In the mid-1960s, when so much was happening in the world and the volume everywhere seemed dialed up to 11, the Beatles were the biggest thing on the planet. Their fans screamed from the fences as the Fab Four walked across the airport tarmac or into a vast stadium. They wanted to touch the Beatles. They wanted to know the Beatles. Who might help them? One photographer was inside. The young Australian Robert Whitaker had been noticed by Beatles manager Brian Epstein, who then hired him. When Beatlemania exploded, Whitaker was along for the wild ride. He was backstage, he was in the studio, he went to the boys' homes, he became their friend and confidante (He grew particularly close to John). Robert Whitaker fashioned many of the iconic Beatles images, and all his pictures of the band were taken in the period that Beatles fans most like to remember: when they were fab, when they changed our culture. Bob Whitaker-a great photographer, after all-was a friend of LIFE's and made contributions to earlier books on John Lennon and George Harrison. In the months before his death in September 2011, he was collaborating with us on this book, his Beatles magnum opus. In these pages are rarely or never seen photographs and his personal reflections, which add resonance to the images. For those who once wanted to touch the Beatles, wanted to know them, this is an essential document. It is full of vitality. Beatlemania was a crazy, crazy place to be, and it is captured here in all its nutty glory. Then, too, there are the famous Whitaker album covers, including the early drafts of the notorious-and banned-Yesterday and Today jacket. It is LIFE's good fortune, and it will be our readers', that Bob Whitaker talked about all this with us and others through the years. His testimony is that of a proverbial fifth Beatle: He was there, part of the scene. He saw it all, he recorded much of it on film, and he remembered even more. Here, then, is Bob Whitaker's final word on the Beatles-all his best photographs, all his reminiscences. LIFE is proud to bring forth this book. It does what we always try to do-present great photography-and it also pays tribute to a bygone time, a bygone band that we all loved, and a man who was a dear friend.

This look at how changes in the music industry made the Fab Four phenomenon possible “presents a different interpretation of a much-studied topic” (Essays in Economic and Business History). In this unique study, André Millard argues that, despite the Beatles’ indisputable skill, they would not have attained the same global recognition or been as influential without the convergence of significant developments in the way music was produced, recorded, sold, and consumed. As the Second Industrial Revolution hit full swing and baby boomers came of age, the reel-to-reel recorder and other technological advances sped the evolution of the music business. Musicians, recording studios and record labels, and music fans used and interacted with music-making and -playing technology in new ways. Higher quality machines made listening to records and the radio an experience that one could easily share with others, even if they weren’t in the same physical space. At the same time, an increase in cross-Atlantic commerce—especially of entertainment products—led to a freer exchange of ideas and styles of expression, notably among the middle and lower classes in the U.S. and the UK. At that point, Millard argues, the Beatles rode their remarkable musicianship and cultural savvy to an unprecedented bond with their fans—and spawned Beatlemania. Lively and insightful, Beatlemania offers a deeper understanding the days of the Fab Four and the band’s long-term effects on the business and culture of pop music.

Written by a fan, about the fans, and for the fans, this book is about Beatles fandom and excitement for the band as it continues, undiminished, in the 21st century. The author conducted nearly 100 interviews with superfans across the globe, gathering stories that explain their enthusiasm. Readers will meet fans who met and married at Beatlesweek in Liverpool; those who had the chance to go onstage with Paul McCartney, got his autograph on some unusual places on their bodies, and had the signature permanently tattooed; and first-generation fans who saw the Beatles live and remember every detail as if it was yesterday. Noteworthy interviewees include Wings guitarist Laurence Juber; Mark Featherstone-Witty, cofounder of Paul McCartney's Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts; Bill Heckle, director of the Cavern Club and Magical Mystery Tour Bus in Liverpool; and music publisher David Stark, who now stands by Paul's side at LIPA graduations but started as a good-natured teenage fan who had the guts to ring Ringo's doorbell and meet him at his house. (The book also takes a deep dive into Beatles-related TV shows, Broadway musicals, movies, businesses, Sirius XM DJs, tribute bands and more.)

