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Rating: Finally, Sir Paul has done himself justice. He must have stopped eating his liver over what he considered, probably rightly, a colossal injustice: Phil Spector's tampering with the original tapes of "Let it Be," particularly on "The Long And Winding Road." In this case, however, the discussion should be split in two: on one hand, the artistic side, and in this case, the album has definitely benefited (I never particularly liked Spector's heavy arrangements on tracks that were light and simple), on the other hand, there is yet another speculative endeavor by the record industry on the millions of Beatles fans who will surely make this album a Christmas bestseller. Was it really necessary to extort more money from a public already saturated with publications from the four of Liverpool? And if so, couldn't they at least include some gems on the album, given the hundreds of hours of music from the 1969-70 period lying in the Abbey Road archives?
Let's get to the album description. "Get Back" is the same version that was released in 1969 as a single, different from the album version as it's longer and ends with a fade-out instead of John Lennon's lines. "Dig A Pony" begins with Paul McCartney singing the chorus "all I want is you...", and the track is not the rooftop concert version but recorded in the studio, in a lighter version. "For You Blue" by George Harrison is essentially the same as the official album (minus the chatter at the beginning). Then there's the scandal stone. It's a bit surprising to hear a track that for many years was "that one" in such a different version, but "The Long And Winding Road" with only Paul's piano and Ringo's drums is even more magical than the original. "Two Of Us," which on the original was placed at the beginning of the album, is here missing the chatter and is slightly slower, still beautiful, with only acoustic guitars. "I've Got A Feeling," perhaps one of the "minor" Beatles tracks most appreciated by fans, is also a different version here, perhaps missing some of the grit of the rooftop concert, with John responding to Paul in some lines. "One After 909" is the same rock 'n' roll from the official album with a bit more talking at the start. "Don't Let Me Down" is in a slightly more "dark" version, even if the arrangement is more or less the same, given that originally this track did not appear on the album but was the B-side of "Get Back." "I Me Mine" originally suffered from Spector's heaviness, here's the "stripped" version. "Across The Universe" is as beautiful as ever, even in this version that appeared on a benefit album titled "No one gonna change our world," for a nature organization. To close, "Let It Be" in single version, less electric with a different guitar solo (well done George!)
Perhaps John Lennon wouldn't have appreciated it, as on more than one occasion he had expressed appreciation for Phil Spector's work on an album he had despised, but if it had really been released like this, the Beatles might have ended their fantastic story better. (P.S.: the 3 stars are obviously for the sly commercial operation that resulted from it).
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Get Back (02:34)
Jo Jo was a man who thought he was a loner
But he knew it couldn't last
Jo Jo left his home in Tucson, Arizona
for some California grass
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back Jo Jo
Go home
Get back, get back
Back to where you once belonged
Get back, get back
Back to where you once belonged
Get back Jo
Sweet Loretta Martin thought she was a woman
But she was another man
All the girls around her say she's got it coming
But she gets it while she can
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back Loretta
Ah, get back
Yeah, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Yeah get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, Ooo
[Past Masters/single version only:
Get back, Loretta,
Your mommy's waiting for you,
Wearin' her high heel shoes and her low neck sweater,
Get back home, Loretta
Get back, get back, get back to where you once belonged.
Get back, get back, get back...]
02 Dig a Pony (03:38)
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, dig a pony
Well you can celebrate anything you want
Yes, you can celebrate anything you want
Ooh
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, do a roadhog
Well you can penetrate any place you go
Yes, you can penetrate any place you go
I told you so
All I want is you
Everything has got to be
just like you want it to
Because
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, pick a moondog
Well you can radiate everything you are
Yes, you can radiate everything you are
Ooh
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, roll a stoney
Well you can imitate everyone you know
Yes, you can imitate everyone you know
I told you so
All I want is you
Everything has got to be
just like you want it to
Because
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, feel the wind blow
Well you can indicate everything you see
Yes, you can indicate everything you see
Ooh
I hi hi hi hi hi hi, cold and lonely
Well you can syndicate any boat you row
Yes, you can syndicate any boat you row
I told you so
All I want is you
Everything has got to be
just like you want it to
Because
03 For You Blue (02:27)
Because you're sweet and lovely girl, I love you
Because you're sweet and lovely girl, It's true
I love you more that ever girl, I do
I want you in the morning girl, I love you
I want you at the moment I feel blue
I'm living every moment girl, for you
Bob, bobcat Bob
Go Johnny go
Same ole 12-bar blues
(Elmore James got nothin' on this baby)
I loved you from the moment I saw you
You looked at me, that's all you had to do
I feel it now I hope you feel it too
I'm having the blues
05 Two of Us (03:21)
I dig a Pygmy by Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf Aids.
