Beatles - Let It Be (1990)
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Free Music Notes for Let It Be (1990)
Free Music Review: Raw and underappreciated classic...
Hit: 5 Stars
Generally regarded as the weakest record the Fab Four ever released, Let It Be has unjustly become the least appreciated Beatles album. With the release of Let It Be...Naked, a newly remastered, un-produced version of the album, I feel that the original record released in 1970 is in need of some defense. Recorded after the monolith "White Album", the project began as Paul McCartney's idea to return to the band back to it's stripped down, rock n' roll roots. This was probably the most tension-filled period of Beatle existence, and George Harrison even quit the band for a short time during recording. Eventually, the band gave up and sent the tapes to legendary "wall of sound" pioneer Phil Spector to produce a releasable album. Let It Be was the result. The general consensus is that Spector butchered the album with his production on songs like George's "I Me Mine", John's "Across the Universe", and especially Paul's "The Long and Winding Road". I strongly disagree: "I Me Mine" was a short fragment of a song until Spector looped one of the verses and turned it into one of Harrison's finest Beatles contributions; "Across the Universe" was a tossed off acoustic number that John supposedly hated, but with the Spector production it becomes a soaring, majestic classic. Finally, Paul was infuriated when he heard the Spector version of his "Long and Winding Road", and many fans agreed that the song's production was overdone. I don't think so: the song itself was an overblown pop number, and without Spector's touches it just sounds like an awkwardly produced overblown pop number. The rest of the album is comprised of the raw rock n' roll songs that were products of the original intent of the sessions. "Two of Us" is a strong acoustic duet between Paul and John; "Dig a Pony" is a hard hitting song penned by Lennon that is reminiscent of his own "Instant Karma". Everyone has heard the classic title track, one of the most beautiful songs the band ever recorded. "I've Got a Feeling" is a raw, exciting track consisting of two song ideas combined into one for a wonderful effect. The whole album carries a careless, even funny atmosphere, mostly due to the various snippets of studio chatter and the short jam tracks ("Dig It" and "Maggie Mae") that are interspersed throughout. The hilarious and unforgettable John Lennon comment after the classic album closer "Get Back" is the perfect cap to the record that is basically a snapshot of the Beatles as a creative unit whilst they were falling apart at the seams. For this reason alone it is an essential purchase for any rock fan, but fortunately it is laced with spectacular songs that seal its place as an underrated rock classic.
On a separate note, I strongly advise first time listeners out there to purchase this before the bastardized Let It Be...Naked, which exists only for McCartney to get rid of Spector's production. Even more irritating is the fact that the jovial atmosphere that made the original so special is totally lost on the reissue due to the absence of the enjoyable jam tracks and deletion of ALL studio chatter. The fact is that the original Let It Be best represented the Beatles vision (Lennon actually liked it, George has passed away, and Ringo is Ringo). Don't buy into McCartney's singular vision. Just hear this record.
Free Music Review: The Beatles: Let It Be (1970)
Hit: 5 Stars
In February of 1970, The Beatles released their eighteenth album entitled HEY JUDE (THE BEATLES AGAIN). That album was another compilation, while it featured five new songs entitled, "Hey Jude" (which was recorded and released as a single back in 1968), "Lady Madonna", "Old Brown Shoe", "Don't Let Me Down", & "The Ballad Of John & Yoko".
In May of 1970, The Beatles released their nineteenth album entitled, LET IT BE. This album was actually recorded in 1969, right before they recorded the ABBEY ROAD album. When they finished recording this album, they shelved it, thinking that it wouldn't sell. But because of their contract, they were required to deliver another album before they made their breakup official. They chose LET IT BE to be their last studio recorded album. LET IT BE is classic work of art and it is a sad album in the sense that it was to be their last studio recorded album, following that of their tragic breakup.
TWO OF US
Incredible.
DIG A PONY
Great.
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE
Great.
I ME MINE
Amazing.
DIG IT
Great.
LET IT BE
The album's amazingly beautiful title track. In 1998, when Linda McCartney, Paul's first wife, had passed on after her battle with breast cancer, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, & Ringo Starr had performed this song at her memorial service. I think that performing this for Linda was one of the greatest gestures in saying goodbye. This song is just outstanding.
MAGGIE MAE
Not bad.
I'VE GOT A FEELING
Paul McCartney does most of the lead vocals himself on this song, but John then comes in on lead vocals and finishes out the song, with a rather "Funny" line in the song. Great song.
