Why Did The Beatles Break Up?

why did the Beatles break up why does anyone break up infidelity finances personal differences or sometimes we just drift apart when I was younger I was convinced it was Yoko Ono's doing it was an articles television it became one of the first memes I ever saw about my favorite band but that never sat right with me how could one person up and years of professional friendship surely this story has more nuanced emotional complexities and creative difficulties than that and it does breakups can be messy and often they aren't sparked by just one thing John Lennon Paul McCartney George Harrison and Ringo Starr formed the most celebrated band in human history but even that couldn't keep them together you know how this story ends but I'm going to show you why can you believe we only had the Beatles for eight years after Ringo joined in 1962 and in those eight years they gave us over 200 songs like Hey Jude and a day in the life and by their publicly announced breakup in 1970 the lads from Liverpool had changed the world of music forever but they understand the beginning of the breakup we have to go back way back to when they stopped touring for any aspiring rock star having thousands of fans screaming your name sounds like a fantasy but the reality for the Beatles was utterly miserable during the height of Beatle mania in 1966 the fans were screaming so loudly during live performances that Ringo had to look at the other members shoulder movements in order to follow a song because they were unable to actually hear themselves playing over the clamor making the thing they loved their music sounds subpar to them Ringo says we used a house PA with those huge amps and I had to watch the back of the boys because I couldn't hear nothing and this is really my opinion we really weren't playing great John Lennon and George Harrison were actually becoming fed up with touring George most notably recalls a dangerous situation in August 20th 1966 where the band was to perform at Crosley Field in Cincinnati but had to call it off due to rain George blames the venue for its poor planning George says Cincinnati was an open-air venue and they had a Bandstand in the center of the ballpark with a canvas top on it it was really bad weather pouring with rain and when mal Evans got there to set up their equipment he said where's the electricity power feed and the fella said what do you mean electricity I thought they played guitars he didn't even know we played electric guitars it was so wet that we couldn't play they brought in the electricity but the stage was soaking and we would have been electrocuted so we cancelled the only gig we ever missed but here's the rub George Ringo and John were already getting fed up with touring but not Paul he still needed some convincing and as you'll see this is an important piece of foreshadowing to their disbanding Paul believed touring and playing live was integral to the band's success and growth saying Touring's good and it keeps us sharp we need touring and musicians need to play keep music live but after canceling the rainy Cincinnati performance on August 20th the band reschedule for the next day made the show and then traveled 350 miles to st. Louis for another show that same day at 8:30 in the evening and it was still raining this harrowing trip sealed the deal for Paul to stop touring he says it was worse than those early days and I don't even think the house was full after the gig I remember us getting in a big empty steel lined wagon like a removal van there was no furniture in there nothing we're suddenly sliding around in the back of the van and it was like oh [ __ ] this and finally the guys John and George had been a little Oh Murr Murr Murr Murr about touring and finally all of us were like [ __ ] this so that was the moment instead of causing a big commotion with an official announcement the band agreed to simply say nothing finished their scheduled 1966 tour and added no new dates until people realized they had no intention of getting back on the road now this decision can be argued to be pretty great seeing that they Flores in the recording studio without having to perform their songs live they could take more chances musically which is quite evident in albums like sergeant Pepper's however the decision to stop playing live comes only four years before their official breakup and it seems Paul still had a soft spot for live performance and John George and Ringo didn't have it as much this small difference proved to be a part of the bigger picture in terms of breakup hear this quote by John and I think you'll see what I mean John says I was thinking well this is the end really there's no more touring that means there's going to be a blank space in the future that's when I really started considering life without the Beatles what would it be and that's when the seed was planted that I had to somehow get out of the Beatles without being thrown out by the others but I could never step out of the palace because it was too frightening so in John Lennon's own words the Beatles stopping Turin played a pivotal role in him thinking about leaving after they finished touring the Beatles took a three-month hiatus in August 1966 John went off to film a role in the anti-war comedy how I won the war in Spain between September and October and began to write the song Strawberry Fields forever and although it's credited to Lennon McCartney it was for argument's sake mostly written by John not the first time he had written a song without Paul but their songwriting split was definitely happening at this point John then meets Yoko at her art exhibit in early November that year and they began to get to know each other while he was still with his wife Cynthia later that November the band gets to work on their first recording sessions since revolver at this point since they stopped touring and buy an Epstein informed EMI that they wouldn't be releasing any new music for the Christmas market the press began to take the group's lack of activity as a sign that they were on the verge of splitting up so when news broke that they were back in the studio it hit the front page The Beatles were back as it began to create sergeant pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band a novel concept album idea by Paul McCartney Paul wanted distance from their original image Paul says I thought let's not be ourselves everything about the album will be imagined from the perspective of these people so it doesn't have to be us it doesn't have to be the kind of song you want to write it could be the song they might want to write John and George reportedly had doubts about Paul's make-believe scenario but neither had an alternative idea for showcasing the new music so they went with Paul this created a strange new dynamic in the band Paul leading the way even had engineered Geoff Emerick calling him the band's