Quiz of the Day
The Beatles & Rock Music
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Global Beatles Day — Beatles trivia, rock history, iconic bands and legendary performances
1. Which Liverpool club is most associated with the Beatles' early career?
- The Hacienda
- The Cavern Club
- The 100 Club
- The Marquee Club
The Beatles performed at the Cavern Club approximately 292 times between 1961 and 1963. The original club was partially demolished in 1973 to build a railway ventilation shaft, but a replica was built using many of the original bricks.
2. What was the Beatles' first number-one single in the UK?
- From Me to You
- Please Please Me
- Love Me Do
- She Loves You
While 'Please Please Me' hit number one on some charts, 'From Me to You' was their first undisputed UK number one on the Record Retailer chart (now the Official UK Singles Chart) in May 1963, staying there for seven weeks.
3. Who was the Beatles' manager, often called 'the fifth Beatle'?
- George Martin
- Pete Best
- Allen Klein
- Brian Epstein
Epstein first saw the Beatles at the Cavern Club in November 1961 and became their manager weeks later. He cleaned up their image, secured their record deal with EMI, and died tragically in 1967 aged just 32.
4. Which Beatles album is frequently ranked as the greatest album of all time?
- The White Album
- Revolver
- Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
- Abbey Road
Released in June 1967, Sgt. Pepper's took over 700 hours of studio time and cost roughly 10 times more than their debut album. The iconic cover features 57 celebrities and figures, including Edgar Allan Poe, Marilyn Monroe, and Karl Marx.
5. What was the name of the Beatles' legendary 1969 rooftop concert location?
- Wembley Stadium
- The London Palladium
- Apple Corps headquarters at 3 Savile Row
- EMI Studios
The impromptu concert on 30 January 1969 was the Beatles' last live public performance. Police shut it down after 42 minutes due to noise complaints. John Lennon famously quipped: 'I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves and I hope we've passed the audition.'
6. Which rock song is considered by many to be the first to use heavy distortion and feedback, recorded in 1958?
- Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Berry
- Hound Dog by Elvis Presley
- Rocket 88 by Jackie Brenston
- Rumble by Link Wray
Link Wray poked holes in his amplifier speaker with a pencil to get the distorted sound. 'Rumble' is the only instrumental ever banned from radio — authorities feared it would incite juvenile delinquency.
7. How many weeks did the Beatles hold the top five positions on the US Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously in 1964?
- Two weeks
- It never happened
- Four weeks
- One week
On 4 April 1964, the Beatles held positions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 — the only act ever to do so. They also held another seven positions in the chart that same week, totalling 12 songs in the Hot 100.
8. Which band is known as 'The Biggest Band in the World' and released the album 'Sticky Fingers'?
- Led Zeppelin
- The Who
- The Kinks
- The Rolling Stones
The 'Sticky Fingers' album cover (1971) was designed by Andy Warhol and featured a real working zip on the original vinyl release. The iconic tongue and lips logo, designed by John Pasche, was first used for this album's tour.
9. What was the name of the 1969 festival that became a defining moment of the counterculture era?
- Altamont Free Concert
- Monterey Pop Festival
- Woodstock
- Isle of Wight Festival
Woodstock attracted around 400,000 people to a dairy farm in Bethel, New York. Organisers expected 50,000 and charged $18 for a three-day ticket, but fences were overwhelmed and it became a free festival. Jimi Hendrix played to a much-diminished crowd on Monday morning.
10. Which guitarist is often regarded as the greatest rock guitarist of all time?
- Jimmy Page
- Eric Clapton
- Keith Richards
- Jimi Hendrix
Hendrix was self-taught and played a right-handed Fender Stratocaster flipped upside-down and restrung for his left hand. His legendary performance of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' at Woodstock used feedback and distortion to evoke the sounds of war.
11. What Beatles song was the first to be broadcast globally via satellite to an estimated 400 million viewers?
- Hey Jude
- Yesterday
- Let It Be
- All You Need Is Love
The broadcast was part of 'Our World', the first live international satellite TV production on 25 June 1967. The Beatles were chosen to represent the UK. John Lennon wrote the simple, universal lyrics specifically because the global audience would include non-English speakers.
12. Which album by Led Zeppelin features the famous track 'Stairway to Heaven'?
- Led Zeppelin IV
- Houses of the Holy
- Led Zeppelin I
- Led Zeppelin II
The album has no official title, no band name on the cover, and no catalogue number — the band wanted the music to speak for itself. 'Stairway to Heaven' was never released as a single yet is estimated to have been played on US radio over 3 million times.
13. What was the best-selling Beatles single worldwide?
- I Want to Hold Your Hand
- Let It Be
- Hey Jude
- Yesterday
Paul McCartney wrote 'Hey Jude' to comfort John Lennon's son Julian during his parents' divorce. At 7 minutes and 11 seconds, it was the longest single to reach number one at the time. The 'na na na' outro alone runs for over four minutes.
14. Which punk band released the album 'Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols' in 1977?
- The Damned
- The Sex Pistols
- The Clash
- The Ramones
A Virgin Records shop manager was prosecuted under the Indecent Advertisements Act for displaying the album in his window. He was acquitted after a linguistics professor testified that 'bollocks' was a legitimate Old English word meaning 'nonsense.'
15. How many number-one albums did the Beatles achieve in the UK?
- 12
- 17
- 15
- 10
The Beatles hold the record for the most UK number-one albums by any act. Their combined worldwide album sales exceed 600 million. Remarkably, their entire recording career as a band lasted less than eight years (1962-1970).