"Let It Be…Naked"

So exciting this is.

Just in case you are a caveperson who has not emerged from said cave in the last forty years here is a quick recap (and I am super impressed with how quickly you picked up on the Internet). The Beatles are the greatest pop band ever. (Don’t argue with me on this; just accept. Even if you loath The Beatles, their contribution to music and pop culture is undeniable.)

After the double album The Beatles (commonly misknown as “The White Album”), the Beatles found themselves in a quandary about what to do next. An idea was decided on where The Beatles would make a new album, but rather than record and release it as they had in the past, they would instead play and record all the new songs in concert and make the live album of new songs the new album. But personal disputes and squabbles lead the sessions down the toilet. Ultimately, no one was interested in the project and the idea and songs were shelved. But EMI and Capitol knew a new Beatles album was a goldmine and were not going to leave it unreleased. The material went though several incarnations and producers before it landed in Phil Spector’s lap. (Spector is best known (musically) for producing dowap groups in the late 50’s and early 60’s.) So Spector did what he knew how to do with the tapes: throw all sorts of lush orchestrations everywhere so it might sound “lovely” on AM mono. When “Let It Be” was released, the Beatles had no interest in each other or the album and so it was released as the “Let It Be” we know today.

Now (34 years later), “Let It Be” has been reworked and stripped of all things Spector. This is not to say this is how the album was always intended to be released, but it is certainly closer than what was actually released in 1970. Most importantly, the songs have been remastered, so the sound quality is excellent. How is it that Beatles albums have escaped remastering? Even ELO has had their albums remastered.

Billy Preston is probably the happiest man in the world right now. More of those delicious royalty checks are going to start rolling in again.