6 disc Let It Be boxed set due

The 1970 boxed set

The USA-based Beatles fan magazine «Beatlefan» has learned that Apple Corps and Capitol/Universal are planning a 6-disc “Let It Be” 50th anniversary box set, as rumored. Here is what Beatlefan wrote on their Facebook page:

Two sources familiar with the plans say the set includes a new Giles Martin remix of the “Let It Be” album; a couple of discs of rehearsals and jams from the January, 1969, Apple Studios sessions; the first Glyn Johns mix of the album from 1969; Johns’ 1970 mixes of “Across the Universe” and “I Me Mine” and new 2021 mixes of the original B-side version of “Don’t Let Me Down” and the 1970 single version of “Let It Be”; and a disc featuring Dolby Atmos/ 5.1 DTS/Hi-Res Stereo mixes.

The complete rooftop concert, which is featured in Peter Jackson’s upcoming Disney+ docuseries, is not included in the box set, which has only one live rooftop track, the sources told Beatlefan. That may have been a result of restrictions imposed by Disney. Look for the official announcement of the box set coming soon. Release is expected to be in mid-October.

Source: Facebook/Beatlefan

35 Responses

  1. Ronald Ankers says:

    Good news but……
    while the original Get Back album only had one rooftop song, the 1970 album had three and Naked had four.
    Is Giles Martin remixing 1970 or Naked?
    Two discs only from Apple session? Nothing from Twickenham?
    Surely “CD4” will have more than 4 songs?
    Disc 5 is Blu ray presumably – just of the Giles Martin new mix?
    No indication of what might be on the 6th disc.
    Will Disney release the 3 part documentary on DVD?
    Still, a release in mid-October will be appreciated. I hope the price will not be as high as for the Uber crate.

    • Its possible that Disney releases the Blu-Ray as a separated thing (DVD? Why?) to get a comission apart from the boxset, but i doubt since they don’t release DVD or BD anymore (i think). But if we don’t get the official one, there will be a lot of BD bootlegs.

    • Ian says:

      >> Nothing from Twickenham?

      It’s important to remember that nothing was properly recorded at Twickenham. All that anyone has is the material captured by the Nagra reel-to-reel recorders, one allocated to each camera. Which is why the John Barrett notes have a gap from 29 October ’68 through to 22 January ’69.

      • JOSE RENATO says:

        Perfect. Reaaly!!!!

        • Ronald Ankers says:

          I want an expansion to the Fly On The Wall included with Let It Be Naked. Many of the songs ending up on various albums were developed at Twickenham. Not just Let It Be. Before Maxwell’s Silver Hammer appeared on Abbey Road it was rehearsed many times at Twickenham. The same applies to All Things Must Pass before George recorded it for his triple album.

  2. seanroper13 says:

    I’m not worried about the Rooftop concert not being included. It’ll be in circulation after the film comes out, it’s safe to assume.

  3. absinthe says:

    It’s been my life’s dream to hear “Dig It” in 5.1.

  4. Fiendish Thingy says:

    Disappointed to see nothing from Twickenham sessions to be included, only Apple sessions from January 69

  5. nateboy2 says:

    Here’s my guess:
    Disc 1: Let It Be 1970 album remixed
    Disc 2: Glynn Johns original album (probably 3rd version) with additional remixes of Let It Be and Don’t Let Me Down singles added to the end.
    Disc 3: Let It Be Naked remaster with “fly on the wall” added to that same disc
    Discs 4&5: Outtakes from Apple sessions
    Disc 6: Surround Sound Blu-Ray of 1970 Let It Be Album

  6. Gaaaa gaaaà says:

    This is why I protested against Disney having anything to do with this. Why Paul and Ringo let Mickey and company get involved with this was a mistake. We would’ve been able to see something in the theater next but noooooooo. We have to wait for Thanksgiving.

  7. Gogs says:

    Fuck Disney.

  8. Mr LAURENCE M SHINE says:

    Will the beatles get back disney + 3 part film eventualy be released on dvd

  9. James Peet says:

    I have read this post and it’s left me underwhelmed, or, rather, the information presented here. I hope that there is more than this when the box set is released.

