Radio.com reports that the Beatles unexpectedly released a free EP yesterday through iTunes. Before you get too excited, however, it should be noted that this EP, titled simply 4, doesn't contain any actual Beatles songs, but rather one solo song from each of the Beatles, all of which have been previously released. Sorry to get your hopes up.
The four songs included on the EP are John Lennon's "Love" (from 1970's John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band), George Harrison's "Let It Down" (from 1970's All Things Must Pass), Paul McCartney's "Call Me Back Again" (from the 1975 Wings album Venus and Mars), and Ringo Starr's "Walk With You" (from 2010's Y Not, because apparently he didn't release anything good enough in the '70s to be included like the other three). According to Radio.com, this EP is, rather surprisingly, the first time that the Beatles' solo work has ever been packaged together like this.
Of course the question on everyone's mind is: why was this EP released? Perhaps it was done to coincide with the Harrison box set The Apple Years 1968-1975, which was released this past Monday, Sept. 22, and hints at some more retrospective releases for each of the Beatles' solo careers. Another possibility is that 4 serves as a sampler for a more comprehensive Beatles solo compilation in the future.
You can download the Beatles' 4 EP for free over at iTunes by clicking here.
Why do you think the Beatles released this EP? Let us know down in the comments section!
