10 Things You Didn't Know About The Beatles
5. The Importance Of The Fifth Beatle
Although conventionally, people have pointed the finger at Yoko Ono for the reason the Fab Four broke up, the reality is far more nuanced.
George Harrison was becoming a far more prolific songwriter but resented the lack of acknowledgment given to him by McCartney and Lennon; Lennon was struggling with a heroin addiction; McCartney was becoming overly domineering; and the band sorely lacked good management. But all this might have been resolved had it not been for an event that occurred three years prier.
In 1967, Brian Epstein, the band's manager, died of an accidental overdose. Often hailed as the fifth Beatle, Epstein had been monumental in orchestrating the business side of things, but as well as this, he had been the perfect mitigator whenever the band had argued.
In the wake of his death the band struggled to find proper management, ultimately settling on Allen Klein, a shifty businessmen who McCartney, in particular, mistrusted. Klein helped fuel the rising resentment between Lennon and McCartney, and years after the split would be sued for diverting funds into his own pocket.
Epstein's death became the catalyst that started all of this. He was the glue that had held the band together, and after he was gone the cracks only widened.