Peter Jackson’s documentary series about The Beatles has been credited with helping to create one final song from the band.
John Lennon recorded the vocals in the 1970s and left the recording for his bandmates.
In the 1990s Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr recorded new parts and completed a rough mix for Now And Then with producer Jeff Lynne. At that point, technological limitations prevented John’s vocals and piano from being separated to achieve the mix needed to finish the song.
Cut to the 2020s and The Beatles: Get Back, directed by Jackson, used WingNut Films’ artificial intelligence audio technology to de-mix the film’s mono soundtrack, managing to isolate instruments and vocals, and all the individual voices within The Beatles’ conversations.
Jackson and his team applied the same technique to Lennon’s original recording, separating it from the piano.
In 2022, McCartney and Starr completed the song.
Speaking about Lennon’s vocals, McCartney said: “There it was, John’s voice, crystal clear. It’s quite emotional. And we all play on it, it’s a genuine Beatles recording. In 2023 to still be working on Beatles music, and about to release a new song the public haven’t heard, I think it’s an exciting thing.”
Now and Then will be released worldwide on 2nd November.
