and vocals and we had tapes chopped to pieces and stuck together upside down and the wrong way around."{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=387–88}} Parts of "[[A Day in the Life]]" featured a forty-piece orchestra.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=387–88}} The sessions initially yielded the non-album [[double A-side]] single "[[Strawberry Fields Forever]]"/"[[Penny Lane]]" in February 1967;{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=221}} the ''Sgt. Pepper'' LP followed in June.{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=220}}

The musical complexity of the records, created using relatively primitive [[Multitrack recording|four-track]] recording technology, astounded contemporary artists.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=970}} For [[The Beach Boys|Beach Boys]] leader [[Brian Wilson]], in the midst of a personal crisis and struggling to complete the ambitious ''[[Smile (The Beach Boys album)|Smile]]'', hearing "Strawberry Fields" was a crushing blow and he soon abandoned all attempts to compete with his friendly rivals.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=177}}{{sfn|BBC News Online|2004}} Among music critics, acclaim for the album was virtually universal.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=420–25}} Gould:

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''Sgt. Pepper''{{'}}s elaborate cover also attracted great interest and study:{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=394–95}} a collage designed by [[pop art]]ists [[Peter Blake (artist)|Peter Blake]] and [[Jann Haworth]], it depicted the group as the fictional band referred to in the album's [[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (song)|title track]]{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=312}} standing in front of [[List of images on the cover of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band|a crowd of famous people]].{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=248}} The heavy moustaches worn by the group reflected the growing influence of [[hippie]] style,{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=236}} while cultural historian Jonathan Harris describes their "brightly coloured parodies of military uniforms" as a knowingly "anti-authoritarian and anti-establishment" display.{{sfn|Harris|2005|pp=12–13}}

On 25 June, the ~~band~~Beatles performed their forthcoming single, "[[All You Need Is Love]]", to an estimated 350 million viewers on ''[[Our World (TV special)|Our World]]'', the first live global television link.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=237, 259–60}} Released a week later during the [[Summer of Love]], the song was adopted as a [[flower power]] anthem.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=428–29}} Two months later the group suffered a loss that threw their career into turmoil. Having been introduced to [[Maharishi Mahesh Yogi]] only the previous night in London, on 25 August they travelled to [[Bangor, Gwynedd|Bangor]] for his [[Transcendental Meditation]] retreat. Two days later, their manager's assistant [[Peter Brown (music industry)|Peter Brown]] phoned to inform them that Epstein had died.{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=709, 713–19}} The coroner ruled the death an accidental [[Bromoureide|carbitol]] overdose, though it was widely rumoured a suicide.{{sfn|Brown|Gaines|2002|p=249}} Epstein had been in a fragile emotional state, stressed by personal issues and concern that the band might not renew his management contract, due to expire in October, over discontent with his supervision of business matters, particularly regarding [[Seltaeb]], the company that handled their US merchandising rights.{{sfn|Brown|Gaines|2002|pp=227–28}} His death left the group disorientated and fearful about the future. Lennon recalled, "We collapsed. I knew that we were in trouble then. I didn't really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music, and I was scared. I thought, We've had it now."{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=268}}

=== ''Magical Mystery Tour'', ''White Album'' and ''Yellow Submarine'' ===

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}}

During recording sessions for the album, which stretched from late May to mid-October 1968, relations ~~among~~between the ~~band's members~~Beatles grew openly divisive.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=283–304}} Starr quit for two weeks, and McCartney took over the drum kit for "[[Back in the U.S.S.R.]]" (on which Harrison and Lennon drummed as well) and "[[Dear Prudence]]".{{sfn|Winn|2009|pp=205–7}} Lennon had lost interest in collaborating with McCartney,{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=513, 516}} whose contribution "[[Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da]]" he scorned as "granny music shit."{{sfn|Emerick|Massey|2006|p=246}} Tensions were further aggravated by Lennon's romantic preoccupation with avant-garde artist [[Yoko Ono]], whom he insisted on bringing to the sessions despite the group's well-established understanding that girlfriends were not allowed in the studio.{{sfn|Harry|2000b|p=103}} Describing the ''White Album'', Lennon said, "Every track is an individual track; there isn't any Beatle music on it. [It's] John and the band, Paul and the band, George and the band."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=509}} McCartney recalled that the album "wasn't a pleasant one to make."{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=310}} Both he and Lennon identified the sessions as the start of the band's break-up.{{sfn|The Beatles|2000|p=237}}{{sfn|Harry|2000b|p=102}}

