Let It Be

Written by Paul McCartney during the sessions for The Beatles (a/k/a the “White Album”), “Let It Be” was inspired by a dream the singer had of his deceased mother, Mary, assuring him, amongst the turmoil of the Beatles’ slow breakup, that everything would be all right. McCartney eventually transformed the song into a gospel-style number for the Get Back sessions that would eventually be released as the album Let It Be. The earliest known performance of “Let It Be” occurred on January 3, 1969, during rehearsals for the LIB project. It was rehearsed over 38 times on January 8, 9, 25-27, 29, and 31, 1969; Take 27 from the 31st was used as the basis for the official release. That take featured the song’s third verse, written on the spot by Paul after it was decided one was needed. On April 30, 1969, producer George Martin recorded a new solo from Harrison, although the single release of “Let It Be” would use the original solo from January 31, 1969. On January 4, 1970, George recorded yet another guitar solo, which was meant to sync up with the earlier solo and play simultaneously (this idea was later scrapped). Martin added backing vocals from Linda McCartney, at the insistence of Paul, and the resultant mix, with the original solo only, became the “single version” of “Let It Be.” On March 26, 1970, producer Phil Spector—called in to save the Get Back/LIB project—remixed “Let It Be,” adding his signature orchestra and choir. He used the more rocking January 4 solo instead, and also added an extra chorus at the end. This would become known as the “album version” of the song. McCartney was very displeased with Spector’s version, but had no say in the matter—the band was being managed by Allen Klein, a move that Paul disagreed with, leading him to sue for dissolution of the band, and therefore Klein was allowed to bring in Spector. In 2005, the original January 31 version, with original solo, was released on Let It Be… Naked, a stripped-down version of the original project.