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The Beatles' 'Now and Then' is a wistful curiosity, 45 years in the making

The Beatles' final song could never live up to the body of work that precedes it. But it could never diminish it, either.
The Beatles, pictured here in 1969, just released what's been billed as the band's final song.

Let's get the most obvious critique out of the way first: "Now and Then," the song billed as ' final single, can't possibly live up to "Let It Be," "Strawberry Fields Forever" or whatever happens to serve as your personal favorite Beatles song. The song began as a modest demo, recording on a boombox at home in the late '70s, with a TV on in the background — and it lives on as a modest demo that's been blown out into a credible full-band production.

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