What makes The Beatles The Beatles? | Fab Forum | The Beatles Bible

All of the above. But I would say Ringo.

I think the Beatles just made music that hits you in deeper spots that most other music, I was talking to my dad’s friend about Love and he said he didn’t like it even though he is a huge Beatles fan. So I played the Strawberry Fields song and he just couldn’t help but smile because there’s just something about that band that is unexplainable.

Edit: my statement was riddled with spelling errors, well there was just one but I had to change it.

Inner Light said:

The Beatles came out at just the right time. It used to be said that if you didn’t make it in america, you would never last. 

After Kennedy was assassinated, this country needed something especially for the youth. At that time, they were so unique like nothing seen in this country before. Lennon said once that with someone like Elvis, you either liked him or you didn’t but there are four of us. You have to like one of us. 

They wrote and sang great music in the Beatlemania days and for me the key thing regarding there success was that they were able to change with the times and become trend setters. From late 1966 on, many bands were still trying to ride the coat tails of there earlier success and failed but the Beatles new they needed to establish themselves in a new direction and that is why they were able to continue to have so much success.

Their music catalog covered such a wide variety of songs from Rock&Roll to ballads, they all sang and played their own instruments. George Martin also was a key ingredient and played a major force in their success.  

They were a band that were in the right place at the right time and all the wheels clicked into place.

I agree with this completely. They were in the right place at the right time. They were marketed so well for an America that was going through difficult times (assassination, Commies in Cuba and USSR). And yes they were a good band that wrote really good songs. The Beatles were smart enough to elevate their success in a completely new direction and like Inner Light said, be trend setters.

But I believe one of the reasons why they were so big and Beatley was because tehy knew how to connect with the audience on an emotional level. Their music became something bigger than three cords and 2 minutes worth of radio play.

But it has to be more than right place, right time. The Stones were there, the Beach Boys , Dylan, etc, etc. But something happened there particularly between John and Paul that almost seems surreal. That competition that they had within the band drove them to unbelievable heights and they both wanted to put their flavor on every song. For John that usually meant pushing the “limits” of music further and further and for Paul it meant a desire for a sweeter and sweeter sound.

Then you add in a drummer of Ringo's uniqueness and capability and someone like George who basically transformed into this entirely different person who had an awesome Eastern influence and drive and you can forget about it, no one will ever top that band.

All of these factors were of course driven by the era and the “vibes” or whatever you want to call the experimentation of the 60's and it's like the perfect storm occurred. I don't think, unfortunately, anything like that could happen nowadays because our culture is a bit too cynical.

1 and 1 and 1 is 3.

The incredible coincidence of John, Paul and George living within such a small amount of space and time, and Dylan being born at just the right time as well. 

Do any of you think how bloody incredible it is that John and Dylan were born less than a year apart, and that John and Paul lived fairly close together with only two years age gap, and Paul was in the year above George at school? Without John, Paul and George together, the Beatles wouldn't exist as we know them, and without Dylan they'd probably have kept putting out albums like A Hard Day's Night.

No slight on Ringo of course, but I think he's a bit less of a coincidence.