Episode 125
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Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.
Today I’ll talk about the most famous band in the world. The Beatles! And you’ll practice your speaking with a funny mini-story.
SpeakEnglishPodcast.com/podcast >
Have you ever listened to The Beatles? Actually, let me rephrase that. When was the first time you listened to a Beatles song?
The Beatles are probably the most popular band in the history of music. They are considered by many to be the best band on Earth. The band was undoubtedly the most successful, with global sales exceeding 1.1 billion records.
They were initially famous for their light pop music, although their later works achieved a combination of popular and critical acclaim, perhaps unprecedented in the 20th century.
Beatlemania began in the UK and exploded after The Beatles appeared on a popular TV show in the US in 1964. The band became a worldwide phenomenon with adoring fans and hysterical adulation.
The members of the group were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, all from England.
John Lennon was a singer-songwriter and peace activist who co-founded The Beatles.
Paul McCartney is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer. He has gained worldwide fame as a bassist and singer.
George Harrison was a musician, singer-songwriter, music and film producer who achieved international fame as The Beatles' lead guitarist. He was often referred to as "The Quiet Beatle."
Ringo Starr is a musician, singer-songwriter, and actor who gained worldwide fame as a Beatles drummer.
Have you ever heard of a 5th member of the band?
I believe not many people know this, yet The Beatles had a fifth member named Stuart Sutcliffe. He was a Scottish-born painter and musician. He left the band to pursue his career as a painter. He and John Lennon are credited with inventing the name “Beetles.”
He’s sometimes referred to as the "Fifth Beatle.”
The really extraordinary thing is that the Beatles were constantly releasing new albums, and they had songs at numbers 1, 2, and 3 at the same time.
Despite the band’s popularity, people have debated the correct capitalization of its name.
For some years, editors from Wikipedia have been debating whether the article "the" should be uppercased when referring to the band. Is it "the" Beatles or "The" Beatles?
All that really matters, I think, are the songs that have inspired millions of people all over the world.
And these are my favorite songs from The Beatles:
Help!
Hey Jude
Yesterday
Here Comes the Sun
She Loves You
Drive my Car
We Can Work It Out
Get Back
Twist and Shout
Can’t Buy Me Love
Please Please Me
A Hard Day's Night
Ticket to Ride
I Want to Hold Your Hand
Let It Be
And now, I’m just curious. What are your favorite Beatles songs?
Speaking Practice
Mini-Story: Speaking Practice
Answer each question out loud, then listen to the answer and respond quickly. Don’t worry about mistakes.
Speaking practice
Let’s Start!
Paul McCartney is one of the most successful composers and performers of all time.
Is Paul a composer?
Yes. He’s a composer.
Do you think he is a performer?
Yes. I think he’s a performer also.
Is Paul successful or unsuccessful?
Successful. Paul McCartney is one of the most successful composers and performers.
Who is a successful composer and performer?
Paul McCartney. He is one of the most successful composers and performers of all time.
Paul McCartney gained worldwide fame as the bass guitarist and singer for the band The Beatles.
Was he a bass guitarist?
Yes. He was a bass guitarist.
Did he gain or lose worldwide fame?
He didn’t lose worldwide fame. He gained it.
Was he a singer for the band Queen?
No. No. He wasn’t a singer for the band Queen. He was a singer for the band The Beatles.
Who was a singer for the band The Beatles?
Paul McCartney. He was the singer for the band The Beatles.
Was he a bass guitarist?
Yes. He was also a bass guitarist for the band The Beatles.
On one occasion, he collaborated with Kanye West on a new song.
Did he collaborate with Kanye West?
Yes. He collaborated with Kanye West.
What did he collaborate on?
He collaborated on a new song.
He ignored Kanye West. Right?
No. No. He didn’t ignore Kanye West. He collaborated with him.
How many times did he collaborate with Kanye West?
On one occasion. He collaborated with Kanye West on one occasion.
With whom did he collaborate?
He collaborated with Kanye West.
Kanye West is a well-known American rapper.
Is Kanye West an actor?
No. No. He’s not an actor. He’s a rapper.
Is he from Russia?
No. He’s not from Russia. He’s an American rapper.
Is Kanye West a rapper?
Yes. He’s a well known American rapper.
Is he unpopular?
No. No. He’s not unpopular. He’s well known.
Who’s a rapper?
Paul McCartney?
No. No. Paul McCartney is not a rapper. Kanye West is a rapper.
Surprisingly, some of Kanye West's fans said they didn't know who Paul McCartney was.
Was it surprising that some fans didn’t know who Paul McCartney was?
Yes. It was surprising that some fans didn’t know who Paul McCartney was.
Who didn’t know who Paul McCartney was?
Some of Kanye West's fans didn’t know who Paul McCartney was.
Other fans were convinced that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.
Were other fans convinced that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney?
Yes. Other fans were convinced that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney.
What would Kanye help Paul McCartney with?
Kanye West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.
What were they convinced of?
They were convinced that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.
Who would help Paul McCartney?
Kanye West. Other fans were convinced that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.
Although this mini-story sounds like a joke, some Kanye West followers posted on Twitter saying that they didn't know who Paul McCartney was. They even thought that Kanye West would help Paul McCartney to have a better musical career. Maybe it would have been wise of them to Google Paul McCartney before posting on Twitter.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary from This Episode
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
01 Beatlemania
the intense excitement surrounding The Beatles.
05 lead guitarist
the guitarist who plays the main guitar parts.
02 worldwide phenomenon
something extremely popular around the world.
06 bassist
a musician who plays the bass guitar.
03 songwriter
a person who writes songs.
07 critical acclaim
strong praise from professional reviewers.
04 multi-instrumentalist
a musician who plays several instruments.
08 adoring fans
supporters who admire someone greatly.
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