marvin Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 Well this should be interesting: Quote:McCartney Wants To Rework Late Lennon Song January 3, 2007 7:45 a.m. EST Maira Oliveira - All Headline News Reporter London, England (BANG) - Paul McCartney hopes to soon be reunited with the late John Lennon - on his next record. Paul reportedly wants to bring his late Beatles band member Lennon back from the grave on a new song. He is said to be desperate to work on the abandoned Lennon solo track "Now And Then" and possibly release it as a single. The musician originally wanted to add to the track when he and the late George Harrison and Ringo Starr reworked two other Lennon solo songs, "Free As A Bird" and "Real Love," for the Fab Four's "Anthology" albums in the mid-90s. But George, who died from cancer in November 2001, put a stop to Paul's plans because he didn't think the track was good enough to warrant it being worked on. A source told Britain's Daily Express newspaper, "It has always bothered Paul a bit that they didn't finish 'Now And Then.'Although George wasn't keen, Paul always felt the song had a lot of potential. He is now hoping to complete it, with him singing the harmonies to John's lead vocal. It would be very moving to hear the two of them singing one last time." http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006024227 Marv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 That's awesome. I hope it happens.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspathens Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 I've always had a problem with these "beyond the grave" songs. Although the estate may have a say, it is still a little weird to hear the departed participating in something that he or she may not have wanted to be involved with. When I hear a piece of music, I want to know that all the principal participants were satisfied. It's kind of like if you digitally pieced together a video of your child and an old film of yuor great grandfather playing catch. It didn't happen. There is plenty of real stuff in life to enjoy - including the existing work of Lennon/McCartney. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee Marshall Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 Still...most fans who know a body of work inside out and backwards are always glad to hear something 'new'...something unreleased.I just wonder how Paulie will manage to fill out the rest of the album. I personally think that the 2 of them [generally] NEEDED each other's input in order to achieve their highest standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspberrywine Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 It's ghoulish and likely motivated by all the big bucks he's about to send to Heather.I thought "Free As A Bird" was rubbish and was only made palatable by all George and Paul's hard work and refinement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted January 4, 2007 Author Share Posted January 4, 2007 If John was alive, who's to say that he would have wanted any of these songs ("Free As A Bird", "Real Love", "Now And Then") recorded? Marv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cozmik Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 I thought "Free as a Bird" was so-so. "Real Love" was great, marred only by the quality of the Lennon recording used. I really would have liked to see what they could have done with a quality vocal recording from some lesser known Lennon track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 Wow! "Purists" tend to be real close-minded, no?I loved "Free as a Bird" and "Real Love," and I'm glad Paul, George, and Ringo tied 'em up in a bow and got 'em on record (although as much as I love ELO, I could have lived without Jeff Lynne's touch). Likewise, I'm glad Paul is considering the idea of "collaborating" on "Now and Then." If he's got Yoko's blessing, why not? Say what you want about her, but she's been a careful caretaker of John Lennon's legacy....No one will ever know whether or not John might have finished these songs, so it's pointless to speculate about what he would have wanted. (How the heck would you know?) All we have are the facts: John had started some songs and put 'em aside, and his Beatles songwriting partner helped finish two of them, and possibly a third. IMHO, it's cool. Don't forget: Lennon & McCartney sometimes pulled out songs that had been on the back burner for years and finished 'em. "One After 909" (from the Let It Be album) is an example, and there are a few others (including "Mean Mr. Mustard" and "Polythene Pam"). This isn't some hack latter-day singer/songwriter getting sacrilegious with Beatles music.... It's Paul. Half of the Lennon & McCartney team.... Have at it, I say. (Then again, I tend to be open-minded.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspathens Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 LC - That's it, we don't know. So let's respect the possibility of him not wanting it released at all or maybe with the particular recording of his voice that is available. It's not the end of the world if it happens - I just don't think it's appropriate. And, it's creepy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 Well, Raspathens, we'll just have to agree to ... disagree. I guess I see it as poignant, not creepy. It's probably a very moving process.... John's been gone for 26 years now, and judging by Paul's mentions of him in concert and interviews, he holds Lennon in the highest esteem.... And he always has. I just don't see Paul doing anything that would risk him showing any disrespect to John.BTW, Ras-Wine, the thought that Paul would do this project for $$ is silly (no offense, friend --- you know I'm a fan of yours). But c'mon... even after Heather dips into the Macca bank account for her $235 mill, he's no closer to destitute than Donald Trump. It's not like her fleecing will take the legs out from underneath McCartney.... His net worth is in the billions. Just wanted to address that Ras-Wine "needle." (We've had a couple of go-rounds on Paul....) