Thursday 2 November 2023 | Single release | The Beatles | By Beatles Fabdom
The Beatles released “Now And Then” worldwide at 2pm GMT on 2 November 2023. Written and originally sung by John Lennon, developed by Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr in 1995, and completed by Paul and Ringo in 2022, it was presented as the last Beatles song.
The single paired “Now And Then” with a new stereo mix of “Love Me Do”, the band’s first UK single from 1962. Its digital release followed the previous evening’s premiere of Oliver Murray’s documentary. Physical formats and Peter Jackson’s music video followed on 3 November.
| Digital release | Thursday 2 November 2023, 2pm GMT / 10am EDT / 7am PDT |
|---|---|
| Artists | The Beatles |
| Single pairing | Now And Then / Love Me Do |
| Physical release | 3 November 2023 |
| Producers | Paul McCartney and Giles Martin |
| Additional production | Jeff Lynne |
| Mix | Spike Stent |
| String arrangement | Paul McCartney, Giles Martin and Ben Foster |
| Single cover artwork | Ed Ruscha |
| Documentary | Now And Then – The Last Beatles Song, written and directed by Oliver Murray; premiered 1 November |
| Music video | Directed by Peter Jackson; premiered 3 November |
| Release partners | Apple Corps Ltd., Capitol and UMe |
What happened on 2 November 2023?
“Now And Then” became available on streaming and digital services simultaneously around the world. The coordinated launch was at 2pm in the UK, 10am on the US east coast and 7am on the west coast.
The recording brought together work from three different periods: Lennon’s home demo from the 1970s, guitar and other work undertaken during the Anthology project in 1995, and new performances and production completed in 2022. It was not a newly discovered finished Beatles master from the 1960s.
Apple’s announcement on 26 October had set out the release schedule and described the song as the final Beatles recording to be completed with contributions from John, Paul, George and Ringo. “Love Me Do” provided its double A-side counterpart, linking the new release to the band’s first British single more than sixty years earlier.
The release-week timeline
| Date in 2023 | Event |
|---|---|
| 26 October | The Beatles announced Now And Then and the expanded Red and Blue collections. |
| 1 November | Oliver Murray’s documentary premiered on the Beatles’ YouTube channel at 7:30pm GMT / 3:30pm EDT / 12:30pm PDT. |
| 2 November | Now And Then was released digitally at 2pm GMT. |
| 3 November | Physical single formats were released and Peter Jackson’s music video premiered. |
| 10 November | The expanded 2023 editions of 1962–1966 and 1967–1970 were released. |
The documentary, the song and the music video were separate releases on successive days. The short film’s 1 November premiere should not be confused with the single’s 2 November digital release or the 3 November music video.
John Lennon’s home demo
The song began as a piano-and-vocal recording made by Lennon at home in New York in the 1970s. His voice and piano were captured together on the original recording, making it difficult to alter the balance between them when the surviving Beatles later attempted to build a finished track.
For the Anthology project, Yoko Ono made Lennon’s recordings available to Paul, George and Ringo. “Free As A Bird” and “Real Love” were completed and released in the 1990s. “Now And Then” was also worked on, but remained unfinished.
Our article on the 1995 Now And Then sessions covers that earlier stage of the project. The 2023 release retained George Harrison’s guitar contributions from the 1995 work rather than replacing his involvement with an imitation.
How the voice was separated from the piano
Peter Jackson’s team had developed audio-separation technology while making The Beatles: Get Back. WingNut Films’ MAL system allowed voices and instruments recorded together to be isolated from one another.
For “Now And Then”, Jackson’s sound team, led by Emile de la Rey, applied that approach to Lennon’s home recording. Separating the vocal from the piano made it possible to use his performance with greater clarity in a new arrangement.
The distinction matters: the process recovered Lennon’s recorded singing. It did not create a new Lennon vocal performance or have a synthetic voice sing newly written lines. The source was his own voice on the original tape.
The same broader audio-restoration work had also helped make the 2022 Revolver remix possible. On “Now And Then”, it solved a problem that had limited the surviving Beatles’ ability to finish the track in the 1990s.
What Paul, George and Ringo contributed
George’s electric and acoustic guitar recordings from 1995 were incorporated into the completed song. Ringo recorded a new drum part, and Paul supplied bass, guitar and piano, with his piano following John’s original playing.
Paul added a slide-guitar solo inspired by George’s style. Paul and Ringo also contributed new backing vocals. Those performances were combined with John’s original lead vocal and the earlier recorded material.
