Bill King offers an exclusive track-by-track preview of Ringo Starr's "Y Not" album, on which he teams with Paul McCartney, Joss Stone, Joe Walsh, Edgar Winter, Dave Stewart, Richard Marx, Billy Squier, Gary Wright and others.

Also in this issue is Al Sussman's Ultimate Macca Playlist covering Paul McCartney's work from 1991 to 2009, and his D.I.Y. playlist of the best of the music from the Beatles remasters (stereo and mono) released on 09/09/09.

We also have the first part of Howie Edelson's definitive Mike McCartney interview; Tom Frangione's Day-Tripper's Guide to The Beatles' hometown (with lots of pictures); a behind-the-scenes story from the Fab Four's 1966 visit to Cleveland; a look at McCartney's dance music tracks through the years; another installment in our series of fans telling what it was like Growing Up With The Beatles; and guitarist George Benson recalling how he came to record "The Other Side of Abbey Road" in 1969.

Plus we have a report on the U.S. performance debut of James McCartney, son of Sir Paul. And the Beatlenews Roundup reports on the opening of Macca's tour of Europe, new projects and releases (including "Good Evening New York City"), and much more.

A sample issue costs $6 in the U.S. or $7 abroad. U.S. funds only. If you want the latest issue, be sure to specify #179. Click here. . . COMING IN ISSUE #182: A chat with Julian Lennon! Check it out!    
 
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Paul McCartney opened his Good Evening Europe tour in Hamburg Dec. 2. The set list was basically the same as in the summer, except "Calico Skies," "I'm Down" and "I Saw Her Standing There" were dropped, while "Magical Mystery Tour," the new "I Want to Come Home" was added and "And I Love Her" and "Ob-la-di Ob-la-da" were done in concert for the first time. ... Ringo Starr's "Y Not" album, due Jan. 12 from Universal's Hip-O Records, features McCartney on two tracks: playing bass on "Peace Dream" and singing with Ringo on the first single, "Walk With You." For a complete review of the album, see Beatlefan #181. ... The Beatles' remasters were released Dec. 7 in the U.K. and Dec. 8 in North America on a limited-edition green apple-shaped USB drive, marking the first time the group's catalog has officially been sold as digital files separate from the CDs. ... EMI is suing the music Web site BlueBeat.com, which had been offering unauthorized downloads of Beatles tracks for sale before a judge shut it down ... You can download a studio version of McCartney's "Meat Free Monday" song for free by going here. ... McCartney's film song "(I Want to) Come Home" is now available on iTunes. ... Former "Doctor Who" star Christopher Eccleston will play Lennon and Naoko Mori will portray Ono in "Lennon Naked," a BBC telefilm about the development of their relationship and Lennon's departure from The Beatles. ... For the latest Beatles news, subscribe to Beatlefan/EXTRA! . . . Bill King offers commentary on The Beatles (and much more) at Quick Cuts, the new Internet journal on pop culture. Click here to read it.

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