    I appreciate that the Twickenham sessions were not multitrack recordings, with every instrument and vocals properly recorded. However, it seems like these pre-Apple Studios sessions have been slightly airbrushed out of this release, where there is fascinating music recorded, which allows the listener to hear the Beatles work on a song from nearly scratch. It might have been interesting to include some of the very best recordings from Twickenham. We will get the 21st Century technology treated tracks and maybe near-offline recordings in mono is a step too far in terms of sound quality, but this is an archival project, or is being compiled as such, one hopes. The Beatles’ reputation is hardly going to be at risk if they pop a few of these session songs onto this package, or even as a separate release.

    I see in the George ATMP releases that we are now at the Uber Super Deluxe stage. I think the whole thing’s a bit silly, to badly quote Monty Python. I know they have to give names to mark each version, but where will this end? Super Duper Uber Duber Super Deluxe?

  10. rick says:

    And will Disney be selling these also? And the only place you’ll be able to buy it is through them

  11. Shad Radna says:

    Presumably the Atmos signal is silent for much of the album.

  12. Marc G. McHugh says:

    Let Ot Be LPwas weak to begin with and will remain as such. Not much can save the fact that the songs were weak and the band had had it. Of course, they’re trying to rewrote history and say that wasn’t true and that we were still best buddies. Sorry .
    . It was all properly reported when it was happening. I don’t need a rewrite of history 50 years later especially when two of the members who would have told the truth are dead..

    • William Campbell says:

      Weak? You mean it was only 4½ stars out of 5, compared to their other albums which were 5 out of 5 stars? The Let It Be LP contained three number one songs on it. Care to name me one Rolling Stones album with three number ones? I guess that automatically means that ALL Rolling Stones albums are even weaker (which they are). And The Rolling Stones had many, many, many more years to try. They’ve only been releasing live albums or vault releases because no one is interested in new studio material.

      Aren’t you the same poster that said previously The Beatles were saving all of their best songs for their solo albums, instead of for Let It Be? Ever heard of Abbey Road, the band’s best selling album that was recorded AFTER Let It Be? Probably not, because you haven’t a clue what you’re talking about.

      Stick to Rolling Stones web sites.

    • Ken Michaels says:

      No doubt we’re going to be hearing “revisionism” and “rewriting history” until we’re blue in the face. This comes from fans who have been fed the same narrative for 50+ years about Beatles history, as if there’s nothing new to learn anymore. Is it possible the original “Let It Be” album was very one-sided, and didn’t present a full picture of what the band was going through? Even Michael Lindsay-Hogg wasn’t happy with the finished product. If we actually see the band happy working together, and it’s on camera, is that revisionism? We need to have a proper balance so that fans won’t think it was all misery at the time. I think the Beatles themselves, who are human like the rest of us, have selective memories, and believed that the “Let It Be” film was how it really was, without remembering the fun they had, especially at Apple Studios. Like anything, the more information you take in, the more accurate a picture you’ll get. Unless we all witness the 55 hours (?) of film footage that exists, we’ll only get part of the story, but at least it’s more of the story, and I’m all for that.

    • Shad Radna says:

      It’s worth noting that the resistance to releasing the original cut of the movie has apparently consistently come from the estates of those two members who never told a lie in their lives. McCartney may have been the driving force behind the de-Spector-ed album, but he was happy for (and wanted) the original film to be made available.

  13. JL...not that one says:

    All 55 hours in Blu-ray and let it go where it goes….No.1 without a doubt….happy listening to all out there!!!!

    • Steve says:

      Great Idea. Wouldn’t be cool to have full access like Peter Jackson ? By my count about 6 BD dual layer double sided in SD format. Look on the bright side. We are going to get almost 6 all new hours of video in November. PJ stated that he would try to use alternate angles or shots of overlapping material.

      • Ronald Ankers says:

        The few people who subscribe to the Disney Channel will get 6 hours. There has been no indication whatsoever yet that a DVD or Blu-ray will be released. Any such release will be divorced entirely from the release of any box set, it appears, from the puzzling indication that no songs from the rooftop will be in the box set. What about “the Apple performances” from 31 January? Wait and see.

  14. Paul says:

    When the official announcement and track list is revealed, do we expect a similar advance track rollout as the Abbey Road Anniversary Edition got? There were three versions of “Something” available that day. I don’t know what song it will be for the Let it Be Anniversary Edition, but I am guessing a three-pack with Giles remix, Glyn Johns original mix and a session take. Maybe “The Long and Winding Road?”

