THINGS EVERY MUSIC FAN SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE BEATLES

JOHN LENNON FOUNDED THE GROUP IN 1957 AND

NAMED IT THE QUARRY MEN; HE LATER ASKED

PAUL MCCARTNEY TO JOIN, WHO ALSO BROUGHT

IN GEORGE HARRISON. RINGO STARR WOULD

SHORTLY AFTER REPLACE PETER BEST AS

DRUMMER AND THUS THE MOST FAMOUS AND

SUCCESSFUL BAND IN HISTORY BECAME A

REALITY AND GLOBAL PHENOMENON

THE BAND CHANGED ITS NAME MANY TIMES BEFORE

THEY CAME UP WITH THE BEATLES. OTHER THAN

THE QUARRY MEN, THEY WERE ALSO NAMED

JOHNNY AND THE MOONDOGS, THE RAINBOWS

AND THE BRITISH EVERLY BROTHERS.

THANK GOD THEY ENDED UP WITH THE BEATLES

EVEN THOUGH NO ONE CAN BE POSITIVE WHERE

THE GROUP’S NAME CAME FROM, MOST FANS

BELIEVE THAT JOHN LENNON LIKED THE NAME

THE CRICKETS AFTER BUDDY HOLLY’S BAND.

OTHER SOURCES SUGGEST THE MAIN

INFLUENCE WAS THE BEETLES, THE

RIVAL GANG IN MARLON BRANDO’S THE WILD ONE.

ACCORDING TO THIS SOURCE, LENNON CHANGED

THE SPELLING TO “BEATLES” TO REFLECT BEAT

MUSIC AND THE BEAT GENERATION

THE BEATLES GOT THE INSPIRATION FOR THEIR

FIRST UK NUMBER ONE SINGLE “FROM ME TO

YOU” FROM THE NME LETTERS PAGE (A BRITISH

MAGAZINE), WHICH WAS THEN CALLED

“FROM YOU TO US.” THEY WROTE THE SONG

ON A COACH BUS DURING A TOUR

SUPPORTING HELEN SHAPIRO

JOHN LENNON WAS REALLY FOND OF CATS. HE

HAD TEN WHILE LIVING IN WEYBRIDGE WITH

FIRST WIFE, CYNTHIA. HIS MOTHER ONCE

HAD A CAT NAMED ELVIS BECAUSE SHE WAS

A BIG PRESLEY FAN. NO WONDER LENNON

WOULD LATER CLAIM THAT “BEFORE ELVIS

THERE WAS NOTHING.”

THE BAND ORIGINALLY WANTED TO CALL ABBEY ROAD

“EVEREST,” BUT WHEN THEIR RECORD COMPANY

SUGGESTED THE BAND VISIT THE HIMALAYAS TO

SHOOT THE COVER THERE, THEY DECIDED TO

STICK WITH THE NAME OF THE STREET THE

RECORDING STUDIO WAS ON

YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T KNOW THIS, BUT IT WAS

JOHN LENNON AND PAUL MCCARTNEY WHO WROTE

THE FIRST HIT FOR THEIR MAJOR RIVALS, THE

ROLLING STONES. “I WANNA BE YOUR MAN” WAS

RELEASED IN 1963, PEAKING AT NUMBER TWELVE

ON THE BRITISH CHARTS. AFTERWARD LENNON

JOKINGLY STATED, “WE WEREN’T GOING TO GIVE

THEM ANYTHING GREAT, RIGHT?”

JOHN LENNON WROTE “GOOD MORNING GOOD MORNING”

AFTER BEING ANNOYED BY A KELLOGG’S CORNFLAKES

TV COMMERCIAL

DURING THE WEEK OF APRIL 4, 1964, THE BEATLES

HELD TWELVE POSITIONS ON THE BILLBOARD

HOT 100 SINGLES CHART, INCLUDING ALL TOP

FIVE SONGS. SO FAR THIS RECORD HAS LASTED

FIFTY-TWO YEARS AND MOST MUSIC EXPERTS

BELIEVE THAT WITH THE STATE OF THE MUSIC

CHARTS AS THEY CURRENTLY ARE, IT WON’T

BE BROKEN ANYTIME SOON