The incessant, ear-piercing screams of the fans echo through the arena. The music pours out of the speakers with a beat that shakes the stadium. A socio-cultural revolution is underway, and it has a soundtrack. Records fly left and right off the shelves, and the band skyrockets to the top of the charts. However, fame, fortune, and stress soon engulf them as they orchestrate seventeen hit singles and sell an estimated 600 million records worldwide. This legendary band entered the world at a time when people needed an escape from the chaos, and they truly connected with their generation. They were an unprecedented phenomenon that exhibited a unique sound while maintaining simplicity. The Beatles are the most influential band in history due to
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LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) was little know at this time, but still legal, and was commonly used by John, Paul, George, and Ringo. It had an “[immense] effect on the Beatles songwriting and recording” (“Beatles and Drugs”). The first released song to mention acid was “Day Tripper,” but “over time its influence resulted in less explicit and more abstract references to acid” (“Beatles and Drugs”). The song most commonly associated with The Beatles use of LSD is “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” However, the group denied the title was a reference to acid and claimed it was inspired by a painting drawn by Julian Lennon of his school friend (“Beatles and Drugs”). Many people doubt this claim and believe the song was a product of drug intake. The band also had a great influence over sexuality. Lennon’s relationship with Yoko Ono, also known as the “Japanese-American home-wrecker” (Riley 438) came as a public scandalous surprise to many fans. Perhaps it was the fact that Lennon had a family, his wife Cynthia Lennon and child Julian Lennon, that he knowingly destroyed which was viewed as extremely dishonorable. Lennon later dropped his Christian middle name for Yoko’s (Riley 452). “To willfully alter your Christian name itself was a kind of scandal, and to drop Britain’s great World War II prime minister in favor of a Japanese who represented, in the minds of many, cruel aggressors in the same war, smacked of …show more content…
The Beatles not only broke, but they set records that have, and, possibly, will never be breached, including the record for biggest all-time sales for a band. They have sold over 600 million records worldwide with seventeen hit singles (IGN). Lennon and McCartney’s song “Yesterday” holds the record for most recorded song with over 1,600 versions. At one time, they invaded “Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with a sweep of the entire top five” (IGN). Not only did the Fab-Four set records, they set expectations for how music should sound. One of the Beatles’ greatest innovations in music is the Concept Album, a technique that is still used and been improved upon in the twenty-first century. According to Tom Daniel, before 1966 musicians entered the studio to create a stack of singles which were released individually, and a few months later, they were released as a whole album. Typically, the record company made all the decisions about the album, but the Beatles did not desire that. “With the invaluable guidance of their producer, George Martin, The Beatles released the industry’s first concept album, ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’” (Daniel). Not one of the songs was released as a single, so “the first time the public heard any part of “Sgt. Pepper” was when the entire album was released in
LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) was little know at this time, but still legal, and was commonly used by John, Paul, George, and Ringo. It had an “[immense] effect on the Beatles songwriting and recording” (“Beatles and Drugs”). The first released song to mention acid was “Day Tripper,” but “over time its influence resulted in less explicit and more abstract references to acid” (“Beatles and Drugs”). The song most commonly associated with The Beatles use of LSD is “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” However, the group denied the title was a reference to acid and claimed it was inspired by a painting drawn by Julian Lennon of his school friend (“Beatles and Drugs”). Many people doubt this claim and believe the song was a product of drug intake. The band also had a great influence over sexuality. Lennon’s relationship with Yoko Ono, also known as the “Japanese-American home-wrecker” (Riley 438) came as a public scandalous surprise to many fans. Perhaps it was the fact that Lennon had a family, his wife Cynthia Lennon and child Julian Lennon, that he knowingly destroyed which was viewed as extremely dishonorable. Lennon later dropped his Christian middle name for Yoko’s (Riley 452). “To willfully alter your Christian name itself was a kind of scandal, and to drop Britain’s great World War II prime minister in favor of a Japanese who represented, in the minds of many, cruel aggressors in the same war, smacked of …show more content…
The Beatles not only broke, but they set records that have, and, possibly, will never be breached, including the record for biggest all-time sales for a band. They have sold over 600 million records worldwide with seventeen hit singles (IGN). Lennon and McCartney’s song “Yesterday” holds the record for most recorded song with over 1,600 versions. At one time, they invaded “Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart with a sweep of the entire top five” (IGN). Not only did the Fab-Four set records, they set expectations for how music should sound. One of the Beatles’ greatest innovations in music is the Concept Album, a technique that is still used and been improved upon in the twenty-first century. According to Tom Daniel, before 1966 musicians entered the studio to create a stack of singles which were released individually, and a few months later, they were released as a whole album. Typically, the record company made all the decisions about the album, but the Beatles did not desire that. “With the invaluable guidance of their producer, George Martin, The Beatles released the industry’s first concept album, ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’” (Daniel). Not one of the songs was released as a single, so “the first time the public heard any part of “Sgt. Pepper” was when the entire album was released in