Rock music before the Beatles. The history of the British rock group The Beatles Beatles rock and roll

The Beatles made a great contribution to the development of rock music and became a striking phenomenon of world culture in the sixties of the twentieth century. In this article we will learn not only the history of the emergence of the Beatles. The biography of each participant after the collapse of the legendary team will also be considered.

Beginning (1956-1960)

When did the Beatles originate? The biography has been of interest to several generations of fans. The history of the group can begin with the formation of the musical tastes of the participants.

In the spring of 1956, the leader of the future star team, John Lennon, heard one of Elvis Presley's songs for the first time. And this song, Heartbreak Hotel, turned the young man’s whole life upside down. Lennon played banjo and harmonica, but new music made him pick up the guitar.

Biography of the Beatles in Russian usually begins with the first group organized by Lennon. With school friends, he created the group "Quarriman", named after them educational institution. The teenagers played skiffle, a form of amateur British rock and roll.

At one of the band's performances, Lennon met Paul McCartney, who surprised the guy with his knowledge of the chords of the latest songs and high musical development. And in the spring of 1958, George Harrison, Paul's friend, joined them. The trio became the backbone of the group. They were invited to play at parties and weddings, but it never came to real concerts.

Inspired by the example of rock and roll pioneers, Eddie Cochran and Paul and John decided to write their own songs and play guitars. They wrote the texts together and gave them dual authorship.

In 1959, a new member appeared in the group - Stuart Sutcliffe, Lennon's friend. was almost formed: Sutcliffe (bass guitar), Harrison (lead guitar), McCartney (vocals, guitar, piano), Lennon (vocals, rhythm guitar). The only thing missing was a drummer.

Name

It’s difficult to tell briefly about the Beatles; even the history of the emergence of such a simple and short name groups. When the group began to integrate into the concert life of their hometown, they needed a new name, because they no longer had anything to do with the school. In addition, the group began performing at various talent competitions.

For example, on television competition In 1959, the team performed under the name Johnny and the Moondogs. Moon Dogs"). And the name The Beatles appeared a few months later, at the beginning of 1960. Who exactly invented it is unknown, most likely Sutcliffe and Lennon, who wanted to take a word that had several meanings.

When pronounced, the name sounds like beetles, that is, beetles. And when writing, the root of beat is visible - like beat music, a fashionable direction of rock and roll that arose in the 1960s. However, the promoters believed that this name was not catchy and too short, so on the posters the guys were called Long John and the Silver Beetles (“Long John and the Silver Beetles”).

Hamburg (1960-1962)

The skill of the musicians grew, but they remained just one of many musical groups hometown. The biography of the Beatles, a brief summary of which you have just started reading, continues with the band’s move to Hamburg.

The young musicians benefited from the fact that numerous Hamburg clubs needed English-language bands, and several teams from Liverpool had proven themselves well. In the summer of 1960, the Beatles received an invitation to come to Hamburg. This was already serious work, so the quartet had to urgently look for a drummer. This is how Pete Best appeared in the group.

The first concert took place the next day after arrival. For several months the musicians honed their skills in Hamburg clubs. They had to play music of different styles and directions for a long time - rock and roll, blues, rhythm and blues, sing pop and folk songs. We can say that it was largely thanks to the experience gained in Hamburg that the Beatles came into being. The biography of the team was experiencing its dawn.

In just two years, the Beatles gave about 800 concerts in Hamburg and raised their skills from amateur to professional. The Beatles did not perform their own songs, concentrating on compositions by famous artists.

In Hamburg, the musicians met students from a local art college. One of the students, Astrid Kircher, began dating Sutcliffe and actively participating in the life of the group. This girl offered the guys new hairstyles - hair combed over the forehead and ears, and later characteristic jackets without lapels and collars.

The Beatles, who returned to Liverpool, were no longer amateurs, they became on par with the most popular groups. It was then that they met Ringo Starr om, the drummer of a rival team.

After returning to Hamburg, the group's first professional recording took place. The musicians accompanied rock and roll singer Tony Sheridan. The quartet also recorded several of its own songs. This time their name was The Beat Brothers, not The Beatles.

Sutcliffe’s brief biography continued with his exit from the team. At the end of the tour, he refused to return to Liverpool, choosing to stay with his girlfriend in Hamburg. A year later, Sutcliffe died of a cerebral hemorrhage.

First success (1962-1963)

The group returned to England and began performing in Liverpool clubs. On July 27, 1961, the first significant concert took place in the hall, which became a major success. In November, the group got a manager - Brian Epstein.

He met with a major label producer who expressed interest in the group. He was not entirely satisfied with the demo recordings, but the young people charmed him live. The first contract was signed.

However, both the producer and the band's manager were unhappy with Pete Best. They believed that he did not live up to the general level, in addition, the musician refused to do a signature hairstyle, to support general style team and often conflicted with other participants. Despite the fact that Best was popular with fans, it was decided to replace him. Ringo Starr took over as drummer.

