September 6, 1999
Web posted at: 1:40 p.m. EDT (1740 GMT)

From Gary Imlach
CNN WorldBeat Correspondent

LIVERPOOL, England (CNN) -- The lyrics haven't changed, but the songs on the Beatles' 1968 "Yellow Submarine" soundtrack may sound slightly different to the discerning ear. That's because the soundtrack has been given the digital spit-and-polish treatment for its re-release. And so has the film's animation.

"They've completely re-worked the picture in a brilliant way," says Beatles producer Sir George Martin. "Happily, they've done the music very well, too. It's not a new picture -- it's still the great one it was -- but it's in a much better technical state."

MULTIMEDIA

Watch some scenes from "Yellow Submarine" [970k QuickTime]

DISCUSSION:

Should films and albums be re-mastered and preserved? Are you looking forward to the "new" Yellow Submarine? Go to the boards!

The film features the Fab Four traveling with Capt. Fred in the Yellow Submarine to Pepperland, where they free the country from the music-hating Blue Meanies. This time around, producers restored the "Hey, Bulldog" sequence that was cut from the theatrical version and hired four Liverpool actors to get as close as possible to the voices of their Fab Four counterparts.

Paul Angelis, the Chief Blue Meanie in the original version, did the voice of Ringo Starr this time. "We made Ringo come out the lowest central voice ... John Lennon was just a bit to the right of it and sarcastic, whereas George wasn't quite sure. At the top of the range was Paul."

Geoffrey Hughes did McCartney's part. "Paul didn't think I was anywhere near," he says. "He's probably right, but it's amazing. The Beatles all thought the other voices were great but their own wasn't very good."

Hundreds of thousands of fans and impersonators at the Beatles Festival in Liverpool last week got the first peek at new "Yellow Sub." For anyone else who'd like to see it, the video goes on store shelves September 14.