The Beatles are on track to top the UK Albums Chart following reissues of their classic singles compilations.
In this week’s first look at Friday’s charts, ‘1967-1970’ – commonly known as ‘The Blue Album’ – looks set to hit No. 1, bettering its original placement at two.
That spot goes to ‘1962-1966’ – known as ‘The Red Album’ – which is also set to one-up its original peak of three.
That’s not all, as a composite boxset of the two LPs is set to enter the Top 10 for the first time ever, tracking at No. 9.
Over on the Singles Chart, the Fab Four – John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr – are also looking to secure a second week at the top with their “final song”, Now And Then, which currently sits atop the rundown.
Last week, the Fab Four leapt 41 places from their No. 42 debut – based on just 10 hours of sales following its release on November 2 – to the top spot, 60 years after they secured their first chart-topper, From Me To You.
It’s also the band’s 18th UK No. 1 hit, extending The Beatles’ record as the British act with the most chart-topping hits. Only Elvis Presley, with 21 No. 1s, has more to his name.
Upon hearing the news, Paul McCartney said: “It’s mind boggling. It’s blown my socks off. It’s also a very emotional moment for me. I love it!”
John Lennon first wrote and recorded a demo of Now And Then with piano and vocals in the late 1970s at his home in New York’s Dakota building, with his wife Yoko Ono passing the track to McCartney, Starr and George Harrison in 1994, along with the demos for Free As A Bird and Real Love.
Both of those songs were completed and released in the mid-’90s as part of the band’s ‘Anthology’ project and they’re doing the same with the new song, using WingNut Films’ MAL audio technology – which was also used in Peter Jackson’s acclaimed ‘Get Back’ and for a 2022 remix of their seminal album ‘Revolver‘ – to isolate elements of the track and add clarity to the stem of Lennon’s vocals and piano.
Alongside the song, a music video directed by Jackson has also been released.
