Let It Be (album)
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| The Beatles' studio album | ||||
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| Label (s) | Apple Records / EMI / Universal Music Group | |||
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Rock , blues , blues rock |
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Title (number) |
12 |
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running time |
35 min 13 s |
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Guest musicians:
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George Martin and Glyn Johns (1969) / Phil Spector (1970) |
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Studio (s) |
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Let It Be ( English , let it be ) is the twelfth and final studio album of the British group The Beatles , released in the UK and Germany on 8 May 1970th In Great Britain it was her 13th album including the compilation album, in Germany it was her 17th album including the compilation albums. In the USA it was released on May 18, 1970, here it was their 20th album. Although it was recorded for the most part before Abbey Road , it was only released afterwards, parallel to the film of the same name Let It Be . At this point in time the band no longer existed.
Emergence
Recordings of the Beatles with George Martin
After the problems and numerous disputes between the group members while working on the album The Beatles , the last recordings of which were completed in mid-October 1968, it was Paul McCartney who was the driving force looking for a way out of the crisis. He had in mind to bring the group back to its origins, to reactivate the Beatles as a live band. His band mates John Lennon and George Harrison were not very enthusiastic. A concert was definitely out of the question, but Harrison agreed to see a movie or TV show.
George Martin: "The Beatles said: 'Let's make a completely new album, the songs of which nobody knows and do it in front of an audience.' A great idea, but nowhere in England could you have an open air concert in February and there was no room to host the Beatles and all of their entourage. California came to mind, but it turned out to be too expensive. We thought about going to Marrakech and just taking people with us . But the suggestion also failed. In the end, despite everything, we were left empty-handed. So they moved to Twickenham Film Studios to do their plays and I went with them. There was a lot of discussion and little agreement. At that time they seemed like a rudderless ship. The four of them didn't like each other very much anymore, and there was constant friction between them. "
Without having a clear idea about the project, the Beatles met on January 2, 1969 at Twickenham Film Studios to rehearse pieces for a possible live performance. George Martin and Glyn Johns were responsible for the sound recordings . Since it was decided to document the work on film, Michael Lindsay-Hogg was hired as director.
The tensions within the group persisted and reached a climax when George Harrison, after repeated disagreements with John Lennon and Paul McCartney, announced his departure from the Beatles on January 10, 1969 and temporarily ended his work on the project.
George Harrison: “We'd all been through this before. It was really quite a difficult and stressful time for us. I got up and thought: "That's enough for me now, I'm going." So I took my guitar, drove home and wrote wah wah that afternoon . "
Paul McCartney: “After George left the studio, we sat down in John's house and discussed. I think John said, 'Let's get Eric then .' I said no!' John was probably kidding. We all thought: No, but it doesn't work that way. George has left us and we can't let that happen. That's not good for us. "
Ringo Starr: “We all went to George's house and told him how much we liked him. Then the minds calmed down and he came back. "
After Harrison returned a few days later, the idea of a live TV show was given up and instead it was decided to shoot a documentary about the making of the new Beatles album.
The last recordings in Twickenham took place on January 16, 1969. On January 20, 1969, the Beatles moved to their own studio in the basement of the Apple office on London's Savile Row . Two days later, the first recordings began there after studio equipment had to be borrowed from Abbey Road Studios , as the Apple recording studio constructed by Alex Mardas had proven to be completely unusable. The producer of the recordings was again predominantly George Martin, his production activity was supported equally by his sound engineer Glyn Johns , who, unlike George Martin, was present at all recordings.
George Martin said: “At that time they were going through a revolutionary phase and absolutely wanted to bring something new - and above all they wanted a new sound engineer. With Geoff Emerick it was no longer, and so Glyn Johns came on board. I think they were basically looking for a new producer, but no one even hinted at anything like that to me, so I was still there. "
The mood during the recordings relaxed. On the one hand because the Beatles felt more comfortable in their own Apple studio than in the impersonal environment of the film studio, on the other hand because Billy Preston joined the group on January 22nd at Harrison's invitation. Through his presence, the Beatles tried to be friendlier with each other.
George Harrison on Billy Preston: “Billy came down to the basement with me [Apple Studios] and I said, 'Hey, do you remember Billy? Here he is in full life size. He could play the piano. ' So he sat down at the electric piano and the atmosphere in the room immediately improved by 100 percent. "
Paul McCartney about Billy Preston: “When Billy came to us, we actually pulled ourselves together. For us it was a visit to the house, because you show yourself from the best side. But at the same time there was a little concern in the band that he might become a member of the Beatles. So we saw ourselves torn back and forth. "
By the end of the month, numerous recordings were made - most of them poorly structured - in spontaneous jam sessions . In addition to some new songs of their own, the group played many cover versions from the rock 'n' roll era. The final recordings took place on January 30th and 31st, 1969. On January 30th, the group - supported by Billy Preston on the keyboard - went to the roof of the Apple building and played the so-called Rooftop Concert there . The songs Get Back , Don't Let Me Down , I've Got a Feeling , One After 909 and Dig a Pony were played , some of them several times.
Paul McCartney: “At some point Mal informed us that the police were on their way here. We said to him, 'We won't stop playing.' Then he said: 'Then they will arrest you.' - What a great ending for a film. "
George Martin: "The whole time I feared that I would be allowed to spend the night at the nearest police station because of public disturbances."
