Can there be any other band who, with two of its members deceased, another one off the rector scale with arrogance and only one remaining member still mentally stable, alive and kicking, remain as high profile for more than 40 years, than The Beatles?

The answer is probably, no!

But once again, the fab four are set to be hurtled back into the spotlight as Paul McCartney reveals that, Carnival of Light, the track which was put together on 5th January 1967, in between working on the vocals for the song, Penny Lane, should now be released to the public.

The track, which has gained an enigmatic reputation was only played once in public at a London music festival, is a 14 minute combination of psychedelic sounds, the noise of gargled water and strangled shouts from Lennon which compete with church organs and distorted guitar sounds, all of which were not usually thought to be in keeping with the music of the four boys from Liverpool.

In an interview on BBC radio 4 Paul said, ‘I like it because it’s The Beatles free, going off piste’. McCartney added that he still has a master tape of the work and says he suspects that ‘the time has come for it to get its moment’.

Explaining further how the piece was put together, Paul remembered, ‘We were set up in the studio and would just go in every day and record,’ McCartney tells Wilson. ‘I said to the guys, this is a bit indulgent but would you mind giving me 10 minutes? I’ve been asked to do this thing. All I want you to do is just wander round all of the stuff and bang it, shout, play it. It doesn’t need to make any sense. Hit a drum, wander to the piano, hit a few notes … and then we put a bit of echo on it. It’s very free.’

McCartney views Carnival of Light as evidence of how musically adventurous he has always been. For the three other Beatles the track was just an oddity. George Harrison dismissed it as too weird. But McCartney is hopeful it can now be released with the agreement of the group’s estate which will require the OK, from Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono and George Harrison’s widow Olivia.’

ABB