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.
Slow Down
The Beatles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come on pretty baby won't you talk with me
Come on pretty baby give me one more chance
Try and save our romance
Slow down
Baby, now you're moving way too fast
You gotta gimme little loving
Ow, if you want our love to last
Well, I used to walk you home, baby, after school
Carry your books home, too
But now you got a boyfriend down the street
Baby what're you trying to do
You better slow down
Baby, now you're moving way too fast
You gotta gimme little loving
Gimme little loving
Brrr, if you want our love to last
Well, you know that I love you, tell the world I do
Come on pretty baby, why can't you be true
I need you badly, baby, oh so bad
The best little woman I ever had
Slow down
Baby, now you're moving way too fast
You gotta gimme little loving
Gimme little loving
Ow, if you want our love to last
The Beatles's song Slow Down begins with a plea to his pretty baby to walk with him and talk with him, as he asks for one more chance to save their romance. The lyrics of this song suggest that the singer is frustrated with the pace at which his partner is moving in the relationship. The singer of the song recalls how he used to walk his partner home from school and carry her books, but now she has a new boyfriend down the street. The singer is worried that his partner is moving too fast and that if she wants their love to last, she needs to slow down.
This song can be interpreted as a classic teenage love song. The singer's plea to his partner to slow down can be seen as a warning for taking things too fast, both physically and emotionally. The lyrics are cheerful and upbeat, perhaps reflecting the hopefulness of youth. The Beatles's song Slow Down is a classic rock and roll song that has a nostalgic feel to it, making it a timeless classic.
Overall, the lyrics of The Beatles's song Slow Down are an appeal to a partner to slow down and take things at a more sustainable pace, in order to make their love last. The lyrics contain classic rock and roll themes of teenage love and youthful exuberance.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, come on pretty baby won't you walk with me
The singer is asking their partner to walk with them as they try to work things out.
Come on pretty baby won't you talk with me
The singer is asking their partner to communicate with them and express their feelings.
Come on pretty baby give me one more chance
The singer is asking their partner for a chance to fix the issues in their relationship.
Try and save our romance
The artist is trying to save their relationship from ending.
Slow down
The artist is asking their partner to slow down and take things one step at a time to avoid rushing into things.
Baby, now you're moving way too fast
The singer feels that their partner is moving too quickly in the relationship and needs to slow down.
You gotta gimme little loving
The singer needs affection and attention from their partner to keep the relationship alive.
Gimme little loving
The artist is emphasizing that they only need a small amount of love and attention to be happy.
Ow, if you want our love to last
The artist notes that for the relationship to last, their partner needs to communicate and give them the affection they need.
Well, I used to walk you home, baby, after school
The artist is reminiscing about a past time when they used to spend more time with their partner.
Carry your books home, too
The singer used to go out of their way to take care of their partner and do things for them.
But now you got a boyfriend down the street
The artist is acknowledging that their partner has moved on and is seeing someone else.
Baby what're you trying to do
The singer is questioning their partner's intentions and why they are still involved with them while seeing someone else.
Brrr, if you want our love to last
The singer notes that their partner must choose between them and their new partner if they want their relationship to succeed.
Well, you know that I love you, tell the world I do
The singer is proclaiming their love for their partner and wants the world to know how they feel.
Come on pretty baby, why can't you be true
The artist is asking their partner to be honest and loyal to them.
I need you badly, baby, oh so bad
The artist is expressing their need for their partner and how important they are to them.
The best little woman I ever had
The singer thinks that their partner is the best person they have ever been with and wants to maintain the relationship.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Larry Williams
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jihadmakhoul6328
That's not just a live performance ....its a piece of history
@kk-om5zm
Yeah!!
@AthosRac
This is studio.
@jasveerkhinda8816
@RatusNatus Do you are have stupid?
@phrahm
@Heildir Ezekiel it's from a meme lol
@slimva6547
Certainly not live. Still historic though. Live performances were a lot poorer quality audio back then, not that they couldn't pull it off though
@megatronusXZ
Only the beatles could make a live performance sound better than the studio version
@iiangmariiomega2639
Also bob marley was live really Good
@sathira_anuk5179
Eagle's could do it too
@user-yr7xi1om3h
And dominick fike on his song "rollerblades" some artists are pressured to change stuff to make ot more broadly appealing or less impactful. Guess it depends on the message