Ringo Starr: “But the police just stumbled on the roof and said, 'You have to turn the sound down.' It's a shame, it could have been so great. "
The following day, the songs that were not suitable for the performance on the roof were recorded again. These were the acoustic guitar piece Two of Us and the piano pieces The Long and Winding Road and Let It Be . On February 5, 1969, the rooftop concert was mixed.
Revisions by Glyn Johns
In early March 1969, Lennon and McCartney assigned Glyn Johns to take care of the completion of the album. Johns faced the problem of finding enough material from the numerous hours of recorded sessions - many of them chaotic and uninspired - that was suitable for publication. Johns worked out several versions, trying to make the recordings sound as natural and "untreated" as possible. He also added a lot of studio talk that had been recorded during the recording sessions between the individual songs to convey the atmosphere during the studio sessions. The mixes for the album took place in the Olympic Sound Studios from March 10th to 13th, 1969. An acetate pressing with the following songs was made, the song The Walk later not being used.
Get Back - Acetate
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On April 7, 1969, Glyn Johns and Paul McCartney completed the single Get Back / Don't Let Me Down , which was released four days later in Great Britain (USA: May 5, Germany: April 21), the single reached in the three countries number one position in the respective charts and was her 16th number one hit in Great Britain and 17th in the US, in Germany it was her ninth number one hit. The single was released under the artist name The Beatles with Billy Preston , so a guest musician of the Beatles was explicitly mentioned as a co-interpreter for the first time.
On April 30, 1969, the lead guitar for the song Let It Be was recorded at Abbey Road Studios, producer was Chris Thomas . Further work on the album took place partly in the presence of the Beatles by Glyn Johns again in the Olympic Sound Studios on April 3rd, 4th and 7th, 2nd, 7th, 9th, 15th and 28th May 1969, so that Johns had created its first version. The LP should contain the following pieces:
Get Back - first draft
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Page 2
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Angus McBean, who was already responsible for the cover photo of the album Please Please Me , was commissioned for the cover photo . The Beatles were photographed on May 13, 1969 in the same location and pose as on the debut album . The planned title should be Get Back with Let it Be and 11 other Songs . The album was not released in this form.
In the spring of 1969, the Beatles 'business problems escalated when Dick James and his partner Charles Silver bought their shares in Northern Songs Ltd. without the group members' knowledge . , which included the Lennon / McCartney composition rights, to Associated Television Corporation (ATV). In the course of the repurchase efforts, it emerged that Paul McCartney had increased his stake without John Lennon's knowledge. Lennon, Harrison and Starr caused additional unrest on May 8, 1969 when they appointed businessman Allen Klein as the new Beatles manager against McCartney's will.
In the July issue of the Beatles Monthly Book (No. 72) Mal Evans describes the new Beatles album and mentions that the album will be released in August 1969.
In the summer of 1969, recordings of the Get Back sessions reached US radio stations, where they were broadcast. The disc jockeys assumed that the recordings would be the Beatles' new album. At the end of 1969, the Beatles' first long-playing bootleg record entitled Kum Back was sold illegally. The songs of the bootleg probably came from the acetate pressing of March 1969.
Meanwhile, despite their business and personal differences, the Beatles began recording their new album, Abbey Road . Because the group members wanted to concentrate on their music and the producer George Martin supported the return to the style of earlier work, the production was largely harmonious. On September 20, 1969, John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr signed a new royalty agreement in London with EMI and Capitol Records . However, when McCartney suggested a number of other Beatles concerts during the meeting, John Lennon declared his departure from the group. The album Abbey Road was released on September 26, 1969.
Paul McCartney said: “I said, 'I think we should do little gigs again - basically we're a great little band. We should go in search of our roots. Maybe we'll break it up then, or we'll come to the conclusion that we still have it. ' John looked me in the eye and said, 'I think you're stupid. Actually, I didn't want to tell you until after we signed the contract with Capitol. I'm leaving the band. ' [...] 'You mean you're getting out? That’s about it with the Beatles. ' Only later, when we slowly digested the fact, were we really upset. "
John Lennon: “Then we were in the office discussing something with Paul and Paul was talking something - that we should do something and so on, and I just said 'no, no, no' to whatever he suggested. Paul asked: 'What do you actually want?' And I replied, 'I mean the group is over. I get off!'"
Paul McCartney said, “George, Ringo, and I would call each other for three or four months and say, 'How's it going? Is it really over? ' It wasn't like our record company kicked us out. The question of whether we would get back together was still in the room. Nobody knew for sure whether this wasn't one of John's little extra tours again. We clung to that hope for a few months, but eventually we realized, 'Oh dear, the band no longer exists. That's it It's finally over. "
Further revisions by Glyn Johns and the Beatles
In the course of 1969, the director Michael Lindsay-Hogg had completed a rough version of the film Let It Be documenting the recordings . In December 1969, Glyn Johns was commissioned to create another version of the album as a soundtrack , which should match the song material of the film, the work took place on December 15 and 21 at Olympic Sound Studios . Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr came together for the last time on January 3 and 4, 1970 at Abbey Road Studios to record additional recordings for the soundtrack to the film. The Harrison composition I Me Mine was recorded on January 3rd . This had become necessary because the song had been filmed during rehearsals and would appear in the final film. However, there was no complete recording of the piece because the group had not worked it out in the further course of the project. On January 4, 1970, some overdubs were recorded for the song Let It Be . The producer of the recordings was again George Martin. For the song Across the Universe , which was also included in the film , Glyn Johns relied on older recording material from February 1968, as the recordings during the sessions were unsatisfactory. The McCartney composition Teddy Boy was no longer included because it was not in the film. McCartney then released the song on his first solo album.
