User Reviews

I have listened to all of the best songs from this band, nicknamed "The Fab Four", but I had always wanted to see the story behind it all, having watched the documentary programmes celebrating the best songs of ABBA, Bee Gees, Elvis Presley and Queen, Christmas songs, and the greatest number one singles from the last sixty years, and those of the 70s and 80s, I was looking forward to the results of this countdown documentary programme. The Beatles, consisting of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison, during the 1960s are one of the greatest rock/pop bands of all time, their enormous popularity creating "Beatlemania". Highlights in their careers were eleven number one albums, twenty number one singles, starring in films A Hard Day's Night, Help! and Yellow Submarine, performing at The Royal Variety Performance 1963, and much more. The band split in 1970, with each member going on to their own solo projects; John Lennon married Yoko Ono, continued singing and became a peace activist, he tragically died, murdered by gunshot in 1980 by Mark David Chapman, and George Harrison sadly died from lung cancer in 2001, but Ringo Starr and Sir Paul McCartney continue to perform, and the legend of the band lives on, and this show counted down the best number one songs they have given us, as voted by the public. The twenty-seven listed songs (all of which feature on the compilation album "1") are: "The Ballad of John and Yoko" (1969), "Day Tripper" (1965), "I Feel Fine" (1964), "From Me to You" (1963), "Paperback Writer" (1966), "Get Back" (1969), "Lady Madonna" (1968), "Hello, Goodbye" (1967), "Yellow Submarine" (1966), "Eight Days a Week" (1965), "We Can Work It Out" (1965), "Ticket to Ride" (1965), "Help!" (1965), "Love Me Do" (1962), "Can't Buy Me Love" (1964), "Something" (1969) (US number one), "Come Together" (1969) (US number one), "She Loves You" (1963), "A Hard Day's Night" (1964), "The Long and Winding Road" (1970), "I Want to Hold Your Hand" (1963), "Penny Lane" (1967) (US number one), "All You Need Is Love" (1967), "Eleanor Rigby" (1966), "Let It Be" (1970) (US number one), "Yesterday" (1965) (US number one) and a good number one with "Hey Jude" (1968). Other songs mentioned in the show were: ""Twist and Shout", Please Please Me", "Rain", "I Am the Walrus", "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and "Strawberry Fields Forever". Songs not mentioned that are good were: "Drive My Car", "I Should Have Known Better", "If I Fell", "Act Naturally", "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You", "Tell Me Why", "I'm Down", "Please Mister Postman", "And I Love Her", "With a Little Help from My Friends", "Back in the U.S.S.R.", "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da", "Octopus's Garden", "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party" and "Baby, You're the Rich Man". Narrated by Alison Steadman, with contributions from Rod Argent (The Zombies), Peter Asher, James Bay, Colin Blunstone (The Zombies), Tony Bramwell, Jake Bugg, Leslie Cavendish, Tony Crane (The Merseybeats), Ken Dodd, Lamont Dozier, Sheila E, Mark Ellen, George Ezra, Dick Fontaine, Noel Gallagher, Paul Gambaccini, Jools Holland, Tito Jackson, Alan Johnson MP, Sue Johnston (Coronation Street), Paul Jones, Ronan Keating, Martin Kemp, Judd Lander, Billy Kinsey (The Merseybeats), Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Katie Melua, Joe McGrath, Giles Martin, Naughty Boy, Annie Nightingale, Michael Palin, Gregory Porter, Corinne Bailey Rae, Ken Scott, Sandie Shaw, Don Short, Peter Sissons, Ringo Starr (special message), David Tennant, Twiggy, Björn Ulvaeus (ABBA), Johnnie Walker, Mary Wilson (The Supremes), Ricky Wilson (Kaiser Chiefs) and Leslie Woodhead, with a special message from surviving members Ringo Starr and Sir Paul McCartney. Very good!