Track Listing

1. Two Of Us
2. Dig A Pony
3. Across The Universe
4. I Me Mine
5. Dig It
6. Let It Be
7. Maggie Mae
8. I've Got A Feeling
9. One After 909
10. Long And Winding Road
11. Get Back

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12174 in Music
• Released on: 1988-11-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .20 pounds
• Running time: 81 minutes

CD Description
Generally regarded as the Beatles' last album, LET IT BE was actually recorded in 1969, before the recording and release of ABBEY ROAD. LET IT BE was greeted with mixed reviews when it came out in 1970, and is still a controversial disc inthe band's catalogue--many fans reject it, while others defend it fiercely. Notable for its difference from anything else the Beatles recorded, LET IT BE has a raw, ragged, muscular sound that recalls the band's very earliest rock roots. The songs were mostly recorded live (save Phil Spector's overdubs on "The Long and Winding Road", "Across the Universe", and "I Me Mine"), and the result is a world away from the meticulous, high-sheen sophistication of the group's George Martin-produced releases.
No one is likely to argue that LET IT BE is the band's best album, but it is a strong releasenonetheless. From the easy-rolling folk feel of "Two of Us"to the interlocking vocals and screaming guitar of "I've Got a Feeling" to the epoch-making title cut (one of Paul McCartney's finest moments), the album bristles with good songwriting and gutsy energy. There are moments of filler--the rock & roll rehash "One After 909", for example--but at its best, as on John Lennon's meditative "Across the Universe" and the driving "Get Back" (which features Billy Preston on keysand is the record's high point), it shows the Beatles for what they always were: a top-notch, hard-working rock band.

Customer Reviews

Fab 4s Final one still sounds good 30 years later!
Reviewing the Beatles may seem like a waste of time as everything that could have been written about them has been - but the continuing interest with the anthologies, the tribute bands and the consistent sales still make them probably the most listened to band that will ever be. LET IT BE was first released in 1970, a patchwork album of material originally scheduled to be released as GET BACK a year earlier and recorded before the more famous ABBEY ROAD. Rejected by a disillusioned band and producer George Martin - it was put together by Phil Spector who under the circumstances does a pretty fair job. Although far from their finest, LET IT BE contains a few gems for fans and for the casual listener, after all any album that contains 3 (USA) number ones, Get Back, The Long And Winding Road and the title track can't be all bad. Add to that the simple "Two of Us", the irritatingly catchy "Dig A Pony", the basic "One After 909" - one of the first Lennon-McCartney compositions ever. The CD quality sounds better than the earlier albums like PLEASE PLEASE ME and this is an interesting historical document. Hard to believe that these guys could still make good music even when they were in turmoil. Rediscover this one now. Well worth a listen

it all depends on your standards...
As mentioned, if anyone else had released this album, it would have been their best. It would have been a classic. It is a five star album. Three "great" songs, two or three strong rockers and a couple more sweet mid tempo songs to fill out the record, and two perfectly fine "songs by the other guy in the band who writes."

Any other band in history would have laid down and died after writing something this good. The only problem is, for The Beatles in the late sixties, a five star album is too far below their standard. With Rubber Soul and Revolver coming in at six stars, and Sgt. Pepper at least eight, especially if you factor in the singles that were contemporary with it, what could these poor struggling young men do but get together one more time and make Abbey Road (six stars)?

It only warms my heart to read that a stripped down version will be released - not that I have a grudge against Phil Spector, it's just that he wasn't one of the "fifth Beatles" - and that the film, crude and painful as parts of it are, will be released on DVD.

Side note on the film: For a movie about a bunch of hairy, unwashed musicians sitting around fighting and trying to make some music, it has an incredible emotional arc for the viewer. We see them fighting, playing badly, seemingly lost... but by the end, there they are on the freakin' roof playing songs no one else knows yet tight and hot like the classics they are.

Well, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

JUST LET IT BE...IT IS WHAT IT IS!
"Let It Be", recorded before "Abbey Road" but released last, has been pilloried by the critics. While it lacks the finesse of George Martin's magic, it is still a very good album. It has two of Paul McCartney's best vocal efforts on it, in the title song, "Let It Be", which is beautiful and moving", as well as on the poignant "The Long And Winding Road". Pauls vocals are also notable in the rocking "Get Back" track.

This album comes closest to making The Beatles sound as they did, when they first began recording. This is probably because they performed live for many of the tracks, which gave them the projected warmth of their earlier efforts. While Phil Spector was the producer who cobbled together this recording, he was heavily criticized for his handling of the material. Paul himself chastized him for the arrangement of "The Long And Winding Road". With The Beatles at odds among themselves, however, it was a miracle that this recording was put to bed in the first place. Old time fans of The Beatles are thankful that Phil was able to put this last release together. Notwithstanding all the brouhaha, it is still a CD well worth having.