On January 5, 1970, Glyn Johns created a new version of the album. The LP should now contain the following songs:
Get Back - second version
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This version could not convince the Beatles either and remained unpublished. In addition, John Lennon disagreed with Glyn Johns being listed as the album's producer.
Paul McCartney said: “For me, Let It Be was the record Glyn Johns put it together - with no overdubs, no orchestra or anything else. A very direct, simple album. "
On January 8, 1970, George Harrison took up the vocals for For You Blue again under the production of Glyn Johns , on the same day Johns mixed the song Let It Be again for a single release. The single was released on March 6, 1970 with the B-side You Know My Name (Look Up the Number) , which was essentially recorded during the Magical Mystery Tour session and on April 30, 1969 by John Lennon and Paul McCartney under the production direction had been completed by Chris Thomas . In the United States, the single Let It Be / You Know My Name (Look Up the Number) became the Beatles' 19th number one hit.
Completion of the album by Phil Spector
In March 1970 Phil Spector was commissioned by Lennon, Harrison and Allen Klein to finally finish the album. John Lennon first worked with Spector on February 6, 1970, recording his solo single Instant Karma! together with Harrison as a guitarist. George Harrison: "Somehow Allen (Klein) persuaded us to get Phil Spector to listen to the tapes of Let It Be ."
Phil Spector began on March 23, 1970 with the selection of the tracks and their remixing in the Abbey Road Studios, other dates were March 25, 26, 27 and 30, 1970. There was also a remixing of Teddy Boy , the but found no use. The only overlaps with the earlier version were The One After 909, Let It Be, For You Blue (with vocals from January 8, 1970) and Maggie Mae , which Spector took over, but also remixed. He renounced Rocker, Save the Last Dance for Me and Don't Let Me Down , shortened Dig It considerably and Get Back a little. Instead of the studio versions of Dig a Pony and I've Got a Feeling , Spector used the live recordings of the Beatles' performance on January 30, 1969 on the roof of the Apple building. Among his most controversial changes are the orchestral and choral parts recorded on April 1, 1970, which he added to the pieces Across the Universe , I Me Mine and The Long and Winding Road . The recordings with the 50 studio musicians (18 violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, harp, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 guitars, 14 singers) and the arrangers / conductors Richard Hewson and Brian Rogers were disharmonious due to Phil Spector's temperament. Ringo Starr, who played drums during the recording, tried to calm Phil Spector down. On April 2, 1970, he completed work with remixes of the songs Across the Universe , I Me Mine and The Long and Winding Road .
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Paul McCartney, in hindsight, disagreed with the way Spector had edited the album. For him, some tracks seemed too overloaded by Spector's orchestral accompaniment, the so-called " Wall of Sound ". McCartney was particularly dissatisfied with the arrangement of The Long and Winding Road , communicated this to Allen Klein in writing on April 14, 1970, and asked him to ensure that the song was remixed. However, that did not happen.
Commenting on Phil Spector's election, George Martin said, “I was very angry about that - and Paul was even more angry because neither of us had any idea until the action was over. It all happened behind our backs because it happened while Allen was managing Little John. He got Phil Spector, and I think George and Ringo got hooked too. You actually reached an agreement with EMI and said, 'This will be our record.' EMI then reached out to me and they said, 'You originally took this picture, but we cannot put your name on it.' I asked, 'Why not?' And it was, 'Well, you didn't produce the final version.' I said, 'I produced the original, and you should write: Produced by George Martin, re-produced by Phil Spector. They didn't think that was a good idea. "
In contrast to Glyn Johns, Phil Spector only used so much studio talk that the listener still had the impression that he was listening to a session or a live performance by the Beatles. Spector's version of the album begins with one of Lennon's absurd puns: “'I Dig a Pygmy' by Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf Aids! Phase One, in which Doris gets her oats! " Lennon announces the song I Dig a Pygmy ('I bury a pygmy'), based on his own composition Dig a Pony , which is to be performed by the imaginary band Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf Aids . Charles Hawtrey was a British actor and comedian . Deaf Aid means hearing aid , so that the band announced is Charles Hawtrey and the hearing aids , who will now play the first part (phase one) of the song in which Doris gets her oats (“in which Doris gets her oats” ), which colloquially means: "... in which Doris is banged properly". After the song Dig It you can hear Lennon again announcing another song: “That was 'Can You Dig It' by Georgie Wood, and now we'd like to do 'Hark, The Angels Come'”. It follows the song Let It Be . Georgie Wood was a British actor and comedian. The version of Spector ends with the studio version of Get Back , which was already used for the single. At the beginning of the song John Lennon says: “Sweet Loretta Fart, she thought she was a cleaner, but she was a frying pan” ('Sweet Loretta Fart, she thought she was a cleaning lady, but she was a frying pan '). Lennon parodies the beginning of the second verse of McCartney's Get Back song : “Sweet Loretta Martin thought she was a woman, but she was another man”. The Spector version of Get Back ends with Lennon's comment about the appearance on the roof of the Apple building: “I'd like to say 'thank you' on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we passed the audition!” . He thanks tautological on behalf of the group and its own ( "on behalf of the group and ourselves") and hopes ironic that the band's audition has passed ( "passed the audition"). The background was the rejection of the Beatles at the so-called Decca Audition on January 1, 1962. Decca refused to sign the Beatles at that time, which is considered to be one of the biggest mistakes in music history.