ONE AFTER 909
This song is one of their best. They do sing a little fast, but that is what I like about it. The fastness to the vocals really fits the essence of the song.
THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD
This song is another one of my all-time favorite songs. This song has to be one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard.
FOR YOU BLUE
Not bad.
GET BACK
Another one of the greatest songs they have ever recorded. I will be seeing Paul McCartney in concert for the first time in my hometown of South Philadelphia on September 23, 2005. I am hoping that he will perform this song.
This album, as I said before, was, sadly enough, their last studio album together. When they breakup happened, all of us fans (well, I was not born until 15 years later), were heartbroken, but they had left behind a legacy that was to be remembered by everyone on this planet. The Beatles were, indeed, the best band that had "Come Together". They will forever be in our hearts and memories. I have grown up with The Beatles. I am 20 years old and I have the most fondest memories with their music. Listening to these albums brings back memories that reach as far as my days in diapers. This band is the ultimate meaning of the word "Music" and they can never be forgotten. Buying this album helps etch your memories of The Beatles in pure stone. So, make sure you have or buy a copy of LET IT BE right now.
Free Music Review: Flawed, Brilliant, Wonderful Recording
Hit: 5 Stars
I've been listening to "LET IT BE" a lot, lately. It's always been one of the Beatles albums that I listened to and liked most, despite the fact that it caught a lot of flack from critics. The criticism is not unfounded. Some of the material here is over-produced, the playing is rough and unpolished, some of the songs sound almost unfinished, and studio chatter has been left in between tracks. In my opinion, however, these elements aren't always things to be taken negatively. This album was based on live recordings. While other Beatles albums were always flawless studio productions, this album is the closest they ever came to a live album. Rough edges have been part of some great recordings, and I think that applies to "LET IT BE". The comments between cuts and the rough production give it informality and charm. Further, I hear an intensity and raw emotion that come across more intensely than in most other Beatle recordings. In "Two Of Us", John and Paul sing of their long friendship and partnership as they anticipate going their separate ways. I can't listen to this song without thinking sadly of what we all lost when the band split up. Together, they had something very special. The regret and poignancy come across unmistakably. "Dig A Pony" finds John alternately venting his spleen at Paul and anyone else that comes to mind, looking forward to "roll alone-ing", then wailing "All I want is you", but "everything has got to be just like you want it to", reflecting the conflicts that were tearing the band apart. Both are excellent, touching songs.There are other great songs here, as well. George contributes "I Me Mine" and "For You Blue". Both are catchy and, though the idea behind "I Me Mine" isn't exactly original, it's certainly an apt comment (even now, after all these years). "Let It Be" and "Get Back" were classic Beatles hits. "Dig It" and "Maggie Mae" are also catchy, but just appear as fragments, here. John's ballad "Across The Universe" is naive but pretty, while Paul's "Long And Winding Road" is the prime example of Phil Spector's over-production. "One After 909" is a bouncy composition from John and Paul's early days. Then there's "I've Got A Felling", a great rock song and my favorite cut from this album. John and Paul belt this out with an abandon reminiscent of days gone by. This alone is worth having the album, regardless of how you feel about the rest.
In my estimation, "LET IT BE" has been too often criticised for what it isn't, rather than appreciated for what it is. This is a great collection of songs, recorded in a raw and informal, but warm and intense, style uncharacteristic of other Beatles albums. Although it was recorded before "ABBEY ROAD", it has more of the feel of a farewell effort than "ABBEY ROAD" and, I think, says more about what John, Paul, George and Ringo were going through as the Beatles came apart. If I could give it six stars, I would. As things stand, it gets five stars and my highest recommendation. Listen to it with your feelings, as well as your ears. I think you'll like it, too.
Free Music Review: A VERY SPECIAL BEATLES ALBUM !
Hit: 5 Stars
Let It Be has taken a lot of criticism over the years, but it's my personal favorite of all The Beatles' albums. The rooftop concert is priceless (it was the band's only live performance after the 1966 concert at San Francisco's Candlestick Park). In fact, the rest of the album was recorded live, too (in the studio). It all starts with a short announcement by John Lennon:
"I dig a pygmy by Charles Hawtrey and the Def-Aids. Phase one in which Doris gets her oats."
Two of Us is a song Paul McCartney wrote about himself and his wife, Linda. He and John harmonize like old friends, and it's a simple and warm beginning.
John rocks I Dig a Pony with an inspired vocal performance, then picks up his acoustic guitar for the surreal and contented Across the Universe.
