The Beatles Were More Than Just A World-Class Band

On this day, something fateful happened.

It was the 6th of July, 1957. At the St. Peter’s Church Parish Garden Fete in Woolton, Liverpool, two men would meet. John Lennon and Paul McCartney, 16 and 15 years old at the time, respectively, would be introduced to one another through a mutual friend. 

With Lennon performing with his band, The Quarrymen, an inspired McCartney would begin a conversation with the frontman after the set. This crossover would prove to be the beginning of one of music’s greatest eras, as the hands of fate drew them closer together. The 6th of July will always mark the start of something greater. But The Beatles’ connection to the construction industry goes back further. 

The Beatles Weren’t Always Building Anthems 

While many of Britain’s greatest musical acts had backgrounds in the trade before making it big on stage, one member of The Beatles never took on any industry jobs at all. John Lennon made his way through art school before becoming famous and never had any on-site experience in any capacity. Ringo Star, meanwhile, worked as a machinist and joiner for a small amount of time, making school and gymnastics equipment as part of a much-needed apprenticeship.  

While it was Lennon and McCartney who met on that critical day, it was the other two members of the band who had a much deeper connection. Because both Paul McCartney and George Harrison had backgrounds in electrical work. 

The Bright Sparks 

At the age of 16, George Harrison left school and began working at Blacklers, a large department store in Liverpool. There, he served as an apprentice electrician, but it evidently was not the career for him. Famously, Harrison joked that he kept blowing things up, leading to the end of his short-lived time with the company. Nonetheless, his skills would become critical in the early days of The Beatles, as Harrison was able to fix the group’s electrical equipment. 

McCartney, on the other hand, worked at Massey and Coggins in the early 1960s. He was at the electrical factory for just a few weeks, learning how to wind copper coils, before being demoted to cleaning work. His passion would always be in music, and while he was under pressure from his family to keep the job, he eventually stepped away to pursue greener pastures. 

Perhaps if McCartney and Lennon had never met, there would be two incredibly skilled electricians out there, working on very different gigs across the country. Instead, the two traded in live wires for live shows, and the rest is history.