Even after years, the opinions of those involved about the final version differed greatly:
George Martin said of the mix, “I didn't like Phil Spector's take on Let It Be at all. I've always admired his work and always thought his arrangements were fantastic. But with Let It Be he packed everything we were forbidden. I resented him for that, because in my opinion he only delivered trash. "
Glyn Johns: "I can't move to hear the Phil Spector version of the album - I heard a couple of bars once and was totally disgusted, and I think it's utter rubbish."
Paul McCartney: "I heard the Spector version again recently, and it sounded horrible."
Commenting on Paul McCartney's allegations, Phil Spector said, “Paul had no problem taking the Oscar for the Let It Be score, and he also had no problem using my arrangement of the string, horn and choir parts when he played it alone for 25 years. "
John Lennon: “He received the shitty heap of poorly received trash. And he made something of it. Phil did a wonderful job. "
George Harrison: "[...] I personally thought Phil's involvement was an excellent idea."
Ringo Starr: "I liked Phil's work."
In the run-up to the release of Let It Be there was a dispute between Paul McCartney and the other Beatles over the coordination of the release dates of his first solo album and the last Beatles album. John Lennon and George Harrison wrote a letter to Paul McCartney on March 31, 1970, stating that Let It Be would be out on April 24 and that they had instructed EMI to withhold McCartney's solo album until June 4.
Ringo Starr delivered the letter to Paul McCartney and tried to mediate, but was sent away by an angry McCartney. On April 9, 1970, Paul McCartney informed John Lennon by phone that he, like Lennon the year before, would be leaving the Beatles. On April 10, 1970, Paul McCartney sent the British press an interview included in the advance copies of his first solo LP McCartney , in which he announced the separation from the Beatles, it was the de facto end of the Beatles.
George Harrison retrospectively commented on McCartney's press release: “By the time Paul released his press release, everyone else had already left the band. That annoyed John terribly. 'Hey, I got out a long time ago and he pretends everything was his idea' ”.
The album Let It Be was released on May 8, 1970 and reached number one on the British charts on June 3, where it remained for a total of six weeks with interruptions. It was the Beatles' eleventh number one album in the UK. In the US, Let It Be also reached number one on the US charts, where it remained for four weeks, making it the 14th number one album. In April 2000, the album was multi-platinum in the US for four million copies sold. In the USA, the single The Long and Winding Road / For You Blue was released on May 11, 1970, in Germany on June 26, 1970, the single became the 20th and final number one hit of the Beatles in the USA.
The album was released in a stereo version only . A mono version of Let It Be was released in Brazil , but it was only a downmixed stereo version and not a separate mono version of its own.
Other - unused - recording versions / mixes of the songs I've Got a Feeling , Dig a Pony , Two of Us , For You Blue , The Long and Winding Road , Get Back , Let It Be and I Me Mine are on the album Anthology 3 .
On March 16, 1971, Let It Be received the Grammy Award for Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special , the award was accepted by Paul McCartney.
On April 15, 1971, the Beatles received an Oscar for the film Let It Be in the category Best Score , the award was accepted on behalf of Quincy Jones .
Remix Let It Be… Naked
In November 2003, a remixed version of the album was released under the title Let It Be ... Naked , which is an approximation of the original version of the album before the producer Phil Spector provided the recordings with orchestral and choir recordings.
Cover design
For the cover it was originally planned to recreate the motif of the first album Please Please Me . Angus McBean, who had already photographed the Beatles in 1963, was hired as the photographer and was posed on May 13, 1969 in the same place in the EMI office building in London . However, the photo was not used for the album Let It Be , but later served as the cover image of the 1967-1970 compilation .
The album was released with different cover designs, with the front cover being essentially based on the shell of the British single Let It Be . In addition to the most widespread normal album cover, which shows four individual photos of the Beatles, there were two variants: In the USA, the album was published in a gatefold cover with photos of the film on the inside. In Great Britain and several other countries, including Germany, France , Canada , Australia and Japan , the album was released in 1970 in a box which, in addition to the album, contained the book Get Back , which contains 164 pages of photos and dialogues from the film. The cover design was done by John Kosh, the photos are by Ethan A. Russell, the accompanying text is by Jonathan Cott and David Dalton.
Track list
page 1
| No. | song | author | Lead vocals | length |
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| 1 | Two of Us | Lennon / McCartney | Lennon and McCartney | 3:37 |
| 2 | Dig a pony | Lennon / McCartney | Lennon | 3:55 |
| 3 | Across the universe | Lennon / McCartney | Lennon | 3:48 |
| 4th | I me mine | Harrison | Harrison | 2:26 |
| 5 | Dig It | Lennon / McCartney / Harrison / Starkey |
Lennon | 0:50 |
| 6th | let it be | Lennon / McCartney | McCartney | 4:03 |
| 7th | Maggie Mae | Trad. arranges Lennon / McCartney / Harrison / Starkey |
Lennon and McCartney | 0:40 |
Page 2
| No. | song | author | Lead vocals | length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8th | I've got a feeling | Lennon / McCartney | McCartney and Lennon | 3:38 |
| 9 | One after 909 | Lennon / McCartney | Lennon and McCartney | 2:54 |
| 10 | The Long and Winding Road | Lennon / McCartney | McCartney | 3:38 |
| 11 | For you blue | Harrison | Harrison | 2:32 |
| 12 | Get back | Lennon / McCartney | McCartney | 3:11 |
- The lengths of the songs are based on the 2009 CD version.