Ironically, it was with this drummer that the group recorded an amateur record at their own expense in Hamburg. While walking around the city, the guys met Ringo (Pete Best was not with them) and went into one of the street studios to record a few songs just for fun.

In September 1962, the group recorded their first single, Love Me Do, which became very popular. The manager’s cunning also played a big role here - Epstein bought ten thousand records with his own money, which increased sales and aroused interest.

In October, the first television performance took place - a broadcast of one of the concerts in Manchester. Soon the second single Please Please Me was recorded, and in February 1963, in 13 hours, an album of the same name was recorded, which included cover versions popular songs and my own compositions. In November of the same year, sales of the second album With The Beatles began.

Thus began the period of wild popularity that the Beatles experienced. The biography, a brief history of the beginning team, is over. The story of the legendary group begins.

The birthday of the term “Beatlemania” is considered to be October 13, 1963. In London, at the Palladium, a concert of the group took place, which was broadcast throughout the country. But thousands of fans chose to gather around the concert hall in the hope of seeing the musicians. The Beatles had to make their way to the car with the help of the police.

The height of Beatlemania (1963-1964)

The quartet was wildly popular in Britain, but the group's singles were not released in America, since English groups usually did not have much success. The manager managed to sign a contract with a small company, but the records were not noticed.

How did the Beatles get onto the big American stage? A (short) biography of the band says that everything changed when a music critic from a famous newspaper listened to the single “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” which was already very popular in England, and called the musicians “ greatest composers after Beethoven." The following month the group reached the top of the charts.

Beatlemania has crossed the ocean. On the band's first visit to America, the musicians were greeted at the airport by several thousand fans. The Beatles gave 3 big concert and appeared on a TV show. All of America was watching them.

In March 1964, the quartet began creating a new album, A Hard Day's Night, and a musical film of the same name. And the single Can't Buy Me Love/You Can't Do That, which appeared that month, set a world record for the number of advance requests.

On August 19, 1964, a full-fledged tour of North America began. The group gave 31 concerts in 24 cities. Initially, it was planned to visit 23 cities, but the owner of a basketball club from Kazakhstan City offered the musicians 150 thousand dollars for a half-hour concert (usually the ensemble received 25-30 thousand).

Touring was difficult for the musicians. It was as if they were in a prison, completely isolated from outside world. The places where the Beatles stayed were besieged by crowds of fans around the clock in the hope of seeing their idols.

The concert venues were huge and the equipment was of poor quality. The musicians did not hear each other or even themselves, they often got confused, but the audience did not hear this and saw practically nothing, since the stage was installed very far away for safety reasons. They had to perform according to a clear program; there was no question of any improvisation or experimentation on stage.

Yesterday and the Lost Records (1964-1965)

After returning to London, work began on the album Beatles For Sale, which included borrowed and own songs. A week after its release, it rocketed to the top of the charts.

In July 1965, the second film Help! was released, and in August an album with the same name was released. It was this album that included the most famous song by Yesterday, which has become a classic of popular music. Today, more than two thousand interpretations of this composition are known.

The author of the famous melody was Paul McCartney. He composed the music at the beginning of the year, the words appeared later. He called the composition Scrambled Egg, because when composing it, he sang Scrambled egg, how I love a scrambled egg... (“Scrambled eggs, how I love scrambled eggs”). The song was recorded to the accompaniment string quartet, of the group members, only Paul participated.

During the second American tour, which started in August, an event occurred that still haunts music lovers around the world. What did the Beatles do? The biography briefly describes that the musicians visited Elvis Presley himself. The stars not only talked, but also played several songs together, which were recorded on a tape recorder.

The recordings were never released and music agents around the world have been unable to locate them. The value of these recordings is impossible to estimate today.

New Directions (1965-1966)

In 1965 at big stage Many groups came out that competed with the Beatles. The band began creating a new album, Rubber Soul. This record marked new era in rock music. Elements of surrealism and mysticism for which the Beatles are known began to appear in the songs.

The biography (short) tells that at the same time scandals began to arise around the musicians. In July 1966, the group members refused an official reception, which caused a conflict with the First Lady. The Filipinos, outraged by this fact, almost tore the musicians apart; they had to literally run away. The tour manager was severely beaten, the quartet was pushed and almost pushed towards the plane.

Second big scandal erupted when John Lennon said in an interview that Christianity is dying, and the Beatles are more popular today than Jesus. Protests swept across the United States, and the band's records were burned. The team leader, under pressure, apologized for his words.

Despite the troubles, the album Revolver was released in 1966, one of best albums groups. His distinctive feature is that musical compositions were complex and did not involve performing live. The Beatles were now a studio band. Exhausted from touring, the musicians abandoned concert activities. In the same year passed last concerts. Music critics called the album brilliant and were sure that the quartet would never be able to create anything as perfect.

However, in early 1967 the single Strawberry Fields Forever/Penny Lane was recorded. The recording of this record lasted 129 days (compare with the 13-hour recording of the first album), the studio worked literally around the clock. The single was extremely difficult to musically and was simply a resounding success, staying at the top of the charts for 88 weeks.

