The Beatles – Photo: Jeremy Neech / © Apple Corps Ltd.
Apple Corps Ltd., Capitol, and UMe have unveiled details for the music video for the last song by The Beatles, “Now and Then.” The visual comes from Peter Jackson, which marks his first foray into music video production.
The “Now And Then” music video will premiere worldwide this Friday, November 3 at 2pm GMT/10am EDT/7am PDT on The Beatles’ YouTube channel. The poignant and humorous video invites viewers to celebrate The Beatles’ timeless and enduring love for one another with John, Paul, George, and Ringo as they create the last Beatles song.
Speaking about directing the music video, Peter Jackson said: “When Apple asked me to make the music video, I was very reluctant—I thought my next few months would be a hell of a lot more fun if that tricky task was somebody else’s problem, and I could be like any other Beatles fan, enjoying the night-before-Christmas anticipation as the release of a new Beatles song and music video approached—in 1995, l loved the childlike excitement I felt as the release of ‘Free As A Bird’ was inching closer.
“I could have that experience once again—all I had to do was say no to The Beatles.
“To be honest, just thinking about the responsibility of having to make a music video worthy of the last song The Beatles will ever release produced a collection of anxieties almost too overwhelming to deal with. My lifelong love of The Beatles collided into a wall of sheer terror at the thought of letting everyone down. This created intense insecurity in me because I’d never made a music video before, and was not able to imagine how I could even begin to create one for a band that broke up over 50 years ago, had never actually performed the song, and had half of its members no longer with us.”
At the end of his note, he adds, “Having got to the end, I’m very happy I’m not waiting for the release of somebody else’s ‘Now And Then’ music video. I have genuine pride in what we made, and I’ll cherish that for years to come. A huge thanks to Apple Corps and the Fabs for giving me all the support I needed – and not allowing me to wriggle away.”
The music video’s global premiere will follow the worldwide release of The Beatles’ “Now And Then”/“Love Me Do” double A-side single this Thursday, November 2 at 2pm GMT/10am EDT/7am PDT. “Now And Then” was written and sung by John Lennon, developed and worked on by Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, and now finally finished by Paul and Ringo over four decades later.
Premiering this Wednesday, November 1 will be Now And Then – The Last Beatles Song, a 12-minute short film telling the story of how “Now And Then” was finally finished, almost five decades after it was originally written.
Along with the single, The Beatles’ beloved compilation albums 1962-1966 (The Red Album) and 1967-1970 (The Blue Album) collections will receive expanded reissues, also arriving on November 10.
Since their 1973 debuts, 1962-1966 (The Red Album) and 1967-1970 (The Blue Album) have ushered countless listeners of all ages, from all parts of the world, into lifelong Beatles fandom.
Expanded for their new 2023 releases, the collections together span The Beatles’ entire recorded canon with 75 standout tracks, from their first single, “Love Me Do,” to their last, “Now And Then.” The collections’ 21 newly-added tracks (twelve on Red and nine on Blue) showcase even more of The Beatles’ very best songs.
Both collections will be available digitally on streaming, on 2CD, 180g 3LP black vinyl, in addition to limited edition Beatles Store-exclusives: a 3LP colored vinyl (red for Red/blue for Blue); a 4CD slipcased set; a 180g 6LP black vinyl slipcased set; and 6LP red + blue vinyl slipcased set.
Pre-order “Now And Then/Love Me Do (Double A-Side)” and pre-order the Blue and Red Albums.