Number 9

If it seems like the Beatles are in the news lately all out of proportion to the attention that would normally be paid to a band that broke up almost 40 years ago, there are some reasons. The Beatles' original tapes have been remastered and will be released today. Early reviews are very positive. I'm not a fan of the way music and movie companies release old products with marginal updates to cynically rake in a few more dollars for the same old recording. The Beatles and their record labels pioneered the practice, but the word is that the new Beatles releases may be worth the money. Given the relatively primitive technology at their disposal at the time of the recordings, and the band's efforts to push the boundaries of that technology, the newly remastered recordings are reputed to bring out details in the performances that have not been heard before.

Also released today is the Rock Band Beatles game. This is a must-have for anyone who enjoys the fake-instrument game. (Let me repeat: "must-have." I happen to enjoy the fake-instrument game. Christmas is coming ... who's paying attention?)

Why release on September 9? "Revolution No. 9," one of the Beatles' most famously drug-addled compositions, ends with a loop of a man saying "number nine." Add that to the calendar quirk of 09/09/09 (one of the rare calendar quirks that Europeans and Americans share), and there is no other day that these Beatles releases could have happened.