White Album (1967-1968)

The Beatles' performance was broadcast throughout the world. It could be seen by 400 million people. A TV version of the song All You Need Is Love was recorded. After this triumph, the team's affairs began to decline. The death of the “fifth Beatle,” the band’s manager Brian Epstein, as a result of an overdose of sleeping pills, played a role in this. He was only 32. Epstein was an important member of the Beatles. The biography of the group after his death underwent serious changes.

For the first time the group received first negative reviews regarding the new film Magical Mystery Tour. Many complaints were caused by the fact that the tape was released only in color, while most people only had black and white TVs. The soundtrack was released as a mini-album.

In 1968, Apple was responsible for the release of albums, as announced by the Beatles, whose biography continued. In January 1969, the cartoon "Yellow Submarine" and its soundtrack were released. In August - the single Hey Jude, one of the best in the history of the group. And in 1968 the famous album The The Beatles, better known as the white album. It received this name because its cover was snow-white, with a simple imprint of the title. The fans received it well, but the critics no longer shared the enthusiasm.

This record marked the beginning of the group's breakup. Ringo Starr left the band for some time, several songs were recorded without him. McCartney performed the drums. Harrison has been busy with solo work. The situation became tense because of Yoko Ono, who was constantly present in the studio and rather irritated the band members.

Breakup (1969-1970)

At the beginning of 1969, the musicians had many plans. They were going to release an album, a film about their studio work, and a book. Paul McCartney composed the song “Get Back,” which gave the name to the entire project. The Beatles, whose biography began so casually, was approaching collapse.

The band members wanted to show the atmosphere of fun and ease that reigned at the performances in Hamburg, but this did not work. Many songs were recorded, but only five were selected, and a lot of video material was filmed. The last recording was supposed to be filming an impromptu concert on the roof of a recording studio. He was interrupted by the police, who were called by local residents. This concert became last performance groups.

On February 3, 1969, the team got a new manager, Allen Klein. McCartney was strongly opposed, as he believed that the best candidate for the role would be his future father-in-law, John Eastman. Paul began legal proceedings against the remaining members of the group. Thus, the Beatles, whose biography is described in this article, began to experience a serious conflict.

Work on the ambitious project was abandoned, but the group nevertheless released the album Abbey Road, which included George Harrison's brilliant composition Something. The musician worked on it for a long time, recording about 40 ready-made versions. The song is put on a par with Yesterday.

On January 8, 1970, the last album, Let It Be, was released, American producer Phil Spector reworking material from the failed Get Back project. On May 20, a documentary was released about the group, which by the time of the premiere had already broken up. This is how the biography of the Beatles ended. In Russian, the title of the film sounds like “Let it be so.”

After the breakup. John Lennon

The era of the Beatles is over. The biography of the participants continues with solo projects. At the time of the group's breakup, all members were already engaged independent work. In 1968, two years before the breakup, John Lennon released a joint album with his wife Yoko Ono. It was recorded in one night and did not contain music, but a set of various sounds, noises, and screams. On the cover the couple appeared naked. In 1969, two more records of the same plan and a concert recording followed. From 70 to 75, 4 music albums were released. After this, the musician stopped appearing in public, devoting himself to raising his son.

Lennon's last album, Double Fantasy, was released in 1980 and was well received by critics. A few weeks after the album's release, on December 8, 1980, John Lennon was shot several times in the back. In 1984, the musician's posthumous album Milk and Honey was released.

After the breakup. Paul McCartney

After McCartney left the Beatles, the musician's biography took on a new twist. The break with the group was hard on McCartney. At first he retired to a remote farm, where he suffered from depression, but in March 1970 he returned with material for McCartney's solo album, and soon released a second, Ram.

However, without the group, Paul felt insecure. He organized the Wings team, which included his wife Linda. The group existed until 1980 and released 7 albums. As part of his solo career, the musician released 19 albums, the last of which was released in 2013.

After the breakup. George Harrison

George Harrison, even before the breakup of the Beatles, released 2 solo albums - Wonderwall Music in 1968 and Electronic Sound in 1969. These records were experimental and did not have much success. The third album, All Things Must Pass, included compositions written during the Beatles period and rejected by other band members. This is the musician's most successful solo album.

For the whole solo career, after Harrison left the Beatles, the musician’s biography was enriched with 12 albums and more than 20 singles. He was active in philanthropy and contributed significantly to the popularization of Indian music and converted to Hinduism himself. Harrison died in 2001, on November 29.

After the breakup. Ringo Star

Ringo's solo album, which he began working on while still a member of the Beatles, was released in 1970, but was considered a failure. However, he subsequently released more successful albums, largely thanks to his collaboration with George Harrison. In total, the musician released 18 studio albums, as well as several live recordings and compilations. The last album was released in 2015.

John Savage, Mojo, February 1995

For most people under forty, British pop music begins with the Beatles, a view that has been espoused in the rock press ever since Nick Cohn dismissively dismissed the fifties as “a total farce.” Thus an entire era of British music, both domesticated and deliciously exotic, has been lost to history; it was written off as unnecessary, and only nostalgic joint tours and reports in provincial newspapers remained.

