Sixty years after the Beatles earned their first No. 1 hit, “From Me to You,” the Fab Four have earned their 17th hit in the U.K. with “Now and Then,” breaking the record for the longest duration between first and last No. 1. Paul McCartney, practically embodying the Abbey Road cover shoot, told Official Charts: “It’s blown my socks off!” Besides just breaking chart-topping records, the song is on track to becoming the fastest-selling vinyl single of this year. They are also the “oldest band” to have a No. 1 hit (McCartney is 82 and Ringo Starr is 83). Originally starting out as a demo recording by John Lennon from the 1970s, Yoko Ono eventually gave the record to McCartney in 1994 as a then-final attempt to try to make the last Beatles song with George Harrison and Starr. With the help of Peter Jackson, Starr and McCartney were able to remix and rerecord the song with past recordings, eventually giving the band their final hit.
