Today, November 2, 2023, The Beatles are set to release their first “new” song since 1995, a momentous occasion for fans of this iconic rock band. Titled “Now and Then,” the track is now available on streaming services, complete with an Atmos mix where supported. The story behind the song’s production is as captivating as the song itself, as Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr harnessed breakthrough technology and machine learning to transform an old, lo-fi John Lennon recording into a complete track.
This journey into the heart of the Beatles’ musical history takes us back to the mid-’90s, when McCartney, George Harrison, and Starr rekindled their musical partnership to work on “new” songs intended for the group’s Anthology albums. Their collaborative efforts saw the completion of “Free as a Bird” and “Real Love,” where they ingeniously layered full-band arrangements over Lennon’s original demos.
However, the road to “Now and Then” was fraught with obstacles, primarily stemming from the technical challenges posed by the original tape. McCartney illuminated the issue in a recent mini-documentary about the song, stating, “In John’s demo tape, the piano was a little hard to hear. And in those days, of course, we didn’t have the technology to do the separation. Every time we wanted a little bit more of John’s voice, this piano came through and clouded the picture.”
Regrettably, their initial efforts on “Now and Then” reached an impasse, and the project was put on hold. McCartney reflected on the situation, saying, “I think we kind of ran out of steam a bit, and time. And it was like, ‘I don’t know. Maybe we’ll leave this one.’ The song ‘just kind of languished in a cupboard.'”
The untimely passing of Harrison in 2001 cast further doubt on the song ever seeing the light of day. McCartney admitted, “It took almost a quarter of a century for us to wait until the right moment to tackle ‘Now and Then’ again.”
The turning point emerged in this decade when director Peter Jackson was meticulously crafting his comprehensive “Get Back” documentary for Disney Plus. Jackson’s team developed groundbreaking technology capable of disassembling practically any piece of music, including ancient demos, into separate tracks using machine learning. McCartney and Starr saw this as their golden opportunity to finally give “Now and Then” the closure it deserved. McCartney contributed a bass track, Starr added drums, and producer Giles Martin provided a string arrangement reminiscent of what Giles’ father would have crafted in the old days.
While the accompanying documentary doesn’t delve deeply into Harrison’s past recordings on the completed track, it’s widely known that he wasn’t particularly fond of the unfinished Lennon song. Nevertheless, McCartney revealed that they retained Harrison’s parts from the Anthology sessions, and he himself played a slide guitar solo in Harrison’s unique style.
Despite initial concerns from fans, all parties involved in the project, including representatives from the estates of deceased band members, have expressed complete satisfaction with how “Now and Then” came together. Sean Ono Lennon remarked, “My dad would’ve loved that because he was never shy to experiment with recording technology. I think it’s really beautiful.” McCartney echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the significance of continuing to work on Beatles music in 2023. He stated, “We’re actually messing around with state-of-the-art technology, which is something the Beatles would’ve been very interested in. ‘Now and Then,’ it’s probably like the last Beatles song. And we’ve all played on it, so it is a genuine Beatle recording.”
This tour through the core of the Beatles’ discography takes us back to the mid-1990s, when McCartney, Harrison, and Starr came back together to collaborate on “new” songs for the band’s Anthology albums. Through their joint efforts, “Free as a Bird” and “Real Love,” which cleverly superimposed full-band arrangements over Lennon’s initial tracks, were completed. There will be no more “New Release” Beatles songs but let’s enjoy what we have and embrace the latest release. And now without further delay, Ladies and Gentlemen, THE BEATLES!!!
Click Here: NOW AND THEN
Yes indeed.