The Beatles: Now, Then And Forever

The Fab Four Have Just Released 'now And Then,' What Is To Be The Iconic British Band's Final Song

-  David Britto

EARLIER THIS WEEK, Universal Music India organized a trip to visit the Beatles Ashram in Rishikesh ahead of the British band releasing their final song together called “Now And Then.” Walking across the premises where the group – John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr – set up camp in 1968 to take part in a Transcendental training course at the ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, was quite a surreal experience. While in India, the Beatles also wrote plenty of songs, many of which appeared on their self-titled 1968 record, also known as the White Album.

The tale of “Now And Then” unfolds in the late Seventies, with Lennon crafting a demo featuring vocals and piano within the confines of his New York Dakota Building residence. The mid-1990s marked a pivotal moment in this story when Lennon’s wife Yoko Ono entrusted the recording to McCartney, Harrison and Starr. Alongside Lennon’s demos for “Free As A Bird” and “Real Love,” these materials became the catalyst for the creation of new Beatles songs, eventually released as singles in 1995 and 1996, as part of The Beatles Anthology project.