Issued in November, the ''White Album'' was the band's first [[Apple Records]] album release, though EMI continued to own their recordings.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=278}} The new label was a subsidiary of [[Apple Corps]], formed as part of Epstein's plan to create a tax-effective business structure.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=470}} The record attracted more than two million advance orders, selling nearly four million copies in the US in little over a month, and its tracks dominated the playlists of American radio stations.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=528}} Despite its popularity, it did not receive flattering reviews at the time. According to Gould,

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For the still unfinished ''Get Back'' album, one last song, Harrison's "[[I Me Mine]]", was recorded on 3 January 1970. Lennon, in Denmark at the time, did not participate.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=342}} In March, rejecting the work Johns had done on the project, now retitled ''Let It Be'', Klein gave the session tapes to American producer [[Phil Spector]], who had recently produced Lennon's solo single "[[Instant Karma!]]"{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=342–43}} In addition to remixing the material, Spector edited, spliced and overdubbed several of the recordings that had been intended as "live". McCartney was unhappy with the producer's approach and particularly dissatisfied with the lavish orchestration on "[[The Long and Winding Road]]", which involved a fourteen-voice choir and thirty-six-piece instrumental ensemble.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=349}} McCartney's demands that the alterations to the song be reverted were ignored,{{sfn|Harry|2000a|p=682}} and he publicly announced his departure from the band on 10 April 1970, a week before the release of his first, [[McCartney (album)|self-titled solo album]].{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=349}}{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=853}}

On 8 May the Spector-produced ''Let It Be'' was released. Its accompanying single, "The Long and Winding Road", was the ~~band~~Beatles's last; it was released in the United States, but not Britain.{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|pp=350–51}} The [[Let It Be (film)|''Let It Be'' documentary film]] followed later that month, and would win the 1970 [[Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Music (Scoring)#1970s|Best Original Song Score]].{{sfn|Southall|Perry|2006|p=96}} ''[[Sunday Telegraph]]'' critic [[Penelope Gilliatt]] called it "a very bad film and a touching one ... about the breaking apart of this reassuring, geometrically perfect, once apparently ageless family of siblings."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=600}} Several reviewers stated that some of the performances in the film sounded better than their analogous album tracks.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=601}} Describing ''Let It Be'' as the "only Beatles album to occasion negative, even hostile reviews", Unterberger calls it "on the whole underrated"; he singles out "some good moments of straight hard rock in '[[I've Got a Feeling]]' and '[[Dig a Pony]]'", and praises "[[Let It Be (song)|Let It Be]]", "Get Back", and "the folky '[[Two of Us (song)|Two of Us]]', with John and Paul harmonizing together".{{sfn|Unterberger|2009e}} McCartney filed suit for the dissolution of the ~~band members~~Beatles' contractual partnership on 31 December 1970.{{sfn|Harry|2002|p=139}} Legal disputes continued long after ~~the band's~~their break-up, and the dissolution was not formalised until 9 January 1975.{{sfn|BBC News Online|2005}}{{sfn|Harry|2002|p=150}}

== ~~After~~1970–present: after the break-up ~~(1970–present)~~ ==

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Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, and Starr all released solo albums in 1970. Their solo records sometimes involved one or more of the others;{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=601–4}} Starr's ''[[Ringo (album)|Ringo]]'' (1973) was the only album to include compositions and performances by all four ex-Beatles, albeit on separate songs. With Starr's collaboration, Harrison staged [[The Concert for Bangladesh]] in New York City in August 1971.{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=603–4}} Other than an unreleased jam session in 1974, later [[bootleg recording|bootlegged]] as ''[[A Toot and a Snore in '74]]'', Lennon and McCartney never recorded together again.{{sfn|Sandford|2006|p=227–29}}

