Rush vs The Beatles

It's all subjective but calling the Beatles overrated is clueless IMO. They had a huge influence on the experimental aspect of music.  Rush is a great technical group but I think if the Beatles didn't cross these boundaries Rush might have never even existed in the first place. Then again I can say the Beatles might have never made it without the rock and roll music of the 50's.

"The Beatles made me feel that I could do some of the ideas I had. Every time one of their records came out I wanted to have it, particularly after "Eleanor Rigby". I just dug the effects they got, like echoes, the voice things, the writing. Like "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite". I just said "Why Can't I"? I wanted to do something else, go other places".

Stevie Wonder : Musician by Jeremy K. Brown

The Beatles will always be remembered for their songwriting first they also changed how musicians thought about albums, greatly influeced how music was recorded but of course like everyone they did not compose in a vacuum. They were well versed in pop, country, R&B, assorted styles in rock and roll, European Folk and Skiffle. During their brief life span went way beyond their roots to add classical, Indian, Motown, Funk, Stax sound, bolero, ska, reggae, vaudeville, cabaret, musical hall, modern aleatory, musique concrete, atonality, electronic music, avant garde, jazz, baroque and the extended dissonant sonorities George Harrison would explore on "I Want to Tell You"and "Only a Northern Song". Most of these areas that I mention Elvis either didn't know or didn't even touch upon. The Beatles freely added jazz harmonies, unusual time signatures and employed varying styles of vocal harmonies to their music. They composed long songs, short songs to songs with many parts.

One thing to add yes the Beatles weren't a derivative blues band like many of the British Invasion artists. There ultra melodic style, coupled with their unusual chord progressions, amazing harmonies and Paul McCartney lead bass style sometimes added on top after the band finished recordings gave their music an almost classical sound.