About This Quiz
The Beatles, also known as the Fab Four, rocked the whole world with their music, their artistic style and of course the messages in their songs. Do you know most of them?
It's no secret that the 1960s was a good decade for music, and it was just the right age and ripe era for a group like like Beatles to come out of the scene. Starting from their humble musical beginnings in Liverpool, the four bandmates burst out into the musical scene with great songs that reflected the sentiments of the era.
When the Beatles came out in the early 1960s, it was mostly John Lennon and Paul McCartney who wrote many songs, sang most of the tunes and arranged lots of songs. But of course other bandmates like George Harrison and Ringo Starr also had their stellar contributions as their musical careers progressed.
And what a progression it was! Starting out as a light rock and roll band with catchy pop tunes, the Fab Four also came out with many thought-provoking songs and experimented on many kinds of musical arrangements. This dedication to their craft was very evident, even until the band eventually decided to go their separate ways.
But still, many decades later, their music and lyrics still make us ponder, make us think of being human, and make us snap our fingers as we are reminded of fun times. So, do you think you can sing along with these tunes? Fill in the blanks of the missing words, and let us take you down, 'cause we're going to... a cool Fab Four lyrics quiz!
Let's rock!
The very contemplative-sounding "Let It Be" had people speculating that “Mother Mary” in the song is in reference to the Catholic figure of the Virgin Mary, but songwriter Paul McCartney didn’t intend that Biblical reference when he penned it, as it was a reference to his own mother. However, he also said that people are open and welcome to their own interpretation of it, so he's fine with this reading.
Advertisement
"Come Together" was released in 1969, and was part of the album called Abbey Road. The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, also recorded his cover version of the song back in 1988, and included the song in the HIStory album released in 1995.
Advertisement
"She Loves You" is the other song that further propelled the Beatles’ "British invasion" in America, and in the global arena as well. It was penned by both John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and was released in 1963, when it zoomed in atop the music charts of both the UK and the U.S.
Advertisement
It’s expected for a band of the Beatles’ stature to have media crossovers as a result of their popularity, and starring in a film called "A Hard Day's Night" is proof of that crossover. Beatlemania proved to be a hit on the silver screen since this 1964 film did well at the box office, the same with the song “A Hard Day’s Night” which was included in the film’s soundtrack.
Advertisement
"Love Me Do" is the very first record to be released by the Beatles, and it was written even before the band was put together. Released in 1962, the catchy song featured the notable harmonica-playing, performed by John Lennon.
Advertisement
"Blackbird" is perhaps the most covered Beatles song, due to the number of musical artists that recorded their own versions of the 1968 song. Some of the musical heavyweights that covered this classic include Bobby McFerrin, Neil Diamond, Crosby Stills & Nash, Petula Clark, Carly Simon, Billy Preston, Sarah McLachlan, and Sia, to name a few.
Advertisement
The Beatles’ upbeat track "With a Little Help from My Friends" was part of their Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album released in 1967. Joe Cocker covered the song in a slower, soulful rendition and performed it live in Woodstock, and that version also became popular when the 1988 nostalgic sitcom "The Wonder Years" used it as their theme song.
Advertisement
"Don't Let Me Down" was primarily penned by John Lennon, reportedly as a kind of pleading love song to longtime partner Yoko Ono. The song was released in 1969, and was composed and recorded when the Beatles was doing their recording sessions of their Let It Be album, but the song was released separately as a single.
Advertisement
True Beatles fans know that it wasn’t just John Lennon or Paul McCartney who wrote great songs for the band, but George Harrison also penned some classics. "Here Comes the Sun" is one of those hummable classics, which was included in their album entitled Abbey Road, released in 1969.
Advertisement
"We Can Work It Out" was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, released in 1965 as a single but recorded during the band’s sessions for their album Rubber Soul. Heather Nova did a cover version of the song for the soundtrack of the movie "I Am Sam," released in 2001.
Advertisement
"I Saw Her Standing There" was released back in 1963, and was included in the album called Please Please Me. The song gained a second wind of popularity in 1987 when it was released as a single by teen pop star Tiffany, revising the pronouns a bit by singing "I Saw Him Standing There."
Advertisement
It is reported that the song "Get Back" is a kind of parody song that poked fun at anti-immigrant sentiments coming from certain politicians in the British parliament during the late ‘60s. Released in 1969 as a single, the song was also included in the 1970 album called Let It Be, the last album released by the group.
Advertisement
“I Want to Hold Your Hand” is the worldwide popular ditty that ushered in the start of the Beatles’ “British invasion” in America, and then the rest of the world, when it was released in 1964. The song was penned by John Lennon, and became a best-selling single all around the globe, with a recorded 12 million copies sold.
Advertisement
"Can't Buy Me Love" was released in 1964, and it was penned by Paul McCartney, although they always had shared writing credit billing as Lennon-McCartney. The song also became the title of a 1987 teen comedy film starring Patrick Dempsey.
Advertisement
“Revolution” was obviously inspired by the political climate of the late 1960s when John Lennon penned the song back in 1968, released as part of The White Album. But when Nike licensed the song for their advertising campaign in 1987, the three remaining Beatles disliked the move, and sued to have it stopped, which resulted in an out of court settlement.
