Lost Beatles song leaked on the Internet???

Hey, have any of you heard that new lost, unreleased song from The Beatles in the past few months? Hmmm...well, I've heard it...at least I think I have.

Putting into context...back in 1995 the then-three remaining Beatles (Paul, George, and Ringo) got together with ELO lead singer/producer Jeff Lynne to resurrect three lost demo tapes recorded by the late John Lennon in the late 1970s--"Free As A Bird", "Real Love", and "Now and Then", with embellishment and new vocals and instrumentation by the then-Three-tles, with Lynne co-producing. While we've all heard the Beatles' version of "Bird" and "Love", we never did hear that third song, "Now and Then", which was to have been scheduled for release on "Anthology 3". The Beatles did start work on it, but apparently were never satisfied with the result. For one, John's original demo had a humming noise that somehow even today's technology couldn't fix (remember, he recorded this on cassette, using crude technology of the times).

Of late, there has been talk of the now-two surviving Beatles (Paul and Ringo) and Yoko Ono showing interest in finally releasing that third "lost" Beatles song. In the meantime, there's an MP3 out on the internet purporting to be the Beatles unreleased version of "Now and Then". I have listened to it, and to me it sounds authentic like the Beatles actually did it. However, it has been said that this MP3 mix is actually the work of someone else, maybe some Beatles fan who was able to somehow copy the sound of the previous two Beatles Anthology songs, while ripping the vocals of several Beatles songs, such as the bridge to the "Abbey Road" track "Because" (if you do happen to find this MP3, it is easily detectable in "Now and Then"'s bridge).

Yes, I have heard this MP3, as well as several fan-made videos of the purported Beatles version of "Now and Then" on the Internet, and personally I cannot tell the difference between the Beatles sound and that of a clever fan. One can detect a touch of a Carrie Underwood sound in this MP3.

If infact this is the actual lost Beatles song from 1995, then this serves as a fitting coda to a legacy that has endured for almost five decades, and I not need explain it in a short blog. On the other hand, I personally would like to see this officially released by the band in some form, especially when we're on the edge of the Beatles catalog finally being issued on iTunes.

And Beatlemania goes on...

What's the delay on the Olympics?

Play that Olympic Fanfare once again. Yes, we are at the halfway point of the sport events of all sport events, the Olympics in Beijing. Ah, the thrill of all victory and making your country proud. So what's the delay, hmmm?

Well, this gripe is designed for our fans on the West Coast. First, a little math for you. Beijing is 15 hours ahead of California, so if this was 9 PM California time, it would now be noon tomorrow in Beijing. So go figure that NBC had the Olympic committee schedule the best events for prime time, so thus Saturday's gold medal victory by Michael Phelps took place at about 11:05 AM Bejing time, 11:05 PM Eastern time. While it aired live on the East and Central time zones, the Pacific and most Mountain time zones had to wait to see a delayed version of the critical match. You see, that's what the peacock network is doing with all its Olympics coverage...airing the games at times that are convenient for the audience, instead of showing it live to the entire U.S. So watching the Opening Ceremonies on the first day seemed like eating day-old stale bread. The actual ceremonies would have aired live in the early morning U.S. time had NBC played its cards right. I'm sure that when the Closing Ceremonies take place next week, we'll get the same delayed treatment as well.

So that brings us to another typo...the word "LIVE" superimposed on the screen for certain events. While it probably won't matter for East Coast viewers, it darn well matters for the West Coast. You probably have figured out that there's supposed to be a disclaimer that reads "pre-recorded for this time zone". That way, we won't have to be tricked into seeing an important event live when in fact it has already taken place. I do admit, I did know in advance about Phelps' victory before NBC aired it in California.

While NBC gets the gold medal for airing crucial parts of this year's Olympics live for the East Coast, it gets the bronze for cheating the rest of the U.S. out of our full enjoyment of a great sports spectacle.

Of course, we can't give NBC Universal all the blame since they took the liberty of using the Internet and its sister networks to broadcast a great deal of the games live. That is an achievement in itself.

If by chance NBC does decide to air the Closing Ceremony live to all the U.S., this won't be the first time I've been wrong. By the way, for those who care, the ceremony would have to air at 4:30 AM Pacific time (that translates to 7:30 PM Beijing time). All the better to use your DVRs. Unless, of course, one finds a way to break the boundaries of the Internet and finds a site where they do air live.

The competition and controversy continues. Dum-dum-da-dum-dum-DUMB!!!

A gripe with that dreadful subject

On a day where the world comes together in the greatest of all sports competitions, the Olympics, we have to touch a bit on the one subject I know you hate to hear...cancer.

This past week it was announced that "Married With Children" co-star Christina Applegate is the latest celebrity to be diagnosed with cancer (in this case, breast cancer). You know, it is the most devastating disease anyone can suffer from. One must feel sorry for Applegate and all the other luminaries who has and have suffered from this dreadful disease. Not to mention those who have died from it. I should know, because, and I'm saying this frankly, both my parents passed away from some type of cancer.

I feel even more sorry that there has not been a cure for it. But thank God current technology and science can now give victims at least a chance to survive cancer. I am amazed at the story of sportscaster Robin Roberts (ESPN and ABC) who is surviving her illness. Amazing indeed. But the battle hasn't stopped here. Technology and logic must continue to prevail if cancer is to be beat easily. It will take the know how of certain people with courage and determination if any cure is to be found.

I was watching a PBS documentary not too long ago about this doctor who had cancer but took new experimental therapy using new technology, and so far, at least at last I heard, it is working.

Medical science certainly has changed in the last decade. I wish it could have saved my parents.

Which brings me back to Miss Applegate...Christina, I feel for you. I can only wish that whatever it takes to bring you back to good health will prevail.

Let's not give up the fight against cancer. After all, it is all of our lives that are at stake.