Claim: 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 . Although in September 1969 John Lennon privately informed the other Beatles that he was leaving the group , there was no public acknowledgement of the break-up until Paul McCartney announced on 10 April 1970 he was leaving the Beatles .   There were sporadic collaborative recording efforts among the band members -LRB- Ringo Starr 's 1973 album Ringo was the only time that the four -- albeit on separate tracks -- appeared on the same album post-break-up -RRB- , although all four Beatles never simultaneously collaborated as a recording or performing group again ; Starr 's 1976 album Ringo 's Rotogravure is the last post-break-up album on which all four Beatles contribute and are credited : besides Starr 's drumming and songwriting contributions , Lennon , McCartney and George Harrison all composed one track apiece . After Lennon 's death in 1980 , McCartney and Starr appeared on Harrison 's single `` All Those Years Ago '' , and the trio reunited for the Anthology project in 1994 , using two unfinished Lennon demos -- `` Free as a Bird '' and `` Real Love '' -- for what would be new songs to be recorded and released as the Beatles .   There were numerous causes for the Beatles ' break-up . It was not a single event but a long transition , including the cessation of touring in 1966 , and the death of their manager , Brian Epstein , in 1967 , meaning the Beatles were personally involved in financial and legal conflicts .  Conflict arose from differences in artistic vision . Both Harrison and Starr temporarily left the group at various points during 1968 -- 69 and all four band members had begun working on solo projects by 1970 as they all realised the likelihood the band would not regroup . Ultimately , animosity made it impossible for the group to continue working together in the years following .