Led by primary songwriters Lennon and McCartney, the Beatles built their reputation playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg over three years from 1960, initially with Stuart Sutcliffe playing bass. The core trio of Lennon, McCartney and Harrison, together since 1958, went through a succession of drummers, eventually settling with Pete Best in 1960, who played with them for two years before being replaced with then Rory Storm & The Hurricanes drummer Ringo Starr in 1962. Manager Brian Epstein molded them into a professional act and producer George Martin guided and developed their recordings, greatly expanding their domestic success after their first hit, "Love Me Do", in late 1962. As their popularity grew into the intense fan frenzy dubbed "Beatlemania", the band acquired the nickname "the Fab Four", with Epstein, Martin and other members of the band's entourage sometimes given the informal title of "fifth Beatle".
By early 1964, the Beatles were international stars, leading the "British Invasion" of the United States pop market and breaking numerous sales records. They soon made their film debut with A Hard Day's Night (1964). From 1965 onwards, they produced increasingly innovative recordings, including the albums Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966) and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), and enjoyed further commercial success with The Beatles (also known as "the White Album", 1968) and Abbey Road (1969). In 1968, they founded Apple Corps, a multi-armed multimedia corporation that continues to oversee projects related to the band's legacy. After the group's break-up in 1970, all four members enjoyed success as solo artists. Lennon was shot and killed in December 1980, and Harrison died of lung cancer in November 2001. McCartney and Starr remain musically active.
The Beatles are the best-selling music act of all time, with estimated sales of 600 million units worldwide. They hold the record for most number-one albums on the UK Albums Chart, most number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and most singles sold in the UK. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, and all four main members were inducted individually between 1994 and 2015. In 2008, the group topped Billboard's list of the all-time most successful artists on the Billboard Hot 100. The band received seven Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award (for Best Original Song Score for the 1970 film Let It Be) and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards. Time magazine named them among the 20th century's 100 most important people.
Former Rolling Stone associate editor Robert Greenfield compared the Beatles to Picasso, as "artists who broke through the constraints of their time period to come up with something that was unique and original "... In the form of popular music, no one will ever be more revolutionary, more creative and more distinctive ..." The British poet Philip Larkin described their work as "an enchanting and intoxicating hybrid of African-American rock-and-roll with their own adolescent romanticism", and "the first advance in popular music since the War".
They not only sparked the British Invasion of the US, they became a globally influential phenomenon as well. From the 1920s, the US had dominated popular entertainment culture throughout much of the world, via Hollywood films, jazz, the music of Broadway and Tin Pan Alley and, later, the rock and roll that first emerged in Memphis, Tennessee. The Beatles are regarded as British cultural icons, with young adults from abroad naming the band among a group of people that they most associated with UK culture.
Their musical innovations and commercial success inspired musicians worldwide. Many artists have acknowledged the Beatles' influence and enjoyed chart success with covers of their songs. On radio, their arrival marked the beginning of a new era; in 1968 the programme director of New York's WABC radio station forbade his DJs from playing any "pre-Beatles" music, marking the defining line of what would be considered oldies on American radio. They helped to redefine the album as something more than just a few hits padded out with "filler", and they were primary innovators of the modern music video. The Shea Stadium show with which they opened their 1965 North American tour attracted an estimated 55,600 people, then the largest audience in concert history; Spitz describes the event as a "major breakthrough ... a giant step toward reshaping the concert business". Emulation of their clothing and especially their hairstyles, which became a mark of rebellion, had a global impact on fashion.
According to Gould, the 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's popularity grew into what was seen as an embodiment of socio-cultural movements of the decade. 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 women's liberation, gay liberation and environmentalism. According to Peter Lavezzoli, after the "more popular than Jesus" controversy in 1966, the Beatles felt considerable pressure to say the right things and "began a concerted effort to spread a message of wisdom and higher consciousness".
Other commentators such as Mikal Gilmore and Todd Leopold have traced the inception of their socio-cultural impact earlier, interpreting even the Beatlemania period, particularly on their first visit to the US, as a key moment in the development of generational awareness. Referring to their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show Leopold states: "In many ways, the Sullivan appearance marked the beginning of a cultural revolution ... The Beatles were like aliens dropped into the United States of 1964.
In 1965, Queen Elizabeth II appointed Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). The Beatles won the 1971 Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for the film Let It Be (1970). The recipients of seven Grammy Awards and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards, the Beatles have six Diamond albums, as well as 20 Multi-Platinum albums, 16 Platinum albums and six Gold albums in the US. In the UK, the Beatles have four Multi-Platinum albums, four Platinum albums, eight Gold albums and one Silver album. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.
The best-selling band in history, the Beatles have sold more than 800 million physical and digital albums as of 2013. They have had more number-one albums on the UK charts, fifteen, and sold more singles in the UK, 21.9 million, than any other act. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked the Beatles as the most significant and influential rock music artists of the last 50 years. They ranked number one on Billboard magazine's list of the all-time most successful Hot 100 artists, released in 2008 to celebrate the US singles chart's 50th anniversary. As of 2017, they hold the record for most number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100, with twenty. The Recording Industry Association of America certifies that the Beatles have sold 178 million units in the US, more than any other artist. They were collectively included in Time magazine's compilation of the 20th century's 100 most influential people. In 2014, they received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
There are two holidays celebrated for the Beatles: Global Beatles Day on 25 June each year. On that date in 1967, the band performed "All You Need Is Love" on television. In 2001, UNESCO created World Beatles Day on 16 January each year. This date has direct relation to the opening of The Cavern Club in 1957.