Today it is clear that the pre-Beatles period, which began with Lonnie Donegan and continued until the rise of Beatlemania in the summer of 1963, laid the foundations for the British perception of pop music. Without denying the enormous influence of America's talismanic rock 'n' roll - and most of these musicians at one time impersonated Elvis and Buddy - it must be admitted that echoes of the sounds and ideas of a forgotten era are still heard.

Trying to reproduce alien forms on their own, early British rockers and managers added their own touches - touches that characterize the nation: artificially stimulated aggression, obsession with image, fear and obsession with sex (including homosexuality), a touch of gothic romanticism. There's Hank Marvin in early Suede, there's a shadow of synth genius Larry Parnes in the music videos, and techno music like Andy Weatherall's Glowing Trees takes you into space first explored by Joe Meek. And for those who want everything in one bottle, there are Smiths.

One of the pleasant achievements of digital technology has been the enormous possibilities for storing and exchanging data using computer disks: since the late eighties, a whole industry of re-releases and compilations of old material has emerged, thanks to which today you can find music in almost any of its manifestations from the last hundred years. The period under review is no exception: never before have so many recordings of early British rock and roll, instrumental and pop music been released. One of the purposes of this article is to provide a quick guide through the almost impenetrable thickets of satellite noise, rattling echoes and reverberating noises.

But I also pursue personal interests. This is the music of my childhood, which I listened to until mid-63 before I settled on the Beatles. Before that, my interest was aroused by certain things: against the backdrop of Top Of The Pops and Ready Steady Go, I quickly forgot Craig Douglas and Tornados. Last year I became interested in old songs again thanks to an ambitious reissue program that saw EMI pack 140 tunes into seven discs of British Beat Before The Beatles, supplemented by Dave McAleer's book Hit Parade Heroes: it turns out that this is not the product of... maniacs, but a delightful... pop archaeology .

Another incentive was a close study of the work of the most influential figure of this period - Joe Meek: a biography of John Repsh, a special episode of the Arena television show in 1992 and the re-release of Meek's most remarkable work, the visionary cosmic fantasy I Hear A New World. Other books were published: autobiographies of Joe Brown, Helen Shapiro, Bruce Welch; detailed history Cliff Richard, written by Steve Turner, and Dick Bradley's accessible academic work Understanding Rock"n"Roll: Popular Music In Britain 1955-64.

This period began when two streams of American music merged in the British charts: when in January 1956 Bill Haley was at the top of the charts with Rock Around The Clock - the first rock and roll hit in England - and suddenly to the top soared up Leadbelly's old Rock Island Line, Lonnie Donegan's punk reworking. In its form, it was not just a record - it was a lifestyle concentrate, a “skiffle” (named after a collection of blues songs from the twenties). Six months later, skiffle groups, skiffle clubs and even skiffle fashion appeared, and in 1958 a research book written by the Rev. Brian Beard was published.

The girls liked rock and roll, especially Elvis Presley; boys too, but skiffle gave them a free pass into the world of youth culture - something to do with their hands. Rock 'n' roll was modern, very American style, a blend of contemporary country and rhythm and blues; skiffle was the American folk and blues of the twenties, filtered by the alchemical traditions nurtured in the British clubs of the forties by the New Orleans jazz revival. Donegan's hit was an afterthought, an interlude on a Chris Barber album, but it inspired two generations of British musicians - including John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

But skiffle was still a substitute: reality was between Elvis Presley's legs. In Britain, rock and roll became the same scandalous phenomenon as in the USA: a reason for newspaper hype about unprecedented aggression, monstrous debauchery and terrible incomprehensible noise. The arrival of rock 'n' roll coincided not only with the emergence of the first British musical movement "for simple guy”, but also with the period of the scope of the first easily recognizable youth clothing style - the Edwardian, or Teddy Boy style. All these events took place in isolation from each other, but contributed to the common cause: adolescence finally turned into a time of idleness and freedom.

Rock 'n' roll, like Teddy Boys, became a focal point of parental resentment in the mid-fifties: Dick Bradley mentions the "shocked public reaction to 'jungle' drums, 'primitive' rhythms, saxophones and guitars playing 'in the style of African dances' "". After the war, anti-American sentiment was popular, especially among the older generation: add to this the characteristic fear of youth - "juvenile delinquency" became a big problem in the late forties - and it becomes clear why rock and roll became synonymous with where the world was heading .

Elvis arrived in Britain like a Martian ship. However, for teenagers of that time everything was as simple as two and two. Cliff Richard: “The name Elvis sounded completely foreign to me, as well as to everyone else. I knew one thing: the sound of his music sent shivers down my spine. I became obsessed with him in an instant." Such teenagers had to try to get their voices heard: the first British rock records were mainly played by musicians from jazz circles, whose hostility is still heard in the tight rhythms and primitive instrumentation. The first British rock star was Tommy Stahl: a true phenomenon, he was the subject of crowd cheers and magazine covers, but his best-known hit was a cover of the country song, Singing The Blues.