de-facto producer giving him an upper hand in the Beatles even Ringo started to notice and divided brewing Ringo says Sergeant Pepper was our grandest and ever it gave everybody including me a lot of leeway to come up with ideas and to try different material John and Paul would write songs at home usually or wherever they were and bring them in and say I've got this the actual writing process was getting to be separate by now but they'd come in with bits and help each other and we'd all help John Paul and George the writers were putting whatever they wanted on the tracks and we were spending a long time in the studio we were still recording the basic tracks as we always did but it would take weeks to do the overdubs the strings or whatever and the percussion would be overdubbed later and later Sergeant Pepper was great for me because it's a fine album but I did learn to play chess while we were recording it chess is fun but I imagine making music would have been more fun for poor Ringo we saw where John first thought he might actually want to leave but this quote here by George Harrison about the arduous process of recording Sgt pepper's I believe shows where he began to consider the end of the band George says I felt we were just in the studio to make the next record and Paul was going on about this idea of some fictitious band that side of it didn't really interest me other than the title song and the album cover it was becoming difficult for me because I really wasn't into it up to that time we had recorded more like a band we would learn the songs and then play them Sgt pepper was one album where things were done slightly differently a lot of the time it ended up just being Paul playing the piano and Ringo keeping the tempo and we weren't allowed to play as a band so much it became an assembly process just little parts and then overdubbing and for me it became a bit tiring and a bit boring I had a few moments in there that I did enjoy but generally I didn't really like making that album much after what had happened in 1966 everything else seemed like hard work it was a job like doing something I really didn't want to do and I was losing interest in being fab at that point everybody else thought that Sergeant Pepper was a revolutionary record but for me it was just not as enjoyable as Rubber Soul or revolver purely because I had gone through so many trips on my own that I was growing out of that kind of thing despite the issues with making the album Paul's idea turned into a massive success Sergeant Pepper spent a whopping 27 weeks at number one on the UK charts and 15 weeks at number one in the US after its release in Maine 1967 so it was worth it wasn't it well it seems the damage had already been done we have John and George already contemplating the end of the band and Ringo is tired of playing chess all the while Paul is growing ever more confident in his abilities but here's where the catalyst comes a huge shocking moment Brian Epstein dies in August 1967 the longtime manager and friend Brian Epstein was found dead in London after an unintentional drug overdose John was at a loss he says I knew that we were in trouble I didn't really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music and I was scared I thought we [ __ ] had it the next year February 1968 The Beatles go on a retreat to Rishikesh India to study Transcendental Meditation with the Maharishi and John says although I was meditating about eight hours a day I was writing the most miserable songs on earth so when they returned to London John decided to abandon Cynthia and begin a serious relationship with Yoko Ono escaping the bore of his domestic life this is where the part everyone knows comes in John starts bringing Yoko to the recording studio now before I continue after seeing everything in this video leading up to her involvement doesn't it already seem like some members one out John saying the seed had already been planted after stopping Turin and George saying that he was tired of being fab however her presence didn't really help the Beatles rarely allowed guests into the studio and if anyone outside of them were to give input at best it would be George Martin or Geoff Emerick but John decided to bring Yoko in as a collaborator in 1968 while they began working on the White Album Yoko would sit on the studio floor talking to John in a low voice and basically shadowed him everywhere he went then the unthinkable while they were working on a song Yoko gave John advice on a vocal the room fell silent Paul says [ __ ] me did somebody speak who the [ __ ] was that did you say something George your lips didn't move we are getting into it now but here's the thing John wanted her there he asked her to be there Yoko says he wanted me to be part of the group he created the group so he thought the others should accept that I didn't particularly want to be part of them so whose fault is that Yoko's John wanted her there but it doesn't help also that John and Yoko were both now doing heroin John and Paul barely composed together George was coming into his own even to the point that he brought Eric Clapton into play on while my guitar gently weeps Geoff Emerick quits working with the Beatles because of their nasty behavior even Ringo wanted to quit now saying I had definitely left I couldn't take it anymore there was no magic and the relationships were terrible I knew we were all in a messed up stage it wasn't just me the whole thing was going down Ringo went to John's apartment and told him I'm leaving the group because I'm not playing well and I feel unloved and out of it and you three are really close John replied that he felt the same way Ringo went off on holiday and even though the end was near the boy sent him a telegram saying you're the best rock and roll drummer in the world come on home we love you they were still like brothers weren't they despite at all but it wouldn't last this is where it gets really messy in 1968 The Beatles launched their new record label Apple and after a slew of issues with Yoko where George Harrison had become fed up with her equal input got into a fight with John some say it turned physical George walks out saying I'm out of here put an ad in the papers and get a few people in see you around the clubs John chose to be a jerk and started to play the who's a quick one while he's away - mock George and even suggested replacing him with Eric Clapton they reconciled with George under new terms and while filming the end of let it be they played their last live concert on that infamous rooftop they smiled they played it was one of the best live performances in music history hands down but it was all about to end Apple was bleeding money to the point when an accountant quit he left a memo saying your personal finances are in a mess The Beatles realized they needed a new manager as they were not adapt at finances Paul decided that his wife