The Beatles - Let It Be

Let It Be was The Beatles last album officially (released in 1970 after they had already broken up) but it wasn't actually the last album they recorded. They recorded Let It Be in early 1969 but they grew frustrated and ended up shelving the whole project to be worked on later.

Later in '69 they got together and recorded Abbey Road, which was the last album they recorded together and considered by many Beatles fans to be their best album (not many bands go out on such an amazing peak.)

Let It Be was originally going to be titled Get Back. The idea being that the band was getting back to it's rough rock n roll beginnings and that the entire album would be recorded without "studio tricks." It was meant to essentially be recorded live ("warts and all.") 

While some of this "roughness" does make it's way into the final version of Let It Be, some of it was sanded away as well. Most obviously contrary to the original intention of the project are the addition of strings to "The Long and Winding Road" and "Across The Universe" by Phil Spector (who was brought in to produce the album.) 

Paul McCartney greatly objected to the strings being added to his song ("The Long and Winding Road") but John Lennon was quite pleased with what Spector did on his song ("Across The Universe") and with how he did the project as a whole because he went on to work with Spector in his solo career (Imagine was produced by him.)

1. "Two of Us" - This very charming opening track is quite a bit more laid back than most Beatles album openers. It sets the stage for a less ambitious sort of album, where it sounds like a band just recording great songs. Not worrying so much about trying to do something "groundbreaking." This could be a criticism (and certainly The Beatles wouldn't be The Beatles without that whole changing popular music as we know thing) but I don't really mean it as such.
2. "Dig A Pony" - One of the more difficult Beatles songs to get into (at least for me.) It seems to sort of meander through to it's end with inscrutable lyrics and music that doesn't seem very focused on reaching any sort of particular goal. Not among my favorites, for sure. Yet I do still enjoy listening to it. Perhaps I'm hoping it will really click for me one day.
3. "Across the Universe" - This has always been one of my favorite songs. I find it to be very relaxing and beautiful. Sure the strings are a bit much in some ways, but to me it just works for some reason. I guess I'm with John on this one.
4. "I Me Mine" - This is another difficult song to get into and with somewhat similar reasons to "Dig a Pony." Well not the inscrutable lyrics part, I get 'em and like them. But the music never really pulls me in. That said, there are actually some neat moments in the song that make it worth listening to. This is what's so fantastic about the Fab Four, even when they were off their game a bit, there's still some great stuff in there. This was actually the last song The Beatles recorded. On January 3, 1970 (their only recording session in the '70s) George, Paul, and Ringo got together to record this (John had already quit the band.)
5. "Dig It" - A real sloppy mess, but it works well enough as a short snippet (any more would have been too much.)
6. "Let It Be" - I think you probably know this one. People talk about Let It Be as not being such a great album and by Beatles standards I would agree but when you think of the absolutely incredible songs that are on the album that really shows how high those standards are. This album really has some truly fantastic songs on it, this being the most obvious example.
7. "Maggie Mae" - I enjoy this sloppy mess a bit more than "Dig It."
8. "I've Got A Feeling" - The last song where Lennon and McCartney stuck their individual bits together to make a whole song (like "We Can Work It Out" and "A Day in the Life.") I love both parts of the song and while they don't really fit together quite as brilliantly as the above mentioned examples, it still works.
9. "One After 909" - This is a song that they originally recorded in the early '60s (you can hear the earlier incarnation on Anthology I.) This fits into the whole "Get Back" theme very well.
10. "The Long and Winding Road" - I think this song is better than it's reputation. It comes across as very syrupy because of the strings (which were not originally a part of the song, you can hear it without strings on Anthology 3 or Let It Be... Naked.) When You strip it back to the song itself, I think it works really nicely.
11. "For You Blue" - A nice little song, but nothing particularly special.
12. "Get Back" - A fun loose recording that perfectly embodies the whole original "Get Back" idea. The album concept may have fallen apart, but on this one song anyway, it was fully realized.

Let It Be was never mixed in mono so it is not included in The Beatles In Mono Remastered Box Set (The White Album was the last Beatles album mixed in mono.)

It is included (along with all of the other Beatles albums) in The Beatles In Stereo Remastered Box Set. 

Both box sets are highly recommended to all Beatles fans because they sound absolutely fantastic.