Daddy Dee Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Anybody else heard the re-release of Let It Be... only this time w/o the orchestra. I'd heard a review on NPR which wasn't especially kind to the new release, but then I got curious. Listened to it this morning and enjoyed it more than the original. It is less slick and polished, but more satisfying, earthy and real. When Let It Be was produced, the Beatles had already broken up and the spiffing up was done to "improve" the tapes. On this release, the piano, organ, synth and guitars are all more pronounced and pure sounding. Sounds like the fab four has set up to jam in your living room. Refreshing. Put it on your Christmas list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Yeah, ole Phil Spector released his WALL OF SOUND magic on that original recording bringing that larger than life grand aspect. Many of the Beatles were disinchanted with a big guess as to who the least happy was: MY guess is John, who was always the more "grit and real" side of the equation. He had the best tone and most compelling ideas. Paul was talented but too sweet. I have heard about three cuts off this via that very same NPR review. To be honest, I had to agree on the negative take with the paul parts which suddenly sounded even more like Beatles-Lite. But I agree that simple is better about 95% of the time. I am curious as to the rest. I am sure the Lennon numbers benefitted by a less Spector-esque glint. HE was ALWAYS his best when the MOST RAW. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 My complaint with the release is the engineers went overboard on removing hiss. I am firmly in the camp of never removing any hiss. Cutting hiss always has a detrimental effect on the music that remains. And we're not talking about a noisy multiple generation cassette here anyway. There is just no sane reason to worry about removing the slight hiss present on a professional master open reel tape. As for the album, I still prefer Kum Back, the bootleg from 1969. The songs just aren't up to the usual superb Beatles quality. They're very good for the most part but not great. Only so much can be done with the material and performances. Even so, I bought it the first day it came out and have no regrets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 If anyone is interested in an AMAZING Lennon release that sounds absolutely extremely real and upfront then look to his immediate release around breakup. The recording is simple, raw, up front, with biting tone galore. Ringo provides some excellent back beat here as well. Ironically, Phil Spector did work on this but left out his trademark take and the recording is all the better for it. Lennon's work gets diluted when you add anything. At his raw best, there was no one like him. How much Yoko was really involved here is debatable. Klas Voormann added his take on bass. The GREAT Billy Preston some on the organ. Ringo AND Allan White on Drums. But Lennon played many an instrument on this as well. You need to seek out the original vinyl of: JOHN LENNON: PLASTIC ONO BAND the original vinyl is without name on front like below This sounds like it is about to bust through your HORNS when given some volume via vinyl and tubes. Not a lot of room sound but you sure wont get any more RAW and CLOSE sounding a recording. Play MOTHER and dont skimp on the volume. Ringo's drumming sounds so up front, it's almost scary. John's tone is as good as it gets. I found out will surely open you eyes. From Working Class Hero to LOVE, there isnt much on here that rates poor. It will be a bit much for some, especially those that fall into the Paul camp. But it's John at his most raw. I personally think it sounds castrated via digital but if it's all you have, go for it. kh ps - I dont have "Kum Back" Wish I did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Just returned home to see no one responded here. I am just hoping that: A. Everyone has this and think the post passe B. People might get it but didnt write C. IT's the Klipsch Forum and most dont listen to music... heh. Still surprized no one commented here; if one DOES have this album, it usually brings several comments since it stands out one way or another. It's definitely not background music. Paul, do you have this vinyl? kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheltie dave Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Kelly, Paul and George are my favorites. With the Beatles, you are always wrong most of the time, so I stopped discussing most aspects years ago. It was really great to see Ringo's technique improve over the years. A little bit of trivia - of the two drummers featured on John's first solo LP, which one recorded nary a lick on the Beatles first two albums due to inability to stay in the pocket? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 ---------------- On 12/4/2003 4:57:45 PM mobile homeless wrote: Paul, do you have this vinyl? ---------------- Sure do. I bought it the day it came out, when I was all of 10. Then I ordered the UK version since they were better pressings, and a generation better mastertape. I could tell even on my fold-up and close all in one record player/amp/detachable speakers. I bought all the Beatles UK records back then, at the rate of one LP a week from Records Ltd in California, $4.49 plus 50 cents postage, if I recall. Used lawn mowing money to pay for them. Those were the days. The British John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band did not include the lyric sheet built in to both sides of the paper sleeve inside, because EMI wouldn't allow it. This is definitely solo John at his best. Here is the UK label from my own 1970 copy, which I've kept all these years, amazingly enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Great