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.
The Medley
The Beatles Lyrics
Jump to: Line by Line Meaning ↴
Step right this way
Roll up, roll up for the magical mystery tour
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour
The magical mystery tour is waiting
To take you away
Waiting to take you away, take you today
There's nothing you can do that can't be done
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung
Nothing you can say but you can
Learn how to play the game it's easy
All you need is love all you need is love
All you need is love, love
Love is all you need
Everywhere people stare each and every day
I can see them laugh at me
And I hear them say
Hey you've got to hide your love away
Hey you've got to hide your love away
Wo, wo, I never realized what a kiss could be
This could only happen to me can't you see?
Can't you see?
That when I tell you that I love you, oh
You're gonna say you love me too, oh
And when I ask you to be mine
You're gonna say you love me too
It's been a hard day's night
It's been a hard day's night
I should be sleeping like a log
But when I get home to you
I find the things that you do
Will make me feel alright whoa
I think I'm gonna be sad
I think it's today, yeah
The girl that's driving me mad is going away
She's got a ticker to ride
She's got a ticker to ride
She's got a ticker to ride
And she don't care
Jojo was a man who thought he was a loner
But he knew it couldn't last
Jojo left his home in Tucson, Arizona
For some California grass
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Do
Roll up, roll up for the magical mystery tour
Come one, come all to the enchanting journey filled with unknown wonders.
Step right this way
Position yourself here to experience the adventure that awaits.
Roll up, roll up for the magical mystery tour
Join in and partake in this wondrous exploration of mystery and surprise.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour
Embrace the invitation to a journey shrouded in intriguing secrets.
The magical mystery tour is waiting
An exciting journey filled with the unknown is ready and available for you.
To take you away
This experience promises to transport you to new horizons.
Waiting to take you away, take you today
This opportunity is poised to whisk you away right now.
There's nothing you can do that can't be done
There are no limits to what you are capable of achieving.
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung
Every song or expression you desire to share is within your grasp.
Nothing you can say but you can
You have the capacity to articulate anything you wish.
Learn how to play the game it's easy
Mastering life's complexities can be straightforward with the right approach.
All you need is love all you need is love
The essential requirement for fulfillment in life is love.
All you need is love, love
Love is the core element that brings everything together.
Love is all you need
In the grand scheme of things, love alone suffices for happiness.
Everywhere people stare each and every day
Daily scrutiny from others seems to surround us, as they observe our actions.
I can see them laugh at me
I can sense their mockery or judgment directed at me.
And I hear them say
Their words of ridicule resonate in my ears.
Hey you've got to hide your love away
You must conceal your affection in order to protect it from criticism.
Hey you've got to hide your love away
It is necessary to shield your feelings from the prying eyes of others.
Wo, wo, I never realized what a kiss could be
I was unaware of the profound significance and impact of a simple kiss.
This could only happen to me can't you see?
This unique situation feels exclusively personal; you must understand my perspective.
Can't you see?
Do you not comprehend the depth of my feelings?
That when I tell you that I love you, oh
When I express my feelings of love to you,
You're gonna say you love me too, oh
I believe you will reciprocate those feelings for me.
And when I ask you to be mine
When I propose that you become a part of my life,
You're gonna say you love me too
I trust that you will affirm your love in return.
It's been a hard day's night
The night follows a challenging and exhausting day.
And I've been working like a dog
I have been laboring tirelessly and with great effort.
It's been a hard day's night
This evening comes after a demanding and strenuous day.
I should be sleeping like a log
I ought to be resting soundly after such exertion.
But when I get home to you
However, upon returning to your presence,
I find the things that you do
I discover that your actions and mannerisms,
Will make me feel alright whoa
Bring me comfort and solace, lifting my spirits.
I think I'm gonna be sad
I feel as though impending sorrow is on the horizon.
I think it's today, yeah
I believe that the moment of sadness is arriving today.
The girl that's driving me mad is going away
The woman whose influence troubles my mind is departing.
She's got a ticker to ride
She possesses a ticket to embark on her own journey.
She's got a ticker to ride
She holds a means of escape that she is ready to utilize.
She's got a ticker to ride
She is prepared to board a journey, leaving me behind.
And she don't care
Her indifference to my feelings is apparent.
Jojo was a man who thought he was a loner
Jojo perceived himself as an isolated individual.
But he knew it couldn't last
Deep down, he understood that solitude was not sustainable.
Jojo left his home in Tucson, Arizona
Jojo decided to abandon his roots in Tucson, seeking change.
For some California grass
He ventured toward the allure of California's promising opportunities.
Get back, get back
Return, retrace your steps to where you are truly meant to be.
Get back to where you once belonged
Revisit the place where you feel at home and authentic.
Get back, get back
Come back, revisit your origins and familiar comforts.
Get back to where you once belonged
Return to the space that defines your true identity.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jamesstewart8377
Paul was such a monstrous vocalist. Unbelievable how pitch perfect his voice could be on command like that.
@ge2623
God given gift.
@pedromoraes6620
And autotune were not invented yet
@killval849
is* thank god.
@broadband0118
Completely agree. Very sadly, it's gone now.
@ge2623
@@broadband0118 I'll take a great voice gone as opposed to a mediocre voice lauded with autotune.
@peterflorino9692
Owned a record store when it was released. Played the album over and over again in the store. I'm 83 and still believe it's the greatest and most artistic album ever recorded.
@thomasfisher5742
ya got my vote PETE...i was a lot younger....I'm only 75 lol
@tucowept
The Beatles cruelty, just showing off on what they knew was their last album. Imagine what the other bands thought when they heard this.
@alycatpublishing1164
You and millions of other people.