The Beatles released a new song called ‘Now And Then’ featuring all four members 60 years after the height of Beatlemania. Following its release, a fan on X asked The Kinks’ Dave Davies about his thoughts on the track, to which he replied:
“I haven’t heard it yet. Does anyone have a link? I’ll answer tomorrow.”
A few hours later, the guitarist came back to the platform and shared:
“It made me feel emotional at first, but the thought of John Lennon made me sad.”
About Paul McCartney’s Appreciation
The Beatles and The Kinks were in a musical rivalry during the ’60s. Still, according to another X user, The Kinks was one of the British bands that Paul McCartney and his bandmates appreciated:
“Did you see Macca with Rick Rubin? When RR asked what other British bands caught The Beatles’ attention, Sir Paul, without hesitation, said, ‘The Kinks.’ I know The Kinks weren’t too fond of PMc, but he knew game when he heard it. God save The Kinks!”
In response to the tweet, Davies commented:
“Paul McCartney is a good, talented man. Ray [Davies] and I appreciated his kind words.”
The New Beatles Track
‘Now And Then’ combined the voices of all four Beatles members, with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr completing what was originally a John Lennon demo recording. This demo, recorded over four decades ago, belonged to the same collection that spawned ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ in the 1990s.
The making of ‘Now And Then’ involved using AI to isolate Lennon’s vocals from the original demo. This allowed McCartney and Starr to add their parts in the studio last year, and a documentary about the song’s creation process dropped on YouTube before its release.
McCartney And Starr’s Thoughts
In the documentary, McCartney and Starr expressed their amazement at Lennon’s clear voice in the new version of ‘Now And Then.’ The bassist commented:
“All those memories came flooding back. My God, how lucky was I to have those men in my life? To still be working on Beatles music in 2023? Wow.”
And the drummer added:
“It was the closest we’ll ever come to having him [Lennon] back in the room … Far out.”
You can listen to the new Beatles song here.
I haven’t heard it yet. Does anyone have a link? I’ll answer tomorrow https://t.co/qH1nwFGEOj
— Dave Davies (@davedavieskinks) November 4, 2023
It made me feel emotional at first but the thought of John Lennon made me sad. https://t.co/qH1nwFGEOj
— Dave Davies (@davedavieskinks) November 5, 2023
@PaulMcCartney is a good talented man. Ray and I appreciated his kind words. https://t.co/Dhe116Q4Tl
— Dave Davies (@davedavieskinks) November 4, 2023