Re-releases
- In May 1979 the album Let It Be (catalog number: Parlophone PCS 7096) was released in Great Britain on white vinyl and in Sweden on red vinyl.
- On October 20, 1987, the album Let It Be was first released on CD. The mastering was next George Martin from the sound engineer of the Abbey Road Studios monitored Mike Jarrett. A four-page booklet is enclosed with the CD.
- On September 9, 2009 the album was released remastered in a stereo mix on CD and as part of The Beatles Stereo Box Set . The CD, re-released in 2009, was remastered by Sam Okell, Steve Rooke and Guy Massey. The fold-out CD cardboard cover was redesigned by Drew Lorimer. The CD also comes with a 24-page booklet that contains photos of the Beatles, information about the album by Kevin Howlett and Mike Heatley and information about the recordings by Allan Rouse and Kevin Howlett. The CD contains documentation in QuickTime format, consisting of video clips and modified images from the studio sessions; Accompanied by played music tracks, outtakes or studio conversations from the album.
- The remastered stereo vinyl long-playing record was released in November 2012 with the The Beatles Remastered Vinyl Box Set .
- The album was first published in download format on November 16, 2010 on iTunes , and from December 24, 2015, the album was also available from other providers and streaming services.
Recording dates
The original recordings for the album took place almost exclusively between January 22nd and 31st, 1969 at Apple Studios under the production direction of George Martin and Glyn Johns . The first (April-May 1969) and second (December 1969-January 1970) compilation and mixing of the album was done by Glyn Johns at Olympic Sound Studios . The recording of the song I Me Mine and a revision of Let It Be took place again under the direction of George Martin on January 3 and 4, 1970 at Abbey Road Studios .
The post-production of the album in March / April 1970, under the direction of Phil Spector , was again carried out in the Abbey Road Studios . The sound engineer for the original recordings was Glyn Johns and his assistants Alan Parsons and Neil Richmond. The sound engineers who assisted Phil Spector were Peter Brown and his assistants Roger Ferris and Richard Lush (April 1, 1970). As a guest musician, Billy Preston took part in the following songs on the album: Dig a Pony , I've Got a Feeling , Get Back , Dig It , Let It Be and One After 909 as well as in the recordings not included on the album Don ' t Let Me Down , Oh! Darling and Rip It Up / Shake, Rattle and Roll / Blue Suede Shoes .
The song I Me Mine was recorded without John Lennon.
| No. | song | Recording dates (published version is shown in bold) | Producer / sound engineer | Studio | Cast / guest musician | Sound carrier (first release) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Across the universe |
Feb. 4, 1968, Apr. 1, 1970 (orchestration) |
George Martin (1968) , Phil Spector (1970) , Ken Scott (1968) , Peter Brown (1970) |
Abbey Road Studio 2 and 3 |
|
No One's Gonna Change Our World (Benefit Compilation Album ) |
| 2 | Dig a pony | Jan. 22, 24 and 28, 1969, Jan. 30, 1969 , Feb. 5, 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios, roof of the Apple building (published version) |
|
let it be |
| 2 | She Came In Through the Bathroom Window | Jan. 22, 1969 | George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Anthology 3 |
| 4th | I've got a feeling | 22-24, 27-28 Jan 1969, 30 Jan 1969 , 5 Feb 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios / Roof of the Apple Building (Released Version) |
|
let it be |
| 5 | Don't let me down | Jan 22, 1969, Jan 28, 1969 , Jan 30, 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Single B-side from Get Back |
| 6th | Get back | Jan. 23, 1969 Jan. 27, 1969 , 28, Jan. 30, 1969, 5 February 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Let It Be , originally single A-side |
| 7th | Two of Us | Jan. 24 + 25, 1969, Jan. 31, 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
let it be |
| 8th | Teddy boy | Jan. 24 + 28, 1969 | Glyn Johns | Apple Studios |
|
Anthology 3 |
| 9 | Maggie Mae | Jan. 24, 1969 | Glyn Johns | Apple Studios |
|
let it be |
| 10 | Dig It | Jan. 24, 1969, Jan. 26, 1969 |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
let it be |
| 11 | For you blue |
Jan 25, 1969 , Jan 8, 1970 (new vocals) |
George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios (1969) / Olympic Sound Studios (1970) |
|
let it be |
| 12 | let it be | Jan 25 + 26, 1969, Jan 31, 1969 , Apr 30, 1969 , Jan 4, 1970 |
George Martin, Chris Thomas (1969) , Glyn Johns, Phil McDonald (1970) |
Apple Studios - Abbey Road Studio 3 (1969) / Abbey Road Studio 2 (1970) |
|
let it be |
| 13 | Rip It Up / Shake, Rattle and Roll / Blue Suede Shoes | Jan. 26, 1969 | George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Anthology 3 |
| 14th | The Long and Winding Road |
Jan 26, 1969 , Jan 31, 1969, Apr 1, 1970 (orchestration) |
George Martin (1969) , Phil Spector (1970) , Glyn Johns (1969) , Peter Brown (1970) |
Apple Studios (1969) , Abbey Road Studio 1 (1970) |
|
let it be |
| 15th | Oh! Darling | Jan. 27, 1969 | George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Anthology 3 |
| 16 | One after 909 | Jan 28-30, 1969 | George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios, roof of the Apple building (published version) |
|
let it be |
| 17th | Mailman, Bring Me No More Blues | Jan 29, 1969 | George Martin, Glyn Johns |
Apple Studios |
|
Anthology 3 |
| 18th | I me mine |
Jan 3, 1970, Apr 1, 1970 (orchestration) |
George Martin (January 1970) , Phil Spector (April 1970) , Phil McDonald (January 1970) , Peter Brown (April 1970) |
Abbey Road Studio 2 and 1 |
|
let it be |
Unpublished recordings for the Get Back / Let It Be project
Twickenham Film Studios
From January 2 to 14, 1969, the Beatles were at Twickenham Film Studios, where they were filmed during test recordings for a planned album. Not only the potential titles for the album were rehearsed, but also (partly) unfinished songs from the album Abbey Road as well as titles that were only released on solo albums by the Beatles or that have remained unpublished to date. Furthermore, many older Beatles recordings were re-recorded as well as numerous songs by other artists. Most of the recordings were only alluded to or remained fragmentary. The audio track recordings of the film were made on Nagra tapes in mono. The following list therefore only includes a small selection of recordings, whereby only the first date of recording is listed:
| title | Recording date | annotation | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Let it down | Jan. 2, 1969 | A Harrison composition released on Harrison's All Things Must Pass album | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 230 |