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspberrywine Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 It's poignantly creepy. Just kidding about Paul doing it for cash. But youve stumbled on an idea there! Paul could take the Lennon track and do a duet over it with Donald Trump! Trump would be better than Michael Jackson I am sure. I'm sure they could sample some old George slide guitar solo too and add that in. I really liked "Real Love" but "Free As a Bird" really is a pretty mediocre tune. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin Posted January 4, 2007 Author Share Posted January 4, 2007 I didn't mind "Free", and I loved "Real Love." I'll never forget that moment in 1994(?) when the dj on the radio announced, "We have the new song by the Beatles..." I got goosebumps just hearing those words.Marv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris hess Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 it's a shame reading negative comments on what john's bandmates and bros. did w/his cassette recordings..i think john at the stage in his life would have loved what was done,yet alone his wife approved it..as eric said,it's a labor of love..paul misses his partner..as we all do,he would do a great job on the "new" song..it is'nt that creepy to try to do something new w/his dear deceased/murdered friend..what do "you" have to fear?..lol,chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 I say....go for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 There have been lots of records released posthumously. I was watching a Janis Joplin bio on the Biography channel last night and "Pearl" was released after her overdose. I don't really think its creepy if it is well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 There have been lots of records released posthumously. I was watching a Janis Joplin bio on the Biography channel last night and "Pearl" was released after her overdose. I don't really think it's creepy if it is well done. Good point, Laura. I remember Natalie Cole doing a duet with her dad that, to me, wasn't creepy.... Like you say, if done well --- and by an appropriate living artist who had a legit connection with the deceased artist, then... it's a good thing....Besides, I love the idea of hearing Lennon & McCartney "harmonize" one more time.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspathens Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 Chris : If the "you" in your message means me; then yes, I've got a lot to fear. I'm a divorce attorney. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris hess Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 no,i really did'nt mean u in general,i meant the ones who did'nt believe it should happen..but damn,i respect u for what u do..that's got to be a tough ass job!! lol,chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pierson Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 I thought "Free As A Bird" was rubbish and was only made palatable by all George and Paul's hard work and refinement. [/QB]no, it's pretty weak all the way around, except that the John demo version stands on its own as what it is; a demo he most likely thought wasn't up to snuff... all of Paul's "hard work" & "refinement" only made it worse, zapping the intimacy that's there in the demo... and the same goes for "Real Love" which is brilliant on its own (check the version on the "Imagine" soundtrack)... the LAME Jeff Lynne-mangled production of it is a disgrace... It does NOT sound like the Beatles, even though it is, I guess... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 Thanks for clarifying that for us, pierson. Now that you've made a ruling, I don't have to like either song anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raspberrywine Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 I still like Real Love. Agree with you on Jeff Lynne productions though. Jeff Lynne has some issues with treble. He does a great disservice to the lower end in all his productions. I always wished George Harrison would dump him but I guess they were close buddies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy K. Posted January 20, 2007 Share Posted January 20, 2007 I wasn't impressed with "Free as a Bird". Not at all....but liked "Real Love".Nothing wrong with doing the "beyond the grave" stuff, as long as it is QUALITY."You Know You're Right" by Nirvana was actually better than some of their songs released in Cobain's lifetime, for example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darlene Posted January 20, 2007 Share Posted January 20, 2007 Who's to say they all wouldn't have buried the hatchet and recorded together again in time, if they were all still here? The point is that nobody really knows what John would have wanted, and I don't trust Yoko's motives ($$$$), considering what she's licensed his name to.I think Paul would have more of a handle on what John might have wanted, personally and certainly musically, than Yoko, and believe that his motives would be purer. If he does do it, I hope he does it with the care and workmanship John would have wanted.I'd like to see it done. --Darlene Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Posted February 17, 2007 Share Posted February 17, 2007 WOW! Somebody posted a bootleg "Now and Then," as recorded by John Lennon supposedly in the late 1970s, at YouTube. Unreal.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhCKdqz2ekw&mode=related&search= Well, it's as raw as can be. If Paul can pull it off, and get it to a listenable level, more power to him. If not, it's probably better left as a bootleg.... (PS: Chris, I stumbled upon this video this because I was watching the "Free as a Bird"/"Real Love" video that you pointed out in another thread.... Love those songs. I'm glad the "Fab Four" got together and worked their magic one last time.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris hess Posted February 18, 2007 Share Posted February 18, 2007 LC..thanks for that..have'nt really "got" the song yet..i'll have to listen to it a few more times...if paul pulls it off,i'll eat my hat!!!! how do people get a hold of this stuff that were'nt even involved?? lol,chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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