Imagine being a part of a huge crowd, with countless other fans clustered against you. All of the people in the stadium are screaming, making it hard to hear the band playing. All you can feel is the sheer energy, excitement, and emotion contained in the band and the audience. This band is the Beatles. Even today, we call the Beatles one of the pioneers and the symbols of the ‘60s. Fifty years ago, “The Beatles took America by storm” (Aronwitz), and they are still one of the most beloved groups of all time. This legendary band explored many different areas of recording songs and albums, were the culture and style icons of people in that era, and inspired people with meaningful and significant lyrics in their songs. The Beatles, the most popular One of the main things that was extremely controversial was their hairstyle: the moptop. In the ‘60s, “Long hair was seen as part and parcel of an eccentric artistic temperament, perhaps with a special exemption for religious men from exotic climes who grew their hair and beards devotionally” (McGasko). By becoming one of the nation’s biggest pop sensations, the Beatles influenced many people of the younger generation to grow out their hair— the trend grew so much that there was even a manufactured Beatle wig. Although it now seems like another simple choice one makes, it once was very controversial and showed an opposition to the old generation. By growing out their hair, the Beatles encouraged the young generation of baby boomers to express themselves and differentiate from the old generation. The Beatles also had a great impact on fashion in the ‘60s. They popularized many different patterns, styles of suits, Beatles boots, and John Lennon’s signature glasses (Gibson). Some new trends they promoted were collarless suits and shirts, paisley and floral patterns, and sandals, which was very new and different from the old generation. Their fashion not only impacted America and Europe, but it spread their youthfulness and the voice of the young generation all around the world, which had never been achieved by any other pop star. Clothing was not The majority their songs were about love. The Beatles believed that love makes the world go around, and that love is the basis of everything, including respect, equality, peace, and more: “There’s nothing you can make that can’t be made/No one you can save that can't be saved/ Nothing you can do, but you can learn how to be you in time /It's easy /All you need is love/All you need is love” (Minnick). This song in particular shows that one cannot change oneself, but instead needs to learn how to love oneself and others for who they are. The popularity of the Beatles made this message spread everywhere, thus influencing many people all around the world. Another song that carried a hidden message was the song “Blackbird”: “Blackbird singing in the dead of night/Take these broken wings and learn to fly/All your life/You were only waiting for this moment to arrive” (Wawzenek). The lyrics of this song, penned by Paul McCartney, were inspired by the civil rights movement. This song expressed support for many African Americans at that time, particularly women (“bird” is British slang for women). The song “Blackbird” helped raise awareness about the importance of the civil rights movement and made it clear that the Beatles supported equality for all people. As well as raising their voice for equality, the
The Beatles are an iconic English rock band and are widely regarded as the “foremost and most influential act of the rock era” (Unterberg). Formed in Liverpool in 1960, the Beatles were comprised of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, with Stuart Sutcliffe on bass guitar in January and Pete
In addition to the 23 albums (counting soundtracks and separate US and UK releases) released during the band's life (1960-1970) there have been more than 150 compilations, recorded interviews and videos issued. Hundreds of books have been written about their personal lives, their music, and their influence on pop culture and rock
The sixties and seventies were a time of war, peace and revolution, with “hippies” leading anti-war movements, and protests happening across the nation due to the administration of Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War. John Lennon originally a member of The Beatles, became a star in the anti-war subculture, and a hero to many, not only for his musicianship and the Beatle-mania that was spread across the country but for being a voice of the people. The Beatles were at the time, the voices of their generation and eventually became a product of their generation, with their songs highlighting the issues of the time. Even with the disbanding of The Beatles in 1969, Lennon continued to be a force in the culture, with his wife Yoko Ono and himself taking a prominent role in the media and movement against the war.
America’s defenses were breached and hysteria gripped the nation. The invasion had begun. However, the sounds of sirens did not fill the streets to warn against nuclear attacks, nor were there warnings to stay indoors. Instead the youth of America rushed into the streets of New York and welcomed the invaders with loud screams and insane fanaticism. The invaders were The Beatles and the members were Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. One of the biggest and influential bands to change the face of music as we know it took the world by storm by introducing new sound, new fashion, and a new way of approaching music. The Beatles have etched a name for themselves and stand in history as one of the greatest bands of all time. However there is a reason why they are regarded so highly and have become the big name that they are today. I never once listened to The Beatles and I didn’t get into music until I was twelve years old, yet at the age of nine I knew who they were. The Beatles are almost a household name in western cultures and that is because of the profound effect they brought upon society at the time. With help from their musical influences, experiences, and being present at the right place at the right time, The Beatles ascended into fame. It is because of factors like their influences, their experiences as a band, their management, and their arrival at the right time that made their takeover that much more successful and influential.
