Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison

by N/A

Overview

A sequel to Ace's 2011 compilation Come Together: Black America Sings Lennon & McCartney, the 2016 set Let It Be: Black America Sings Lennon, McCartney and Harrison expands upon its predecessor, finding space for selections from the '80s and even the 2000s (nevertheless, most of these 22 songs are from the '60s and '70s) plus songs from George Harrison too. "Something" is indeed here, presented in an expansive, seductive 12-minute rendition from Isaac Hayes, and its presence suggests just how far-reaching Let It Be is. Hayes sits alongside Ella Fitzgerald's funky version of "Savoy Truffle," an unexpected combination of singer and song that finds its match in Nina Simone's moodily elegant "Here Comes the Sun," not to mention Little Junior Parker's slow, trippy version of "Tomorrow Never Knows." Such delights are rampant on Let It Be. Only a handful of cuts adhere to the original arrangements, but even those put a distinctive personality on the tunes: Earth, Wind & Fire funkify "Got to Get You Into My Life," Fats Domino rolls through "Lovely Rita," and Arthur Conley gives the ska of "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" some grit. More than its predecessor, Let It Be stands as a testament to both the songbook of the Beatles and the imaginative interpretations of black America. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/07/2016
Label:	Ace
UPC:	0029667077026
Rank:	48068

Tracks

1. Eleanor Rigby  - Tom Dowd  - Aretha Franklin  - Arif Mardin  - Jerry Wexler
2. Dear Prudence  - Tony Amillo  -  Five Stairsteps  - Stan Vincent
3. Got to Get You Into My Life  -  Earth  - Maurice White
4. Do You Want to Know a Secret  - Bernie Wayne  - Mary Wells
5. The Fool on the Hill  -  Four Tops  - Wade Marcus  - Lawrence Payton  - Frank [Motown] Wilson
6. Lovely Rita  - Fats Domino  - Richard Perry
7. Here Comes the Sun  - Nina Simone  - Harold Wheeler
8. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da  - Arthur Conley  - Tom Dowd
9. A World Without Love  - Clarence Paul  -  Supremes
10. Tomorrow Never Knows  - Sonny Lester  - Horace Ott  - Junior Parker
11. Don't Let Me Down  - Larry Carlton  - Randy Crawford  - Stewart Levine
12. With a Little Help from My Friends  -  Undisputed Truth  - Norman Whitfield
13. A Hard Day's Night  - Luigi Creatore  - Screamin' Jay Hawkins  - Hugo Peretti
14. She Came in Through the Bathroom Window  - Gerhard Augustin  - Ike Turner  -  Turner
15. For No One  - Richard Griffith  - Maceo Parker  -  Parker
16. It's Only Love  - Gary "U.S." Bonds  - Steven VanZandt
17. We Can Work It Out  - Mike Leech  - Chips Moman  - Dionne Warwick
18. Hey Jude  -  Temptations  - Norman Whitfield
19. In My Life  -  Boyz II Men  - Randy Jackson
20. Savoy Truffle  - Ella Fitzgerald  - Richard Perry
21. Something  - Isaac Hayes  - Dale Warren
22. Let It Be  - Booker T. Jones  - John Lennon  - Paul McCartney  - Bill Withers

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dionne Warwick   Primary Artist
Gary "U.S." Bonds   Primary Artist
Maceo & All the King's Men   Primary Artist
Arthur Conley   Primary Artist
The Five Stairsteps   Primary Artist
The Undisputed Truth   Primary Artist
Aretha Franklin   Primary Artist
The Four Tops   Primary Artist
Screamin' Jay Hawkins   Primary Artist
Randy Crawford   Primary Artist
Mary Wells   Primary Artist
Nina Simone   Primary Artist
The Supremes   Primary Artist
Junior Parker   Primary Artist
The Temptations   Primary Artist
Bill Withers   Primary Artist
Ike & Tina Turner   Primary Artist
Boyz II Men   Primary Artist
Isaac Hayes   Primary Artist
Earth, Wind & Fire   Primary Artist
Fats Domino   Primary Artist
Ella Fitzgerald   Primary Artist
Harold Wheeler   Conductor

Technical Credits

Tony Rounce   Liner Notes,Cover Photo
Dionne Warwick   Producer,Cover Photo
Maceo Parker   Producer
Richard Griffith   Arranger
Tony Amillo   Arranger
Stan Vincent   Producer
Paul Jeffrey   Package Design
Arif Mardin   Producer
Arthur Conley   Cover Photo
Steven Van Zandt   Arranger,Producer
Booker T. Jones   Arranger,Producer
Chips Moman   Producer
Randy Jackson   Producer
Aretha Franklin   Cover Photo
Tom Dowd   Producer
Paul McCartney   Composer
Sonny Lester   Producer
Bernie Wayne   Producer
Bill Withers   Cover Photo
Wade Marcus   Producer
John Lennon   Composer
Hugo Peretti   Producer
Horace Ott   Arranger
Luigi Creatore   Producer
Maurice White   Arranger,Producer
Jerry Wexler   Producer
Nina Simone   Arranger
Mike Leech   String Arrangements
Duncan Cowell   Mastering
Harold Wheeler   Arranger
Stewart Levine   Producer
Norman Whitfield   Producer
Gerhard Augustin   Producer
Frank Wilson   Producer
Dale Warren   Arranger
Ike Turner   Arranger,Producer
Boyz II Men   Producer
Isaac Hayes   Arranger,Producer
Larry Carlton   Arranger
Clarence Paul   Producer
Richard Perry   Arranger,Producer
Lawrence Payton   Producer