On today’s date in 1995, the first part of The Beatles Anthology premiered on ABC…
 
Remembers Fest Founder Mark Lapidos:
 
It was a Sunday night and the excitement was building all evening as they kept promoting the first new Beatles song in 25 years. Of course it was ‘Free As A Bird,’ and it certainly didn’t disappoint. It aired at the end of the show with the promo film, which blew everybody away with all those Beatles references. It received blanket coverage and airplay the next day on almost every radio station and newscast in the country.
 
Capitol even arranged for Beatles Anthology 1 to be in the stores on the next day (Monday), not Tuesday as had been the case for decades. It was a monumental effort to make that happen, and the CD went to #1 and sold a staggering 3 1/2 million copies. ‘Free As a Bird’ would have gone right to #1 as well, but the single was delayed and not released until December.
 
Remembers Fest Social Media Manager Danny Abriano:
 
I had recently turned 12 years old, but I was already a Beatles fanatic by the time Part One of the Anthology aired in 1995. With the internet in its infancy and social media nonexistent, there were no leaks or unauthorized sneak previews of ‘Free As A Bird,’ making the premiere at the end of the night on ABC an incredible and unique experience.
 
As soon as the Anthology 1 album was released, I grabbed my copy – on double-cassette. ‘Free As A Bird’ was the first song on the album, and I played the hell out of that song and pretty much everything else on Anthology 1. For someone who wasn’t around when the Beatles were together, seeing and hearing Paul, George, and Ringo play a new song with John was truly amazing.
 
Here’s the ‘Free As A Bird’ video, interspersed with some behind the scenes moments >>