Oh good lord, this is just asinine. As if the Beatles were the first outfit to start on a shoestring and then make it big.<p>I'm sure there are similar stories about early jazz artists, vaudeville acts, English music hall performers, etc.
From a organizational standpoint, the Beatles collapsed in less than ten years.<p>Not to discount the artistic qualities of the Beatles' music, but the "Rolling Stones model" has been successfully replicated far more frequently. Pick a style, stick to it for the most part, minimize experimentation, and stay in regular contact with your customers.<p>In other words, you're probably better off to focus on being a rock n' roll band than to be the second band to use sitars.
Good comparison. Did Apple perhaps think the same thing? Their marketing (as always) is brilliant as I would expect it as a nice push for iTunes & Ping. It's hard not to like "Love Me Do."
If the Beatles music changed over-time, are you suggesting a pivot from the MVP? Perhaps just a change of times? Their feat for being so liked/relevant for so long is nothing to sneeze at. Is that possible for startups?
Ok, race to the bottom: how about 'Adam and Eve, the original lean..' - no hang on: 'RNA: the original lean startup'. Oh: Quarks, the..<p>Anyway, I won the race. Can we stop now?
Interesting analogy. A few other thoughts:<p>- complimentary co-founders (Paul and John collaborated building stuff, George was an expert at execution on the guitar, and Ringo kept them in sync)<p>- release early and often (in clubs) to get user feedback<p>- the perfect combo: a smart-ass team (Beatles) with a kick-ass product (pop music) in a big-ass market (baby boomers).<p>- the right advisers and CEO: Brian Epstein and George Martin. If it wasn't for them, the Beatles might still be bootstrapping in Hamburg.