| All Things Must Pass | Jan. 3, 1969 | A Harrison composition that was released on the Harrison album All Things Must Pass (see also Anthology 3 ) | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film, p. 236 |
| Hear Me Lord | Jan. 6, 1969 | A Harrison composition that on the Harrison album All Things Must Pass was published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 238 |
| The Palace of the King of the Birds | Jan. 6, 1969 | A McCartney composition that has not yet been published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , pp. 238/239 |
| Gone Gone Gone | Jan. 7, 1969 | A Carl Perkins composition | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 239 |
| Commonwealth | Jan. 9, 1969 | A spontaneous Beatles composition | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 242 |
| Mama, you've been on my mind | Jan. 9, 1969 | A Dylan composition sung by George Harrison | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 242 |
| Suzy Parker | Jan. 9, 1969 | This title is also in the film Let It Be included | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 242 |
| Don't be cruel | Jan. 10, 1969 | A humorous version of the Elvis Presley title | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 245 |
| On a Sunny Island | Jan. 10, 1969 | A humorous Lennon composition with a Latin American rhythm | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 245 |
| Jazz piano song | Jan. 14, 1969 | This title is also in the film Let It Be included | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 247 |
| Madman | Jan. 14, 1969 | A Lennon composition that has not yet been published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 247 |
| Watching rainbows | Jan. 14, 1969 | A Lennon composition that has not yet been published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 247 |
Apple Studios
From January 22 to 31, 1969, the Beatles were in the Apple Studios, where additional rehearsal and studio recordings were filmed for a planned album. Again, other previously unpublished titles were added. The following list includes a selection of titles that are mentioned in Mark Lewisohn's book The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions , furthermore the book The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film by Richie Unterberger serves as a source :
| title | Recording date | annotation | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| rocker | Jan. 22, 1969 | A short instrumental title that should be on the original Get Back album | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 164 |
| Save the Last Dance for Me | Jan. 22, 1969 | A short sung song by the Drifters from 1960 that was supposed to be on the original Get Back album | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 164 |
| Singing the blues | Jan. 24, 1969 | A 1956 hit by Guy Mitchell , a composition by Melvin Endsley | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 252 |
| Every night | Jan. 24, 1969 | A McCartney composition that in April 1970 to the album McCartney was published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 252 |
| Hot as Sun | Jan. 24, 1969 | A McCartney composition that was released on the McCartney album in April 1970 , here partly with vocals | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 252 |
| There You Go Eddie | Jan. 24, 1969 | Another McCartney composition that has not yet been published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 252 |
| I lost my little girl | Jan. 25, 1969 | A McCartney composition that was released in May 1991 on the album Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) , here mostly with vocals by John Lennon | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 254 |
| Bye bye love | Jan. 25, 1969 | A 1957 Everly Brothers track sung by Lennon and McCartney | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 166 |
| Medley: Kansas City / Miss Ann / Lawdy Miss Clawdy | Jan. 26, 1969 | A medley of rock 'n' roll tracks | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 167 |
| You Really Got a Hold on Me | Jan. 26, 1969 | A re-recording of the piece by Smokey Robinson (first recorded 1963, With The Beatles ) | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 167 |
| Tracks of My Tears | Jan. 26, 1969 | Another track by Smokey Robinson, mostly instrumental recording | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 167 |
| George's Demo (Isn't it A Pity) | Jan. 26, 1969 | Composition by George Harrison; only vocals and guitar on the album Harrison All Things Must Pass was published | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 167 |
| Suicide | Jan. 26, 1969 | A McCartney composition, a short fragment of which was released on the McCartney album in April 1970 (the full version of the song appeared as one of the bonus tracks when it was re-released in June 2011) | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 255 |
| I told you before | Jan. 26, 1969 | A Beatles ( Billy Preston ?) Composition | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 255 |
| The Walk | Jan. 27, 1969 | A 1958 song by Jimmy McCracklin | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| Love me do | Jan. 28, 1969 | Blues-like re-recording of the first single | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| Billy's song 1 and 2 | Jan. 28, 1969 | Two tracks by Billy Preston | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| The River Rhine | Jan. 28, 1969 | A bluesy Beatles composition, partly with the lyrics from The Long and Winding Road | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 258 |
| I Want You (She's So Heavy) | Jan. 29, 1969 | First recording of the song, re-recording was at Abbey Road released | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| Maybe baby | Jan. 29, 1969 | A Buddy Holly composition from 1957, sung here by John Lennon | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 260 |
| Peggy Sue Got Married | Jan. 29, 1969 | Another Buddy Holly composition from 1959, sung by John Lennon | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 260 |
| Not fade away | Jan. 29, 1969 | A title by Buddy Holly from 1957 | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| Besame mucho | Jan. 29, 1969 | A title from the Coasters in 1960 | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 168 |
| Lady Madonna | Jan. 31, 1969 | New recording | The complete Beatles recording sessions , p. 170 |
| Lost John | Jan. 31, 1969 | A traditional song sung by John Lennon | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 262 |
| Black Dog Blues (Daddy, Where You Been So Long?) / The Right String (But the Wrong Yo-Yo) | January 31, 1969 | A (traditional) medley sung by John Lennon | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 262 |
Incomplete recorded Beatles songs
During the sessions for the film Let It Be , other Beatles compositions were played or incompletely recorded.