shot! I miss the cat in it, however. Do you still play your older records these days? I dont even know what kind of turntable you have or use. I have my original Beatles records as well. Add to that, I have the ones my brothers got since they are quite a bit older and have now gone CD/SACD/DVD. So I have some cool vinyl that STILL sounds great (this isnt counting my Dad's stuff). There was an amazing life to the early Beatles mono stuff that is NO WHERE near as good in the later releases. And this stuff on CD just doesnt get it to me. You throw that Lennon on anymore? kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I'll agree in spirit with some the above. When the band split up, it seems like Lennon was too raw and almost arrogant. McCartey was too sacharine though very polished. It makes me think that the Beatles as a group worked because Lennon and McCartney combined the best of both. Some tempering without great compromise. There is a compilation which has what may a demo of John doing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." It is more blues than the Clapton-esque electric blues / rock. It shows the man's talent very well and by some standards is better than the more popular version. Sadness from vision, which is the theme of the song. Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I too have the original Lennon album..I was in Anchorage in the 9th grade, 1970 when it came out..a brave FM station was going to play it in it's entirety, without reviewing it first. In those days, anything did NOT go! Ha..I remember hearing them playing "I Found Out" and when the profanity appeared..they just ignored it..however when "Working Class Hero" came on..they caught "but you're so f***ing crazy etc" and they stopped it right then and there and said they'd have to review it! I (being a huge Beatles fan) was definitely intrigued, although saddened by the groups demise..I had to run out and buy Plastic Ono Band.. I agree, it is Lennon's finest work. I'll probably have to buy "Let it Be Naked" just to have them all..like the Anthology collection.. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwatkins Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 As to Lennon's finest, I can't say. Still have the album (I was a bit past the 9th grade when I bought it though), but was played on too many not so good turntables. It was very nice and my favorite of the first post break up single albums. A tad like John himself, trying very hard to make a point - but otherwise very mch to my liking (so much so that it is worn out for all practical purposes). Quite interestingly, and in a Spector sort of way, over the next ten years - George made the music I liked best. To each his own... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwatkins Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 BTW - Let it Be Naked - not bad folks. Not quite the gritty backdoor recordings of BB King, but an interesting look at how the sound was concieved. After a few more listens I may find that I really like it. As to no hiss - try not to think about it and see if it matters to you. I quite simply didn't until it was mentioned here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobile homeless Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 While My Guitar Gently Weeps is actually George Harrison's song... It's hard to believe it's only Ringo and Paul left sometimes. That alone doesnt seem real. kh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I still listen to the Beatles frequently. Some of my first purchases of the old LPs have disappeared or been damaged. I bought a nearly-new set of Parlophone pressings in the blue box set on eBay with a BuyItNow at a steal of $75. Vinyl is the way to go with the Beatles, definitely. Although I admit some of that is probably nostalgia. Popping in a CD doesn't compare to seeing the Apple label spinning around on a turntable, and all the Beatles covers were conceived as 12-inch artworks. They look pretty dumb when shrunk down to 5 inches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerbache Posted December 5, 2003 Share Posted December 5, 2003 I'm afraid a lot of stuff released before the rise of CDs looks pretty lousy when shrunk down. That's half the fun of collecting vinyl, if you ask me. There's just something to watching the needle drop and sitting down listening to an album while holding on to the artwork, which always seems a lot more artistic due to the sheer size they had to work with in those days. As for Let It Be Naked, I have to admit that the one time I listened to it, I spent most of the time just thinking how different it sounds without all the orchestral stuff! I can't honestly say I've heard it enough to really pass judgement, but I must say that it sounded more like the other Beatles stuff to me. I thought they did a good job with it, although I wished that it would come out on SACD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strabo Posted December 5, 2003 Share Posted December 5, 2003 ---------------- On 12/4/2003 12:10:55 PM paulparrot wrote: I am firmly in the camp of never removing any hiss. Cutting hiss always has a detrimental effect on the music that remains. ---------------- I agree 100%. I haven't picked this up yet and it has moved it way down my list of wants after reading the many reviews mentioning the NR problem. I may be accused of not being able to see the forest through the trees, but there is so much good music out there I have no desire to spend money on processed lifeless sound. Why can't they leave it alone? Instead they have to suck the life out of it so that beboppers can think it's great when when listening on their MP3s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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