The Endorsement: Let It Be... Naked

Long before he was convicted, Phil Spector was a murderer. He slaughtered hundreds of healthy young pop songs with his "Wall of Sound." I, for one, am relieved that this monster has finally been brought to justice. One victim who finally received reparations is the Beatles album Let It Be. The Fab Four set out to make a simple record, a snap shot of a live performance, without all of the multi-tracked, overdubbed trappings of Sgt Peppers or the White Album. They tried to capture the raw sound of 4 musicians playing together in the same room.

However, by this point in their career they could hardly stand to be in the same room. When the recording was finished, none of them could bear the burden of the final mix. So they turned the miles of tape over to producer Phil Spector. Like an Iron Chef competitor Phil chopped, diced, mixed, mastered, blended in orchestras, and folded in choirs until the original vision for an album whose name means "leave it alone" was completely obstructed.

Finally, just a few years ago Sir Paul could stomach it no more, went back to Abbey Road and remixed to the original intent. "The Long and Winding Road" and "Let It Be" are the most significant changes. Those songs sounds great now. The whole album is alive and breathes, and the new track order flows better. If you haven't heard this yet, check it out. I think you'll find it refreshing.