The Beatles was a band.
The break-up of the Beatles was a cumulative process throughout 1968 to 1970 , marked by rumours of a split and ambiguous comments by the Beatles themselves regarding the future of the group . The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960 . With members John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr , they became widely regarded as the foremost and most influential act of the rock era . The Beatles are the best-selling band in history , with estimated sales of over 600 million records worldwide .