Let It Be… Naked: Introduction

The “Let It Be” album from 1970 was the final studio album by The Beatles. However, the “Let It Be… Naked” album differs in that it is closer to what the original release should have been like!

In 1969, before they started on the Abbey Road album, The Beatles began a project looking back at their roots to make a suitable album, possibly to show a little solidarity. Of course, at that time, the band showed signs of stress and a possible breakup. This project was known as “Get Back.”

The Beatles were primarily a studio band by now. One of the reasons was that their material was hard to produce on stage. However, they would perform this project “live” and help bring the fragmenting band closer together again.

Indeed, they almost completed the project for an album. That album would have the same name, “Get Back.” However, they decided to shelve the project as the band was now concentrating on the “Abbey Road” album.

Phil Spector’s Earlier Influences

The Beatles broke up in 1970 while the “Get Back” project was still unfinished. But the tracks existed in some form. Behind Paul McCartney and George Martin’s backs, John Lennon gave the job of compiling an album from this material to Phil Spector. The project then evolved into what we now know as the “Let It Be” album.

Paul McCartney was never happy with this arrangement, so around 2002, he and George Martin embarked on creating an album closer to the original intentions. Hence, “Let It Be… Naked.” To listen to clips from the album, click the play button on the playlist below.

Of course, there was also a documentary film to accompany the original release of “Let It Be.” Although not as initially planned, the film does allow us to see The Beatles just before they broke up.

In Detail

• Release Date: November 17, 2003.
• Recorded: February 4, 1968; January 2–31, 1969; January 3, 1970.
• Studio: Apple Studio, London; EMI Studios, London; Twickenham Film Studios, London.
• Album Duration: 35:04
• Genre: Rock, hard rock, R&B.
• Producer: George Martin.
• Engineers: Paul Hicks, Guy Massey, Glyn Johns, Peter Bown, Ken Scott, Allan Rouse, Martin Benge, and Phil McDonald.

Performers And Instruments

• John Lennon: vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, lap steel guitar, the organ, and also some whistling.
• Paul McCartney: vocals, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, piano, Hammond organ, electric piano, and some whistling.
• George Harrison: vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, sitar, and the tambura.
• Ringo Starr: drums.
• George Martin: Hammond organ, also percussion.

Other Performers

• Billy Preston: Hammond organ and electric piano

Let It Be… Naked Tracks

Fly On The Wall Bonus Disc

This bonus disc gave us a look at The Beatles in the studio and during rehearsals. So, here is a list of the tracks, but there are various “conversations” from the Fab Four in-between some of them. In brief, the total length of this section is 21 minutes and 55 seconds.

Let It Be… Naked Album Cover

The sleeve cover of the “Let It Be… Naked” album has a very clever and striking design.

Now we have the Fab Four in an image that shows more cohesion between the band members than the fragmented image in the original. Be that as it may, we get an album resembling something similar to what they originally planned.

The Differences

There are a lot of differences between this “Let It Be… Naked” album and the original “Let It Be” album, of course. In the first place, we have a different running order. For example, the first song on the original album is “Two Of Us,” while on this new one, it is “Get Back.”

In addition to the track-running order differences, the drums are now in the centre of the audio, giving it a “modern” feel. The lead vocals are also in the centre now. In fact, all the additional dialogue has gone off the tracks too. So, where there was the dialogue at the end of the songs, we now see a sudden fade out where that was.

Gone from “Let It Be… Naked” are the tracks “Dig It” as well as “Maggie Mae.“ However, John Lennon’s “Don’t Let Me Down” fills that void. That version is a composite arrangement of two versions of the Rooftop Session.

Also gone are all the orchestral or choral overdubs that Phil Spector added to the original album. This is obviously noticeable in “The Long and Winding Road.” There are other differences, so what is better or worse, in your opinion?

Let It Be… Naked Recording Sessions

Key dates from the “Get Back” album recording sessions above tell us that they recorded most material for this album before Abbey Road.

As previously stated, the plan was to perform live on a television show and release an album of the same name, but that plan didn’t come to fruition. Indeed, the Fab Four disbanded, and Phil Spector produced the final album with his usual “wall of sound.” Of course, this was Spector’s trademark. Spector attempted to make tracks sound a little denser for the jukeboxes and radios at the time.

However, Paul McCartney never liked this interference from Spector. So, he wanted to change all that after meeting with the director of the “Let It Be” film, Michael Lindsay-Hogg. Using the original rolls of recording tape and video from the time, a team consisting of Neil Aspinall, Paul Hicks, and Guy Massey began correcting matters.

Obviously, had The Beatles not broken up, the original “Get Back” project could have come to fruition eventually. But we will never know what that project would have sounded like. In essence, Paul McCartney did at least give us some idea with this “Let It Be… Naked” album.

Chart Success

In many countries, such as the UK, USA, and Canada, the “Let It Be… Naked” album charted in the top ten. However, it didn’t make the top ten in Australia or New Zealand. But, from that, we see that many people showed interest in this cleverly thought-out project. Indeed, Beatles fans got a treat thanks to Paul McCartney rekindling the original “Get Back” project.

Of course, the original release of the “Let It Be” album gave us a film of the same name. However, there was a lot of controversy surrounding the whole project. But, according to Paul McCartney, in 2018, we may yet see another release of this film in some capacity!

To Sum Up, Let It Be… Naked

We are grateful for the effort that went into this project. Indeed, we can now experience something close to what Sir Paul McCartney originally wanted us to hear. That is not to say we can burn the original album. On the contrary, it allows us to compare both and see the difference.

However, a true Beatlemaniac would always reach for the “Let It Be… Naked” album before Spector’s version. But if you think this is not the case, let us know in the comments below.

Take A Listen

Click the play button to hear the songs, and then let us know your thoughts below.