If ANTHOLOGY: 2 was a study of how a Beatles songs came together, ANTHOLOGY: 3 is a study of how the Beatles themselves came apart. In the band's final phase, Paul McCartney was an unabashed pop balladeer, John Lennon a sneering pop humorist and experimenter, and Harrison a separate songwriting force waiting to be unleashed. But the demos, rehearsals and outtakes that make up ANTHOLOGY: 3 are brilliant anyway. Lennon's early run-through of "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" is literally bits and pieces--three melodic ideas crammed together, not yet including what would become the song's chorus. There are acoustic demos of two McCartney songs; the gorgeous "Junk", which eventually showed up on his first solo album, and "The Long And Winding Road"--the same performance that appeared on LET IT BE, but without the strings that were added against his will.
The real discoveries are Harrison's solo demos, including electric-guitar-and-vocal performances of "Something" and "All Things Must Pass". They nearly ache with beauty, and Harrison sings them as if discovering his voice for the first time. The finished versions pale next to these demos, which are among the highlights of the entire ANTHOLOGY series.

• Q - 4 Stars (out of 5) - "...Even with the completion of such a comprehensive bootlegger-thwarting series, there may still be those who are left unsated. For them, there are those rows of dusty counterfeit CD stalls at record fairs..."
• Rolling Stone - "...This is warm, intimate music making, a rare close-up of the Beatles in private, creative ferment....The energy and imagination that the Beatles brought to the basics of rock & roll are all over ANTHOLOGY 3....this is history and music to be treasured..."
• Entertainment Weekly - "...Once known as counterculture fops, the Beatles are now the rock establishment--the pre-alternative standard bearers of pop songwriting and production....ANTHOLOGY 3 is primarily a collection of songs in unvarnished states..." - Rating: B
• Rolling Stone (12/12/96, p.84) - "...This is warm, intimate music making, a rare close-up of the Beatles in private, creative ferment....The energy and imagination that the Beatles brought to the basics of rock & roll are all over ANTHOLOGY 3....this is history and music to be treasured..."
  Q (12/96, p.150) - 4 Stars (out of 5) - "...Even with the completion of such a comprehensive bootlegger-thwarting series, there may still be those who are left unsated. For them, there are those rows of dusty counterfeit CD stalls at record fairs..."
  Entertainment Weekly (11/8/96, pp.65-66) - "...Once known as counterculture fops, the Beatles are now the rock establishment--the pre-alternative standard bearers of pop songwriting and production....ANTHOLOGY 3 is primarily a collection of songs in unvarnished states..." - Rating: B

THE BEATLES ANTHOLOGY: 3 consists of demos and outtakes from THE WHITE ALBUM, LET IT BE and ABBEY ROAD.
The Beatles: John Lennon (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, piano, bass, percussion); Paul McCartney (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, piano, organ, bass, drums, percussion); George Harrison (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, percussion); Ringo Starr (vocals, drums, percussion).
Producers: George Martin, The Beatles.
Compilation producer: George Martin.
Recorded between May 1968 and January 1970. Includes liner notes by Derek Taylor.
If ANTHOLOGY: 2 was a study of how a Beatles songs came together, ANTHOLOGY: 3 is a study of how the Beatles themselves came apart. In the band's final phase, Paul McCartney was an unabashed pop balladeer, John Lennon a sneering pop humorist and experimenter, and Harrison a separate songwriting force waiting to be unleashed. But the demos, rehearsals and outtakes that make up ANTHOLOGY: 3 are brilliant anyway. Lennon's early run-through of "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" is literally bits and pieces--three melodic ideas crammed together, not yet including what would become the song's chorus. There are acoustic demos of two McCartney songs; the gorgeous "Junk," which eventually showed up on his first solo album, and "The Long And Winding Road"--the same performance that appeared on LET IT BE, but without the strings that were added against his will.
The real discoveries are Harrison's solo demos, including electric-guitar-and-vocal performances of "Something" and "All Things Must Pass." They nearly ache with beauty, and Harrison sings them as if discovering his voice for the first time. The finished versions pale next to these demos, which are among the highlights of the entire ANTHOLOGY series.