Post 3: The "Let It Be" Song

“Let it Be”, the song, was released by the Beatles in March 1970 as both a single, and the title track of their album “Let It Be”. The single reached #1 in the U.S., Australia, Norway, Italy and Switzerland, but only to #2 in the United Kingdom.

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Get Back: The Unauthorized Chronicle of the Beatles' Let It Be Disaste Here, for the first time, Beatles experts Sulpy and Schweighardt trace the group's breakdown through the fascinating prism of the Get Back recording sessions. January 2, 1969: The Beatles begin a month of intensive sessions, designed to capture the musicians as nature intended. Playing raw, live, with no studio tricks or gimmicks, the Beatles were consciously rejecting the high-gloss production style of their recent albums in favor of a return to their earlier stripped-down rock and roll sound. But Beatles Unplugged soon became Beatles Undone, and the project turned into the thirty-day saga of a group in freefall. Bickering and sniping, trudging through sloppy versions of old hits, the Fab Four were coming apart. For twenty-five years, tapes from the ill-fated Get Back sessions – only a fraction of which were released as Let It Be – have circulated among collectors. Sulpy and Schweighardt, for the first time, have undertaken a Herculean task: Sifting through those countless hours on tape, they reconstruct in amazing detail the drama of those sessions – the songs, jokes, outbursts, and fights. Get Back puts the reader in the studio as John cedes power to Yoko, Paul scrambles to keep things afloat, and George quits the band. It traces each step in the band's unique creative process. And, finally, it relives the glorious coda – when, for an impromptu rooftop concert, all four left their differences downstairs and mustered the singular Beatles magic.

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It was credited to Lennon/McCartney, but it is generally accepted to be the work of Paul McCartney. It was the final single released by the Beatles while they were still considered to be an active band.

McCartney has said that the idea for the "Let It Be" song came after he had a dream about his mother during the time of those tense recording sessions for the “White Album”. It was his own mother, who died of cancer when he was 14 years old, that was the inspiration for the “Mother Mary” in the song. He has said that the dream was a blessing, and it was great to see his dear mother again. In the dream his mother issued the words “It will be all right, just let it be”.

The first recording of the Beatles Let It Be song was at Twickenham Film Studios on January 3, 1969. A single take was recorded, with just Paul on piano and vocals. The first group attempt of the song was on January 8 of the same year. Multi-track recordings of the song started on January 23, 1969 at Apple Studios.

Beatles Monopoly

On March 26, 1970 Phil Spector did a remix of the song for inclusion in the “Let It Be” album. His version featured the January 4, 1970 guitar solo (except on the first chorus), an echo on Ringo’s cymbals, and like he did on “The Long and Winding Road”, a more prominent orchestra. Allen Klein had Phil Spector mix the “Let It Be” album without telling Paul McCartney, or asking for his agreement on this matter, because he did not sign Klein’s management contract. Paul later complained that he was not happy with Phil’s production of the song.

Here’s the breakdown of the performers on the songs:

Paul McCartney – played piano, maracas, as well as both lead and backing vocals.
John Lennon – Fender Bass VI.
George Harrison – lead guitar.
Ringo Starr – drums.
Bill Preston – organ and electric piano.
Linda McCartney – backing vocals (only on the single release version).

The “Let It Be” song has generally received positive critical acclaim. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked it as #20 on it’s list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time”. Allmusic has declared that it was one of the Beatles’ most popular and finest ballads.