The Beatles' Last Song Out

The last composition attributed to The Beatles, "Now and Then", has finally been unveiled, including the late John Lennon's vocals many years following his initial creation of the song.

The song, incorporating the contributions of all members of the British rock band, was released on Thursday (November 2).

Lennon sings: "I know it's true. It's all because of you. And if I make it through, it's all because of you," which sensitively captures this nostalgic moment for the band's fans.

"Love the song! Love the production! What a beautiful day it is when new Beatles music is released," wrote American singer Tony Harnell in response to an Instagram post by The Beatles sharing the song's release,

Vocalist Mollie Marriott also reacted, saying: "So unbelievably beautiful and emotional."

John Lennon penned and recorded the track at his residence in New York City during the late 1970s. His wife, Yoko Ono, provided the demo to the surviving members of The Beatles in 1994, as detailed by the band in a brief video documenting the song's creation, which was posted on YouTube on Wednesday.

In 1980, at the age of 40, Lennon tragically lost his life when he was fatally shot outside his apartment building in New York City.

In the film, Guitarist George Harrison said: "To hear John's voice, that's a thing that we should cherish, and I'm sure he would've enjoyed that opportunity to be with us again."

"It was the closest we'll ever come to having him back in the room," stated drummer Ringo Starr.

Subsequently, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison collaborated on the song until 1995. However, they faced the challenge of separating John Lennon's vocals from the piano sound in the track.

"I think we kind of ran out of steam a little and time," McCartney said, adding that "Now and Then" ended up withering in a cupboard for years following that.

Harrison died in 2001, "which kind of took the wind out of our sails," remarked McCartney in the film. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr didn't revisit the song until more than two decades had passed.

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology was eventually utilised to extract John Lennon's vocals from a demo track for the 2021 docu-series "The Beatles: Get Back", directed by Peter Jackson. This series focuses on the creation of The Beatles' 1970 album, "Let It Be".

Following the AI-assisted vocal extraction, Paul McCartney re-recorded the bass parts, Ringo Starr contributed the drums, and additional strings were incorporated by musicians at Capitol Studios. Interestingly, these studio musicians were unaware that their work was intended for a new Beatles song. The band also retained George Harrison's guitar parts from 1995 and crafted a slide guitar solo in Harrison's distinctive style, which Paul McCartney described as a "tribute" in the documentary.

"All of those memories come flooding back. How lucky was I to have those men in my life and to work with those men so intimately and to come up with such a body of music… To still be working on Beatles music in 2023 – wow," McCartney said.

McCartney added, "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."

Lennon's son, Sean, expressed, "It was incredibly touching to hear them working together after all the years that my dad had been gone. It's the last song that my dad and Paul, and George, and Ringo, will get to make together."

Even though the famous band, which received seven Grammy Awards, disbanded over 50 years ago, the influence of their iconic and innovative music continues to shape popular culture.

The "Beatlemania" phenomenon commenced in the early 1960s when the band triggered an unprecedented frenzy amongst fans in the UK, the US, and subsequently the world.

The Beatles achieved an impressive 20 number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, with notable songs such as "Hey Jude", "Come Together", "Let It Be", "Help!" and "Yesterday". They are also known for timeless classics like "Twist and Shout" and "Here Comes the Sun".