And the most lasting influence on the country’s musical life was Steele’s PR campaign. His talents were revealed to the world of Soho, in the coffee bar 2i's, and from then on Old Compton Street became a Mecca for all aspiring musicians. As a result, all the stars of the time played there, some performed regularly. Small stage, no frills. The Tommy Steele myth was reworked for the era's most celebrated pop film, Expresso Bongo, starring Laurence Harvey as the smooth-talking hustler: another real-life figure, a combination of Steele's manager John Kennedy and his business partner Larry Parnes.

By the time Generation 2i was ready to put out records, it was faced with an industry firmly stuck in the early fifties. Live performances were often treated like a variety show, with stand-up comedians, magicians, fire eaters and an orchestra in the pit. Despite Cliff's unabashed bravery in Move It, no one expected rock 'n' roll to stick around for long: America was an all-powerful power; money was made not on records, but on sheet music; the bands remained in the background, and the singers were persuaded to soften their stage manners to the point that they would please moms and dads.

In their development, pop music and television formed a symbiosis. Following on from the prissy 6.5 Special (honestly, I saw one episode where Dickie Valentine performed!), Jack Good took the bull by the horns and in 1958 created the perfect TV show based on the rock concept, Oh Boy!: no variety show, no artisans, no dumb witty hosts, just hard and fast music with melodramatic stage lighting. It produced the world's first true British rockers, Marty Wilde and Cliff Richard, and, according to historian Rob Finnis, encouraged "those responsible for selecting artists and repertoire to take unprecedented risks in the studio."

One of the problems was sex. Not just in the natural hysterical reaction of the public and press (Billy Fury was banned from performing in Ireland in 1960), but in the very essence of British pop music. Rock 'n' roll was not a natural form for Britain: it had to be copied and learned, and most This new American product was Elvis's sexuality—the sickly pallor, the swaying of his hips, the curious androgyny. In a society still feeling the effects of wartime restrictions, this kind of sexuality and explicit textual directness had a significant impact: ten years later, the former inflexibility had become a prison. The early Brit rockers made more attempts to break down these barriers than is generally recognized.

Add to this the need to promote sex in the face of a generally hypocritical English... subject, and you can see where the delicious tension comes from... before us from records like Johnny Kidd's Please Don't Touch and The Pirates. The most diligent... pop packagers often turned out to be homosexuals, giving special expressiveness to many stars of that period: this was most clearly manifested in the fictitious names that Larry Parnes gave to the young men from his stable: Wild ("Wild"), Fury ("Furious"), Eager ("Impatient"), Gentle ("Gentle" ), Power ("Powerful") and Pride ("Proud") The first codified language created for the sake of one's own amusement, long before the superstars Warhol or the punk Dickensians, brilliantly satirized by Colin MacInnes in Absolute Beginners: "Which Slave Boy Sang?" this song? Jazz Vandal? Lame-legged Leslie?

Pop was not an art then, the point was to sell soap. There were very few art college graduates, few bohemians and, with the exception of Jack Goode and Colin MacInnes, very few people who could talk coherently about popular culture. In the words of Dick Bradley, “Rock 'n' roll and British beat blossomed in the twittering atmosphere of summer camp, in a climate of gleeful anti-intellectualism and vulgarity. Musicians were patronized by representatives of the chatterbox class (which, in principle, has changed little): they were taken for the working class and, accordingly, for ignoramuses.” Watch as Dennis Price, a typical airhead, takes care of Billy Fury in Play It Cool (1962). And he doesn’t mind: we have to thank God again for the Beatles.

This lack of verbalization helped perpetuate the stereotype of the period as soft and easy - something that can easily be refuted by listening to records by Vince Taylor or Johnny Kidd. The shadow of violence, speed, and total disappointment is clearly felt here: turn on Brand New Cadillac or Night Of The Vampire by The Moontrekkers, and you will hear reckless motorcyclists roaring along the northern bypass to break through to “the other side.” Many broke through, adding to the gloom that was initially characteristic of youth culture: and here they could not do without their doomed James Deans - Terry Dean, Jet Harris, and Vince Taylor himself.

A good half of the era's features can be found in the history of the key figure of this period, Joe Meek. Having difficulty finding mutual language with his musicians, in his home studio, he managed to create a number of amazing recordings and actually created modern technology sound recordings (echo, sound effects, electronic melodies and other experimental techniques). Mick's natural gloominess and eccentricity often led to outbursts of temper and paranoia: Mick's sexual orientation during the time of the prohibition of homosexuality only aggravated the situation. In his best creations - Johnny Remember Me, Wild Wind, Night Of The Vampire, Telstar, thanks to these features, Mick becomes a kind of techno-goth: this vein is still exploited by British musicians.

Mick shot his landlady and committed suicide in January 1967, by which time his era was well behind him. By 1962, there was a significant decrease in the energy of British pop hits, which is associated with the strengthening of the position of the music industry. Independent companies like Joe Meek's Triumph were physically unable to survive. The conditions were truly exploitative: the musicians signed terrible contracts - low fees, no control over the fate of their works, no concept of a future career. As a result, the majority, with a few exceptions, fell victim to instant oblivion and undeserved poverty. Clem Cattini: "It was slave labor." Some still remember those times with bitterness.

