The Beatles Story in Pictures and Words
- Posted on Sep 4th 2009 4:00PM by Spinner Staff
- Comments (27)
The Beatles in Pictures
The Best of Cellars: The Beatles, with original drummer Pete Best, shake the walls during a session at Liverpool's Cavern Club, ca. 1961. The group played at the dank, cramped underground venue a whopping 292 times from 1961 to 1963.
Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
Teddy Boy: A pre-moptop teenage George Harrison cuts a tough figure in Hamburg, Germany, 1961. At one point during the Beatles' musical residency in the port city's red-light district the Reeperbahn, the 17-year-old guitarist was deported from Germany for being underage.
Juergen Vollmer, Redferns
The Beatles Are Here: The Fab Four play for a record 73 million viewers on their 'Ed Sullivan Show' debut, Feb. 9, 1964. The Beatles performed four songs – broken up into two sets -- beginning with 'All My Loving' and 'Till There Was You' and concluding with 'She Loves You' and their No. 1 hit at the time, 'I Want to Hold Your Hand.'
Bettmann / CORBIS
A Rilly Big Shew: Paul McCartney shows Ed Sullivan a few tasty bass licks during an 'Ed Sullivan Show' rehearsal, 1964. The Beatles appeared nine times on the high-rated variety program, either live or on videotape.
Bettmann / CORBIS
Swimming in Success: The Beatles take a break from taking a break in Miami Beach to rehearse for their show at the Deauville Hotel, which was broadcast on 'The Ed Sullivan Show' of Feb. 16, 1964.
Bettmann / CORBIS
Badges of Honor: In 1964, Beatlemania was treated as a fad, grouped in with the Dave Clark Five and sexual liberation, as seen in this array of pinbacks for sale.
Redferns
Another Fab Four: Not just the girls went mad for the Beatles. These British lads cultivate their own moptops and sport Beatle boots, ca. 1964.
Time & Life Pictures / Getty Image
John, Paul, George ... and Jimmy?: The Beatles give encouragement to drummer Jimmy Nicol, who substituted for an ill Ringo during the band's Australian tour in 1964. Nicol's reply to his temporary bandmates' questions about his progress inspired the song 'Getting Better.'
Keystone / ZUMA Press
My Boys: Brian Epstein at home in London, 1964. Epstein, who died in 1967, became the Beatles' manager in 1961. Not long after, he would make the grandiose claim that his unsigned group would one day be "bigger than Elvis."
Keystone / ZUMA Press
Shall We Dance?: Ringo Starr and George Harrison trip the light fantastic with their mothers, Elsie Graves and Louise Harrison, respectively, at the premiere party for the Beatles' first film, 'A Hard Day's Night,' at the Dorchester Hotel in London, 1964.
Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Reader Comments(1 of 2)
Snoozinat 9-09-2009
John Lennon sang about love and peace, yet he was a terrible, cold, and unloving father to his son. Of course, I love the Beatle's music but quite sad to read about John's family relationships.
liz_234at 9-10-2009
Why on earth would you atuomaticly take the word of a stupid media article about someone who did so much good in this world. Did you ever meet John Lennon? Did you ever speak to him? Did you know him personally? No! So shut up and go get a brain that hasn't been washed
girlat 9-10-2009
You have no right to judge about things you don't know anything about. Unless you were there, you have no idea. You are allowed an opinion, but you really don't know what kind of person he was, or father for that matter.
PKsDreamat 11-17-2009
Hmmm...did N E of us have a personal relationship with John Lennon? I doubt it.So don't listen 2 the media Snooze.There R LOTS of reasons we don't raise our own...He knew he had made a mistake and was trying 2 not make the same with Sean.It isn't like he hated Julian,he was just 2 young and immature at the time.By the time Sean came he was all grown up and DID NOT want the same situation.He sang of love and peace 4 the world,it does NOT mean he didn't love his family.Do a little research then post.
Ellomate722at 9-09-2009
Omgg i loove the beatles, My school did the Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Album from begining to end with a concert band and the chorus. omgg it was the most fun ive ever had preforming a concert. All of the band members (me included!) got to wear 4 different band uniforms to copy the setup of the album cover. Also we made the gargen, but we made it say "WAHCONAH" (school name) instead of the "BEATLES". On top of this, each of the band and chorus members made cut outs of people like Obama, or Bon Jovi. The objective was to make people that we thought would come to our concert. (like the beatles did, but we used modern celebraties)The concert was so fun because the music was all made from ear by my band director, it sounded just like the album. It also featured us as musicians in the way he personalized parts to everyone. Such as he made the clarinet part 1 for the sophmores. In "The benifit of Mr. Kite" we made some of our own sounds. It was amazing! It was like we were in their shoes, there were so many people, and sometimes you couldnt even hear the music we were playing. It was a great expirence.
beatlesfan1at 9-09-2009
Too bad you didn't study harder in your English class...
Bruceat 9-10-2009
Just brought tears to my eyes, I was 13 years old when the Beatles came to America and grew up with them...so glad to know that the legend lives on, thank you so much.
JDat 9-09-2009
To Snoozin.......... I was thinking the very same thing about JL..... His first born son from his first wife was left out of his will......... Yet, he adored his second son with Yoko..... Go fiqure????? You would think with all his MILLIONS he would leave his first son with at least ONE MILLION DOLLARS......John can't deny that Jullian as his first son, because he is the spitten image of JL.
ANITAat 9-09-2009
the beatles = more lying, drug addicts, adulteries, was'nt any better than the celebrities of today.
kirkat 9-09-2009
...let him without guilt caste the first stone. the beatles are a compendium of all, both positive and negative, that conspired to make them who and what they are.....