Lennon and McCartney wrote this song to support the efforts of the Civil Rights Movement. This song is deep and at the same time so metaphoric that it can be used as a song of freedom. When it mentions that even if you are not free, if you live in darkness, if your wings are broken and your eyes sunken, you should always try to arise, fly and follow the light that even in the darkness night shines. “ Blackbird” was a song that was simply a tribute to pay their respect to these women. The songs message is that when one experiences struggles, to not give up and keep pushing through because you can accomplish
The Beatles “I wanna hold your hand” You have probably heard this song before, but did you know it was from The Beatles? In the 1960s, there were hippies, rock enthusiasts and even more groups. But, ever since the mid-60s, the rock music has never been the same. With the Beatles being the most famous rock group in the 1960’s. During the 1960s The Beatles were a very influential group, changing the rock genre forever.
Whitehead, J. W. (2014, February 06). 50 years after The Beatles: Isn't it time for another political & cultural revolution? Retrieved from
The Beatles were more than their music. They influenced the lives of millions of people unlike any musicians before them. They were the first and most popular band in one of the most important music movements in American history, the British Invasion. The year 1964 was the year both the British Invasion and “Beatlemania” came to America and forever changed the landscape of music in the United States by introducing the genre of pop, as it is today. The Beatles changed the rules of music. Many things that are considered normal now were pioneered by the Beatles such as: creating compilation albums, expressing their views on world happenings through the media, musicians in movies, and even mass media advertising. The beatles influenced American culture more than any other musical artist in history (Holmes, 2012).
Of course, this was yet another reason for the conservative public to despise the Beatles. Ian Inglis, a visiting fellow in the School of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Northumbria, covers this in his book, The Beatles, Popular Music and Society. A disapproving view of rock and roll wasn’t held by most in the band’s religiously ambiguous home country of England, but it was adopted by much of America, especially in the South, who considered rock music to be sacrilegious
According to history1900.about.com “About this same time, the Beatles began to shift to psychedelic influences. They started using marijuana and LSD and learning about Eastern thought.” The eastern thought and early western philosophy was the idea of matters in basic human existence. This is around the time when the Beatles music started fighting for world peace and talking about how we should come together. John Lennon’s song “imagine” tells people how the world would be a better place without religion, war, conflict, possessions, and greed. He also explains that he isn’t the only person to have fought for this. Doing so many peace riots happened in the 60’s during the vietnam war. These peace riots were usually filled with hippies which was a term for people that are “with nature”. You could say that the Beatles were hippies for they fought for these riots trying to end the war in vietnam. This made a major impact to how we view the world now and how we need to protect our environment now. allmusic.com states “They were also the first British rock group to achieve world wide
The Beatles were first introduced live on the television to Americans on the Ed Sullivan show on February 9, 1964. They became a very popular band in the sixties, and even after the band split, John Lennon still continued to write and play songs that influenced the world and became one of the world's very important histories.
The Beatles are known, respectively, as the fathers of modern pop music. After their first #1 hit “Please Please Me” was released in 1963 the Beatles were set in motion to become one of the most influential groups of musicians to ever rock our world. With over forty-nine records, 37 #1’s, and thirty- four number one albums (the highest amount of any band in history), there is no denying that they made a monumental ripple in the musical world. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr surprisingly all come from humble beginnings in a town that, until their superstardom, was barely noticed on the map. Liverpool, being kn...
When people think about the 60’s the majority of them all think about the Beatles. The Beatles is a band that made Rock and Roll a totally, different type of music. Even though The Beatles were such a hit, as time went on they started to fall apart. Over 50 years later, the Beatles are still classified as one of the best band of all time.
By the end of the 60’s, The Beatles had acquired a worldwide fan base and legendary iconic status among the youth of the world. John Lennon, the most prolific and famous of the Beatles, wasn’t averse to making political statements through his music. He knew that he had the power t...
The Beatles started their careers in England. They were a huge success there, playing in clubs and eventually for the queen herself. After the appearance before the queen, The Beatles came to the USA. The Beatles came to New York City for the first time in 1964 and appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show. They performed the song “I want to hold your hand” to millions of people anxious to hear their new kind of rock. They were an instant success. A couple of weeks after their New York appearance, the five best selling records were by the Beatles. They became world famous by the end of 1964. The Beatles were unusual because most rock was strong beat with no melody. The Beatles added melody to rock. The Beatles also added strong and meaningful lyrics. Many of these lyrics were derived from pop culture, and had real life meaning to the group. Most of the songs were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Although, every song was always credited with being written together, rarely did they write the songs this way. Usually, John and Paul would write songs separately, and then take the songs to the group and work out the kinks. Early in their careers, most of the songs written by The Beatles were about love. This changed in about 1965 when the songs became about more practical things, and about things that were going on in the world.