Paul and Giles Martin brought in small elements of backing vocals from “Here, There And Everywhere”, “Eleanor Rigby” and “Because”. These came from the Beatles’ original recordings, using an approach developed during the creation of the LOVE album and show.
| Credit | Contribution |
|---|---|
| John Lennon | Vocals and backing vocals from original recordings |
| Paul McCartney | Vocals, backing vocals, guitars, bass, piano, electric harpsichord and shaker; co-producer |
| George Harrison | Guitars and backing vocals from earlier recordings |
| Ringo Starr | Drums, tambourine, shaker and backing vocals |
| Giles Martin | Co-producer and co-arranger of the strings |
| Jeff Lynne | Additional production |
| Ben Foster | Co-arranger of the strings |
| Spike Stent | Mixing |
| WingNut Films / Emile de la Rey | MAL source separation and machine-learning work |
The Capitol Studios string recording
Paul oversaw the recording of the string arrangement at Capitol Studios in Los Angeles. He wrote the arrangement with Giles Martin and Ben Foster, adding an orchestral part to the completed band recording.
Read our account of the Capitol Studios Now And Then string session for more about that part of the recording. The photograph above belongs to the recording period, not the November 2023 release day.
Now And Then and Love Me Do
The double A-side put two recordings at opposite ends of the Beatles’ release history together. “Love Me Do” had introduced the band to UK record buyers in October 1962; “Now And Then” completed a recording that had remained unfinished for decades.
The 2023 “Love Me Do” was a new true-stereo mix made possible by source-separation technology. The release therefore used the new mixing tools not only to finish “Now And Then”, but also to revisit the Beatles’ earliest single.
| Track | 2023 release context |
|---|---|
| Now And Then | Completed Beatles recording built around John Lennon’s home demo |
| Love Me Do | New stereo mix of the Beatles’ first UK single |
Single artwork and formats
Ed Ruscha created the original cover artwork for the single. The physical release followed on 3 November, with vinyl editions and a cassette among the formats. The campaign included black and coloured vinyl variants, with different editions using 7-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch formats.
The official CD single listing also gives 3 November as its release date. The distinction between the Thursday digital launch and Friday physical release explains why both dates appear in discographies and retail listings.
“Now And Then” was also included on the expanded 2023 1967–1970 collection, released on 10 November alongside the expanded 1962–1966 set.
Now And Then merchandise
The Now & Then black T-shirt pairs the new song’s title on the front with “Love me do” on the back, reflecting the single’s two-song pairing.
Watch Now And Then – The Last Beatles Song
Oliver Murray wrote and directed the short documentary explaining the recording’s history. Announced as a 12-minute film, it premiered online on 1 November 2023 at 7:30pm GMT, ahead of the single’s release.
The film includes footage and commentary from Paul, Ringo, George, Sean Ono Lennon and Peter Jackson. George’s contributions appear through archive material. Murray’s film follows the original recording, the surviving Beatles’ work on it and the later technology that allowed the project to be completed.
Watch the official documentary on YouTube.
Peter Jackson’s music video
The music video followed on 3 November, separate from Murray’s documentary. It was Peter Jackson’s music-video directorial debut.
Jackson combined contemporary and archive material to bring different periods of the band’s history into the same film. The video accompanied the completed song rather than serving as the documentary about its production.
Watch the official Now And Then music video.
Cassette-inspired Now And Then keychain
The Now & Then cassette keychain uses a miniature cassette design with a separate Beatles drum-logo charm.
Frequently asked questions
When was Now And Then released?
The Beatles released it digitally worldwide at 2pm GMT on 2 November 2023. The physical single followed on 3 November.
When did the documentary premiere?
Now And Then – The Last Beatles Song premiered on 1 November 2023. Its YouTube premiere was at 7:30pm GMT, 3:30pm EDT and 12:30pm PDT.
Who directed the documentary and the music video?
Oliver Murray wrote and directed the documentary. Peter Jackson directed the music video, which premiered on 3 November.
Was John Lennon’s voice generated by AI?
No. Source-separation technology isolated his real recorded vocal from the piano on his home demo.
Does George Harrison play on Now And Then?
Yes. The completed recording includes guitar parts George recorded during the 1995 work on the song.
Why was Love Me Do paired with Now And Then?
The double A-side paired the Beatles’ last completed song with their first UK single. Love Me Do received a new stereo mix for the release.
Release dates and production credits: the Beatles’ official Now And Then announcement.
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