Published on May 29, 1999
The Beatles retired from live performance in 1966, after a
three-year period of whirlwind global tours. For the remainder of
their career, they would focus their creativity in the studio, and
produce a series of LPs so wide in scope, songwriting skill, and
musical craft that the five full records produced –
Sgt. Pepper’s,
Magical Mystery Tour, the “White Album”,
Abbey Road and
Let It Be – are all among the pantheon of truly classic pop
albums.
(Diehard Beatles fans can skip the next couple paragraphs, which
will briefly chronicle the tumultuous days at Twickenham that
produced this album and began the breaking-up process of the
group)
In 1969, the Beatles reconvened with two goals in mind – perform
live and document the preparations for said concerts in film. Paul
McCartney, the originator and organizer of the project, put all his
energies into putting this plan into action. Unfortunately, the
other members of the group began to have second thoughts. McCartney
and John Lennon’s friendship was being tested already by Lennon’s
obsession with “avant-garde” “artist” Yoko Ono, and Lennon’s
drug-addled ambivalence to the project as a whole didn’t improve
matters. George Harrison entered the sessions after an eye-opening
period of jamming with Bob Dylan and the Band, determined to have
more songwriting input on the new album. The rejection of material
like “All Things Must Pass” and “For You Blue” early in the
sessions frustrated him to the point that Harrison actually left
the group for a period during January.
Finally, it became clear to the group that the live concert
appearance was simply not feasible. The group remained interested
in the idea of a “live in the studio” approach, free of the George
Martin studio pyrotechnics that so colored
Sgt. Pepper’s and the “White Album”. A decision was finally
made to haul the group’s equipment to the roof of the Apple Records
building, plug in the amps, and fire away. The Beatles (joined by
keyboardist Billy Preston) played a brief set before being shut
down by the police. They returned to the studio, but internal
turmoil and financial issues caused an abandonment of the
Get Back project. The rehearsal tapes were handed to
engineer Glyn Johns to put into a releaseable form. The results
were rather dire. Finally, after the Abbey Road sessions in
mid-1969, producer Phil Spector surveyed the wreckage and produced
the controversial mix of
Let It Be that was released in May 1970 – the last Beatles
LP.
Let It Be is probably the most underappreciated Beatles
album (if such a thing is possible) – eclipsed by the immensity of
the “White Album” and the inspired genius of
Abbey Road. It is an eclectic ten-song collection (the other
two tracks are short excerpts from the rooftop concert tapes) that
runs the gamut from hard-nosed rock to pretty ballads to playful
romps. Some of it is live, some very studio-ized. Although perhaps
not up to the consistent excellence of
Abbey Road and the “White Album,”
Let It Be is a tight, energetic album that captures the
Beatles’ power even during the depths of their intraband
conflicts.
Opening with a brief (and relatively hilarious in a British way)
spoken word segment, “Two Of Us” kicks off the album – a pretty
McCartney track featuring the standard vocal harmonies, plodding
rhythm section, and thoughtful lyrics. The theme is “going home”,
perhaps a reference to the group’s return to its roots, or perhaps
to their impending breakup. “I Dig A Pony” is next, a Lennon bluesy
number with mainly nonsensical lyrics with a very catchy chorus.
Preston’s organ beefs up the sound, and the electric guitar solo
(presumably by Harrison) is quite effective. Two very good tracks
to open up the album – both classic Beatles cuts that have been
sadly underrated.
Next comes Lennon’s sublime ballad “Across The Universe,”
another largely forgotten track that to my mind is the outstanding
piece on the album. Much like his masterpiece “Because” on
Abbey Road, “Across The Universe” is backed by incredible
harmonies and a simple, understated acoustic theme. A wierdly
disembodied choir swells during the choruses and adds to the
musical tension. A piece of sublime beauty that is definitely one
of my ten favorite Beatles cuts.
The first of Harrison’s two contributions to
Let It Be, the strangely Russian-flavored “I Me Mine,”
follows – a rather nasty attack on what Harrison perceived as the
egotism of the dominant Lennon-McCartney axis of the band. While
far from his
Abbey Road masterpieces, “I Me Mine” showcases Harrison’s
ability to create a catchy melody around an almost menacing
electric guitar riff. Preston’s organ vamps during the bridge are
very notable. Next comes “Dig It”, another funny section of the
live show, a 45-second excerpt from a longer jam that basically
consists of Lennon yelling out random things over a funky, crunchy
organ lick.
“Let It Be” is next, and probably needs no introduction. One of
the most famous songs of all time, it is McCartney at his best as a
songwriter and lyricist. Harrison’s immense guitar solo and the
pounding orchestral crescendo pull this song to its end. Side one
ends with “Maggie Mae”, another 40-second excerpt, this one of a
song about a Liverpool prostitute.
Side two begins with “I’ve Got A Feeling”, one of the last real
Lennon-McCartney joint compositions. Another upbeat rocker recorded
live, it is pleasant but falls short of the mark set on the first
side. “The One After 909,” ironically one of the first songs ever
written by the two, in the late ’50s, is resuscitated here, and
basically sounds like it logically should – an early bluesy Beatles
song augmented by Preston on electric piano.
George Martin, who did much of the pre-production on
Let It Be, often described the record as having been
“produced by George Martin, over-produced by Phil Spector.”
McCartney voiced similar complaints after the album’s release. Most
of this criticism has been aimed at this version of “The Long And
Winding Road.” Another pretty understated McCartney vocal ballad
was beefed up by massive orchestral and choral tracks – although,
allegedly, this was necessary due to the utterly half-assed
bassline Lennon had offered for the tune. Frankly, I think it is
overdone a bit, although I wouldn’t honor the more venomous attacks
(“Muzak”) that have been leveled at it in the past. Then again, I’m
not real fond of the song anyway…
“For You Blue” is the other Harrison song, and isn’t really all
that noteworthy, although Lennon’s slide guitar is kind of neat.
The album closes with the one-time title track, “Get Back”. Those
familiar with the single version of this will be moderately
surprised by the album version – a live take from the rooftop
session – which is substantially shorter and rocks harder than the
earlier version. An outstanding song, it begs the question of what
the finished product of a really concerted
Get Back project would have been.
This is another Beatles classic record. While probably the
hardest of the post-touring LPs to “get into”,
Let It Be is enjoyable if a bit odd in its jumps from live
to studio, jams to carefully arranged tunes, and sparse to lush
production. Recommended, but only after cutting your teeth on
Abbey Road, the “White Album,” and some sort of collection
of the other mid-60s material (“Strawberry Fields Forever”, “Penny
Lane”, “Hey Jude”, “Revolution” etc.)
Let It Be may lack the ethereal aura of genius and magic
that surrounds much of
Abbey Road, but it is an enjoyable album, well worth having
or hauling out for a play now and again. Oh, and yes, John, you did
pass the audition with this one.