George Harrison gets his turn with I Me Mine, his comment on selfishness in the world. The song starts slow with a blues guitar lick played over a church organ, and has a raucious chorus with George and Paul screaming, "I, me, me, mine". Then John goes into Dig It, a short interlude that goes nowhere, really.
Paul then launches into Let it Be, the inspirational gospel-tinged title track. It's a great song, and Paul's vocal performance is perfect. Then the group breaks into a short ditty about a Liverpool streetwalker, Maggie Mae.
It's up on the roof for I've Got a Feeling. With Paul and John trading the lead vocal, it's a Beatles song unlike any other, and it rocks, too.
Still on the roof top, they break into One After 909, a Lennon-McCartney song written when they were teenagers, still wearing black leather jackets in the 1950's. John and Paul sing like they're having the time of their lives! With it's old time rock n' roll phrases and piano rolls, the song is a blast.
Back in the studio, Paul is on the piano for The Long and Winding Road, the last single ever released by The Beatles as an active group (it was also their last #1). Paul was furious when Phil Spector added a harp and female voices to the song, but the schmaltzy production turned a good song into an epic one; it's one of the world's most loved songs.
The wild and windy night
That the rain washed away
Has left a pool of tears
Crying for the day
George plays For You Blue, a nice acoustic blues ("Elmore James is got nothing on this baby") with John playing bottleneck slide guitar ("Go, Johnny, go!").
Then it's back up on the roof for the closer, Get Back, a driving rocker sung by Paul (John later said Paul was looking at Yoko every time he sang the words, "Get Back!"). John plays the lead guitar lines between Paul's vocal phrases. It's one of The Beatles' best, and a perfect end to this very special album.
Let It Be wasn't an easy album to make for The Beatles, but it's an album that has some of their greatest songs. The live aspect of the project and Phil Spector's production make the album special and unique. All in all, Let It Be is a charming (and somewhat jagged) documentary of four lads from Liverpool, England at the end of a rock n' roll career that changed the world...
Free Music Review: Stunningly beautiful and shockingly underrated.
Hit: 5 Stars
I was very happy to see that The Beatles last and most unfairly judged album recently made number eighty-six on Rolling Stone Magazines List of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time, especially since over the years some less intelligent Rock 'n' Roll fans have dubbed this the Beatles worst album, wich is tragically untrue.One lie that the haters of this album have spread, is that The Beatles hated it, false, John and George loved it and were very happy with Phil Spectors production work (and in fact invited him to produce some of their best solo projects), it was Paul who hated the production, as it was with everything at the time, Paul would always squabble with John and George, and Ringo was trapped in the middle (Ringo was always the peacekeeper of the group). A redo of this album, entitled 'Let It Be... Naked' was released late last year, if you're not sure exactly what this is, I'll give you an overview, 'Let It Be... Naked' is basically Paul removing all of John and George's creative input from the album, and making it exactly what he wanted all along, it's him trying to beat them after all these years (unfortunetely they can't do anything about it now). I think the only reason this album has gotten such a bad rap is that the Paul fans hear him trash it and end up listening to it with a biased ear, then the psuedo-intelectuals hear that it's their worst album and dislike it simply because of what they've been told.
This is actually the Beatles most honest and tender album, it shows them in their truest form as a fun Rock 'n' Roll band, and above all, it has some of their all-time best songs, including Paul's lovely piano ballads 'Let It Be' and 'The Long and Winding Road' and his raw rock 'n' roll song 'Get Back', John's R&B romp 'Dig A Pony' and his beautiful acoustic cry 'Across The Universe', George's meaninful 'I Me Mine' and bluesy 'For You Blue', there are also wonderful John and Paul collaborations in 'Two Of Us', 'One After 909' and 'I've Got A Feeling'. Another big upside this album has is that it is almost impossible to put it in without listening to the entier thing, there are few albums that accomplish that.
I hope I've convinced you to go with this album instead of the new remix, wether you like this or not, you can't just go back in time and do it differently, cause it can't be made any better, best is the moment, and 'Let It Be' captures a defining moment in the Beatles career.
One last thing, another reviewer I read in here said that The Stones had "much more staying power than the Beatles", when I read that, I just had to laugh, don't get me wrong, I love the Stones, but really think about it, the Beatles broke up over thirty years ago, and still remain on top, the Stones have continued to tour to this day and STILL remain second to the Beatles, if your personal opinion is that the Stones are better than the Beatles, that's fine, but keep in mind that most of the world disagrees with you, and there's no reason to be bitter about it.