1967–1968

The Beatles were still resistant to public performances, but in late 1967 they had made a TV film called Magical Mystery Tour to accompany six new songs they had written. Magical Mystery Tour was originally an idea of Paul's. The group wrote, directed, acted in, and edited the film, in which they travel around remote parts of England with a busload of characters, from dancers to circus freaks, essentially to see what would happen. What did happen wasn't very interesting. The whole venture was poorly planned and overly ambitious at a time in which they were keenly feeling the absence of a manager. The premiere of this film marked some of the first truly negative reviews that the group had received since they had hit the big time in 1963. Though not anywhere near as successful as Sgt. Pepper had been, it did at least manage to keep them in the public eye.

In the wake of Magical Mystery Tour, the group once again turned to other pursuits. George was the one Beatle who had become interested in Indian music and spirituality over time. He had introduced the other Beatles to the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an Indian guru who would briefly become the group's meditation teacher. The entire group eventually attended a lengthy retreat in Rishikesh, India, in early 1968. Ringo, Paul, and John left the retreat before it ended, each feeling that in the end, meditation wasn't right for them. George was the only Beatle left believing in meditation's gifts. This trip marked the last time the Beatles ever traveled together as a group. Each Beatle seemed to be developing an increasingly strong individual identity, and this was ultimately reflected in their songs.