Since both John Lennon and George Harrison had passed on by 2003, Paul McCartney decided to re-release The Beatles album Let It Be as a pseudo-remix project. In fact, the final version of Let It Be that was released in 1970 was essentially a remix of this version, which was originally intended to be the release. The Beatles at the time thought that Let It Be sounded too awful on its own back in 1969 and released Abbey Road first before Let It Be finally arrived in 1970. However, years later, Paul especially felt in retrospect that Phil Spector had ruined certain pieces on the album, which was possibly the result of a big grudge against Phil Spector. There are some significant differences musically between the two album versions and therefore, for this reason, this needs to be covered here in a review to hear the major differences between the two albums. This version of the album was released to mixed reviews globally. Despite that, we shall listen to this release and hear what these versions of Let It Be songs sound like. Even the track order here is different.

Get Back – Naked Version launches right into the classic jam by The Beatles, ignoring the studio chatter at the start of the Let It Be version. It sounds rawer, more Rocking and Paul McCartney’s vocal is high and clear in the mix. George Harrison’s lead guitars and John Lennon’s rhythm guitars sound fantastic here, not smothered by the mix. A wonderful and simple listening experience by The Beatles, this is a stripped-down and no-nonsense version of Get Back. Nonetheless, this is still a great listening experience. Truly joyful and wonderful to listen to, The Beatles could certainly make lovable music. Neat, only two and a half minutes long, and it fades out quickly without the outro on the original album.

Dig A Pony – Naked Version begins going straight into a guitar heavy jam with punchy guitars and drums, and John Lennon’s voice sounds really great here. This sounds stripped back, just like the previous song. This isn’t outright bad like other albums out there are essentially remix projects, it works surprisingly well. An enjoyable and lovely tune. The question of whether or not this is as good as the original is up for debate, really. Either version works extremely well in its own way. The playing and performance on this album are very smooth and lovely. A good guitar solo is present in the second half. In fact, this specific album is a response to the fact that The Beatles made albums such as Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band primarily in the studio. Regardless, another excellent listen and The Beatles were no Milli Vanilli in either version of Let It Be. A really awesome listen, through and through. Euphoric to hear. It ends with the jam finishing up. A rewarding listening experience.

For You Blue – Naked Version launches right into it with nicely played acoustic guitar, and sounds excellent here. George Harrison sings beautifully here, and although there is less studio production on songs such as these, it is closer to Punk music than anything The Beatles had recorded prior to this. The slide guitar solo is very pleasant to listen to, although the original was slightly better than this listen. A fun listen, no matter whatever version you hear. Enough to get your head banging away to this marvellous tune, this is undoubtedly awesome. Fantastic to hear, any time.

The Long And Winding Road – Naked Version sounds trashy from the start. It removes the orchestration and gospel vocals and sounds rawer, but less interesting and lacking some interesting sounds as a result. Regardless, this is still good but not as magical as the original. Still, if you love Paul McCartney’s singing and piano playing, this may be perfect for you. Still, this is fairly lacking and it makes perfect sense why the group sought out Phil Spector to produce this in the first place. Sure, the sounds are clearer and more powerful, but the piece lacks the original and anthemic vibe to it. In any case, the talent of The Beatles can be clearly heard here and the whole thing is still moving, surprisingly. There is a keyboard solo here, followed by Paul’s clear singing and piano playing to lead this song to its logical conclusion. A great song, overdubs or not.

Two Of Us – Naked Version cuts out the intro and just has dual acoustic guitars and singing from John and Paul respectively here. It sounds a little different, once again. Still, this is another pure and joyous tune to hear from The Beatles and Ringo’s drum beat in the background matches this tune perfectly as well. An exciting and pretty listening experience, this sure is a great listening experience here. A pleasant tune to hear about the British lifestyle that these guys were used to, this still retains the brilliance and energy that The Beatles created throughout their career. Another pure and nice listening experience on this album. The outro cuts out some of the drum fills, whilst retaining the cheerful outro. Excellent, even with the needless editing.

