Topline
The Beatles released their latest and last song together, “Now And Then,” on Nov. 2 with the help of artificial intelligence, which has now hit No. 1 in the U.K. 54 years after “The Ballad of John and Yoko” reached No. 1 in 1969, breaking the record for the largest gap between No. 1 singles in the U.K., according to the Official Charts Company.
The Beatles’ new song, “Now and Then,” reached No. 1 in the U.K. 54 years after they last reached … [+]
Key Facts
Kate Bush previously held the record for largest gap between No. 1 singles when her song “Running Up That Hill” went No. 1 in 2022, 44 years after “Wuthering Heights” went No. 1 in 1978, according to the Official Charts Company.
The Beatles also broke the record for the longest gap between an artist’s first and last No. 1 single, with their first No. 1 single “From Me To You” going No. 1 over 60 years ago in May 1963, the Official Charts Company said.
Elvis Presley previously held the record for longest gap between first and last No. 1 singles, with a reissue of “It’s Now or Never” going No. 1 in 2005, over 47 years after “All Shook Up” went No. 1 in 1957, according to the Official Charts Company.
Paul McCartney told the Official Charts Company breaking the record was “mind boggling” and “a very emotional moment” for him.
“Now And Then” has also become the most-streamed Beatles song in one week, reaching around 5 million streams in the U.K., beating out “Here Comes The Sun” which received around 1 million streams in a week in 2021, according to the Official Charts Company.
It also beat out “Here Comes The Sun” for most-watched music video in a week, reaching around 2 million streams in a week, after “Here Comes The Sun” reached over 171,000 streams in a week in 2019, the Official Charts Company said.
Key Background
“Now And Then” was originally written and recorded by the late John Lennon in the late 1970s after the Beatles broke up. A recording of the song was included on a cassette of other demos by Lennon that his widow, Yoko Ono, gave McCartney after the late Beatle was killed. At the time, George Harrison thought the sound quality was “rubbish,” and the remaining band members were unable to use the demo. Peter Jackson, the director of “The Beatles: Get Back” docuseries, used his production company WingNut Film’s machine audio learning (MAL) audio technology to separate Lennon’s voice from piano in the recording. The two living Beatles — McCartney and Starr — were finally able to work on the track with Lennon’s enhanced vocals. The song also features electric and acoustic guitar recordings by the late Harrison from 1995. McCartney and Starr contributed backup vocals. Starr also plays drums in the song, and McCartney plays bass, piano and a guitar solo.
Further Reading
The Beatles’ New Single Is Headed For No. 1 In Their Home Country (Forbes)
The Beatles Release Their Final Single, ‘Now And Then’ (Forbes)
‘New’ Beatles Song Made With A Little Help From AI Debuting Next Week (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/britneynguyen/2023/11/10/the-beatles-new-release-hits-no-1-in-the-uk—setting-a-record-for-largest-gap-between-chart-topping-singles/