Two double-LP sets of the ~~band~~Beatles's greatest hits, compiled by Klein, ''[[1962–1966]]'' and ''[[1967–1970]]'', were released in 1973, at first under the [[Apple Records]] imprint.{{sfn|Ingham|2006|p=69}} Commonly known as the ''Red Album'' and ''Blue Album'' respectively, each earned a [[Music recording sales certification|Multi-Platinum certification]] in the United States and a [[Music recording sales certification|Platinum certification]] in the United Kingdom.{{sfn|RIAA|2009b}}{{sfn|British Phonographic Industry|2009}} Between 1976 and 1982, EMI/Capitol released a wave of compilation albums without input from the ex-Beatles, starting with the double-disc compilation ''[[Rock 'n' Roll Music (album)|Rock 'n' Roll Music]]''.{{sfn|Southall|Perry|2006|p=109}} The only one to feature previously unreleased material was ''[[The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl]]'' (1977); the first officially issued concert recordings by the group, it contained selections from two shows they played during their 1964 and 1965 US tours.{{sfn|Ingham|2006|pp=66, 69}} The band unsuccessfully attempted to block the 1977 release of ''[[Live! at the Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962]]''. The independently issued album compiled recordings made during the group's [[The Beatles in Hamburg|Hamburg residency]], taped on a basic recording machine using only one microphone.{{sfn|Harry|2000a|pp=124–26}}

The Beatles' music and enduring fame were commercially exploited in various other ways, again often outside the band members' creative control. In April 1974, the musical ''[[John, Paul, George, Ringo … and Bert|John, Paul, George, Ringo…& Bert]]'', written by [[Willy Russell]] and featuring singer [[Barbara Dickson]] opened in London. It included, with permission from Northern Songs, eleven Lennon-McCartney compositions and one by Harrison, "[[Here Comes the Sun]]". Displeased with the production's use of his song, Harrison withdrew his permission to use it.{{sfn|Southall|Perry|2006|pp=109–10}} ''[[All This and World War II]]'' (1976) was an unorthodox nonfiction film that combined newsreel footage with covers of Beatles songs by performers ranging from [[Elton John]] and [[Keith Moon]] to the [[London Symphony Orchestra]].{{sfn|Rodriguez|2010|pp=306–7}} The [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] musical ''[[Beatlemania (musical)|Beatlemania]]'', an unauthorized nostalgia revue, opened in early 1977 and proved popular, spinning off five separate touring productions.{{sfn|Ingham|2006|pp=66–67}} In 1979, the ~~band~~Beatles sued the producers, settling for several million dollars in damages. Harrison commented: "People were just thinking ~~The Beatles~~[we] were like public domain", ~~said Harrison~~... "You can't just go around pilfering ~~The Beatles'~~[our] material."{{sfn|Ingham|2006|pp=66–67}} {{sfn|Ingham|2006|pp=66–67}} ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)|Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (1978), a musical film starring the [[Bee Gees]] and [[Peter Frampton]], was a commercial failure and "artistic fiasco".{{sfn|Ingham|2006|p=66}}

=== 1980s ===

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In ''Icons of Rock: An Encyclopedia of the Legends Who Changed Music Forever'', Scott Schinder and Andy Schwartz describe the ~~band~~Beatles's musical evolution:

{{blockquote|In their initial incarnation as cheerful, wisecracking moptops, the Fab Four revolutionized the sound, style, and attitude of popular music and opened rock and roll's doors to a tidal wave of British rock acts. Their initial impact would have been enough to establish ~~The Beatles~~[them] as one of their era's most influential cultural forces, but they didn't stop there. Although their initial style was a highly original, irresistibly catchy synthesis of early American rock and roll and R&B, ~~The Beatles~~[they] spent the rest of the 1960s expanding rock's stylistic frontiers, consistently staking out new musical territory on each release. The band's increasingly sophisticated experimentation encompassed a variety of genres, including folk-rock, country, psychedelia, and baroque pop, without sacrificing the effortless mass appeal of their early work.{{sfn|Schinder|Schwartz|2007|p=160}}}}