An all-access, firsthand account of the life and music of one of history's most beloved bands--from an original mastering engineer at Abbey Road Geoff Emerick became an assistant engineer at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in 1962 at age fifteen, and was present as a new band called the Beatles recorded their first songs. He later worked with the Beatles as they recorded their singles “She Loves You” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” the songs that would propel them to international superstardom. In 1964 he would witness the transformation of this young and playful group from Liverpool into professional, polished musicians as they put to tape classic songs such as “Eight Days A Week” and “I Feel Fine.” Then, in 1966, at age nineteen, Geoff Emerick became the Beatles’ chief engineer, the man responsible for their distinctive sound as they recorded the classic album Revolver, in which they pioneered innovative recording techniques that changed the course of rock history. Emerick would also engineer the monumental Sgt. Pepper and Abbey Road albums, considered by many the greatest rock recordings of all time. In Here, There and Everywhere he reveals the creative process of the band in the studio, and describes how he achieved the sounds on their most famous songs. Emerick also brings to light the personal dynamics of the band, from the relentless (and increasingly mean-spirited) competition between Lennon and McCartney to the infighting and frustration that eventually brought a bitter end to the greatest rock band the world has ever known.

The songs are iconic, their faces unmistakable. When John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, all cheeky young lads from Liverpool, exploded on the international stage in the 1960s, with their mop tops and infectious love songs it was a cultural earthquake. Beatlemania swept the globe. The Fab Four's music and lyrics would continue to grow in maturity and sophistication, including the albums Rubber Soul, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road broke new ground. After breaking up in 1970, the Beatles found both solo success and tragedy, with Lennon's 1980 assassination and Harrison's untimely death from cancer. But their music is eternal. This special edition tells their story and includes: The early days, John and Paul: friends and rivals, the women they loved, and going solo.

Almost everyone can sing along with the Beatles, but how many young readers know their whole story? Geoff Edgers, a Boston Globe reporter and hard-core Beatles fan, brings the Fab Four to life in this Who Was...? book. Readers will learn about their childhoods in Liverpool, their first forays into rock music, what Beatlemania was like, and why they broke up. It's all here in an easy-to-read narrative with plenty of black-and-white illustrations!

Seminar paper from the year 2011 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 2,0, University of Bayreuth, language: English, abstract: This paper analyses the origins of popular culture and the so-called "Beatlemania" in Britain. Before the 1960s, the whole world had to recover from the Great War, for instance, in 1948 restrictions on rationed goods were gradually lifted three years after World War II had ended, the rationing of clothes ended the following year, and so on. Finally recovered, Great Britain stood before good times after in 1954 fourteen years of food rationing completely ended at midnight when restrictions on the sale and purchase of meat and bacon were lifted. The economy of Britain evolved quite successful as can be seen on manufacturing and export economy, above all the main industries steel, coal, automotive and textiles. Overall, it seemed to be a change not just in economy. Caused by the economical upswing, many people were employed and, consequently, obtained payment which increased their disposable income. That fact gave the Britons more freedom and therefore they were able to afford household items such as televisions, refrigerators, washing machines etc, as well as cars; even hire-purchases, i. e. arrangements for payment by installments, were usual. Also young adults or teenagers, who were working besides school mostly in part-time jobs, earned their own money in those days. Benefitted by that, they were able to purchase goods on their own, independent from their parents and other adults. In contrast to previous youth generations, especially pre-war generations, young people could enjoy the omnipresent music and fashion which was spread by mass-media such as magazines or television. With the new freedom and possibilities, the younger generation had the chance to develop their own identity instead of living like the other adults. But they were not just using this chance; they even rebelled and broke away from their parents, which resulted in the emergence of youth culture as well as popular culture.

An annotated bibliography of materials about the Beatles.