Beginnings of The BEATLES
The Beatles, an English pop and
rock band was formed in Liverpool in 1960 and they rose to be one of the
most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the
history of popular music.
 ‘Beatlemania’ fad transformed the group’s songwriting to a level of
sophistication and the Beatles came to be perceived as the embodiment of
progressive ideals, seeing that their influence extended into the social
and cultural revolutions of the 1960s.
From 1962 the group comprised John Lennon (rhythm guitar, vocals),
Paul McCartney (bass guitar, vocals), George Harrison
(lead guitar, vocals) and Ringo Starr (Drums, vocals). Steeped in
skiffle and 1950s rock and roll, the group later worked in many genres
ranging from folk rock to psychedelic pop, sometimes incorporating
classical and other elements in innovative ways.
In the early years 1957-1962 it was John Lennon, then sixteen who
played an important part in the evolution of the Beatles. He formed a
skiffle group with some Liverpool friends calling themselves The
Quarrymen.
Fifteen-year-old Paul McCartney joined as a guitarist. When Paul
McCartney invited George Harrison to watch the group, Harrison who was
then only fourteen, decided to join the band as the lead guitarist.
Joining on bass was another of Lennon’s schoolfriends Stuart
Sutcliffe who suggested that they change the band’s name to ‘The
Beetles’ as a tribute to Buddy Holly and The Crickets. After the first
few months of the year they became The Beatals.
John Lennon and the boys went on a name hunt. Johnny and the Moondogs,
Long John and the Beetles, The Silver Beetles were tossed around until
finally they settled on the name The Beatles which augured well for the
band.
But they had another hurdle to overcome. The lack of a permanent
drummer posed a problem to John Lennon and the boys as their unofficial
manager Allan Williams had arranged a resident band booking for the
group in Hamburg, Germany. They were compelled to audition drummers and
Pete Best was hired. “Hamburg in those days did not have rock’n’roll
music clubs. It had strip clubs” says biographer Philip Norman.
 The Beatles stayed in Hamburg for two years and during this time
Sutcliffe decided to leave the band and resume his art studies. Paul
McCartney took over playing of the bass.
In the meantime the Beatles were becoming more popular in Liverpool
and during one of their performances at The Cavern Club they encountered
Brian Epstein a local record store owner and music columnist who became
their manager. The band had their first recording session under producer
George Martin who signed the group to EMI’s Parlophone Label. The single
‘Love Me Do’ was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London in June 1962
and released in October. Martin was not happy with Best and his drumming
and the replacement Ringo Starr became the permanent drummer.
In November the release of their second single ‘Please Please Me’ was
followed with a TV debut on People and Places.
As the band’s success grew, Epstein sensed the Beatles’ commercial
potential and encouraged the members to a professional attitude to
performing. John Lennon recalled their manager saying “Look, if you
really want to get in these bigger places, you’re going to have to
change.
‘Stop eating on stage, stop swearing, stop smoking.’ Lennon said, “We
used to dress how we liked, on and off stage. He’d tell us that jeans
were not particularly smart and could we possibly manage to wear proper
trousers...it was a choice of making it or still eating chicken on
stage...” |
