Beatles News

Biographies can be a tricky, difficult genre to pull off. The best are written from a distance and focus on a critical assessment of their subject. They’re not afraid to hold the person at the center of the story accountable for indiscretions in either personal or professional life choices. The key to a successful biography has always been objectivity, distance, and a willingness to take a stand. This is especially true when it comes to divisive artists whose legacies are rich but still questionable. In the matter of Yoko Ono, the multi-hyphenate visual/recording artist, poet, sculptor, pioneering performance artist, widow of Beatle John Lennon, any biographer who undertakes a manageable account of the nonagenarian's life and times has to make a choice. Should he cover the prolific output, the colorful life, or both?

Ono turned 93 in February, and has been retired for approximately the past 10 years. She’s living on a farm in upstate New York. She’s given over the family empire to her fifty year old son Sean Lennon, who oversees boxed set releases of work by his father (Mind Games) and both parents together (Sometime In New York City.) Early in the prologue of Yoko Ono: A Biography, Sheff discloses his details

Every closed door leaves another waiting to be opened. When The Beatles split for good in April 1970, drummer Ringo Starr was more than prepared to embark on a new musical journey. Starr may not have been part of the prolific John Lennon-Paul McCartney songwriting partnership, whose volatile yet productive collaboration yielded roughly 180 songs for the band. With only two Beatles songwriting credits (or four, if you could include his co-writes), Starr seems like the last Beatle who would pursue a solo career.

Yet, with fewer creative constraints and more time at his disposal, the "song-first" drummer learned to trust his instincts over perfection. When he followed his heart into experimenting with different genres, it led him to create one highly misunderstood song — one that, contrary to popular belief, was inspired more by frendship than by hatred.
Ringo Starr Embraced '70s Glam Rock Realness in "Back Off Boogaloo"

They say drummers aren't great songwriters, but Starr seems to enjoy proving that wrong — even if it took him some time to find his footing. Before The Beatles split in 1970, Starr wrote his first song for the band, "Don't Pass Me By," which he originally worked on around 1963-1964 details

The album included two hit singles, the title track and “Jet.” It went to #1 in the U.S. and the U.K. and remains McCartney’s most successful non-Beatles album.

The cover featured McCartney, his wife, Linda McCartney, and guitarist Denny Laine posing as escaped convicts alongside actors James Coburn and Christopher Lee, British boxer John Conteh, U.K. broadcasters Michael Parkinson and Clement Freud, and English entertainer Kenny Lynch.

McCartney celebrated the 50th anniversary of the album by reissuing it in February 2024.

A documentary about McCartney’s post-Beatles career, including the formation of Wings, debuted on Prime Video in February. He also looked back at his time in Wings in the book Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run, which came out in November.

Source: kslx.com

Because they arrived on the scene around the same time and sported two vastly different images, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were often painted as enemies. In actuality, the two bands maintained a cordial relationship, occasionally indulging in friendly rivalry.

As a matter of fact, The Beatles provided The Stones with one of their earliest singles. But only after they first deemed that they didn’t want to put the song out there in that same way. 

The frenzy that started to greet The Beatles in late 1962 in Great Britain soon enveloped The Rolling Stones when they started their recording career a year later. Whereas The Fab Four came across as polite and happy-go-lucky, The Stones put forth more of a bad-boy image.

But both enjoyed dizzying levels of success. And even when some in the press tried to imagine some sort of animosity between the two groups, they actually harbored no ill will toward each other at all. They regularly interacted in London as the beat music craze rolled through England in 1963.

One area where The Beatles enjoyed a pretty good head start on The Stones was the songwriting department. The Stones mostly relied on cover songs for their early material. Meanwhi details

Every artist has songs they can’t stand, and for The Beatles, that song was “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer”. Recorded at a time when the band was already struggling, the song appears on The Beatles’ Abbey Road album. It was a bit of a pain to make, according to drummer Ringo Starr.

Starr told Rolling Stone, “It was the worst track we ever had to record. It went on for f***ing weeks. I thought it was mad.”

The year was 1969, and Lennon had been in a car crash with his wife, Yoko Ono, weeks prior. She accompanied Lennon to the studio for some of the recording, which probably didn’t help matters. McCartney, who wrote the song, also kept having new ideas throughout recording, which annoyed Beatles like George Harrison.

Harrison even admitted, “After a while we did a good job on it, but when Paul got an idea or an arrangement in his head ….”

Other Beatles expressed a similar sentiment. Lennon said he “hated it,” and that the track was done “a hundred million times.”

It took The Beatles four lengthy sessions to complete “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer”. The Story Behind the Song.

Even th details

The Beatles' timeless sound keeps pulling in 18-29-year-olds across North America through streaming, TikTok trends, and endless cultural pull. Here's why their catalog hits different in 2026.

