ANSWERS: 37
  • Just my opinion, I agree.
  • Eh. The Beatles definitely were pioneers in popular music, but so were Elvis, Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, The Sex Pistols.. I'm sure I missed quite a few, but the list just keeps going.
  • As somebody who lived through the dire output of middle of the road pap that popular music had become just before the emergence of The Beatles I certainly believe them to have been the most influential musicians of the second half of the 20th Century. As for bring the greatest ever, I'm afraid I can't agree because to believe that would be to say that music had stood still in the ensuing years.
  • I have to disagree only because I wasn't a Beatles fan.
  • (dis) The Beatles were the 'most popular group' in the early history of popular music, for a time.
  • No I am not sure that I can agree with that statement. My husband would have agreed. Some of their later music was very good.
  • Not really but I think I've heard every Beatles song enough times to never have to again.
  • Disagree. They were good but not the greatest.
  • I disagee .. I've just never been a Beatles fan.
  • disagree, its more of a personal opion, me i think Led Zeppelin is the best band ever but thats just me.
  • Disagree. The Beatles were part of a true musical renaissance, and they introduced a lot of great melodies and ideas that are still inspiring music today. They could definitely be called one of the most influential musical groups in the history of popular music. But listening to the music they actually produced, I couldn't honestly call them the "Greatest". Music has been developing and changing for decades since The Beatles stopped producing, and it's a mark of just how spectacular their music is that it has endured through all that time and change. But compared to all the artists who've come since them, and even held up against their contemporaries, the best title The Beatles can take is "Among The Greatest".
  • I agree..they had the most influence.
  • The Beatles are certainly the greatest innovators in music the past 40 years and had the most influence on rock music. The Beatles were already expanding the sound of rock music. On Rubber Soul, before Frank Zappa they started using true Indian Instruments. Revolver in 1966 there using tape loops, classical Indian ensembles and backward vocals and guitars. Which greatly influenced progressive rock. No one in rock music was doing that. The Beatles started the British Invasion, classic rock, the Byrds going electric, influenced Pet Sounds and even Nirvana mixing punk with pop. When you add the amount of people who has covered their songs and cite them as a influence. The Beatles are still influencing modern bands not Elvis so they deserve the credit they get. You won't get more innovative songs like Tomorrow Never Knows or Strawberry Fields Forever in rock music. They basically took roll out of rock and created rock music.
  • It depends. Possibly. But the Smiths made great music.
  • Disagree.
  • I cannot say any band was the greatest since that is always never true. They were amongst the best and many of their songs will live on as timeless classics and I assure you they will still listen to some Beetle songs even in the year 2100, this I assure you and you can mark my words.
  • I disagree. They are very influential and I've always liked them, but I don't think it's possible for any band to be "the greatest".
  • In terms of actual music no, there greatest hits are great, but their individual albums are just plain normal. In terms of their contribution in bring popular music to the masses then yes.
  • The Beatles= The British Invasion without them probably no Led Zeppelin The Beatles inspried the Byrds to go electric and Dylan himself The Beatles in 1964 were already doing folk rock and country rock before it was popular The Beatles influence the Beach Boys to do Pet Sounds The Beatles popularize guitar feedback I Feel Fine The Beatles Ticket To Ride uses guitar drone before the Kinks The Beatles Rubber Soul shows traces of psychedelic music The Beatles Yesterday is most covered in the history of music. The Beatles are the highest selling rock artists The Beatles invent arena rock Shea Stadium concert The Beatles first record releases of sitar, tabla, tamboura and maybe the mellotron The Beatles first to use backward music on a mix. The Beatles invent trance dance music on Tomorrow Never Knows and maybe progressive rock The Beatles Love You To the first rock record to combine classical Indian with rock The Beatles Helter Skelter maybe the first heavy metal song The Beatles Revolution maybe the first punk record.
  • Yes The Beatles were are definately the greatest rock band ever! And even Ozzy Osbourne called them The Greatest Band To Ever Walk The Earth in a 2002 online Bender Magazine interview. They have been his favorite band since he was a teenager! He also says not loving The Beatles is like not loving oxogen. They were extremely creative,innovative,and prolific and wrote so many diverse great critically acclaimed popular songs and albums in just a 7 year recording career! Nobody else did what they did and in such a short period of time! I love all of their music including their early music,and I have been a huge highly impressed fan since I was 9,I got my first Beatles book for my 11th birthday and I had every album by 13. I was born during the middle of their recording career too! There are also many music professors teaching college courses on the brilliance of John Lennon & Paul McCartney at good universities. One of the is by award winning music professor and composer Dr.Glkenn Gass at Indianna University. He's been teaching a course on rock music and The Beatles since 1982. Dr.Gary Kendal's Beatles course is the most requested at Northwestern university. And they are the most covered artists ever,everyone from motown,classical,and heavy metal music artists have recorded Beatles music!
  • They were. Their influence is all over music. Feedback they popularized. Helter Skelter is one of the first heavy metal songs. Tomorrow Never Knows is sample like one chord dance type song that your hear all over the radio. Backward vocals are used by Eminem and others. Automatic Double tracking of vocals. They were one of the pioneers of progressive rock. They wrote their own songs which was not the norm for rock artists back when they came out. They were ahead of their times.