In ''The Beatles as Musicians'', [[Walter Everett (musicologist)|Walter Everett]] describes Lennon and McCartney's contrasting motivations and approaches to composition: "McCartney may be said to have constantly developed—as a means to entertain—a focused musical talent with an ear for counterpoint and other aspects of craft in the demonstration of a universally agreed-upon common language that he did much to enrich. Conversely, Lennon's mature music is best appreciated as the daring product of a largely unconscious, searching but undisciplined artistic sensibility."{{sfn|Everett|1999|p=9}}

[[Ian MacDonald]], comparing the two composers in ''[[Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties|Revolution in the Head]]'', describes McCartney as "a natural melodist—a creator of tunes capable of existing apart from their harmony". His melody lines are characterized as primarily "vertical", employing wide, [[Consonance and dissonance|consonant]] intervals which express his "extrovert energy and optimism". Conversely, Lennon's "sedentary, ironic personality" is reflected in a "horizontal" approach featuring minimal, dissonant intervals and repetitive melodies which rely on their harmonic accompaniment for interest: "Basically a realist, he instinctively kept his melodies close to the rhythms and cadences of speech, colouring his lyrics with bluesy tone and harmony rather than creating tunes that made striking shapes of their own."{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=12}} MacDonald praises Harrison's lead guitar work for the role his "characterful lines and textural colourings" play in supporting Lennon and McCartney's parts, and describes Starr as "the father of modern pop/rock drumming .... His faintly behind-the-beat style subtly propelled ~~The~~[the ~~Beatles~~group], his [[Drum set tuning|tunings]] brought the bottom end into recorded drum sound, and his distinctly eccentric fills remain among the most memorable in pop music."{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|pp=382–83}}

=== Influences ===

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[[File:Guitarras de McCartney y Harrison.jpg|upright|thumb|A [[Höfner 500/1|Höfner "violin" bass guitar]] and [[Gretsch|Gretsch Country Gentleman guitar]], models played by McCartney and Harrison, respectively. (The bass is right-handed; McCartney played a left-handed version.) The [[Vox (musical equipment)|Vox AC30]] amplifier behind them is the kind the band used in early concerts.|alt=Two electric guitars, a light brown violin-shaped bass and a darker brown guitar, rest against a Vox amplifier.]]

Originating as a [[skiffle]] group, ~~The~~the Beatles quickly embraced 1950s [[rock and roll]], and their repertoire ultimately expanded to include a broad variety of [[pop music]].{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=30–32, 100–107}} Reflecting the range of styles they explored, Lennon said of ''Beatles for Sale'', "You could call our new one a Beatles country-and-western LP",{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=255}} while Gould credits ''Rubber Soul'' as "the instrument by which legions of folk-music enthusiasts were coaxed into the camp of pop."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=296}}

The 1965 song "[[Yesterday (song)|Yesterday]]", makes prominent use of a string quartet; while it was not the first pop record to employ strings, it marked the group's first recorded use of [[classical music]] elements. Gould observes, "The more traditional sound of strings allowed for a fresh appreciation of their talent as composers by listeners who were otherwise allergic to the din of drums and electric guitars."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=278}} They continued to experiment with string arrangements to various effect: ''Sgt. Pepper''{{'}}s "[[She's Leaving Home]]", for instance, is "cast in the {{lang|en-US|mold}} of a sentimental Victorian ballad," wrote Gould, "its words and music filled with the clichés of musical melodrama."{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=402}}

The band's stylistic range expanded in another direction in 1966 with the B-side to the "[[Paperback Writer]]" single: "[[Rain (The Beatles song)|Rain]]", described by [[Martin C. Strong|Martin Strong]] as "the first overtly psychedelic Beatles record".{{sfn|Strong|2004|p=108}} Other [[Psychedelic music|psychedelic]] numbers followed, such as "[[Tomorrow Never Knows]]" (recorded before "Rain"), "[[Strawberry Fields Forever]]", "[[Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds]]" and "[[I Am the Walrus]]". The influence of [[Indian classical music]] was evident in Harrison's "[[The Inner Light (song)|The Inner Light]]", "[[Love You To]]" and "[[Within You Without You]]"; Gould describes the latter two as attempts "to replicate the [[raga]] form in miniature".{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=406, 462–63}}

