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Yesterday, all my Beatles downloads seemed so far away. Today, however, history has been made. Just minutes ago, Snap, Crackle and Pop was able to listen to "Come Together", the first track from "Abbey Road", on a streaming site for the first time ever. Not on iTunes or Spotify but via BlueBeat.com, a Santa Cruz-based website, where fans can currently not only check-out all the new, remastered Fab Four albums but also download tracks for just 15p each. Brilliant!

Inevitably, the band, Apple Corps and their label, EMI, have not been quite so enthusiastic. In fact, it seems they know nothing about this development. "We're looking into it", said a label spokeswoman, as people across the world snapped-up tracks from the 500-strong back catalogue. Over a decade after downloading simultaneously became the greatest challenge and a potential economic windfall for the music industry, it is astounding that these songs still have no official outlet, a situation dealt with in typically self-important style by Paul McCartney recently.

"What happens is, when something's as big as The Beatles, it's heavy negotiations", he explained. "They (EMI) want something we're not prepared to give them. Hey, sounds like the music business. It's between EMI and The Beatles. What else is new?" BlueBeat.com, that's what, Sir Macca. They promise to "stop the insanity of overpriced online music" and whether uploading these lucrative files is an act of foolhardy self-promotion or a bid to make some lumbering old dinosaurs finally strike a deal, few fans will surely think twice given the chance to pay £3 for "Revolver" or "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band".