The Beatles hold the title as one of the most influential bands in Rock & Roll history, playing an outstanding role in the widespread admiration of popular music. Throughout their career they experimented
with pop, rock, folk, and psychedelia, popularizing each style. It was estimated in 1985 that the band had sold over one billion records worldwide making them the top selling artists of all time.
In 1957, guitarist John Lennon formed the skiffle group The Quarrymen with a few high school friends. A few months later, he was joined by Paul McCartney who also played guitar. As the member line-up faced numerous changes, George Harrison joined in 1958 becoming a permanent bandmate along with Lennon and McCartney. The group went through many name changes and eventually settled on The Beatles which is derived from the word combination of the insect "beetle" and the word "beat". In 1960, they embarked on a north east tour of Scotland as the back-up band for Johnny Gentle hiring Tommy Moore as their drummer. Moore left shortly and was replaced by Norman Chapman who several weeks later was called for National Service. Pete Best, the former drummer of The Blackjacks and bassist Stuart Sutcliffe joined The Beatles in time for their performances in Hamburg, Germany. There they were recruited by Tony Sheridan to be his backing band for a few of his recordings, one of them being the German hit "My Bonnie" (Mein Herz ist bei dir nur). Sutcliffe was absent from the recordings as he had left the band prior to pursue an art career.
The band returned to Liverpool toward the end of 1960, were they would often perform in the Merseyside area at the Cavern Club. Brian Epstein became their manager in 1962 and was on a mission to land the Beatles a record contract. Although declined by Decca Records, he persisted and eventually got the band signed to EMI's Parlaphone label by producer George Martin. Problems soon began to arise as the band and Martin were unsatisfied with Best's performance and lack of compliance with the group. He was fired on August 16, 1962 and replaced by the former drummer of Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, Ringo Starr. They recorded their first single with Starr "Love Me Do/P.S. I Love You" which became a hit in the UK in September 1962. "Please Please Me" followed in 1963 topping the charts and is considered the classic British Invasion single. The album of the same name occupied the top spots on the chart for thirty weeks making The Beatles the most popular rock and roll band around.
The Beatles' fame was quickly rising in the UK, however Parlophone's American equal, Capitol Records refused to release their singles in the US as they were hesitant because in the past no British band was capable of attaining commercial success. However, the Beatles' music began to appear on American independent radio stations influencing Capitol to reconsider their decision. "I Want To Hold Your Hand" was released in the US on December 26, 1963 and skyrocketed to the top of the charts. A few months later they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show triggering the beginning of "Beatlemania" as a record breaking 73 million viewers tuned in to watch the band perform. Within the next several months, the Beatles occupied the top five spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. From that point onwards, the group became an incredible phenomenon dominating pop music worldwide.
During the summer of 1964, The Beatles released A Hard Day's Night, the accompanying soundtrack to the film of the same title. It featured the hit songs "Tell Me Why", "Can't Buy Me Love", and "A Hard Day's Night". Beatles for Sale followed a few months later and was deemed one of their weakest efforts. Their second film and accompanying soundtrack Help! were issued in August 1965 and were received with great praise owing its success to the tracks "Ticket To Ride", "It's Only Love", "Yesterday", and the title track. 1965's Rubber Soul displayed a more sophisticated and mature sound. Their progression into adulthood is evident in such songs as "Norwegian Wood", "I'm Looking Through You", "You Won't See Me", and "Nowhere Man". The album proved to be a commercial success and is considered one of their greatest. Their seventh studio album, Revolver, became a number one hit in the UK and in the US in 1966 owing its success to the hit songs "Yellow Submarine", and "Eleanor Rigby"
In 1967, the Beatles released the infamous Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band which is widely recognized as the most influential rock album of all time. The album was innovative and artistic in every sense as it experimented with different sounds and recording techniques as well as featured unique cover artwork. The album earned Grammy Awards in 1967 for Album of the Year, Best Engineered Recording, Contemporary Album, and Best Album Cover. The Beatles, which is more often referred to as The White Album appeared in 1968. Despite its success, tensions began to develop within the band during the recording and after its release. They managed to issue three more albums Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road, and Let It Be before their official breakup in 1970.
Each member set out to pursue their solo careers and did so successfully. Several rumors circulated regarding a possible reunion, however the tragic assassination of John Lennon on December 8, 1980 prevented such a possibility. Anthology 1 was released in 1995 featuring rare recordings and previously unreleased material. It included the single "Free as a Bird" which was the first new Beatles' song in 25 years. In 2000, the compilation album 1, which contained every number one single the band released from 1962 to 1970, became the biggest selling album of the year. In June 2006, Cirque Du Soleil premiered LOVE, their tribute to The Beatles at the Mirage hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.
