Although the still living Beatles have already used AI technology to make the “last Beatles song” a reality, people would still be a little suspicious of artificial intelligence, Ringo Starr now reveals in an interview .
“Now And Then” = actually a prime example of AI
The “last Beatles song” is called “Now And Then” and is a masterpiece in the use of AI. Released in 2023, the song is pieced together from restored elements of John Lennon’s 1977 demo, recordings of George Harrison’s guitar playing from 1995 and re-recorded parts from Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. “I played the drums and sang the chorus… He played the strings and lead guitar, which gave the piece its emotion. “It worked really well,” said Starr about the song’s history. Regarding the AI technology that made Lennon’s voice sound fresh, the now 84-year-old continued in an interview with “Music Week”: “We tried it out in the ’90s when we released ‘Free As A Bird.’ . But we weren’t very interested in it because it didn’t sound like John. George was fed up with this. He didn’t want to do a third (1995 single) so we just shelved it – but now there’s better equipment. John’s voice was recorded from a cassette, for God’s sake, a cassette! And it was like John was suddenly there.”
The fear of theft
In the conversation, the musician also drew attention to the problem surrounding AI, which would also leave its mark on the other, still living Beatles: “We are all a little afraid of it because it can steal from you. Anyone who knows how to use it can steal from you. If you just play five of my songs into the computer, the AI will hear everything and know my every vocal move. You can have me sing anything and it will sound like me because it’s taken from my personality.”
But even the suspicious Ringo Starr can ultimately see something good in artificial intelligence: “The good side is the way we used it in ‘Now And Then’. God knows where this will lead. We’re all worried about it, but no one has actually stolen anything yet.”