In The Beatles: Get Back, the events leading up to the dissolution of the legendary band are caught on film for the world to see, but here's what happened to each Beatle after they broke up. All the arguments, all the good times, and everything in between are on display in this extensive labor of love by Peter Jackson. But Disney+'s new three-part docies stops before covering the post-Beatles years for each member.
The Beatles were originally formed in 1960 by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison. By 1962, the solidified line-up included Ringo Starr on the drums. The four young men from Liverpool went on to inspire a worldwide fervor dubbed "Beatlemania" and record what are widely acknowledged to be some of the best albums and songs of all time. However, rising tensions following the death of the Beatles' long-time manager, Brian Epstein, eventually became untenable, causing The Beatles to split up in 1970. All the went their separate ways, and they, unfortunately, were never able to fully reunite.
After the split, each Beatle went on to have his own successful and vastly different solo career, though they never again reached the critical and commercial heights that they had been able to achieve as a group. Each put out a debut solo album in 1970, proving that the fractures had begun long before the split was announced. In the early years following the breakup, lingering, often public resentments remained, especially between Paul and the other three, who worked together shortly afterward on their own individual projects. With some time, the relationships were eventually repaired, and they never stopped being proud of the beloved and enduring music that they created together. Here's what each Beatle did after the breakup.
Paul McCartney
Although Let It Be, wasn't released until May 1970, Paul put out his first solo record, McCartney, in April, effectively confirming the group's separation. Isolating himself in his depression over the fate of the band, Paul wrote every song and played every instrument on the entire album. His first few solo ventures were not very critically successful at the time of their release, but he managed to win back both fans and critics alike with his 1973 album, Band on the Run, which was made with his new band, Wings.
Paul became one of the biggest musical acts of the 1970s and has remained a prolific and popular songwriter throughout his career. In his time since The Beatles, he has released 26 studio records, with 22 number one hits that have included prominent collaborators such as Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Rihanna. He has achieved many accomplishments, writing a theme song for a James Bond movie ("Live and Let Die") in 1980, winning 18 Grammys, founding the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts in 1996, and being knighted in 1997.
Paul has remained an important and revered figure in popular culture and is still writing and releasing new music to this day. He is also the author of children's books Hey Grandude and Grandude's Green Submarine and continues to tour around the world performing a crowd-pleasing mix of his Beatles and solo classics. His most recent album, McCartney III, came out in December 2020 and debuted at number one on the UK charts.
John Lennon
Towards the end of the Beatles' run, John and his wife, Yoko Ono, became prominent anti-war activists, doing "bed-ins" and demonstrations for peace, as well as writing many anti-war songs. John released his first post-Beatles solo album with Yoko in December 1970, entitled John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. Though it received mixed reviews at the time for its raw sound heavily inspired by the primal scream therapy John and Yoko had recently undergone, it is now considered to be his best and most influential solo album. In 1971, his more critically and commercially successful record Imagine debuted at number one worldwide, with George Harrison reing him on the guitar.
His next four albums were not as well-regarded, and he went through a low period - referred to as his "Lost Weekend" - during an 18-month separation from Yoko in 1973-1975. However, they eventually got back together, and John took a break from music upon the birth of his son, Sean, in 1975. He became a stay-at-home dad while Yoko managed their growing business portfolio.
In 1980, John was ready to return to music after five peaceful years focused on his family, and recorded a new album, Double Fantasy. Tragically, he was murdered about a month later by an obsessed former fan, Mark David Chapman, outside of his home in New York City. Lennon was only 40 years old. In the years since, there have been many memorials and dedications in his honor, and Yoko Ono still works to preserve his legacy and strive towards their aspirations for world peace.
George Harrison
In the late '60s, the Beatles became taken with Transcendental Meditation, even attending a training course in India with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. However, while the others became disillusioned or eventually lost interest, George remained enamored with Eastern spiritualism and music throughout his life. It influenced his late contributions to the Beatles as well as much of his solo work, leading him to learn sitar and collaborate with artists such as his good friend, Ravi Shankar.
The titular track from George's first solo album, All Things Must , is practiced by the Beatles in the Get Back documentary, as are a few other tunes George brought to the band that were eventually discarded by the group, much to his frustration. He used these songs to make his debut solo work, which was regarded with critical acclaim and much commercial success. Though his solo work was never regarded with the acclaim and popularity of The Beatles' greatest songs, such as "Yesterday," Harrison's album, as well as his single, "My Sweet Lord," topped charts all over the world, and featured prominent musicians such as Eric Clapton, Ringo, and Billy Preston.
George spent a lot of his time on humanitarian efforts, ing causes like Greenpeace and participating in many performances for charity, including the famous Concert for Bangladesh in 1971. He had one son, Dhani, with his second wife, Olivia, and collaborated with Paul and Ringo once again for The Beatles Anthology docu-series in the '90s - the closest thing to a Beatles reunion that the world ever got. In 2001, George died of cancer surrounded by family in Beverly Hills at the age of 58.
Ringo Starr
Ringo's first solo endeavor in a world without The Beatles was a cover album of pre-rock'n'roll standards called Sentimental Journey. It did not make much of a mark when it was released during the dissolution of the band in March 1970, and was a source of friction between Ringo and Paul, since Paul refused to delay the release of his own debut album for either Ringo's project or the final Beatles record, Let It Be. A few months later, Ringo dropped another album - this time in country/western style.
Over the years, Ringo continued to release his own music and frequently collaborated with George and John, drumming on their albums while George would in return write songs with Ringo that would go on to be his greatest hits, including "It Don't Come Easy" and "Photograph." Ringo also had roles in some movies in the '70s, and eventually became the leader of Ringo and His All Starr Band in 1989. He still tours with the All Starr Band, which features an ever-changing lin-up of classic rock'n'roll musicians coming together to perform their biggest hits.
Ringo was knighted in 2018, and remains one of the two surviving Beatles, along with Paul McCartney. He still makes many appearances, usually sporting two peace signs and reciting his signature catchphrase, "Peace and Love." Ringo's latest release is an EP that came out in September 2021 called Change the World. Although The Beatles: Get Back was delayed by a year due to coronavirus, Ringo is now promoting the film, which he and McCartney both participated in making.