  15. John Romanello says:

    It’s a drag man.

  16. Blakey says:

    If Universal distribute Apple and EMI products anyway, then why didn’t Apple get UMG or Universal Pictures to distribute Peter Jackson’s film? Surely Universal are big enough for that? I bet Disney offered Apple the most money, but Disney do not have a good reputation and the rights to Jackson’s work could be very messy in the years to come. While the Stones have released two deluxe reissues in the space of a year (Goats Head Soup and the imminent Tattoo You, also on UMG). Apple have dragged their feet over Let It Be because Disney have delayed things. Apple Records capitulating to Apple Mac was bad enough, but now they are being dictated to by Disney? Didn’t getting involved with ABKCO teach them anything? I wonder if George Harrison would have been happy about working for Disney?

    I am looking forward to the box set though. I hope they use the red apple label for it too.

  17. peter chrisp says:

    Just got the details & track listing on my twitter account 6 discs 5 cd’s & a bluray in 5.1

  18. Ronald Ankers says:

    Leaving aside whether you like Phil Spector’s overdubs or not, I think Let It Be Naked doesn’t have a weak song on the album. Don’t Let Me Down is a great song. I also think if Across The Universe had been released as a single rather than Lady Madonna, that would have got to number one as well. It didn’t need overdubs as Glyn Johns’ mix and other takes on Anthology 2 and the White Album box sets have proved. The Abbey Road medley may go well together, but a large part of that album is still a collection of half-finished songs. It is interesting to see several of the early versions of songs which would eventually appear on Abbey Road are to be featured on Disc 2 of the box set. They do not however include Maxwell’s Silver Hammer. Could the song have been vetoed by Yoko, Olivia and Ringo?!!!

    • Ken Michaels says:

      Regarding Ronald Ankers comments above, sure I love Let It Be Naked because those are great songs period. But too often today people don’t have respect for the fact that part of the reason the original Let It Be album was successful was because of the production. As much as I love “The Long And Winding Road,” it would never have been a #1 hit in the U.S. if it had come out as just the band arrangement (on Anthology.) And you shouldn’t assume all the Beatles singles would have hit #1. Contrary to what Ronald wrote, “Lady Madonna” was not a #1 in the U.S.–but it was in the U.K. Same thing with “The Ballad Of John and Yoko.” To assume that “Across The Universe” would have been a #1 hit without Phil Spector’s production is foolish. Just because the barer versions sound great to us today doesn’t mean the public would have responded favorably when it was release in 1970. The Glyn Johns’ mix and Let It Be Naked would likely not have performed as well on the charts back then. And as for the comment about the Abbey Road medley, the only thing that matters is the end product. The songs worked seamlessly with each other as though it really was one long piece, and was a work of art. If you only think of them as half-finished songs, you might as well think that way about “Happiness Is A Warm Gun,” which was made up of four song fragments strung together, and yet it works as a cohesive piece of work.

      • Ronald Ankers says:

        I have always liked the original Let It Be LP. I had doubts about Let It Be Naked, but think Don’t Let Me Down should not have been left off the original album. It would have been better still with Phil Spector’s mix of Teddy Boy. In other words, I didn’t think Maggie Mae or the severely truncated Dig It should have been included. A longer version of Dig It can’t fail to be an improvement. John C Winn’s Lifting Latches gives two versions of Glyn Johns’ original lineup, with differing lengths of Dig It – 5:06 or 3:58. As far as singles are concerned, The Long And Winding Road was never released as a single in the U.K. Nor was Eight Days A Week and a few others of course. The Beatles’ last number one in U.K. was The Ballad of John And Yoko. I believe the reason it didn’t do as well in USA was it wasn’t played by disc jockeys there. All the charts in the U.K. (except one) recognised Please Please Me as their first number one single. A sad example of history being rewritten. As for Across The Universe, I certainly agree that the first released version, on the World Wildlife Fund benefit LP, would never have reached number one. Phil Spector’s version is much better. The Abbey Road medley does work. I still can’t help but wonder whether Her Majesty would have been better placed in the medley, rather than preventing “The End” from actually being The End on that album.

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