Advertisement
The 1968 Beatles hit “Hey Jude” proved to be one of the most popular song by the Fab Four, included in many kinds of countdowns and music lists of reputable music publications. The Beatles also established a record label of their own, called Apple Records, and this song was also the very first single to come out of their own label back in the late ‘60s.
Advertisement
The slightly upbeat song "Ticket to Ride" was the Beatles’ number one hit single in 1965, their seventh number one hit single in a row in the UK, and their third consecutive hit in a row in the U.S. Karen Carpenter sang a slower melodic arrangement of it, and they also used the song title as the title of their first album as The Carpenters.
Advertisement
The Beatles also did successful cover versions of songs written by other artists, such as "Twist and Shout." This 1961 song was first performed by the Top Notes, and later the Isley Brothers, before the Beatles covered it in 1963, and included it in their album called Please Please Me.
Advertisement
The very somber and contemplative tone of “Yesterday” made it a very big hit when it was released in the UK back in 1965. It was included in their album entitled Help! and was penned primarily by Paul McCartney.
Advertisement
"The Long and Winding Road" was reportedly written by Paul McCartney when he was being contemplative during a visit to his farm in Scotland, during the time when the Beatles was having some troubles which led to their disbanding. The image of the idyllic and bucolic place inspired him to pen this song, which was included in the Let it Be album.
Advertisement
Beatles drummer Ringo Starr also performed lead vocals in some of their songs, and one of them was "Yellow Submarine." Released in 1966, the song also became the basis of an animated film.
Advertisement
"All My Loving" was penned by Paul McCartney, and he reportedly wrote the words first before the melody, something that he hasn’t done before writing this ditty, since he claims he always wrote the words second, and the melodies always came first. The song is included in their 1963 album called With the Beatles, and was released as a single in Canada first, not the UK or U.S.
Advertisement
The song "Drive My Car" was released in 1965, as part of the album called Rubber Soul. It was later included in the 1966 album called Yesterday and Today, exclusively released for the North American market only.
Advertisement
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" has often been touted as an “LSD song” since the title shares the acronym with the popular psychedelic drug, which the band members admitted to using during the “flower power era.” Songwriter John Lennon denied this linkage, but people still think otherwise, because of its very trippy-sounding arrangement, especially when it was first released in 1967.
Advertisement
The single called “Help!” came from the album with the same title, released in 1965. It was also the title of a film that starred the Fab Four, released in the same year as the song/album.
Advertisement
It’s ironic, or perhaps a huge foresight, to have the song "When I'm Sixty-Four" written by a 16-year-old Paul McCartney, when the song sings of being wistful in one’s old age (or at least prior to closely reaching that fateful age). The song was included in the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967, when Paul was about 25 years old.
Advertisement
"In My Life" was released in 1965, and included in the Beatles album called Rubber Soul. Bette Midler did a more melancholic cover version of the song in 1992 for her movie called "For The Boys," and was later included in its soundtrack.
Advertisement
The song "Penny Lane" is actually a tribute song penned by Paul McCartney, reminiscing about the different people, establishments, and interesting things that he saw while growing up, living on that street in his hometown of Liverpool. He revisited that street again lately with James Corden in their version of the Carpool Karaoke segment in Corden’s late night talk show, even leaving his signature in one of the Penny Lane street signages there.
Advertisement
Aidan Quinn portrayed Paul McCartney while Jared Harris portrayed John Lennon in a VH1 TV movie entitled “Two of Us,” aired in 2000. The movie title came from the 1969 song with the same title, penned by Paul McCartney, which was included in the 1970 album entitled Let It Be.
Advertisement
The very poetic song "And I Love Her" was penned by Paul McCartney, and was included in the album called A Hard Day’s Night. The 1964 song reached the Billboard Hot 100 charts, taking the number 12 spot as the highest position it garnered in that chart.
Advertisement
"Strawberry Fields Forever" is a Beatles song that belongs in the psychedelic rock genre, a departure from their early pop and folk-sounding tunes. Released in 1967 as a single (together with "Penny Lane"), it was originally intended for the album called Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, but was never included after it was released earlier.
Advertisement
Perhaps partly due to the fact that the song had French lyrics, the Lennon-McCartney penned "Michelle" became a number one hit in many countries in Europe, reaching the top spot in music charts. The ballad became part of the 1965 album called Rubber Soul, and was also awarded at the 1967 Grammy Awards, winning the Song of the Year category.
Advertisement
The late ‘60s counterculture era was enhanced with the release of the Beatles song called "All You Need Is Love" in 1967, which encapsulated the sentiments of the flower power-free love era. It was later included in the Magical Mystery Tour album and in the Yellow Submarine soundtrack album as well.
Advertisement
The Beatles also got preoccupied with transcendental meditation, and it could be seen in the way they composed songs during this phase of theirs, as evident in the words of "Across the Universe." The Sanskrit insert “Jai guru deva om” is a mantra that they wrote in there, which roughly translates to “Hail to the divine guru” or “I give thanks to Guru Dev” in reference to the teacher that taught their spiritual adviser.
Advertisement
Songwriter John Lennon got heavily influenced by folk legend Bob Dylan, and wrote "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" during his “Dylan period,” a song that became part of their Help! album, released in 1965. Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder channeled both Lennon and Dylan as he sang his own rendition of the song in 2001, as part of the "I Am Sam" film soundtrack.
Advertisement