The Beatles - Get Back (1969)

The Beatles' infamous Get Back sessions ended on January 31st. After a whole month of rehearsals and recording, more than 150 hours of audio and video, more than 400 different songs being played, and the band's first live performance in almost three years, the sessions came to an end with a final day of recording at the basement of Apple Studios. With that, the band was left with the question: what to do with this material? They had already released the "Get Back" b/w "Don't Let Me Down" single, but their own lack of interest in the sessions made it hard for them to decide what to do. By April 1969, it was decided that engineer Glyn Johns, who had overseen the whole thirty days of sessions, would be the one to assemble the album. He came up with a "fly on the wall" approach to the album, using it almost as a portrayal of the band's recording and songwriting process, essentially deconstructing the album into an audio documentary. He had first tried this concept while the sessions were still ongoing, and the band decided to let him try it once again with the full sessions at his disposal. He was left all alone at Olympic Studios with the monumental task of reviewing 150 hours of tape and creating an album out of it. By the following month, he was done with it, and submitted his initial Get Back mix to the band for approval. A cover for the album was shot, liner notes were written, and it seemed that by July 1969 the album would be hitting record stores all over the world.

However, those plans were soon ground to a halt. The LP was delayed because the band wasn't satisfied at all with his mix, considering the album a very unflattering portrayal of the band at times. There was some doubtful song selection, with many superior takes being left in the can for some that weren't release-worthy or even complete, the inclusion of a horrible version of "Teddy Boy" which was played for laughs by Lennon, who later nicknamed Johns' version of the album "the Beatles with their pants down". With all of that, the album was rejected and they were back at square one. And because the documentary had been delayed until early next year, the project was put on hold for the foreseeable future, with the Beatles busying themselves by recording Abbey Road for the time being and seemingly forgetting about the whole Get Back project for now. By January 1970, a rough cut of the movie was finally available and Johns tried again, removing "Teddy Boy" and subbing in two new songs that had been featured in the movie: "Across the Universe" and "I Me Mine". However the main flaws with his original version remained, and it was once again rejected because of its sub-par choices of performance, which remained the same since May. By April 1970, producer Phil Spector, who had already worked with Lennon, was infamously brought in, proceeding to overproduce the album (but mostly choose the right takes), infuriate McCartney, and put the final nail in the Beatles' coffin.

With all of that out of the way, the main question of today's reconstruction is: What if we could improve on the 1969 Get Back concept, using Glyn's mix as a guideline? The rules are as follows: the general structure and tracklist of Johns' album is maintained, with all of the between-song chatter and informal jams kept, as they give his mix the loose, spontaneous, and fun vibe we're looking for. We will try to only use material dating from the December 1968/January 1969 period, writing-wise (with "One After 909" the obvious exception), meaning we'll be avoiding earlier songs such as "Across the Universe" or "Teddy Boy". I took that measure to ensure this album remains consistent and older songs that the band tried to rehash during the sessions don't get thrown in with the actual Get Back material. That might lead to some controversial song choices further down the road too, which will be explained in time. We will also adhere strictly to the "no overdubs!" rule if the songs come from the January 1969 sessions, with only editing and comping of takes being accepted. All we have to do is replace the songs that don't fit in with our restraints with ones that do, and switch out some of the sub-par takes Johns selected with the superior versions, creating a hybrid Johns version of some sort, the album that he should have compiled instead of the one that he did compile, which hopefully would have been approved by the band. With that out of the way, here's what the album looks like:

One After 909 (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)
I'm Ready/Save the Last Dance for Me (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)
Don't Let Me Down (Original Single Version)
Dig a Pony (The Rooftop Performance)

I've Got a Feeling (The Rooftop Performance)

I Me Mine (1970 Glyn Johns Mix)

Get Back (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)

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For You Blue (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)
Two of Us (Let it Be... Naked)

Maggie Mae (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)

Dig It (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)

Let it Be (Take 28)

Oh My Love (Raw Studio Mix)

The Long and Winding Road (Let it Be... Naked)

Get Back [Reprise] (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)

Bonus tracks:
Teddy Boy (1969 Glyn Johns Mix)

Across the Universe (1970 Glyn Johns Mix)

Download link:
The Beatles - Get Back (1969)

Starkey, McCartney, Harrison, Lennon, and Ono in January 1969.