Films like The Young Ones and 1962's trad jazz brought pop back into youth clubs. Fashion was changing: the brutal Edwardians from the working class were replaced by adherents of a more elegant Italian style - the first modernists from the outskirts; among them was, for example, Mark Feld, who in 1962 ended up in the new fashion magazine Queen. Modernists coexisted with beatniks: when they came together, the more familiar beat, rhythm and blues, and then psychedelia began to flourish.

An important and very distinct trend in the early sixties was... instrumental music. The tone was set by the unprecedented success of The Shadows, who, along with Cliff, ruled the roost from 1960 to 1963, until they were supplanted by Beatlemania. There is something supernatural about these short, mysterious notes. As I wrote American artist Ken Takata, “listening to them is like moving in a dream... their blissful carelessness against the backdrop of the seeming anonymity and harmlessness of that time created musical style, capable of instantly reflecting the romantic, enchanting side of American culture, and then switching to an incredibly seductive Russian motif.”

"The Beatles" are without any doubt the greatest group of all time. In just a dozen years, the Beatles changed the musical world beyond recognition, after which, to the great regret of millions of fans, they broke up, leaving behind a long trail of legends. The history of the ensemble goes back to 1957, when John Lennon (b. October 9, 1940, d. December 8, 1980) formed the skiffle band “The Quarrymen”. A few months later, Paul McCartney (b. June 18, 1942) also found himself in its ranks, and six months later George Harrison (b. February 25, 1943, d. November 29, 2001) joined them. Then experiments began with names and, having tried such names as “Johnny & The Moondogs”, “Long John And The Beetles”, “The Silver Beatles”, the group turned into “The Beatles”. At the beginning of 1960, Lennon's friend Stuart Sutcliffe (b. June 23, 1940, d. April 10, 1962) became the team's bass guitarist, but the leapfrog with drummers only stopped in the fall, when Pete Best (b. November 24, 1941) took over the drums. ). Soon after this, the quintet went to Hamburg, where the musicians had to undergo what is called baptism by fire. Playing in the hot spots of the port city for 8-10 hours a day, they had to hold the attention of the heated audience, and, I must say, they succeeded quite well. Upon returning to Liverpool, performances began at the Cavern club, which was a real Merseybeat incubator. Meanwhile, Sutcliffe developed severe headaches and decided to quit music and take up painting.

To mitigate the centrifugal forces, McCartney proposed resuming concert activity, but the idea was not met with enthusiasm, and the rest of the musicians agreed only to work live in the studio as in the old days. However, this matter could not be completed, and the sessions for the album with the supposed title "Get Back" were interrupted. And yet, in the summer of 1969, the group unexpectedly got together again and recorded the magnificent album "Abbey Road". At the end of those sessions, all the magic disappeared again, and the team began to actively move towards disintegration. Already in September 1969, Lennon decided to leave the band, then Harrison and Starr made short-term demarches, but the official closure of the project was the statement McCartney made in April 1970. The epitaph for the great ensemble was the album "Let It Be", created from the imperfections of "Get Back". This record completed the official discography of the Beatles, although subsequently, over the course of many years, various collections, archival recordings and reworks with alternative versions songs.

The Beatles (IPA: [ðə ˈbiː.tlz]; individual members of the ensemble are called “Beatles”, they are also called “ the fab four" [English] Fab Four] and the “Fab Four”) are a British rock band from Liverpool, founded in 1960, which included John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. Also at various times, Pete Best, Stuart Sutcliffe and Jimmy Nicol performed in the group. Most of The Beatles' compositions were co-authored and signed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The group's discography includes 12 official studio albums, released in 1963-1970, and 211 songs.

Starting by imitating the classics of American rock and roll of the 1950s, The Beatles came to their own style and sound. The Beatles had a significant influence on rock music and are recognized by experts as one of the most successful groups of the 20th century, both creatively and commercially. Many famous rock musicians admit that they became such under the influence The songs Beatles. Since the release of the single "Please Please Me / Ask Me Why" in 1963, the group began its ascent to success, giving rise to a global phenomenon - Beatlemania. The four became the first British group whose records gained popularity and first place in the US charts, and with them began the worldwide recognition of British groups, as well as the “Liverpudlian” (Merseybeat) sound of rock music. The musicians of the group and their producer and sound engineer George Martin are responsible for innovative developments in the field of sound recording, combining various styles, including symphonic and psychedelic music, as well as filming video clips.

Magazine Rolling Stone ranked The Beatles #1 on the list of the greatest performers of all time. On the Rolling Stone 500 list, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The group has won ten Grammy awards. All four, in recognition of their services to the country, were awarded MBE orders. As of 2001, the group had sold over 163 million records in the United States alone. The total sales of media content units (discs and cassettes) associated with the group at this time exceeded one billion copies.