| title | Recording date | annotation | source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thinking of Linking | Jan. 3, 1969 | The recording is less than half a minute long, another incomplete re-recording was made on June 23, 1994 and released on the bonus DVD of the Anthology series | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 357 |
| Give Me Some Truth | Jan. 3 + 7, 1969 | The recording is less than half a minute. A Lennon composition published by John Lennon on his album Imagine (September 1971) | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , pp. 236/239 |
| Just fun | Jan. 8, 1969 | The recording is less than half a minute | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 356 |
| Another day | Jan. 9, 1969 | A McCartney composition released as a single in February 1971 | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 243 |
| The Back Seat of My Car | Jan. 14, 1969 | A McCartney composition that in May 1971 the album Ram was released | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 247 |
| Too Bad About Sorrows | Jan. 21, 1969 | The recording is about half a minute | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , p. 357 |
| Window Window | Jan. 21 + 24, 1969 | A Harrison composition that has not yet been published | The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film , pp. 247, 252 |
Chart positions of the album
| album | Release Date | Best placement in the charts | Label catalog no. | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | title | GB 
|
US 
|
DE 
|
GB
|
US
|
DE
|
GB
|
US
|
DE
|
| Studio album | let it be | May 8, 1970 | May 18, 1970 | May 8, 1970 | 1 | 1 | 3 | Apple PCS 7096 |
Apple AR 34001 |
Apple 1C 062-04 433 |
| Studio album CD first release |
let it be | Oct 20, 1987 | Oct 20, 1987 | Oct 1987 | 50 | 88 | - | Parlophone CDP 7 46447 2 |
Capitol CDP 7 46447 2 |
EMI CDP 7 46447 2 |
| Studio album remastered CD re-release |
let it be | Sep 9 2009 | Sep 9 2009 | Sep 9 2009 | 49 | - | 86 | Apple / EMI 3824722 |
Apple / Capitol 3824722 |
Apple / EMI 3824722 |
Single releases
| single | Release Date | Best placement in the charts | Label catalog no. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A side / B side | GB
|
US
|
DE
|
GB
|
US
|
DE
|
GB
|
US
|
DE
|
| Get Back / Don't Let Me Down | Apr 11, 1969 | 5th May 1969 | Apr 21, 1969 | 1 | 1 /35 | 1 | Apple R5777 | Apple 2490 | Apple 1C 006-04084 |
| Let It Be / You Know My Name (Look Up the Number) | 6th Mar 1970 | 11th Mar 1970 | 6th Mar 1970 | 2 | 1 / - | 2 | Apple R5833 | Apple 2764 | Apple 1C 006-04353 |
| The Long and Winding Road / For You Blue | - | May 11, 1970 | June 26, 1970 | nv | 1 / - | 26th | - | Apple 2832 | Apple 1C 006-04514 |
literature
- The Beatles: Get Back . Released in 1970 as part of the Let-It-Be-Box.
- George Harrison: I, Me, Mine . ISBN 0-7538-1734-9 .
- Mark Hertsgaard : A Day In The Life: The Music and Artistry of the Beatles .
- Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years . ISBN 0-600-61207-4 .
- Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Chronicle . ISBN 0-600-61001-2 .
- Neville Stannard: The Long & Winding Road . ISBN 0-907080-96-0 .
- The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 .
- Neville Stannard: The Long & Winding Road , ISBN 0-907-08096-0 .
- Ian MacDonald: Revolution in the Head , ISBN 978-0-099-52679-7 .
- Richie Unterberger: The Unreleased Beatles: Music and Film. ISBN 0-87930-892-3 .
- Christoph Maus: The Beatles Worldwide , ISBN 978-3-9809137-1-3 .
- Christoph Maus: The Beatles Worldwide II , ISBN 3-9809137-2-4 .
- Friedhelm Rathjen: Get Back. The Beatles in Twickenham, 2. – 14. January 1969 . Südwesthörn: Edition ReJoyce 2018, ISBN 978-3-947261-08-6 .
- Friedhelm Rathjen: Let It Be. The Beatles in the Apple Studio, 21. – 31. January 1969 . Südwesthörn: Edition ReJoyce 2019, ISBN 978-3-947261-09-3 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 315.
- ↑ a b c The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 316.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 318.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 319.
- ↑ a b c The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 321.
- ↑ Single Get Back (The Beatles with Billy Preston)
- ↑ Photo recordings for the Get Back album cover
- ↑ Allen for Apple . In: Der Spiegel . No. 31 , 1969 ( online ).
- ↑ The story of the bootleg kum back
- ↑ a b The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 347.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 349.
- ↑ a b c d e f The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 323.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 323.
