The Beatles
John, Paul, George and Ringo
LENNON
1940-1980
Taught to play guitar by George Harrison, John initially played his guitar with banjo chords that he learnt from his mother. Not all of his initial songs were a success. By the time he was touring America, however, songs like This Boy made him famous. Many of his songs were catchy as well as innovative. A good example is She Loves You. Lennon loved writing lyrics just as much as creating the music.
MCCARTNEY
1942 -
Paul was asked to join John's group called The Quarrymen in June 1957. On that day, at least two of their songs were recorded: Puttin On The Style and Baby Let's Play House. McCartney was a part of neither of these. He did, however, want to show off his guitar skills and meet girls. In competition with each other, John and Paul borrowed from other artists at every opportunity.
HARRISON
1943 - 2001
In 1958, George was asked to audition for the Quarrymen by Paul McCartney on the top of a double-decker bus. He was soon admitted and was largely overshadowed by John & Paul. One of the first things the new group did was record a version of Buddy Holly's hit That'll Be The Day. George was a key member from the start. His lead guitar playing helped give the group it's characteristic sound, even prior to 1962, when they first recorded Love Me Do.
STARR
1940 -
In August 1962, Richard Starky, more commonly known as "Ringo", replaced Pete Best on the drums, largely due to John and Paul's lack of faith in Pete. Ringo was no better. During their 2nd EMI session in September, he was replaced temporarily by a session drummer (Andy White). Over time, his drumming improved, but he did not fare as well as a singer (Boys, Honey Don't).