Five asteroids, 4147 Lennon, 4148 McCartney, 4149 Harrison, 4150 Starr and 8749 Beatles are named after the Beatles.
Johnny Be Goode
The Beatles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Close to New Orleans
Way back up in the woods
Among the evergreens
There stand a country cabin
Made of clay and wood
Where lives a young country boy
Named Johnny B. Goode
To read or write a book so well
But he could play his guitar
Just like a-ringing a bell
Go go, go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Aah Johnny B. Goode!
He used to carry his guitar
In a gunny sack
Sit beneath the trees
By the railroad track
Oh sitting and a-playing
In the shade
Drumming to the rhythm
That the drivers made
People passing by
Used to stop and say
My oh my
That country boy can play
Go go, go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Aah Johnny B. Goode!
Well his mama told him
Someday you will be a man
And you will be the leader
Of a big old band
Many people coming
From miles around
To hear you play your music
Till the sun goes down
Maybe some day
Your name will be in light
Saying Johnny B. Goode tonight!
Go go, go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Go Johnny go go go!
Aah Johnny B.Goode!
The lyrics of the song “Johnny B. Goode” by The Beatles tell the story of a young guitar player from Louisiana named Johnny B. Goode. Johnny lives in a cabin in the woods and never learned how to read or write, but he can play the guitar like nobody’s business. His talent is so great that people passing by stop to hear him play and are in awe of his skills. Johnny’s mother tells him that one day he’ll be a big star and lead his own band, and people from miles around will come to hear him play until the sun goes down.
The song is a celebration of music and the power it has to transcend cultural and educational barriers. Despite not being able to read or write, Johnny is able to express himself and connect with others through his music. The song also reflects the American Dream of achieving success through hard work and dedication. Johnny’s mother believes in him and encourages him to pursue his passion, and the song suggests that with enough talent and determination, anyone can achieve their dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
Deep down in Louisianna
The story begins in Louisiana
Close to New Orleans
The location is near to New Orleans
Way back up in the woods
The story's character is in a remote wooden area
Among the evergreens
The environment has evergreen plants
There stand a country cabin
The background is a rural cabin
Made of clay and wood
The cabin is built with simple materials
Where lives a young country boy
The character is a young boy
Named Johnny B. Goode
His name is Johnny B. Goode
He never ever learned
Johnny didn't get to complete his schooling
To read or write a book so well
Johnny is not good at reading or writing
But he could play his guitar
Johnny had a talent for playing his guitar
Just like a-ringing a bell
Johnny can play his guitar beautifully
Go go, go Johnny go go go!
The lyrics encourage Johnny to keep playing and performing
Go Johnny go go go!
The song supports Johnny's guitar talent
Go Johnny go go go!
The lyrics urge Johnny to continue honing his gift
Go Johnny go go go!
The song is meant to inspire Johnny to be great
Aah Johnny B. Goode!
The singer acknowledges Johnny's talent by chanting his name
He used to carry his guitar
Johnny carried his guitar everywhere he went
In a gunny sack
He used a gunny sack to carry his guitar
Sit beneath the trees
Johnny used to sit under the trees while playing his guitar
By the railroad track
The guitar playing site was next to a railroad track
Oh sitting and a-playing
Johnny would sit and play all day
In the shade
Johnny would find a spot under the trees for shade while he played his guitar
Drumming to the rhythm
Johnny tapped his foot to the beat
That the drivers made
The drivers of trains that passed by Johnny's playing made sounds that blended well with his guitar
People passing by
People would walk by and hear Johnny's music
Used to stop and say
People would stop and admire Johnny's talent
My oh my
People were genuinely impressed by Johnny's playing
That country boy can play
People could tell Johnny was a country boy and still a talented musician
Well his mama told him
Johnny's mother said something to him
Someday you will be a man
Johnny's mother advised him that he will someday grow into a man
And you will be the leader
Johnny's mother had belief that her son would be a leader
Of a big old band
Johnny would lead a large band of musicians
Many people coming
The song predicts a lot of people turning up to watch Johnny's music shows
From miles around
People from far and wide will come to watch Johnny's music shows
To hear you play your music
People will come to appreciate Johnny's music playing
Till the sun goes down
They'll stick around until it's dark
Maybe some day
Perhaps in the future
Your name will be in light
Johnny's name would become popular
Saying Johnny B. Goode tonight!
People will want to see Johnny live and watch his talent
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CHUCK BERRY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Alexandre Fueta
EXTREMELY EXCELENT
Let's Plays in Space
Too bad no one in this. Idea sounds or even looks a little like the Beatles did. For those interested in how the Beatles played Johnny B. Goode, listen to the Live at the BBC album and not this fake.
AllansTrousers
@aryowailangitoyo97 Yes there were originally five Beatles, which included John's best friend Stuart Sutcliffe
Eduardo Sutcliffe
Yeah 5 Beatles: John Lennon, Paul Mccartney, George Harrison, Stuartt Stucliffe and the drumer Pete Best
Michael Sorrells
That chuck Berry songs the Beatles cover chuck Berry
Enrie co
They are not the beatles
Siniša Marin
There is no Beatles. Paul is rughhanded? Who sings?
AllansTrousers
John generally took the lead on this song. Paul as you can see is playing a left handed acoustic guitar on this track. I urge you to look at historic pictures of the Billy Fury audition at the Wyvern Social club (later the Blue Angel) we did get the setting spot on:) thank you for your comment.