Inspired by ‘the skiffle boom’ a pupil at Quarry Bank School in Liverpool named John Lennon decided to form his own skiffle group in 1957, and laid the foundation for what was to become the most famous rock band of all time. John’s initial name for his group: ‘The Blackjacks’ only lasted a week; thereafter his school became the inspiration for his band’s new name when John dubbed the group ‘The Quarrymen’ in March 1957. John sang and played guitar and was accompanied by Colin Hanton on drums, Eric Griffiths on guitar, Pete Shotton on washboard, Rod Davis on banjo and Bill Smith on tea-chest bass - the latter was soon replaced by Ivan Vaughan who alternated on this instrument with Nigel Whalley.
The band’s main inspiration came from skiffle music as performed by artists such as Lonnie Donegan, and bands such as The Vipers. Numbers in their repertoire included: ‘Freight Train’, ‘Maggie May’, ‘Midnight Special’, ‘Railroad Bill’, ‘Come Go With Me’ and ‘Worried Man Blues’. Such a repertoire was appropriate for the type of cheap instruments they could afford. One of the advantages of skiffle music was that the basic instruments were not costly, enabling thousands of youngsters throughout Britain to emulate the skiffle sounds of the hit artists.
At the same time John, inspired by ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, was a fan of American ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ music and continued to introduce numbers into the band’s repertoire which had been hits for Buddy Holly, Carl Perkins, The Coasters, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Gene Vincent. Between June and July 1957 there was a six-man line-up in the group, with Len Garry on tea-chest bass.
On July 6th 1957 Ivan Vaughan invited Paul McCartney - one of his friends from The Liverpool Institute - along to their gig at Woolton Parish Church. The fifteen-year-old McCartney and the sixteen-year-old Lennon were introduced, and an unique songwriting partnership was to flourish.
The line-up of ‘The Quarrymen’ increased to seven with the inclusion of Paul on guitar and vocals, John Lowe on piano and George Harrison on guitar and vocals from February 1958. (Harrison was a friend of Paul’s from The Liverpool Institute whom he had met on the bus journeys to school.) By the middle of 1958 Garry and Griffiths had left, leaving a five-man outfit.
The group appeared in several local talent contests but had few gigs. By January 1959 they were no longer operating as a group, although John and Paul kept in touch with their mutual interest in songwriting. George had joined a group called ‘The Les Stewart Quartet’.
This might have been the end of ‘The Quarrymen’ saga but for a stroke of good fortune. The Les Stewart Quartet had been booked as resident band at a new cellar club in Liverpool called The Casbah, situated in the West Derby area of Liverpool. Mrs. Mona Best ran the club primarily for the benefit of her sons Pete and Rory. Les Stewart refused to play The Casbah, upset because of the time his guitarist Ken Brown had spent on decorating the club.
George Harrison and Ken Brown walked out of the group. George contacted his friends John and Paul and ‘The Quarrymen’ were reunited as a quartet. After seven gigs at the club Ken Brown left the group following a disagreement about money, and he encouraged Pete Best to form a group with him called: ‘The Blackjacks’. Between October 1959 and January 1960 John, Paul and George continued as a trio calling themselves: ‘Johnny And The Moondogs’ and entered the band in a Carroll Levis audition.
John Lennon was by this time a student at Liverpool College Of Art. Conscious of their need for a bass guitarist he approached two other students independently of each other, and offered each of them the job if either one could obtain a guitar. The two students were Stuart Sutcliffe and Rod Murray. Neither could afford a guitar so Rod began to make one by hand.
Then Stuart sold a painting at an exhibition

Track list for LOVE!


1. Because
2. Get Back
3. Glass Onion
4. Eleanor Rigby
Julia (Transition)
5. I Am The Walrus
6. I Want To Hold Your Hand
7. Drive My Car/The Word/What You..re Doing
8. Gnik Nus
9. Something
Blue Jay Way (Transition)
10. Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite!/I Want You
(She..s So Heavy)/Helter Skelter
11. Help!
12. Blackbird/Yesterday
13. Strawberry Fields Forever
14. Within You Without You/Tomorrow Never Knows
15. Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds
16. Octopus..s Garden
17. Lady Madonna
18. Here Comes The Sun
The Inner Light (Transition)
19. Come Together/Dear Prudence
Cry Baby Cry (Transition)
20. Revolution
21. Back In The U.S.S.R.
22. While My Guitar Gently Weeps
23. A Day In The Life
24. Hey Jude
25. Sgt. Pepper..s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
26. All You Need Is Love

The Beatles started in Liverpool at Mathew Street in a music venue called The Cavern.Paul joined the group in 1957 and Harrison
joined in 1958. They played with bass guitarist Sut
Sutcliffe, and Pete Best, a drummer. Sutcliffe left in 1961
and Ringo Starr joined the band. Pete Best was asked to
leave the band on April 16, 1962. The Beatles were discovered
on November 9, 1961 by Brian Epstein. The Beatles first two song were "Love Me Do" and
"Please, Please Me." The Beatles starred in two movies, "A
Hard Days Night," and "Help." They also had their own full
length cartoon called "Yellow Submarine." The movie "A Hard
Days Night" earned 1.3 million dollars in its first week.