The Beatles stopped working together in 1970, although Paul and John had been pursuing their own projects since at least 1967. After the breakup, each of the musicians continued their solo careers. In 1980, John Lennon was killed near his home, and in 2001, George Harrison died of cancer. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr continue to be creative and write music.

Main participants:
John Lennon
Paul McCartney
George Harrison
Ringo Starr

Others:
Stuart Sutcliffe
Pete Best
Jimmy Nichol

Official discography of the group:
1. “Please Please Me” (1963)
2. "With the Beatles" (1963)
3. “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964)
4. “Beatles For Sale” (1964)
5. "Help!" (1965)
6. "Rubber Soul" (1965)
7. "Revolver" (1966)
8. “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1967)
9. “The Beatles (White Album)” (1968)
10. "Yellow Submarine" (1969)
11. "Abbey Road" (1969)
12. "Let It Be" (1970)

Another Dunno, 10/12/04
Usually, when I have to argue with non-rock fans, I once again present an argument in favor of rock: “What about the Beatles?”, to which I once again hear: “But this is not rock!” (And there is nothing to object to...) Well, this is understandable, but when someone reproaches the Beatles for this, it is immediately clear: they heard the ringing, but they don’t know where it is...

Another Dunno, 10/12/04
2 Lonely volf: the emphasis is not on the word “ROCK”, but on the word “AGAINST”. It may not be rock, but this does not detract from their merits (in any case, they crossed the line beyond which individual tastes and judgments remained...).

Schmerz, 14/03/05
The Beatles are rock, and Elvis is rock. For those times. So comparisons with animals and roots are not entirely appropriate. Of course, if the Beatles appeared right now, they would be pop, but they wouldn’t have appeared like that. *) In general, they were the first (or one of) to combine music as a complex art with music as entertainment, music concert halls with the music of street musicians, because were music for all levels. It's enough. More than. And “protest” in a form closer to us, the children of our time, is not needed.

Schmerz, 14/03/05
Although, in this way they can be considered the ancestors of both. Both rock and pop. However, their style was initially defined as rock. Good old. *)

Allora, 14/03/05
Weren't the Beatles a protest group? Hyyyy... You, my friend, don't know John Lennon well. It's not about politics - there was a protest against social principles. It was then that Epstein appeared and “combed” them. As for rock itself, not rock... Since when is this a synonym for good and bad? I don't care if they rock or not. The Beatles are music for my soul, and for the soul of my ten-year-old son. And then, I hope, for his children. This is the immortality of music. And classification is all nonsense.

Another Dunno, 22/06/05
2 Alisher: I repeat, the emphasis is not on the word “ROCK”, but on the word “AGAINST”. It may not be rock, but MUSICALLY Egor Letov and Shnur (is it okay that I got into your profile?) don’t hold a candle to them. (By the way, there is a song in “Sergeant Pepper” “She”s Leaving Home” - it’s a pity that you didn’t pay attention to it...)

Johnny, 02/11/05
Not ROCK? And what? Maybe I don't understand something. Listen to Abbey Road, White Album, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band... The first albums were pure rock and roll. And then the Beatles simply stopped fitting into any stylistic framework. They expanded these boundaries. Thanks to the Fab Four, rock ceased to be a 4-chord "square". And in general it’s funny to hear the argument from the subject. Guys, for that matter, almost everything that is now attributed to ROCK is not such. (Rasmus, Him, Nickel Back, etc., etc.)

kergan, 02/11/05
if this is an argument in a derogatory form, it is definitely against it. in fact, I think that at that time there was no rock style yet... there was rock and roll, so the Beatles sometimes performed famous rock and roll hits... I wouldn’t even classify the Rolling Stones as rock, although they are much closer .. anyway, I would count down rock from the late 60s, i.e. from the first albums of Pink Floyd, Purple and Zeppelin

Cad Goddo, 20/10/06
I think it’s a stretch to classify the Beatles as pure rock, because at that time it really had not yet fully formed, but the Beatles made a huge contribution to its development. And what gets me is when they are called pop music, and the main argument here is usually that the lyrics are too simple and banal. But I categorically disagree with this: firstly, in Western rock music is primary - it has always been like this (with rare exceptions - Morrison, Dylan), so you shouldn’t bother with the lyrics at all, you just need to listen and get a buzz from great music, secondly, pop music is one-day, momentary - a new song appeared, they listened to it and almost immediately forgot. But the Beatles have been listened to for more than 40 years, and in my opinion they are not perceived as some kind of old thing and anachronism.

Spongebob's girlfriend, 31/12/08
The Beatles are real rock, especially for that time. They contain protest, an ideology of protest. They have always been very sincere guys) Live guitars, revolutionary notes - what more do you need? They have become a cult and deservedly so...

Laura Shadow, 02/01/09
I like this band and that's why it annoys me when they say it's not rock! People, this is real ROCK!!! Yes, not as heavy as, for example, Slipknot or Lordi, but ROCK!!!