LuvGeorgeHat 9-09-2009
The real dynamics of the relationships between John, Cynthia, Julian, Yoko and Sean are really only known by the parties intimately involved, in spite of what their public images might or might not have been. There are always three sides to every story like that - His side, Her side - and the truth. John is dead, and Yoko isn't telling. To judge any of them now based on what we think we know or don't know based on public images, hype and hearsay is lame, shallow and pointless. Enjoy the music and their musical legacy and stop pointing fingers at who did what to whom 30 or 40 years ago. Look at your hand the next time you point a finger at someone - you've got three pointed back at yourself.
LuvGeorgeHat 9-09-2009
Somebody should have made that point to MY "DNA contributor" as well - what you just described is what I lived through myself. (Our kids however, were spared all such traumas.)
John's early life was no bed of roses either - and knowing something about it gives one a glimpse into why he may have turned out the way he did. He and Cynthia married quickly and quietly because she was expecting Julian - and her presence in his life was hidden from public view because of the Beatles growing popularity at the time, and the inadvisability of letting out the news that one of their group wasn't "available" to the fantasy world of worshipful teenyboppers.
Their relationship never had a chance to develop in any kind of normal fashion - she wanted much of what John could not give her, and his life was so taken up with the exploding popularity of the group and all the obligations that entailed at that time. Whatever Yoko's influence was over him apparently satisfied something he was looking for - and as is usually the case, the children are the ones to suffer the consequences. It's been going on since time began - it hasn't stopped yet, and looking around now, it doesn't seem to have done anything but gained popularity, with all the "babydaddies" and "babymamas" running around out there procreating with wild unchecked abandon........The Beatles were actually relatively tame compared to the current social climate.......
synchat 9-09-2009
Wendy has no idea what happened between John and his ex wife. I stayed in my children's lives, but it was ver difficult because their mother was/is an evil coniving bitch. Now after almost 30 years since the divorce and 24 years of MORE than what I was ordered to pay in child support, my children have little to do with her even now. Continuing to be a part of my children's lives has blessed me with beautiful grandchildren and having a loving relationship with two bright and successful adults who understand the hell we all went through. I can't begin to imagine how difficult it was for someone as talented and successful as John. It had to be ecven more difficult for him because of his celebrity.
wendyat 9-09-2009
GEORGEH-
I hear you. I am sorry that children have to live through awful childhoods. We need to teach our sons and daughters that parenthood is a gift and our children learn from what we teach them and do. I have a 9 yr old son who's biological father hasn't done much for. He pays childsupport but only met with our son three times. He spoke on the phone a handful of times. He has custody of three other children from a previous marriage and devotes himself to them. I loved those kids, but was cut out of their lives when their father left me. I miss them and wish my son could meet them. His father say's he will tell them they have a brother but, I don't believe it. My son always feels rejected. Very sad. One day I hope Mike (my ex) will grow up and be a man and love all his children. My son knows he is loved and number one in my life.
I am remarried and my husband has loved my son more than I have ever seen a man love a son. We are blessed.
I wish you peace and love in your relationships as a man.
wendyat 9-09-2009
I believe I do know something of how young Sean felt. There is no excuse for a man not giving his child his support and guidance. I am a parent who loves my son. My ex cheated and left me. Yet, because I tried to give my ex every opportunity to be a fether to our son, I remained kind to my ex. I never raised the child support. I get almost nothing! I didn't even file until my son was two yrs old! I waited to give his father the chanced to do the right thing. I was completely stunned when he left me hours after telling me he loved me and didn't deserve me. So, spare me the "She doesn't know" sob story. I don't care what the couples relationship was, the children are innocent and deserve their parents love and guidance and support. A child needs to know they are loved by both parents, reagrdless of who they are dating next!
STEVE YOUNGat 9-10-2009
ya know? even thoug me had a bad childhood; i never took out, or knew one really knew. but now i have no kidz; im homeless/or was.im an artist for all iknow.JOHN LENNON was gift from GOD. no one has ever did and mite do; as to what mr. lennon did. john was such an artist a nd MEANT IT!!! from the time it began.so, put you self in thwt mans shoes, and simply tell me/ how mite act?= peace&luv=stevieray, 1 a de most bee-attles FAN!!!!
Patriciaat 9-10-2009
Hi Everyone,
I'm a huged Beatlefan. Loved watching the Beatles
on VH-1 tonight. John Lennon wrote me two letters
when i was a member of the John Lennon fan club,
Yoko mailed 8 Christmas cards after John died.
Dad died January 8th, 1981.
Long live the Beatles forever.
Pat
Johnat 9-10-2009
As stated by another poster, John had his own childhood traumas to deal with (parents separated when he was five; his mother killed by an off-duty policeman when he was just starting to get to know her again, when he was a teenager; the death of his best friend Stu Sutcliffe just prior to the onset of Beatlemania). Because of the burdens of fame, he never had a chance at a normal life with Cynthia and Julian.
HOWEVER, years later, in the late 1970s, he became close with Julian. So I suppose it's ironic that for him that he had his father taken away for a second time. And for Sean it was ironic that his father was taken away when he was at the same age as John had been when HIS parents split.
midvaltaxserat 9-10-2009
To Wendy,you are absolutely correct. Children NEED both
parents, God made us that way. And you know I wondered
about Julian. Why he was left out in such a public way.
But then in the end so was Sean becasue he also did not
have his father except for 5-6 years in his early life.
Sometimes we don't separate the artist from the individual. You take an Alec Baldwin who is just a jerk,
his child is actually lucky not to have him around, so
go figure.
jimat 9-10-2009
YOU KNOW AFTER ALL THE YEARS THEY HAVE BEEN AROUND IT GETS A BIT STALE HEARING NEWS ABOUT THE BEETLES.
GIVE IT A BREAK. ENOUGH ALREADY. BORING !!!!!