I always associated "Let It Be" with the contentious Get Back sessions, not the friendlier WA sessions (at least we're being told repeatedly that this was not a band in the throes of breaking up). So to me it doesn't seem inspired by some deep grieving over troubles in the group. The business issues had not blown up in '68 as they would a few months later. Likewise, Paul singing "brother Malcolm" instead of "mother Mary" kinda shades the story that he dreamed his mother coming to him saying "let it be". Maybe he did and hadn't yet decided to put that in the lyrics yet. Just my take on it.
This has been asked an answered earlier today. Brother Malcolm was a reference to Mal Evans being nearby... and perhaps Paul's reluctance, or nervousness to use his mom's name. He uses the same Brother Malcolm line a few times during the Get Back sessions... with Mal ever present. Paul used other lyric placeholders too from time to time... such "read the Record Mirror" instead of "there will be an answer" . Just word play, it doesn't mean or infer that his mom's voice didn't come to him in a dream. Ron
I seem to remember Paul singing Malcolm's name while singing "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" in the Let It Be film. Maybe it was George he sang instead. Just can't remember.
He sang "Made sure that George was dead" in the film! (Paul must have been cross with George at that moment.....).
Paul approved the inclusion of this demo in the set. Clearly he's not trying to hide anything here. And only he knows where the motivation for Let it Be came from. He's told pretty much the same story about Mother Mary for 50 years so goofing around about "Brother Malcolm" doesn't shade anything for me. In the Anthology documentary, McCartney's quote about the White Album was: “I think it was a very good album. It stood up, but it wasn't a pleasant one to make." Saying the WA sessions were friendlier than the Get Back sessions doesn't mean the WA sessions were tension free. Trouble was brewing from Paul's perspective.
Neat boxed set too, very attractive packaging, love it. Found a pristine used copy cheap not long ago.
Has this YouTube video been mentioned? The guy does a pretty seamless comparison between this new pressing and 3 others. He concludes that the difference is not substantial enough on the album itself, but the Escher Tapes make it all worthwhile.
That book has been reissued a lot, right now at Barnes and Noble stores here in the US there's a hardcover version available, but never updated/revised considering all the new information that's come to light since the original publication. Shame.
Is it possible to listen to a 27 minute Helter Skelter without getting bored? I can’t even get through the 13 min version. It’s tedious.
I think that would depend very highly on whether the 27 minute version was mostly up-tempo and raucous like the main album version, or plodding and sparse like the 13 minute version is. If it is like the latter, it could probably be classified as a torture device.
I think it's a toss-up between AR50 and LIB50 as to which set gets "You Know My Name." On one had, the song was finished after John and Paul added more vocals and a few bits and pieces in the summer of '69, which would indicate it's an Abbey Road era outtake. On the other hand, the song was not used as a b-side to an Abbey Road song, it remained unissued until the summer of 1970 when it was on the flip of "The Long and Winding Road" off Let it Be. So a case can be made for it to go in either box set. Maybe the apparent wealth of rehearsals and outtakes from the LIB sessions means that the leaner Abbey Road sessions will get "You Know My Name" to beef up the outtakes section. "You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)" - outtake "The Ballad of John and Yoko" - outtake "Old Brown Shoe" - outtake "Come and Get It" - demo "Goodbye" - demo "Peggy Sue Got Married" - busk/jam Not a bad slate of non-LP material there. And I'm guessing there's at least one more "oldie" jam from the AR sessions, even if it's short like "Baby You're So Square." Seems Paul was often goofing around like that.
Of course you meant to say the flip side of the "Let It Be" single, which is where it appeared. "For You Blue" was on the flip of "The Long and Winding Road".
I don't know, my 20 month old daughter LOVES Revolution 9. I'm not kidding. She goes all over the house saying "Number 9! Number 9!" and occasionally mixes it up with Number 3 and Number 8. I'm thinking it's just an extension of Sesame Street for her but when she requests it, you better believe daddy plays it!
True, there is almost no melody (in the playing). But I absolutly love it for its difference, its roughness and its almost soul-like vibe. One of the highlights for me.
It never occured to me that it could be a Beatle-baby. I always thought it is from the archives. BTW talking about babies: Has somebody had an idea yet who the woman is that speaks during the beginning of "Revolution (1)"? She says something like: "Maybe you can have babies" but she pronounces it "boy-bees", which I think is some english dialect. She sure does not sound like Yoko.
