In the summer of 1966 the band was attacked by an angry crowd in the Philippines after turning down an invitation to breakfast at the Presidential Palace. That disastrous tour had no sooner ended when Lennon set off a huge wave of record burning protests when he suggested in an interview that "Christianity is dying" and that the Beatles "are more popular than Jesus now."
In August 1966, the band made what would turn out to be its last public performance -- at Candlestick Park in San Francisco -- lasting barely over a half hour. The decision was made to stop touring and concentrate on writing and recording.
Although they had lost some of their luster, The Beatles continued to produce critically and commercially successful albums: in 1967, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the soundtrack from their third feature film, Magical Mystery Tour.
The band spent the first part of 1968 in India, studying transcendental meditation under the tutelage of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. When they returned, they announced the creation of their own label, Apple Records, and went to work on the double album, The Beatles (also known as The White Album) which was released in November 1968.
- Before They Were Beatles: 1957-1959
- Pre-Beatlemania: 1960-1963
- Beatlemania: 1964-1965
- Beginning of the End: 1966-1968
- The End and Beyond: 1969-present
