The Beatles formed in Liverpool in 1960. The band was comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band in popular music and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock 'n' roll, their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. They also explored styles ranging from fok and East Indian to psychedelia and hard rock. As pioneers in recording, songwriting and artistic presentation, the Beatles revolutionized many aspects of the music industry and were often publicised as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements.
Led by primary songwriters John Lennon and Paul McCartney, the Beatles evolved from Lennon’s previous group, the Quarrymen, and built their reputation by playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg, Germany, starting in 1960. Lennon, McCartney and Harrison, together since 1958, went through a succession of drummers before Starr joined in 1962. Manager Brian Epstein moulded them into a professional act, and producer George Martin developed their recordings, greatly expanding their domestic success after they signed with EMI and achieved their first hit, “Love Me Do”, in late 1962. As their popularity grew into the fan frenzy dubbed “Beatlemania”, the band acquired the nickname the “Fab Four”. By early 1964, the Beatles were international stars and had achieved unprecedented levels of critical and commercial success. They became a leading force in Britain's cultural resurgence, ushering in the British Invasion of the United States pop market. They made their film debut with A Hard Day's Night (1964).
A growing desire to refine their studio efforts, coupled with the challenging nature of their concert tours, led to the Beatles’ retirement from live performances in 1966. During this time, they produced albums of greater sophistication, including Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966) and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967). They enjoyed further commercial success with The Beatles (also known as “the White Album”, 1968) and Abbey Road (1969). The success of these records heralded the album era, increased public interest in psychedelic drugs and Eastern spirituality, and furthered advancements in electronic music, album art and music videos.
In 1968, the Beatles founded Apple Corps, a multi-armed multimedia corporation that continues to oversee projects related to their legacy. After the Beatles’ break-up in 1970, all former members enjoyed success as solo artists. While some partial reunions occurred over the next decade, the members never fully reunited. Lennon was murdered in 1980 and Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001; McCartney and Starr remain musically active.
The Beatles are the best-selling music act of all time, with estimated sales of over 600 million units worldwide. They are the most successful act in the history of the US Billboard charts, with the most number-one singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart (20). The Beatles' accolades including eight Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award (for Best Original Song Score for the 1970 documentary film Let It Be) and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, 1988, and each principal member was individually inducted between 1994 and 2015. In 2004 and 2011, the Beatles topped Rolling Stone's lists of the greatest artists in history.
I would love to give the background and insights about the songs, but that would take too long. Instead, I will just list them, along with the year of their release and the title of the album which included them.
1. All My Loving (1963) from With the Beatles
2. A Hard Day’s Night (1964) from A Hard Day’s Night
3. Ticket to Ride (1965) from Help!
4. Yesterday (1965) from Help!
5. Norwegian Wood (1965) from Rubber Soul
6. Got to Get You into My Life (1966) from Revolver
7. Here, There and Everywhere (1966) from Revolver
8. The Fool on the Hill (1967) from Magical Mystery Tour
9. Penny Lane (1967) from Magical Mystery Tour
10. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (1969) from Abbey Road
11. Lady Madonna (1968) single, first included on compilation album Hey Jude
12. Something (1969) from Abbey Road