Linda Eastman's father and her brother would be perfect for the job as they were New York attorneys specialized an artist's representation but the rest of the band was like hell no thinking it would be a terrible idea to have Paul's in-laws overseeing their business I mean there is a saying never makes money and family enter the accountant Alan a man Brian Epstein wouldn't even shake the hand of and Mick Jagger who Klein managed for a time wrote a note to Paul about him saying don't go near him Klein wanted in on the Beatles for a while and now he had his chance two days before the rooftop concert Klein met John and Yoko charming them with his knowledge of the Beatles catalog and won them over Klein was a brutish businessman when Paul had brought Lindh his father and brother to a meeting with Allen Klein Klein turned it into a shouting fest until Paul and his in-laws left the meeting despite this John convinced George and Ringo the Klein was the man for the job George saying we favored people who were Street people but there was no time left to debate the Beatles lost the right to northern songs because they couldn't take over Brian Epstein's former management firm after he died Paul eventually couldn't fight the rest of the band anymore and agreed to have Klein managed them but refused to put his signature on Klein's contracts Paul not signing actually ended up being a very good move but we'll get back to that the Beatles release Abbey Road in September 1969 while still playing more and more apart and John and Yoko had performed live with another group that included Eric Clapton this must have emboldened him with the confidence to do what he did next during a meeting with Klein soon after that performance Paul says they should go back to performing life remember how Paul said three years earlier Touring's good and it keeps us sharp we need touring a musician's need to play keep music live well this is what John had to say to him I think you're daft I wasn't going to tell you but I'm breaking the group up it feels good it feels like a divorce the room once again fell silent Paul said everyone's jaws dropped after the meeting where Klein convinced John not to go public with his leaving for marketing reasons John and Yoko went into their car Yoko recalls saying we went off into the car and he turned to me and said that's it with the Beatles from now on it's just you okay I thought my god those three guys were the ones entertaining him for so long now I have to be the one to take the load you know the more and more I say all this the more and more I feel like Yoko got thrown under the bus I mean what do you think because obviously her presence in the recording studio was annoying but there was a lot more going on to consider however this destroyed Paul he said Johnson love with Yoko and he's no longer in love with the three of us Paul began to drink all day stopped writing music he was depressed until his wonderful wife Linda spoke to him saying you don't have to take this crap you're a grown man with her encouragement Paul began to work on his first album as a solo artist he called John in March 1970 and told him he was leaving the Beatles however let it be was about to be released and Kline and the rest of the band didn't want Paul to release his debut album in April as he initially planned to allow room for the Beatles album they sent Ringo to explain this to Paul and after a huge argument Paul kicked Ringo out of his house Ringo felt terrible and convinced John and George to let Paul keep his original release date but Paul did something no one expected he publicly announced he was leaving The Beatles with a self interview accompanying his debut album John was pissed saying I wanted to do it I should have done it I was a fool not to do it not to do what Paul did which was use it to sell a record I started the band I disbanded it it's as simple as that Paul responded I think it's just straightforward jealousy Ringo left first then George then John I was the last to leave it wasn't me that wasn't it for Paul he was a man on a mission not only did he use the break-up to boost sales of his solo album but he turned his sights on Allen Klein Paul wanted to be done with Apple he didn't want to have anything to do with Allen Klein Paul calls George to say he wants off the label to which George replies you stay on the [ __ ] label Hari Krishna he reached out to John but to no avail Paul threatened to sue an Allen Klein laughed at him but they couldn't stop Paul Paul sued Paul won it also helped that Paul never signed Allen Klein's documents later the rest of the and would actually sue Alan to admitting that Paul was probably on to something and Klein actually ended up going to jail for fraud a real piece of work wasn't he all four Beatles would never play again together but each created a successful career for themselves in the end after all the dust settled they only seemed to have love from one another they mourned for one another they would always still be the Beatles breakups rarely have just one cause but in this case they were for thank you so much for watching I hope you enjoyed the video I actually learned a ton making this and it even inspired me to make a breakup song I call this one you should leave this unread see you next time [Music] you should leave this somewhere that it's laid forward a message [Music] considering how close you can be you should assume this was just you know you know I try to erase you I don't magic magic was something so cruel but honestly you were good for me and I caused you so much you should leave this somewhere I know [Music] you know that when I wake up I forget where we are like we may [Music] like it was in the end just apart [Music] you know it could be you and me but even so just in my head and you should leave this son [Music] I should go off the bed close my eyes and try to sleep and recover [Applause] [Music] is broken you should leave this sermon just so you know that when I just closed my eyes I had a vision of you walking beside me making funny face and I just smile [Music] you know it could be you and me but even so [Music] Joseph are [Music] and you should leave the son [Music] you should leave this just so weird if you enjoy these videos and want to support the channel please consider becoming a patron my videos will always be free and this is a great way to help me make them better for you check out my debut album the Holly Hobbs on Spotify and Apple music and click the like button subscribe a notification bow because that is the best way to get notified when a new video is released see you next time

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Views: 709,915

Rating: 4.8877544 out of 5

Keywords: beatles breakup, the beatles, the beatles breakup, hollyhobs, the hollyhobs

Id: uVlaaH_1Ig8

Length: 24min 12sec (1452 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 25 2019