Innovation was the most striking feature of ~~the band's~~their creative evolution, according to music historian and pianist Michael Campbell: "'[[A Day in the Life]]' encapsulates the art and achievement of ~~The~~the Beatles as well as any single track can. It highlights key features of their music: the sound imagination, the persistence of tuneful melody, and the close coordination between words and music. It represents a new category of song—more sophisticated than pop ... and uniquely innovative. There literally had never before been a song—classical or vernacular—that had blended so many disparate elements so imaginatively."{{sfn|Campbell|2008|p=196}} Philosophy professor Bruce Ellis Benson agrees: "the Beatles ... give us a wonderful example of how such far-ranging influences as Celtic music, rhythm and blues, and country and western could be put together in a new way."{{sfn|Benson|2003|p=43}}

Author Dominic Pedler describes the way they crossed genres: "One of [their] greatest ... achievements was the songwriting juggling act they managed for most of their career. Far from moving sequentially from one genre to another (as is sometimes conveniently suggested) the group maintained ''in parallel'' their mastery of the traditional, catchy chart hit while simultaneously forging rock and dabbling with a wide range of peripheral influences from Country to vaudeville. One of these threads was their take on folk music, which would form such essential groundwork for their later collisions with Indian music and philosophy."{{sfn|Pedler|2003|p=256}} As the personal relationships between the band members grew increasingly strained, their individual tastes became more apparent. The minimalistic cover artwork for the ''White Album'' contrasted with the complexity and diversity of its music, which encompassed Lennon's "[[Revolution 9]]", whose [[musique concrète]] approach was influenced by Yoko Ono; Starr's [[country music|country]] song "[[Don't Pass Me By]]"; Harrison's [[rock ballad]] "[[While My Guitar Gently Weeps]]"; and the "[[Heavy metal music#Origins: late 1960s and early 1970s|proto-metal]] roar" of McCartney's "[[Helter Skelter (song)|Helter Skelter]]".{{sfn|Erlewine|2009d}}

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Collaborating with Lennon and McCartney required Martin to adapt to their different approaches to songwriting and recording. MacDonald comments, "While [he] worked more naturally with the conventionally articulate McCartney, the challenge of catering to Lennon's intuitive approach generally spurred him to his more original arrangements, of which '[[Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!]]' is an outstanding example."{{sfn|MacDonald|2005|p=238}} Martin said of the two composers' distinct songwriting styles and his own stabilizing influence,

{{blockquote|Compared with Paul's songs, all of which seemed to keep in some sort of touch with reality, John's had a psychedelic, almost mystical quality ... John's imagery is one of the best things about his work – 'tangerine trees', 'marmalade skies', 'cellophane flowers' ... I always saw him as an aural [[Salvador Dalí]], rather than some drug-ridden record artist. On the other hand, I would be stupid to pretend that drugs didn't figure quite heavily in ~~The~~the Beatles' lives at that time ... they knew that I, in my schoolmasterly role, didn't approve ... Not only was I not into it myself, I couldn't see the need for it; and there's no doubt that, if I too had been on dope, ''Pepper'' would never have been the album it was. Perhaps it was the combination of dope and no dope that worked, who knows?{{sfn|Martin|1979|pp=205–6}}}}

Harrison echoed Martin's description of his stabilizing role: "I think we just grew through those years together, him as the straight man and us as the loonies; but he was always there for us to interpret our madness—we used to be slightly avant-garde on certain days of the week, and he would be there as the anchor person, to communicate that through the engineers and on to the tape."{{sfn|Harry|2003|p=264}}

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Their musical innovations and commercial success inspired musicians worldwide.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=8}} Many artists have acknowledged their influence and enjoyed chart success with [[List of artists who have covered The Beatles|covers of their songs]].{{sfn|BBC Radio 2|2009}} On radio, their arrival marked the beginning of a new era; programme director [[Rick Sklar]] of New York's [[WABC (AM)|WABC]] went so far as to forbid his DJs from playing any "pre-Beatles" music.{{sfn|Fisher|2007|p=198}} The Beatles helped to redefine the [[album|LP]] as something more than just a few hits padded out with "[[filler (media)|filler]]",{{sfn|Everett|1999|p=91}} and they were primary innovators of the modern [[music video]].{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=609–10}} The [[Shea Stadium]] show with which they opened their [[The Beatles' 1965 US tour|1965 North American tour]] attracted an estimated 55,600 people,{{sfn|Lewisohn|2010|p=181}} then the largest audience in concert history; Spitz describes the event as a "major breakthrough...a giant step toward reshaping the concert business."{{sfn|Spitz|2005|pp=576–78}} Emulation of their clothing and especially their hairstyles, which became a mark of rebellion, had a global impact on fashion, wrote Gould.{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=345}}