  • I was just wondering why the poster Cowboys and a few others said no they don't agree that The Beatles were and are the best band ever. Also to sloth mister is almost gone, that is a ridiculous thing to say that just The Beatles Greatest Hits were great but their indivigual albums are just "normal". Many people have rightfully pointed out that The Beatles were one of the first and very few music groups or artists that had just about every song on their albums be great and good,even many songs that they never released as singles! How can you possibly listen to these great critically acclaimed creative,innovative Beatles albums Rubber Soul,Revolver,Sgt.Pepper,Magical Mystery Tour,The White Album and Abbey Road and say they are not great or at least really good and not just "normal" ??! The REcording Industry Association Of America lists The Beatles as the biggest selling music artists of all time,and Billboard lists them as having more # 1 songs and albums than *any* other music artists in just an 8 year recording career! Also if you go to acclaimedmusic.net that compiles many different rock reviews by many different rock music critics from decades,you will see The Beatles are rightfully # 1! And in every major poll that has been done with over 1,000 people ages 18 and older The Beatles are rightfully voted the # 1 Greatest Rock Band Ever! In The Gallup Poll,The Zogby Poll,The BBC POll,The VH1 POll,The Virgin Records Poll,and on the sites Digitaldreamdoor.com where many musicians post,and recently on Rankopedia!
  • Just before the Beatles broke in the US in 1964, the number one album in the US was "The Singing Nun." Music was very regimented, predictible, etc. Within a couple of years, we had Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, and all the great music of the late 60's. If you look at the progression of the Beatles albums from Please Please Me in 1963, which reflected early 60's music but with some hints of complexity to come (e.g. the song Please Please Me), all the way through Rubber Soul in late 65 up to Revolver in 1966, the increase in complexity and the level of innovation in just three years is absoloutely amazing, and I don't think has been duplicated since. Think about music today - has it really changed in the past three years? Ten years? Fifteen years? Not really IMHO. The last real seismic shift in rock music at least was when Nirvana broke in 1991. Listen to the Beatles songs Misery and Tomorrow Never Knows and you can't believe that they are even from the same band, and yet they were recorded just three years apart. Maybe I'm wrong, but can anyone name a band that has evolved that much in so short of a time, pushing the rest of the music world with them? Granted, the Beatles are not responsible for every innovation in music in the 60's, and they did reflect the culture as a whole at that time, but I don't think that anyone can deny their influence, love 'em or hate 'em. Thank God for the Beatles or we might still be listening to the Singing Freakin' Nun!!!
  • Well for the greatest impact in music yea for sure. But everyone likes different things so there is never going to be one true greatest band Only you can have a personal favorite, it will be different for others
  • Tough one. They were only together for 6 or 7 years. I'm gonna go with the Rolling Stones.
  • agree.
  • I agree, and it looks like I'm in the minority. http://www.mallshoppingfromhome.com
  • Agree.
  • I went through an insane Beatles phase about 6 years ago. And I still love them with every ounce of my heart. I don't know if you can put a title such as "best ever" on any band, though. They were certainly influential, however, everyone has different musical tastes.
  • They are not overrated they maybe underrated. They made Elvis unhip for not writing his songs or making a albums as good as Revolver. They were outwardly experimental in rock without losing melody think Strawberry Fields Forever. No one in pop music could master this concept. Everyone tried afterwards. Here are many things the Beatles help started and remember they did this in 7 years. British Invasion Classic Rock Jangle Pop- A Hard Days Night Folk Rock- Beatles For Sale Country Rock- I'll Cry Instead and I Don't Want to Spoil the Party Feedback- I Feel Fine Psychedelic Pop- Nowhere Man Raga Folk Rock- Nowhere Man Psychedelic Rock and Experimental Rock- Tomorrow Never Knows Classical Indian with Rock- Love You Too Progressive Rock- Strawberry Fields Forever Art Rock- Eleanor Rigby Heavy Metal- Helter Skelter Math Rock- Happiness Is A Warm Gun Arena Rock- Shea Stadium Tomorrow Never Knows- the first track that uses sampling or tape loops at that time over a repetitive drum and bass sound= this concept used in many songs in modern dance and hip-hop
  • Greatest? Yeah. They were simultaneously the most popular AND the most innovative act in popular music for nearly 6 years. No other act comes even close to that. They were also simultaneously the best at what they did and the most popular at what they did. The Beatles have influenced to either a large or small degree virtually every pop/rock/folk act of the last 43+ years. They also had a huge impact both directly and indirectly on popular culture, not just in the United States and England, but worldwide. The introduced the concept of a musical act playing outdoor sports stadiums, not small outdoor arenas, but places with a capacity of 50-70,000 people and they sold those places out. They were the first pop music act that caused music and art critics to actually take the pop music scene seriously and to review it seriously and honestly
  • agree not only do they have great music, but their songs are so diverse they have something for everyone songs with true meaning and songs you can dance to, I love the Beatles and I think they are utterly fantastic.
  • They took an existing art form and put their own stamp to it. The question of greatest comes down to personal preference. For this fan, their melodies are what distinguished them, giving rise to so many 70's bands in the wake of their breakup. In this context, their influence can still be heard so clearly in today's bands.
  • THE VERY VERY BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The only people who I ever felt I could completely confide in. . . they were a beautiful group of guys. Rest in peace, John and George!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Keep it up, Paul and Ringo!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • Without a doubt they were and still are the greatest recording act ever. Their CD "1" with 36 million plus sold is the biggest selling Cd since 2000. According to soundscan the US record sales counter since 1991 the Beatles are 2nd in sales only to Garth Brooks. These facts and the accomplishments made in their 8 year recording career solidify their position as the #1 all time greatest.

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