Phase One in which Doris gets her oats.
Two of us riding nowhere
spending someone's hard earned pay
You and me Sunday driving
Not arriving on our way back home
We're on our way back home
We're on our way home
We're going home
Two of us sending postcards
writing letters on my wall
You and me burning matches
lifting latches on our way back home
We're on our way back home
We're on our way home
We're going home
You and I have memories
longer than the road
that stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
standing solo in the sun
You and me chasing paper
getting nowhere on our way back home
We're on our way back home
We're on our way home
We're going home
You and I have memories
longer than that road
that stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
standing solo in the sun
You and me chasing paper
getting nowhere on our way back home
We're on our way back home
We're on our way home
We're going home
We're going home
07 One After 909 (02:44)
(Intro)
My baby says she's traveling
on the one after 909
I said move over honey
I'm traveling on that line
I said move over once
Move over twice
Come on baby,don't be cold as ice
I said I'm traveling on the one after 909
I begged her not to go
And I begged her on my bended knees
You're only fooling around
You're only fooling around with me
I said move over once
Move over twice
Come on baby, don't be cold as ice
I said I'm traveling on the one after 909
I've got my bag, run to the station
Railman says you've got the wrong location
Picked up my bags, run right home
Then I find I've got the number wrong
Well, I said I'm travelingon the one after 909
I said move over honey
I'm traveling on that line
I said move over once
Move over twice
Come on baby, don't be cold as ice
I said I'm traveling on the one after 909
I've got my bag, run to the station
Railman says you've got the wrong location (yeah)
Picked up my bags, run right home (run right home)
Then I find I've got the number wrong
Well, I said I'm traveling
on the one after 909
I said move over honey
I'm traveling on that line
I said move over once
Move over twice
Come on baby, don't be cold as ice
I said I'm traveling on the one after 909
Yeah
10 Across the Universe (03:38)
Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup
They slither wildly as they slip away across the universe
Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my opened mind
Possessing and caressing me
Jai Guru Deva, Om
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Images of broken light which dance before me like a million eyes
They call me on and on across the universe
Thoughts meander like a restless wind inside a letter box
They tumble blindly as they make their way across the universe
Jai Guru Deva, Om
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Sounds of laughter, shades of life are ringing through my opened ears
Inciting and inviting me
Limitless undying love which shines around me like a million suns
And calls me on and on across the universe
Jai Guru Deva, Om
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Nothing's gonna change my world
Jai Guru Deva
Jai Guru Deva
11 Let It Be (03:57)
When I find myself in times of trouble
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
And in my hour of darkness
She is standing right it front of me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom
Let it be
And when the brokenhearted people
Living in the world agree
There will be an answer, let it be
For though they may be parted
There is still a chance that they will see
There will be an answer let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Yeah, there will be an answer let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom
Let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, yeah, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom
Let it be
And when the night is cloudy
There is still a light that shines on me
Shine until tomorrow, let it be
I wake up to the sound of music
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be
Yeah, let it be, let it be
Let it be, yeah, let it be
There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, yeah let it be
There will be an answer, let it be
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, yeah, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom
Let it be
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Other reviews
By Hal
"We are facing yet another marketing operation."
"Regarding the Beatles, what they represented, their history, Let It Be dressed says much more than naked."
By fosca
Let it be remains a masterpiece, but in its original, tormented and dressed version.
These post-mortem exhumations leave me a feeling of coldness and speculation, nothing more.
By ste84
This album sounds a bit more rock than the old one but ultimately doesn’t add anything new to what we already knew about the Beatles.
It feels like listening to demos: just listen to 'The Long And Winding Road,' 'Across The Universe,' or 'Let It Be' before and after the treatment, and you’ll understand the chasm that separates the two versions.