The Beatles changed everything. For young fans in North America today, their music isn't just oldies—it's the blueprint for modern pop, sampled on TikTok, blasted in memes, and dominating Spotify playlists. Born in Liverpool in 1960, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr exploded onto the scene with raw energy that reshaped global culture. Decades later, their influence pulses through hip-hop beats, indie tracks, and viral challenges, making them essential for anyone scrolling streaming apps or hitting festivals.

Why does this matter now? In 2026, with algorithms pushing classics to Gen Z, The Beatles rack up billions of streams yearly. North American listeners, from LA clubs to Toronto dive bars, rediscover them via covers, remixes, and social buzz. Their story of friendship, fame, and innovation feels relatable amid today's creator economy chaos.
Why does this topic remain relevant?

Source: ad-hoc-news.de

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Fifty-six years ago today, music changed forever when the most iconic rock band in history had its farewell reach No. 1 on the charts. 'Let It Be' by The Beatles topped the chart right after the band broke up forever.
The Beatles' 'Let It Be' Hit No. 1 on April 11, 1970

On March 6, 1970, The Beatles released the song 'Let It Be' as a single, roughly two months before the album of the same name came out. It didn't take long for it to become a success as it entered the chart on March 21, before going on to hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on April 11, 1970. Following that, it would stay on top for two weeks.

'Let It Be' was the second last The Beatles song to reach the top of Billboard's main chart. 'The Long and Winding Road/For You Blue' would later hit No. 1 on June 13, 1970. Still, 'Let It Be' arguably was the band's true farewell hit because of the news that broke one day before it dominated the chart.

On April 10, 1970, The Beatles effectively came to an end, even though the public didn't know it at the time.

Paul McCartney's debut solo album, 'McCartney,' was released on April 17, 1970. While promoting it, the legendary singer, songwriter, and bassist announced he was taki details

Bursting with some of the most audacious - and at times challenging - songs the Beatles ever recorded, their eponymous 1968 double-album (aka, the White Album) demonstrated just how far John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr had widened the boundaries of contemporary pop.

It was also the album which most markedly revealed the distinct individuals the Beatles had grown into. Essentially creating music for the album as four (arguably three… with a floating Ringo, sorry Ringo) solo artists, the band still needed each other to serve as vital competitors. Their ideas swimming in a contentious marketplace of potential Beatle songs.

The ‘let’s record everything you’ve got in one day’ production-ethos that had been relied upon to track the bulk of the Beatles’ debut (amazingly, just five years prior in 1963) was a far cry from the overdub-laden, exploratory production techniques applied to the Beatles late-60s work.

By 1968, albums weren't just records of a beat combo's usual live set. These were now culturally significant statements.

In-keeping with the era's spirit of invention and disruption, the Beatles' new material needed to push and challe details

A new collection of George Martin's archival manuscripts and scores offers a rare glimpse into the creative genius behind The Beatles' iconic sound.Union Today

A new book and audio collection titled 'George Martin: The Scores' is set to unveil a treasure trove of archival manuscripts and scores from the legendary producer's decades-long career, including previously unseen material from his work with The Beatles. While the inclusion of Paul McCartney's James Bond theme 'Live and Let Die' has sparked some debate, the comprehensive set promises to offer music enthusiasts a unique glimpse into the creative process behind some of the most iconic songs of all time.
Why it matters

George Martin's contributions as a producer were integral to the success of The Beatles, and this new collection provides a rare opportunity for fans to delve into the behind-the-scenes work that shaped the band's groundbreaking sound. The release also comes at a significant time, as it marks what would have been Martin's 100th birthday, making it a meaningful celebration of his enduring legacy in the music industry.

Source: nationaltoday.com

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In his role as producer, Don Was has often had to play the diplomat, especially when he found himself caught in the crossfire of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. But they weren’t the only stars he had to mediate between.

In 1990, while behind the desk for Bob Dylan’s Under the Red Sky, he found himself at the center of disagreement over a guitar solo between the folk rock legend and one of his guest collaborators, George Harrison.

“I learned a lesson pretty early on,” Was says in conversation with Rock & Roll High School . What was the lesson? Well, as he puts it, it was “benign honesty.”

“George Harrison came in to overdub guitar in the song,” he explains. “I'd never met George Harrison before. The room was aglow with personality and charisma.

“And Bob, I guess, on a previous record, had only let George play an overdub one time, and then he cut him off. So, as we’re walking into the control room, George Harrison said to me, ‘Don't let him do that again. Give me a chance to play it a few times,’ which Bob overheard.”

Was plays the comment as being “jocular” and fun, rather than it coming fro details

The Beatles ripped up the rulebook in many ways.

