NOW & THEN
What can be said about the new Beatles single? Perhaps a bit of personal background concerning my relationship with this song..
I first became aware of its very existence in 1995 or so upon hearing that the surviving Beatles were working on some Lennon demos for inclusion on the "Anthology" project. This in itself was thrilling, as "new" Beatles music was something I never thought I would experience in my lifetime. Watching the world premiere video for "Free As a Bird", the tears flowed......but then, in the light of the next day, my musical "bat-analyzer" activated unbidden and began to point out the flaws in the execution of the song. Jeff Lynne, God love him, makes brilliant records....but they have a certain sound. That was so evident in the drum sound that it began to be all I heard. That and the limitations of the source tape, which was, in fact, a demo. My favorite part of that song, it turned out, was the Harrison solo, backed by the sweet Beatles harmonies.....and that part had not a bit of the Lennon vocal on it....
"Real Love" was more of the same things, but a better overall song, in my opinion, than "Free As a Bird".....but there was still that nagging dissatisfaction with the limitations of the sources tapes. So, when I heard they had also worked on a song called "Now & Then", also a Lennon demo, my hopes weren't high.....then "Anthology 3" was released with no new tracks, I read the story of how "Now & Then" was just too much of a demo to be of any use and they had shelved it. That, I expected, was that...
But Paul heard something there.....
It took Peter Jackson's "Let It Be" project to bring forth the technology needed to salvage "Now & Then". Once McCartney heard that tech existed, it was just a matter of time before we would hear this song. I have read that he is stubborn....here's the proof. And thank The Universe he is.....
I have lived with this song for a couple of days now, and my "bat-analyzer" was again automatically activated after the initial rush of tears subsided. Here's the kicker: the more it has pulled this track apart, the more I am realizing that this is just the swan song we needed all those years ago from "Anthology". Even if this track owes its releasable state to things that go PING, that tech is so transparent, so flawless, it's let the magic shine clearly through. The ONLY caveat I can think of is that I wish this had existed in the mid-nineties, so that "Free As a Bird" & "Real Love" could have seen better final results.
Oh......the song? In demo form, it's something of a dirge that made me VERY melancholic upon hearing it. This finished single maintains some of that feeling, but is redeemed by the instrumentation and a soaring solo section that borrows some backing vocals from other Beatles songs. Your ears will know where from, and you won't care.....it's so inspiring. Ringo, unleashed from having to play directly to a demo tape, sounds like RINGO. Paul's bass is typically amazing, and George's spirit is all over the solo section, even if Macca played the part. On top of all of that, the Lennon lead vocal is clearly heartfelt and perfectly placed at the front of the mix. The end result is an astonishing final chapter in the Beatles' recording history...