Extra Credit Opportunity 2- "The Beatles Get Back to Their Roots" by Switched on Pop

For this extra credit opportunity, I decided to listen to Switched on Pop's podcast episode from last year that's titled, "The Beatles Get Back to their Roots." This song begins with a brief review of their beginnings. The Beatles started as a live band and they would play in clubs in Hamburg, Germany. It was shocking to hear the recording of one of their club performances after listening to their most popular songs during lecture because it sounded like garage rock. It was so raw, unrefined, and unpolished, but you could immediately recognize the singers. It was quite the stark contrast to the song we heard in lecture that had been refined by studio effects. The hosts then proceeded to discuss the counterculture and psychedelia that is so distinctive and noticeable in their songs from the experimentation they did in all of their songs. As turmoil began to rise after their counterculture songs became popular, Paul McCartney decided that the band needed to get back in touch with their roots by playing live again. So, in 1959, they did a live rooftop concert recorded on top of Apple Studios. The hosts later proceed to discuss the various versions of "Let It Be" that were released. It firstly was released by Glenn John, and The Beatles actually rejected his version because it didn't have the live quality that they were striving for to get back in touch with their roots. For the next release, The Beatles went to Phil Spector to add a bunch of orchestration. Lastly, in 2003, the remaining members of the band released a record called "Let it Be: Naked," which removed all of the added orchestration by Phil Spector in order to return it to the original intent of Glenn John. To conclude their podcast, the hosts proceeded to discuss the purpose behind the multiple versions of "Let it Be" that we produced. They determine that the reason behind this is that this song is a work in progress; there is no definitive version. There is only the version that each person most connects with, which gives this song it's popularity. Each person can choose a version that they love, and different versions can fit different people and situations. This gives the song a remarkable versatility that grants it its ubiquity. It can be played at funerals or with friends. It is a truly versatile song that is omnipresent and deservedly so.

Citation:

Harding, C. and Sloan, N., "The Beatles Get Back to their Roots." Switched on Pop, Nov. 2021. https://switchedonpop.com/episodes/the-beatles-get-back-let-it-be