One of these was that, after their first album was rushed together to cash in on their first couple of hits, they decided not to put singles on albums, or to issue album tracks as singles. The reason for this was simple: they felt it was unfair on fans to have to buy the same song twice.

They didn’t stick to the rule religiously – for example, both their movie soundtrack albums (1964's A Hard Day’s Night and Help! from the following year) feature singles, as they were put out to promote the films.

But had they wanted to, they could easily have doubled their total of number one hit singles. Here, we break down which songs they could have used – it’s hard to imagine any of them not hitting the top spot.

The Beatles themselves only really controlled what was released in their native UK. Other territories could issue their songs however they chose, so for the purposes of this article, we only focus on what was (and wasn’t) a single in their home country.

1. Twist & Shout (1963) 

Most people would be forgiven for thinking that ‘Twist & Shout’ was a Beatles original, but they&rs details

The collaborative spirit of the former Beatles shines through in the music they created together after the band's split.Los Angeles Today

After the Beatles broke up, John Lennon continued to write songs for his former bandmate Ringo Starr's solo albums. Lennon penned the opening track 'I'm the Greatest' on Ringo's 1973 album, as well as other songs like '(It's All Down to) Goodnight Vienna' and 'Cookin' (In the Kitchen of Love)' on later releases. These collaborations marked a reunion of sorts for the former Beatles members.
Why it matters

Ringo Starr's solo career allowed the former Beatles members to continue working together, even after the band's acrimonious split in 1970. Lennon's songwriting contributions to Ringo's albums show the enduring creative partnership between the two musicians, despite the tensions that had developed within the band.
The details

On Ringo's 1973 self-titled album, Lennon wrote the opening track 'I'm the Greatest,' which featured all three of Ringo's former bandmates - Lennon, George Harrison, and Paul McCartney. Lennon also wrote '(It's All Down to) Goodnight Vienna' for Ringo's 1974 album of the same name, and played piano on the track. For Ringo's 1976 album Ri details

In the early Beatles days, John Lennon—like so many young twenty-somethings trying to find themselves—often used humor and wit to deflect attention from his true feelings. As a ruffian cutting his teeth in Liverpool, Lennon certainly learned how to don a necessary layer of armor over his soft interior. It wasn’t until the mid-1960s, with songs like “Help!” and “Strawberry Fields Forever”, that Lennon started leaning into his truth.

But there were few Beatles tracks quite as heartbreakingly sincere as the late-era single, “Don’t Let Me Down”. Although credited to the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership, both Lennon and Paul McCartney would later clarify that it was earnestly Lennon’s.

“It was a very tense period,” McCartney later explained to Barry Miles. “John was with Yoko [Ono] and had escalated to heroin and all the accompanying paranoias, and he was putting himself out on a limb. I think that, as much as it excited and amused him, at the same time, it secretly terrified him. ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ was a genuine plea.”
“Don’t Let Me Down” Gains Even More Power Within the Greater details

“The Beatles” and “heavy metal” are largely regarded as residing on opposite ends of the musical spectrum. But every so often on a rogue 1960s track, the Venn diagram between these two phenomena became nearly circular. Songs like “Helter Skelter” and “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road” come to mind, and certainly post-Beatles songs from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Plastic Ono Band could qualify.

What this writer wouldn’t expect is that the song Lennon once cited as the first heavy metal record would come from their 1965 album, Help! Smack dab in the middle of the decade, we were still years away from the heavy offerings of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Deep Purple. Not even The Beatles were that far into their experimental, psychedelic phase by that point. But they were getting close.

And according to Lennon, “Ticket To Ride” was the band’s first foray into heavy (or, perhaps more accurately, relatively heavier) rock ‘n’ roll. The song boasts Lennon and Paul McCartney’s signature harmonies and a syncopated rhythm section with accompanying drone notes that foreshadowed their later works. But was it actually heavy details

Entertainment legend, global philanthropist and friend of Maya Angelou, Oprah Winfrey has achieved every dream she ever had — except for one.

In a Tuesday appearance on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Winfrey spoke about how she’s been fortunate to have every one of her wildest wishes come true. The only one that never came to fruition was ending up with her teenage crush.

“Everything I ever wanted or dreamed came true,” Winfrey said. “Except, I did not marry Paul McCartney.“

The media mogul goes on to share that, growing up, she was the only girl she knew who loved The Beatles as much as she did. She even collected Beatles trading cards. And of course, like every fangirl she had a favorite member of the band.

“Of course Paul was my favorite Beatle. And I used to try to make him think of me,” Winfrey says, clutching her fists and remembering. “I used to wake in the morning and I’d stand on the stairs and say, ‘Think of me, think of me, think of me.'”

Unlike most other fangirls, however, Winfrey actually got to know her childhood crush one day. She shares that, years later, when she got the chance to interview the details