Throughout the 1960s, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were often portrayed as rival groups in British rock music – a seemingly natural narrative seeing as both bands achieved major success during the same period and were at the centre of global attention.
However, members of the two bands frequently crossed paths and collaborated behind the scenes – sometimes even when they were not invited.
In one account, Beatles guitarist George Harrison suggested that Stones frontman Mick Jagger was regularly present during some of the members’ bonding moments, in a humorous anecdote.
Harrison recalled a specific instance in 1967, when The Beatles travelled to Bangor, Wales, to attend a seminar on transcendental meditation led by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
Harrison had become increasingly interested in spirituality during this period and was eager to introduce his bandmates to the Maharishi’s teachings. The trip occurred during a time of transition for the group, shortly after the death of their manager Brian Epstein and amid growing exploration of Indian philosophy and music.
Ringo Starr, The Beatles’ drummer, explained that the trip came together in an unexpected time, writing in The Beatles Anthology: “At that time [my wife] Maureen was in hospital having Jason, and I was visiting. I came home and put on the answerphone, and there was a message from John: ‘Oh, man, we’ve seen this guy, and we’re all going to Wales. You’ve got to come.’ The next message was from George, saying, ‘Wow, man – we’ve seen him. Maharishi’s great! We’re all going to Wales on Saturday, and you’ve got to come.’”
The seminar was being held in Bangor the following day, and The Beatles decided to travel there by train. Harrison described it: “Maharishi happened to be having a seminar in Bangor and had said, ‘Come tomorrow and I’ll show you how to meditate.’ So, the next day we jumped on a train and went”.
“Mick Jagger was also there. He was always lurking around in the background, trying to find out what was happening. Mick never wanted to miss out on what the Fabs were doing”, he added.
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine – titled Remembering George – following Harrison’s death in 2001, Jagger described how Harrison’s commitment to spirituality had remained constant over the years: “He very much concentrated on the spiritual side of his life, and it was more than a passing fancy. It looked like it was a sort of faddish thing at the time, but it stayed with him”.
“You got the feeling that most people were dabbling in spirituality, but for George it was perhaps the major part of his life once he discovered it. And it’s very easy to ridicule someone who does that, and he was ridiculed, there’s no doubt about that, especially in England, for being like that. But he did follow through on the courage of his convictions. He stayed with it and never rejected it.”
Despite the rivalry rumours, the relationship between the artists was not a hostile one, as Paul McCartney addressed in the book: “The idea of our being rivals with The Rolling Stones was newspaper talk. It was natural that we would seem to be rivals, but in fact George got them their recording contract. He was at a party with Dick Rowe, the man famous for having turned The Beatles down for Decca.”
Since then, The Rolling Stones and Beatles members have collaborated in various ways, including songwriting, backing vocals, and even playing in each other’s albums – notable mentions to the Stones’ cover of ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, written by Lennon/McCartney, and the Beatles’ backing vocals on the Stones’ ‘We Love You’.