I’ve Got A Feeling – Naked Version sounds less dramatic and exciting from the start. The original mix here sounds not as good as the 1970 Let It Be album mix. Soon enough, this tune gets going and it really does sound like The Beatles music is good, but the stripped-down production kind of kills the vibe here. Still, Paul McCartney sings wonderfully and tremendously here and delivers a proto-AC/DC wail throughout. The Beatles were such a huge and awesome part of the music scene for many years that any errors musically are largely forgivable. Case in point with Let It Be…Naked. John Lennon’s vocals remind us that he is gone, but not forgotten in the world of music. A very joyous and interesting listen from start to finish, although the mix of vocals towards the end is quite cluttered. Good to hear, although the original version is much better than the Naked version.

One After 909 – Naked Version begins with a short intro and sounds less dramatic and nicely produced than the regular version of this song. However, John and Paul sing well here and sound great together as a musical duo. This again sounds really awesome and wonderfully played by the group. Undoubtedly, some will prefer this batch of tunes to the original Let It Be album. However, these songs do not sound as good as the original versions do. Nonetheless, this is a really enjoyable listen throughout. The guitar solo present in this tune is really upbeat, well-played and joyous. A powerful and great listen, and this tune still sounds better than expected. Short and sweet.

Don’t Let Me Down – Naked Version is an extra track here that was originally not on the 1970 Let It Be. It sounds poorly mixed from the start, and therefore, falls flat a little bit. John Lennon sings well here, and this sounds really quite different to the version on compilations. Still, a better mix job could have helped this song sound a lot better in hindsight. There is an interesting additional section that was edited out on other releases that sounds really awesome. Let It Be…Naked is a bit of a failure musically from The Beatles, despite its good intentions. A good listening experience, but it lacks the right mixing and production. The outro is very nice, however. It’s okay but not phenomenal.

I Me Mine – Naked Version begins with organ, strummed acoustic guitar and electric guitar leads, with George Harrison singing sweetly and nicely here. This sounds a bit different to the album version, with some different mixing to it. It quickly launches into the pounding and excellent fast-paced section that is gloriously amazing. This is a better example of how the stripped-back mixing changed the songs on this album. Even so, this is a joyous and upbeat listen, 100% of the way. A great and awesome fun piece of music to play on almost any occasion, this simply works. It ends too quickly though, which is disappointing. This is less than two and a half minutes long.

Across The Universe – Naked Version is played at a different speed than the final 1970 version. John Lennon sings in a heartfelt and expressive way, although this lacks the orchestra and choirs that Phil Spector put onto this tune later on. All in all, a really good listen, but this again sounds a little lacking. Some Sitar enters in the second set of verses, which weren’t on the final 1970 product. This does make it sound a bit quirky and different than you’d expect. A good listen, but best left for re-releases as an extra track rather than on this album. Still, John Lennon sounds very listenable in this song, and this sounds very pleasant as well singing. A refreshing listen, but not as enjoyable as the original, for the most part. The swirling Sitars and ghostly outro are very Psychedelic to hear. Nice.

Let It Be – Naked Version begins with the memorable piano by Paul McCartney and his awesome singing sounds pretty and pleasant. It is proof that, on its own, The Beatles were an undeniably amazing musical unit and force to hear. There are some backing vocals present, but again, lacking Phil Spector’s wall-of-sound treatment. Again, this is good but not as stunning as that final product in 1970. Still, this music has the ability to win people over, even if this album isn’t as good as it could be, mixing and production wise. It is a very lovely listen with organs and guitar that are prominent throughout here. A joyous listening experience all in all, and even if you aren’t expecting much with the stripped back production, this is memorable music. The drum section in the second half is different, and this tune sounds really tuneful and amazing. A fine listen, but it lacks proper production and mixing. Paul McCartney does sound really good here, however.

This is a slight disappointment as an album for the most part. There is a statement in the English language: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. This makes perfect sense on this album. The 1970 version had more layers of sounds and production that fixed a poor listen. This is obviously Paul McCartney in ego overdrive, not remembering why these ‘Naked’ songs were remixed by Phil Spector at the request of the group. Therefore, this is a failure in that aspect. Should you hear this album? This is a good listen but ensure you hear the 1970 Let It Be album first. That is a better listen.

Slightly disappointing, but then again, what did you expect?

7/10