Starting off with side one, the title track "Get Back" and the oldie "One After 909" are maintained as is, as Glyn used the correct versions of both songs, the single version from the 27th and the rooftop take, respectively. The spontaneous jam of 50s oldies "I'm Ready"/"Save the Last Dance for Me", recorded on January 22, is also kept, as it adds a sense of spontaneity to side one. But aside from those three, side one will need a whole lot of changes going forward. We'll start by editing in the single version of "Don't Let Me Down", recorded on the 28th, which we'll use instead of the sluggish take from the 22nd used on the Johns mix. Also included is the unedited rooftop take of "Dig a Pony" with the full "All I want is you" intro not found on any album versions, on the spot of another subpar take from the 22nd of January. Up next is the superior take one of "I've Got a Feeling" found on the complete Rooftop Concert release. It replaces a take that wasn't even complete and broke down during the song's final section, again from the 22nd. Our final addition actually comes from the 1970 Johns mix, his own mix of "I Me Mine", lodged in right before the "Get Back" single. I decided on that as five-and-a-half songs is too little for a side, and Glyn's original side two was much longer than side one, anyway. It's also, due to the way it was recorded after the fact, the only song on the album to feature overdubs, but since the song was written and rehearsed in January 1969, I couldn't help but include it.

As with side one, side two starts with a song we won't need to change: the master take of "For You Blue" from the 25th, minus the overdubbed lead vocal recorded in January 1970. There's also nothing wrong with Glyn's mix of the "Maggie Mae" cover snippet, the four-minute long "Dig It" jam, or the "Get Back" reprise, which might not be the greatest thing in the world but add to the ambiance of the album. However, some changes and a bit of lateral logic will be required going forward. The first few changes are rather easy, replacing the mediocre take of "Two of Us" from the 24th Johns chose with the correct take from the 31st, used by both Spector and the Let it Be... Naked project. Take 28 of "Let it Be" from the 31st, as seen in the original movie, replaces the overdub-ridden single and album versions. The same goes for "The Long and Winding Road", with the take from the 31st used in the movie being edited in. Finally, with both "Teddy Boy" and "Across the Universe" ruled out, and no real Lennon lead vocals on side two, I made the controversial choice of including his solo song "Oh My Love", in between the album's two big ballads. Mostly written at the same time as "Don't Let Me Down" and "Everybody Had a Hard Year" in December 1968, it was inexplicably not worked on during the Get Back sessions, despite the dearth of material John had back then. Considering we have a live-in-the-studio take of it available, and it features George on guitar, it fits in the album like a glove.

Clocking in at a fair 44 minutes with two 22-minute sides, our version of Get Back manages to walk a middle ground between the overproduced, slick, and sometimes even distasteful Let it Be and the undercooked, raw, and spontaneous Glyn Johns mix, providing us with a more accurate portrayal of the sessions than the both of them. This hypothetical album, had it been released a month after the "Get Back" b/w "Don't Let Me Down" single in May 1969, would have certainly been well received, seen as the roots rock fad had been in full swing ever since the release of The Band's Music from Big Pink the previous year. Does it reach the same heights as the White Album or Abbey Road? Most certainly not, but when reviewing the circumstances (write, rehearse, and record an album live in a single month), it's a wonder that they even managed to make something decent, not to mention a really good LP like this one. Considering a single off the album had already been released, I don't think they'd release another one, with the "The Ballad of John and Yoko" b/w "Old Brown Shoe" single still serving as the follow-up to "Get Back" in mid-1969. The cover is the usual photo taken in May 1969 by Angus McBean, as there really isn't any alternative to it. It would've been great to have a version of the album that both faithfully adheres to the main principles of the album and presents the material with quality, ensuring we have the best document possible of the Beatles getting back to their roots.

Sources:
- The Beatles - Let it Be: Special Edition

- The Beatles - Let it Be... Naked

- The Beatles - The Rooftop Performance

- John Lennon - Imagine: Ultimate Collection