AVZ230475, 13/03/09
Rock or rock, it is impossible to find a clear unambiguous answer to this question. First we need to define what we mean by the term “rock”. This word semantically originated as an abbreviation of the phrase “rock and roll”, and in those Beatlesian times, rock and roll = rock, therefore, the Beatles were real rock. Ask anyone you meet on the street, even a connoisseur of rock music, a question from the subject, and I think that he will have nothing against the argument that the Beatles are rock. With opposite Column can only agree that the Beatles' music is quite simple and primitive compared to subsequent rock music, that art and hard rock are musically richer than Beatles' music. But IMHO the Beatles played a very important role in the development of rock music; since the mid-60s they have released several. studio albums: "Sgt. Pepper Club", "Revolver", "Abbey road", on which explicitly There are elements of hard and art rock. If the Beatles are not rock, then the 8086 is not a processor, and the floppy disk is not a storage medium.

Harmful GIRL, 02/06/09
The Beatles were the trendsetters of rock! To say that the Beatles did not sing rock is the same as saying something like: “The Kalashnikov assault rifle was not invented by Kalashnikov” or “It was not the Italians who first started cooking pizza.” Rave!

Nimbie, 13/10/09
What does this statement mean: “The Beatles were never a protest group”? Have you at least read the history...have you ever heard of John Lennon? And “pressed suits and neat haircuts” - all this appeared later, initially they were not like that. However, what is there to argue about... Maybe the Beatles are not rock in the modern sense of the word (in fact, it is rock and roll), but at that time (60s) it was the most there is “punch-breaking music” (a quote from somewhere, I don’t remember). And, generally speaking, it is not a fact that if there were no Beatles, hard rock, psychedelic rock, etc. would have appeared. respected genres. Whatever one may say, they are pioneers.

Bielarus, 06/11/09
What a heresy. That is, they are one of the founders of rock - and not rock? Where is the logic?

Paritta, 06/11/09
And I generally hate the Beatles. And I don’t care if it’s rock or not, it still sucks.

Alex1234, 16/11/09
with Revolver rock. and before that rock. only this rock is now called alternative rock. the early Beatles are an early alternative even before the founders of REM and The Cure, then classic rock

Vitaly 90, 21/02/10
The Beatles are real rock! Have you really listened to them at all? Their early albums were pop-rock, rock and roll, but starting with Revolvera they started to have real rock! You will listen to the White Album, Abbey Road, Sgt. Pepper, Let It Be) And what is the song Helter Skelter worth - it’s real metal!

Leon Verner, 08/04/10
Not that I really hate this argument. It's just... Disrespectful to the group, right? The team has come a long way, starting from school days with teenage habits and youthful maximalism. But none of the Beatles thought about the fame that came to them after a while. And speaking about the genre of their music, I would like to note that it is rock. You could say the beginnings of rock. After all, before the previously mentioned neat suits and hairstyles, there were harsh leathers and other such paraphernalia. However, it’s a paradox - they played things that did not at all correspond to their appearance. But then... They found own style, The Beatles are, in fact, the parents of rock, the kind that no longer exists, which at one time gave way to rough, loud music. It’s sad, offensive, annoying, but ok: I gave in, but I’m still alive.

Catalepsy, 18/10/10
Or maybe it's just good music? Rock doesn't have to be heavy. And they are also considered classics of rock music. No, you don’t have to love them, but it’s quite strange not to respect them. Ozzy Osbourne said he was heavily influenced by the Fab Four. And other metalheads respect them. That's the end of the fairy tale.

Troll of androgynous appearance, 18/10/10
And who, in fact, said that only rock is a priori good music, and everything else is bullshit in vegetable oil. I don’t want to sound like Cap, but it’s often quite the opposite. Rock is also full of cliches and tediousness, and metal is similar (although this is my favorite Musical direction). Personally, I always didn’t care what this or that direction in music is called. If it's good, it means I listen to it without regard to direction or "truness". And the Beatles are just such music, although I’m not their fan. All.

21CenturyRock, 21/04/11
Listen up guys!!! This is the most pristine and crystal clear rock!!! And there is no need to discredit this group with these dirty words like “The Beatles are bullshit and not rock.... but I’m a metalhead and I like to bang my head against the wall in ecstasy and kiss the toilet...” this is stupid. That's what I think, this is initially a dispute, the truth of which is well known to everyone, since the Beatles are the founders of rock. There is nothing to argue about, this is a band that absolutely significantly influenced all other bands, all music and the whole world in general!

Felida, 21/04/11
This is rock and roll))) they were one of the first to play music of this genre. This is clearly not rock in its purest form, but naturally you can’t call them pop.

Zmeeed, 12/09/12
Loving music only because of the clever terms wildly authoritative critics call it is, IMHO, not very good.

Lou Reed, 28/09/12
Because we need to distinguish between the concepts of “classic rock” and what is considered rock now.

DD Blizzard, 17/07/15
The Beatles started rock and roll and that's it. A message from user marino4ka best caused me a storm of emotions. Ranetki is not rock! Not rooooookkkkkkk! Rock and roll is motorrhead, acdc, led zeppelin, pantera after all! Not all rock bands have to be the same! Ranetki shit