According to Gould, the ~~band~~Beatles changed the way people listened to popular music and experienced its role in their lives. From what began as the Beatlemania fad, the group grew to be perceived by many fans and cultural observers as an embodiment of the ideals shared by the [[Counterculture of the 1960s|era's sociocultural revolutions]]. As icons of the 1960s counterculture, Gould continues, they became a catalyst for [[bohemianism]] and activism in various social and political arenas, fuelling movements such as [[feminist movement|women's liberation]], [[gay liberation]] and [[environmental movement|environmentalism]].{{sfn|Gould|2007|pp=8–9}} According to Peter Lavezzoli, after the "more popular than Jesus" controversy in 1966, ~~all four~~the Beatles felt considerable pressure to say the right things and "began a concerted effort to spread a message of wisdom and higher consciousness."{{sfn|Lavezzoli|2006|p=176}}

== Awards and achievements ==

{{see also|List of awards and nominations received by ~~The~~the Beatles}}

In 1965, Queen [[Elizabeth II]] appointed Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr [[Order of the British Empire|Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)]].{{sfn|Spitz|2005|p=556}} The film ''[[Let It Be (film)|Let It Be]]'' (1970) won the 1971 [[Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Music (Scoring)#1970s|Best Original Song Score]].{{sfn|Southall|Perry|2006|p=96}} The Beatles have received 7 [[Grammy Award]]s{{sfn|Grammy.com}} and 15 [[Ivor Novello Awards]].{{sfn|Harry|2000a|pp=559–60}} They have been awarded 6 [[Music recording sales certification|Diamond albums]], as well as 24 [[Music recording sales certification|Multi-Platinum albums]], 39 [[Music recording sales certification|Platinum albums]] and 45 [[Music recording sales certification|Gold albums]] in the United States,{{sfn|RIAA|2009b}}{{sfn|RIAA2009c}} while in the UK they have 4 [[Music recording sales certification|Multi-Platinum albums]], 4 [[Music recording sales certification|Platinum albums]], 8 [[Music recording sales certification|Gold albums]] and 1 [[Music recording sales certification|Silver album]].{{sfn|British Phonographic Industry|2009}} The group were inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in 1988.

The ~~Beatles are the~~ [[List of best-selling music artists|best-selling band]] in history;, EMI Records estimate that ~~they~~the Beatles have sold over one billion units ~~around the world~~worldwide.{{sfn|Guinness|2012}}{{sfn|Gould|2007|p=8}}{{sfn|Southall|Perry|2006|p=158}} They have had more number one albums on the British charts, 15,{{sfn|Glennie|2012}} and sold more singles in the UK, 21.9 million, than any other act.{{sfn|Official Chart Company|2012}} They ranked number one in ''Billboard'' magazine's list of the all-time most successful [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]] artists, released in 2008 to celebrate the US singles chart's fiftieth anniversary.{{sfn|Billboard|2008a}} As of 2012, they hold the record for most number one hits on the Hot 100 chart with 20.{{sfn|Billboard|2008b}} The [[Recording Industry Association of America]] certifies that the group have sold 177 million units in the US, more than any other artist.{{sfn|RIAA|2009a}} The Beatles were collectively included in ''Time'' magazine's compilation of [[Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century|the 20th century's 100 most influential people]].{{sfn|Loder|1998}}

== Discography ==

{{further|List of ~~The~~the Beatles songs|List of ~~The~~the Beatles' record sales|The Beatles' recording sessions|The Beatles bootleg recordings}}

=== Original UK LPs ===

* ''[[Please Please Me]]'' (1963)

* ''[[With ~~The~~the Beatles]]'' (1963)

* ''[[A Hard Day's Night (album)|A Hard Day's Night]]'' (1964)

* ''[[Beatles for Sale]]'' (1964)