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The Beatles became the most popular group in rock music history. The group consisted of four Englishmen: George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr. Starr played drums, and the others usually played electric guitar. All of them sang. Lennon and McCartney composed most of the Beatles’ songs, but Harrison and Starr wrote for the group occasionally.

All the Beatles were born in Liverpool. They called themselves the Beatles in 1960. Brian Epstein, who worked in a Liverpool record store, became manager of the Beatles. Under his direction, they gained nationwide fame in 1962 and international fame two years later.

During the early 1960’s, the Beatles’ style was influenced by American rock singers, especially Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley. In 1964, the Beatles toured the United States and created a sensation everywhere they performed. They starred in two popular movies, A Hard Day’s Night (1964) and Help! (1965). A full-length cartoon, Yellow Submarine featured the music and characters of the Beatles.

During the middle and late 1960’s, the Beatles helped to give rock music a new direction. Earlier rock music had been based primarily on a strong beat, but the Beatles’ music contained a new sense of melody. Their chord progressions were also more complex, and the lyrics of their songs were more imaginative and meaningful.

The Beatles began to drift apart in the late 1960’s for a number of artistic, business, and personal reasons. The group broke up in 1970, but by that time their records had outsold those of any other popular music performers in history. After the breakup of the group, all the Beatles performed as soloists or led their own groups.