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Home | Early years: 1940–57 |Solo career | Murder | Political activism
The Beatles: 1957–70
When Lennon decided that he wanted to try making music himself, he and fellow Quarry Bank High School friend Eric Griffiths took guitar lessons at Hunts Cross in Liverpool, although Lennon gave up the lessons soon after. Lennon started The Quarrymen in March 1957. On 6 July 1957, Lennon met McCartney at the Quarrymen's second concert at the St. Peter's Church Woolton Garden fête. McCartney's father told his son that Lennon would get him "into a lot of trouble", but later allowed The Quarrymen to rehearse in the front room at 20 Forthlin Road. There, Lennon and McCartney began writing songs together. The first song Lennon completed was "Hello, Little Girl" when he was 18 years old, which later became a hit for the Fourmost. McCartney convinced Lennon to allow George Harrison to join the Quarrymen (even though Lennon thought Harrison to be too young) after Harrison played the song "Raunchy" for Lennon on the upper deck of a bus. Harrison joined the band as lead guitarist, and Stuart Sutcliffe — Lennon's friend from art school — later joined as bassist. After a series of name changes, the group decided on The Beatles. Lennon was always considered the leader of the group, as McCartney explained: "We all looked up to John. He was older and he was very much the leader - he was the quickest wit and the smartest and all that kind of thing".
Allan Williams became the Beatles' first manager in May 1960, after they had played in his Jacaranda club. A few months later he booked them into Bruno Koschmider's Indra club in Hamburg, Germany. Lennon's Aunt Mimi was horrified when he told her about the trip to Hamburg, and pleaded with him to continue his studies. After the first residency Sutcliffe left The Beatles to concentrate on his artwork, and to be with his girlfriend, Astrid Kirchherr. McCartney took over as bass player for the group. Koschmider reported McCartney and drummer Pete Best for arson after the two attached a condom to a nail in the 'Bambi' (a cinema where they were staying) and set fire to it. They were deported, as was Harrison for working under age. A few days later Lennon's work permit was revoked and he went home by train.
After Harrison turned 18 and the immigration problems had been solved, The Beatles went back to Hamburg for another residency in April 1961. While they were there, they recorded "My Bonnie" with Tony Sheridan. In April 1962, The Beatles went back to Hamburg to play at the Star-Club, and were told that Sutcliffe had died two days before they arrived. This was another blow for Lennon, after losing his uncle and his mother.
On 9 November 1961, The Beatles performed a lunchtime concert at the Cavern Club in Liverpool. Brian Epstein, owner of NEMS Music Store, attended the performance and was quite impressed. In a meeting with the group at NEMS on 3 December 1961, Epstein proposed the idea of managing them, and they ultimately agreed.
Although Epstein had had no prior experience of artist management, he had a strong influence on their early dress-code and attitude on stage. He encouraged them to wear suits and ties and insisted that they stop swearing, smoking, drinking or eating onstage. He also suggested the famous synchronised bow at the end of their performances. Lennon was against the idea of wearing suits and ties, but later agreed, saying "I'll wear a bloody balloon if somebody's going to pay me". Epstein began auditioning the group to all the major record labels, and was rejected by all. His persistance paid off when on 9 May 1962, George Martin signed The Beatles to EMI's comedy label, Parlophone.
The Beatles released their first double-sided original single, "Love Me Do" b/w "P.S. I Love You" on 5 October; it reached #17 on the British charts. On 11 February 1963, the group recorded their first album Please Please Me in one day with Lennon suffering from a common cold. Originally the Lennon-McCartney songs on the first pressing of the album, as well as the single "From Me to You" and its B-side "Thank You Girl", were credited to "McCartney-Lennon", but this was later changed to "Lennon-McCartney". Lennon and McCartney usually needed an hour or two to finish a song, most of which were written in hotel rooms after a concert, at Wimpole Street — Jane Asher's home — or at Cavendish Avenue; McCartney's home or at Kenwood (Lennon's house).
The album and single hit #1 in Britain, and EMI offered the album to their US subsidiary, Capitol Records, but they turned it down. Epstein finally secured a deal with Vee-Jay Records; a predominantly black R&B and gospel label. Neither the single nor the accompanying album, Introducing... The Beatles was successful in the US. By the time the group recorded "She Loves You", they were dropped from Vee Jay and once again, Capitol declined to release their records. EMI were forced to release it on the even more obscure Swan Records label. It did eventually hit #1 in January 1964, after Capitol Records finally released "I Want To Hold Your Hand" in America. Following their historic appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show, The Beatles would embark on a two-year non-stop period of productivity: constant international tours, making movies, and writing hit songs. Lennon wrote two books, In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works, while The Beatles achieved recognition from the British Establishment when they were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours.
Lennon complained that nobody heard them play for all the screaming, and their musicianship was beginning to suffer. By the time he wrote his 1965 song "Help!", Lennon had put on quite a bit of weight (and would later refer to this as his "Fat Elvis" period) and realised he was subconsciously crying out for help and seeking change.
The catalyst for this change occurred on 4 March 1966, when Lennon was interviewed for the London Evening Standard by Maureen Cleave, and talked about Christianity by saying: "Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink… We're more popular than Jesus now—I don't know which will go first, rock and roll or Christianity." Lennon's comment went virtually unnoticed in England but created a controversy when quoted by American teen magazine Datebook five months later. Burning of Beatles records, the involvement of the Ku Klux Klan and threats against Lennon greatly contributed to the band's decision to stop touring.
But Lennon soon felt lost without the group. "No more touring... life without the Beatles, it's like a black space in the future", he said, and considered leaving the band at this time. With the group's live performance days behind them, they concentrated on studio recording and songwriting. Up to this point, Lennon had been the more dominant songwriter (more of his songs were featured as singles), but from the album Revolver, McCartney would become the driving force behind the band. Harrison was also becoming a prolific songwriter. Shortly after their landmark album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was released, the sudden death of Brian Epstein also changed the dynamic within the group.
McCartney orchestrated the group's first post-Epstein project, the film Magical Mystery Tour, which proved to be the group's first critical flop. "I knew we were in trouble then", Lennon later said. "I didn't have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music, and I was scared".
To further complicate things, The Beatles would, as Lennon put it, "become businessmen" and form their own record (and film, clothing, electronics and publishing) company, Apple. By now Lennon had met Yoko Ono and was retreating into his own world of drugs, McCartney had met his future wife, Linda Eastman, and the group realised that they needed professional management of Apple. Lennon reached out to American music executive Allen Klein to take the helm, despite warnings from Mick Jagger (Klein had also managed The Rolling Stones). McCartney also voiced his displeasure, preferring his future in-laws to take charge. Harrison and Starr, however, also went with Klein and tensions were mounting.
Just as The Beatles released their final album, Abbey Road, Lennon left the group in September 1969, but agreed not to make an announcement while the band renegotiated their recording contract. He became irate when McCartney issued a self question-and-answer interview in April 1970, declaring that he was no longer a member of The Beatles. Lennon's reaction when told was, "Jesus Christ! He [McCartney] gets all the credit for it!" Lennon later told Rolling Stone: "I was a fool not to do what Paul did, which was use it to sell a record." (McCartney's first solo album) and later wrote, "I started the band. I finished it".
In 1970, Jann Wenner conducted an interview with Lennon for Rolling Stone (known as "Lennon Remembers") that revealed his bitterness towards McCartney and the hostility he felt that the other members had for Ono. Lennon said: "[W]e got fed up with being sidemen for Paul... After Brian Epstein died we collapsed. Paul took over and supposedly led us. But what is leading us when we went round in circles?"