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 350.
- ^ Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Barry Miles, 1st edition of the German translation 1998, p. 720
- ↑ Glyn John's opinion on Phil Spector's revisions
- ↑ Phil Spector on Paul McCartney's allegations
- ↑ McCartney informs Lennon of his exit
- ^ The Beatles: The Beatles Anthology . ISBN 3-550-07132-9 , p. 352.
- ↑ Multi-platinum award
- ^ Mono version of Let It Be
- ↑ Paul McCartney takes the Grammy Award for Let It Be contrary
- ↑ Quincy Jones accepts the Oscar for Let It Be contrary
- ↑ Original cover idea for the album Get Back
- ↑ Cover for the single Let It Be ( Memento of the original from January 12, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Cover for the album Let It Be
- ↑ Bruce Spizer: The Beatles on Apple Records . New Orleans: 498 Productions, 2003. pp. 196, 202.
- ↑ www.rarebeatles.com: Let It Be box sets with book Price and Reference Guide . Retrieved January 16, 2017.
- ↑ Information about the cover design
- ↑ Let It Be Great Britain - White Vinyl
- ↑ Let It Be Sweden - Red Vinyl
- ↑ Download the Beatles songs
- ↑ Streaming the Beatles songs
Band members:
John Lennon • Paul McCartney • George Harrison • Ringo Starr
Studio albums / core catalog:
Please Please Me (1963) |
With the Beatles (1963) |
A Hard Day's Night (1964) |
Beatles for Sale (1964) |
Help! (1965) |
Rubber Soul (1965) |
Revolver (1966) |
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) |
Magical Mystery Tour (1967) |
The Beatles (1968) |
Yellow Submarine (1969) |
Abbey Road (1969) |
Let It Be (1970)
Live albums:
Live! at the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany; 1962 (1977) |
The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl (1977)
Albums with unreleased material:
The Beatles' First (1964) |
The Beatles Christmas Album (1970) |
Sessions (originally planned: 1985) |
Live at the BBC (1994) |
Anthology 1 (1995) |
Anthology 2 (1996) |
Anthology 3 (1996) |
On Air - Live at the BBC Volume 2 (2013) |
The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963 (2013)
Remix albums / alternate versions:
Yellow Submarine Songtrack (1999) |
Let It Be… Naked (2003) |
Love (2006)
International compilations:
1962–1966 (1973) |
1967-1970 (1973) |
Rock 'n' Roll Music (1976) |
Love Songs (1977) |
Rarities (1979) |
Reel Music (1982) |
20 Greatest Hits (1982) |
Past Masters (1988) |
1 (2000) |
Anthology Highlights (2011) |
Tomorrow Never Knows (2012)
British Compilations:
A Collection of Beatles Oldies (1966) |
The Beatles Ballads (1980) |
The Beatles Box (1980)
American compilations:
Introducing… The Beatles (1964) |
Meet the Beatles! (1964) |
The Beatles' Second Album (1964) |
A Hard Day's Night (Soundtrack) (1964) |
Something New (1964) |
The Beatles' Story (1964) |
Beatles '65 (1964) |
The Early Beatles (1965) |
Beatles VI (1965) |
Help! (Soundtrack) (1965) |
Rubber Soul (US version) (1965) |
Yesterday and Today (1966) |
Revolver (US version) (1966) |
Hey Jude (1970) |
Rarities (US version) (1980)
German compilations:
The Beatles Beat (1964) |
The Beatles' Greatest (1965) |
The Beatles GDR album (1965)
Box sets:
The Singles Collection 1962–1970 (1976/77/82) |
The Beatles Collection (1978) |
The Beatles EPs Collection (1981) |
The Beatles Box Set (1988) |
The Capitol Albums Vol. 1 (2004) |
The Capitol Albums Vol. 2 (2006) |
The Beatles Stereo Box Set (2009) |
The Beatles in Mono (2009) |
The US Albums (2014) |
The Japan Box (2014) |
The Singles Collection Box (2019)
British EPs:
Twist and Shout (1963) |
The Beatles' Hits (1963) |
The Beatles (No. 1) (1963) |
All My Loving (1964) |
Long Tall Sally (1964) |
Extracts from the Film A Hard Day's Night (1964) |
Extracts from the Album A Hard Day's Night (1964) |
Beatles for Sale (1965) |
Beatles for Sale (No. 2) (1965) |
The Beatles' Million Sellers (1965) |
Yesterday (1966) |
Nowhere Man (1966) |
Magical Mystery Tour (1967) |
Baby It's You (1995) |
Free as a Bird (1995) |
Real Love (1996)
British Singles:
Love Me Do (1962) |
Please Please Me (1963) |
From Me to You (1963) |
She Loves You (1963) |
I Want to Hold Your Hand (1963) |
Can't Buy Me Love (1964) |
A Hard Day's Night (1964) |
I Feel Fine (1964) |
Ticket to Ride (1965) |
Help! (1965) |
We Can Work It Out / Day Tripper (1965) |
Paperback Writer (1966) |
Yellow Submarine / Eleanor Rigby (1966) |
Strawberry Fields Forever / Penny Lane (1967) |
All You Need Is Love (1967) |
Hello, Goodbye (1967) |
Lady Madonna (1968) |
Hey Jew / Revolution (1968) |
Get Back / Don't Let Me Down (1969) |
The Ballad of John and Yoko (1969) |
Something / Come Together (1969) |
Let It Be (1970) |
Free as a Bird (1995) |
Real Love (1996)