The news release goes on to say the McCartney is planning a DVD release of Let It Be*, with “sparse” arrangements restored.
Hmmm. I kind of like Let It Be as originally released.
Bleh. Preview should be my friend.
I’m looking forward to hearing anything that was lost. From a band that doesn’t exist anymore new stuff like this is gold.
YAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!
That was me running naked through the thread waving my hands over my head in glee. I’d have done that when I first read the story, but I was at work.
Gundy, I love your restraint. (grin)
You made me laugh. (and after spending some time reading Pit threads today, I needed a laugh.)
<curtsy>
About 15 years ago I bought a bootleg album (three vinyl records) that appeared to be tapes from the “Let it Be” sessions. Most of the songs were very rough and often incomplete and included extraneous noise (filmmaker’s edit sounds? and the like.)
Still, it’s great stuff, and I’m hoping Paul can get this re-released in an unSpectored format.
It’s great news.
This is very good news. I can’t wait to rush out and see what this is all about.
This may reignite or clear up an old controversy…
Wasn’t “Get Back” originally a far more topical song. (Some titles I’ve seen include “Commonwealth Song”, “No Pakis”, and “WHite Power”). And there were other songs that were quite rough.
All of these were anti-racist…but still out of context they could be embarassing to the Beatles’ image right?
Wonderful news! Thanks for posting it, Algernon!
Can one of you mathematical geniuses correlate how much time The Beatles spent in the studio to the amount of time they needed to sleep and the amount of time they were actually together as a band?
Hell, no wonder they got tired!
PS: I was never a fan of bootlegs. (Probably I missed a lot of good stuff, didn’t I?)
Quasi
It was meant as a jab at anti-immigrant feelings in Britain.
And yeah, out of context, it might have not played well. On the bootleg I have, you can hear Paul or John (I’m not sure) singing, “Don’t dig no Pakistanis taking all the people’s jobs.” Then they launch into “Get Back.”
Had they kept the political theme, I’m guessing the commentary would have pretty clear.
How did thieves manage to steal 500 reels of original master tapes from the Get Back sessions? Did they just back up a truck to EMI’s loading dock and fork-lift them in? Sheesh!
Do you think I could get a copy of that? (to the mods, it’s bootleg to begin with and it doesn’t look like they’d try to sell something that quality, if it’s unappropriate, sorry.)
Yes, you most certainly have.
A story in the New York Times clears up some of the initial confusion about the 500 to 550 reels of stolen audio tape recently seized:
I read the same New York Times article.
That squares with what I’m hearing on the bootleg I have. That being the case, I don’t think it’ll be very possible to clean them up enough to make “new” tracks of old songs.
They’re interesting to listen to, but they’re low quality, interrupted by comments from the film crew and each tape was only 16 minutes long, meaning some songs start or end abruptly.
Clayton, I wouldn’t have a problem with sending you a file, gratis. But, right now, I just have them on vinyl. I’m hoping to get the software, hardware to transfer them to my iMac, before I can do that. Well, and I’ve gotta get a needle for my turntable, too. Send me an e-mail and I’ll keep you posted.
Is the original Let It Be film on DVD?
Minor hijack: Did anyone else listen to “The Lost Lennon Tapes,” a weekly radio show in the late 80s, hosted by Elliot Mintz and exploiting–er, “exploring” a gazillion hours of found tape of Lennon basically goofing off in the studio?
Man, they had some great stuff; Lennon playing and singing Little Richard’s “Slippin’ and Slidin’” sticks in my mind especially. I used to tape it every week (I think it aired on Sundays, at least in Kansas City), but sadly those tapes are lost.
Perhaps someone here knows the story behind those tapes?
The four-CD John Lennon Anthology (1998) contains much material that was first heard on The Lost Lennon Tapes.