A new study by historian David Fowler says that far from being the voice of sixties youth, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were capitalist exploiters of youth culture and, in fact, "did about as much to represent the interests of the nation's young people as the Spice Girls did in the 1990s". He argues that the mods movement, and folk-dancing rural revivalist Rolf Gardiner, had more impact on youth culture in 60s and 70s.
Fowler says of the Beatles and Stones: "They were young capitalists who, far from developing a youth culture, were exploiting youth culture by promoting fan worship, mindless screaming and nothing more than a passive teenage consumer".