by Moe Zilla

Created on: January 28, 2008   Last Updated: February 19, 2011

The original "Let It Be" was the last album released by the Beatles, though most of it was actually recorded before they'd recorded the album "Abbey Road." Because the Beatles was already in the process of breaking up, recordings for the "Let It Be" album suffered in limbo until its songs were spliced together by producer Phil Spector. In 2003 a different version of the album was finally released, including alternate takes and without many of the extra orchestral effects that Phil Spector had added. But would this new version of the album be worthy of the legacy of the Beatles?

The first thing that's "missing" on the new album is those short, candid sound clips of the Beatles talking between the songs. It had served a purpose on the original album, since the voices created a nice "montage" mood, and allowed listeners to feel closer to the individual members of the band. But along with this change, the new album made radical changes in the order of the songs. (It's a logical move, since the song "Let It Be" offers a much better way to end the album.) And the original album's song order was influenced by the fact that the songs were released on a vinyl album, so side one would end with the upbeat "Maggie Mae" while side two drew the listener back in by opening with the late 60s anthem, "I've Got a Feeling."

The newer album simply eliminates the 41-second song "Maggie Mae" altogether, along with a ragged 51-second excerpt from a jam session later titled "Dig It." To pad out the length of the album, it then restores the song "Don't Let Me Down," the B-side track for the single "Get Back," which had always been intended for the original album. While this drastically changes the "personality" of the album, it does replace the lighter tracks with more polished songs.

But much of the appeal of the new album seems to be philosophical. Purists argue that it's closer to the original vision the band had for their album. After years of occasional bickering in the studios, Paul McCartney had wanted the band to return to their roots of performing live, which led to the famous rooftop concert. (Six of the twelve tracks on the original album were even live performances.) Paul McCartney has always hated the chorus Spector added into the background of his piano ballad, "The Long and Winding Road," and it's even said this contributed to McCartney's decision to leave the band. "Get Back" is now the first song on the new version of the album, echoing the original hopes for the album (and giving it a faster start).

In some ways, this ambition ultimately hurts the album. To create the illusion that it's full of material, "Let It Be...Naked" simply swaps in a different studio take than the one that appeared on the original album. They're not better or worse, they're just different, and included for the sake of being different rather than offering any new "naked" revelation. And some of the changes are so technical that they're hardly noticeable. (John Lennon's recording of "Across the Universe" had been slightly slowed down on the original "Let It Be," and on "Let It Be...Naked" it's restored to its original tempo.)

It's good that this album exists, but many of its differences are subtle and irrelevant. It does offer a fresh chance to appreciate the original "Let It Be." But unfortunately, only the most die-hard Beatles fans could think of this album as being something entirely new.

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