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The Beatles

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.

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 got to have some of these songs on numbers 1, 2 and 3 at the same time.

Despite the popularity of the name of the band in recent years is being debated about its correct spelling.

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 Beatles’ favorite songs?

Mini-Story

(improve your speaking)

And now I’m gonna tell a story, but with questions. I use this technique in my courses. It’s very effective!

This is how it works:

1. First I give some information. Listen to it carefully.

2. After that, I start asking questions.

After every question, there will be a few seconds of silence. It’s your turn to give a quick answer in English.

The answer can be short (yes/no, a name, etc.). After the moment of silence, I will provide a correct answer.

The goal, after some practice, is to be able to answer quickly and automatically.

Helpful hints:

• You can check the transcript if needed.

• Pause the audio to answer if necessary.

• Give short and easy answers, quickly. It’s better to give a short and quick answer than a complicated and hesitant one. And it’s okay if you answer with just one or a few words.

• Don’t worry about making mistakes. You’ll always hear the correct answer after the question.

• Try to answer out loud most of the time.

• When you listen for the first time, and the questions seem too complicated, it’s ok to listen without answering.

Sometimes the questions may seem very easy. They are designed like that on purpose to build the foundations of your English. The point is not only “knowing” it, but “automating” it.

Let’s get started!

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 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 Kayne West on a new song.

Did he collaborate with Kayne West?

Yes. He collaborated with Kayne West.

What did he collaborate on?

He collaborated on a new song.

He ignored Kayne West. Right?

No. No. He didn’t ignore Kayne West. He collaborated with him.

How many times did he collaborate with Kayne West?

On one occasion. He collaborated with Kayne West on one occasion.

With whom did he collaborate?

He collaborated with Kayne West.

Kayne West is a well-known American rapper.

Is Kayne 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 Kayne 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. Kayne West is a rapper.

Surprisingly, some of Kayne 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 Kayne West’s fans didn’t know who Paul McCartney was.

Other fans were convinced that Kayne West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.

Were other fans convinced that Kayne West would help Paul McCartney?

Yes. Other fans were convinced that Kayne West would help Paul McCartney.

What would Kayne help Paul McCartney with?

Kayne West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.

What were they convinced of?

They were convinced that Kayne West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.

Who would help Paul McCartney?

Kayne West. Other fans were convinced that Kayne West would help Paul McCartney in his musical career.

Although this mini-story sounds like a joke, some Kayne West followers posted on Twitter saying that they didn’t know who Paul McCartney was.

They even thought that Kayne 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.

All right! This is the end of this mini-story. This technique can help you improve your English fluency. With the questions and answers, you will automate your speech because you’ll translate less and less in your mind.

If you like these types of lessons, check out my English courses at: courses.SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

You have hours of mini-stories with professional audio and text. Honestly, I think it’s the best way to get excellent spoken English.

All right! This episode ends right here.

I’ll be back next week with a new episode!

Take care!

Bye! Bye!