Free As a Bird Turns 20

I always thought the George's guitar part dragged down what was already a somewhat listless song.

 

Giving them their 18th UK and 21st US #1 single

 

Oh, really? I didn't realize that Blue Moon or Thinking...was actually on the Anthology CDs. Because, you know, they released FAAB and Real Love to sell CDs.

 

They are good songs - Real Love especially- had we not all already heard it on Imagine soundtrack, we would have been floored w/how good and complete a song it was.

That said - I think some of what is missing is a live feeling - they played along w/John - when I almost wonder if the three should have played FAAB live, and then had John's voice inserted- I also get the feeling that it wasn't possible - if you watch the jam session, George is pretty much only there out of obligation and really wants nothing to do w/Paul.

 

I've seen Let it Be referred to as a "dirge" but that was quite a nice single.

 

But they knew that it would be a problem for the future '1' project to have more #1 singles.

 

John was famous for upping his tempo as a song went along.

 

I never liked much both songs.

How I felt 20 years ago? Offended. I couldn't believe that they were marketing themselves as The Beatles again, and especially/just for those two releases I didn't think much of in the first place. They had split at the top and with class in 1969/70... and now this...

 

I'll take either song over "The Long and Winding Road."

 

Yes, it was a nice single.
I cannot in my wildest dreams put Let It Be and Free As A Bird in the same camp.
Let It Be is an excellent song and well performed.
The other is a throwaway dirge that Lennon never even considered releasing himself, let alone as a Beatles single.

 

20 years old. Still terrible.

Real Love knocks it out of the park though.

 

I love the song. It was stunning hearing them sing and play together again after so many years of animosity.

However, I'm shocked that they weren't sued for copying "Remember (Walking In the Sand)." Not only did they lift the melody for the bridge, they also lifted the line "Whatever happened to the life (boy) that we (I) once knew." I wonder if that's why John never released the song while he was alive.

 

A lot older than 20 years as Lennon recorded it before his death(duh), but the remaining Beatles did add to it and release the "Beatles" version 20 years ago.

 

No, the melody in the bridge is similar to "Remember (Walking In The Sand)", but is not actually the same.

 

What differences are you hearing?

 

If you make both melody lines start on D like "Remember (Walking In The Sand)" does, then "Remember" goes from D to F to G while "Free As A Bird" goes from D to E to F, which is completely different. If it weren't for the nearly identical lyrics, it wouldn't have ever been considered as a rip off.

 

I wonder if 'Now And Then' could reach no.1? They could do something similar to what Kanye and Paul did with Only One and just surprise release it.

An alternative would be to promote it as the 'last ever' and final Beatles song.

 

Loved both FAAB and RL then and still do - in fact I'd rather listen to both songs than much of their 60's catalogue. I remember loving the chord progression of Free As A Bird. (A to F#minor to Fmaj with a high E then to Emaj) Very original, it made me smile to realise they were still surprising me as a musician all these years after they first surprised me as a young kid. And I'll be damned if they didn't do it again with Real Love! "All my little plans and schemes, lost like some forgotten dreams..." and they suddenly hit a G augmented chord? Alright!!! It was so refreshing to hear some actual music with original chord shifts back in the pop charts of 1995 when it seemed the radio was otherwise full of banal mundanity. Yep, those Beatles were still doing it!

 

The problem is that it's just not a very good song.

 

The Long and Winding Road is unbelievable good on the new 'Beatles 1' DVD (not Spector)

 

Yes, I like that mix too.

 

and hasn't Jeff Lynne fixed "dreams" with this remix? I think the 1996 version cuts the "s" and I hear "lost like some forgotten dream."

Also , Wikipedia states that the song was considered for Double Fantasy, that there is an early running order showing "Real Love" as the first track on side 2. It wasn't even recorded with the band, right? If true, that would have to be an early track list, based on demos.

 

I also remember turning up for the special midnight openings for the release of Anthologies 1,2,3 at HMV and Tower Records stores in Piccadilly, so I could get the vinyl. Magical

 

That and Paul's decision to use the Bill Black bass instead playing an electric bass