Before you read the text

1. Practise aloud.

music – musical, active – activity, appreciate – appreciation, contribute – contribution, entertain – entertainment, use – usage, drum – drummer, manage – manager; mystery – mysterious, penny – penniless, success – successful, musical – unmusical, usual – unusual; like – dislike, agree – disagree; remarkable – remarkably, immense – immensely, surprising – surprisingly

2. Pronounce correctly.

festival, enthusiast, industry, rhythm, blues, apotheosis, optimism, parade, club, series, Beatlemania, reaction, career; continental, international, artistic, basic, synonymous; nationally

3. Read the sentences and translate them paying special attention to the italisized words.

1. An idle brain is the mother of devil’s workshop. 2. Your words do not correspond to the reality. 3. Due to TV we learn to know world film stars. 4. He is able to form a clear view of the situation. 5. You can find a new word in the vocabulary. 6. There is an instruction about the usage of this instrument. 7. The task of a manager is to run business activity. 8. She had an old–fashioned dress on. 9. Close relationship connected the players of the band. 10. The manager had to raise money for new instruments.

6. Look through text A and tell a few words about it contents.

7. Read text A carefully.

Text a the beatles

For centuries England had been labelled “unmusical” by its continental neighbours. As it has been shown above it does not correspond to the facts, though many foreign composers had influenced the development of English music. But the 20th century, beginning from its 50ies, can be regarded as a stormy splash of English light music. A number of English musicals became popular in this country and abroad. Among them there were “Oliver”, “Blitz” and “Lock up Your Daughters”, all written by the talented composer Lionel Bart. L. Bart, being both the author of the libretto, music and verses of “Oliver”, received a prize for his musical at the 6th International Film Festival in Moscow in 1969. The director was awarded the prize for High Artistic Original Musical based on the Charles Dickens novel.

In the 60ies there appeared groups of enthusiasts in Great Britain developing the industry of music making: The BEATLES, ROLLING STONES, BLUES BREAKERS, The BEACH BOYS, CREAM and others. Their basic sound was rhythm and blues that attracted the young people very much due to the international fusion of styles.

The word “sixties” is synonymous with the burst of cultural activity which reached its musical apotheosis in the work of the well-known group BEATLES. At that time optimism in the future was unbounded, everything seemed possible in some not to distant future.

Ray Connolly, a critic, in his view of the BEATLES said: “Time has not dulled our appreciation of the outstanding contribution which John Lennon and Paul McCartney (and less George Harrison and Ringo Starr) made to entertainment and popular culture. The very vocabulary and word usage of today has been broadened and enriched by lines from the songs created by the BEATLES”.

The BEATLES became nationally famous in England in October 1962, when their first record “Love Me Do” entered the Hit Parade at number 27. The famous four who recorded that song were, of course, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and drummer Ringo Starr. This was the original line-up of the band.

Three years before the group was offered its first “big job” – playing at the famous Star Club in Hamburg. In those days there were five Beatles: Pete Best on drums, Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and mysterious fifth Beatle, Stuart Sutcliffe.

The Beatles returned to England penniless and exhausted. Stuart left the group and stayed in Germany where he died a few months later. The Beatles began a series of lunchtime concerts at Liverpool's Cavern Club. They were now playing better than ever. The man who ran the local record shop went to see what all the fuss was made of. His name was Brian Epstein, the man who bесаmе the Beatles manager.

The first thing that Epstein did as manager was to give Pete Best the sack. Probably it was because there was a serious clash between Lennon and Best. Lennon said: “He goes, or I go”. In Best's place came Richard Starkey (Ringo Starr).

The job of producing the Beatles records went to George Martin, an extremely nice and remarkably old-fashioned man. George Martin became the brains behind the recording successes of the Beatles (although John Lennon never agreed with that).

Martin had some unusual and immensely successful ideas. He persuaded the group to have instruments on some of their songs that they didn't want to begin with: the cello on “Yesterday”, the violins on “Eleanor Rigby”, the oboe on “You've Got to Hide Your Love Away”.

During the 60ies it seemed that the Beatles were always in the news headlines. They made successful records and interesting films. Beatlemania was the word used to describe the reaction of fans all over the world.

When Epstein died in 1967, things began to go wrong for the Beatles’ industry. The relationship between Lennon and McCartney became very difficult: they disagreed about music, they disliked each other's wife, and they disagreed about who should be the new manager of their affairs.

Eventually, an American called Allen Klein bought a controlling interest in the group. This was the beginning of the end, as McCartney could not stand Klein.

During the seventies the Beatles went off in their different directions. Lennon became a solo performer and then property speculator in New York, buying and selling expensive apartments. McCartney formed a pop group called “Wings” with his wife Linda. George Harrison was rarely seen, but spent time raising money for charity. Ringo Starr began a surprisingly successful career as a film star. John Lennon was murdered in New York in December 1980.

In October 1982, twenty years after “Love Me Do” entered the British Hit Parade, a Beatles song was again in the Top Ten. The song was … “Love Me Do”.

Proper Names

“Oliver” [‘Olivq]

“Blitz” [blits]

Lionel Bart [‘lQiqnql ‘bRt]

Ray Connolly [‘rei ‘kOnqli]

John Lennon [‘GOn ‘lenqn]

Paul McCartney [‘pLl mq‘kRtni]

George Harrison [‘GLG ‘hxrisn]

Ringo Starr [‘riNgou ‘stR]

Stuart Sutcliffe [‘stjuqt ‘sAtklif]

Liverpool’s Cavern Club [‘livqpHl ‘kxvqn ...] – клуб «Пещера» в Ливерпуле

Brian Epstein [‘brQiqn ‘epstQin]

George Martin [‘GLG ‘mRtin]

“Eleanor Rigby” [‘elinL ‘rigbi]

Allen Klein [‘xlqn ‘klQin]